Just don't let Cody win!

Lol, that's much easier said than done!! Only way I can handle him is by dodging him. You know, things like taking forever to tie my belt, pretending not to see him, faking a cramp, etc.

Competition Week! Hoping to do well at Jiu-Jitsu World League this Saturday up in Humble. I got my game plan and my weight is on point. Can't wait to get out there!

Good deal! Have a good competition and let us know how it turns out!

Got started at Presa (think it's called something else now) in Conroe. I came from a Gracie school and it's completely different. Very informal, no "professor", and less structured. That being said, I like it! The biggest plus is the morning class has a lot of higher belts while at Gracie it was mostly WB. The other big difference is no stripes. I was a 4 stripe WB, but ultimately don't care on my belt at all. I can see why stripes are good, keeps you motivated, but i don't care for the little rewards. I'm happy to get back in after a 3 month break (after baby #2).

Had my last tough session before the competition. 530am Class. Had a rotating group of 2 black belts and a tough white belt that would each rotate into me, while the other two rested, so I had a fresh opponent constantly. Takedowns, Passing, Guard Retention, and then full rolls. Haven't felt that beat up since I started BJJ.

Competition training is the real deal! I've been missing a lot of class lately due to schedule and allergies.

Planned to return this past Monday. But when I heard it was 'Hell week" (90 minutes of competition training) I decided NEXT week might be a better week to return.

Good luck- let us know how the event goes- I am considering signing up for the June JJWL event in Dallas and would like to hear about how their events run.

I have really mixed feelings about competing- on one hand, I enjoy competition and testing myself against others- it is a reason I think we all enjoy the sport. However I am also 37, with a 4 year old, a puppy and the primary income earner for my house- I have a hard time measuring the risks of getting injured as a white belt in a local tournament with literally no upside other than to say "I did it". I would be curious on other peoples thoughts about competing as a hobbyist, especially if you are in a similar situation- masters, lower belt, etc.

OaklandAg06 said:

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Good luck- let us know how the event goes- I am considering signing up for the June JJWL event in Dallas and would like to hear about how their events run.

I have really mixed feelings about competing- on one hand, I enjoy competition and testing myself against others- it is a reason I think we all enjoy the sport. However I am also 37, with a 4 year old, a puppy and the primary income earner for my house- I have a hard time measuring the risks of getting injured as a white belt in a local tournament with literally no upside other than to say "I did it". I would be curious on other peoples thoughts about competing as a hobbyist, especially if you are in a similar situation- masters, lower belt, etc.

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I know how you feel, and I'm a good bit older than you are. Student/Enthusiast of Muay Thai and it would be cool to climb in a ring one time.....but, I also have a lot going on and I don't "need" to fight. Closest I come is sparring on open mat night with the mouthpiece in.....that usually about does it for any itch I might have for a real match.

Competition is a strange beast. Some people try it and love it. Others try it and hate it. Others never compete, yet they thoroughly enjoy everything else BJJ has to offer....fitness, technique, competitive rolls, camaraderie.

If you're curious, give it a shot and see. You may enjoy it. And if not, nothing lost (except maybe pride, entry fee, training time, etc.). If you want to be competitive, it will take more prep time than most hobbyists spend.

I'm in my late 40's and competed at white - brown belts, mostly in smaller competitions. I enjoyed the competition training leading up, but never did well in competition, losing more than I won. Training time was rough on family time, and competing really wasn't fun for me. I mainly competed because everyone else was doing it, not because I enjoyed it.

So I chose to focus on what I love about BJJ. Technique, HARD competition training, coaching and camaraderie. For me, competition is training with the competition blue and purple belts (half my age) to help prep them for competition.

When I get the urge to compete, I think about my last competition. At one point, I was left standing in only my underwear after my match, surrounded mostly by bodybuilders and standing next to a midget wrestling ring. It was odd, but that's a story for another day :-)

Only competed as white and blue, never did it as a purple or brown. I'd like to at least once as a brown but to be honest competition scares the hell out of me and I hate it. But I'm sure some will disagree but competing is necessary to grow in the discipline. You need to be tested at that level. A match in competition is nothing like what you're doing in the gym. Also, one match in competition feels like 5 in the gym.

Yeah, totally agree with you about development. Competitors progress faster than hobbyists, and are much tougher and more technical (in general). Of course, they also train 5-6 days a week, so they should get better faster or something is wrong with their training.

I don't plan to compete at black belt but I'm glad I tried it at other belts. Black belt is just weird due to being the 'final' belt. At my age, I could step onto the mat against a fellow hobbyist newly promoted like myself. Or I could step onto the mat against a 5th degree black belt who has spent their life training, coaching and competing at the highest levels.

I don't need to spend $130 to know how that match will turn out for me.

Congrats! That's a great day! Strong results on the mat and promotion on the podium. Very cool way to be promoted! Great job!

Congrats on the medals and the promotion!

First Match Submission

How flexible does someone have to be to get into BJJ? I'm relatively tall, but very inflexible even though I seem to work at it fairly often.

I played football growing up and I think that's why I had neck issues (C3 and C4 vertebrae) a few years back. X-rays and MRI showed nothing too crazy except for a slight herniated disk that seemed to heal with time ... ?? Would that also be a problem if I wanted to try out BJJ?

I herniated a disc (L4) when I was 17 playing football. I'm in my late 20's now and have been practicing BJJ routinely 3x per week for about 3-4 months now. A) my flexibility has improved tremendously and B) I have felt nerve/sciatic pain only once. I do occasionally get tightness in my lower back, but it's nothing some decompression exercises don't fix. I recommend everyone try it out. It's the one workout I never miss or skip.

I've been thinking through what my strengths/weaknesses are as I am close to pulling the trigger on the JJWL tournament in June.

What do you guys/gals consider your best position/weakest positions?

My strongest is Single Leg X- easily my favorite/most confident position. I can play it well on both sides, I can sweep on both sides, and play a decent (for a white belt) leg attack game on both sides. Weakest/least confident is anything standing. If I do the JJWL my standing strategy will pretty much consist of pulling guard as soon as possible. . .

Best position for me is butterfly guard, or a modified half-guard with butterfly hook. When things get going, it's the guard I most often rely on for sweeps, transition to other open guards and leg lock entries. Also lets me hide the knees, feet from leg lockers.

My weakest position is passing open guards that use heavy sleeve control (spider, leg lasso, etc.). Need to work my passing more effectively, as I tend to get stuck/stalled passing or get swept depending on the opponent/situation.

On the topic of takedowns, white/blue is the time to learn those basic takedowns, even though you'll fail many, many times trying them. People who skip TD training early on arrive at purple belt with no takedowns and no guard passing ability.

Yeah the takedown piece is something I am not sure how to address. Right now the gym I train at just has a smaller mat area, and because of that we typically start from knees or sitting as there just isn't enough space to safely train standing up or takedowns with even a modestly sized class. They do typically have at least one takedown oriented class a week, but it doesn't mesh with my schedule.

Right now the gym owner is looking at new, larger spaces as the building is in the process of being sold. I'm hoping that with more space comes more opportunities to train standing up.

Yeah, totally understand. Finishing takedowns require space and can be dangerous on a crowded mat.

Does your gym (or another 'friendly' gym) in the area do an open mat? That might be an option to work takedowns in a less crowded environment. But be careful about that, as some school owners don't react well to cross training at other academies. It's almost like joining a gang sometimes (or so I've heard).

Another option maybe 'garage' training with other folks who want to train outside of the school. Don't have to finish the takedowns, most of the work is posture, footwork, grips, position, etc. that's why Judo guys do that grip-step-lift motion about like 50 times before they do the takedown..haha.

If there's no option to work takedowns, don't sweat it. Just keep developing a balanced approach (top/guard) so your passing and top control is as good as your guard.

Takedowns are less about knowing lots of takedowns, and more about knowing just several you can execute well in different situations.

Takedowns:

I might have mentioned this already but just try to become proficient in double and single leg take downs. They'll get you in great positions if executed well and a decent position if you fail miserably. Duckwalk drills are you new friends.

Judo in my opinion is too dangerous to attempt because most don't practice enough in executing the throws and more importantly taking the throws (breakfalls, head position, etc.). There are some real Dan badasses out there that do well in bjj but I think the practice is slowly waning from the sport.

Yeah, that's great advice. Basic wrestling will take folks a long way without the risk of injury. Every old Judo black belt I know seems to have shoulder, hip and hand injuries.

My highest percentage takedowns are both simple and low risk: 1) a lateral drop that works like a lapel drag / hook sweep combo and 2) fake guard pull to ankle pick. Both are low impact to training partners and both have 'bailout' options if/when they get stuffed.

Since I've been getting smashed by my wrestler buddy on a weekly basis, my stand up has gotten much better. I much prefer the single leg... easier to get & I don't feel near as exposed.

Since I'm just a 3 stripe white belt at this point, I don't feel I'm particularly strong anywhere. I've been told by higher belts I have strong top pressure (but use too much strength). At this point I feel much more comfortable going to various chokes vs. armlocks. I'm trying to force myself to go for a Kimura once a roll.

Considering the injury Jacob got in that fight, maybe he should have pulled guard? Or maybe he did, and the angel used a nasty hiplock as a guard break? We will never know. . .

Congrats Oakland

Congrats!! But nooooooo don't turn into one of those blue belts who goes missing shortly after promotion!!!

Sweep4-2 said:

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Congrats!! But nooooooo don't turn into one of those blue belts who goes missing shortly after promotion!!!

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But it's tradition

Quote:

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trashcan choke

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This one is new to me, is there another name for this choke?