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...]
History
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...]
BJJ in the Nineties, a Time Capsule!
It was the late 1990's, I was a purple belt, and my friend Allan had one of those gigantic $3,000 consumer cameras that recorded directly to a book-sized VHS cassette. He wanted to film some jiu-jitsu, and I wanted to show a few friends some material I'd been working on. So we went down to his condo's fitness room and shot a 12 minute "instructional" for some of my friends. The running joke at … [Read more...]
Daniele Bolelli on Fascism
In episode 379 of The Strenuous Life Podcast I talk with podcaster, martial artist, and history professor Daniele Bolelli about the characteristics of fascism. This is a loaded topic for both of us, because both of our families lived in fascist states during World War 2 (mine in Germany, his in Italy). Which is why I almost went with an alternate title, namely A German and an Italian Walk Into … [Read more...]
From Underground Bareknuckle Fights to the Biggest MMA Stage in the World, with Denis Kang
In the early 2000s Denis Kang was one of the top MMA fighters in the world with wins over Minoru Suzuki, Murilo 'Ninja' Rua, Akihiro Gono and Marvin Eastman. In this interview, Denis opens up about: The mindset shift that took him to a 22-fight undefeated streak... How he dealt with the death of his fiance while competing for the biggest MMA organisation in the world... How … [Read more...]
Don’t be that Peaked-in-High-School Jiu-Jitsu Practitioner
I don’t think we can deny that jiu-jitsu is evolving really fast. Whether it’s the false reap, the buggy choke, the Aoki lock, the berimbolo, the roadhouse choke, or the upside-down-inside-out-caterpillar guard, new techniques and strategies are popping up all the time. Even if you don’t want (or can’t) learn the berimbolo (or whatever) shouldn’t you at least know how to counter it? So … [Read more...]
Catchwrestling: from the Snake Pit in Wigan England, to Pride FC in Japan, to Modern Submission Grappling
In episode 395 of The Strenuous Life Podcast I talk to Oz Austwick, who has extensively studied armed and unarmed combat systems in England and Europe. Today we focus on the historical wrestling systems of England... Cornish, Lancashire, Devonshire, Cumberland and Westmoreland wrestling and catchwrestling The influence of Japanese Judo and Jiu-Jitsu on English Wrestling The great Billy … [Read more...]
Bareknuckle Boxing and Historical European Swordfighting, with Oz Austwick
In episode 393 of The Strenuous Life Podcast I talk to Oz Austwick, who has extensively studied armed and unarmed combat systems in Europe. Topics we cover include... The origins of boxing in England, Historical training and conditioning methods, Reconstructing and testing techniques shown in ancient swordfighting manuals, Fighting with live blades, The role of wrestling in real … [Read more...]
Countering The Standing Kimura Armlock
The standing Kimura armlock is now an established and respected submission, but it wasn't always like this. In fact, when someone showed me this submission in the early 1990's I thought they were kidding and had run out of legitimate material to share. But then in 1999 and 2000, a Japanese pro-wrestler called Kazushi Sakuraba did something that many thought was impossible. In just over a … [Read more...]
The Most Successful Gracie Family Fighter of All Time
Not only is Robert Drysdale a BJJ and ADCC World Champion, he has also conducted extensive research into the history of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. In this interview, he reveals some of what he's discovered, including... 01:54 - The first wave of jiu-jitsu in Brazil - Helio Gracie and Carlos Gracie 04:35 - Exhibition and carnival fighting in Brazil 06:55 - Traditional jiu-jitsu style vs modified … [Read more...]
Seven Reasons Carlson Gracie Was the First Modern MMA Coach and Fighter
Carlson Gracie fought 18 Vale Tudo in the 1950's and 60's. His 17 wins make him the most successful Gracie fighter to this day. In the course of his long fighting and coaching career, he innovated many of the MMA training practices that we now take for granted. Here are seven ways in which he was the first modern MMA coach and fighter... Carlson's radical-for-the-time ideas included … [Read more...]
The Implications of the 46 Million Dollar Jiu-Jitsu Lawsuit
The jiu-jitsu world was shaken recently when Jack Greener, severely injured in 2018 while sparring at a San Diego gym, was awarded $46,475,112 dollars by a jury. Rener Gracie testified for the plaintiff, and Clark Gracie testified for the defence. In this episode, I get together with Dan Lukeheart (Brea Jiu-Jitsu) and Alex Kask (Barrister and Solicitor) to discuss... The specific technique … [Read more...]
Neopagan, Vegetarian, Authoritarian, Heavy Metal, Nature Lovers with Jesse Bryant
Jesse Bryant is doing his PhD on the politics of nature, and has come across some amazing examples of both far left and far right groups wrapping themselves in the mantle of nature and what is deemed 'natural'. From the Artaman League to the Wolves of Vinland and Alex Jone's fantasies about moving back to the country, sometimes what he's found is hilarious, and sometimes it's terrifying. I … [Read more...]
The Battle Against Disinformation and Information Nihilism, with Brooke Binowski
Brooke Binowski is a journalist specialising in debunking disinformation and misinformation. She has worked for Snopes and is now the managing editor at TruthOrFiction.com. In this episode we talk about Elon Musk's takeover of Twitter, how disinformation campaigns are structured, white supremacists, why the wellness space is so prone to believing conspiracy theories, and how we can know what's … [Read more...]
Sport vs Self Defense Jiu-Jitsu, with John Will
John Will trained in Southern California in the late 80's, was one of the first 12 non-Brazilians to get a BJJ black belt, and then went on to create the largest jiu-jitsu association in Australasia. We talked about how the art has changed, how to be 'centrist' in the sport vs self defense debate, teaching elite military personnel, how to create a curriculum, and much more. I'm sure you'll … [Read more...]
Alex Jones, Alt Right Hippies with Guns, and More with Derek Beres
Derek Beres is an author and co-host at the Conspirituality Podcast. He joined me today to talk about the recent Alex Jones verdict, anti-vaxxers, conspiracy theories, conspirituality and his predictions for the future. Alex Jones, Alt Right Hippies with Guns, and More with Derek Beres (Video Version) Here is the video of my conversation with Derek... Alex Jones, Alt Right Hippies with … [Read more...]
Vanished Civilizations and Lost Human Lineages, with Patrick Wyman
Patrick Wyman from the amazing Tides of History Podcast joins us today to discuss Large civilizations that disappeared (12:22) The human evolutionary family tree and paleogentics (17:41) The explosion of agriculture on different continents (28:16) Different species of hominids (40:20) 40 years that shook the world (43:57) The pivotal role of the printing press (48:30) … [Read more...]
How to Talk to the Vaccine Hesitant, with Amitabha Palmer
Amitabha Palmer is a wrestler, judoka, and teaches at ethics at Texas University. His research topics include how widespread conspiracism and science denialism affect democratic policy making. Ami has been on the podcast before (on episode 325, Wrestling with Trust, Propaganda and Conspiracies) and was so insightful that I was thrilled to have him back. The focus of today's conversation was … [Read more...]
The 20 Year History of the Omoplata 2.0 Instructional
I was first exposed to something resembling the omoplata when learning a martial art known as Indonesian Silat from Dan Inosanto. A move where you use your leg to bend your opponent's arm behind his back is often used in Silat as a finishing move after taking someone to the ground. It turned out that this move (with slight modifications) also worked in the jiu-jitsu and judo training that I … [Read more...]
Outdated Training Methods in the Martial Arts
Richard Bejtlich is an author, martial artist, martial arts historian, and cybersecurity expert. I was thrilled to have him as a guest on episode 345 of The Strenuous Life Podcast. https://youtu.be/p0sqklw6ID4 Topics covered include... 00:26 Richard Bejtlich's background in martial arts 08:38 Where does fascination with martial arts history comes from 18:13 What research on … [Read more...]