I've previously discussed breathing but have concentrated on unusual situations, like conscious hyperventilation and the Valsalva Maneuver. I should probably have started out by talking about something that is a bit more universally applicable. Let’s talk about this: no breathing equals no oxygen equals total exhaustion. Storytime: I once talked with a very frustrated and discouraged … [Read more...]
Competition Kneebar Breakdown
Rob Biernacki recently won gold at black belt in master's ADCC Canada and in black M4 division at IBJJF NoGi Worlds. In a critical match, he swept the reigning champion, came up on top, got entangled in an X guard situation, and then pulled a kneebar out of nowhere to get the submission. The video below breaks down the unorthodox kneebar and finishing mechanics he used at IBJJF No Gi … [Read more...]
BJJ Competition Preparation and Training Camp Design with Rob Biernacki
Rob Biernacki and his competition team are on a tear. Rob recently took gold in masters middleweight the Canadian ADCC Open, silver at the California ADCC Open, and gold in black belt M4 at the IBJJF No Gi Worlds. In episode 394 of The Strenuous Life Podcast we talk about Designing an effective training camp Dividing your conditioning and skills training Detaching emotionally from … [Read more...]
Rob Biernacki Dominates in Competition
I just wanted to send a shout-out to a friend; Mr Rob Biernacki. Rob recently wrapped up an amazing 2023 competition season. In August he took gold in the 83 kg Advanced Masters division of the ADCC Open, competing with a fractured right hand and facing people 15 years younger than him. Then, just last weekend, he followed that up with another gold medal by winning 4 matches and beating … [Read more...]
The Ultimate Self Defense Championship
The Ultimate Self-Defense Championship was a competition in which six martial arts YouTubers competed against each other in seven self-defense challenges to find out what works, what doesn't and who would become the ultimate self-defense champion. The results were shocking, and the entertainment value was off the charts! On episode 388 of The Strenuous Life Podcast I talk with the organizer … [Read more...]
Rob Biernacki Double Gold!
Rob Biernacki has been on a tear recently. In 2023 he's competed 4 times. In April, he got a Silver at the ADCC Open... in March, he won Gold at Grappling Industries... in June, he won Gold at the Portland Open... and just a few days ago, he won Double Gold at Grappling Industries! That last victory is particularly impressive because one of those gold medals was in the Masters Open division. … [Read more...]
The Easiest Way to Do the Berimbolo
At the bottom of this post is a Youtube video I just created to show the easiest way to do the Berimbolo. Now if you're a Berimbolo aficionado then you've probably already scrolled down. But maybe you're on the fence about this move. Or maybe you don't even know what it is and why you should care about it. Well, give me a minute to put it into context for you... Over the last couple of … [Read more...]
The Single Leg X Guard – A Surprising Way to Pull Guard…
Should you pull guard in competition? And if you decide to pull guard, then how do you do it correctly? In a certain sense, I am uniquely unqualified to answer these questions... You see, much of my BJJ comes from 8th degree black belt Marcus Soares, and Marcus is very much from the old-school Carlson Gracie way of doing things. The Carlson approach to jiu-jitsu is definitely focused on … [Read more...]
Inclusive Jiu-Jitsu with Erin Wedekind
Erin teaches jiu-jitsu in Appleton Jiu-Jitsu. In this episode we have a great discussion of trans athetes in jiu-jitsu and a little bit of polite debate about trans athletes competing in elite sport. I found this a very informative conversation and gained some valuable perspective on the science of transition. More about Erin at metricsbjj.com Inclusive Jiu-Jitsu (Video … [Read more...]
How to Add Judo Takedowns to Your BJJ Game, with Chris Round
Chris Round is a Judo black belt under Jimmy Pedro. In this episode we talk about How to add Judo throws to your BJJ arsenal, Old school vs new school Judo training methods, Kosen Judo which focuses very heavily on groundwork, The critical importance of gripfighting and how to develop it, Leg grabs, belt grabs, crazy Eastern European throws, And more! To consume this … [Read more...]
Margot Ciccarelli, Travelling the World While Training Jiu-Jitsu
Multiple time World and European champion Margot Ciccarelli joins us take us through some of the following topics... Competing at the highest level while spending much of the year on the road, How to feel invincible on the mats, The importance of tempo changes in jiu-jitsu, Transitioning through different guards, Learning faster vs staying in your comfort zone, Switching from a … [Read more...]
Lessons from Competing in 25 Matches in 8 Divisions in 1 Tournament with Jeff Shaw {Podcast and Video}
Jeff Shaw runs Bellingham BJJ and despite coming to jiu-jitsu late in life fell in love with competition and eventually competed 8 divisions in a single tournament with pretty good results. I particularly love his pre-match psych up routine which you'll learn all about in this episode! Here is the video version of our chat... 00:45 - Covid Check-in at Bellingham BJJ 13:58 - Starting … [Read more...]
How to Learn from BJJ Instructionals (The Strenuous Life Podcast Episode 330)
In episode 330 of The Strenuous Life Podcast we covered how to connect wrestling and leglocks, learn from instructionals, avoid bad seminars, improve BJJ training methods, the Australian MMA scene, trends in grappling, and much more with the eloquent Sonny Brown from the Sonny Brown Breakdown! Here is just a little of what we covered today… 00:21 - The Australian jiu-jitsu scene 05:58 - … [Read more...]
Implications of the IBJJF Legalising Heel Hooks and Reaping
Starting Jan 1st 2021 adult brown and black belts will be able to use heel hooks and leg reaping entanglements at the brown and black belt adult divisions in no gi competition. Long banned, heel hooks are rotational leglocks where the hip and/or the knee is held in place while the foot is bent and rotated. They are incredibly efficient because they attack the smaller ligaments of the foot and … [Read more...]
Training for High Level Competition, with Brandon ‘Wolverine’ Mullins
Today I chat with Black belt no gi world champion Brandon 'Wolverine' Mullins about how the most efficient training methods to master the highly complex world of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Lots of great takeaways in this one!! 02:18 - Learning technique only vs learning technique and theory 05:42 - Fundamental movements in BJJ 09:24 - Advanced applications of fundamental movements 14:48 - … [Read more...]
Why You Need the de la Riva Guard
In this latest episode of The Strenuous Life Podcast I talk with BJJ black belt world champion Brandon 'Wolverine' Mullins about why you need to have a long range guard, how to build a de la Riva guard game, and finding a way to win no matter what the situation is! Why You Need the de la Riva Guard, in Youtube Format Here's the video of this chat from my main Youtube channel... Why You Need … [Read more...]
Train Hard AND Train Smart!
There's a saying in the British army that goes, 'Proper Preparation and Planning Prevent Piss Poor Performance.' This is called The Seven P's, and it applies just as much to BJJ as it does to military matters. The truth is that any great accomplishment, from winning a tournament to getting your black belt, requires a TON of preparation and planning. Think of the training, the drilling, … [Read more...]
In Depth Interview with Dominyka Obelenyte, 4 Time Pan-Am and World Championship Black Belt Gold Medalist.
Dominyka Obelenyte was born in Lithuania, emigrated to the United States at a very young age, and became a 4 time Pan-Am and World Championship black belt gold medalist. In this interview we talk technique, injury recovery, mindset, effective training, the use and misuse of 'loyalty' in the BJJ world, mental resilience and more. I think you'll really like this interview and find it very … [Read more...]
Sparring vs Competition Strategies
Optimal Competition Strategy There's an old saying that goes... "Don't do what's best for you. Instead do what's worst for your opponent." There's a lot of truth there. In a competition your odds of victory go way up if you can prevent your opponent doing the things that he is best at. Back in the day I once competed against MMA fighter Chris Leben in a submission grappling … [Read more...]
The Ultimate Lapel Guard
It's 2020, and the game has evolved. If you don't add this lapel variation to your game IMMEDIATELY then you're destined to be left irretrievably behind, choking on the dust cloud of the sport. Check it out... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeRn8mPAmeI All kidding aside, I've got something important to tell you about... How to Develop an Impassable Guard To help you make your guard … [Read more...]