From Student to Teacher: Meet a Pro MMA fighter at SBG Idaho

BOISE, Idaho (CBS2 News) From student, to teacher, to professional MMA fighter, Stephanie Hernandez is an inspiring story of strength and determination. "It really means a lot. I never thought that I would be a coach," said Hernandez. "It's really fun and exciting seeing people go from not understanding anything, to having fun and

From student, to teacher, to professional MMA fighter, Stephanie Hernandez is an inspiring story of strength and determination.

"It really means a lot. I never thought that I would be a coach," said Hernandez. "It's really fun and exciting seeing people go from not understanding anything, to having fun and knowing what to do. It just makes me so proud."

Hernandez is an instructor at SBG Idaho, a Jiu Jitsu and MMA Gym in Boise where it's common to be taught by a professional.

"We've had a lot of guys actually just make the transition, so now our team is pretty full of professional fighters," said Hernandez. "But I want people to know that it's not this big scary gym. We've got women of all sizes, people of all levels. Don't be scared to try something new. We're all going to be friendly here and we're here to help you."

The welcoming nature of SBG is what brought Hernandez through the doors in the first place.

"You know, she started training when we were in Garden City, like 15 years ago," said Jessie Brock, owner of SBG. "She was a high schooler and super quiet, super shy. It's funny, actually, I saw her in the hallway and I just tried to say hi to her and she was like, too shy to even make eye contact and just ran down the hall."

Brock says he is proud of the massive transformation Hernandez has since gone through, citing her confidence as the most noticeable change.

"Starting to realize in herself what we all see in her, which is somebody that has so much to offer, that is incredibly skilled and knowledgeable and I think it's tough sometimes, it takes time for you to believe in yourself the way others believe in you and I'm just really happy that she's at that place now," said Brock.

Hernandez started at SBG as a white belt and progressed to a black belt in jujitsu, making her one of the first females in the state of Idaho to do so.

"One of the best coaches. One of the best fighters. I'm lucky to be taught by her as are the rest of our students," said Rebecca Rogers, a coach at SBG. "What she knows and how she teaches is extremely applicable. She's a really good coach, and it takes time and effort to become that and she's put a lot of time and effort into it."

Rogers said SBG has changed her life in a dramatic way.

"I've never been very athletic. I've failed at all sports in an embarrassing fashion, volleyball, basketball, everything, track, and then I found this place later in life and something about it just clicked, I fell in love with it," said Rogers.

Many of the coaches at SBG shared a similar admiration for the facility and the people who work there.

"These are some of the nicest people, most genuine, kind individuals I've ever met and it's funny, people capable of the most violence are the most compassionate, right? Once you get over that hump of getting through that door, you just realize that the whole world is yours and you feel right at home from the get go," said coach Malachi Sotelo. "Our coaches are top tier and the fact that we have that here in Boise, in Idaho, is just, like, a phenomenon, the reason I'm still in Idaho is because of the people here, this atmosphere, and I just want to share that with the world."

If you'd like to support Hernandez, you can keep up with her career on Instagram and live stream her fights. She says no matter how many times she gets in the ring for a fight, the anxiety is always there.

"I feel that up until the point where I get hit for the first time and then I'm like, okay, we're actually in here doing this, and the anxiety goes away," said Hernandez. "People love to watch other people get punched in the face, as gruesome as that sounds, it's fun and I think we could definitely grow boxing, Muay Thai, MMA and just make it something that everybody loves out here."

Personally, I loved being able to learn from Hernandez. She is a true inspiration and an example of what can happen if you believe in yourself.

"I'm really glad that I get to pass this along and hopefully it'll help someone else out there, whether they go on to compete or just in their lives," said Hernandez.

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