09/30/2026
BUMA TEAMATE SPOTLIGHT:
Jason Converse
-How long have I trained?
I started training combat sambo about 15-16 years ago. I wasn’t as interested in the striking (and getting head-butted), but loved the grappling aspects. I’ve been training bjj since 2014 and am currently a black belt. I’ve done several competitions, but haven’t competed in many many years. I got into training grappling/combat sports initially with the intention of supplementing my weight lifting with another form of exercise and fell in love with it. Lastly, I’m extremely proud to say that I am the first person/student to go from white belt to black belt all at Buffalo United Martial Arts.
-Who am I beyond the mats? What fills my days?
I’m a father of 3 daughters and a husband. The family life/work balance keeps me very very busy most days. As far as work goes, I’ve been a police officer for about 14 years. At work, amongst other things, I am a defensive tactics instructor and very much enjoy teaching officers jiu jitsu based control tactics.
Hobbies, other than jiu jitsu, include weight lifting (as much as I can anyway) and gaming when I can.
-What’s my “why” for training?
I started training as another means of physical fitness and, since then, I made it part of my lifestyle. I really enjoy it and always tell myself “have fun, don’t get injured”. I pride myself on being the best teammate I can be, especially for those who are competing. I usually start rolls by asking “you working on anything today?”. If I can make someone else better, they can make me better, and I can then make someone else better and so on; iron sharpens iron and I’d like to think I’ve helped people along the way. I also love the community aspect of jiu jitsu. I’ve made some life long friends just sharing the mats. Also, jiu jitsu directly pertains to my job. Being able to physically control an aggressive person and take them into custody without anyone being injured is the goal; knowing/training jiu jitsu makes that achievable.
-Complete the sentence, “jiu jitsu is…”
Jiu jitsu is what you make of it. I’m not an overly competitive person by nature, but love training, working on improving and helping others. If that means they need a hard comp style roll, great!! If that means working something specific, great!! Just improving everyday. I’m a hobbyist. Some days I go hard, some days I have to be up at work all night after training so I need to budget my energy, but I still show up. If you are a competitive person and love that aspect, then that can be “your” jiu jitsu; let me know how I can help.
-How has jiu jitsu changed/supported me?
Jiu jitsu has given me many things. Physical fitness, being able to problem solve under stress (sometimes extreme stress), I love the community. It’s helped me have more discipline and improved my critical thinking skills. Also, it’s taught me to be humble and open minded about many things; being able to see the forest from the trees on the mats and in life.
-What’s been the hardest part of my journey?
I’d have to say the hardest part is just balancing everything in my life and putting forth and effort that can benefit me and others around me. Sometimes I show up and I just don’t have the juice to go hard. Some days I’ll show up and be on only a few hours of sleep, so I give the effort I can. This makes me feel guilty, like I’m short changing myself and others, but I know I still showed up and gave what I could for that day.
-What would you want someone like you to know before starting?
I think telling someone that jiu jitsu (or any combat sport) is for everyone, but it’s also not for everyone. I encourage everyone to try it, you will learn a lot about yourself even on the first day, but some people don’t have the right temperament. Some people also have too much of an ego and can’t fathom “losing” and they quit. Well then maybe this isn’t for them then and that’s ok, do what brings you joy. It’s called the “gentle art” but it’s not. It’s hard sometimes, it’s gritty, it’s nasty, it’s a grind… a grind that doesn’t have an ending or finish line, the journey is the “art”.
