Colleagues say “Coach Bobby” trains eight days a week
Robert Woodman can be found, at almost any time of the day or night, training or teaching at the facility where he holds the title of head coach. Woodman is on-site “eight days a week,” according to colleagues. It is tempting to add “13 months a year.”
Most days begin before the sun rises, and he seldom leaves the gym until well after dark; routinely putting in 16-hour days.
“I’m there at six in the morning, and I leave about 10 most nights,” he said, “Except for Fridays,” he added with a laugh, because he’s back for a day of sparring on Saturdays.
“It’s just, I love training. When I was working another job, I’d drive by and see the lights on and feel like I was missing out.”
Woodman holds a black belt in Jiu Jitsu, and has taken instruction and practised in a number of different styles; his experience reflected in the diverse training options available to students. His school, Eight Days Martial Arts, offers classes in multiple disciplines, which include Muy Thai Kickboxing, Brazilian and No-Gi Jiu Jitsu, and traditional wrestling.
Coach Bobby, as he’s called in the gym, is not content to merely stay current and maintain an elite-level skill set in these diverse styles. While continuing with his own training, he is constantly seeking to expand his and the club’s repertoire, bringing new techniques or innovations to the Yukon, not necessarily from the styles already in play.
“I like to mix it up,” he says. “Take a little bit of everything. I study a lot of great people, a lot of great instructors. There’s always new things to learn, you never stop, and I have to be able to demonstrate what I bring back.”
Woodman brings an unusual philosophy to the club’s training approach. As he likes to experiment and train across disciplines, his students are also encouraged to look beyond the dictates of any particular style of martial arts.
“I try not to push them into one way of being,” he said. “I try to let them find what works for each student. They can find their own styles, depending on what they’re good at.”
An unorthodox approach, but the club has had success at tournaments in the South, and Woodman has also received personal recognition; Sport Yukon named him the Coach of The Year for 2023.
“I was very surprised, I didn’t know I was nominated, it never crossed my mind. They sent an email two days before the banquet,” he said. “It’s huge, though. It solidifies all the hard work.”
That hard work has also taken a physical toll, as he needs surgery after blowing out an ACL [anterior cruciate ligament] in his left knee, and has meniscus damage to both legs. Despite some instability and the knee occasionally buckling, Woodman has not changed his routine.
“Jiu Jitsu is one of those styles that you can still train, and I’d go crazy if I couldn’t. I get itchy after a couple of days off,” he said.
Woodman doesn’t have time, it seems, for injuries or anything else that might slow him down. It’s that same attitude he projects when asked about future plans.
“Keep building the team. Keep building the gym. I’d like to go to more prestigious tournaments, bring in bigger names,” he said.
In a nutshell: he is focused on doing more! For Coach Bobby, an eight-day week would appear to be a necessity.
