When you're training hard, hitting a training plateau can be incredibly frustrating. But first of all, let's hit on an important distinction. A training 'slump' and a training 'plateau' are two different things... I go into detail about the differences between slumps and plateaus in this article here, but basically a slump is a relatively short-lived event, one to four weeks long, in … [Read more...]
How to Safely Strengthen Your Neck for BJJ
As I talked about in a recent article, having a strong neck is super important in jiu-jitsu because it helps prevent injury, makes it harder for you opponent to break your posture and choke you, and allows you to use your head offensively as a fifth limb. Essentially there are three directions that you need to strengthen your neck: Forwards and Backwards Side to Side (ear to shoulder … [Read more...]
Neck Harnesses to Get a Strong Neck for Grappling
Why would you want a stronger neck for grappling? Well, there are a number of different reasons. First, and most importantly a strong neck is more resistant to injury. Unfortunately accidents happen in grappling, and if you get planted on your head, or someone twists your neck unexpectedly, then the stronger your neck is then the less likely it is to get bent in half and injured. A … [Read more...]
The Best Mountaineer in the World and a Brand New Podcast…
I originally started my podcast - then named 'The Grapplearts Radio Podcast' - because I wanted to share some of the amazing conversations I was having with the athletes, competitors and coaches in the BJJ, submission and mixed martial arts space with my audience. The format of this podcast has evolved over the years. For example it now includes Q&A sessions and rants as well as interviews … [Read more...]
BJJ and Combat Sports Conditioning with Pshemek Drabcynski
I'm thrilled to bring you guys my interview with Pshemek Drabczynski. Pshemek was my very first 'official' BJJ teacher and I learned a ton from him. He's a BJJ black belt, a WKA North American kickboxing champion, and a physical conditioning guru. In this episode we talk about martial arts specific fitness, getting stronger, improving endurance, eating properly preventing injuries, fasting … [Read more...]
Pull-Ups for Grapplers
I'm a huge believer in the importance of doing pull-ups if you're a grappler. Regardless of whether you're doing BJJ or Submission Grappling, Judo or Freestyle Wrestling, Sambo or Catchwrestling there's a lot of pulling, clinching and holding in grappling. There's no better exercise to develop your pulling that pull-ups, and you can do them anywhere: the gym, the park, on … [Read more...]
The Key to Getting Better and Tougher
BJJ makes you tougher because it’s a difficult activity that challenges you physically, mentally and emotionally. At first, when you’re getting slaughtered by a 2 stripe white belt, escaping from mount seems impossible. Yet a few years later, fighting your way out of the bottom of mount, passing the guard, and finishing with an armbar is just another day at the office. Over time … [Read more...]
Staying Fit During a BJJ Training Layoff
BJJ is a marathon, not a sprint. The average Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt takes at least 10 years of hard training, so if you miss a week of training here or there it's not going to make a difference in the long run. But in some scenarios you're not looking at just missing a week of training. Let's say that you've got a sick kid at home, or that you have to recover from a surgery, or that … [Read more...]
Overtraining in the Martial Arts
How to Avoid Bringing Your Martial Arts Training to a Screeching Halt... Overtraining is a major problem for the serious martial artist, and especially for competitors who have to balance technical training sessions with sparring and additional conditioning, often in the course of a single day. All this hard training can result in the body breaking down faster than it can repair itself, which … [Read more...]
‘Twas the Day and the Night Before Christmas…
So about a year ago a semi-annual tradition got started... The way it works is that every 6 months the toughest woman I know and I do a one day, 30 mile hike through the mountains with a TON of elevation gain and loss. It's up and up and up and then down and down and down... We call it the 'Deathmarch' and it's a ton of fun. Here's a video I put together using photos and snapchat videos … [Read more...]
The Ultimate Guide to Developing BJJ Hip Movement Through Shrimping
Everyone says that moving your hips is one of the keys to jiu-jitsu. And they’re absolutely right: the correct movement of the hips is critical not only for escaping bad positions, but also for applying submissions, sweeping your opponent, passing the guard and much more. Traditionally an exercise called ‘shrimping’ is often used in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu to develop hip movement. This … [Read more...]
Getting in Shape for a BJJ Tournament, FAST!
So I got this letter from a reader asking about how to get into shape for a BJJ tournament as fast as possible... --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hi Stephan, I've just read your article on Tapering and Peaking for MMA and BJJ Competition and found it to be very informative and I have a question that relates to the topic. I have a grappling … [Read more...]
BJJ Q&A Podcast with Rob Biernacki
There's a new Grapplearts Radio podcast out!! I recently brought Rob Biernacki - a BJJ black belt and the creator of the highly reviewed BJJ Formula apps - back into the studio for his second appearance on the Grapplearts Radio Podcast... We mostly did a Q&A format in which we answered reader questions about everything from passing the guard to organising your training, but we … [Read more...]
The Pros and Cons of Bridging Onto Your Head
Neck bridging is an exercise that supposedly strengthens the neck that is almost unique to the grappling arts. It is also controversial. Broadly speaking, there are two main ways of bridging: the backwards neck bridge (belly to the sky) or a forwards neck bridge (where you are belly-down to the mat). Most grapplers who bridge do both forward and backward bridging. First the pro of … [Read more...]
7 Reasons Martial Artists Should Do Cardio
Today I want to share 7 reasons that all martial artists should do some form of cardio. This article actually started on a great run up my favourite local mountain. During that run, while dodging roots, rocks and puddles, I also spent a lot of time thinking about the direct martial arts benefits people get after they start working on their cardio. After the run, while cooling down and … [Read more...]
A Storm in the Mountains and Risk in BJJ
Today we're going to talk about assessing risk and reward in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, but first let me tell you a story about what happened up on a mountain recently... Risk vs Reward in the Outdoors I arrived at the Black Mountain trailhead in the Mount Cypress area a few hours before dark, intending to squeeze in a 90 minute trail run to Eagle Bluffs and back. In my pack was a light fleece coat, … [Read more...]
Pre-Workout Supplements for BJJ
Pre-workout supplements used to be mostly for weightlifters and bodybuilders. But now more and more jiu-jitsu practitioners are taking them before BJJ class in order to train longer and harder. Do they work? Sorta, kinda... Are they safe? Not at all. Is there a better alternative? Definitely! Let's look into pre-workout supplements, especially with regards to students of BJJ. In … [Read more...]
Fitness On One Hour of Working Out Per Week…
A reader recently asked an interesting question... Hi Stephan, I'm super-busy with my job and my kids. In a good week I only get to go to BJJ class once, maybe twice, so I want to add some conditioning to the mix. If I only have one additional hour per week to devote to physical fitness what would you suggest? Thanks, Jim I feel his pain! Everybody's busy these days, and … [Read more...]
11 Short MMA Conditioning Workouts by Chuck Liddell’s Coach John Hackleman
John Hackleman is a friend of Grapplearts and a very successful MMA coach. He runs The Pit Gym and guided Chuck Liddell to UFC Lightweight Champion status and has coached many other MMA fighters. As an MMA trainer he is keenly aware of the importance of conditioning for fighters, but also for 'regular' people training martial arts for self defense. Hackleman is also a very direct … [Read more...]
10 Tips on Running for BJJ
I blame Bruce Lee, for it was he who first brought the fact that martial artists should run to my attention. It was in the eighties and I came across a photo of Bruce Lee running down the road in the book Bruce Lee's Fighting Method Vol 2. The text talked about how important he thought running was, and mentioned that, "Even when he was sent to India to find suitable locations for filming, he … [Read more...]