When we find ourselves in a place of great physical and emotional weakness, with our backs against the wall, can our training actually revive us? Our guest this week argues that it can…and it has. This episode delves deeply into a personal story of addiction and recovery, and how the process we all undergo as Jiu-Jitsu practitioners can rekindle our ability to connect with one another, to learn more about ourselves and to push through even our darkest challenges. 

Rosanna Scimeca has been a Jiu-Jitsu practitioner for over 20 years, and in this episode she shares with Shihan Gene Dunn and guest Jessica Stone how Jiu-Jitsu training grew into an “almost spiritual practice” to support her recovery and transition away from drugs and into a healthier lifestyle.

We also zero in on some of the challenges women face in Jiu-Jitsu; the need to directly contend with our physical shortcomings in the training; the perceptual difference between Jiu-Jitsu sparring and striking, and many more. 

One of the more intimate and layered conversations we’ve had in recent memory, we left this exchange better for having had it, thinking more deeply about our own relationship with training, and how the martial arts holds a promise for each of us. 

Our hope is that it does the same for you.

Episode 21: Your Partner Becomes a Mirror (w/Rosanna Scimeca)

Anthony “Q-Unique” Quiles is the perfect guest to start off the podcast for 2019. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he’s a member of New York’s legendary breakdancing group the Rock Steady Crew and co-founder of the iconic underground hip-hop group the Arsonists. He’s traveled the world as frontman for his own rock groups StillWell (with members of Korn and P.O.D) and now King’s Bounty. From his  hardscrabble background in south Brooklyn to the world stage, Q is a true New York story. 

And - no surprise for MAM listeners - he’s a lifelong martial artist. He takes us on a journey through his early days kickboxing with Brooklyn icons Louis Neglia and Jerry Fontanez; how martial arts values influenced his life as an artist; the lessons he learned as a martial arts parent, shepherding his own son through to black belt; returning to training in his 40s (and having to spar with Shihan Dunn); reflections on his life and relationships in the music industry; and his ongoing commitment to improvement, progress and black belt as a student of Jiu-Jitsu.

Funny, deep, charismatic and memorable, this episode explores what it means to be an artist, a parent, a practitioner and a citizen of the world with someone whose creative vision is sharpened by his martial arts training. 

Q showcases the best part of a martial arts life. We sincerely hope you enjoy the conversation.

Learn more about Q-Unique on his own site: https://www.q-unique.com/
Visit the Martial Arts Mind blog: http://www.martialartsmind.com/
Check out Brooklyn Podcasting Studio: https://www.facebook.com/bkpodcastingstudio/
Sustainable Jiu-Jitsu training at BBJJ: https://www.brooklynbjj.com

Episode 22: Rock Steady (w/Anthony "Q-Unique" Quiles)

Garry St. Leger’s (@gstleger) accomplishments are too long to list, but among them: he is a decorated judo black belt whose rank as #1 in the country led him to the Olympic team in 2008, and onto the US World Team in 2010. He is a jiu-jitsu black belt under Renzo Gracie and John Danaher, and serves as a coach and trainer to some of MMA’s most quickly-rising stars. He is sincere, serious, focused and, above all, committed to sharing the values of long-term martial arts practice with others.

This is a conversation about Garry’s extraordinary journey as a lifelong martial artist. It’s about his practice, from childhood training in Brooklyn with his twin brother under Olympian Parnel Legros, on to the US Nationals and then the Olympic team, and up through his present life as a coach, instructor and teacher. It’s about how he manages his own training, how judo has impacted him, and what he wants to impart to his students. It’s about the moments when he thought he was finished - done with the martial arts - and the powerful experiences which brought him back.

But most of all, this is a conversation about giving. It’s about the mindset and practices that led Garry to the highest levels of international judo and which continue to inform his life on and off the mat. His dedication to the art, to his family and to his students is unmistakable and inspiring.

We are both honored to have Garry as a teacher, partner and friend, and it was a supreme pleasure to have him as our guest on this podcast. We enjoyed this exchange immensely - hopefully you do as well.

You can find Garry St. Leger on Instagram (@gstleger) and on Facebook (@gstleger). Contact him for details on private lessons and seminars.

Episode 23: The Gentle Way of Giving (w/ Garry St. Leger)

Full blog: bit.ly/martialartsmind
Our schools: bit.ly/bbjjmartialarts