Aftermath of Competition

If any of you are anything like me the days after you compete in a jiujitsu competition are very happy and content days, whether you won your division or got subbed your first match I think its important to recognize that you had the courage to step out on the mats and compete, that in and of itself is praiseworthy.  For myself the days are also spent thinking about what I can improve on in my jiujitsu game.  I feel like the list is endless but after competing I definately am able to refocus and walk into my next training session with a specific goal in mind. 

As is probably obvious I competed in the S7 Submission Grappling Event this past weekend and had a blast.  My record for the days was 2 and 3.  I took second in the men’s blue belt welter weight division.  I didn’t have much success in the Absolute division but I’m still glad I did it.

To give a brief overview, my first match I won via triangle about 50 seconds into the round.  I gotta say getting such a decisive win right off the bat felt great.  My second match was against a very talented kid who edged me out on points 3 to 2 at the last second.  Of all the matches I’ve had this one was by far the funnest, it was very back and forth with both of us on top at some point.  I attempted a cross collar choke from guard and he threatened me with a straight ankle lock several times.  With about 20 seconds left in the fight he set up a great armlock which I was in the process of defending when time expired.  That is a loss I can certainly swallow as I felt that we both fought hard and were competitive.  My third fight was against a very tough opponent who had originally signed up in the 30+ blue belt division but since they didn’t have enough competitors in that bracket he stepped down to the 20-29 year old division.  This guy was very talented and strong as an ox.  I started out by just going to open guard and managed to get a sweep right at the beginning of the round, I quickly passed his guard and went to north/south I spent the rest of the fight transiting between north/south and side control attempting to sniff out my favorite choke.  He defended it beautifully and it was all I could do to stay on top as he attempted to escape.  I managed to win on points and that got me a silver medal. 

My last two matches were in the absolute division and... Lets just say I learned a lot.  Both my opponents were very skilled and both had a significant amount of weight on me, my first match I felt like a rag doll getting tossed around, I ended up tapping to a kimura.  My last match was a bit more competitive and I was actually up on points before getting submitted with a nice straight arm lock.  My opponent pulled guard early and I managed to pass his guard to side control but I made the fatal mistake of not keeping track of my arm as I passed and he capitalized on it.  A lesson well learned and props to the other guy. Well played sir, well played...

I think one of the biggest things I learned in this competition was that often times your biggest enemy is you.  We question and second guess ourselves and we end up psyching ourselves out but if we step out there with confidence and simply walk out with the knowledge that we do know jiujitsu, that we have trained hard to get here, and that we can impose our will on the other guy then all will be well.  

I started out strong in this tournament and I slowly faded out.  I could say that I was tired or that the other guys were bigger, stronger, etc but the reality is that I was in control of every fight I participated in and in the fights I lost, I was the one that gave up control.  The take home lesson for me is, you start out in control of the fight, and the only one who can really give up that control is you.  The other guy can try to take control but if you dictate the fight you will be the one moving forward and he will be backpedaling the whole time.  In competition stay on the offensive and attack, attack, attack,never let the other guy get comfortable enough to were he can start attacking.  If he is busy defending he probably isn’t thinking about attacking.  Keep training all, Peace:)

Get Out of Your Comfort Zone

As someone who enjoys being comfortable in nearly everything I do I have been reflecting lately on why I enjoy training so much.  If you think about it there are not a whole lot of aspects about jiujitsu that one could classify as “comfortable” whether your getting smashed into the matt from the 250 pound and extremely technical purple belt or your in some black belt’s wizard-like guard (damn you Pedro) I think I can safely say that jiujitsu as a whole is fairly uncomfortable.

So why do we put ourselves through this? A better question would be why put ourselves through this when we don’t have to? No one forces us to train unless perhaps your in the military or law enforcement.  So why then? 

For myself it comes down to progression and taking myself out of my comfort zone so I can grow.  This principle is one that can be applied to BJJ as well as life in general, but I’m not gonna try and hand down any life lessons from my lofty pedestal up here at blogspot.com.:)

If you want to progress in this game you have to put yourself out of your comfort zone.  Perhaps let the guy who isn’t as experienced as you pass your guard so he can work his guard passing and you can work your escapes and reversals.  Maybe, God forbid you let yourself get submitted by someone who ahem, has a lighter colored belt then you... The ways to get yourself out of your comfort zone are infinite and everyone has different areas that may be seen as “weak” areas.  For myself its my back defense.  When someone takes my back I am very uncomfortable and I know that I need to work on that area.  Next time I roll I’m going to force myself to at least attempt back escapes every roll.  If I get submitted so be it, I learn more from my ‘‘loses”anyway.  

The point I think I’m trying to make is that we can’t improve and get better if we don’t force ourselves to work on things that may not be our favorite.  Everyone likes to attack, I love to go for submissions just as much as the next guy but what happens when in my next tournament (in two days actually) I come across a guy that is insanely good at taking the back and submitting from there? At that point its to late and I’m in a world of trouble.  Admittedly two days isn’t nearly enough time to prepare but this is a goal that I’m going to continue to pursue after the tourney.  

The take home lesson here is, swallow your pride, have fun, try something new, and push yourself in areas you may not like.  After that training session whether you were successful or not you will be much happier with yourself (at least I always am), and remember there is always tomorrow but train like its your last time on the mats. <(I might have found my new catch phrase) 

Rolling = Honesty

            In the world of Brazilian Jiujitsu I have heard it said that there is no way to fake your way through this sport.  You either are what you say you are or your not.  There is no in-between and no gray area.  One of the reasons I have such a passion for this sport is the fact that it keeps me honest and on my toes.  When I get submitted (which happens every training session:) the act of me tapping has a finality to it which says  “hey you got me, I don’t want to continue this fight”.  It is through this sort of brutal realism with oneself that I believe you see what your truly made of.  It keeps you honest and humble which I believe sparks an attitude of learning within yourself and allows you to continue to progress.  Anyone that has trained for any amount of time has probably seen the guy that can’t swallow his ego, who can’t just relax and accept that there are others better then him on the mats.  I think this sort of person does not stick with BJJ for very long and if they do they quickly make enemies of their training partners

The beauty of jiujitsu is that it pits you against an opponent in a manner that forces you to accept what the other person brings to the table and it usually exposes what you lack in  a way that can’t be ignored.  During a rolling session for example I must accept that yes this guy just passed my guard with ridiculous ease.  Now I have to address the problem at hand which most of the time is the threat of submission.  I must deal with the reality that I allowed my training partner to gain an advantageous position and the only person I have to blame is myself.  Now I must escape, recover guard, reverse, etc in order to get myself back on an even playing field.  Once I attain that more advantageous position however the fight doesn’t stop there, now I must impose my will on the other guy.  Its time to pass his guard, sweep, or submit.  I think of a rolling session as a ever shifting pendulum with the momentum of the fight constantly shifting.  This sort of fight in my experience most often occurs when you are rolling with training partners of relatively similar skill levels.  You both have your bread and butter techniques and you are both going to go to that comfortable place where you see a lot of success.  Whether that is playing guard, top control, half guard or any other number of positions. (Below is an excellent example of me being forced to accept that I gave up top position in my first ever no-gi match;)

What this all boils down to is the fact that in Jiujitsu you must deal with the situation at hand and in that moment you are addressing either your weaknesses or your strengths.  In that moment you are honest with yourself and your training partner is as well, otherwise he/she will either submit you or be submitted by you.  So if you ever get frustrated during a rolling session just relax and remember that you have no one to blame but yourself for what happens.  More importantly however, understand that the honesty of the entire situation that is Brazilian Jiujitsu will keep you humble and working hard, which at the end of the day equals progression.  Relax, have fun, and roll:)

Progression

Much like in life, everyone progresses in jiu jitsu at different speeds. I have found that when training it is most beneficial to be goal oriented, this will enable you to measure yourself, so to speak, when training. For example: when I roll with my trainers I pretty much know that I’m going to tap to them, odds are that they will probably tap me several times within the round. So to measure myself I  say: “ok, they may arm lock me but I will defend the choke with everything I have”. This doesn’t mean I will give up the arm lock intentionally it simply means that choke defense is my number one priority. I find that I get less frustrated when I set little goals like this for myself. Even if I do get choked its certainly not the end of the world, I just work harder the rest of the round to defend my neck. Obviously your goals will vary depending on your jiu jitsu skill level and that of your training partner. As a relatively new jiu jitsu blue belt I often have goals to simply defend attacks from my more skilled training partners. When I roll with someone at or below my skill level my goals change to perhaps passing guard, attaining the mount position and submitting with a specific  submission. Being a very goal oriented person in general I find this is an effective remedy for the many frustrations that come with training in the gentle art (jiu jitsu). This may not work for everyone and really everyone has to find things that may work just for them.
Progression then within the world of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu can only truly be accurate when you measure yourself and do not compare yourself to others. It is important to remember that everyone around you who trains regularly is improving as well. So measuring yourself against them really isn’t an accurate measure of your progress. It is like standing on an escalator 5 steps behind someone. If neither of you move, you will never catch up to them while on that escalator.

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is so dynamic that people may progress in spurts in some areas and then flatline in other areas (at least this is the case with me). The key I believe to working through those tough times is simply consistency and patience with yourself. In addition I don’t think it is a bad idea  to take some time off the mats either (you can have to much of a good thing)  If you have a really rough training session and your feeling burned out take a few days or a week off. I find that this clears my mind and when I come back I am excited and ready to learn.

Maintaining that learning attitude is crucial in this sport. There really is no room for ego on in jiu jitsu. One experience I will never forget was when Grandmaster Flavio Behring (ninth degree red belt)was in town for a seminar and demonstrating a specific technique he turned to one of our trainers Pedro and said “you specialize in this type of sweep” to which  Pedro responded “no sir, I specialize in learning” (this coming from a 2nd degree black belt). If someone as skilled as Pedro can maintain such as an attitude it should be a breeze for the rest of us. Well now that I have rambled completely off topic I will end this post. I “progressed” from talking about progression to maintaining a humble attitude 

Competition

The opinions on competing in BJJ tournaments are as varied as the people you see walking into a BJJ or MMA gym.  Some schools are very competition oriented and place a lot of emphasis on competing even to the point where you must win your division at a certain belt level in order to be promoted.  Others are much more layed back and do not place as much emphasis on competition.  The different attitudes you will find around the world towards jiujitsu and the various aspects of it is why I love this sport.  There is a niche for everyone.  From the ultra competitive athlete to the guy who just wants to get in shape, lose weight, and learn self-defense.  As for myself I think I land more on the competition oriented side of the spectrum.  While I don't compete as much as some I definitely compete more than most.  My personal reasons for competing are pretty varied but it pretty much boils down to wanting to push myself and seeing how I stack up against other schools.  I also believe that competing gives you a true idea of where your skills are really at.  What I mean is that when your in your gym rolling or drilling your on a nice cush mat, you are pretty confident that your not going to get slammed or punched in the face.  Now I am aware that you can't strike in grappling competition but I do believe that the adrenaline you experience when you step on the competition mats is similar to what you would feel in a self-defense situation.  You get tunnel vision, you are extremely tense, dare I say scared?  You try to muscle everything and technique goes out the window a lot of the time.  Now, I am just speaking from personal experience, this is not to say that everyone is like this.  In fact I know there are many out there who have great composure before and during a fight, but this is something that I have struggled with in past competitions.  I want to master this weakness in my game and so I push myself to compete although I don't always feel like it.  In addition I love the feeling I get after winning a match, you feel accomplished.  I am not happy that I hurt another human being, I am happy that I overcame my own fears and fought through them.  I am grateful to my opponent for having the guts to step on the mats and push himself as well as me.  I am grateful for all my training partners and coaches who push me to improve and who support me during the tournament.  That is the reason I compete, and hey the gold medal doesn't hurt either.;)
          Another reason I enjoy competing is how much I learn.  Whether I win or lose (but more when I lose) I always come away with questions for my instructors and exposed weaknesses in my game.  I come away with a renewed determination to train harder and to iron out those weaknesses that were exposed to me.  Fighting people from different schools with different styles quickly reveals all those weaknesses for you.  In essence I believe competition is good for everyone but certainly not a requirement to become an accomplished jiujitsu practioner.  I am competing next week in a tournament and I am very excited to do so.  Peace out, and train hard!!!

Living In Your Own Personal Hell On The Mats

I can't remember where I read this particular  article, but I believe it was in Graciemag. The author wrote a great essay on a seminar he had attended that  I believe was put on by Renzo Gracie.  In the esssay the author talked about how Renzo had said that sometimes in jiujitsu you must live in your own personal hell.  I think anyone that trains bjj knows the truthfulness of that statement.  There are those times when you are rolling with a training partner or in a competition and they essentially "put it on you" so to speak.  Perhaps its not your day and they are on point or maybe they are more technical then you or simply just bigger and stronger.  That time when you just want to tap out and quit is when you really see what your made of in my opinion.  The times when you cant get a lungful of air because they are crushing or choking you is the time when you decide to go away or stand your ground.  Now there is no shame in tapping, especially in a regular training session I have done it many times and will do it many more.  What I'm getting at is one's inner will to keep moving forward and to not fade before your opposition.  Being able to live in your own personal hell and keep moving forward in the fight is an attribute that I believe can be developed by anyone if they have the desire.  There is no substitute for a good work ethic and if one desire's to develop this then they will.  This is perhaps one of the biggest lessons I have learned to date from training jiujitsu.  I'm sure that I will learn many more.  I'm not ashamed to admit that there have been times when I am being dominated by someone more skilled then me that the thought has crossed my mind to just quit.  I mean why put myself through this? I'm actually paying some guy to choke, armlock,shoulderlock, and leg lock me.  These thoughts always come at a crucial point in the fight like when my training partner is attempting to get to the mount position or take my back.  It is at this point that I make conscious decision to stand my ground and continue to fight even if it feels futile.  Jiujitsu certainly is a mental game I would argue that perhaps the mental aspect is even greater then the physical aspect.  The point is that mental toughness must be developed and this is something jiujitsu teaches brilliantly.

First Thoughts on Brazilian Jiujitsu

so a little about me my name is Justin and im a  blue belt in brazilian jiujitsu and i train under the Behring Jiujitsu Association in Salt Lake City, Utah.  When i first started training in martial arts i initially was interested in muay thai kickboxing and trained mostly in that art for several months.  Over time however i kept seeing these guys show up in their gis and training and i decided to try a class.  It took a few months for me to catch the jiujitsu bug but when it bit, it bit me hard.  I train anywhere from 4 to 5 times a week and i am always eyeballing the next jiujitsu tournament that is coming to my area.  I received my blue belt  in Jan. of 2012 from my head trainer Professor Rob Handly.  It was an awesome experience to have the acknowledgment that all the blood, sweat, and tears i had put in on the mats had not been in vain.  I will never forget one of the comments another black belt that was attending the seminar made to me.  He said "now the real work begins" and i couldnt agree with him more.  Aside from the obvious physical benefits of training in the gentle art, jiujitsu has taken on deeper meaning for me in my personal life as i am sure it has for many other practioners of this amazing art.  I think the first lesson jiujitsu teaches is humility, from the first day whitebelt to the ninth degree redbelt who has been training for 60+ years humility is key.  I believe this is b/c jiujitsu is all about learning and bettering yourself, your technique and your training partners.  If you take humility out of the equation it takes away from your internal learning environment and at the end of the day it really only hurts you.  Those who maintain that humble learning attitude are the ones who will have the most improved technique the better rolls and an all around better experience in the gentle art.  Not to mention the fact that those who aren't humble generally don't last long in this sport.  The take home lesson here then is humility and this is a lesson that can be applied to all facets of life.  Be humble when you put your gi on and tie your belt around your waste.  Understand that you will probably tap, also understand that's not a bad thing at all. In life be willing to learn from others who have more experience then you, be intelligent enough to take their advice rather then pridefully trying to blaze your own path.  While there is nothing wrong with individuality and being your own person a truly intelligent person will take advice given him and consider it carefully before choosing to act or not to act on it.