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It’s a tough world out there. Girls face the threat of violence, assault, kidnapping and sex trafficking. They face encounters every day with bullying, cliques, cyber-bullying and more. No wonder self-confidence is low and anxiety is at an all-time high. And we haven’t even hit on mental health and the negative effects of the internet and social media. It’s time for online self-defense from The Great Flip online self-defense, safety and faith-filled empowerment for girls age six and up.

I believe martial arts can play a positive role in a girl’s life. It is a valuable life skill available to our daughters. And I believe Brazilian jiu-jitsu can play a role to improve the physical, emotional and spiritual well-being of girls. But sometimes going to a gym is unavailable or the teaching style is not geared toward girls.

And when I say “girl” I mean girls as young as six years old and up. Most parents wait until high school or college to expose their daughter to self-defense skills. But the time to begin teaching self-defense is when they are young.

I wish I had exposed my two daughters to martial arts and self-defense training at a younger age. When we finally went to a martial arts gym, we were overwhelmed by the physical location, the physical touch, physical fitness challenge. We pushed through these fear factors, but my daughters did not enjoy the experience. They were teenagers and did not appreciate the physical touch. Imagine the anxiety a girl might feel who has already experienced physical abuse or worse. I decided there had to be a better way to introduce girls to self-defense. So I did.

The Solution. The Great Flip.

The Great Flip offers girls a safe place, safe touch and a safe training approach to self-defense training. The Great Flip is an introduction to self-defense inspired by the martial art called Brazilian jiu-jitsu. My training features real-life safety tips and faith-filled empowerment.

Hi friends, I’m Coach Jody and am here to equip you to empower your daughter to overcome her fear and anxiety with my online self-defense, safety and faith-filled empowerment resources. You can accomplish my online program at home, at school practically anywhere. (Click here to head to my homepage and request a free self-defense video and lesson plans.)

What keeps your daughter awake at night (and you too)?

Bullies and bad guys.
Germs
Fear and anxiety.

Parents say the videos are fun, playful and empowering. They see confidence and courage increase, while they maintain a safe and controlled environment.

Girls should train Jiu-jitsu for self-defense. Here’s why:

Many traditional martial arts such as karate and taekwondo have nice qualities but fall short in real-life self-defense situations. Katas are taught in these martial arts which are prescribed movements and coordination but do not address dynamic situations such as when a girl is pushed to the ground. More than 80 percent of all altercations are situations when a girl is forced to the ground.

Jiu-jitsu is a grappling sport which means its training focuses on gripping the opponent to seize control (vs. striking and kicking methods). Grappling focuses on taking the person to the ground for control and submissions. Jiu-jitsu looks a lot like wrestling. Jiu-jitsu relies on leveraging and techniques vs. strength and force.

BJJ empowers the weaker, smaller person to dominate larger opponents. This is why jiu-jitsu is good for girls who might find themselves up against someone bigger and stronger. If a girl can’t be stronger is a self-defense situation, then jiu-jitsu will make her smarter!

In comparison, a popular women’s self-defense method is Krav-Maga, where women are trained to strike and kick for the groin-kick or eye-gouge. Granted, there are times and places for exerting force on an opponent. But this martial art is for older women who are already strong and physically fit. But even the fittest female may not be able to go up against someone twice her size and strength. Training jiu-jitsu is a better, smarter approach to self-defense for girls and women.

I recommend beginning with jiu-jitsu training then add other martial arts depending on your comfort level and abilities. And highly recommend training at a reputable jiu-jitsu academy. When shopping for a jiu-jitsu academy pay close attention to hygiene habits, teaching style and their attitude toward teaching girls.

Jiu-jitsu for Girls

A girl will love her body for what it can do

Jiu-jitsu erases insecurities by showing girls the amazing things her body can do. When she steps onto the mat, she can leave behind the “image wars” she is battling. She will discover her body for its ingenuity and beauty. Every ounce of her body is beautifully designed to move. Simple jiu-jitsu techniques will allow her to use her body in powerful and amazing ways. She will begin to see herself for who she is … “wonderfully made.” (See Psalm 139:13-14)

Jiu-jitsu gets you in shape

Instead of running on a treadmill and pumping weights, girls can get fit in a small amount of time and space. I didn’t learn self-defense to lose weight, but while training, I lost twenty pounds and gained amazing muscle mass. My health is better than ever. I got in shape and learned new life skills.

The Great Flip instructional videos are a great way to begin your fitness journey and supplement your current routine. If you are wondering what you will need to create a training space at home, read my blog and watch my video called “Let’s get Equipped.”

Jiu-jitsu forms friendship

There’s nothing like wrestling, rolling and sparring with friends and family. Physical touch is healing to the body, mind and spirit in the context of healthy relationships. And Jiu-jitsu requires trust. Girls will need to hug, touch and roll around on the ground to learn. They will need to know that when they practice a technique they have a safe place to train, then trust no one will hurt them. Jiu-jitsu re-establishes trust and healthy relationships.

The combination of physical touch, trusting relationships and playful interaction create an environment for lasting friendships. Girls who train together become lasting friends who can rely on each other, encourage one another, and have each other’s back for far more than self-defense skills.

Jiu-jitsu is a positive role model

Okay, I’ll just say it … My daughters think I’m cool… sometimes. I’m humbled to say this and slightly amazed. I hope they think I’m awesome because I’m their mom, but they have been my best cheerleaders and encouragers throughout my jiu-jitsu journey. They tell their friends about me. Crazy, right?! Girls who learn jiu-jitsu and value self-defense become role models for other girls. Try my instructional videos at The Great Flip and see if you and your girls walk a little taller and radiate confidence that other girls desire.

Faith-filled Empowerment

Coach Jody equips girls and their parents with unique faith-filled empowerment resources to connect physical activities to social, emotional and spiritual growth. Girls will discover their true source of power comes

from God’s power (not girl power).

Download a free excerpt of My Anti-Bully Ebook.

Request a free lesson plan.

Read blogs to enrich your experience.

Listen to podcasts to connect you to like-minded Christian leaders.

See you on the mat!

The Great Flip is an American Heritage Girl program partner!

These animal-inspired exercises are not only fun and empowering, but each drill is designed to improve your jiu-jitsu training. Even though these are solo drills, exercise is more fun with a friend!

If you are seeking physical education curriculum ideas for your home-school or private school, read to the end of this blog! I’ve got great lesson plans in the works for you!

Benefits of these drills

These animal-inspired drills actually mimmic the movement of real animals, so go ahead and add the animal sounds when you train;
When you don’t have your training buddy, these exercises are great solo drills;
No equipment required, so go ahead and do them inside, outside, in the kitchen, up and down the hallway, at summer camp, on a rainy day, in the rain, etc.;
Each exercise provides a full-body, strength and cardio workout in a short amount of time;
Of course these exercises are physically challenging, but they are also mentally stimulating; &
Each movement improves your future jiu-jitsu training experience.

Let’s get started! With each drill, set a timer and try to do each technique for :30 seconds. Build endurance and strength by adding time. These drills are not meant to be a race. They are meant to be done with the correct form and conditioning.

Bear Crawl

The correct way to do the Bear Crawl is to coordinate the movement of your arms and legs. Begin on your hands and feet. Your knees should be a few inches off the ground. As you move your left arm forward, move your right leg forward. Then with each proceeding step begins with the opposite arm and leg. As you can see from the video, I’m pretty good at the forward motion. But the backward motion is challenging for me. I can physically do the movement, but my body and my brain got a little behind. Be sure to keep your head up and eyes forward.

How does the Bear Crawl improve your jiu-jitsu game? I use the Bear Crawl when I’m about to be submitted by the Triangle submission. I “bear crawl” forward over my opponent which causes them to release the submission. Let me hear you roar!

Leap Frog

A strong leap frog will increase your explosive movement and balance in jiu-jitsu. The goal is not to take fast little jumps. Instead leap as high and as far as you can while at the same time, landing soft and controlled. Begin in a low squat position. Jump up as high and as far as possible and come back down all the way into the low squat. Make sure you control the landing. If you don’t you may hurt your knees or fall forward. After just a few, you will feel the burn.

Alligator Crawl

This is the most challenging movement for me. Much like the Bear Crawl, begin on your hands and feet and also move your opposite arm and leg forward. But in the alligator crawl, you will do a modified push up. As you execute your modified push up, your hip will drop to one side and your bent knee will extend out. You should feel this bent knee extension in your hip flexure. The deeper you can do the push up, the more challenging the exercise.

Coming Fall 2019

Physical Education Lesson Plans

The animal-inspired drills will be part of a brand new self-defense curriculum from The Great Flip. Each lesson plan will include

Warm-up exercises
Conditioning drills
Stretching
Self-defense techniques inspired by Brazilian jiu-jitsu

Welcome to The Great Flip

Are you ready to learn simple self defense inspired by Brazilian jiu-jitsu? Welcome to The Great Flip, online self defense and life skills for girls ages six and up.

If you have ever wanted to try a self-defense class, but feel a little intimated by the big gym experience, try training with me, Coach Jody. Each video is approximately three to four minutes in length. I break-down one simple technique per video and walk you through each step. You will watch girls just like your daughters, age range from six to 13 trying the technique. We had so much fun making these videos together. And you will have a ton of fun learning the techniques with your favorite girl friends. Learning self defense is a great way to get in shape while also learning valuable life skills!

Click on the 2 Ways to Join to learn more about The Great Flip online self-defense videos. See you on the mat! – Coach Jody

The Great Flip is a national program partner for American Heritage Girls

Want to learn a simple self-defense technique right now? Why not!

Let’s learn the Wrist Escape!

Click 2 Ways to join to gain access to more than 20 online self-defense videos! See you on the mat!

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