So I wanted to go over a little of what I noticed while at the tournament and expound on some new found philosophies I learned and thought of while down there. One of the great things about tournaments is that your mind is 100% on jiu-jitsu all the time, so you get plenty of time to think on technique and theory. One thing that I had to wrap my head around was aggression. I have this problem that I have always had since I could talk...speaking too early about a subject. The particular subject that I spoke to early on was whether or not it was a good thing to use aggression or not while in competition. Me and mighty mouse had this conversation, and I stated that aggression in competition hinders your technique and ability to think. Now to save myself from a little embarrassment, I only said this because of the negative connotation we as jiu-jitsu practitioners associate with the word aggressive. Also known as aggro, crazy, newbie behavior, or my personal favorite spaz. But upon watching the tournament I observed and documented that the most successful competitors from white belt to black, were the git r done aggressive types, and the docile ones usually lost their first match. Now with any observation you have to understand what you are observing, so let's start by defining exactly what it means to be aggressive.
Aggressive-Characterized by or tending toward unprovoked offensives, attacks, invasions, or the like; militantly forward or menacing. Making an all-out effort to win or succeed; competitive. Vigorously energetic, esp. in the use of initiative and forcefulness: an aggressive salesperson. Boldly assertive and forward; pushy.
By actually breaking down the word aggressive we see that there is nothing negative about it at all, in fact, when watching other competitive sports one can see that pushovers and pussy-footers do not succeed. So why is aggressive behavior looked down upon in jiu-jitsu? The answer lies in timing. We all know that when we are training in the gym we are normally operating on 7.5, but there are some who operate on 10 all the time. They are a bull and your gi is bright red!! When these people get a hold of you they let you have it every time, and maybe you walk away with a sore arm or a bump on the forehead. Fears of getting hurt or whatever start to sink in and all of a sudden you label that person as aggro (we all have done it). This to most people is the wrong time to be aggressive. They feel that the gym is a safe haven and that technique should only be practiced there. But, how can you be aggressive in competition if you never practice it in the gym? You can't. So therefore you have to practice control, hope you don't hurt anyone, and be aggressive...be, be aggressive!
Moving on. So we know now that in order to be a success you have to be aggressive in competition. This is proven because aggression is rewarded with advantage points, and those little puppies sometimes will win you the fight. This does not mean abandoning technique, but being technical in a very "aggressive manner". When you have strong technique, you are confident in your movements and you have practiced them so much that they are ingrained in your mind. Meaning you can turn it up anytime. You push the pace in a fight, get YOUR grips...YOUR take down...YOUR position...YOUR submission. Not the other way around! You also have to be able to react to your opponents attacks and counter it with something of your own. THIS CAN NOT BE DEVELOPED ANYWHERE ELSE, BUT THE CLASSROOM. Granted, you can't train at this level everyday, but you have to take it to that level every once in awhile!!!
Your opponent should be constantly overwhelmed with technique after technique, until eventually he breaks. This is why I believe wrestlers have a competitive advantage for the first couple of belts. They are already equipped with aggression, the type of aggression that keeps on going until the person breaks. They have a solid base, and a tight smashing game that does not yield to any obstacle. Remember aggression is not always about speed, but advancement without giving up. In war when they stormed the trenches, they did not turn back when one man was shot...they kept going till they arrived at the trench, then they went berserk.
Going to the US Open and talking to Sly today really opened my eyes to aggression and what it actually is, rather than what I hear from people who just aren't naturally aggressive. He was talking about how technique and aggression go hand in hand, and if you are low in one, it eventually catches up to the other. I did a series of graphs below to represent just exactly what I think that means.
Here at the fresh off the street white belt up to 4 stripe level, you know very little technique, in fact the graph is based on a white belt that knows a little. The technique can be anywhere between 10% and 20%, and strength would increase/decrease accordingly. Because of the limited technique, you have to use mainly aggression and strength. This is the time where you are at your most primal state because technique is out of the picture and you are just trying to pound your way through a boulder with no pick axe. What is good about this level is the aggression, and if it wasn't so taboo to be aggressive in majority of gyms, you would be already ahead of the pack. Instead, you get told to calm down and quit being such a spaz, or you hear through the grapevine that nobody wants to roll with you anymore. Be careful, but keep doing what you do!
At this level, mainly high level blues, purples, and browns I saw a lowering of aggression. I observed that they were a little more indecisive, which came off as timid that was not really seen at the white belt level. Most of them were playing it safe using a lot of guard and slow paced movements applying pressure when needed. The aggression went down, and some were even on turtle (lower than 35%). The good thing about this level is that strength lowered and technique went up, which allowed these belts to be a lot more energy efficient and effective. I noticed a lot of advanced guard, guard passes, and much more flowing fluid movement. Explosiveness was only used when it was absolutely necessary, sometimes not at all. But the one thing I noticed, just like with the white belts, the most aggro competitor won his matches. I think the lowered aggression has a lot to do with the amount of choices at your disposal as a colored belt. Yet, I can't help but wish that these guys put it on the line a little bit more.
Finally, at the black belt level things became more interesting. Aggression seemed to match technique, and strength was "rarely" used. It seemed like a white belt match all over again with more options and 90% more polish. These guys moved so fluidly it was like watching dolphins swim, lol. Every move had a purpose. One minute you have two guys staring each other down, the next you have a 5 minute long scramble of just counter after counter after counter. These are not two guys that look like they want to make out, these are two people that want their arm raised at the end of the fight. They fight like they have a reason to be fighting. You can see the years of hard work, dedication, and conditioning right there in those 10 minutes. Strength is useless when two people know how to do everything perfectly. Only thing that will save you is yourself. How you push the pace of the fight and your technique.
This should be what goes through everyone's head when they step on the mat either in the academy or in competition. Aggression matched with technique is what wins matches. Technique will not get you there if you have no heart and you are unwilling (or can't) put pressure on your opponent. Strength will not get you there if you have no technique or aggression to back it up. In closing, the theory of the day is aggression and technique must be closely matched in order to be successful in jiu-jitsu. Ciao!
*Note graphs are from an analysis of male competitors.
