A fun conversation with BJJ black belt Thomas Lisboa about Why testing yourself occasionally in competition gives you things that you just can't get from regular training, How to develop your weakest positions, Why even advanced students should attend the beginner's class, How Brazilian black belts use their skills on the mat to emigrate to North America, And much more. Episode … [Read more...]
BJJ
How Many Coaches Do You Need To Be Serious About Martial Arts?
The days of learning from just one instructor if you're a serious martial artist or MMA competitor are over. Nowadays you need at least four different coaches... A jiu-jitsu coach A striking coach A wrestling coach A conditioning coach I go into more detail on this topic, including for whom this applies and for whom it doesn't, in the following video and audio podcast episode … [Read more...]
Crosstraining in BJJ and Classical Martial Arts
In episode 245 of The Strenuous Life Podcast I sit down with Japanese ju-jutsu black belt Alex Kask to discuss the benefits, pitfalls and procedures for training in traditional systems and in modern BJJ at the same time. Both Alex and I have extensive backgrounds in both approaches and have co-authored the Classical Japanese Ju-Jutsu vs BJJ article that got published in several magazines and … [Read more...]
How to Get Great at BJJ Defense
Want to tap out less? Let's take a look at how to get really good at defending against submission attacks. Today I mostly want to talk about training methodology, not specific techniques per se. Of course there are definitely many specific defenses that you can use to prevent, defend, and counter any possible submission. But too many people think that they just have to learn the defense … [Read more...]
Never Do This One Thing in a BJJ Tournament (a Competition Strategy)
I think you'll like this short podcast, because I share a fighting strategy that comes from Roberto Leitão, the godfather of Luta Livre, that is totally applicable to BJJ competition as well. Roberto has spent more than 50 years training and has taught fighters like Jose Aldo, Pedro Rizzo and Marco Ruas. So this is well worth listening to! I also discuss times how training and competition … [Read more...]
2 Concepts for the Absolute BJJ Beginner
A Guest Article by Ritchie Yip https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oeXg51hrgqE Brazilian Jiu Jitsu can be a confusing and frustrating martial art for the absolute beginner. Today we’re going to oversimplify BJJ with 2 basic concepts; so that if you’re just starting out you’ll be able to understand this complex and confusing martial art a little bit more easily... BJJ Beginner Concept … [Read more...]
Free Audio Download of The Roadmap for BJJ
The Roadmap for BJJ book tries to help you make sense of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu by breaking down the underlying 6 fundamental positions of art. It focusses the hierarchy of BJJ positions (i.e. which positions are better than others) and then breaks down the relationships and transitions between the positions. If you're new to the art then you should come away with a new understanding of what's … [Read more...]
The Cheat Code for BJJ Turtle Escapes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmz1ID3VgGU The turtle is a terrible position! Being on all fours is an invitation for your opponent to apply the clock choke, take your back and choke you out, or attack you with other submissions. And if you're talking about an MMA or self defense situation it's even worse. Now your opponent can elbow, knee and hammerfist you into oblivion without even … [Read more...]
Near vs Far Side Kimura Armlocks
Most grapplers know how to apply the Kimura armlock on the far side of their opponent's bodies. It's an attack taught at white belt that you see in every grappling competition. But many intermediate grapplers don't know that you can actually use the Kimura technique on BOTH sides of your opponent's body. However, the near side Kimura is an absolutely critical position for controlling your … [Read more...]
Survive First, Win Later – Old School BJJ Wisdom!
"Survive first, win later" was one of the very first pieces of advice I ever received in jiu-jitsu. This lesson was driven home when I watched the early MMA and NHB events including Rickson Gracie vs Zulu and Royce Gracie vs Dan Severn. To defeat bigger, stronger opponents like that takes time, and before Rickson and Royce could win they first had to not lose. This advice resonated with me … [Read more...]
3 Tips to Tighten Any Joint Lock Technique
It' s not easy to tap out a high level grappler with a joint lock. First of all their submission prevention is tight. They do everything they can to stop you from getting the submission in the first place. Next, their defense and escape techniques are also top notch. If you give them even an inch of slack they'll use that space to wiggle out of the submission. Finally elite grapplers are … [Read more...]
The 6 Steps of a Good Submission
Did you know that there's an actual physics and biomechanics-based procedure that'll definitely help you tap out many more people in BJJ? At a high level there's so much more more to getting a choke or an armlock than simply seeing an opportunity and jumping on it. That approach rarely works against good people. Instead it's about gradually manoeuvring your opponent into worse and worse … [Read more...]
17 BJJ Drills You Can Do At Home By Yourself
Let's face it... BJJ requires you to become adept at using many highly specialised movements that you hardly ever use in the rest of your life. The more smooth and instinctive these movements become then the better you'll be able to flow on the mats. Drilling is the secret sauce when it comes to internalising unfamiliar motions, but it can be hard to get to the dojo as often as you would like … [Read more...]
Leg Action in Rear Mount – How to Put the Squeeze on Your Opponent
The rear mount is one of the very best positions you can get in BJJ. In rear mount you're behind your opponent and can attack him with chokes and armlocks (not to mention strikes in an MMA or self defense context). And there's pretty much bugger all that he can do to you... But it can be a lot of work to get here. You have to pass his guard, induce him to turn, secure your grips, get your … [Read more...]
How to Find a Good BJJ School (Podcast Episode 216)
One of the most common questions I get is how to find a good BJJ school. This is a REALLY important issue, given that in your martial arts journey you'll potentially be spending thousands of hours training and placing your health in the hands of total strangers. In episode 216 of my podcast (The Strenuous Life Podcast) I give you some of my very best tips for picking the best BJJ school for … [Read more...]
Why You MUST Regularly Calibrate Your Skills Against People Better Than You!
This is a short rant about the dichotomy of individuality in the martial arts. On the one hand you absolutely have to take responsibility for finding techniques and strategies that fit your body, your physical attributes, and your personality. On the other hand if you spend too much time training in a small group without the opportunity to calibrate your skills against people much better … [Read more...]
3 Huge But Easy-to-Fix Kimura Armlock Mistakes
Here are 3 tweaks that you can implement immediately to make your Kimura armlock MUCH more effective right away! Add these modifications to your Kimura and you'll find that you tap out a LOT more people. The main mistakes and how to fix them are covered in detail in the video below, but here's the overview... Problem: losing control of the arm you are attacking. Solutions: first choke … [Read more...]
The 2 Most Important Things For The Absolute BJJ Beginner
Jiu-jitsu can be really confusing at first, but fortunately help is on the way! In the video below BJJ black belt Ritchie Yip shares the 2 most important things every white belt beginner should know. https://youtu.be/oeXg51hrgqE The Basic Positional Hierarchy of BJJ in App Form... For Free! Did you know that I have created an app for iPhone and Android phones and tablets that … [Read more...]
The ‘Head Mount’ – A Secret Position to Pin a Squirmy Opponent Flat on his Back
Don't you hate those super-squirmy guys? Even if you pass their guards they just shimmy their flexible gumby legs around and you're right back in guard where you started from. Here's one of my biggest tips on how how to shut down their game and pin them to the floor like a butterfly on a lepidopterist's museum display board! The central concept is to pike up and use what I call the ‘Head … [Read more...]
“Jiu-Jitsu Nowadays Is Much More Effective”, Fabio Gurgel on Old vs Modern Jiu-Jitsu
In this clip of my epic talk with BJJ black belt legend Fabio Gurgel on The Strenuous Life Podcast he talks about whether old school or modern BJJ is more effective in competition, MMA, and in a real fight. He argues quite convincingly that new school jiu-jitsu is now MORE effective than it's ever been, that there are now MORE submissions in competition, and that reminiscing about the good old … [Read more...]