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1 thing every BJJ instructor and BJJ practitioner should always remember

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So this weekend I had the pleasure of competing alongside my student and one of my coaches. We competed in Ohio at the American Grappling Challenge (formerly the Ohio Grappling Challenge) and we had a blast. We were in the main event which was 4 teams made up of 3 men each facing off with one another. Each team was composed of a mixture of purple, brown and black belts from some of the best schools in the region.  The experience was a lot of fun and me and my guys were fortunate enough to come home as the winning team.

The best moment during this team tournament for me was watching my 17 year old purple belt go out and go toe to toe with a skilled black belt. He played a great game and ended up winning on points in a convincing manner. This was such a cool moment for me. I have been training with this kid since he was 11 year old. The transformation has been amazing to watch over the years, but its been a lot of hard work too.

 

Now whats the 1 thing we should all remember whether we are an instructor or practitioner?

Be persistent!

 

If you are a good instructor then you know that you are working a never ending job. I mean you can never get your students “too good” and the same goes for yourself. I personally work more hours now than I did when I worked in a office. I do a lot of work after the gym is quiet and the students have gone home. My classes only equate to around 1/3 of my actual work time. The other 2/3 of it goes towards the countless task I choose to tackle on any given week.Its all worth it when you see one of your students achieve something awesome. To see the result of your labor come to fruition in front of your eyes. Nothing feels quite like having one of your students do something great and knowing that you had a hand in that achievement. You helped another human do something amazing.This makes all the hours of labor worth it. 

Persistence is important for any practitioner as well. The student I wrote about at the beginning of this post is Chad. The funny thing about Chad is that he had a terrible performance at the Gi Worlds last year. He had slacked in his training leading up to it and it showed. He was beaten in the first rd of a single elimination tournament and was sent home with nothing. Chad isn’t from some super affluent family either. All the fund raising and saving he had did leading up to that tournament amounted to nothing.  Now he could have been discouraged and gave up on winning a big title like the Pans or Worlds, but he didn’t. We had a talk about his lack of training and he quickly kicked things in gear and ended up winning both the No Gi Pans and Worlds just a few months later.

 

So remember, whether you are a instructor or just a practitioner. . . DON’T GIVE UP! This sport can be difficult sometimes. You hit walls and feel like you’re getting worse, things interfere with training, your students aren’t grasping the techniques like you want, whatever it may be. Just remember that everyone encounters the relatively same hurdles. The overcome these obstacles by pushing on and continuing, even when things get tough. If you desire something that is worth having in BJJ or in life. Be prepared to work for it and be prepared to hit some speed bumps along the way.

Just know that every time you put forth a strong effort towards your goal, you’re inching just a little closer to realizing it.

 

Now enjoy a funny photo of us in ridiculous rash guards we bought for the team tournament.Image

Brazilian Jiu-jitsu in Palma De Mallorca! (Part 3)

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Dealing with gym separation

After several days of being separated from my gym and my friends I would be lying if I said I didn’t missed everyone. Being a Brazilian Jiu-jitsu instructor means that being around my students and working out with them is what literally gets me out of bed in the morning. I find that among other things, one of the most amazing aspects about my job is all the fantastic people I get to interact with all day long. When I used to work in the corporate world there were always people that I disliked and couldn’t stand being around. The gym isn’t this way though. The atmosphere is so positive and I am happy and excited to be.

With this said, I was feeling a little glum while in Palma. I missed being in the mix with my guys. My poor girlfriend had to deal me with in this slightly grumpy state. Bless her heart for putting up with me. While I would send a Facebook message or email to keep in touch with everyone back home, I missed my second home. I have to say thanks to ABAMMA for helping me through this though, albeit inadvertently.  Their close knit and super positive gym atmosphere, mixed with the fact that they were so accommodating really helped me deal with my time away from my friends back home. In fact, the atmosphere is was very similar to what I feel back at my gym.

 

Second Day of Training

On the second day of training I got to meet Issac who is the head of the gym. Again, just like everyone else, he was all smiles. When I stepped out on the mat he was in street clothes and informed me that he was not going to train because he was injured. When we began with the technique Issac was able to translate my technical explanations very well. This was great because with Issac able to translate the students were able to pick up on all the little nuisances that I was explaining.

Eventually it reached that time of class, the time to roll. I started my rolling with Javi again and we had a great roll. During this training session I opened up and went after submissions. I stilled flowed a bit and allowed movement, but now I was hunting for different submissions I have been working on. Since the guys knew I wasn’t there to simply beat on them I figured I could open up a bit and have fun. I was able to catch a few wristlocks and armlocks from some funky positions which always causes a “son of a. . . .” sort of laugh following the tap. The rolling session was fantastic and the guys were tough and aggressive. I also can’t stress enough how similar the demeanor of the rolls were compared to back home. Roll hard and go after it, but with a smile on your face. This is the best way to train in my opinion. Enjoy the human chess game we are engaged in, but still making sure to push one another.

 

 

Not all Rolls are created equal

The only reason I bring up the aspect of hard rolling is because I have been to gyms where hard rolling was sort of frowned upon. The instructor at the time would explain how hard rolling causes you to miss the technical side and the true essence of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Now, I will agree that techniques can give way during a hard roll but this is a part of learning how to apply a technique properly. I mean what is the use of having a slick move if you cannot apply it?

 

 Can’t fight the urge

So . . . funny side story that will kind of reveal Issac’s true colors. At some point during the technique portion of class Issac slipped into his kimono. He said it was disrespectful to be in street clothes while we were on the mat teaching. I am not really a strict traditionalist but I understood what he meant. Then once the rolling started he reminded me again that he couldn’t roll. He cited a neck injury that he had sustained a week prior during a training session. Well, like any devoted BJJ player who has been bitten by the “bug” (as its commonly called) his good sense gave way to his urge to get on the mats with someone new. Obviously, resting his body and allowing it to heal would be the best thing for him. No sense in getting hurt just to get one roll in, right? Well that good sense is no match for a BJJ practitioners urge to train. Issac asked if I would roll as soon as I was done with Javi. I of course agreed to and we had a good flowing roll. I would move swiftly through positions that didn’t put much strain on his neck. Whenever we would hit a position that seems to put a bit of pressure on his neck I would ease up. The roll went well, we exchanged technique and his injury wasn’t furthered. A win win and this is a good example of when to use a lighter style of rolling.

I thought it was funny because I’ve been in Issac’s position many times before. You are pained with a nagging injury that’s not too bad to keep you off the mats but still prevents you from a full roll. Then a skilled guy from out of town drops in at your gym. I mean you can’t not roll. . . right? I am glad that I could get a little roll in with him while I was there.

 

Another funny story

So I met this Polish guy named Rafal during my second training session. We spoke after class a bit about training and random stuff, and somehow it came up about what he did for work. He shared that he worked at a rental place. Cars, bikes, etc . . . anything you need to rent while vacationing on the island. Well later that evening I just so happened to get an email telling me that my request for a rental car had been denied because the model I requested was unavailable. Well I guess this was fate’s way of rearing its head into the mix. I ended up messaging Rafal on Facebook and later that day I picked up a rental car that ended up being 1/3 of the price of the other places, so it worked out really well.  This was a huge, because we needed a rental car to get to Torrent de Mortitx which was one of the big highlights of the trip. We also went sight-seeing around the island. Big thanks to Rafal, and if you are ever in Palma check out Q-10 rentals. They have great prices and fantastic service.

 

 

Anyways, I must say that my expectations were exceeded while training at ABAMMA. The guys were beyond friendly. I was able to train about 4 times while I was there and I was very satisfied with the training. This helped me stay in relatively good shape while I was away on vacation and I am grateful for their kindness. I hope that I can train with them in the future sometime, I hear the summers in Palma are spectacular.  

 

So, this blog lacked any sort of clear defined structure and was a grouping of things relating to my experience training in Palma. I hope it wasn’t too hard to follow. Thanks for reading it and I’ll post a short video showing some of the training from the trip.

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Brazilian Jiu-jitsu in Palma De Mallorca! (Part 2)

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Interesting fact about buying a Shoyoroll in Palma compared to the United States. It is crazy expensive, and I mean crazy expensive! A Shoyoroll kimono in America costs about 170ish US dollars after taxes and shipping. At the moment the current conversion rate for the Euro in Spain is around 1.4 to the U.S Dollar. This would translate the 170 dollars in to 238 Euros. Not to bad right?  Well unfortunately there are different shipping regulations and taxes here. After shipping costs and taxes the final cost of a Shoyoroll kimono shipped to Palma comes to be . . . *drum roll* . . . about 2000 Euros!!! I know, its crazy! Anyways . . .

 

Today I finished another training session at ABAMMA in Palma and the overall experience has been fantastic. The guys there are very friendly and have a close knit atmosphere.

First day on the mats in Spain

When I arrived the first day I was greeted by Javi which was who I had talked to over the internet the most. He gave me a big hug when I walked in and showed me around the gym.  Everyone was very respectful and friendly, each one making it a point to come up and shake my hand once I was on the mat.

Did the language barrier cause a problem when teaching techniques?

After the class began we did some normal warm up drills and then jumped into some technique. As I started to teach I was a bit nervous at first. I was thinking about the language barrier and I thought of the lack of communication I would have while showing the moves. Really though, it wasn’t as difficult as I thought it might be. While I had worried that my inability to vocalize an accompaniment for the visual instruction would cause the students to miss out on valuable details. This turned out to be no problem because everyone was attentive, possessing proficient ability and the guys took hold of the movements very easily. I made sure move around the mat to manually make the necessary corrections once they were drilling the techniques. All in all, I believe it rather smoothly overall.

 Time to roll!

After the technique portion of class we began the rolling. Like I suspected, since there is a high ratio of competitors, everyone rolled very hard. Not hard in a “spaz” sort of way, but rather by putting forth a lot of effort into the rolls. I started the rolling session with Javi and then went with anyone that wanted go. During the first day of training I didn’t do any submissions. I did this because it was my goal to train and make friends while here, not to prove I’m the best and crush every person I rolled with. Instead, I would keep a fast pace and focus on a few specific movements during each roll and would release any submission I had secured. I guess you could think of it as a sort of “catch and release” style of rolling. I would give whoever I was rolling with an opening and then move from there, trying to execute my techniques. I do this with my students at home as well. This style of rolling offers a few benefits in that it allows me to get a lot “active drilling” on moves I am perfecting, it gives a great cardio workout because we keep moving continuously, and I get to help further the less experienced student by offering them opening and giving them opportunities to execute techniques . Once we reached the end of class steam was coming off my body and my gi was significantly heavier from soaking up the perspiration during the training.

A great first experience at a BJJ gym in another country. I will post more about the training here and wrap things up a bit. I also plan to post a little video up as well.

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Brazilian Jiu-jitsu in Palma De Mallorca! (Part 1)

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So, I am sitting inside the airport at Barcelona waiting for my last flight which will take me to Palma. This is my first time outside of the country and while I obviously knew that life existed outside of my “bubble”. I have never been to a place, where, I didn’t speak the language, wasn’t familiar with the customs and felt . . . not out of place, but rather, completely foreign. The experience is really interesting. I am finding it enjoyable to see what life outside of the “American Way” is like. Little subtleties make it interesting and new, while as a whole everything is essentially the same thing as back home.  For example . . . we drink coffee in the U.S and they drink coffee here as well. However, they call it café and its espresso. When we meet someone new in the states we introduce ourselves and make friendly gestures. They do the same here, but add in kisses to the sides of the face.

The main reason for my trip is to see my girlfriend, whom is teaching English in Palma. However, this blog is about BJJ and my experiences with it so I will focus on that, instead of my girlfriend or caffeine addiction abroad.

Training on my travels

I believe at some point I told my girlfriend that whenever I take trips or vacations I always like to get some training in, if possible. Being the super cool chick that she is, she contacted a local BJJ gym for me and helped me set everything up so that I could train while I am in Palma.  I spoke with Javi and Issac from ABAMMA over Facebook and they both seem really nice and enthusiastic about training, which is good. Another plus is that their gym is a competition gym and is currently preparing for the European Open which will be taking place next month. I say this is a plus because competition gyms are where I feel the most comfortable because I can train hard without offending someone and I can get a great workout. Another bonus is that they are allowing me to train for free! While I believe that letting a traveling black belt train for free is beneficial for the gym and should be common practice, sometimes it isn’t. Since they have been so gracious to open their gym doors and take the time to speak to me I offered to teach a class or two while I am in Palma, and they accepted. I will go over some of the tried-and-true tournament techniques and drilling that work so well for my guys back home. Hopefully the techniques will serve them well next month.

The language barrier

The teaching aspect will be fun and while they do speak some English I am sure there will be a bit of a language barrier. When I am teaching I will definitely have to focus on excellent visual demonstration of the technique to help make up for it. However, this is my first time teaching a group of people whose primary language is not English so who knows. Maybe the language barrier won’t pose much of a challenge as I presume.  One thing that is certain is that once rolling starts . . . the language barrier is gone. After we engage in a roll we will essentially be using the same language. Not our verbal language, but rather our body language, the expression of Brazilian Jiu-jitsu. At this point, it doesn’t matter what we call the techniques or how we pronounce letters and words. All that matters is that we are fighting for guard passes, sweeps, dominant positions and an eventual submission. This isn’t something that is in need of understanding one another’s speech.

Anyways, my flight is about to board so I have to cut this off. I will post this on the blog later on once I get settled in Palma. I’ll post about the experience I have at ABAMMA.

A training weekend with an old friend

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A training weekend with an old friend

This weekend I was fortunate to train with my friend Tim Sledd at his gym in Bedford, In. Tim is a Atos black belt and is just one those really good guys you meet in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu. Anytime I am around him he just seems to spew out positive energy and encouragement. We first met one another in 2006 at a small tournament here in Louisville, Ky. He was actually my first match as a purple belt and I still remember how strong his grip felt the first time we locked up. When I pulled away to break the grip my gi gave before his grip did. I heard a ripping sound and looked down to see a tear in my lapel. After this we had a great match and have been friends since. Periodically we talk, and here and there we‘ve able to squeeze in a training session together. Although I have to admit, now that his gym is closer I will probably make the trip more often.

Jiu-jitsu in a small town

While my students and I were driving through Bedford we couldn’t help but notice that it is quite a small town. Not that there is anything wrong with this, but I find it awesome that nowadays you can find highly trained instructors even in rather small towns. Tim and I spoke about this and how it’s a far cry from the days when we began our Jiu-jitsu journey. Back when we started, if you would have told someone that there were going to be two accomplished black belts training in the area, well. . . it would have been a big event! Now you have two black belts meeting up with their students casually for a nice training session as if it was no big deal.

We eventually arrived at Tim’s gym which was situated in what I assume to be kind of the downtown district of the area. All the buildings were made of brick and had the “window store” style appearance from the outside. His gym was easy to spot as the Small Axe BJJ symbol was displayed on the gym door, oh and because the windows of the gym were fogged up from the activity inside. This is always a good sign in my book. Once inside I figured out why the windows were so foggy. . . it was a sauna inside! The heat belching out of the air vents combined with the heat of bodies in motion made for a nice muggy, steamy training session. He was a great host to me and my students and we all enjoyed the techniques he covered. I had never seen some of the details that he showed so I was sure to write them down in my BJJ journal. The rolling went really well and when it was time to step off the mat there were pools of sweat to remind us of the effort we had just put out.

After the training session when my students and I got a bite to eat, we all talked about the great experience we had. The rolling was good, Tim showed some very solid techniques, and we learned a lot from the training.

BJJ Guys

One of the things I love about Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, is the people you meet. I’ve met so many awesome human beings over the years. Some of them didn’t even speak much English which posed a problem for holding conversation, but that didn’t stop us from forming a bond through training.

Tim is no exception and he is a person whom I have a good deal of admiration for. He seems to have a good balance in his life which is something I don’t possess quite yet. He is able to balance training, running a gym, having a demanding job and being a devoted father and husband to his family. This is no easy task!

Stay humble

Not all BJJ practitioners have such an endearing reputation though. Some tend to have a negative attitude fueled by their disrespect to others or arrogance, and this creates a less than favorable presence around others.

Now, if you are a seasoned BJJ practitioner then you are already aware of the great relationships you build through this sport. If you are a new comer to this sport then you will see as you continue your journey, the life changing relationships you will make along the way. That is of course, If you stay humble and respectful. The sport would be incomplete if you removed the amazing bond between its participants. But the only way to foster this bond and these relationships is to stay humble and respectful. To be blunt, no one wants to train with or be around an arrogant dick who is full of himself and rubs it in people’s face when he taps them out. Remember there is way more to this sport than being the bad ass on the mat ripping people’s limbs off.

So stay humble and respectful, this way you can get the full benefit of the Brazilian Jiu-jitsu experience. Remember, its more than just tapping people out.

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How Bloodsport shaped my BJJ journey (yeah I know. . . Bloodsport)

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The Martial Arts Movie Factor and rather amusing analogy

So before you start reading this post I want you to think back to all the different martial arts movies you may have watched over the course of your life. My favorite martial arts movie when I was a kid was Bloodsport. That movie probably had more impact on me than any other movie I’ve ever watched. I remember being so impressed with the martial arts skills of Jean Claude Van Damme and I would ohh and awe at the sight of Bolo Yeung’s massive physique.  Now when you are thinking about your martial art movie, I want you to think about the training montage that it inevitably had at some point.  The main character of the film more than likely had been beaten or wronged earlier in the movie and at the time their skills were not sufficient to tackle the obstacle. After this is when the montage typically started. The wronged martial artist then goes into training with a feverous pace, pushing their body and mind to the breaking point. Once the adequate skills were acquired they go to accomplish their goal and make themselves and their teacher proud. In the case of Bloodsport, Jean Claude Van Damme trains with his instructor in seclusion. When the montage begins he is beaten up and thrown all over the place. Over the course of the few minutes (accompanied by music from Stan Bush. . .hell yea) you see Jean Claude progress and he begins to slowly get the better of his teacher. Eventually he exceeds the skills of his master and is ready to take on anything that stands in front him. Whether it be a 80s arcade game or an evil muscle bound martial artist in the Kumite.

The Headhunter Mentality

Throughout my time in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu I have always sought to better myself and push my body and my skill to their limits. An effect of this ambition is that I became a sort of head hunter when I would rolled. I wanted to beat higher belts and my instructors, and I wanted to attack them all out in order to prove that I could push them.  Even if I couldn’t submit them I might be able to pass their guard or get a close sweep. When I was a white belt I would roll with a purple or brown belt with the same “I want to win” mindset. While I knew my attempts would be futile, if I could just make them adjust or scramble then in my mind, I had won. I believed that if I could catch them off balance or execute a move on them then I was progressing.  Just like in the martial art movie montages.

Passing the mentality on to my students

Recently I was asked from a few of my less experienced students if it was ok to go after the higher ranking belts when rolling. After reading the previous paragraph you should know my answer was yes.  I feel like the atmosphere of everyone pushing one another to new levels is the best.  Another student asked if he visited another gym if it was ok to roll hard with their students just like he does with his training partners at our gym. I told him that as long as everyone was in agreement that it would be a full on roll, then sure.  I personally would encourage students from other gyms who are visiting to go after my students and try to beat them so that they could learn from one another.

Recently I was told by one of my students who switched to our gym from another; that his old gym frowned upon hard rolling. I thought this to be silly and irrational. Then I have also recently seen an influx of talk recently about flowing more than hard training. When I read things denouncing the benefits of hard rolling I couldn’t help but sit back and shake my head.  I mean there is a time and a place for flowing and lighter rolling, like when you are injured, working a new position, drilling, rolling with newer students, etc.  Even when I roll easier with less experienced students I expect them to attack me with their full effort.  Flow rolling can never teach the practical application of a technique like hard rolling, or teach a student how to deal with the natural stresses that a physical engagement brings.

What is hard rolling in my opinion?

When I say “hard rolling”, understand I don’t mean being a spaz or recklessly aggressive. Instead I mean pushing yourself and your partner with the full brunt of your technique fueled by your body’s athletic threshold in relation to grappling. Brazilian Jiu-jitsu is about technique first and foremost, and then the body enters the equation.

Is this mentality correct?

With all this said, I’m an open minded person and believe we can always improve, so I began to do a little introspection and see if my mentality was negative or disrespectful.  I thought pretty hard about this, talked to several of my students at all levels, and consulted my instructors as well as read interviews with successful BJJ practitioners.  The questions I was trying to answer for myself were. . .

1. Is the mentality of my training disrespectful?

2. Is this style of training productive and conducive to growth and skill?

3. Are my students happy?

4. Am I happy with what I have helped create?

Below are my answers and the thought process that went into them.

  • Is the mentality of my training disrespectful?

No, it is not disrespectful to train very hard and attempt to best your training partners and opponents. In the end this is a one on one sport and while we do belong to teams and affiliations, its all about personal growth.  How can you expect to push yourself and your friends if you never open up? I also looked around at my students after a hard training session where everyone had tried their best to submit one another and everyone is smiling, laughing and happy.  I also thought about my own journey. Did I ever attempt to beat my friends and training partners out of ill feelings or disrespect? Not even close, in fact it was the direct opposite! I respected their games so much that I felt forced to go hard and use my best techniques in order to best theirs.  Honestly I would find it disrespectful or out of place if the person did not roll hard with me, assuming this was that kind of training we engaged in at the time.  I was also always trying to show my instructors that I was a good student and that I was getting better, just like in the martial arts movies!

  • Is this style of training productive and conducive to growth and skill?

I believe the answer is an easy yes. By pushing one another we continually sharpen our skills and grow together. The old phrase “iron sharpens iron” would not be out of place to help explain my theory. We are also a competition school and have to continually test our game against other gyms and we consistently do very well.  Next , I read through interviews of well-respected and highly decorated BJJ players to see what they may have said on the subject of hard training. All the interviews revealed that they thought hard training was not an option but rather a necessity for Brazilian Jiu-jitsu to be effective and to learn how to apply it properly.  Lastly, training hard doesn’t mean you can’t experiment with your game. Mistakes and losing are necessary parts of growth and by having your techniques beaten you can see what sort of flaws are in your game.  Experimenting with new moves and techniques essentially allows you to plug holes in your game or to expose gaps that you may have not even noticed!

  • Are my students happy?

As stated earlier after hard training sessions my students all have smiles on their faces. Granted they are breathing heavily and pools of sweat lay at their feet, but they are all happy that they pushed themselves and their partners that day. Sure sometimes they will have ups and downs which are a common occurrence. Maybe a lower belt caught them in a submission or maybe they were just off that day or perhaps they’re hitting a plateau.  All this doesn’t matter because all in all the experience is positive. Also my competitors and fighters are happy with the results of their hard training when they return with medals, belts, prize money, bragging rights, etc.  My non competitors are happy with the weight loss, improvement of themselves and being a part of a successful team which they helped create.  Many of my students will train at other gyms from time to time, whether because of travel or because of curiosity. They always return very happy with the results and are excited to tell me how their styled fair against others. I would safely say that yes my students are happy.

  • Am I happy with what I have helped create?

I am incredibly happy with the gym and with my students. Our gym has produced champions and medalists in the Worlds, Pans, numerous IBJJF tournaments, Grapplers Quest, N.A.G.A, E.G.O, O.G.C, and the list goes on. Along with these impressive competition results we have help people of all walks of life achieve weight loss and fitness goals. More than this though, is the community we’ve built. When I see the brotherhood and unity between my students I can’t help but be ecstatic about the atmosphere we have created. A bond built with blood and sweat.

 Conclusion

After going through this and trying to examine the situation at all angles I have decided that for myself and my students that we will continue to train hard, push each other all in the confines of mutual respect and brotherhood for the betterment of ourselves. While some instructors may not agree or choose to take this approach I feel that it is the best way to train and the best way to build proper effectiveness in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu. Also, I believe my job as a BJJ teacher is to make my students better than I am. When I eventually have one my students submit me when I am giving them my all then I have achieved, in my eyes, one of the ultimate accomplishments as an instructor. The only way this accomplishment is possible is through hard training and pushing one another. My student has to become like Jean Claude Van Damme in Bloodsport (or the main character of any martial arts movie) and go after his instructor with their full effort.

P.S. Sorry for the silly movie analogy, but I figured it would be a good way to relate to all the martial arts geeks out there.

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Open Guard Sweep with Mustache

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If you’re watching this open guard sweep video and thinking to yourself, “man, this guy looks like an idiot”, then you are a well adjusted human being. After No-shave November I decided to have some fun with the guys at the gym and dress up like. . . well like I am in the video. The goofy mustache got some serious laughs so it was worth it.

Now while I may look like a mega turd bag, the sweep is legit and myself and several of my students have used it in tournaments and rolling session.

Enjoy!

Why I got started in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu

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What got me started in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu?

In my last blog post I talked about how my students and I took a moment after training to share our reasons for taking on this sport. Well, while I was talking with my girlfriend she asked why I didn’t share my story about how I got started. I thought about it and figured it would be fun to share what actually got me started in BJJ.  Now before I can jump into Brazilian Jiu-jitsu I have to start with why I got into high school wrestling which would eventually lead into BJJ.

I was a chubby kid who got beat up

So all of this grappling and athletic stuff was sparked by an event that happened when I was in 7th grade. While it had a profoundly negative effect on my life at first, I am glad it happened because without it I am not sure if I would have been drawn to wrestling.

While walking home one day from school I was followed and eventually jumped by 3 teenagers ranging between the ages of 16-18, I was 12. They punched me in the nose and struck me with a bat which hit my arm. During the attack I suffered a broken nose and a fracture in one of the bones that runs through my forearms. I had no idea who they were or why they chose me, but the event had a huge impact on my life. First off I began to gain a considerable amount of weight because I was afraid to do simple things like go outside and walk or ride a bike. When I would go outside I couldn’t help but feel like everyone was a potential attacker. I also grew scared of confrontation because I was terrified of being attacked like that again. When I younger I had gotten into plenty of young boyhood scraps and had stood up to my bullies. This event was different though and it had absolutely drained my confidence. 

Beginning High School and starting wrestling

In high school I looked at all the upper classmen who were wrestled and played football. They all seemed strong, muscular and tough which is what I wanted to be. I loathed being fat and afraid and wanted desperately to join in on the sports. Unfortunately my confidence was lacking and I found myself too afraid to sign up because I figured I wouldn’t be good enough. One day one of the coaches asked me to come to try outs and that’s pretty much where I began my high school athletic career. I started first with football and then wrestling. When I started in high school athletics I was around 230lbs and 5’9.

I fell in love with wrestling and I was so mad at myself for waiting so long to start.  I loved everything from the grueling practices that would make the walls sweat to the brotherhood that formed with my teammates. I was also thrilled about the effect it was having on my physical appearance. After only a few weeks I had lost 15lbs and felt amazing.  My first wrestling match gave me my first nickname which was “Tugboat”. When I pinned my opponent in the 2nd period I came off the mat wheezing so hard from exhaustion that it made an almost blow horn like sound, and my coach dubbed me Tugboat.  I would go on to have a moderate amount of success wrestling as a sophomore and junior.

My Senior Year

Toward the end of my Jr season in wrestling my coaches and teammates told me I should drop to 189lbs, and that I would be a beast at that lower class. After the season was over I started hitting the weight room really hard. I had always enjoyed lifting ever since my friend’s father introduced it to me when I was younger as a way to help build some confidence. Once my summer break started I began researching how to eat properly and how to exercise with the equipment I owned. I spent the summer mornings going for runs, in the afternoon I would lift or do wrestling drills. The runs took a lot of will power because I was really nervous about being out and around by myself. I ate rice, chicken, veggies, oatmeal, eggs and choked down protein shakes for the entire summer. One of the things I remember really well was running with my mp3 player and listening to the Foo Fighters. I kept envisioning myself walking off the mat after winnings regionals with a gold medal dangling from my neck.

When I returned to school to start my senior year I was about 5’11 and weighed about 200lbs. All of my classmates were amazed at how I looked and I have to admit, the positive attention was a welcomed change to the negativity I was used to.

That year I wrestled well, winning or placing in every tournament I went to and I became incredibly confident in the process. One added benefit was that I found out my newly developed wrestling takedowns were great against would be bullies.

Regionals

Regionals rolled around as it always does and I was seeded well going into it. I ended up winning my first match easily. Then a terrible thing happened . . . as one of my teammates was close to winning a close match I quickly stood up to my feet to cheer. I had been sitting indian style and when I stood I felt a rip in my knee. My leg locked out and was giving a weird pain that is hard to describe. I kicked my leg forward and felt a pop followed by a quick shooting pain. Slowly the pain subsided but my leg was very stiff and beginning to swell and to make matters worse my teammate lost that match.

I ended up wrestling two more matches and winning regionals, and by the end of the night my leg was swelling and walking was a becoming difficult. None of that matter though, I had accomplished what I had set out to do and I was very satisfied. I had won regionals and successfully improved the musculature of my body. I had went from 230lbs at the beginning of my wrestling journey to eventually wrestle at the 189lbs weight class my senior year.

I was not fortunate enough to repeat the same success at state. A bum knee and ultra-prepared opponents don’t mix well. I ended up losing my last match at state to an opponent I had already beaten three times that year.

When I actually started BJJ

In May of 2003 while I was wrapping up my last year of high school and I had originally planned to join the military but was not allowed to because the United States was now at war. My mother told me she was not losing her only son and would not allow me to enlist. That meant I was now going to be attending college and get an education. The university I was planned to join did not have a wrestling program which was kind of depressing. I really wanted to continue to do something; I wasn’t ready to simply hang it up.

 I had always liked the UFC and was becoming really interested in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. BJJ seemed to mix with wrestling very well and in many ways, looked a lot like wrestling. I eventually began to look up different BJJ gyms that were in the area. I guess I should specify that an actual BJJ gym was either scare or non-existent at the time, and that all of my BJJ training from 2003-2006 would take place in various rooms inside weight lifting gyms. I wanted to compete just like I had done in wrestling, so I contacted an instructor who said he was competition oriented. His name was Mike Yanez and he would become my instructor from May 2003 till July of 2007. Accompanied by my two best friends (who also wrestled) I attended my first class. We went over attacks from side mount and scarfhold. Mike Yanez called them the “triple threat” series and I was during the class at the techniques. I instantly fell in love with the sport much in the same way that I had instantly taken to wrestling. I competed within two weeks of beginning my training and won a silver medal. After that first tournament I was hooked and have never looked back since.

Things to take away from this blog

  1. If you’ve never tried BJJ then you should. . . right now. .  yes right now!
  2. Life has a way of kicking the crap out of you. Sometimes figuratively and sometimes literally! Don’t let your losses define you and instead use the failures and setbacks as a catalyst for further improvement. Failures are merely the seeds of success.
  3. Desire is an amazing force and if you really want something and have the desire inside of you, then go after whatever it is you want.

 

Lastly I hope this post illustrates why I am such a fanatic about the positive aspects of BJJ and grappling, and why I believe what I am doing is more than merely teaching a martial art. The sport of wrestling and BJJ changed my life and took a terrified overweight youth and turned him into a confident man. I hope that I am able to make the same positive impact on my students and friends that my various coaches made on me.

Special thanks go to my BJJ and Wrestling coaches :

Coach Robert Vinegar

Coach Kenny Barnes

Coach Marshall Pomeroy

Instructor Mike Yanez

Professor Colin Cannon

Professor Tommy Wales

Professor Kyle Cannon

Professor Renato Tavares

 

Here is the picture of my first match in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

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BJJ . . .a vehicle for positive change

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-Making a difference

Since I started teaching full time in 2010 I have been able to help build up a large BJJ program. Our gym can boast 50+ students in a class, Pan-Am and World championship titles and one of the most amazing atmospheres I’ve ever experienced in a gym. We train incredibly hard and are incredibly supportive of one another day in and day out. With this positive atmosphere and hard training we have also been able to do something just as important as winning titles and recognition, and that is making a positive difference in people’s lives.

–A very cool moment as an instructor 

So the reason I decided to write this post is because at the end of our training tonight I had everyone circle up and share their story and why they started training. Each person answered the question about how they had stumbled upon the sport and they also began to share how the sport and the people they met had changed their lives. I didn’t ask them to do this but it just came out of each of them. They shared stories of how they lost weight, met new friends, became good at something, built confidence, stopped using drugs/alcohol and the list goes on. This was an incredibly uplifting moment, and the feeling to know that I get to be a part of that positive change was amazing! The whole time we were congratulating each other on our accomplishments and applauding one another, it was really awesome.

-Kids too!

I used to hate teaching kids. . . then as my kids got proficient at BJJ I was content with teaching them. I mean I loved the kids (partially because I am big one myself) but teaching them stressed me out. Then two things happened that completely flopped that feeling around. One day a student of mine who had been picked on in school came into the gym with a black eye. He was walking toward me with his mother leading the way and I started to think back to a few days before when I had told him a strategy for dealing with bullies. I was really nervous and just feared that maybe he had been hurt or perhaps his mother was mad at me for encouraging her son to fight in the necessary situation. I failed to see that he and his mother were both smiling from ear to ear. All I could see was the big bruise that seemed to swallow his eye whole. Once they were close enough they both hugged me and told him a story about how he stood up to his bully. His mother was so proud of him and my student felt liberated from the fear of the bully. Just for the record, the bully never messed with him again.

Then one day I had a student who had been on the larger side when he initially joined and had lost a considerable amount of weight, as well as getting very good at BJJ. Well, this student came up and hugged me after class was over. I asked him why he hugged me and he told me, “Thanks Mr Chewy for making me good at jiu-jitsu because I’ve never been good at anything before.” This moment really touched me.  These two moments happened very close to one another and made me realize the weight of what I was doing with the children. I wasn’t simply teaching a martial art to them, I was empowering these kids with confidence both physical and mental. I was building their physical fitness and improving their health. I was preparing them for an unfortunate reality of bullies and aggressive kids. Most importantly I was making a difference. This gave a new sense of purpose to my teaching and made me really love teaching kids BJJ.

–A most fortunate side effect

When I day dreamed about teaching/coaching BJJ I would often think about building champions and a tough competition school. I was able to help facilitate that with the help of my amazing students and its only getting better. What I was also able to do in the process is help make a positive impact in the lives of so many adults and children and I am so happy about that. However, it was a slight accident. I mean I am by nature a “glass is half full” kind of guy and I think that positivity rubbed off on my students, but I never really realized the impact I would have on others. Again this only possible because of a combined effort of myself and my amazing students.

-Side note to all higher belts

If you are a ranking belt in your gym and aren’t already doing so. . . be POSITIVE!! Lift up the lower belts and help make an incredible atmosphere for yourself and everyone that comes to your gym every single day you step foot onto the mats.Image

Another wrist lock for BJJ

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Wrist lock from butterfly guard