Work-Play-Obsession

Training Harder

2012-02-18T18:21:00.000-08:00

Training Harder. That is my new goal, my new mantra. I thought I was training hard but the other night reality quickly reminded me that I certainly was not. I traveled to a sister gym to train with the guys there and I realized the training that I have been doing has made me delusional. I wasn't controlling the pace or positions and I was became sloppy and tired.

It all goes back to the concept that you have train with people better than you to get better. I have been training and sparring fairly consistently and feeling great but the majority of the time it has been against guys smaller and or less skilled and I controlled the pace of things. I finished "when I wanted" and I went hard only if I felt threatened with being put in a bad position. This was helping my ego but definitely not my game.

At this point I'm just frustrated with something that I cant control. I feel that I need to get smashed and pushed in order to really have to work out of tough positions but its not that easy to just make those people appear on mats. I train at a smaller school where we only have our black belt head instructor and one purple belt and no upper level classes. We have grown to a fair amount of blue belts but we all know how schedules go and its often hard to get a strong group together to train. Some of us from the sister schools have made kind of pact to meet together once a week and try to push each so hopefully this works out.

Ok so thats my rant. Enough of that. I 'm done.

Damn You YouTube!!!

2012-02-14T16:21:00.000-08:00

Ok so the title is a bit of joke because I obviously love YouTube and the plethora of BJJ videos which can be found there, both competition and tutorial. The title is merely my way to express the way I feel when somebody stuffs my technique and says "Yeah I learned that from YouTube". Granted 70% of the time I am rolling during open mat I'm doing stuff I am testing from YouTube but damn it stings when I'm the one on the receiving end. LOL

So recently I've been teaching the closed & open guard passes which I prefer and as a result I've been tinkering with some new techniques I gonna need in order to remain unpredictable.

Side note, that is one of the many great things about BJJ, make your students / teammates better and as a result they make you better. This is one reason why I will never hesitate to show someone something I know, when they learn a technique I tend to rely on and get better at it I have to learn one, how to defend it and two, to expand my game and to become less predictable.

Enter the low level X pass. I picked this video up from Jason Scully over at The Grapplers Guide and from his newsletter. I actually like this pass and have begun to use it over some of my "go to" techniques. Another reason I started training this technique was because I feel very uncomfortable turning my hips up like the video shows when one needs to apply shoulder pressure. I have hesitated to use other techniques in the past because I hadn't quite mastered that movement. I figure drilling this pass is a good way to work this movement while picking up a pretty solid pass. Double bonus

Half Guard / Deep Half Sweep

2012-02-07T15:31:00.000-08:00

I am a pretty big fan of the half guard game, top and bottom, and I have a special fondness for the deep half guard, Gi and No Gi. I just love the variety of sweeps available and the threat of attacking my opponents back from deep half plus I don't feel that I get crushed by larger fighters.

The majority of my set ups and attacks are based off of Ryan Halls game and his Deep Half Guard DVD. (Shameless plug alert) Also the last few months since I have been training at 50/50 BJJ in Arlington I can feel the gaps that I simply could not picked up from the DVD or YouTube videos being filled in.

I recently stumbled across a series of half guard techniques by Pablo Popovitch one of which details a slightly different entry to half guard that he prefers. I like the concept and approach he uses however it appears to me to be more of a "power" set up / entry to the deep half then the entries Ryan uses. I am by no means knocking this set up because I plan on adding it to my game. The great thing about BJJ is that it's simple to see if I like the tech and if it will fit into my game. The proof is in the pudding once I put the tech to the test. Bottom line tomorrow I'll be working this entry as well as the sweep on the video below. Should be interesting.

Training in Thailand

2012-01-31T19:37:00.000-08:00

Here is my head instructor (on the right) enjoying life in Thailand. Training Muay Thai and Jiu Jitsu and preparing for his next MMA fight. Oddly enough I have been to Thailand before but it was before my martial arts training and it didn't even dawn on me to take advantage of the available training.

http://www.tigermuaythai.com/brazilian-jiu-jitsi-black-belt-and-ground-control-gym-owner-rocky-marcantoni-trains-tigermuaythai.html

Berimbolo!!!!!

2012-01-28T12:16:00.000-08:00

So I have always wanted to have one move that I pretty much know I'll never use but is pretty damn cool. Enter the Berimbolo. Cool move, check, leads to the back, check, totally does not fit into my game, check. Ok Berimbolo it is then.

I have been drilling it pretty hard the last few days and I feel like I have it down a little, meaning not really. Since it involves the De La Riva guard and a shoulder roll I can almost guarantee I will never try this while actually sparring. One, I don't play De La Riva guard often and two I don't shoulder roll for offensive movements, I know I am limiting myself, maybe this will change as I build more skills and learn to move better. Either way I love the Berimbolo so come hell or high water I am adding this to my "practice" game.

Just in case you haven't seen it here are some vids of the Berimbolo. One instructional and a a compilation of Rafael Mendes hitting it in competition. I have added my own twist to it too, as you sweep (pull) the guy over you must yell "Berimbolo!!" like a lumberjack taking down a big tree. It makes the move even more sweet.

Surprised to Say The Least

2012-01-25T14:35:00.000-08:00

Something happened to me today that kind of threw me for a loop. Maybe I am making a mountain out of a molehill but I was so shocked by the comment it stuck with me the rest of the day.

There is a guy that I seem to notice is always training with the females and lighter weight guys. I never made a comment because maybe it was a coincidence. Today after class the instructor said we could use some extra time for additional rolling if we really wanted to, which of course I did. I noticed that this particular guy wasn't doing anything so I asked him if he wanted to roll. He looked at me and said "No, you are too big." Now, I am 6 foot tall around 185 pounds and this guy is taller than me and maybe 165 - 20 pounds. He then proceeded to roll with a guy who was about 5'8 and 150 pounds. One I couldn't handle the rejection and two I couldn't understand his rationale. I have rolled with guys and girls from 135 pounds to 235 pounds and never once complained o rhave been complained to by size. Maybe its just me but in this art in particular part of the practicality is being able to train with and be successful against (to some extent) any gender any size. If anything it helps your game to throw in bigger stronger opponents from time to time to negate any strength advantage one has gotten accustomed to using. Ultimately, yes it is his prerogative but in my mind he is severely limiting his growth.

Training itself was really good. Took two classes, the first worked on a single leg takedown and the second class learned a nice heel hook set up off of a standing guard pass and a back take from butterfly guard. The back take is definitely going to get worked into my game right away since I have been working on my seated guard.

The Only One To Show Up

2012-01-22T12:22:00.000-08:00

So we got a little ice / snow in Columbia the other day and I ended up being the only one to show to the noon class. I really didnt mind because I needed to work on conditioning and some solo drills. I can not stress enough the importance of solo drilling as a way to get used to moving almost like shadow boxing. Set the clock, do a few rounds and its pretty good training. I recently stumbled upon this video and I instantly fell in love with it.

One person, one wall and some pretty good drilling.

New Year Same Me

2012-01-12T16:29:00.000-08:00

I feel pretty guilty about not posting as much as I used to but then I remember that I don't have as much time as I used to. I am not sure if its that I have more work or if I spend too much time on Words With Friends. I guess in the end it all evens out, you only live once so do as much as you can. Right?

I decided not to make any New Year's Resolutions for a change however I have noticed some of my friends starting out their year really well. I am glad to see more Americans focused on their health and general well being and hope more find their way to Jiu Jitsu. One specific item that caught my eye was a gentleman who posted on I Love BJJ regarding the successful completion of a resolution he made last year to do at least 300 hours of BJJ for the year. I sat down and did the math and realized that 300 hours is a good amount of mat time and decided to set me eyes on that number. I am not saying that I made this a resolution per se but I would like to get somewhere around that number of hours plus 3 tournaments.

The 300 hour goal leads me right into training. I had really been struggling getting in hours but I think I finally figured out a way and nowI manage to get into a class 4 days a week. Two weeks into the year and things are going well. LOL

Finally, I received two Jiu Jitsu books for the holidays, Submit Everyone by Dave Camarillo and Advanced Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Techniques by Marcelo Garcia. I like the Marcelo Garcia book, which pretty much goes without saying but I love Submit Everyone. The reason I say this is because I consider myself to be a passive grappler and finishing is a weak area of my game. This book completely changed my outlook on finishing and took my grappling mindset to a different place. Not saying I am mean on the mats but I definitely am more aggressive for the finish. I am not saying that I opened the book and learned a zillion new ways to finish but I will say that recently I have noticed that I finish more and its only been 2 weeks. I don't know maybe it was just time. LOL

I Too Am a G in A Gi

2011-12-21T14:38:00.000-08:00

Yes I know the video has already gone on not so heavy rotation ( & not quite viral) and I bought my copy on iTunes but what kind of Jiu Jitsu practitioner would I be if I did not post here about GINAGI (no not a white T no not a white T)? So here it is, Ralek kicking it like never before. Did I just hear a Grammy nomination?

This is now my official warm up song. Picture yourself doing your Ginastica Natural while bumping GINAGI. Who wouldn't be ready to tap some fools after that. Ya Shit can get heavy like tons of broccoli.

Fish Out of Water

2011-12-14T15:34:00.000-08:00

Holy Sh*t! So I've been trying to get in Jiu Jitsu classes whenever and wherever possible due to work restrictions and I've recently had some success. The need for some Jiu Jitsu training led me to Ryan Hall's Fifty /50 in Arlington Va since it is close to were I am hanging out (working) Monday - Friday. The school accepted me in and they let me drop in when I see fit yet treat me like a regular.

As is the case with most schools the style and atmosphere reflects the style and persona of the instructor. Well, I train about 85% of the time in a Gi and play what I now consider to be a fairly traditional game.From my perspective the guys and gals at Fifty/50 DO NOT. This is by no means on knock on the "style" there because I absolutely love it. I think it would be similar to walking into a Tenth Planet gym for the first time. I felt like it was my first day training Jiu Jitsu ever. Seriously it is actually quite nerve racking and borderline embarrassing doing the "new" drills that worked my body in ways completely foreign to my current game. I was completely into though because I could feel my mind just taking in all the new positions and possibilities and knowing my game is going to become more well rounded. I have a sneaky suspicion that tomorrow I am going to be all kinds of sore.

The most interesting piece that I cant forget is that despite the difference in training methodology and style when it came down to practical application / sparring / rolling it all washed out. I realized that I may only have 3 sweeps (not literally) but I can do those sweeps really well and the same goes for passes, and submissions. Not saying I conquered the world, because trust me I didn't but I didn't get smashed either.

Just Get Over It

2011-12-07T11:49:00.001-08:00

I've been avoiding posting to the blog for a while because I've been a bit of a bad mood lately. I recently went through a transition at work and my Jiu Jitsu training time took a significant hit. I went from 4-5 days a week of training to 1 day a WEEK. I was pretty depressed and this blog only served as a reminder that I was not training. I tried to adjust my schedule as best I could but finding time to train just was not happening. I guess what finally helped the most was the true acceptance that Jiu Jitsu is not a sprint but a marathon. I began to read about people who couldn't train for weeks and months due to medical conditions at least I was getting 1 day. My conditioning has taken a hit and my timing isn't where it used to be but I'm still getting to train and that the key.

With some fancy schedule juggling I am getting two days a week of training (usually not the same days or times) and I am visiting 50/50 BJJ every week or so when I can grab the mat time. I've also noticed that my body is beginning to heal up from some old nagging injuries, a blessing in disguise.

Anyway, I'm glad to be back at it both on the mats and on the blog I was missing a major part of my life. My wife was telling me this morning that if I put as much time and effort into a business as I put into Jiu Jitsu we would be millionaires. Haven't we all heard that one before? LOL

We All Grow Over Time

2011-10-11T17:38:00.000-07:00

Man it feels good to return to the mats!! Class was small today but it is what it is so like I always say "Have mat will train".

It was pretty cool to roll with guys I haven't seen in over a month and a half and notice how their games have grown. You often read articles and comments from people who feel that their training is not going anywhere but the fact is that we all grow.

I am a huge believer in traveling out of state and visiting other gyms to see how your BJJ stacks up against BJJ players in other academies. Trying your game on people who haven't seen it or expect it often indicates what works and what may not. Travel, train, have fun.

On the training front we are working take downs, everyones favorite set of techniques (NOT). I personally hate training takedowns but I feel that being good at takedowns takes your confidence to whole different level come tournament. I realized today that I am love the single and I will now devote my time to finding out how to own this technique.

Training Day

2011-09-26T21:48:00.001-07:00

Wow! Today was my first time on the mat in weeks and man did I feel gassed. Its unbelievable how quickly mat conditioning diminishes when one can't train. I've been lifting and running and I feel much stronger but damn was I tired.
I spent the evening over at Tapout Las Vegas with black belt Rod Wilson. Man did he crush me! LOL. It was fun and humbling at the same time and I enjoyed the friendly welcoming atmosphere. Definitely gonna head back especially because they gave me a free pass. sweet.

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Jiu Jitsu for Self Defense

2011-09-16T10:45:00.000-07:00

Wow. Just saw this video for the first time. As Jiu Jitsu becomes more and more popular people are forgetting the self defense aspect of The Gentle Art. As much as I love sport Jiu Jitsu this video shows how the shit is still legit for the streets. Love the production quality and the music made me want to go train (but instead I typed this post) LOL. Thanks to Gracie SaoPaulo for prodcing and Lapel Choke for posting.

I Play Real Sports

2011-09-12T17:06:00.000-07:00

The number of posts I have written is directly proportional to the time that I have spent on the mat lately (0 post / 0 days of training). To say not being able train is killing me would be an understatement. I just bought this Vulkan Pro Light Gi and its just collecting dust.

On a positive note this break is turning out to be the best thing for me because I am finally gaining the strength back in my right side and physical conditioning is my focus.

Not doing Jiu Jitsu has left me plenty of time to work on my strength, conditioning, and flexibility which has been lacking. I got sucked back into my old world of working out with people who just worked out for beach muscles or just to be able to walk around all day saying what they did / were going to do in the gym and how hard their workouts are. The people in the endless workout cycle with no focus. The entire time in the back of my mind I an laughing and all I can think about is Kenny Powers and one of the greatest comebacks ever.......

Kenny Fucking Powers. Gotta love it.

Shaolin Sweep

2011-08-28T15:22:00.000-07:00

I haven't been doing much of anything physical lately and as a result I have not posted much. I went from pinched nerve to flu or something that pretty much had me feeling like crap. I feel much better now and happily made it to class today for the fundamentals class.

Today's class actually morphed into an open mat so we revisited two different chokes we drilled weeks ago; one from closed guard and one from half guard. The review of those were cool but then I got to go off on a tangent and work some reps of the Shaolin Sweep. I had seen the Stephan Kesting video below and done some previous work with this sweep but I never truly had that "money" feeling when I was drilling / attempting it. Today was different though and I think after rolling through on my second rep I was thinking "money." I'm loving it.

So this is my baby. Reps Reps Reps. Gonna have fun with this.

Gotta Love James Toney

2011-08-20T06:40:00.000-07:00

I know this isn't BJJ but it's James Toney. Gotta love James Toney. In the clip below he tells the fans what he thinks about Kimbo Slice and pro boxing debut. LOL

Funny Parody

2011-08-17T18:26:00.000-07:00

Wasn't planning on posting today but Ken Primola just posted a funny video that I just had to share. For those of you not in the know black belt Ken Primola publishes the website I Love BJJ as well an I Love BJJ Facebook link. Ken puts videos and advice daily and even answers questions / evaluates follower videos simply for the Love of Jiu Jitsu. Pretty cool, check his stuff out.

On to the video. If you have never rolled with this guy then NEWSFLASH you are that guy! LOL. What makes this video so funny is that it is so damn true. I have both witnessed it and been on the receiving side of the beast mode guy. I hope that I have never been that guy, if so I apologize (LOL). Either way enjoy

Oh. Training was great today. Worked a sneaky little half guard escape to kimura. Keith puts out some funky shit on a regular. This particular tech I'm digging. MTF on this one.

Lazy or Flow with the Go?

2011-08-16T15:10:00.000-07:00

I am trying to figure out where the line is between being lazy, going with the flow, and "being technical". I really think that I am simply a lazy grappler. My conditioning is good so that's never an issue when I need to "go" but I never really seem to want to "go". Now add the fact that I'm nursing an injury and my laziness list grows longer.

Today was cool, we worked straight ankle locks and I got to work the subtleties that I had been missing. On to sparring. The cool, technical rolling that I consider myself to be doing as usual turned into lazy I'll defend whatever comes my way hanging out. Normally I'm focused on one technique for the day and really care less about any other positions / situations but I'm noticing that is not such a good thing. Specifically today I lazily plopped down on my butt, was immediately circled around (which wasn't bad because this is deep half month) and shortly had my back taken. No problem there I figured I would just hang out for a little and slowly work out. WRONG. That didn't happen. I had my collar but my opponents grip was a little tighter. That one ended in a nice bow and arrow choke. I am very proud of myself though because I stayed cool and afterwards continued with my lazy rolling where most people go apeshit after being tapped.

I am beginning to wonder if it is a mental block due to the fact that I am one of the bigger / older guys at our school. I never seem to have this issue with higher belts or larger guys probably because I am fighting for my life maybe I have the nothing to lose feeling. LOL. I don't want to be that guy who is crushing smaller guys and lower belts then nobody wants to roll with me. It's that old lose / lose where if you tap them "you're supposed to tap them" but if you don't "you look sloppy" or god forbid you tap "what the heck is wrong with you?" It's cool our school is that ego driven, testosterone filled I'm the best environment. We train, learn and laugh together and thats why I'm still there.

Ok, On to the cool shyte. Got this video off of DSTRYRsg and it's rawesome. If things go my way I'll be competing in this next year. Just gotta up the intensity and get that killer instinct. Lazy here would get me crushed.

Work That Weak Side

2011-08-11T19:59:00.000-07:00

I am doing pretty well on the road to recovery, I'd say about 80-85% and I am sure training isn't helping me out much. I figure if I completely stop training and only do my recommended rehab exercises I would probably be closer to 90%. It's just the way we are. We live to train. Sometimes we need to train so badly that we disregard our own health just to roll.

Earlier this week though I realized that this injury is a blessing in disguise. Seems I have a pinched nerve at C5 which is causing a radiating pain to my right shoulder sometimes down to the elbow. As a result I will not / can not roll over my right shoulder or truly use my right side. I took this as an opportunity to work all my techniques from my left (my off side) and not work any high guard or triangles. I have heard other Jiu Jitsu practitioners equate their weak hand side to one belt level lower then their current rank (LOL) and I equate my weak side technique to someone who has about one week of training.

Today just happened to be extremely frustrating. We were working the kneebar from failed arm bar from guard (see below) and I was stinking it up. Rolling over my left shoulder felt so foreign the first 10 times or so. I got it by the end of class but it was just a testament to need to work both sides all the time.

Rolling was a different story. It's pretty frustrating to hear your instructor yelling "you look sloppy" knowing full well that you ARE all over the place. I felt pretty good with myself for not giving in and trying to look good for my instructor and risking my recovery by using my good side but oh my poor ego. I will admit, the kid I was rolling with is getting a lot better and he was moving really well plus it was no-gi (yeah thats it) and I prefer the Gi and my grips.

Anyway it was nice to roll and not be in pain afterwards. I have a three day layoff coming up because I'm heading out camping with the Boyscouts. I'll use those days to recover.

Instructional Videos

2011-08-07T14:58:00.000-07:00

I've been resting and recuperating for about 10 days now and I feel I'm at about 80% recovered. I'll take one more day off of Jiu Jitsu and maybe hit the treadmill then on Tuesday I'll give it a go and hit the mats.

Over the past few days I have been watching fights on YouTube and pouring over the Ryan Hall Deep Half Guard DVDs. I have to give these DVDs a thumbs up. I am pretty much a newbie when it comes to viewing instructional DVDs but I've seen enough YouTube videos and Apps to appreciate this set. The instruction is clear and I like the way the techniques / theory flows together.

It's interesting that these videos point out so many tips and strategies, but how does one take it all in? I seem to remember reading an article that broke down how to use an instructional video and get the most out of it. Wondering how many of you out there use instructional videos to supplement your training and how you do it.

One thing that stood out to me was realizing how far I have to go on this Jiu Jitsu Journey. Man, there is a whole lot to learn!!! But that is what makes it great. After all Jiu Jitsu is a marathon not a sprint.

Howard County Fair

2011-08-06T15:06:00.001-07:00

If you are in the area stop by the Ground Control booth @ The Howard County Fair!! I'm working the booth stop by and say hello. Sign up for the raffle and win free lessons.

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Fresh out the mailbox!

2011-08-01T13:26:00.001-07:00

Don't worry I'll share when I'm done. Don't complain if some pages are missing : )

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Release Thy Tension

2011-07-29T12:23:00.000-07:00

I want to start by saying that I know it was an accident. LOL. Okay today I was rolling with a buddy of mine and has he went for a triangle escape he fell in a weird way and my neck got pretty jacked up. It literally felt like the chiropractor had just popped all everything in neck. Now if it was a chiropractor doing the work I probably would have enjoyed it but in this case I was screaming like a biyotch. I took a little 5 minute break and then like an idiot continued to train. FYI, I only kept training because I knew the full effects wouldn't kick in until the next morning and Saturday would be out for training so why not maximize my time today? (brilliant I know)

Eventually I had to head back to work and boy was the drive interesting. If there had been anyone in my blind spots on either side I would have rammed them because I damn sure was not looking. My head was set to straight ahead and you couldn't pay me to move it. After I got to the office I immediately went to see some medical types to beg for medication but to my dismay they only supplied me with Tylenol and some BioFreeze. Score on the BioFreeze because it is the bomb but I was looking for the good stuff this time.

It turns out not getting the drugs was a good thing. By not having the drugs the pain led me to seek out our performance specialist, kind of like a physical trainer / nurse / therapist. He immediately went into some trigger point massaged drills and myofascial release techniques. Over the years it seems I had forgotten how effective this stuff is at releasing tension and alleviating stress. I was reminded that neck pain is rarely caused by a problem in the neck. The problem usually lies lower in the traps and upper back area were everything connects. If you have ever read the book "Anatomy Trains" you understand if you have not then check it out, its interesting.

Check out the video below. The guy shows some basic myofascial release techniques that you can perform on your own. I apologize for the lack of audio. I will warn you that this can be painful at first strictly do to the muscles being extremely tight. Start with a tennis ball and work your way up to a lacrosse ball over time. This exercises can also be done lying down. The key is to relax while doing these exercses. Tensing up will not allow the muscles to be massaged properly and is counterproductive.

The next time you get a neck strain or any strain / cramp for that matter try self massage to loosen up that tension. The foam roller is another tool you can use!

It's all part of Learning

2011-07-21T19:54:00.000-07:00

Was reading a facebook post by one of my white belt training partners and he was expressing his dismay with his BJJ. In his mind everything he does is wrong and he feels that his training has simply stalled. I told him that we all have these moments and it is part of learning. Everybody in the gym is learning and getting better at the same time so of course the rolling is going to be "tougher" and at times we can't all dominate.

He specifically brought up leg attacks and his lack of knowledge in defending them. Lo and behold DSTRYRsg had this clip on their website today.

Some of the basic principles are explained here and of 1993 was a good year for me. (sophmore year of highschool). Thanks to Chris Herzog and DSTRYRsg for the video.

Planning to drill this and some other leg lock defense stuff this weekend.

Fundamentals People!!!

2011-07-19T08:20:00.000-07:00

My fundamentals class is not off to the great start that I had imagined. Only one person attended on weeks 1 and 2, each time a different guy. That basically = more "instructurs" to students since it was myself and one other blue belt teaching one other white belt. I personally don't mind the small class because I still go in and work the fundamentals that I had prepared to teach and I get the mat time as well. I just know that if more people attend the class will continue to grow by word of mouth.

I was sitting around today thinking about what I wanted to have prepared for this Sunday and thinking about some pretty fundamental techniques and movements that should be ingrained / automatic. I stumbled upon a website AngryGrappler.livejournal.com, or The Inner Game of Jiu Jitsu. Before I go on let me point out that this website has now moved to InnerBJJ.blogspot.com. The blog is written by a purple belt out in California named Sam Y. (??). I'm new to the site so I am catching up on his previous posts but I already recommend this site. He talks about the same things I was basically looking for; fundamentals and the principles of BJJ. It pretty much goes righ along with Invisible Jiu Jitsu and flow with the go.

Needless to say I am taking a slight step back and revisiting the things I wanted to hurry past. Oftentimes we look for the newest tech or something that we think will surprise our opponent and disregard the basics. I'm just as guilty as the next guy. Fundamentals people lets practice the fundamentals. I think I was on the right path with this class I just hope some other people join along. Train Hard

http://www.grapplearts.com/Rickson-Gracie-Exploring-Genius.htm

Having Fun

2011-07-13T14:15:00.000-07:00

I've been getting in a decent amount of mat time lately and I must admit that it is a shit ton of fun. Thats more than a metric ton. I mean it's probably pretty obvious that I Love Jiu Jitsu thus it should go without saying that I find it to be fun but for some reason the last two weeks have been extra fun. Lots of rolling, lots of trying new things, lots of new things working, and seeing lots of partners get better.

Additionally I was given the opportunity to run classes on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday and that was cool too. I think somebody learned something but best of all nobody got hurt. Instructing is fun, if you want to truly learn something, prepare to teach it. I feel like I learned right along with the students. I changed up the class format a bit but I think the guys liked it.

Sadly only one person showed for the new Fundamentals class on Sunday but he had a blast and we covered a lot things that he knew bits and pieces of. We worked slowly and we put all the movements together. It was pretty cool today when I rolled with him because I specifically attacked what he practiced defending and he did pretty well.

So I have been going crazy with some specific techniques and it would almost seem like DSTRYRsg is inside my brain. Here is the fun Omoplata that I've been working lately (as my neck allows me) and they posted more omoplata stuff today. For those of you who have rolled with me you will notice two of my favorite things; spider guard and omoplata.

Practical Application

2011-07-09T10:35:00.000-07:00

Last night I poured over some video footage and read some books in an attempt to solve my stack pass defense question. I came up with a few things that I wanted to try knowing that some would be awkward for me to do and others probably just wouldn't work (for me).

Once we started rolling I threw up triangle after triangle, armbar after armbar "allowing" my partner to escape and hoping they would go for double unders. Initally I had to resist the urge to go for the padlock because I am pretty comfortable with that set up. What I needed to focus on was pointing my knees out and shoulder walking to create space. I also practiced going back to the triangle from padlock which 1) I like and 2) it pretty much started the scenario again.

The other technique I managed to work successfully was simply pushing on the tricep / elbow that your opponent is using to reach for my shoulder / collar, sitting up and hipping out. It really isn't difficult but I just feel really vulnerable in that position. It's also neat because hipping out gives you a number of options to re-attack. My main concern is how effective this is if my opponent is super heavy on the side he is attacking on. Just gotta practice this more.

Stack Pass Defense

2011-07-08T19:02:00.000-07:00

I've been closely monitoring the techniques most utilized by guys at our gym when rolling against me and it appears to be the double under stack pass. Most of the time guys are using it as an armbar / triangle defense / escape or they kind of bait and wait for the opportunity to arise to use this technique.

I have been searching for a high percentage counter to this technique and have been unsuccessful for the most part. My good buddy YouTube has a fair number of videos on this topic however most of the techniques are starting too early in the technique. Allow me to explain: most of the videos show the guy using the pass either with his hands clasped around the lower thighs / hips or grabbing at the thighs and pulling the bottom guy in not necessarily stacked. From that position I prefer to simply shoulder walk back and secure a padlock / crowbar to triangle or kimura. I am not talking about this set up.

I am referring to a scenario where the top guy already has one of the bottom guys leg on his shoulder and is reaching to the far collar / shoulder. Is it already too late at that point? I have seen blocking the arm at the elbow and hipping out as the tip guy tries to walk around as an option too.

Anybody have any tips on this defense? Here's another option I was drilling today during open mat.

Growing Like a Flower

2011-07-07T12:24:00.000-07:00

It's summer time and it seems like the school is growing. If not growing significantly numbers wise it's definately growing skills / technique wise. The guy / gals are getting good and that makes training fun!

Against my better judgement I went to the day class today hoping the stretching and movement would loosen up my neck. It felt pretty good during trainging, although I severly limited my game to not play at all from the bottom, it feels like a bitch right now. Not a big deal though because I still have meds. Anyway, class pretty much consisted of the usual subjects and we worked a little from side control. I can definately, see and feel guys improving and picking up on techniques.

I am pretty excited that I start my class this Sunday and Keith made the wise decision to call it a Fundamentals Class as opposed to a Beginners Class and he's right. We will be working the fundamentals that can and should continue to be reinforced at every level not just introduced to beginners. Shit today Keith had me change up my technique for moving from cross side to Kesa Gatame (scarf hold) and now the transition is much tighter. The beauty of Jiu Jitsu, you never stop learning.

Cool thing is my class is just one change to the schedule. We have a couple of changes taking effect next week that I am sure will help everyone's game. I'm excited.

A little Erik Paulson for your viewing pleasures. Basic attacks from Kesa Gatame. Note the triangle finish at 1:10 . LOL. sweet.

Not So Happy

2011-07-05T17:09:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone had a pleasant Fourth of July and took at least a couple of minutes appreciating this great country of ours. I went back to the gym today pretty psyched because I had not done anything since Friday.

Class was pretty empty and we all seemed a little lethargic but it kind of picked up once warm ups were complete. I really enjoyed the techniques we were working, sweeps from closed guard, because I love sweeps. I plan on getting that T-Shirt one day, the one that says " I have mad sweeps" or something like that. Anyway we drilled two sweeps against a standing opponent then......

Sparring is where it all went wrong. I figured since everyone was pretty much dragging ass I would play a little DLR and try to work some sweeps. Lazy style chill a little, non "attacking"the fun stuff. My first roll went well with this approach and I figured the rest of my rolls would follow suit. Wrong!!!!! On my second roll I was slammed on my head on two separate occasions and now my neck is killing me.

The first occasion wasn't actually a slam it was more a super aggressive stack with I guess some sort of submission attempt rocking back and forth applying heavy pressure to neck. I couldn't really see / feel any way for my opponent to finish except from the discomfort so that kind of ticked me a little. He said that he thought he was close to finishing a sub that he had just learned. I don't know but whatever. The second was after I threw on a triangle, after being pissed about the first occasion. Once again, not a huge deal you get stacked sometimes when your opponent defends the triangle but I planting me on top of my head was not cool. Am I being a baby? Maybe it's just me.

Whatever its over now and water under the bridge. My neck will be sucking for a few days, I'll be on a steady diet of Motrin. The downside is no training tomorrow. I cant roll like this. Damn.

If Size Mattered

2011-06-30T09:49:00.001-07:00

If size mattered the elephant would be king of the jungle.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Am I Dirty?

2011-06-28T12:14:00.000-07:00

I can not remember where I saw it, maybe DSTRYRsg or some other blog site that I frequent but I am now in love with the shin lock. It may be bigger in CACC than BJJ and it's a legit move but I feel so dirty when I use it. I guess it's in a league with wrist-locks (which I have been practicing from mount) and ankle locks where people don't like it when you make those types of attacks. I for one personally admitted the other day that I hate when people attack my legs.

Is it the fact that some places don't train theses techniques as much or is it because they hurt so much when done correctly? I'm really not sure. I am starting to think that people hate the unfamiliar and it sucks so bad when you don't see it coming or don't know how to defend it.

The particular shin lock attack I have been using is for when someone takes your back and it works quickly. As one video demonstrating the technique points out, if you are using it while defending the rear naked choke or similar back attacks you've already messed up. Most of the time I have been letting people work their game, get my back taken, then applying this attack but today I used it as I was getting schooled. It worked, I got the sub but then I felt a little dirty.

So what about the shin lock, is it "dirty" or one of those despised techniques ala the ankle lock? Or does it have a bad reputation because people don't know how to defend it? I mean for every move there is a counter so I shouldn't feel bad, right?

In case you have never seen the shin lock:

Open Mat

2011-06-27T11:30:00.000-07:00

Today was an awesome day of open mat. I guess I got lucky because I was only planning on going to the gym to lift a little but when I got there some guys were already warming up and ready to drill a bit. Thank goodness I've made a habit of keeping a clean gi in my car (yeah pretty obsessive) so I was prepared.

We spent about an hour and a half working just to pass the guard. 5 guys round robin style switching top and bottom. It's open mat sessions like these that help so much. We would stop from time to time and discuss positioning and things we saw each other doing wrong. It awesome to be able to help each other and nobodies ego was preventing them from learning. If your guard got passed so what you learned what you did wrong and learned how to recognize / defend a way your opponent could attack you.The gym is slowly growing and more people are showing interest in being in the gym outside of the set class schedule.

My main focus right now is transitioning from spider guard to DeLa Riva and sit up guard. I worked it quite a bit today and love the options available from sit up. Getting into and maintaining DeLa Riva is one of those areas that I think I need serious work. So, anybody have an suggestions on getting set up in DLR?

On a good night last Friday was a big day at the gym. A bunch of guys earned new stripes and one guy was promoted to blue belt. I earned my third stripe on my blue belt was pretty surprised. I know its discussed all the time but we never quite feel like we fit the rank we wear. I'll just continue to work hard and grow and not even think about it.

Good day, fun times, gonna rest a little and hit class tonight. Sweet.

Don't Attack My Legs!!

2011-06-21T11:32:00.000-07:00

Let me start by saying I hate when people attack my legs. I know it's a part of Jiu Jitsu and I can not really learn to defend against leg attacks unless people use them. For the record though I will state, if you attack my legs you better A) Finish the sub or B) be good enough to defend what's gonna come at you when I'm done defending. If you are better than me you have the upper hand cuz if I go crazy I'm more than likely to get subbed again and a humbled and of course will learn a lesson. That little something in my head will click like Shenanah "Oh no he didn't" and then the fun begins.

I must admit sometimes I tend to be a pretty lazy grappler. Not lazy or stalling, I will constantly attack but I go in working one / two techniques and I will often pass up submissions or give up positions to get back into the position that I am working for the day. I just do not want to be that guy "spaz" who is nobody wants to roll with. When someone attacks my legs everything changes, it's game on and I'm taking anything I see. It's like a little switch goes off and says "Ok, muth*rF*cker, I got you" I guess I do the same thing when someone tries a neck crank too because I don't like those either. It's pretty much the reaction you see after you submit somebody and they get pissed but in a controlled fashion.

I do have to admit though sometimes it feels good to have that killer instinct. It doesnt have to be every roll but I guess sometimes you have to take the vehicle out for a test drive. LOL

So how about you guys? Are there any attacks that set you off when rolling? How do you react?

Bubba Gracie LOL

2011-06-20T13:15:00.000-07:00

Oftentimes people ask me why people refer to Jiu Jitsu as a lifestyle and as other practitioners as their family. I think it's pretty obvious really but I usually get on my soapbox anyway and babble about how great BJJ is and how it has changed my life. I enjoy being at the gym and with crew because we do treat each like family. We tease, we haze, we teach, we learn, and we all grow. It a time of need your partners have your back.

New video from the Gracies thats been flying around the internet today starring a grappling dummy dubbed, Bubbba Gracie. This is a prank that Rener and Brian Ortega played on fellow Gracie Academy students and instructors dressing Brian up exactly like the dummy and surprising the unsuspecting victim. Back to my point on family. You can see from the video that these guys genuinely care for each other and all take the joke in stride. Simple advertising for their new product or just a fun prank? Who knows but it's pretty damn funny

From a training perspective watch the reactions of the victims, they ranged from white belts to Grandmaster Rorion Gracie. Which guys / gals were actually ready to defend themselves and what was their posture? A little startle flinch / S.P.E.A.R tactics anyone?

Approved!!

2011-06-17T19:08:00.000-07:00

Today I got the go ahead to start a beginners class at the gym, wooo whooo! Next step is to put out the flyer to see who is interested and to determine a time slot. I'm pretty excited and can't wait till the first Sunday in July to get it started.

Today was a fun filled day training wise, one class teaching and one class training. I needed a day like this considering I will be out of training the rest of the weekend for father's day commitments. New task for me, De La Riva guard pass, seems most people have caught on to my X Pass and are attempting to shut it down with the De La Riva leg hook. Oh the beauty of Jiu Jitsu.

Parting note, looks like Dev is back on his blog Fueled By Fear. He has been out for a minute but I have link to blog, check it out. Happy Father's Day to the dads out there hope you enjoy your ties and homemade cards!!!

White Belt BJJ

2011-06-16T11:39:00.000-07:00

I have been pretty fortunate with my training lately and I am managing to train about 4-5 times a week (which is alot for me). I have been hitting day and or night classes and have had the opportunity to roll with some guys who are newer to our school or simply new to me. I consider myself a pretty nice guy so I like to roll with any and everybody and try to show people things much like when I first started training BJJ. It was interesting, but not new, to notice that many of the beginners simply wanted to work submissions or flashy jumpy spinny things without even being able to pass the guard. I would watch them scramble around like the tazmanian devil and just gas themselves out. I know this is nothing new and its the cool stuff that people want to emulate and the flashy stuff that gets people in the door. I am cool with that but as it's said "position before submission" and these guys could not get / maintain any position. LOL.

I am a firm believer that if you are not a part of the solution then you are part of the problem so I am currently in the process of trying to be a part of the solution. I decided to check with my instructor and volunteer to teach a Beginners BJJ class on strictly fundamentals. I'm thinking posture and base, passing the guard, recovering / maintaining the guard, bridging and shrimping to escape side control etc. and of course as Saulo Ribeiro points out in Jiu Jitsu University, survival postures.

My question to you is think back to when you were a beginner or if you are a beginner and you could have learned / want to learn any basics skills that you feel would have / will help your progression in BJJ what would it have been / is it?

I know Jiu Jitsu is a lifelong learning process and you can't learn everything at once but small details make all the difference sometimes and I love watching that lightbulb come on when it clicks. Just want to give back what was given to me and share the knowledge, what little, I've gained over the years.

The Essence of Jiu Jitsu Part II

2011-06-09T12:43:00.000-07:00

I have already received a few great e-mails and video recommendations regarding my recent post on The Essence of Jiu Jitsu. Most have been by way of YouTube and I was quite surprised to come across videos I had not seen considering how much time I spend on that site. This afternoon I confirmed a Facebook friend request with one of my training partners at the gym and, as I normally do, went to his page to see what he had going on. Sitting on his page was this rawesome video below.

This is the type of video that I was looking for, it has Gi, No-Gi, MMA, throws, training, tournament footage, men, women etc. I think it is from a few years ago but I dig it. Yeah yeah its got Fedor who is a SAMBO practitioner blah blah but it's the overall message. I had to comment on my buddies page and give him shit because if he had been reading my blog he would have sent this to me earlier. LOL

Oh and it has Andre Galvao getting serious and Marcelo Garcia , yes I did type RAWESOME (I borrowed that from DSTRYRsg) Please keep sending more input!!!! Enjoy.

The Missing Grappler

2011-06-08T15:46:00.000-07:00

This title may be a little misleading because there isn't a grappler literally missing, as far as I know, but a reference to the grappler I missed the most this year at the Worlds. Yes I saw him in the stands and yes he did an interview and yes he was cheering on his teammates from Atos but Andre Galvao was not competing. BUMMER!!

I am a huge Andre Galvao fan, for his aggressive yet borderline arrogant style of fighting and because well just because. LOL. I would love to have seen him compete in the Worlds but it is what it is.

Who did you miss at this years Worlds, I know, I know Roger (no last name needed) but aside from him, that you thought would have done well and created some entertaining / interesting match ups?

On the training side I have been going fairly hard since my return to the mats. I feel great physically and feel confident on the mats with my current set of skills not the "in a rut" feeling. I am probably going to sign up for a tournament in July and maybe Battle at the Beach in August. I'm not really sure but I am seriously leaning that way. The only other question would be whether I compete with the young bucks or the worldly (not old) people my age. I'll have to watch the registrations and makes sure that signing up for my age group will result in a decent number of competitors / matches.

I was going to leave you with my current favorite submission but I just remembered how surprised I was to see so many Bow and Arrow chokes during the Worlds. It was truly impressive, so much so that you guess it, I've been hunting the back again this week and working the ol Bow and Arrow choke. I had forgotten how much I enjoyed that choke and how effective it is. Here is one impressive bow and arrow choke by Gilbert "Durinho" Burns from the Worlds. It's pretty hard to catch the positioning at first but note the vicious finish. Nice

Recovering From Worlds

2011-06-06T15:19:00.000-07:00

So I am sure that most of us are still recovering from the Worlds and reading all the comments / results about this past weekend on the net. Just want to say that the competition was awesome and the elite level BJJ on display was truly inspiring. I can't tell you how badly I wanted to hit the mats and train some of the slick moves that I saw. The only sad part was the realization that I will never be at that level or on the flipside that I'll be like 50 when I get there. I was kicking myself in the ass thinking why didn't I discover BJJ earlier. LOL

I must say that I was a little disappointed to see some of my favorites lose (Terra, Kyra Gracie, Romulo and some others) but the competition was fierce. I actually enjoyed the quarters and semis a little more than the finals because you really get to see how slick the "big dogs" are when then are schooling other high level black belts. In regards to the finals, the guys are just so good that the pretty much cancel each other out and you end up with some very tense, close, tight matches with alot of "neutral" positioning.

I hope one day in the future we will see this and other Jiu Jitsu events on television even ESPN 2, HD NET, MTV2. I am sure high level BJJ can get just as decent ratings as some of the programming these channels already show.

I also forgot to send a request to Budovideos for replays of highlight reel submissions. I missed the flying armbar in the womens final when I went to get something to drink. All I heard was cheering but by the time that I ran back to the computer it was too late. Guess I gotta wait for the DVD.

Tomorrow back on the mats, gonna try something new, should I be Bochecha,Veira, Cyborg or Rafa? LOL

Marcelo Garcia!!!

2011-06-05T18:05:00.001-07:00

Ok so Caio Terra lost to Bruno Malfacine but I gotta give Caio credit for going for submissions. It was a great fight and I was pulling for Caio but damn elite level BJJ is awesome to watch.

Marcelo pulled another gold but his interview took the cake. I pretty much started cracking up when he gave the credit to Steven Segall (sp) for teaching him everything he knows about Jiu Jitsu. Classic.

Great weekend of Jiu Jitsu makes me want to hit the mats!!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

2011 Worlds!

2011-06-05T15:46:00.001-07:00

If you haven't ten bucks to watch the Finals of the 2011 Worlds, shame on you! Some serious Jiu Jitsu on display. What a great weekend.
Budovideos.com support our sport so one day we can watch an event like this on national tv. If the can televise The National Spelling Bee and Worlds Strongest Man there's a place for BJJ!!!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

The Essence of Jiu Jitsu

2011-06-01T19:16:00.000-07:00

Interesting question that I received from a friend of mine via SMS; "If you had to send a YouTube clip to someone that exemplifies what BJJ is, who would that clip be of or what clip would you send?"

My first thought was "Wow, that is a good question" and I didn't even try to send an answer to the question without putting in some serious thought. My response was "It would have to be a clip that has both the sport and self defense aspects as well as display discipline and respect. I don't know if that exists on the net." After thinking about it for a while I am sure the Gracies have something that displays all if those "criteria" but I wanted to have an opportunity to look first. I also did not want to limit my search to YouTube because there are other formats for video on the net.

My question to you dear readers is; How would you answer that question if the SMS was sent to you? In the meantime I will continue to search for my own answer to the question......TBD

Training Plateau

2011-05-31T14:37:00.000-07:00

Great return from the extended weekend. One, I didn't have a ton of e-mails waiting for me at work and two, I managed to sneak away for a little BJJ.

The weather here has been near record highs and for some strange reason we opted to train simply with the roll up door open, no AC. I don't mind the heat and sweat but its pretty annoying when you slip into a sweep or out of a position that you are working for. I guess most of the other guys felt like I did after the long weekend and rolling was pretty serious. I was a little upset that I missed some chokes I have been working on simply due to brain farting the techniques but on a good note the set ups were there. I also managed to hit a couple of my new chokes that I am loving right now.

After training a friend of mine brought up his frustration with his current training and commented that he feels like he is digressing. I personally have never really felt that way due to the fact that I travel a lot, visit other gyms, and get time off even if I don't want it. I don't think he has taken a true legit break from training to recover or "let things sink in" at least since I have known him. Honestly I felt bad because I couldn't really find the right way to explain to him that it happens to a lot of people and that it will pass. I did recommend that he breaks away from his "go to" moves and try one or two new things even if it is from YouTube or from a friend. Whatever the move is it should cause him to change his game a little to get to that move. I don't know, that's just something I try when I feel stale or stagnant. Maybe he will try it maybe not, anybody else got any ideas??

So here is one of the chokes I missed today because I forgot to put my forearm down after going knee on belly. I was just waiting for my opponent to turn away and when he did I grabbed his other collar but my arms were simply crossed with no choke. LOL I felt like an idiot (in my head). Knee on belly to X Choke courtesy of LapelChoke.com

I Stand Corrected

2011-05-26T18:13:00.000-07:00

Let me start by saying that I have always been impressed by Gabi Garcia but right now I am feeling pretty blown away. I often found myself downplaying her success because it just seemed that she was so much bigger than the other girls which was really a discredit to her skills. I just got done watching the video below courtesy of DSTRYsg and let me say that Gabi goes hard. I think I will also blame some of my ignorance on never having seen Gabi train before and on the GI. The Gi pretty much covers up that physique that Gabi is packing and simply makes her look big.

So I stand corrected, much props to Gabi for her hard work and dedication, she is a true champion and I'm looking forward to watching her during the Worlds.

Careful What You Wish For

2011-05-25T17:52:00.000-07:00

Yeah Yeah yesterday I sort of complained that I was looking forward to more competition to get me back in the groove on the mats, well today I got it. LOL. Class went well considering only one other guy showed but hey I basically got a free private lesson which I gladly accepted. The only other guy to show up was on his third day of training so during rolling he rolled with our purple belt instructor meaning I was stuck with Rocky and the goodness shortly followed. On a scale of one to ten I would probably say it was a 5 because I made some solid mental notes as I was being welcomed back. Don't get me wrong Rocky was definitely working a handful of techniques that he is focusing on and not just tapping me for the sake of making me tap but at times things were just silly. Ultimately, I was pretty satisfied with my hip movement and general mat awareness after the layoff so I was happy.

On another note Allie brought up an interesting note is her blog today about how overwhelming BJJ can be at the beginning. It was interesting to me because I had rolled with two new guys the other night and some seemingly simple techniques to us are truly overwhelming to the beginner. A new person can get in your guard and have absolutely no idea how or why they are attempting to pass the guard or in one case the other night press their head in your chest and just try to squeeze a headlock from within your guard. It's truly interesting but we have to remember to take it easy on the newbies!! Teach them as we pick on them with our testing new techniques. LOL

And on a parting note just in case you have not seen this clip....... I really enjoy Rampage and this is hilarious. I just hope my wife doesn't schedule an appointment for me!

Guess Who's Back?

2011-05-24T17:43:00.000-07:00

Oh joyous day!

I finally got back to the gym after my training layoff. It felt good to see the familiar faces and to get to training today. I managed to hit the workout gym yesterday and today for some lifting and conditioning but nothing beats being on the mats. I ended up going to the day class with my little one in tow so I only watched but I was able to return for the the evening class for training. My plan was to go in slow, and come away unscathed on day one and I managed to pull it off.

We worked a head and arm triangle set up and escape that the guys have been working for a few days which I've used before so it was a great refresher / way to get back in the mix. The escape is similar to the video below but ends with the guys escaping finishing the roll and ending in kesa gatame as opposed to taking the back. I actually like the variation below just as well and I it always helps to have more than one option.

Rolling was not as intense as I would have liked but it was good for a welcome back. Tomorrow I'll hit the day class which is normally filled with the upper belts. Should be a little more of a "welcome back" but I'm prepared for it : )

Heading Home

2011-05-20T04:24:00.000-07:00

Pretty excited about heading home today. Its a little bittersweet to end my trip but it is what it is. I've really been slacking lately in the gym and my mat time has been 0 minutes in over 3 weeks! I need to train and be back with my training partners to get out of this rut.

Monday is already on my radar and I know it wont get here soon enough. It is going to be interesting "getting back in the saddle" again so stay tuned for some interesting updates. No Jiu Jitsu and no conditioning = getting crushed. I'm pretty excited.......

Relax and Breathe

2011-05-14T08:40:00.000-07:00

Well I thought that I would get some Jiu Jitsu in this weekend but that plan didn't pan out. I had a really exhausting week of work and I barely made it out of bed today. The particular trip I am on now has really tested my mental strength and will to succeed. I'm not there yet but so far I'm making forward progress.

Jiu Jitsu is a lifestyle and most of us practioners like to give Jiu Jitsu credit for whatever successes we may have in our day to day lives and this is one of those cases. I've been really frustrated and it took a day on a dusty mat just doing solo drills to kick me out of my funk. I could just relax, breathe, flow, and chill. Yes it was 100 degrees out and I was baking but I completely zoned out and it felt good. It Just reminded me that in most strenuous situations you just have to relax and breathe just like in Jiu Jitsu. Struggling and fighting only makes you tired and more frustrated not to mention unsuccessful.

So that's been my mantra, relax and breathe, not only on the mats but in life. Don't let the frustration build up and bubble over. More often then not it doesn't help. Jiu Jitsu lessons don't only apply to the mats they carry over to all aspects of life. Train hard.

Away From The Mats

2011-05-05T16:27:00.000-07:00

Wow, I had forgotten what life was like without Jiu Jitsu and I am now being reminded, much to my dismay. My job keeps me away from my home gym from time to time and this is turning out to be one of those extended involuntary breaks from training. Normally I enjoy a short trip which allows me to sneak away and get some drop in mat time at a local gym. Different instructors, different people to roll with always makes for a fun time. You really get to notice that the Jiu Jitsu community is a cool group of like minded individuals who quickly accept you as fam. As of today I have had zero success on getting away and zero mat time. I will stay positive because Saturday is approaching and I may make another run at it. (fingers crossed)

You people out there that get to train 1-2-3 times a week consistently should thank your lucky stars because time away completely sucks. I guess I can thank the internet for keeping me connected to my websites and the blog sites I like to visit.

On another note, I have been looking for some quality BJJ t-shirts for the summer. I have a few of the Gracie shirts but I need more than 2 shirts in my wardrobe. MMA shirts are easy to come by and I have a few but I'm not an MMA guy I am a Jiu Jitsu guy (understatement) so I want to wear some shit with pride. If you know of any good websites let me know. Thanks

On the training front (for those of you out there who have the opportunity to train) there is a new post out from VT1Gym detailing the use of the triangle as a guard (triangle guard). I for one have never really used the triangle in this method and have strictly relied on it to attack with the traditional triangle submission. I think its interesting and a bit unpredictable.

Breaking My Silence

2011-04-25T16:13:00.000-07:00

I havent had the opportunity to blog for a while and I was hoping I would have something interesting to write, the big comeback, but nope, got nothing. Actually I finally got back to my home gym for the first time in about a month and to my surprise the place was closed. Initially I thought maybe it was an extended Easter weekend but i sat around for a few and finally Jen came to open and let me know that the schedule had changed. Turned out that today was an open mat morning and a few people actually did roll in which was nice. Getting to train is always nice.

I finally got to work this sweet little choke Andre Galvao does which I pick up off of DSTRYRsg. It is baseball bat grip lapel choke from side control where you finish in a north south kind of position. I like attacking with the lapel, mine or my opponents because it is sneaky and pretty annoying to defend against. If you like lapel chokes you'll want to add this to your arsenal. Check it out below.

One last thing. On my last flight I started reading The Fighter's Mind by Sam Sheridan and there were some great lines in there that really stuck with me. I will be posting them as appropriate. A little something that stuck with me that the book has Marcelo Garcia saying about Nino Schembri when he asked him how he got so good at submissions from so many positions. " He said he looked at all the bad the positions, all the spots where he wasn't strong, and tried to figure out a submissions from there. He doesn't fight to get in the right position- he learns and practices from positions he's uncomfortable in."

Wow. Pretty insightful. Train Hard.

Appreciate the Basics

2011-04-15T19:22:00.000-07:00

If you read a majority of the Jiu Jitsu blogs out there you would be hard pressed to find one that does not have multiple postings on the basics. We all know and love the flashy stuff because that's one of the things fun to learn but you won't last long enough to hit those fancy moves if you can't handle the basics.

Another great post from Jiu Jitsu Brotherhood that I came across while perusing my favorite blog sites, this particular one by way of DSTRYRsg. The video, titled Hips and Elbows and is a reminder on the important role the hips and elbows play in Jiu Jitsu specifically while setting up the armbar from mount when your opponent is T-Rexed and also while setting up a mount escape.

It's almost like they just finished watching me roll when the video starts discussing the mistake of pushing with arms to shrimp from mount as opposed to moving out with your hips. Once again, basic but oh so important, presenting the arms will lead to many things from there but recovering guard is not one of them (well depending on your opponent I guess)

Enjoy. Master the basics then get to the funky stuff.

Why Jiu Jitsu is Great

2011-04-10T17:25:00.000-07:00

This title is sort of misleading because I'm sure that there are thousands of reasons that Jiu Jitsu is great and what makes it great for one may not be the same for all. I am specifically talking about the sense of brotherhood that will turn two strangers on the street into buddies just by mentioning they train Jiu Jitsu. Sure we fight and the goal is to win the fight on the mat but once all is said and done we're friends again and sometimes even exchange tips and techniques with one another.

I recently read a post on a Facebook from a friend of mine that I immediately knew that I would want to share with everyone. This is a great story for a variety of reasons with the exception of the injury during the match. I copied and pasted directly from Facebook as written by my friend the only background not included is that he is in his 40's and I asked him why the hell he was competing in the over 50 category.

"The over 50 story is this...There was a guy (Purple Belt) who is 55 and weighs well over 300 lbs...noone would roll with him so they asked me, I said sure why not...before the match he told me one of the saddest things you could imagine...He told me his 17 year old son died last year and he loved Jiu Jitsu and he was dedicating our match to his son...yes I found out this wasall true...so I went in the match with a heavy heart for this guy and his son...If I would have won I was going to give him the gold to put with his sons stuff anyway...but during the match I had an armbar that I may or may not have released a bit early and then I transitioned to a triangle which I was never going to finish, I mean the dude was as big as a small bear LOL...as he was passing my legs his weight came down compressing my ribs and I felt 2 pops and had to tap due to injury...I am not mad at all that I lost I am pissed that I got hurt but it was for a good cause, he got his gold for his son and he got alot of respect atleast from me for doing something like that...overall a few weeks off and I will be training again..."

Training Slump / New Movie

2011-04-08T20:22:00.000-07:00

IT's been about 4 days since I last trained any BJJ and thanks to the internet I managed to fill my brain with 1,000 moves that I have to try the next time roll. LOL. No, thankfully I had already promised myself that I wouldn't become "that guy" and I have not added anything new to my "to try" list. I have read a lot of interesting articles on my favorite blogs and just today I saw this clip on MiddleEasy.

It finally looks like there will be a decent "big budget" MMA film not involving teenage kids or street fights and some stupid love story. We'll see how it turns out when it hits the theaters or blue ray.

My New Love

2011-04-05T17:54:00.000-07:00

I have been running in Vibram Five Fingers for the last year and a half but they have finally met their match. I recently purchased a pair of New Balance Minimus Trail and I can't say enough good things about them. I'm not sure how many of you out there run in minimal shoes or better yet barefoot but these shoes are a great way to get started. Our feet are like our hands and keeping them in casts (aka shoes) all day only weakens the muscle and tendons leading to a multitude of injuries. I'm not going to push the minimal shoes movement but BirthdayShoes.com is a great source for information.

Today I ran over some pretty rocky / mountainous terrain and the Minimus more than held their own. They are a bit thicker than my Vibram Five Finger KSOs thus more forgiving which probably adds to my feeling more comfortable. Below is the orange model, which I own, there is also a black and yellow version.

I'm no Ryan Hall!

2011-04-01T16:14:00.000-07:00

Surprise !!! Let this be a lesson to all the YouTube junkies out there, WE are not Ryan Hall, Andre Galvao or any of those slick flashy move BJJ practitioners. Allow me to explain. Recently I became the victim of the YouTube, I gotta try that technique video fanboy syndrome. Yes I thought I was Ryan Hall incarnate and I was gonna play inverted guard and catch some people in some slick triangles. One triangle (yes it did work for me one time) and one REALLY stiff neck later I think I learned my lesson. I'm not saying that I am writing off inverted guard because I think it gives me a nice option while playing spider, but I'm gonna take it slow from here on out. The sweeps and subs will eventually come after I solidify my basics.

I have always said that this was the problem with YouTube it has become too easy to jump ahead and try crazy moves before solidifying the basics. Sometimes I can understand seeing something and thinking "man I have got to try that" but it should not be the norm. I have become the victim of my own technique greed and I admit it. I have self corrected and should make it about 1 week before I do it again LOL. The tech is sweet, love the entry and Ryan Hall is really slick with his inverted guard I just could not resist.

Two Days of Assessment

2011-03-30T18:38:00.000-07:00

I guess now that the Pan Jiu Jitsu championships are over and UFC Fight Night Twister madness has pretty much died down I can put my mind back together and write something that makes sense.

I managed to get in a couple of classes over at Wand Fight Team and I am feeling much better (mentally that is, my neck feels like crap) after not being able to truly train for a bit. I was really focused on working the techs that I have been drilling here with the few willing "dummies" that I have available and not playing it safe. Some things worked and some things not so much but I learned from everything that I did right or wrong. I think I walked away with a pretty good assessment of what I have learned / maintained since I've been gone and how much being out of class has truly affected my game. I specifically did not work any of my "go to" moves and worked things that I have been uncomfortable with or drilling recently.

Bottom line, my No-Gi game is weak. Period. My top half guard game is pretty much non existent and it's no fun playing without any grips. I think I'm fine on bottom but maintaining control on top felt like more of a challenge than usual. I still think I am at "blue belt level" (???) but I don't feel as comfortable as I do when I put on my magic Gi. I'll just chalk that one up to a significant disparity between mat time with and without the Gi but something I will address

My Gi game on the other hand left me pretty content.

I was finally successful with a spider guard sweep that I've been drilling and I am pretty much in love with it, its pretty slick and you end up with knee on belly. I also pulled off the waiter sweep from deep half guard (Gi and No-Gi) that I picked up off of DSTRYRsg, that brings my options from deep half guard up to three! (LOL watch out now!!) but one really from No-Gi.

As a cherry on the sundae I worked a little Ryron Gracie wristlock that is quite sneaky sneaky. After one guy tapped he actually said "Man I just saw that on DSTRYRsg, I should have seen that coming!" Pretty funny and we both had a laugh.

Always fun training with people who you don't see you often, you never know what to expect and it's easier to spot your weakness against an opponent who doesn't know your game or play you a certain way. I had fun, as usual, with the guys, they train hard and always accept you as family. Muito obrigado. I can't wait to get back.

Solo Grappling Drills

2011-03-30T18:04:00.000-07:00

Here is great new video from Jason Scully over at The Grapplers Guide covering 33 grappling drills which can be done solo. As he points out these drills will help you with agility, mobility, conditioning, and body awareness when you may be traveling or simply don't have a training partner.

I find the format similar to my favorite, Ginastica Natural by Professor Alvaro Romano or the various YouTube clips of Andre Galvao working out . Most of the techniques should be familiar to those who have trained for any significant amount of time but there are a few that I added as a result of watching this video. The key, in my opinion, is using your mind to imagine that you are actually grappling somebody, similar to shadow boxing an opponent, and flowing through the moves. There is no set rep scheme or order required, simply flow roll. Some days you may want to go for timed rounds and keep moving quickly, others you may want to slow it down really concentrate on the transitions from move to move or perform continuous reps of a certain move.

As someone who has to deal with being out of formatted training from time to time I think this really helps keep your game from going stale and keeps your body used to grappling conditions (twisting, turning, bridging, etc). Check it out and let me know what you think.

Some slick movement

2011-03-28T17:07:00.000-07:00

I saw this Robson Moura technique over on DSTRYRsg and I was immediately impressed by how slick Robson is on the mats. I don't plan on running out and trying this or anything but just watch Robson move while showing this tech. One day I plan to look this smooth when demonstrating a technique but for now I'll stick with armbars and triangles because I got those down in steps. LOL.

March Madness!

2011-03-26T17:58:00.000-07:00

No I'm not talking about college basketball. While all the college fanboys are crying over their busted brackets (oh Duke lost, boo hoo, Ohio State lost) Budo Vidoes brought us a full day of the real March MAdness for free.

I was fortunate enough to catch the majority of the 2001 Pan Jiu Jitsu Championships and read the commentary over on Lapel Choke. What a great day of grappling on display from Blue Belt juvenile to Black Belt absolute. I was all amped for the Brago Neto vs Rodolfo match and I missed it (Rodolfo won via bow and arrow) but I got back just in time to watch the awesome match between Faria and Buchecha (awesome sweeps and submission attempts)

Unfortunately tomorrow I will miss it all but I'll be praying to the YouTube gods for some footage. If you have the opportunity shell out the $10.00 and watch some top notch BJJ or else you'll be waiting till the Worlds roll around.

Help stop bullying

2011-03-24T17:38:00.000-07:00

Another great Gracie breakdown video, this time about the much publicized bullying incident in Australia. The video takes us away from the usual MMA breakdowns and break downs a street scenario. If you have not seen the video which went viral about a week ago it is included at the 1:50 mark. The victim Casey Hynes had been bullied his entire life at one point even contemplating suicide. He finally decided to fight back and the results on the victim became instant news. This video does a good job addressing the bullying "epidemic" and some of the reasoning behind why one child chooses to bully and why some child "accept" being a victim. Let's talk to our children and give them the ability physically and emotionally to deal with these situations before the situation gets out of hand

Growing our own little club

2011-03-21T11:56:00.000-07:00

I guess the word is finally spreading and now our little Jiu Jitsu club has grown to four!

Whenever I am away from my home gym I try to find people who have either a) trained Jiu Jitsu / grappled before or b) are interested in learning a little / something new. I usually feel like giving up but this time it's a little different and for the better. In the course of 3 days two guys have searched me out and approached me "Oh, you're so and so, the guy who does Jiu Jitsu" and asked me train with them. I can't tell you how awesome that is. I have come to realize that most people are afraid that the first thing you will do is try to crush them so I immediately try to reassure them that I'm not about that. It's like a bug once you get one person hooked they spread it to their buddies. They get to learn something new and I get to train the basics so we both win.

Heard from a guy who has trained before and he may be available tonight so I'm gonna plan on getting some training in. Worse case I'll hit up some solo drilling and stretching.

Wish I had pic of our ragtag training area, working on it though. We're making the most out of our patchwork mat now up to 10" x 10" but hey it's better than nothing.

I Love These Vidoes!!

2011-03-20T18:12:00.000-07:00

Something about these videos just make laugh. Maybe it's the names of the techniques or the Trey Songz ringtone that interrupts the demonstration but I love watching this. Please don't take my laughter as a discredit to the technique but it's hard for me to get over the whole Iron hook to King Tut to Sarcophagus and not to mention the Thug Nation and pledge of allegiance. After reading the title I was ready for some crazy YouTube classic that I would run out to the gym and try to use on everybody, but no joy. I guess wrist lock from closed guard was already taken.

I'll let you watch the video and be the judge but I'll be honest I was trying this set up yesterday, No-Gi ,I have never been too successful with overhook guard in No-Gi though but I think I'm gonna rock this in the Gi because I am an overhook guard fan.

The second video gets props for starting out with Top Billin, "So step up if you wanna get hurt". I can tell that Adisa has become more enthusiastic with his teaching style as he adds his "boom, boom" and other catchy phrases. My personal favorite "It's not the grip, it's the hip" Classic. Time to go play with the Iron Hook, somebody is getting Tutted. LOL

Finding a way to Train

2011-03-18T14:51:00.000-07:00

It's that time again when I don't have the opportunity to train at my normal gym due to work obligations. Normally I am relegated to an old 10 x 8 mat and hours of solo drills / conditioning. This particular trip I decided that my focus would be heavy lifting complemented by the always fun gynastica natural for flexibility and BJJ focus .

For years CrossFit was my system of choice (I've done multiple certs along with Gym Jones "cert") but over time it appears their GPP is morphing into CrossFit Games focus. Thats cool and all if that is your focus or if you like being able to say "I do CrossFit" and the workouts produce results. The problem as I saw it was a lack of horizontal pulling and unilateral movements. I finally decided to dust off my copy of Super Training by Mel Siff along with Rippetoe and Kilgore's Starting Strength and take it back to the basics. My friend Beau puts it best, heavy Olympic style lifts and train like a sprinter, add in some sled pulling for good measure.

After my second day of training as I was doing some solo drilling I was approached by a guy who said he trained BJJ. I was absolutely surprised because one thing I was not expecting was to find another person who wanted to train out ere. This pleasant surprise was quickly turned into an "Oh, hell" when I found out, that this guy had been wrestling since he was like 7, and I hate wrestlers (not literally). He said he had only trained Jiu Jitsu for a little over 6 months but when we started rolling he moved pretty well thanks to his wrestling background. The rolling was productive especially because I got to work two of my weaker areas No-Gi and against wrestlers. We already have a plan in place for things we want to work so this whole time away won't be so bad after all.

That Really Grinds my Gears

2011-03-17T11:22:00.000-07:00

My ringworm has finally been defeated thanks to tea tree oil (thanks Stephanie) and some Lamasil twice a day. I can tell you that my head instructor at the gym was not happy when I showed him my little travelling buddy lets just say that he was pissed. I can't tell you how badly I wanted to jump back out on the mats but it was cool watching the other guys roll and "coach" from the outside.

Let me tell you what really grinds my gears! I was reading through the blogs that I follow and something that I read really got me pissed. This blog (to remain nameless) has a picture of the writer with ringworm on 15 March discussing his ringworm etc. On 16 March there is a new post detailing his training for the day, the day right after showing his fresh ringworm! I can't really tell where the ringworm is based on the photo but still it's ringworm, you don't belong on the mats! He doesn't say anything about treating it or covering it or anything just that he was training the next day. I didn't comment on the particular blog site because for some reason they don't have comments enabled on their blog. I will hold off on any malicious comments until I talk to this person because maybe I'm just overreacting (am I?) but I assume that it will piss off anyone who has ever had ringworm and has had to miss a day of training. I am going to try to reach out to him via other means to ensure that he at least treat the site and contain the thing.

Peter Griffin said it best.

BJJ for Self Defense

2011-03-15T06:44:00.000-07:00

Jiu Jitsu black belt Stephan Kesting does it again. If you don't already subscribe to or own one of his products I recommend you look into some of the items that he puts out. He authors two website Grapplearts and BeginningBJJ and a few books / dvds as well as two excellent Apps, Grapplearts Sweeps and Grapplearts Submissions.

Recently he began to produce short videos on something often overlooked by sport Jiu Jitsu practitioners, the fact that Jiu Jitsu is a martial art and should also be trained for self defense in self defense scenarios. This video is the second in the new series of BJJ for Self Defense, the first was more of a discussion on dealing with claustrophobia somethins Stephen has addressed in previous articles, while this video deals with a basic escape from mount. Most people know the dangers of being mounted by someone and the importance of getting out and this video pretty much reviews those aspects of the fight. Specifically note around the 1:28 mark where Stephan explains the importance of having / maintaining / fighting from the dominant position. He definately hits the nail in the head here and this point must be driven home to everyone who thinks an eye gouge or shot to the groin is always the quick, easy solution. As pointed out, if you do those things and don't end the fight you've just ramped the attackers aggression to a whole new level and even worse they have the dominant position.

All in all pretty basic move all white belts should know but a quality video with some key points and a sign of good videos to follow. Enjoy.

There's a Fungus Among Us

2011-03-14T08:35:00.000-07:00

WTF!

If I didn't have bad luck I wouldnt have any luck at all. I was sick for week which kept me out of training and working out in the gym and I thought I would never get back in. I finally get two days of training in when late Saturday night I hear my wife say "What the hell is that?" Anyone who does any kind of training on "community" mats knows that those are words that you don't want to hear, ever. Being the obsessed Jiu Jitsu freak that I am I am immediately in denial that it is a ringworm and I act a little confused. My wife who thinks it's pretty disgusting and knows I will downplay it immediately grabs my Iphone and snaps a quick pic for me. I look at the picture and to my dismay, low and behold there is a fungus hanging out on the back of my neck. To say that I was pissed is an understatement.

I'm not a dermatologist so I won't say that it is defitnately ringworm but regardless out of respect for everyone else I decided to stay off the mats. I just wish everyone had the same mentality and respect but thats just not reality. To top it all off I only had two days left to train prior to some other commitments that I have, and now those days are shot. The best I can do now is to go over to the gym to spread the word (no not the worm) that I possibly got something from the mats or someome recently and just watch. I really wanted to train hard and continue to work some of the stuff that I picked up last week which I felt I was finally getting down. Oh well, back to solo drills and weight training for a bit.

This whole situation makes me remember back a few months ago when this guy walked up AFTER the training session was over and pointed out something they had on his arm and asked what people thought about it. My response was like "WTF? You are bringing this up AFTER you just rolled with everyone? Nice." In this case I didn't want to be that guy. The guys who thinks "If nobody notices it I can still train and it's all good."

Newsflash, its not all good.

No drama. I figure I can still lift weights and run so thats what I'll be doing for a few days. Just got another new Graciemag too so that was a little pick me up.

I'm Jealous

2011-03-11T13:40:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year again and I'm getting jealous already. Everywhere I look I see videos or hear people talking about tournaments and qualifiers for the Worlds and big name BJJ competitions.The competitions are great and it's great for viewing elite level BJJ / seeing the arts best go at it head to head but if you are a non competitor it hurts just a little bit.

I am not talking about the person who enjoys training but is a non competitor or has no desire to compete past the local level rather those of us whom would compete if money, and time allowed but it never seems to work out. I know I'll never be world champion or anything like that but watching people travel around the country and the world doing what I would kill to do makes me absolutely jealous.

Come to think about it that is one of the reasons why I blog. Through the blogosphere I feel connected to those people out there doing it, as if a comment on a post or an exchange on someone else's blog helped them or gave them the little "that a boy / girl" that got them over the hump. I can't be at all of the tournaments but sometimes I can feel it through the experiences of others. I guess that must be another one of the bonds of Jiu Jitsu.

Back to my original statement, I'm jealous. I'll train hard, compete when I can, read, blog and live vicariously through my friends in the blogosphere.

GracieMag

2011-03-10T15:00:00.000-08:00

3 magazines of GracieMag arrived on my porch yesterday! I was a loyal customer and reader of Fight! Magazine for the past few years but I decided that it was time for a change. The magazine is great and does phenomenal coverage of MMA events but the amount of Jiu Jitsu covered is minimal and mostly related to No-Gi techs. With GracieMag I now have Gi techs from from the experts, experience champions, and coverage of Jiu Jitsu competitions. I enjoy MMA and MMA magazines but my focus is Jiu Jitsu and I'm glad to finally have my hands on a magazine for Jiu Jitsu people.

Let's see how much Portuguese I can learn by reading these things. LOL

Here are my first three issues March 11 and two back issues, September 2008 which covers the 2008 World No-GI and August 2008. Sorry for the glare.

So....You Do Jiu Jitsu

2011-03-10T14:47:00.000-08:00

I saw this clip over at LockFlow.com and it's another classic with the bears. Perfect for a rainy day laugh. Enjoy

Free Private Lesson

2011-03-08T14:16:00.000-08:00

I finally got back to train today and to my surprise I was the only person to show up for class. I was a little bummed because I wanted to roll a lot and kind of test where my conditioning was at (I know I was only out for a week) plus try out all my YouTube tricks that I've watched over and over. That feeling lasted all of about 5 minutes because that's how long it took to hit me, FREE PRIVATE LESSON. Now for anybody who has ever had a private lesson before and really understands how many little things / game changers that you can pick up during one lesson you feel me. Those of you have never taken the time to conduct a private lesson, sorry, but DO IT, if you truly want your game to grow I think it's worth it.

I not only got to work the Kayron Gracie sweep that I posted yesterday but Rocky broke the sweep down and showed me alternate set-ups and transitions into the sweep and some key points to make it work more efficiently. I was already in love with this sweep the first time I saw it but now that I have practiced it and I know I can get the mechanics down I'm hooked.

As a part of the instruction we reviewed a simple spider guard sweep where you have your left leg over wrapping the opponents right arm and across to the opposite(left) armpit. From there you post the right leg and use it to drive while also using the left leg hook to sweep your opponent to the left. I've used this sweep in the past so it was a good review to drill this and clean it up a bit.

The final sweep that we did is more of a push type open guard sweep that I have seen previously but never actually tried. I think I will add it to my normal open guard sweeps once I get to drill it a few more times. We were setting it up from spider guard kinda like this; lets say left foot in the opponents right hip, right foot on the opponents left bicep same side sleeve control. Once you get your opponent to step his right foot forward (any way you normally would) pass the sleeve in your left hand to your right hand (release the other sleeve but maintain control of the arm with your right foot) secure the back of your opponents right ankle / achilles with your left hand, your right foot hooks the back of your opponents left knee for control. To execute the sweep you pull the opponents right sleeve and right foot, push on their right hip with your left foot and pull with your right leg hook all while sitting up. Pretty simple but reading this makes it seem more complicated than it is. I managed to find one video but I didn't like it so I didn't post it. My apologies.

I did get to roll with Rocky for 20 minutes and while I spent the majority of the time on the defensive he took it easy on me. During the roll he hinted that I was a little too fixated on working spider guard when at one point he asked me where my butterfly and quarter guards were. At the time I was thinking it was just him trying to set me up which thinking back on it again I recall getting reversed right after my butterfly sweep. I got duped on that one!

Overall it was a good day. Learned a few new things, polished up some old things and got some solid rolling in. I'm feeling it!

Episode 3 Fighter Life!!

2011-03-07T18:45:00.000-08:00

I'm a little behind on this post but I've finally uploaded episode 3 of Wanderlei Silva's Reality Show "Fighter Life." I haven't even finished watching it yet myself. Enjoy

Tomorrow Tomorrow !!!!!

2011-03-07T15:00:00.000-08:00

Thats me doing my best Annie impersonation celebrating that fact that I will be back on the mats tomorrow. It's been a full week of BJJ quarantine and I am giving myself a clean bill of health and clearance to hit the mats. My time away from training has allowed me to fall in love with yet another BJJ website which I may have mentioned before but warrants another mention. That site is LapelChoke.com and its the bomb. From what I can tell the site is pretty new (???) and consistently provides clips from the major tournaments and GI / No-Gi instructionals. The only knock I have on the site is the logo, pretty weak to me but I can't do any better so I can't talk bad.

Thanks to LapelChoke.com I have been fantasizing about this sweep and you better believe that I'm looking for this all day tomorrow. I've done it hundreds of times in my head so I can't wait to jack it up the first time I actually try it tomorrow. I really need to work on getting to one hip when working Spider Guard and not staying flat and this particular sweep demands that hip movement / off your ass. So enjoy this Kayron Gracie spider guard clip but don't steal my sweep. LOL

One Big Baby

2011-03-04T07:21:00.000-08:00

So this is me:

Yes, when I get sick I turn into one big ol baby and I'm not even going to try to deny it. I have been sick since Monday evening, no gym, no Jiu-Jitsu just headaches and fevers. I guess I should be proud that I managed to keep away from the Jiu Jitsu academy and kept my germs to myself. I wish more guys / gals would do the same and break the cycle of the germs circulating around the gym. It is tournament time for many and I would be pissed if I caught some germs from somebody who could / should have stayed at home or watched from the sides. I know my body needs the rest (although I have still been going to work everyday) and I am going to get as much as I can within reason.

Anyway if you want to read something inspirational, something to make you stick to your goals on the mat no matter the circumstances read this recent post on Allie's blog. This particular post is about one of her training partners and friend who has truly battled not a a 4-5 day flu like illness like mine, but a long 2 year battle with a truly debilitating disease. The passion for Jiu Jitsu never left him and now he's finally back on the mats.

From Heel To Hero. Chael Sonnen To the Rescue!

2011-03-01T12:05:00.000-08:00

Chael Sonnen is.... what words could possibly complete that sentence? In the past I have used "douche", "dirtbag", "a$$hole" and a slew of other words but now all of sudden I'm ready to hop on the Sonnen bandwagon for one fight. Rumor has it that the one fight would be Sonnen vs. Bisping and it may actually be on the horizon. After the now infamous display of unprofessionalism that Bisping put on @ UFC 127 I would welcome Sonnen charging into the octagon and kicking his ass. This might actully be marketed to the fans as a comeback or a "suspension return bout" if Dana White lives up to his word and fines / suspends Bisping while Sonnen completes his stint for "legally" using testosterone therapy.

Being the awesome trash talker / trash twitterer that Sonnen or some genius posing as Sonnen has become I was not surprised to see that he fired the first volley @ Bisping (this iteration, they have had beef in the past). Love him or hate him he is one funny dude. For the record though I have not forgotten his comments about the Nogueira brothers and Jiu-Jitsu in general.

Check out this excerpt from MMAWEEKLY.com where Chael Sonnen presents his opinion of "Spitsbing", his "tainted victory", and how he thinks a fight with the The Count will go. Follow the MMAWEEKLY.com link for the entire article.

"To: Joe Silva, Matchmaker Extraordinaire, Ultimate Fighting Championship
Re: Spitsbing & his tainted victory

Joe:

If you get a chance to talk with him, please mention to your idiot-in-residence Michael Spitsbing it’ll be a little tougher to knee ME in the head when I’m charging at him like a runaway train and mincing him through the fence like a boiled potato, should we ever have the pleasure of each other’s company for a few (VERY few) moments in the Octagon.

Oh; and I’d suggest to him being a little careful about spitting on any of MY cornermen, since any one of them can beat him up as badly as I can. Thanks ever so much.
Hope all is well.

-Chael Sonnen"

Wand Fight Team Reality Show

2011-02-28T15:46:00.000-08:00

Most people know I am a huge fan of Wand Fight Team and have trained BJJ at their Las Vegas gym a few times in the past. It should come as no surprise that I was pretty excited to come across episodes 1 and 2 of "Fighter Life" the new Wand Fight Team reality show. I heard this show had been shopped around for a bit not, not sure what happened but lucky for us it's out there on YouTube. This show takes you right into Wand Fight team, the atmosphere at the gym and the family that takes in you once you step through the door. There is no drinking and shenanigans going on here just hard training and words of wisdom from Wanderlei himself. Within the first five minutes of episode 1 it becomes obvious why people love to train and be around the former Pride champion. He is simply down to earth and passionate about what he does and that in and of itself makes the show worth watching.

Take some time to enjoy the clips they are about 40 minutes each.

Episode 2

Wow, Spit Happens

2011-02-27T20:28:00.000-08:00

I am sitting here almost 24 hours later (East Coast Time) wondering why Michael Bisping has yet to receive a suspension or a "talking to" from the UFC brass for his actions during UFC 127. Swift, harsh justice have become the UFC standard and uncharacteristically a sentence has not been handed out. Dana White was quick to suspend Paul Daley "for life" for his after the bell sucker punch on Josh Koschek at UFC 113 saying "There is no excuse for that. These guys are professional athletes."

I am not going to discuss the illegal knee during the fight because there can always be argument, whether it was legal or illegal and Rivera could have said he could not continue and got the DQ. There is no excuse for spitting on another human being which most consider to be the ultimate sign of disrespect. Bisping did not spit on his opponent who could have retaliated / defended himself but he spit through the cage on Rivera's cornermen, boxing and Jiu Jitsu coaches who were "defenseless."

I, for one, am as appalled by the inaction by the UFC as I am with the actions of Michael Bisping. We all know that Bisping is "MMA's European Ambassador" and to suspend him would have a much larger effect than when Daley got the axe. As the "European Ambassador" he should in actuality be held to a higher standard with greater expectations. Interestingly it would also be the second British fighter suspended / axed for unprofessional conduct potentially labeling the UFC as biased against the Brits.

I would like the UFC and Dana White to be consistent and stand behind their words regarding this type of conduct. This act of spitting was low, classless, and extremely unprofessional. If the organization chooses to turn a blind a eye to this incident it will definitely send the wrong message to the public regarding the image that the UFC claims to present. If the intent is to continue to take the MMA mainstream and one day to Madison Square Garden this backyard bully behavior must be addressed.

Just my two cent rant for the day.

I Love Sweeps

2011-02-26T17:08:00.000-08:00

If you take a poll on what grapplers like the most about grappling the most common answer will probably be the submissions. Yes submissions are cool and display your dominance over your fellow man / teammates and as a martial art submissions display your ability to subdue an attacker / assailant. I got all that, check, understood, but for the record, I Love Sweeps. Yes, I want the submission too but the thrill of going from a bottom / "defensive" position to a top position of control and "attacking" in one sweet move almost screams "Haw Haw" (in the Nelson cartoon voice) right in your opponent's face. I can almost hear my opponent say "F-ck" as I take them over to their back then go on the attack for that coveted submission.

Today as I read through my blogs I noticed DSTRYRsg had a post on a sweet Omoplata Hip Bump Sweep that you better bet your sweet ass that I will be doing the next time I am on the mat. I am quite sure the finish will take me a while to get down just right and I'll probably give up my back a few times in the process but I'll get there. If you haven't seen it yet over on DSTRYRsg the clip is below.

Below I've also included the more commonly practiced Omoplata Sweep. I like to use this sweep from time to time as a counter to the triangle defense / counter when my opponent tries to stack me with his knee on the mat near my head. Most of the time they don't see it coming. LOL

Train Hard.

Is That Legal??? (Gi Chokes!!!)

2011-02-24T15:53:00.000-08:00

Today I pulled a double dip day of training, learned some nice things and got in some quality rolling. I stayed on my theme of chokes, more specifically Gi Lapel chokes from side control all in an attempt to open up my armbar game. I wrote about the use of attacking with chokes to open up other submission attacks a couple of months ago after our Ryron Gracie seminar.

Funny thing today, during training as I was setting up a choke and pulling lapels out, trapping arms etc. my partner says out loud, "Is that legal?", " Can you do that with the clothes?" Being the person that I am I just thought it was pretty funny, wrote it off and just continued. I later realized that I was being a bad training partner and friend by not breaking some stuff done with my partner after the roll. I apologize and Frank this is for you. A sneaky little Renzo set up to a Gi choke from side control. This particular technique is only using his Gi.

This is an old clip of Renzo Gracie showing a sneaky Gi lapel choke from side control that I have been working lately. It isn't a difficult technique and I have seen it set up many different ways. I like this Renzo clip because well, it's Renzo and if you have never talked, trained or spoken to him it is funny to hear him. It's just his mannerism and little quips that make him a great teacher.

Escape the Mount

2011-02-22T15:42:00.000-08:00

I've been a little busy the past few days and add to that a little under the weather so I've only trained twice with zero posts to my beloved blogspot. Below is the Gracie breakdown to Fedor vs. Bigfoot Silva fight which has a very good technique that I wan't to point out at the 4:30 mark.

I was reminded of the point that I wanted to make last night when I was rolling with a young white after class. The situation was pretty similar to the Fedor vs. Silva fight where I outweighed him by at least 40 pounds, was in mount, and had solid control. After a bit of time and struggle working mount to back, mount to back a few (I was actively "riding" working control not so much looking to finish) he decided to to use what Rener called "an emergency escape" giving up his back in anticipation of me putting a hook in. Immediately after I put my hook in he turned right back towards me putting himself into the half guard. He executed it perfectly and I made a mental note to break it down with him after the session. I am glad we discussed it after because the funny thing was that he didn't even know what he had done.

Today I was watching Allie's matches from this weekends NAGA and low and behold in her first match her opponent used this technique to escape the mount. Allie did a great job of controlling her and ended up in side control.

I think this is a neat little tool to have in your toolbox for those tough to escape mount situations. Pretty basic but nice and sneaky. I like it.

Counter to a Common Kneebar Defense

2011-02-18T19:11:00.000-08:00

Today we worked two different set ups for kneebars from side control and a neat little choke counter to your opponents kneebar defense. While we were drilling the first kneebar setup I was remembering a counter to your opponents kneebar defense (triangle the legs) which I had learned previously. Of course I wasn't going to interrupt class to show how smart I was or to sharp shoot the lesson (what about if I do this?) but in the back of my mind I was thinking "I'm going to post this tonight."

The video below shows a kneebar from side mount as opposed to half guard as we worked it today but the key piece, the counter to the defense can be used a majority of the time because as the video points out this is a common kneebar defense, making a triangle with the legs. I personally like it because it gives you an alternative from wasting time fighting with your arms against your opponents legs. As Keith pointed out today, the legs will always win that battle. Be smart and change to a different attack, flow.

Kneebar From Side Mount - Click here for funny video clips

Enjoy. Train Hard.

History and Future Update

2011-02-16T18:37:00.000-08:00

The first update has rolled in thanks to Georgette and I am proud to display a little information about another African American BJJ Black Belt. Stephen "Pesadelo" Hall, Alliance BJJ Black Belt. A long list of his many accomplishments can be found at this link:

http://www.pbjj.net/instructor/

I would like to mention something on the site that really captured my attention. Pesadelo BJJ offers a free program titled G.A.P - Gentle Art Protection. I encourage you to read about the program and understand what it offers to women and children and in turn society. The intent behind this program is so commendable that I felt compelled to post it below:

"Our goal is to have success in empowering women to use the techniques they will learn to stop and prevent attacks. It is our objective to make women and their families safer through education and skilled instruction. We also strive to give children the self confidence, and peer-relationship skills needed to survive and excel in today’s turbulent world. Through thorough instruction in the “Gentle Art” of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, the students in the G.A.P. program will learn to defend themselves, get in great shape, and gain self confidence, while mastering what has been proven to be the most effective self defense art in the world."

History and Future

2011-02-15T16:55:00.000-08:00

With February being Black History Month I decided to try to find some history of African Americans and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. I will start by saying that this has not been an easy search and unfortunately I have not found much. My intent was to find successful African American BJJ practitioners and highlight their accomplishments in competition and contributions to the BJJ community. I was not simply looking for African American BJJ black belts, which with all due respect is quite the accomplishment, rather for those artists who have placed at the black belt level in the major tournaments or made a significant contribution to the BJJ community and the sport.

Love him or hate him number 1 is Master Lloyd Irvin. Master Lloyd's list of accomplishments can be found all over the internet and through any of his academies but to name a few; The first African American to receive a BJJ black belt, Two Time Brazilian Jiu Jitsu World Champion, and he was inducted into “The Grappling Hall Of Fame” with UFC Hall Of Famer and mixed martial arts legend Royce Gracie.

Not a BJJ guy but also the great Kenny Monday, the first African American to win a gold medal in freestyle wrestling. Kenny Monday was an inspiration to me personally and a motivation during my short lived wrestling career.

Please send me any other names that I have overlooked. I am in the process of reaching out to BJJ Heroes for some help. Thanks

Grocery List

2011-02-13T19:29:00.000-08:00

I was pretty excited heading into open mat today because I got a lot of rest on Saturday and I felt refreshed. I also knew Zach was going to be there and it's nice working with him. Zach is an experienced blue belt who does a great job of explaining and breaking down techniques. Without any concern for anybody else who would be there I went in with my own little grocery list of techniques I wanted to review for the day.

Things went as I had hoped and Zach I managed to cover the things I had hoped plus a little more. We worked the harpoon sweep that I have been trying lately and we tighten my technique up nicely. The video below is similar but different yet it still provides a general idea of the sweep for those who have not seen it.

We also worked another nice little spider guard sweep that comes in handy when your opponent opts to stay on his knees to defend. It involves bringing your overhooked (R) leg across your opponent to the back of the his far (R) knee while using your other (L) foot to block at the same (R) knee. Switch your left hand grip from your opponents R sleeve to your opponents left sleeve and right hand to your opponents right lapel collar. Using the left foot on the knee push and turn your body to that magical 90 degrees, repost that foot then sweep your right. (I hope I did that some justice) This sweep sets you up for nice a little collar choke or if you are slick, straight into mount.

We drilled a few other things that will tighten some holes in my game but it would take me an entirety to write them here. One thing I did walk away with was a realization of how far my game has to grow. One day and one step at time. Enjoying the journey!

Rolling with Co-workers

2011-02-12T18:03:00.000-08:00

I 've never really thought about it before but last night I was wondering if anybody out there trains with a coworker of higher status or someone who works for them. I'm just curious to know what the office atmosphere would be like if one was consistently submitting their boss. Would you leave the gym if one of your superiors or junior employers chose to join your gym? I would think that it could be pretty uncomfortable. I'd be interested to hear any personal experiences or stories.

Maybe I will hit up the guys at the fightworks podcast and see if they will do a poll.

Fighting the Force

2011-02-11T17:11:00.000-08:00

Today was an exhausting day of training. Morning class went well and in the afternoon I scheduled a date with The Force for a little Tabata protocol run.

The gym was warm for a change so drilling and rolling today while a little stuffy felt better than usual because the warmth allowed my joints to warm up rather quickly. We drilled the D'arce set up from half guard which I found coincidental coming off the Jon Jones victory but we have been working half guard lately so I let it slide. From there we worked a spinning armbar coming out of half guard. I always like drilling armbars and always need to work on controlling myself while spinning.

I played a ton of spider guard today and in the process this little light bulb came on. I finally realized that in order to tighten up my spider guard I need to tighten up my De La Riva, Cross Grip, and Sit Up Guards as well. When rolling with Rocky it became so apparent that if I can't switch to those guards instantly he just passes right by my spider guard. Although I got passes repeatedly I consider my epiphany a victory.

Later that day I had a date with The Force. The Force is a Woodway "treadmill" that does not have a motor. No motor means you supply the power (The Force) by tethering in and running, driving as if pulling a sled, kind of. If you have never tried this be glad because this is a smoker. I did one 4 minute Tabata protocol, 20 seconds work- 10 seconds rest - 8 rounds, the work period at an all out sprint, the rest period doubled over. I was completely exhausted afterwards with trembling and my hamstrings about to pop out the backs of my legs. It was great and I can't wait to do it again next year.

On a parting note, Shout out to Georgette as she competes this weekend. I'm rooting for you and hopefully we get some footage. Kick ass!

Target Fixation

2011-02-10T15:47:00.000-08:00

One thing that I love about BJJ is that it is literally a game of chess. For every move there is a calculated counter and of course a counter to that counter. The last man (or woman) standing is not necessarily the bigger or stronger person but the one who applied their counter (or counter counter) more timely and efficiently while thinking the game steps ahead. This brings me to an issue that newbies or lower level BJJ practitioners have to deal with; Target Fixation.

As it relates to BJJ my idea of target fixation is concentrating on accomplishing one technique so badly that you miss every other opportunity that comes your way and end up losing position or being frustrated. I am not talking about when you go into training with the goal of working gi chokes or spider guard (my two things right now) and you are working various techniques from those positions. I am talking about something different.

For example today we drilled a somewhat basic half guard sweep where you are under your opponent with your left ear to their belly button left arm under hooked and trying to secure their left ankle with your right hand. Sometimes in an attempt to not let you secure their left ankle your opponent will base it out to their left. Now here is where the target fixation comes into play. The person that is target fixated really wants that ankle and really wants that sweep so they are driving and reaching as best they can to get it and struggling with their opponent. Little do they know that their opponent has just opened up a ton of space for them to simply hip back under their opponent and shoot their right knee through back to the closed guard. It's sitting right there!!

This is just one example (one that I learned the hard way myself) and it goes back to the idea of chaining your moves together or baiting with one move to get to the next. If you are gunning for move and it's not there then search for what is. For every move there is a counter thats the joy of playing the game. Don't get fixated on one move and miss something that is literally screaming at you.

What Do you Get When......

2011-02-08T07:31:00.000-08:00

What do you get when you combine Charlie Murphy's True Hollywood Stories with an Anderson Silva front kick to the face? Charlie Murphy's True MMA Stories (duh). Seriously though this is some truly funny shit thats what. Genius, classic, comedy.

I am pretty sure that almost everyone has seen the Anderson Silva front kick heard round the world and if you haven't I have no words for how pathetic you are. (just kidding) Just when I thought I had seen the highlight clips enough for one day along came this YouTube clip "Charlie Murphy's True MMA Stories" which combines the classic Dave Chappelle "I'm Rick James bitch" with that now famous front kick. Props to TopRamen over at LockFlow.com for the find.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcSNCI8ziD0&feature=player_embedded

UFC getting recognition

2011-02-07T15:42:00.000-08:00

Its good to see the UFC and MMA getting recognition on the sports networks. The Anderson Silva front kick to Vitor Belfort's face actually made the highlight reals on ESPN and blasted into the top ten plays of the week coming in at #3. No issues that the commentator said Victor Belfort but I'll take it the sport is getting good recognition for a change not recognition due to a death, brawl, or some other craziness.

Playing "Catch" Up & UFC 126 Breakdown

2011-02-07T15:33:00.000-08:00

Finally got back in the gym today after a few days away on business and it felt good to train. I uncharacteristically went in with the attitude that I was going to roll relaxed but at the same time be aggressive for submissions. This is in contrast to my normal practice, roll relaxed and work position stuff. I am not sure if it was the lay off or what but today turned out to be a good day of rolling. I hit some nice baseball bat chokes, kneebars, and what I considered a pretty slick armbar from a scramble. It was just one of those days I guess and needed it. Joe Rogan even borrowed the old addage during his commentating at UFC 126 "Sometimes you're the hammer, sometimes you're the nail." For the majority today I was the hammer. Of course I am not forgetting the times I got smashed (although I would like too) but even those rolls were good up until I got caught.

On another note as has become tradition here below is the UFC 126 Breakdown. DSTRYsg posted it earlier so it may be old hat to some of you. I personally enjoyed the 1st round of BJJ displayed by Carlos Eduardo Rocha, props to Jake Ellenberger on the "W" but I still think that it was too bad Rocha could not get it back to the mats. He definitely look slick with his transitions and the breakdown does a good job of well breaking it down.

As far as Jon Jones vs Ryan Bader (yes I have been on the bandwagon since that the spinning back elbow to Bonner) Bones is the man and the title shot is well deserved. I kept screaming D'arce uncontrollably (apologies to my guests) because I am long and lanky like Jones and have hit that D'arce many times. He did go to the bicep a few times and I thought he was going to finish with the D'arce but he finally went to the guillotine instead (props to him). Is he really that good or was Bader off his game?

A final shout out to Cowboy Cerrone who put his BJJ to good use and finished Paul Kelly with a nice RNC. Cowboy has supported Shogun Fights with his presence and trained with the guys on multiple occasions so big ups (remember that? LOL).

Front Kick To The Face

2011-02-05T21:34:00.001-08:00

So there was no Jiu Jitsu in the Anderson Silva fight but there was one helluva front kick. I have stood by the spider and he did not disappoint.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

UFC 126 Weigh Ins!!!

2011-02-04T18:48:00.001-08:00

I got lucky and got done with work in time to make it to the weigh ins. The place was packed and the atmosphere was crazy. Anderson Silva was greeted by a ton of boo'es (sp) and everyone was showing the love to Bones Jones.
Silva and Belfort had to be separated by Dana White after Silva proceeded to don a Phantom of the Opera mask and talk mad sh!t right in Vitors face. I know they are both BJJ black belts but I don't predict that BJJ will be a factor. I think somebody is getting KTFO!!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Funny Yet Practical

2011-02-04T12:18:00.000-08:00

This YouTube clip was posted over at DSTRYRsg on Thursday so I can not take credit for the find but for those of you who do not follow DSTRYRsg (shame on you) I decided to spread the message. I am sure we have all been kind enough at some point to help a newbie tie their belt whether it was their first day at class and they approached you or you saw them struggling with no success to tie their belt on their own. Well Rener has helped with this clip and nobody need be embarrassed ever again. I know I am often frustrated when my belt come untied so I think I will transitioning from Hollywood to that super lock thingie. Those of you who have wathced Gracie clips before know how entertaining Rener and Ryron can be well there is no let down with Rener in this clip (How do you defeat the Twister?). Learn something, fix your belt, and Train Hard.

I apologize that I could not embed the clip for some reason. Below is a link to the post. Enjoy

http://www.dstryrsg.com/2011/02/belt-mean-no-need-rope-hold-up-pants.html

It's Killing Me!!!

2011-02-03T20:40:00.000-08:00

I'm out of town on business and the closest place to train is an hour and a 1/2 away! Yeah its not that far but I'm just not up for the drive. Fortunately I have coverage on my cell so I have been able to read the blogs and catch the great clips DSTRYRsg and Georgette have posted of the IBJJF European Open.
In the meantime I've been hitting the gym, been doing some solo drilling and letting my body rest a bit. Monday it's back on the mats and to work on some Gi chokes.
Finally, I just got word that the videos are finally complete from the Ryron Gracie seminar just gotta pick a copy up when I return. I'll be ready to post some cool stuff shortly.

Fedor on Twitter!!

2011-02-01T22:39:00.001-08:00

I know this isn't really a Jiu Jitsu based post but I am slightly fascinated by all things Fedor. This is his official Twitter address but be advised it's in Russian.

fedoroskol (Федор Емельяненко)
Following:0 Followers:2,535

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Catching up on some TV

2011-01-30T18:40:00.000-08:00

Back home and catching up on my television viewing. I had to DVR the Strikeforce fights since I was out of town but I was happy to see the amount of submission finishes. A card with Roger Gracie and Jacare Souza immediately scream out JIU JITSU and they both delivered. The card was capped off by my favorite representative of the 209 Nick Diaz who also finished with a little Jiu Jitsu. Not too bad, 3 of 4 fights ended by submission. Props to Robbie Lawlor for escaping those armbar attempts in the second round.

Sambo Worlds

2011-01-29T08:02:00.000-08:00

I'm doing a quick weekend jaunt to the in-laws and as a result I have no training in the plans. I am taking this opportunity to watch as many of The Sambo Worlds matches that I can find on YouTube. There were a bunch of great throws and submissions as usual and the athletes really go for it.

SAMBO - SAMozaschita Bez Oruzhiya or I've also seen SAMoborona Bez Oruzhiya - is self defense without weapons and is a blend of various martial arts. It's both beautiful to watch as sport and deadly on the field of battle. In my opinion it kicks the ass of our fledgling Modern Army Combatives Program one of the few areas where the Russians dominate.

Check out the incredible throw and finish in the fight below.
Even if you don't understand Russian you can't help but notice the demeanor of the commentator as opposed to some famous MMA commentators (Rogan, Ranallo and Schiavello immediately come to mind). You can barely notice how impressed the guy is at the 2:00 mark when the guy hits that rawesome throw, note that the commentator actually sees the throw coming before it even happens because he pauses / stutters and then says "what a beautiful 4 point" as the guy is doing it! Joe Rogan would have jumping and screaming, Schiavello talking about the big kabosh, and Ranallo still trying to figure out what happened. Props to this guy.

Anyhow enjoy and if you get the opportunity, Train Hard.

Snow Days!

2011-01-27T18:46:00.000-08:00

We finally received a significant amount of snowfall in my area of Maryland and things have pretty much come to a standstill. Roads are crap, schools are closed and most significantly I have not been able to train. From a conditioning standpoint I cant complain because shoveling driveways is a pretty good workout and I got plenty of that. I also had plenty of time to watch BJJ / grappling videos while I caught up on my blog reading. So that's pretty much what I've been up to, watching vids, reading posts and imagining what I am going to do when I hit the mats again. Hopefully that will be sooner than later because I am getting antsy and it's driving me crazy.

Calm and Collected

2011-01-25T15:26:00.000-08:00

Today was my first day of training in a few days so needless to say I was a little antsy to get rolling. We started by drilling counters to moves that guys picked up during the Ryron Gracie seminar. It is actually kind of funny because the people who attended the seminar have been routinely catching all of the guys who do not attend while at the same time they are trying to be the first to figure out a counter to the counter to come out on top against other guys who were in attendance. Its sort of a Manhattan Project / arms race to defeat the triangle counter or lockdown escape counter from those two days. It's really great to see everyone thinking during the open mats and having to try to defend against a move that you know is coming with 100% certainty. This of course makes everyone better both offensively and defensively because you are attempting to apply the technique against someone while they are most aware of it and how to counter it.

The counter to triangle stack ends up with something resembling an omoplata sweep to mount and is rawesome when you hit. I have been working my triangle set up and finishes (if I get there I will hold for 1-2 and release) to the stack counter "omoplata sweep." So far the results at the lab look good but I'll wait for Rocky to test it out with Ryron and see what he says about it. I'm guessing he has something much more basic and simple that is more efficient and I will love it.

Another item we worked on is passing the half guard lockdown. Basically you fall to the hip that your opponent is not controlling (bottom leg straight). From there you can secure the opponent top leg at the knee with one hand ( lift the leg trapped in half guard and sweep your bottom leg underneath using it to pop the triangled foot free. Once the leg is no longer "locked down" walk it up and out of the leg triangle / half guard as far as possible. From here you are sitting in a kind of stalemate with your opponent holding their last grasp of the half guard on your foot and you waiting to get that foot out and switch to side control. We worked two options; sliding the top side knee across your opponent flattening them and working towards the mount or simply waiting, stalemate, basically hoping your opponent will think he can sweep you, opening his guard to try to base and push. I have this coming on dvd and will post it as soon as can. This is a good escape to what can becoming a frustrating position if you have not dealt with the half guard.

Rolling went pretty well. Mentally I was chomping at the bit to roll but I decided to play calm and collected, work some positions, feel some things out and relax. I saw some things and missed them as usual (a kneebar from north south that I like) and I caught some of the old reliables that I hadn't visited in a while (cross choke from guard and darce). I managed to hit the "omoplata sweep" to mount but missed the subsequent triangle from mount. No problem, just gotta work it some more. During one roll I got a little too zoned and found myself on the receiving end of a collar choke that I've seen a thousand times before (aint that a b!tch LOL). The only thing that frustrated me was that I did not get to go for the half guard brabo choke that I told myself I was going to try today. Oh well, just a simple reminder that when I am looking for that attack I am open to get attacked. Lesson learned.

Train Hard