Tyra Pritt: Becoming Strong and Resilient on and off the Mat

When you look at Tyra Pritt today, it’s easy to assume that everything she does has always come naturally to her. Tyra is a high-level BJJ competitor, and as the Kids Department Head and Academy Operations Director, she’s also a key player in the day-to-day functions of Easton Longmont. These connected facets make up a large part of her life, and the passion, intensity and confidence that she projects belie the fact that even for Tyra, getting started was intimidating. 

Tyra is a mom of two boys, and when her youngest got started at Easton in early 2021, Tyra had never set foot on a martial arts mat. For the better part of a year, she watched from the sidelines as her son Rowdy learned the fundamentals of BJJ. But by the time her older son Wyatt was ready to get started later that year, so was she.

In her recent appearance on the Easton Community Podcast, Tyra describes the way that Jiu Jitsu first began to get under her skin. “I just kept sitting there watching, thinking, ‘Gosh I think about this a lot, and I’m not even doing it.’” This initial intrigue eventually led to trying out the women’s class, encouraged by other moms who’d made the transition from observer to participant.

Pushing past fear and doubt

When she first got started, she remembers having an “anxiety ball” in the pit of her stomach every time she got on the mat – worried that she looked silly, or that others were judging her. But she says that she found that everyone she met on the mat was welcoming and helpful. 

Her advice for other women who want to get started? “Push through those moments of fear or doubt or when you don’t know what to do – nobody does.” 

Today, Tyra trains seven days a week, and has a reputation for being tough, not held back by her smaller stature. She’s so tough, in fact, that as a blue belt, she won double-gold at Masters Worlds, and gold at American Nationals. She received her purple belt last year, and continues to  compete at the high-level tournaments, often encountering the same women she competed against when they were all blue belts. 

[As in Combat, So in Life: What We Gain From Competition]

Confidence on and off the mats

Her toughness isn’t just physical. Training has given her the confidence to stand her ground, including speaking up for herself when she feels that someone is not rolling safely with her. She says she used to find it terrifying to stand up for herself and be assertive in that way, and acknowledges that many women on the mat hesitate to speak up. But Tyra recalls that the first time she did it, she felt strong and empowered. 

This growth in confidence goes hand-in-hand with Tyra’s professional growth as she’s moved up through the ranks at Easton Longmont. She started coaching when she was a white belt, assisting with kids classes. At the time, she still felt unsure of herself on the mats, and learning to project her presence and “own the room” was a gradual process of development. 

A career born out of passion

As her involvement in coaching deepened, Tyra also became the Director of First Impressions, the manager of the front desk. As she grew in both roles, she says, “I just found a lot of joy in finding my power of leadership that I didn’t really know I had…. It’s been this journey of getting to know myself in a way that I didn’t even know was there.” 

When former Longmont Kids Department Head River Mayfield moved into the General Manager role, Easton’s upper management (a.k.a., the HQ team) tapped Tyra to take his place as DH. And since she’s worked so closely with River from the beginning and knows the Longmont Academy’s operations inside and out, the HQ team created a hybrid role for Tyra’s unique skillset, combining Kids DH with Academy Operations Director, Easton’s equivalent of an assistant GM. 

Today, Tyra loves the balance between the two sides of her Easton job – taking equal pleasure in diving into the nitty gritty of the administrative side of the business and the hands-on work of coaching the kids.

Tyra’s coaching philosophy

Tyra always loved working with kids – she even used to volunteer at a preschool. But it wasn’t until she became a Jiu Jitsu coach that she found the special spark she’d been looking for. She says that coaching feels like a genuinely meaningful way to engage with them, going beyond just managing their behavior to inspiring them and pushing them to be their best.

Tyra’s coaching style is demanding, but full of care. She expects a lot from the kids in her classes, and holds them accountable because she believes in them and sees their strength. She sees her role as helping them to recognize that strength in themselves, developing the grit to stick it out when they find themselves in tough positions and to get right back up when they get taken down.

[We’re Defined by What We’re Willing to Struggle For]

“The biggest thing kids can take away from Jiu Jitsu,” Tyra says, “is that you can go through something really, really hard, and you can be okay on the other side of that.” So she coaches the Tigers and Little Tigers to be strong and believe they are capable, even when doubt creeps in, even when there are some tears. 

She’s showing them that hard things are worthwhile, and that whether you’re five years old or 42, we all have the power within us to grow to meet life’s challenges.

Looking back at her early days at Easton, feeling nervous about speaking in front of the assembled parents during kids classes, and being afraid to attend her first randori, Tyra says she sometimes takes a moment to step back and appreciate her journey. “Look where you are,” she tells herself, “Look how far you’ve come.”