BJJ Private Lessons : 5 Tips Get The Most From Them
So you’re thinking about doing a BJJ private lesson with your coach? Cool.
BJJ private lessons can be an excellent way to get some one-on-one time with your coach and receive some tailor made adjustments for your game. But do it right so that you get the most out of them. Below are some things to consider when doing a private lesson in BJJ.
1. Come to your instructor with very specific questions. The more specific, the better. It helps us as instructors narrow down the actual problem and give you a solution.
An example of this would be, instead of telling your instructor, “ My guard gets passed too easy. Can you give me something to fix it?”
Come to them with,”I get passed with the double under stack a lot. Could you show me some counters to it or some ways to prevent them from getting the grips for the pass?
2. Be prepared to do more than 1 private lesson. While one private lesson could definitely be useful. Having multiple lessons is better.
The reason is that after you’re done with the private lesson, you’ll have some adjustments that you need to test. Once you get back on the mat and roll, you’ll be able to see if the adjustments made during the private worked.
If they did, fantastic. You can come back to your coach and inform them of the success and move on to a new problem or build off the original techniques from the 1st private lesson.
If they didn’t, even better. You can come back to your instructor with the snags your running into which will help narrow down the issue. Sometimes it takes more than 1 private lesson to identify and fix someones problem.
3. Implement! Don’t spend your time and money on BJJ private lessons if you’re not ready to actually use what you learned. You’d be better off to just save your money. After receiving the techniques, movements or adjustments from your coach. Make sure you get back on the mat and immediately attempt to put them in action.
I give this piece of advice because I see people pay tons of money on seminars, private lessons and instructional videos, but they never drill or attempt to use the new techniques.
4. Ask your coach if you can bring a partner. This may just be my personal preference. But I prefer teaching private lessons in groups of 2 people who are close to the same skill level.
This way as soon as the private lesson is over and I’ve given techniques or adjustments to help fix the problem they were having. The two can drill and do rounds of situational rolling to work on the area while the information from the private lesson is fresh in their minds. The two can also split the cost of the private.
5. Don’t expect miracles. While a good coach can help you make the right adjustments, it’s up to you to implement them into your game.
Personally, I think there is nothing better for progress than the continual feedback we receive during rolling with the team or competitions. But private lessons have their place, and if you’re looking to add something new to add to your game or fix a specific issue they can be really valuable.
Just make sure to go into them with the right questions and right frame of mind. This way you get the most out of them and your instructor is able to help you more effectively.
