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Two things only a father can do to empower his daughter

/in Recent Blog Posts, Self Defense/by coachjody

Countless books and studies have been published on the father-daughter relationship. And as a daughter, wife and mother myself, I have witnessed the powerful force between a father and his daughters. I’m blessed to have a husband and two daughters who seek to build a strong father-daughter relationship. I’d like to share two things only a father can do to empower his daughter(s) to make their relationship strong.

Stick around to the end, you can watch my YouTube video featuring my husband teaching our daughter a fun self-defense skill!

Here’s the podcast I produced last year, but it’s still valuable today. Enjoy. Be sure to scroll down to subscribe and see the offer for free stuff!

Studies show that a good father-daughter relationship leads to increased confidence, better body image, higher intelligence and overall wellness in a girl’s life. Don’t get me wrong, a girl needs her momma, but for totally different reasons. And yes, I know, a mother and daughter can engage in these two activities (highly recommend it).

However, when a father embarks on an intentional journey to do these two simple things, something magical happens. There is a unique and mysterious bond every girl desires to have with her father. And if this bond is missing or broken, the girl will have brokenness in her heart.

Girls seek approval and attention first and foremost from their dad. Studies show that a girl’s sense of self-worth and confidence is tied directly to her relationship with her father. What he thinks about her and how he expresses his affection for her is a central source of her perceived value. It also affects her femininity and teaches her how to relate to boys and men. Every girl needs a father and/or father figure for future healthy relationships with boys and men in her life.

Of course we live in a broken world. And fathers and daughters mess up. Sometimes there are little flaws, but many times big, ugly flaws leave scars in relationships. However, it’s never too late to rebuild and restore the father-daughter relationship. These two things are the foundation of the father-daughter relationship. (Be sure to read to the end of this blog to read “What does a good, good father look like?”)

Those two things.

There are two things only a father can do to empower his daughter. These two things will work at any age. Be sure to enter into these activities with an open heart and with the intention to truly connect. I think the father and the daughter will truly be empowered.

Conversation.

Talk to your daughter. Often. Girls tend to connect emotionally through spoken words. I know my daughters love “words of affirmation” from their dad. They love to hear him compliment them, praise them and encourage them. Don’t make this complicated. Talk at home, in the car, on the phone. Send silly texts and emails. Write simple notes and place cards in her backpack or on her pillow. Be intentional about your conversations. As girls get older and schedules get busy, schedule time together to talk. Go to breakfast, lunch and “date nights” together. Talking includes listening. At first, it might be simple or one-ended. But over time, the dialogue will grow as trust deepens. Be willing to be vulnerable. Put down the cell phones. Listen and talk. Look her in eyes and talk to her.

Touch.

When your daughter is little, physical contact is easy. Hugging and kissing that sweet baby girl usually comes naturally. But as daughters mature, dads tend to draw back mostly because their daughters are going through those awkward puberty years. But don’t drawback. Daughters still need to be hugged. Daughters need to see and feel how a gentleman treats a young lady. Studies show that girls directly link a father’s physical attention to emotional connection. When a father stops hugging his daughter, she feels abandoned and may perceive she’s done something wrong. Physical connection should not be lost as a girl matures. It might change, but she still needs her father’s loving physical touch.

Online self-defense to empower your daughter!

Teach her the Brazilian jiu-jitsu style “arm bar.” I have simple step-by-step videos for you.

Try my online self-defense videos to make physical touch intentional and empowering with your daughter. It takes three easy steps to begin online self-defense training.

Choose an online program perfect for you and your daughter.
Enroll and
Begin training.

It’s that easy. Welcome to The Great Flip, online self-defense inspired by the martial art Brazilian jiu-jitsu, safety and faith-filled empowerment.

Choose your video training. Enroll now.

Don’t get me wrong, the father-daughter dance is sweet. But from my experience, when the precious father-daughter dance moment comes to an end, the dads head for the nearest corner while the girls head for the dance floor.

A father-daughter self-defense event might be a fun way to physically connect with your daughter and give her life skills to last a lifetime! Simply watch the videos and practice empowering techniques together.

The Great Flip is a great activity a father can do to empower his daughter.

Try the wrist escape with your daughter.

Want to try a technique now? Click on the picture to the right and try the wrist escape! Every video at The Great Flip is less than three minutes. Short. simple. empowering for girls ages six and up.

Let’s get started.

See you on the mat! – Coach Jody

What does a good, good father look like?

You will not find perfection in your earthly father or any earthly father figure. And if you no longer have your earthly father or a strong male role model, there is a Heavenly Father who wants to extend these same two activities to you. He offers his spoken word through the Bible. He offers his physical touch through baptism and communion. The Heavenly Father reveals himself through his perfect son, Jesus. He offers his unending love, compassion and forgiveness which leads to healing, hope and love. He loves you. This is a free gift … for you.

“God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9

To learn more, find a Christian church in your community that teaches “faith alone. grace alone. the word alone.”

The most important gift you can give your daughter is the gift of Jesus Christ.

Someone is going into the lake. Guess who? Watch this video of my hubby teaching my daughter a few self-defense skills: Click here.

About Coach Jody

Coach Jody is a certified Brazilian jiu-jitsu instructor and mother of two daughters. Her daughters inspired her to develop an online self-defense experience to gain a basic understanding of self-defense skills, prepare for the martial arts environment and improve overall health and wellness.

The Great Flip is a national program alliance for American Heritage Girls. These girls value fun father-daughter activities! This is a great activity a father can do to empower his daughter. Coach Jody has spent twenty years inspiring young women to be tomorrow’s leaders.

Enroll now.

(I recommend “Bringing Up Girls,” by James Dobson, whose insight helped me write this blog)

Create a martial arts experience at home.

/in Empowerment, Recent Blog Posts, Safety, Self Defense/by coachjody

Stepping onto the big blue mats at the martial arts academy was overwhelming for me and my daughters. I’d like to share a few observations from that experience then show you how to create a martial arts experience at home. You’ll be happy you did plus you’ll save a ton of money and your girls will learn valuable life skills! Oh, and you’ll have clean mats, just saying.

Not enough time.

Learning a martial art was not on my radar as a mother of two daughters when they were little. There were too many other activities to conquer like soccer, piano, American Heritage Girls, and the list goes on and on. There wasn’t enough time, but I valued the idea. By creating a martial arts experience at home, I was able to add a valuable life skill to my daughters’ character development.

(BTW, if you are an American Heritage Girls leader, click here to learn about earning the Martial Arts Sports Pin and more Program Alliance info.)

Fear vs. fun.

Then suddenly, I had a tween and a teen. How did that happen so fast? The outside world was just around the corner. I think my fear of bad guys and bullies was greater than theirs. After all, they had not experienced anything truly terrifying (praise the Lord), but the threat is real. The dangers of human trafficking and rape are real. How can I prepare my daughters for such evil at age-appropriate levels?

Great question! My husband and I choose the martial art called Brazilian jiu-jitsu. For a quick history lesson and its benefits for girls and the self-defense application, I recommend you read my blog “Why your daughter should learn Brazilian jiu-jitsu for self-defense.”

We signed up (Wowza, a one-year contract was required) and entered a whole new world. So many protocols to follow, bowing, hand slapping, knuckle bumping. What in the world was happening? Then, the physical nature of the jiu-jitsu. Wow, that took some time to get used to especially for me and my daughters. Suddenly men of all shapes and sizes were rolling around with us (and sweating on us …. EW).

I knew the experience was worth the momentary discomfort. We pushed through difficult moments knowing the outcome was greater. Now there’s a message to be made there, but I’ll push onward.

I continued the training and six years later, I’m a purple belt, certified instructor. My daughters couldn’t wait to finish the year and I had to drag them to class most of the time.

During that time, I learned valuable lessons about mainstream martial arts. There is a certain type of audience, mostly male-influenced coaching styles that do not motivate the mind of girls. The structure is tight, disciplined and rigid. The message is for the underdog or the bully, again, mostly for boys whose parents want them to be disciplined or toughened up.

The desired outcomes I had for my daughters did not match. I wanted values like courage, confidence and self-defense skills. When I turned to YouTube for online instruction, I found aggressive krav-maga style training suitable for adults, but not children.

Thus, I created The Great Flip, online self-defense videos, lesson plans and curriculum to introduce girls, ages six and older, to the martial art Brazilian jiu-jitsu. I walk you through the steps to recreate a martial arts experience at home using my program.

Follow these steps to create a martial arts experience at home:

Now you and your daughter can learn simple self-defense skills in a controlled environment where you control the message, the mindset, and motivation. Feel free to contact me if you have questions. Be sure to request a free video. You can also download a free sample of My Anti-Bully Ebook here.

Don’t let fear or germs stop your pursuit to try something new!

Create a martial arts experience at home with The Great Flip. I’ll coach you and give you a successful experience and your daughters will be stronger for it (and you too!)

A martial art tradition called “the bow.”

Why bow in the martial arts? Bowing is a common practice in the martial arts community. I participate in the bow when I step on and off the mat. I also bow to the instructor and to my teammates at the beginning and the end of class.

To me, the bow is a symbol of respect, humility and gratitude. These three attributes are expressed not only toward the head instructor but also to my teammates.

When I step onto the mat, I bow to symbolize clearing my mind. I go into the lesson as a blank canvas ready to learn. Many jiu-jitsu academies post the expression “Leave your ego at the door”. Students who stand on the mat with inflated egos go against everything the bow represents.

What does the bow mean to you?

“Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 2:3-5

This is The Great Flip.

Jesus goes before me in all walks of life. He knows I have an inflated ego. He knows I am self-centered. My ego always gets in the way. And if you are introspective, you can admit that your ego, your self-centeredness, gets in the way too. If I bow in obedience, I bow in self-centeredness and ego. This is not a Christian issue, this is a humankind issue.

There is good news from the Christian world view. Read the Bible verse carefully. Go to your Bible and read the entire chapter in its context.

“Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus.”

I bow in my identity in Christ Jesus. The ability to be humble and gracious comes only from Christ Jesus. He will be humble for me. He will be gracious in me. Through his death on the cross, He takes my ego and buries it. He takes all my self-centeredness and nails it to the cross. Now every promise from God is mine “which is yours in Christ Jesus.” Now I can freely bow in my new identity with respect, humility and gratitude.

The Great Flip is the only self-defense, safety and faith-based empowerment program for girls! Join the movement!

Select an online plan

See you on the mat! – Coach Jody

The Great Flip is an American Heritage Girls Program Alliance

Fun, playful and empowering online self-defense

/in Recent Blog Posts, Self Defense/by coachjody

“Fun, playful and empowering; Great for the whole family!”

This is how a parent described The Great Flip online self-defense videos.

And this is exactly my hope for you and your family. I want the training experience to be empowering, of course, but also playful and fun. Self-defense training doesn’t need to be any scarier than the topic usually is for kids. Learning skills in a playful way can make the topic of self-defense easier to talk about with your family.

This is achieved in my step-by-step streaming self-defense videos suitable for ages six and up.

Each video is three minutes or less and you will learn one empowering technique. I also have solo conditioning drills and “social-distancing” approved videos too. These videos will introduce you to the martial art called Brazilian jiu-jitsu and complement your fitness goals. Oh, don’t have any fitness goals? … well, now you do! 😍

Request a free video

And while we are all at home quarantined due to COVID19, learning self-defense skills is a fun and meaningful family activity.

Give your kids confidence and courage while you maintain a controlled environment. You will discover meaningful time together learning these skills and talking about the value of these skills as you deem appropriate for your family.

And when you subscribe, I’ll teach you how to set up a safe place to train in your home (so you don’t knock over the lamp or hurt yourself). See you on the mat! – Coach Jody

Choose a plan and let’s get started!

Online Self-Defense for Girls

/in Curriculum, Self Defense, Uncategorized/by coachjody

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!

Countering the Bully Culture with The Beauty Mentor

/in Empowerment, Motivation, Uncategorized/by coachjody

Kristiauna Lattimer is The Beauty Mentor. She shares her Christian worldview about true beauty and countering the bully culture in a conversation with Coach Jody at The Great Flip Podcast.

And if your daughter would like the free devotion called “A Girl’s Guide to Self Defense,” click here and request your free copy. Kristiauna and Jody created this resource to connect your daughters’ body, mind and spirit with practical tips and biblical encouragement.

In the podcast, mothers and daughters learn eight Biblical principles about the definition of beauty. Girls learn how to counter the bully culture with practical tools to be empowered physically, emotionally and mentally. And stick around to the very end of this blog to try fun self-defense techniques from Coach Jody at The Great Flip. (You don’t want to miss this!)

About the Beauty Mentor

But before you click on the podcast, let me tell you a little bit about Kristiauna. She is an amazing young lady. At a young age, she worked in the beauty industry and saw first hand the distortion of beauty toward girls. It’s no wonder our daughters struggle with self-esteem and parents shy away from beauty products for their daughters. Kristiauna decided to counter the culture and reclaim beauty for our girls! And now with a young daughter of her own, she takes her role seriously by God’s amazing grace. Check out the Eight Biblical Principles below!

Kristiauna started the The Beauty Mentor, a faith-based company that provides beauty and mentoring products and services for girls and women of all ages. Her mission is to Reveal, Redirect and Restore the Truth about Beauty. And might I add, she has Reclaimed beauty too! Visit her website and do a little shopping when we are done here. But let’s look at the definition of true beauty.

True Beauty is …

According to Kristiauna, true beauty embraces these eight Biblical principles:

patience
kindness
modesty
decency
gentleness
joy
a loving character, and
God’s creative ability flowing through you

And these beauty principles are available to every girls through God’s word. Kristiauna offers Bible verses for each principle to encourage girls. Beauty is freely given by God’s grace through faith.

“And something amazing happens when true beauty is revealed, redirected and restored. Suddenly, girls have the strength and dignity to stand up and counter the bullying culture.” -Coach Jody

Anti-Bullying Resources from The Beauty Mentor

Some say that girls tend to get in trouble because of their mouth, according to Kristiauna. One of her beauty products is a lip balm kit which inspires girls to use their mouth for kindness. This beauty product is inspired by this Bible verse;

“She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.” Proverbs 31:26

And if a girl is a victim of a bully, The Beauty Mentor shares activities to help girls re-focus her thoughts upon herself and off of the bully. Teaching girls to be introspective and practice self-evaluation is a valuable life skill. For example, The Beauty Mentor recommends the Heart Dump activity. Girls are encouraged to draw a big heart on a sheet of paper. Next girls literally dump her emotions onto the paper. Kristiauna says that once the negative emotions are uprooted from her heart, God’s word can be replanted. And God’s word is more than positive affirmation; She knows that God’s word will Reveal, Redirect and Restore our girls!

Request the Free Girl’s Guide to Self Defense here

The Great Flip

While Kristiauna is restoring beauty for our daughters. Coach Jody is empowering girls with simple self-defense skills. The Great Flip is online self defense and life skills for girls ages six and older. The Great Flip was inspired by Jody’s daughters who wanted to learn self-defense skills without going to the stinky co-ed gym. They wanted to learn self defense in a safe place with safe friends. So Jody developed a series of online self-defense videos that are simple, practical and empowering.

And self defense is much more than a physical reaction at The Great Flip. Self defense is a life skill that embraces a girls whole being. Girls learn to use her voice, her body language and distance management as part of a self-defense strategy.

Anti-Bullying @ The Great Flip

The Great Flip offers an Anti-Bullying Activity to guide girls through mental, emotional and physical activities. The Anti-Bullying Activity features a bully inventory, self-awareness activities, role playing, encouraging Bible verses and two empowering self-defense techniques to try at home, at church or any where you have internet access.

Try Anti-Bullying Activity.

The Beauty Mentor and The Great Flip together!

Imagine a retreat or workshop where girls can spend time learning about Biblical beauty, experiencing God’s creative ability flowing through them, then engaging in positive empowering physical activities from The Great Flip. You can make that happen!

Get your girls together and contact The Beauty Mentor and The Great Flip!

First, shop The Beauty Mentor website for programs to fit your ministry needs. Next subscribe to The Great Flip and gain access to a library of online self-defense techniques and/or curriculum.

Enjoy the podcast and I’ll see you on the mat!

-Coach Jody

Here’s a showcase of videos from The Great Flip. Give one a try!

Watch these self-defense videos

/in Curriculum, Self Defense/by coachjody

Stop what you are doing right now and watch these self-defense videos from The Great Flip! Really …

This collection of free videos is a showcase of the techniques and life skills you and your daughter can learn. And you can learn The Wrist Escape right now!

The Great Flip is an introduction to self defense inspired by Brazilian jiu-jitsu.

Before you step into a long-term commitment at a martial arts academy, learn a few foundational skills from The Great Flip online video curriculum from the comfort of home and with trusted family and friends. Grab a few yoga mats, interlocking mats or gymnastic mats and a training partner and you are ready to roll. Literally. Brazilian jiu-jitsu is a “grappling” sport which means many of the movements are accomplished from the ground.

No other martial art addresses the “ground game” like jiu-jitsu. Which is why jiu-jitsu is recommended for girls since many self-defense situations (more than 80 percent) end-up on the ground. And jiu-jitsu is known for its techniques that rely on leverage not force. Smaller framed people are taught to overcome larger opponents training jiu-jitsu.

By using The Great Flip online curriculum, you will be able to try the sport before you sign a long-term contract or purchase a gi (uniform) at a martial arts gym. But you should know, like any sport, learning jiu-jitsu takes practice. You don’t become a world class athlete or proficient at a sport without practice and dedication. The same goes with learning self-defense skills.

Try it here first and discover the benefits of learning a martial art like Brazilian jiu-jitsu while getting fit and learning valuable life skills like self defense.

Click here for subscription options that fit your family budget and goals.

See you on the mat! – Coach Jody

The Great Flip is a program alliance for American Heritage Girls

Here are two of my blogs to learn more about the benefits of training jiu-jitsu and setting up a home gym space. Be sure to browse through my blogs for more resources.

Online Self-Defense for Girls

Let’s get equipped!

Click here to Join Now

Animal-inspired Exercise

/in Self Defense/by coachjody

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