So after nearly 6 weeks of waiting our custom Derby City gis came in! I’m so happy about them. They came out really well and the gis are top notch. I’m normally suited up in either a Keiko or Shoyoroll but these gis are made by a Gi company called Da Firma. Their website is http://www.dafirmabjj.com . I’ll do a video review of their Gi in the next few days but for now, check out the new patches I had made for the gi!
So something I was thinking about today, is the lack of effort some BJJ gyms put towards their children’s programs. I’ve seen many instances where a black belt will refuse to teach kids or will just grab a random blue belt to teach with no guidance whatsoever. They often cite their lack of patience or time as the reasons. I honestly think many people are afraid to teach kids.
This is unfortunate because I personally find teaching kids Brazilian Jiu-jitsu as an amazing opportunity. Being able to have such a direct impact on these youngster’s life is incredible feeling for me. Sure it requires more patience and sure it’s tough sometimes. But when a kid comes up to you and says they stood up to their bullies, that they’re not scared at school, that they don’t hate to look in the mirror anymore or that they finally feel good at something, none of that matters. All that matters at that point is that you changed a young child’s life. Knowing that I have a beneficial influence on my children’s lives is incredibly powerful and fulfilling. I’d be lying if I said I haven’t gotten a little teary eyed after some of the comments from my kid students. Maybe I’m just a little over emotional?
I think of the positive effects my youth leaders and coaches had on me while I was growing up. I hope that I’ll have a similar effect on my students. Also, truth be told. I’m kind of an overgrown kid, so my students and I get along just swell.
Let me add this. Should you ever get a chance to teach kids BJJ. . . Do it! Not only will it test your ability to simplify a movement and further develop your teaching. . . and patience. But it really is an interesting and awesome experience.
When I first started competing as a black belt I had this funny problem. I would go into the match flat, and it wasn’t till being swept to mount that I would “wake” up. In fact, my first 3 wins as a black belt in competition started with me 6 points in the hole after a sweep to the mount. Here’s a mount escape that I, unfortunately, got pretty good with.
I feel like it was yesterday that I took my first BJJ class. Sadly, that was over 10 years ago. That’s right; I’ve been training Brazilian Jiu-jitsu for over 10 years! Just being able to say this makes me feel proud and super old. In honor of my landmark I came up with 10 solid lessons and experiences I’ve personally learned and share them. Each lesson will have a personal story to accompany it and then I’ll give a take-away. I will share highs and lows as well as some embarrassing moments in my BJJ career. I hope that you get something out of the stories and the lessons that go with them.
“Humility does not mean thinking less of yourself than of other people, nor does it mean having a low opinion of your own gifts. It means freedom from thinking about yourself at all.” – William Temple
“There is no respect for others without humility in one’s self.” – Henri-Frederic Amiel
“Self-praise is for losers. Be a winner. Stand for something. Always have class, and be humble.” – John Madden
“Arrogance invites ruin; humility receives benefits.” – Chinese Proverb
1.Be a humble person to those around you – When I started training BJJ I was 18 years old. After about 6 months of constant training and competing I received my blue belt. At the time of receiving the belt, there were not many high ranking belts in the area. Most of the “higher” belts were purple belts. My streak of tournament wins combined with how quickly I acquired my blue belt as well as my 19 year old immaturity made me feel like a total “bad ass”. In addition to this, my instructor at the time wasn’t the best for putting a lid on this disrespectful attitude, instead he encouraged it. When I competed, especially at local tournaments, I felt like I was some sort of fighting animal that he could brag about after a win. Sadly, I kind of enjoyed it when I was in my “bad ass” phase. I was still a nice person, but I definitely had an obnoxious streak especially when it came down to winning, losing and competing.
3 examples of my antics
1. After being submitted I would smack the mat and drop the F Bomb.
2. I would gloat about winning constantly.
3. I would talk down about others and their BJJ.
Fast forward to early 2007 I had a conversation with my friend who would eventually become one of my BJJ coaches. He and I met up for lunch and he informed me that I could no longer train at his gym because of the negative associations that came along with my current instructor. At this point I had trained with Colin here and there for a while and considered him a friend. I didn’t want to be unable to hang out and train with my buddy! That moment made me realize the path I was on, and if I continued my path I would end up being like my instructor. He was someone who was isolated in the local BJJ community because of their brashness and poor attitude towards others. I knew deep down that I was not that kind of person, so soon after I separated from my instructor and began the “humblization” process under my new coaches. I am a confident person but I’ve done my best to rid myself of that my previous cocky, egotistical edge. I don’t think I would be a successful instructor, competitor or even liked in the community if I hadn’t done that. This was one of the best lessons I ever learned through BJJ and has definitely carried over into other aspects in my life.
The take away
No one wants to be around a cocky jerk that is full of him or herself. One of the best parts about this sport is the amazing communities, and you cannot be a part of these communities if you don’t lose your ego! If you do not lose these negative traits you will find yourself more and more isolated. People will shy away from training with you. You won’t fit in with your academy because you will be “that guy” everyone loves to tap because he has a big ego. If you somehow manage to retain this nasty quality into your higher ranks you will most certainly be shunned by many of your peers and will have a hard time finding people to cross train with and share knowledge. To top it off, it will severely hinder your ability to learn and grow in skill. Trust me, you don’t want this. Take it from someone who was once “that guy” in the gym. Just be humble to the people around you.
Competition is one of the most exciting experiences I think a person can have in BJJ. You test yourself against another human in a “full out” setting. You truly find out what you’re made of and sometimes push yourself to new limits that you didn’t realize you could reach.
Getting ready for a big competition can be tough though. The hard work that is involved with getting ready for a competition (if done right) can be exhausting both mentally and physically. There are days when you’re sore and tired. You still feel whooped from the night before and you just want to take a night off, but you find the motivation to train and continue to prepare.
Whenever I get ready for a big competition I have to find a “reason” for competing. Some reason that will help my focus and drive even on the rough days. Everyone’s reasons are different and you may have different goals for different tournaments. Don’t get me wrong I love training and train everyday regardless of a tournament, but left to my own devices, I would slack much more. I would roll relaxed and not develop the aggressive movements that are needed for tournaments. I wouldn’t drill quite as much, and in general I would just lack that desire that is needed to win matches against hungry competitors.
This is where that “reason” comes into play. Before I get ready for a competition (and when I used to fight in MMA) I ask myself, “why am I competing?” This seems simple right? I am competing to win, and win medals, right?
Wrong!
When I was younger I was only fixated on the medals. Now the medals are typically an auxiliary goal. Yes, I want to be the one wearing the gold medal and standing on the top of the podium, no doubt about it. But there are other things that push me in training during the weeks of tough training and dieting.
My reason for continuing to train hard and compete
I love movies where faced against tough odds, supported by everyone else around them, the hero overcomes and saves the day. When I was walking out of a movie this weekend I got hit by this light bulb moment. I realized that my most memorable wins in BJJ and MMA were always memorable, in large part, because of my students. Winnings matches at the Pans and seeing my students take screen caps of the match and knowing they were watching me have my hand raised, having 500+ Derby City (my gym) shirts staring back at me and cheering after an MMA fight, hearing a student convince me to compete even though I was jet lagged and sleep deprived.
The biggest motivator for me now, besides my own drive to test myself . . . is my students.
I am not sure if everyone in my position feels this way, but I feel obligated to step out there and compete for my students. I ask them to do it, so I feel that I should lead by example. Also, why would I stop competing now that I am a black belt? I feel like now is the true time to test myself.
One of the most amazing moments in my BJJ career was during a recent local tournament. The tournament had a round robin black belt division and there were around 100+ people from our gym. Either to compete themselves or to watch their friends and family compete. When I was on the mat my students would cheer loudly and each time I landed a move or had my hand raised more cheers and slaps to the mat came from them. I’m not going to lie; it felt like being a superhero for a moment. Superhero might seem like a silly comparison because I’m not flying around or fending off an alien assault to earth. However, I am setting the tone for many of my students and proving myself to be a worthy role model by putting myself through the same rigors that I ask of them. They’re cheering because I’m their instructor and they are proud of me and my wins, and this means everything to me. Now when I prepare for tournaments, the motivator is easy. When I am tired and have to push myself a little more, I just think about how great it feels to represent my gym colors victoriously for myself and also for my students.
Find your motivation!
I know that not all of you are in the position I am in, but my advice to you is to find something that motivates you. Remember, it doesn’t have to be just medals or titles. You sometimes have to dig a little deeper and find the motivation somewhere else. Before your next tournament prep begins, try and find something that motivates you. Having that deep motivator within you will help you slide your kimono on a little easier on those days when your body still aches from the night before, and this drive will make it easier to get yourself on to the top of the podium.
Thanks for reading guys!
As always if you have any questions or comments feel free to send them to chewjitsu@gmail.com
Hey guys, I need your help!
I am getting ready to start a very cool project that will be launched in the near future. The project will involve asking many different black belts a group of questions in hopes that they can share their journey in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu as well as provide insight, inspiration and motivation for our own paths in the art.
What I would like from you is to take a second and think of some questions. The questions should be related to BJJ in some way. Each time I interview one of the black belts I will pick one of the questions I received from you guys. I’ll also give a shout out to the person who sent the question.
With that said, please send your questions to chewjitsu@gmail.com with the subject of the email as “Blackbelt Questions”. Also, please include some basic info about yourself (Name, Location, belt level, gym that you train in) so that I can give a shout out to you.
Thanks for your help guys!
Almost every week I have students that complain about lagging performance on the mat(its more common in summer). They say they felt overly fatigued and just zapped of energy during training. When a student comes to me complaining about lack of energy and just missing that umph that they normally possess, I always ask two questions.
The first question is “did you eat enough today?” Almost every time their reply comes back as something like “no, I missed lunch” or “no I didn’t eat much today.”
The second question is “how much water did you drink today?” Again their reply usually alludes to a lack of consumption.
Now these seem like simple things . . . eating food and drinking water, but I’ve seen plenty of higher level BJJ players step onto the mat without taking in adequate amounts of food and water. Heck, one of my high level blue belt competitors nearly passed out on the mat recently because of not having enough in his body. Now this doesn’t mean you should stuff your face with whatever sort of food you can find and gulp down a half gallon of water 30 minutes before you step on the mat. You’ll probably spend the rolling session of class mopping up your puke if you choose to do that. You have to be kind of “strategic” about these things. That’s the fun word for the day! Now I know strategic sounds like a funny word to use when you are relating it to your eating habits, but when you look at the definition it makes sense.
Strategic : “of great importance within an integrated whole or to a planned effect”
Think of your body during training as a high performance vehicle. The food that you put into your body is the fuel for this vehicle. Imagine putting garbage fuel or no fuel at all into a high performance car. . . it wouldn’t run very well or run at all. This holds true with your body. When you eat junk or nothing, you’ll perform in a way that reflects as such. With that said, we want to eat in a way that gives us the planned effect of having plenty of energy so that we are able to get the most out our training. I mean if you are going to spend time driving to the gym, paying your gym dues, buying a kimono, caring for your kimono, purchasing dvds, reading BJJ related books, spending countless hours watching videos online and making your significant other angry because you’re obsessed with BJJ. Then why would you allow your training sessions to be sub-par because of lazy / poor eating habits?
I am not going to dive too deep into diets and nutrition but I will share some of my my pre training favorites and my typical diet routine during an average weekday. My pre training favorites are sweet potatoes (personal favorite), oatmeal, smoothies, fruit and a protein shake.
I typically space my solid meals out at least about an hour and a half to two hours prior to training. A meal like this would be something like sweet potatoes, asparagus and chicken. Sweet potatoes are a fantastic source of complex carbs and it is an incredibly nutrient dense food. When I eat a sweet potato for lunch I almost always feel energized during my training sessions.
In the mornings I usually have oatmeal with some fruit and honey, which gives me energy for my morning training sessions. Oatmeal is easier on my stomach and digestion than the sweet potato meal listed about, but I still try and have the food eaten no later than an hour before training.
When I find myself running late in the mornings or get knocked off my schedule during the afternoon I make a smoothie (protein, fruit, honey, sometimes oats) ,again, no later than an hour before training.
Should my schedule get really off track, I will at least throw back a protein shake and a banana 30-45 minutes prior to training.
I also don’t take any pre workout supplements. I have in the past, but when I did I would find myself in the middle of a hard roll with what felt like a humming bird trying to escape from my chest. I usually just have a small cup of coffee or tea for a boost.
My eating schedule during the week is pretty structured. Because I train and teach a lot during the week I can’t really afford to have a big fat meal during the day. Bad food will make me lethargic and I’ll do a crappy job of teaching my students and training myself. That being said I still have my share of ice cream and cheeseburgers. I follow the 80/20 rule most of the time, 80% good and 20% whatever. I love having a burger and a beer with the guys, or sometimes on Thursdays we will go to the Mexican restaurant across the street and have a cheat meal AFTER training.
Anyways, here’s what my average diet looks like during the week, it’s not for everyone but it keeps me energized during the day. Just as a note, I have fixed AM and PM training sessions, but I will also do extra training, privates and gym work during the day that’s not listed. I say this because I don’t want anyone to get the impression that I’m eating and sleeping between training sessions. Believe me, I’m not. I get up at 7-8am and don’t leave the gym till 9:930pm.
-Morning: Eggs, oatmeal (plain no sugar), piece of fruit and honey to put into the oats and a cup of coffee or tea
AM Training if I lift (Teaching, rolling, and a lift)
-Lunch(right after training) Sweet potatoes, asparagus, chicken.
-Lunch 2: usually the same thing as my first lunch with a cup of tea or coffee.
PM Teaching and Training
-Post workout protein shake
-A light dinner: veggies and some sort of protein source
Recap:
Thank you for reading the post! I hope that you were able to take something away from it and that it might help you get the most out of your training sessions if your eating habits are a little suspect right now. Also, if you have any BJJ related questions that you might want help with, feel free to send them to me in an email at chewjitsu@gmail.com.
Keep training hard!
—Chewy
Back in April I put up a post about why we train BJJ and I got a lot of positive feedback from the post. The idea popped in my head a couple of days ago to do a simple post on my Facebook and just ask a couple of questions, and see what kind of responses I received. What I love most about the responses are that they come from average people. I find it interesting to get responses from the people who make up the majority of practitioners in our sport. Hearing about world champs who have all day to train is great, but I also like hearing about people who’s lives don’t simply revolve around BJJ. Anyways, I hope that you enjoy the responses.
The questions were. . .
The answers were really interesting and I figured some of them could serve as for others. I’ve removed the names of the posters but they consist of every rank from white to black belt, young and old, male and female.
Here are the answers I received. . .
1. I wanted to be able to defend myself.
2. I continue because it helps me improve as a human.
1.I was tired of getting in trouble and partying,
2.I want to stay fit and compete and addicted to the life style..
1. I sold my motorcycle and needed something to do.
2. I want to excel and teach others.
1. I wanted to stay in shape and be able to compete if I choose to.
2. It’s something after next year my whole family will be doing. It gives us all something we do together.
1. Wrestling was over and I still wanted to continue wrestling.
2. To see if I can be as good as everyone thinks I can be/ I’m a competitor I love knowing there is someone better than me out there pushing me to do better
. . . . Oh and to prove doctors wrong that I would never be able to train again , let alone compete after having kidney failure ..that should a been my first answer
1. My husband wanted me to try it
2. “Light bulb” moments, making new friends, constant challenge (mental and physical)
1. Lots of friends did it. So I wanted to share the excitement.
2. The friendships I’ve made while doing it.
3. I needed to be humbled!!!
1.To loose weight after my dr. Told me I couldn’t do it. I knew a conventional gym would be a waste of money.
2. I love to compete and would like to fight mma one day.
1. Kids are mean if you’re a fat ethnic kid with a funny name.
2. Gotta look good for my wife and I still have a funny name.
1) I wanted to learn how to choke people
2) I like choking people
1) it started out as a joke to my dad that I wanted to try jiu jitsu
2) after my first practice I loved it
1. My best friend invited me to watch him compete in a summer tournament. BJJ was the coolest thing I had ever seen and I said “I want to do THAT.”
2. I stopped about a year and a half ago, after training for three and a half years, because of time constraints and laziness. But I will be back someday! After I finish undergrad hopefully.
1. To learn how to defend myself with my friend, and to have common ground with my son
2. I continue to learn new things and challenge myself at new/different levels!
1.) I always liked watching jiu-jitsu, wanted to give it a whirl.
2.). Exercise, camaraderie, and just the drive to be better than the day before.
Therapy, fight, and compete
1. I started BJJ because I saw a highlight video of one of my future teammates arm barring people and I wanted to be able to do that!
2. I have gotten more back from BJJ than I will ever be able to put in! I have made incredible friends, found a place where truth rules (the mats never lie) and a place that I am at peace. But I continue to strive to reach my goal of being a black belt competitor that can give the best fits on any given day. Long but fun road!!
1) I got bored with lifting weights and needed a change.
2) I like the science behind the art
1) A friend (who trained BJJ) and I were working at the Lexington Athletic Club together and he thought I might like it for the self-defense/combat aspects. He was right.
2) I had never encountered something so humbling. Refused to quit until I got good at it. I still have a LONG way to go.
1. A couple of dudes I thought were cool did it.
2. Half of my friends are people I met at Derby City, getting beat up a few nights a week is great for stress relief
1. Found out I had no idea how to defend myself, so I wanted to learn.
2. It is both mentally and physically challenging. Nothing can compare to it. If you have done jiu-jitsu and didn’t become addicted to it, you are just crazy.
1. I was looking for the best martial art for my son. I started so we could do something together (I still miss those days of dominating the kids classes).
2. I still train because of fitness, competition, friends and I’m too stubborn to quite. Black Belt or bust (hopefully black belt happens first).
1.) Because I was getting bullied and I wanted to learn how to fight back
2.) I found a love for the sport and wanted to get better at it
1.After wrestling so just wanted to wrestle and watched a lot of the UFC
2.Its a way of life for me now
1 Mr. Kazushi Sakuraba
2 because it is challenging.
1.Curiosity around jiu jitsu, and my competitive nature.
2.It is addictively fun/competitive, you will meet the greatest people, and the most important reason now i think is to dedicate myself to the art so for enjoyment and so that i may help others grow and find joy through bjj the same way that I have!
1. I saw Bloodsport, Above the Law, and Fists of Fury when I was around 5 and and wanted to be a martial arts master one day lol. I did Kung Fu before MMA got big and came to Derby city because of my friend who trained there and said I wouldn’t ever go.
2. To push myself, defend myself, stay healthy, relieve stress, something to be proud of, to have continuous goals to meet, and its just fun.
1. to stay active and have goals to push towards at all times
2 to stay competitive and become a better martial artist
1) my dad taught me that men train their fitness and can fight even if they choose not to
2) it became the framework of my life and worldview. Now I feel like the day I stop trying to improve is the day I start accepting decay.
1. I was always a little weakling kid always afraid to standup to the bully!
2. Today i continue because the art and the competition has become one with me… oh, and it makes me look like i’m 28 as opposed to 36!!
1) I started cause I wrestled in high school and love competing. And Jiu jitsu is closest sport to wrestling.
2) I love this sport and love ppl I’m training with. First when I started I thought ppl here would be mean, douchebags but I was surprised how friendly they all were its like brotherhood there and how my instructor doesn’t mind to take some time and show u if u don’t get it from first time.
1. I started bjj to challenge myself and to do a different workout.
2. My ultimate goal is to achieve my black belt, however when that goal is met I will just be a white belt that never quit. Also my training partners are family, you don’t quit on family.
1. I started training BJJ bcuz i never did BJJ it was new mix martial art to me. Now that ive been practicing i LOVE it.
2. I would like to contiune alot more training to compete and fight in MMA. I feel that my heart tells me this is ur new chapter of ur life. I know it takes alot of work to be on top. But ill leave it to my two if im good enough to fight.
This is a small highlight of the teaching and training while I was in Palma De Mallorca. I had the privileged of meeting and training with some great people.
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.
