Dallas Mabry - Elite-MMA Instructor

Number of years of training martial arts: Wrestled from the 8th grade thru my junior year in High School as a secondary sport to football. During that time I took some Brazilian Jiu Jitsu classes one summer, but I didn’t start actively training until 10 years later when I came to Elite MMA in 2004. I was originally just looking for an activity I enjoyed to help me stay in shape but I quickly became obsessed with the sport and began competing in BJJ and MMA.

When did you start teaching at Elite MMA? I started teaching MMA in 2007 and now assist with the BJJ classes.

What is a memorable moment for you at Elite MMA? There have been a lot. Many revolve around preparing for and winning competitions, helping others at Elite prepare and then celebrating as they’ve won, and also just forming relationships and taking part in each other’s lives.

In your own words why do you enjoy Elite MMA? I enjoy Elite because I truly believe they offer the highest caliber of instruction and training for martial arts. The amount of knowledge and experience at Elite MMA is rare, but what is even rarer is the open environment and willingness to share that knowledge. This attitude and philosophy is why Elite MMA students are consistently successful in BJJ and MMA. However, Elite offers more than just martial arts training and instruction, it offers community. I’ve been to several schools around the country who provide intense physical training and even quality martial arts instruction, but it stops there. The reason Elite has grown as much as it has is that it has something to offer everyone at any level with any goal and will support you in whatever direction you choose.

Do you have any martial arts accomplishments that you are proud of and why? I have competed in BJJ Tournaments and won almost all of them. It’s a good feeling for me to compete and win because for me it validates my efforts in pursuing something I love. Those BJJ competitions I have not won have given me a bench mark to move forward and build on. At the same time, I’m never really satisfied which is why I began fighting in MMA. I won my first 2 professional fights in about 30 seconds each which was again very satisfying. In preparing for my third fight in 2007 I hurt my back and haven’t been able to compete since. The next thing I’d like to accomplish is to overcome my back injury and compete in a BJJ tournament now that I have my brown belt . . . and win.

Are there any professional accomplishments that you are proud of and why? Probably the second biggest hurdle in my martial arts training, after my back injury, is my career. I feel like I have developed a lot of momentum professionally in the past 2 years and look forward to carrying that forward. The further I advance professionally, the more difficult it becomes to my balance time. I’m a very goal oriented person so I am satisfied when I feel like I am making forward progress in any area of my life.

Any sports/activities that you participated in that you are proud of?Football was my main sport in High School. I was an All-State and All-District outside linebacker my sophomore, junior, and senior year.

What hobbies do you enjoy and why? BJJ and MMA are my hobbies and I love them. At some level they just come natural enough for me where I can enjoy them, but it’s also challenging enough to keep me chasing the next level. I enjoy the physical aspect of getting a great work out and also enjoy the mental aspect of figuring something out and making it work successfully.

Any memorable family moments that you would like to share? I got married on March 7, 2009 which has been an incredible blessing in my life. I look forward to starting my own family, but also have my parents and a lot of my extended family live here in Houston so we spend time together often.

Academic accomplishments: I graduated from Second Baptist High School here in Houston and then attended Texas A&M where I earned a Bachelor’s degree in Management Information Systems. I then went on to get my Master’s in Business Administration, also from Texas A&M.

If you could walk us through a day or week in your life what would it consist of? Up at 5:30am and then at work by 7:00am where I have all kinds of stuff flying at me until around 5:30pm when I finally decide to leave (maybe 7 or 8 if its month end close). I try to make it to the gym after work 4 times a week. Usually I’ll lift weights twice and go to a BJJ class twice; I also take advantage of free time on Saturday afternoon to do BJJ. After the gym I go home to see my wife, eat dinner, take a shower, and try to go to bed by 9:30pm so I can start it all over again!