Earlier this year, Chris Radmonovich decided to try his hand at Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. After about 6 weeks of training at SBG Buford, he also enrolled his 5-year-old son.
Halden’s mother, Carina, detailed Halden’s introduction to Straight Blast Gym and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.
“We moved to Buford from New Jersey 2 years ago and then Covid hit. Once Covid started to slow down we wanted to enroll Halden in something that created discipline, patience and social interaction. Halden’s dad started Jiu Jitsu at SBG and we thought this might be a good avenue for Halden to try too!”
It’s not an uncommon tale; a father, a mother, a son, a daughter…one of them will begin training in one of Straight Blast Gym’s martial arts or fitness programs, and before long other family members are joining the tribe. Chris had started his Jiu Jitsu training in January of this year, and Halden followed suit in March.
Halden made an impression right from the start, coming into SBG’s Growing Gorillas Jiu Jitsu program with his big personality and friendly demeanor. It didn’t take long for Halden to start having success during the live training portions of class, as Halden began displaying techniques and submissions that he’d learned from his coaches. Those same coaches became very impressed with Halden, with the young Jiu Jitsu student quickly developing a reputation for being both a sponge for technique and for being double-tough.
Kids Jiu Jitsu Coach Byron Strickland told us a story about Halden:
“Recently in class, Halden caught with an errant elbow from one of his teammates and his nose started to bleed. Halden was a total gamer about it. He took a minute to clean up his nose and was right back in class with a a big smile on his face and ready to go. He’s a super tough kid. He’s also incredibly well behaved and follows his coaches directions. He’s really a model student.”
Halden’s attention to detail and enthusiasm for Jiu Jitsu has shown both on and off of the mat. His mother went into more detail about her son’s relationship with Jiu Jitsu and Straight Blast Gym:
“So far we have seen progress with his Jiu Jitsu skills as well as his social interactions and his discipline to attend classes, work hard and listen to his coaches. He also loves practicing and rumbling around with his dad outside of the gym!“
One of the highest compliments that we as coaches can receive is hearing from a parent that their son or daughter has improved their behavior and/or social interactions at home and in school in part because of our Kids Jiu Jitsu program.
We’ve seen some of these changes to Halden in class, but hearing that he’s showcasing these positive attritbutes at home and in school is music to our ears.
We wrapped up our conversation with Halden’s mother by asking him what part of training at Straight Blast Gym he enjoys most:
“Halden says that he likes the days where they spar, learn new moves and play dodgeball!”