Danielle Kelly admits there’s a slight difference to training now than it was 10 years ago: “I felt more stronger”

Silver Fox BJJ product Danielle Kelly believes time is already beginning to catch up with her at a very slow pace.

Kelly, who holds the distinction of being the first female ONE submission grappling world champion, may only be 27 years old, but that doesn’t mean she’s not already feeling the differences between what it was like training a decade ago compared to today:

“I feel like it's a mixed feeling [training then and now with age catching up],” Kelly admitted during an appearance on the Chewjitsu Podcast. “I feel like when I was a kid I felt like I was more beefy, I felt more stronger, but I was actually like heavier than I am now, like it's weird... When I was a kid I was like 125-130 pounds, but I felt strong and then there was like when I was 2022, I was super skinny.

“Then that's when I realized: ‘Do I want to get strong for my weight class?’ And that’s when I figured out that I should be strong for my natural weight of 115 pounds. I kind of just focus on like recovery but also like not I don't want to recover too much because then you know I feel like when I was relaxed in like on my like calm days of training I was getting injured so it's really weird because jiu-jitsu or fighting I guess is different but it's similar.”

See the full episode below:

Though she may not feel quite as strong as she did in her teenage years, Danielle Kelly has proven time and time again to be one of the best submissions specialists in the world, boasting an undefeated record under the ONE banner, including a big win over former foe and IBJJF world champion Jessa Khan in her last outing.

If you missed any of the action or want to relive an epic night in ONE Championship history, the ONE Fight Night 14 replay can be watched anytime on demand via Amazon Prime Video in North America.