Wrist lock!!!
Wrist lock from the top of half guard.
Failure strikes again. . .
I can’t breathe, and I begin to feel my consciousness slip. My opponents’ legs are locked tightly around my neck like a vice, and my arm is sticking through the lock dangling. My body feels frozen in place, petrified that I am in a submission and that I am about to lose a match or pass out. I try to think of how to counter this attack as my opponent grips the back of my head to apply more pressure on the lock. My peripheral vision fades and blackness is beginning to close in to the center of my view. My mind is clouded by a state of panic. I begin to slap the legs that are wrapped around my neck and shoulder to signal surrender, and the lock is released. I slump back to my butt then quickly fall to my back staring up at the ceiling lights. With a deep breath my vision is restored, my body calms and I begin to grasp what just happened. Out of the corner of my eye I see my opponent standing with his hands raised above his head in victory walking the mats while his team cheers. Then the feeling of losing sets in and I realize that I’ve been bested and I am the defeated grappler. I stand and walk towards the referee who then grabs both of our wrists and raises my opponents arm. We shake hands and walk off the mat . . . head hung low knowing that I put myself into this position, and that this failure is simply the price of ambition.
Rough times as a purple belt
Failure is the price of ambition . . . what an interesting thing to think about. In order to succeed we must fail at some point? Seems kind of contradictory to what we might think, doesn’t it? However, this is the truth! In order to succeed we must fail. Whether this occurs in the gym during our training sessions or in tournaments and competition, it is a vital for progress. The story you just read was a description of a match I had years ago. I was being triangle choked in a purple belt tournament, and this would be the first of many losses I had as a purple belt. During my time as a purple belt I found my dedication to this sport tested but the failures that came worked as a catalyst for improvement and learning.
I clearly state I had no idea what to do, yet I was a purple belt? How can this be, surely a purple belt would have some idea as to what to do? My years spent as a purple belt were rough at times. I had been a constant competitor as a white and blue belt and I quickly climbed to my purple belt which was given to me by my instructor in just around 2 years. 2 years to purple belt, pretty good progress right? Well maybe not as much as you would think. With the new rank I had very mediocre results at first. I would win some tournaments after hard fought battles only to go to another tournament where I would be outclassed by a much more skilled opponent. My game was very narrow and efficient and if you played into it I would win, but if you made me play a different game I was typically ill equipped for it. I ended up moving to another gym because my current instructor was not dedicated to helping me grow and get to the level I know I needed to get to. When I came to the gym that I would come to call home my new instructors Colin and Kyle Cannon instantly picked apart my weakness.
What was my biggest weakness you might ask?
Well, it was the reluctance to try new things, the fear to fail. I had been so competition oriented with my training even in the gym that it caused me never to open up. Even with lower belts my old instructor taught me not to give them an inch and continually grapple just to win. This caused me to have a very narrow style that could be exploited easily if someone was to engage with me in a way I wasn’t prepared for. I would see this happen numerous times as a purple belt. Skilled opponents would use techniques that I was unable to combat at the time. My new instructors made me try and explore positions that I was absolutely terrible from, and in the beginning I struggled a great deal! I was finding it tough being one of the “top” guys in the gym and getting my guard passed by a white belt as I clumsily fumbled with my de la riva or half guard. This continued for about 7 long and at times exhausting months and then it was as if a light bulb had been turned on. Suddenly I found myself was able to work proficiently from what were once my worst positions, and I was soon able to apply this newly developed group of techniques to high level guys in the gym and in tournaments. This came as a result of constant drilling and rolling from these positions that were lacking.
I cannot stress how amazing this felt. I had finally emerged out of this long rebuilding phase of my Brazilian Jiu-jitsu journey, a time which was filled with a lot frustration.
Explore and open your game
The idea of this blog post is to understand that failure is a necessary part to progress. If you are not losing and aren’t being beaten then how do you know your weak points or where you need to improve? Even if you are a high ranking belt at a gym you can still play positions you are weak from to make yourself better. My problem was that I never allowed to play with any position that wasn’t my “bread and butter” and this hindered my growth. I was stuck in the same old moves and techniques and my skills never grew to combat the new problems and evolving jiu-jitsu of the higher level of competition and skill I was now facing.
Now we must never accept failure as inevitable but simply as a possible consequence of us expanding our games and testing new techniques. You should never walk onto the mat with the mindset that you are going to lose but be prepared to make the adjustments if you do. Think of an inventor or scientist. They rarely discover what they are looking for right off the bat, but with persistence and a bit of trial and error they will find what they are looking for.
3 important things to learn
So I know I did a lot of rambling in this blog, but here are the ideas I would like for you to take away from it.
- Don’t be afraid of failure and embrace new challenges and obstacles.
- Take every defeat in stride and dissect it to find the reason you lost so that you can correct them. Whether in the gym or competition.
- Be persistent, even when things get tough.
Btw here is a cool quote a friend sent me when I talked to him about this subject of failure relating to BJJ. . .
“I am not judged by the number of times I fail but by the number of times I succeed, the number of times I succeed is in direct proportion with the number of times I fail and keep trying.”
Metamoris
Metamoris
I was very excited about this event and my excitement was not disappointed. The event had a few hiccups and at times there were lulls between matches, and I wish they would have had another color commentator to back up Rener during the matches. Other than that it was a great event and exciting to see grappling showcased in this way.
*Disclaimer. All of the grapplers on this card are amazing jiujitsu athletes and I have nothing but respect for them and their accomplishments. These reviews are simply my interpretation as a fan of Brazilian Jiu-jitsu.
Caio Terra vs Jeff Glover (Winner: Caio Terra by Armbar)
This was one of the matches listed that I was sure would be full of exciting grappling action. Instead I felt it was a little boring and failed to show either fighters’ true potential. Their first match against each other was a back and forth tussle that kept me on the edge of my seat. The match that took place last night resembled something like a flow roll at the gym. I feel Caio Terra pushed the pace a bit and Jeff played a very defensive and relaxed game( letting Caio pass his guard and attack submissions), eventually being submitted. I am not sure what exactly happened but this match was not the same exciting demonstration of competition that their first encounter was and I was disappointed.
Kayron Gracie vs Rafael Lovato Jr. (Winner: Rafael Lovato Jr. by Kimura)
This match was fantastic. Once the fighters were given the go ahead to commence the match they went right after it. Both guys attacked the whole time. Kayron went after Lovato and tried to pass his guard for a very long time. He had some good attempts but was unable to and seemed to slow down a lot after this point. Lovato took over and showed some nice skills eventually submitting Kayron with a kimura from north south. Great match from two great competitors.
Kron Gracie vs Otavio Souza (Winner: Kron by Armbar)
This was one of the matches I was deeply excited about. You have Kron who is an incredibly active and very submission oriented competitor, then you put him up against Otavio who is an ultra aggressive grappler with a reputation of being freakishly strong. The match definitely didn’t disappoint. Both grapplers went after each other with Otavio working from top for a good portion of the match. The match was back and forth with each grappler fighting intensely for grip control. The submission came towards the end of the 20 minute duration with Kron catching an armbar on an exhausted Otavio.
Dean Lister vs Xande Ribeiro (Draw)
Xande definitely adjusted his game for Dean showing why he is still a top competitor and answered the questions I had about his leg lock susceptibility. He went against the reigning ADCC champion who is known for being a leg lock wizard and neutralized his game. Xande kept his hips back and stopped Dean from getting under him which denied Dean a lot of his typical set ups. He had Dean in some bad spots at times, most notably an armlock that seemed to be close to breaking Dean’s arm, but somehow Dean fought out of it and attempted to rally back at the end with a few leg lock attacks but it was just not enough and the match ended in a draw.
Andre Galvao vs Ryron Gracie (Draw)
This match started of with the two guys locking up and Ryron attempting a foot trip which had Andre off balance for a second. Soon after Andre got a takedown follow by a guard pass and from this point on he controlled the match for the better part of twenty minutes. Ryron defended the submissions very well but was unable to mount any substantial offense. After the match there was a lot of frustration from Andre who used poor word choice to articulate his frustration. Ryron after the match talked about defensive style of BJJ and mentioned self defense. Here is my interpretation of these two things and I mean no disrespect to either grappler. Andre controlled the match from top to bottom and was frustrated by an opponent who would not engage in a way that would leave exposures for submissions. When two grapplers are going after one another and trying to finish each other (which was the idea of the tournament) openings come. Ryron is no slouch but trying to submit a skilled black belt who is staying balled up and has no intention of trying to best his opponent, is hard. Ryron talked about defensive jiu-jitsu and self defense and I agree that his defense was superb and he did a good job of not getting submitted. However, this was not a self defense scenario and your objective was not to defend but to submit. If this had been a scenario of self defense Andre would have been in a great position to punch and elbow from top. I don’t feel you can say your defensive jiu-jitsu was the best because you didn’t get submitted because in reality if you had someone get passed your legs into side mount or mount you would be in trouble. You can spin the match however you wish, but it was a draw with Andre being the competitor who was in the most dominant positions most often. Mad respect still goes out to Ryron for hanging in there against one of the best in our sport.
Roger Gracie Vs Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida (Draw)
This match was the main event and it was a good match. Roger who later revealed he had been battling with a bad infection for weeks seemed a bit tired in the match. Buchecha displayed a lot of guile during their match. Almost hitting a sweep from inverted guard and a close toe hold attempt, but the best action came at the closing minutes of the match with Buchecha executing a slick berimbolo sweep and jumping onto Roger catching an armbar. Roger struggled but made it out of the lock. Roger was still very good in the match and was able to pass and sweep, he just was not the normal dominant Roger we are used to. I am really interested to see what happens after this match. Was this match signifying a sort of changing of the guard? Will Roger come back to grappling with a renewed sense of drive?
Over all it was a great event for grappling and I hope you guys were able to watch it and enjoyed it. I look forward to seeing it again!
How to pick a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu school
How to pick the right BJJ School for you!
I am a Brazilian Jiu-jitsu instructor and I know going into a gym can be a very intimidating thing. Just going into a place and learning a skill from a complete stranger can be a challenging obstacle to overcome regardless of what that skill is.Now couple that with the fact gyms can sometimes be associated with meat heads/tough guys types and you’re going to be learning a potentially deadly martial art, and just stepping your foot in the door can seem terrifying. Now, don’t let your fears of getting started thwart your enthusiasm for learning Brazilian Jiu-jitsu because it will be an amazing experience as long as you pick the right gym.
How do I pick the right BJJ gym?
You want to make sure that you pick the right gym for you because this is going to become your sanctuary from all the regular stresses of life and you will make great new friendships with so many different people. Over the years I have talked to many of my new students and they have expressed some common concerns or questions that they had when going into the process of choosing a gym. Below is a step by step process I would follow if I was looking for a gym and some tips to consider as well.
- How to find and decide on a school
1. Do a search and locate all of the BJJ gyms in your area.
2. Call these gyms, ask any questions you have and schedule a free class. If they don’t offer a free class than move on and “X” that school off your list.
3. Go into the gym and check it out. Meet the staff, student base and attend a class. You may feel a little awkward at first and this is natural, but you should feel respected and valued by the instructor and the student base should be friendly. If you at anytime feel disrespected then you should move on to another school.
4. After attending you first BJJ class you should have two things going through your head. Those thoughts should be about the awesome experience (i.e how friendly everyone was and the cool techniques you learned) and the great workout you had. If you finish class with a negative vibe then something is wrong. However, If you’re just feeling down on yourself because you didn’t tap anyone and/or you fudged up your moves during the technique portion of class, get over it! Hah, remember its your first night and this stuff takes years to master.
5. After you have tried the free class its time to make a decision. Think of the gym, the people, the instruction and how you felt. If you felt welcomed and enjoyed your time then its time to start training!
- Is it that simple?
Yes its that simple. Remember. . . we as instructors and gym staff are here to serve anyone that walks through our doors. We want you to show up because we want to teach,help and share with people this amazing martial art that we love. Without students in our gyms we have no purpose and we are simply a building with a bunch of useless equipment. Mats are worthless if there aren’t students on them.
- Dont
1. Don’t make your decision based only on location or price. If there is a great gym near you and has an affordable price then great, but don’t make your decision based only on those criteria. Would you rather pay more for a comfortable environment, better instructors, friendly student base and a place that you are going to want to go back to everyday, or pay less and get locked into a contract to a place that you don’t really enjoy ?
2. Don’t be afraid to ask any questions you may have. Remember we are here to serve YOU!
3. Don’t fall victim to false instruction. With the popularity of mma and the UFC more and more people are trying to make a quick buck off of new comers and its criminal! Do a search on the instructor at the gym on Google and see what you can find.
- Miscellaneous Tips
1. You’re never too old. I have students that range from 5 – 70 in my gym. In fact, just recently I watch a 65 year old student of mine submit several young guys in class.
2.BJJ classes are typically filled with a very unique group of people. There aren’t many meat head types that stick with our sport, because its too humbling and doesn’t provide instant gratification.I say this because one of the biggest concern new students had coming into the gym is that they would be surrounded by a bunch of “tough guys”.
3.If you are interested in competitions be sure that your gym has competitors and if the high ranking belt is an active competitor that is even better.
4. Don’t expect much when you first start training, its like teaching your body a new language and takes time to settle in. The learning curve for BJJ in my experience is at least a month at bare minimum with an average of 3 months before you and your body have a general idea of what they are doing. Remember though, you’re still a beginner.
5. Once you are a student don’t be a belt chaser. Be a technique chaser. Just learn as much as you can and enjoy your journey.
- What to expect for your first class
Most bjj class follow a pretty routine class format. Sometimes they are slightly different but they all involved a few key sections.
1. Warm up. This can be everything from a little running, push ups, movement drills, etc. Just something to get the body warm, blood flowing and mind ready.
2. Technique. This is the time of class that is devoted to a teaching a particular set of techniques.
3. Rolling. This is when you try to use the techniques you’ve been learning on a full resisting and fully active opponent. Typically rolling will either start on the knees or in one of the positions you were working in class.
4. Bow out. Typically after the rolling portion class is followed by the bowing out which concludes class. This is usually a few words from the instructor, maybe a recap of class and then a bow out followed by a hand shake with each instructor and student.
Happy gym hunting. If you are still having doubts and worries about trying BJJ just disregard them and go try a class, or if you have a concern that I didn’t address please send me a message or comment on this post so that I can help.
Metamoris
This weekend the Metamoris Pro Jiu-jitsu Invitational is going on in San Diego, California. I cannot tell you how excited I am about this event! I love the idea of jiujitsu matches done in a way that showcases them much like an mma or boxing event. The organizers have been building up to the hype with videos and showcasing their grapplers leading up to the event just like you would see in the UFC or some Boxing pay per view. The best part of course, is the match ups! You have so many big names from the BJJ community competing, and with a submission only format its going to be insane!
Below is a list of the match ups and a little prediction on them.
Roger Gracie vs Buchecha
This is a great match up. Roger was a dominant world champion with an incredibly basic and brutally efficient game. Next you have Buchecha who is a very tough and incredibly active big guy. He was able to dethrone Rodolfo this year and took the absolute black belt division in a match that is regarded as one of the best of all time at a time when Rodolfo looked nearly invincible.
Prediction:I am going to take Roger. I think if it was a standard tournament with rules that it would favor Buchecha who I consider to be the more athletic of the two. Roger loses from time to time but he doesn’t get submitted and his game is very submission oriented, as seen with his numerous wins at high level tournaments. That being said I think Roger will need to watch for his legs because Buchecha has shown some nice leg locks.
Andre Galvao vs Ryron Gracie
This is an interesting match up. You are taking Galvao who is in the upper crust of BJJ competitors and then you match him up with Ryron who doesn’t compete yet is known as a very skilled BJJ fighter.
Prediction: I am going with Galvao. This match is hard to give an accurate prediction because we know what Galvao can do but we don’t have a great idea as to what Ryron can do. I have seen a few matches of Ryron competing and he always looked very skilled but those were years ago and against people who are not the caliber of Galvao.
Kron Gracie vs Otavio Sousa
I think this has the potential to be one of the most exciting matches of the event. You are taking two guys that are both top level competitors, both incredibly active and you’re tossing aside points and letting them go for the submission.
Prediction: I am going to take Kron in this one. I think the match will be back and forth but I am going to take him simply because the guy is always hunting for the submission even in point based tournaments.
Dean Lister vs Xande Ribeiro
You’re taking two of the old school guys that are still tearing it up. Dean Lister just tore up the Abu Dahbi and Xande is Xande who is always tough.
Prediction: I am going to take Dean in this one. Xande showed some hiccups against guys like Joao Assis with their leg lock attacks and I think that plays right into Dean’s game. We will see if Xande has made the adjustments because Xande has always continued to improved his game and is one of the reasons why he has been at such a high level of competition for so long.
Jeff Glover vs Caio Terra
RE-MATCH! Their first one was an excellent match with Glover pulling ahead at the end of the match. Now what happens with no points? I think it will change the dynamic of the match completely and provide for an exciting roll with two ultra talented grapplers.
Prediction: I’m taking Glover. Caio Terra is a monster on the mat but I think the crafty Glover will pull away with the victory.
Kayron Gracie vs Rafael Lovato
This match is a little hard for me to put a spin on. I have watched Lovato for years but I haven’t always watched Kayron as closely. I went back to watch some of Kayron’s matches to get a better idea of who he is and what kind of style he plays.
Prediction: I’m going with Lovato. The most decorated American BJJ competitor is always a force on the mat and I think his game will give Kayron some issues. That being said, after watching more of Kayron’s matches and catching up with his style I wouldn’t be surprised if he pulls out the submission.
So Sunday, go out and support Metamoris! Watch some great matches and help support this idea of having more events like it.
Here are the links to their website and youtube.
Their website is www.metamoris.com and you can check out their videos on their youtube channel. – Give your students your undivided attention during class. Period!