There's a concept I've been using in my own training for a long time; I call it "What limbs do I have left?" In jiu-jitsu, you have 5 limbs (your arms, your legs, and your head) at your disposal. Anytime you reach an impasse in your rolling - whether you just can't finish an offensive technique or can't escape a bad position - ask yourself whether all your limbs are committed and, if not, … [Read more...]
How Can a World Champion Suck So Bad?
I remember watching a BJJ black belt world champion trying to demonstrate a spider guard sweep and being appalled. His movement and his technique were barely blue belt level. How could this be?!?! This guy had tons of gold bling collected at the very highest levels of competition. Furthermore, he began most of his matches on the bottom, swept his way to the top, and then passed. The answer … [Read more...]
These are the athletes I respect
There's a mountain close to my home that I sometimes climb for cardio. I go on an established route known as the Grouse Grind with 800 meters (2,620 feet) of stairs. It’s a beast of a climb. Now there are elite cardio freaks who fly up this trail. The current record is 23 minutes and 48 seconds, set by a professional cyclist, which is nuts. But professional endurance athletes made of lungs … [Read more...]
How to Fix Your BJJ Armdrag
After Marcelo Garcia arm-dragged his way to ADCC glory back in 2003 the arm drag became one of the most powerful attacks from the guard in BJJ overnight. The arm drag is so successful nowadays at every level of competition that I'd go so far as to say it's a mandatory technique, especially if you train without the gi sometimes. A well-executed armdrag from the guard teleports you directly … [Read more...]
Taking Your Training Out of the Dojo and Into the World, with Tom Callos
Martial arts pioneer Tom Callos came onto The Strenuous Life Podcast to discuss the California martial arts scene in the wake of Bruce Lee, the importance of taking your training out of the dojo and into the world, how your students can become your school's most effective advertising, being BJ Penn's first BJJ instructor, and his thoughts about BJ's current struggles. Tom has owned several … [Read more...]
Balancing Risk and Reward in Training
Training the chokes, locks, sweeps and throws of jiu-jitsu is an inherently dangerous activity, and for every dangerous activity there's always a delicate balancing of risk and reward. You need to learn when to keep on pushing, and when to back off. Never go 100% in training. And even in competition, you should always leave a little in reserve. Sometimes it helps to have examples from other … [Read more...]
A BJJ Match is a Zero-Sum Game
When I was filming the BJJ Foundations instructional with Cal MacDonald he brought up a really interesting point... He said that if you're in a serious match - a competition or a deathroll at the club - then at a tactical level, jiu-jitsu becomes a zero-sum game. That means every grip, every hook, and every adjustment of position becomes win-lose. If you win that exchange, your opponent … [Read more...]
3 Great Ways to Pass Butterfly Guard
The butterfly guard offers your opponent two different types of control that set up his attacks and make it difficult for you to pass his guard. Screw up even a little bit and you'll find yourself hoisted into the air and swept or caught in a devastating leglock. To shut him down and pass his guard you first need to understand the control points he potentially has in butterfly … [Read more...]
Black Belts Have Shitty Days on the Mat Too
Before training today I had a suspicion that it would be a tough day on the mats and I wasn't wrong. I mean, things went OK at the beginning with the drilling and workshopping. But when it came to sparring - well, damn. The neurons took forever to fire, and the muscles moved in slow motion. My responses were predictable, and I blundered into the same bad situations again and again. (Yes, … [Read more...]
BJJ After Age 35
On today's episode of The Strenuous Life Podcast, I'm joined by wrestler, jiu-jitsuka, and author Chris Jessulat (https://www.thewrongsideof35.com/) to discuss the best practices for staying relevant on the mats as you enter your fourth decade and beyond... 00:00 Training as an Older Grappler 02:48 The Transition from Competitive to Recreational Training 05:46 Physical Changes and … [Read more...]
Training Your Techniques in Chunks for Faster Learning
Mastering a new technique can seem overwhelming. There are so many steps, and for every action you take, your opponent might have 10 different reactions. But there's a relatively simple solution to the paralysing amount of material you need to internalise... A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, and so does adding a new technique to your game. Start by mastering the first … [Read more...]
How to Deal with Adrenaline in Stressful Situations
On the most difficult adventure of my life I learned a lot about dealing with stress and adrenaline. That trip was deep in the wilderness, but it turns out that many of these lessons apply directly to many aspects of life, including jiu-jitsu. That's why I thought I'd share one of the more important sections of my book, Perseverance, Life and Death in the Subarctic that addresses this topic … [Read more...]
Don’t Be a One Trick Jiu-Jitsu Pony
When I was coming up in jiu-jitsu, there was a guy in class who only went for kneebars. He was only a whitebelt but in this one move he was a purple belt. In the closed guard he went for kneebars… In someone’s guard, he went for a kneebar… if he was in the turtle position, or on top, or in a scramble: kneebar, kneebar, kneebar. The problem was, he soon became predictable. All you had to do … [Read more...]
Dealing With The “I Just See Red Bro” Guy!
It's just a matter of time but if you're training, then you'll eventually run into an untrained guy who wants to test his skills by brawling on the mats. These are usually the "In a fight, I just see red, bro!" guys. They're never very skilled, but the problem is that even the reddest of the just-seeing-red bros present some danger. That's because they'll go zero to one hundred in the … [Read more...]
BJJ, Science, and D&D with Bryan Rumble
Bryan Rumble is a 2nd degree belt and a working scientist. In this episode we start out by talking about BJJ traditions, the depth of the art, and how the scientific method might be applied in jiu-jitsu. Then, at about the 23-minute mark, Bryan and I nerd out SUPER hard on Dungeons and Dragons and how it relates to martial arts training. You've been warned! You can check it out as … [Read more...]
For Fastest BJJ Improvement Specialise, Don’t Generalize.
There's no way around it, when you first start jiu-jitsu you have to be a bit of a generalist. You’ve got to learn an escape from side control… an armbar from mount… a sweep from closed guard… a choke from the back… and so on. What you’re doing with this approach is trying to develop a couple of offensive and defensive options from the top and bottom for each of the major positions on the … [Read more...]
Training to Deal with Adrenaline and Emergency Situations
The fight-or-flight reflex is always lurking just below the surface. When things get sufficiently stressful, our hormonal system dumps enormous amounts of adrenaline into our bloodstream, and — BOOM — suddenly we’re ready for action. That adrenaline serves a purpose: it elevates your heart rate, makes you much stronger, more pain tolerant, and able to ignore injury. If you ever have to lift a … [Read more...]
BJJ Training and Conditioning Myths
On episode 421 of The Strenuous Life Podcast, I'm joined by three-time IBJJ World medallist James Deirmendjian and elite personal trainer to discuss optimal training methodologies and the science behind strength and conditioning for sport. We cover hacks to improve recovery, debunk common myths in the Jiu-Jitsu community, and go deep into the need for a more scientific approach to training and … [Read more...]
How to Safely Practice Dangerous Leglocks
Q: Given that leglocks are dangerous, how do you train them safely and still have confidence that they will work in a 'live' setting. A: Although ANY submission is potentially dangerous, cranking someone with a heel hook or toehold can not only end the match, it can end your opponent's athletic career. Go here if you don't know what a heel hook is. . If you don't know what a toehold is, … [Read more...]
Spartans, Samurai and Ninja with BJJ Black Belt Jeff Nelson
On episode 418 of The Strenuous Life Podcast, I was thrilled to chat with Jeff Nelson about Spartans, Samurai, Ninja, developing confidence through jiu-jitsu, fight scenes in movies that drive us crazy, and pro-training at some of the best BJJ schools in the world. You can check it out as Episode 418 of The Strenuous Life Podcast anywhere you get your podcasts, including Apple Podcasts … [Read more...]