Every man for himself?

Most people will admit that they start jiu-jitsu out of self-interest (they need to lose weight, want to protect themselves, find something new to do). This is not a bad thing, as most of us walk in the gym with no technical know how and lack solid relationships with our teammates. However, as time goes on the gym begins to sort itself out and you start to see individuals who are skilled, but have no interest in helping their fellow teammates.

In my time on the mats, I have realized that jiu-jitsu is a collective effort, and that the responsibility to raise the technical level of the gym is not just up to the instructor, but up to everyone with even an inkling of knowledge. Now this can somehow be hindered by egotistical individuals who feel as if you need to be training for 30 yrs to be able to teach someone, but that is another post. In my opinion, everyone has something to give in the gym, and just handing out ass whippings for free every day/night does not count.

If you really think about it, nobody is in the gym trying to get worse at jiu-jitsu. We all want to be technically solid, or else we would not be training. Yet, what most people don't realize is that iron sharpens iron (not really, but you get it). A lot of us complain about how our gyms are this and that, but we are the main reason why. It is impossible to get better at jiu-jitsu without the help of someone else and how you interact with your training partners can ultimately determine your skill level in the end.

I have seen good guys/gals who have the potential to be world champions, but their selfishness and inability to help others keeps them from developing and growing. It's simple: The more you give, the better you will get because everyone around you will benefit. You may be able to get away with the "every man for himself" attitude for a little bit, but eventually it will come back to bite you.

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said "It is one of the most beautiful compensations of life, that no man can sincerely try to help another without helping himself.”

Thanks for reading, 

Jei 

http://www.facebook.com/JourneyBJJ

Breakthrough

Competition drives change and innovation. The way I have pushed myself on the mats in preparation for a tournament, is by far the hardest I have ever worked in my life. There are people that outpace me by miles. Scattered around the world are a number of ambitious individuals all vying for that number one spot in their respective divisions, developing their games and reaching new heights. Heights that would take the average practitioner twice as long to attain, but we say that as if it is a bad thing...

I don't even remember why I started training, but I do know that it was not to compete. Now competition is my main driving force. If I was to look at it deeper, defeating another man for the chance to stand on a podium and have a piece of metal placed upon my neck, is the real driving force. I have become a collector of techniques, with no real understanding or perspective as to how they work or fit in the bigger picture. The need to win has forced me to figure out methods to make myself better in the shortest amount of time possible, no matter what it takes, while making as few mistakes as I can. Sure this has allowed me to improve faster, and if asked to do so I could show you a million sweeps from spider guard...but at the end of the day, I feel lost on this long journey we call jiu-jitsu.

I have spent the better part of two years convinced that competition was the answer. Testing yourself against another opponent who was equally as skilled, or better. If you defeat him, you are superior...one man you can scratch off your list out of billions. If you are defeated you are less of a man, and need to take more extreme measures to get em' next time. The unique thing about jiu-jitsu though, is that you can test yourself daily in the gym with your classmates, as most of them go hard if not harder than someone in competition. In fact, just training with someone who is preparing for competition can rub off on you. So what is it...pressure from the school? The need to feel like a billy bad ass? Impressing a new lady friend? I haven't quite figured it out yet, but what I have realized is that I am missing something greater from my training.

In all that training, conditioning, weight cutting, and stress of competition the true reason as to why I started training in the first place has escaped me. Competition is amazing, please don't let my cynicism frighten any of you who are thinking of competing...but I am finally understanding that right now it is just not something I need to focus on. I really love jiu-jitsu. I feel like a day on the mat without drilling is a wasted day, but I also feel like a day on the mat without learning something about yourself (not just your technique) is also a waste. I have come to think of jiu-jitsu as process oriented, not result oriented. I am more interested in the long arduous journey filled with hardships and pain, rather than the short, rushed, make as few mistakes as possible road. I want to help other people grow, because I feel like it is more rewarding than stepping out on a mat under the bright lights and "proving yourself."


Competition is not the only way you can raise your level in jiu-jitsu. Becoming a better person and training partner on the mats will work just the same. We all start martial arts out of self-interest, competition to me intensifies that...the most down to earth people I have met in this sport are the ones that have not stepped foot in a competition. Yet, I have looked to the medal chasers as my inspiration. To better myself, its time I change that. Not saying I won't compete ever again, but my training will no longer revolve around it. Let the spiritual breakthrough begin.

Thanks for reading,
Jei
http://www.facebook.com/JourneyBJJ

Abandoned.

After several months of drilling, you are finally ready to unleash the pain on your fellow rollers. You come to school smiling because you know you have a money sweep that is going to finally have everyone asking, "do you teach privates?" You're in the changing room tying your belt extra tight, making sure your gi is crisp. You can barely sit through class, biting your nails and picking at your toes...waiting for your professor to finally say its time for sparring.

Finally, class ends and you are paired with your nemesis, Charlie Chokem, the sick purple belt that kills you all the time. Game time. You slap hands, get to your move...then WHAM! Charlie down. This happens for a whole month and you are on cloud nine. You have managed to sweep everyone and their mama, and you even got a few submissions off of it to. Can't tell you nuttin.

Few months later...not only is Charlie countering your guard, but so is everyone within a 10 mile radius. Frustrated and heartbroken, you do what many of us do when the fish ain't biting, you pack up the rods and tackle...and leave.

This is a huge mistake that we all have made at least once in our jiu-jitsu lifetime. Rather than adapt and figure out new ways to counter the counters, we just up and give up; abandoning a possible money move, for something new. Back to the drawing board.

Let's take a deeper look into that by using one example from Lloyd Irvin.

In one of Lloyd's old email newsletters he stated that one day while hanging out at his instructors house he had the privilege to watch some old competition footage. In the videos he recognized some top level competitors at the time, not only by their faces but also their games. The only thing though, the tapes were old, so old that most of top level guys were blue belts still. After watching about 20 or so of these tapes Lloyd came to the conclusion that these guys had the same games as blue belts that they have at black belt.These were not just natural jiu-jitsu savants, magically coming up with moves on the spot; they had been developing their games ever since they were snot nosed rascals.

So what does this have to do with us?

A lot. Allowing yourself to abandon a technique that has been proven, and moving on to the next move is MURDER! You are literally killing your game and in 6 yrs, you will pay heavily for it when you realize that you are a jack of all trades, master of none.

Why is a blue belt who has only been training for two years telling you this? 

Because for some of us, like me, there is still hope. That sweep you stopped using two weeks ago...the one you shelved in the back of your mind, get it back out and start experimenting and making it better. Patience is a virtue. Good things come to those who wait. He that can have patience, can have what he will. Patience and fortitude can conquer all things. See where I am going?

There is a reason why you chose that sweep or position, because it works for you. Just because it does not work in school, does not mean it won't work in a tournament or on someone who doesn't know you from Adam. Take the time to develop your bread and butter, don't let ego get in the way of your growth! Lloyd said to let the move take you to black belt level, in that time period who knows how much you can do! Your dinky little de la riva hook, could blossom into the new Reverse Pterodactyl guard...

Bruce Lee once said "I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but the man that has practiced one kick 10,000 times" Truer words have never been spoken. Jei, out.

Think About It: Total body awareness

I have been meaning to write a blog post on this subject for awhile now, but every time I sat in front of my computer, nothing ever came about. Except for today. I guess just like all things in life, sometimes alls we need is a little inspiration. Now I am not a huge fan of football, in fact, I have not watched a single game all season and don't plan on it (watch my daily views plummet now). But today's highlight provided me with the example I needed to get my point across. As you can see in the video, Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Jerome Simpson displays some amazing athleticism and coordination by doing a somersault over his defender for the touchdown.

What does this have to do with jiu-jitsu Jei? A lot.

See the thing that allowed Mr. Jerome to do this somersault was not only his athleticism, but also his awareness of what his body is capable of. Trust me, if this cat didn't know he could do a somersault (at that height in full stride and with a 220lb man-beast coming at him) he would not have tried. He was confident in his abilities, and did not think he would fail. This can be easily paralleled to jiu-jitsu and how we move in our own games.

Usually at the blue belt level and higher, rolling can at times seem slowed down. When you are in the moment, you see multiple paths to get to a certain destination...maybe it is a pass, a submission, or to a more dominant position. In that moment, those precious seconds, you have to decide which path is the one you are most capable of traveling on. Jerome Simpson could have juked, spun, or dodged his way into the endzone, but he didn't. He chose to somersault, because that was in his arsenal...his endless bag of tricks. What if you had the body mechanics and maneauvers to choose and successfully complete any move you wanted? You would probably be unstoppable. Sadly, a lot of us are not equipped yet with these mechanics, and instead of having options we end up forcing something that is not necessarily the correct thing to do.

I have done research on a lot of black belts in jiu-jitsu (this means I just went to BJJ Heroes), and I found out that a lot of them have a background in capoeira. This particular martial art not only gives them this total body awareness, but it all allows them to come into BJJ with no inhibitions. Many of us here in America grew up playing basketball or baseball, and are not used to the mechanics of jiu-jitsu and have to learn them. I know guys that are purple belts and can't do a cart wheel or forward roll properly. In fact, these are the things that most of us forget about completely and never implement into our drilling, warmup, and training routine. For instance, a lot of passes involve switching your hips or doing what is called a baseball slide. If you did not become competent in these two particular movements...how many guard passes are you missing out on? How many times will you force yourself into "tunnel vision" in any given roll?

It is imperative that we have total body awareness in jiu-jitsu. Who knows what situation you will find yourself in one day. Knowing that you can successfully complete what your mind knows it needs to do to advance your position will help to open your game up; allowing you to find a whole new side to your jiu-jitsu filled with mind boggling discoveries. Happy training.

Think About It: Energy Efficient

I recently heard a conversation between two black belts that had me up all night. It went a little something like this.

Black Belt 1: When I was training with my good friend -------------- (its a black belt world champion), about 2-3 months before a major tournament, I would see him roll close to twenty times in one night.

Black Belt 2: Oh yeah, well its easy to roll twenty times in one night when you're always winning.

(everyone laughs)

Although this was just a casual conversation, it allowed me to see that a jiu-jitsu player's biggest weapon is not his/her encyclopedia of techniques, but his/her ability to conserve energy by limiting their movements and executing proper technique. To be honest, nobody should even be doing crazy guards and cartwheel passes, because those aren't as efficient as the simple techniques.

Go in any gym and just watch each belt level spar starting from white to black. I guarantee you 9 times out of 10 you will notice the higher belts will have far more energy than the lower belts, even if they just ate an Outlaw burger before class and smoked 30 cigarettes. Its all due to a higer efficiency rating, with black belts being at the top.

How many times have you seen a guy rolling with someone with a good open guard and they immediately start by holding their arms so tight to their side that they have a vein popping out their head? Meanwhile, you look over at the black belt and he's passing guard like he passes gas, easy...second nature...didn't even break a sweat. Or how about when you roll with a black belt and you feel like you are in quicksand, and he is on the phone talking to his wife.......sigh.

How can I get to the point where I can talk on the phone while rolling?

Of course the first answer that pops in anyone's head is mat time, but let's dig a little deeper. As humans, our bodies (blame it on our bodies) tend to want to always cheat a little bit in any given task. Carry a shitload of bags up a few flight of stairs and I guarantee you will stop a hundred times to figure out a way to make it easier or less strenuous . We do the same thing in jiu-jitsu, not knowing that with enough practice and drilling of a particular technique, our bodies will eventually become naturally efficient at it. Instead as mentioned earlier, we do some weird shiet (maybe because we are freaking out or spazzing) that seems easier at first but really it is expending way more energy than we think. Before you know it, you are laying in a pool of your own sweat watching the steam blow of your head.

Here are some tips to improve your efficiency:

1. Drilling makes things like efficiency develop faster: When you roll, believe it or not, you are fighting for your life...especially in this sport. So it is really hard, unless you have been training a long time, to do techniques correctly. The muscle memory isn't all the way there. Getting a move into your muscle memory helps cease all unnecessary movement. So drill.

2. Staying calm and controlling your breathing: I rolled with a white belt the other day who had the veins popping out his head and everything. The fool wasn't even breathing let alone moving. This is the number one way to burn energy fast, and once your juice runs out you forget jiu jitsu and go into survival mode. This is why you see even the most experienced competitors die in the ring within the first minute. Don't let this happen to you. Stay loose and breath.

3. Conditioning: Jiu-jitsu is great exercise, but just showing up to class and rolling 2-3x a week won't get you the conditioning that you need. Supplement your BJJ with high intensity circuit training or something like it. Remember, the more gas you have in the tank, the farther you can drive. Nobody likes that guy that can only go for 2 minutes before he coughs up a lung.

4. Paying attention in class and ask questions: How else will you know how to do that sweep that doesn't involve the little kick you somehow added to it? By actively listening in class and asking questions on how to do a move correctly. It is imperative that we learn how to do moves correctly, or else drilling is pointless. If you are trying to emulate what Professor Charlie is doing, but it takes you 8 minutes and takes him 8 seconds...ask him what he is doing that you are not. Simple.

5. Train: Mat time will eventually fix everything. 10,000 hours.

I still spaz out like a dog under a blanket at times too, it is natural, especially when you have no idea what you are doing in a certain position. Hopefully, these little tips and hints will help someone out there or at least encourage them to think a little more about why they are not as efficient as they can be and what they can do to fix it. Thanks for reading.