Photo From Johns’ Facebook. 2013.
Katie Johns, a KU senior and psychology major, leads a double life. Although the 21-year-old is only 5-feet-1 and 125 pounds, she can lift someone 100 pounds heavier than herself and throw them over her shoulder. After the throw, she climbs behind the back so she can choke them with one tiny arm wrapped around their neck and the other creeping behind the head. Then she pushes down on the back of the head and tightens her biceps.
Johns became involved in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu during her freshman year of college. She said her brother was already involved in the club, and she was curious about learning a new sport. Her involvement eventually lead to her becoming president of KU’s Jiu Jitsu Club for a year and vice president for a year.
“At first it concerned me that I was getting so up close and personal with people… because I had never done anything like that before,” Johns said. “In high school, the extent of my athletic experience was golf.”
Johns described other concerns she had as a woman in the club.
“It was a little weird for me being the only girl and having to wrestle with guys,” she said. “I think that was my biggest apprehension. I was also worried I’d be teased or made fun of or that I would feel uncomfortable because it was guys.”
Johns said she thinks of Jiu Jitsu as a sport promotes gender equality, but added that it could also depend on the club joined.
“I got very lucky in joining the club at KU,” she said. “As crass as they can be at times, the guys in the club never treated me with disrespect. They never made me feel uncomfortable in a physical or sexual manner.”
She also said Jiu Jitsu is a sport for smaller people and designed by smaller people.
“Being smaller doesn’t necessarily mean you’re going to lose,” she said. “I’ve found that sometimes being smaller can be an advantage even. Because you learn to be faster and you learn to work harder than the people that are bigger.”
Johns said she would advise women who want to learn Jiu Jitsu to stick with it until they know if they enjoy it or not.
“You’ll find the benefits of this sport outweigh any discomfort you feel at the beginning or any worries you have about size or gender,” Johns said. “Not only the fitness aspects of it, because it’s a great workout, cardio, muscle core, everthing.”
Johns said confidence is a big pay off from jiu jitsu.
“But [it’s] also the confidence you earn, being able to look at someone and say, ‘I can defend myself against that person, should something happen,'” she said.