Everyone is itching to train again, and for many jiu-jitsu school owners opening up is a matter of financial survival. But just to make things even more complicated, as we learn more about this virus it means that the science, policy and best practice need to keep on evolving That's why I talked to Dr Chris Moriarty who has published a 6 phase process for reopening schools and getting back … [Read more...]
Jessica Cox, The Armless Pilot Who Flies Planes with Her Feet
Jessica Cox was born without arms but she didn't let that stop her from becoming the first woman to get her pilot's license using her feet to fly the plane. And she has a couple of black belts as well. Check out this episode; I'm sure you'll come away super-inspired and ready to smash your own limits! You can listen to the conversation below in the Youtube video player, or as episode 282 of … [Read more...]
Training BJJ Outdoors
In this episode of my podcast I talked to my friend, black belt, and school owner Jeff Shaw about 2 two main things: the history of BJJ, and how BJJ can survive in a time of coronavirus. When it comes to BJJ and covid I particularly like how he's started having outdoor classes with dedicated training partners (essentially small training pods). This is something you can set up as well with just … [Read more...]
World Champ Robert Drysdale on the Early History of Jiu-Jitsu in Brazil
Robert Drysdale is one of the most highly decorated American grapplers in history. He remains the only person not born in Brazil to win both the IBJJF World Championships with the gi and the ADCC Open Division without the gi. Today we talked about his research on the early history of jiu-jitsu in Brazil, his upcoming documentary called, “Closed Guard: The Origins of Jiu-Jitsu in Brazil”, and … [Read more...]
An Interview with Adam Shoalts, Canadian Explorer
Adam Shoalts, author of "Alone Against the North" and "Beyond the Trees" is a professional adventurer and explorer. He has completed a 4,000 km solo trip across the Canadian Arctic, explored unknown rivers in the Hudson Bay Lowlands, and is a fellow in the Royal Canadian Geographical Society. I was thrilled to have him on my podcast, and I hope you enjoy his tales of adventure as much as … [Read more...]
Longevity in BJJ, Stephan Kesting Interviewed on The Old Roller’s Podcast
I was recently featured on The Old Rollers Podcast hosted by Harrison Helterbrand and we dove deep into maintaining your longevity in the sport, skill development, learning styles and taking charge of your own learning process. It was a great chat and so I thought I would share it with you on my own show - The Strenuous Life Podcast. BJJ Longevity Podcast in Streaming Audio Form You can … [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...]
Mask Wearing and the Culture War During Pandemics in the USA
If you've followed me at all these last 6 months you'll know that I was early to speak to the BJJ community about taking Covid-19 seriously, helped publish guidelines for safely re-opening academies during and after the pandemic, and have continued to try and engage people about this topic on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. As a trained biologist with 2 degrees and 15 years of experience, and … [Read more...]
BJJ and Covid 19 Update, with Dr Chris Moriarty
Dr Moriarty is a medical doctor and had a long fierce career as a BJJ competitor who previously published guidelines for reopening BJJ academies during the Covid-19 pandemic (grapplearts.com/openingupbjj). In this followup episode we look at the current state of the epidemic, implications for training, and how to figure out whether cases truly are going up or down in your area. Option 1: … [Read more...]
Joel Gerson vs Rumina Sato, the Greatest Upset in Japanese Shooto History
On March 1st, 1998 Joel Gerson stepped into the ring against Japanese Shooto superstar Rumina Sato. At that time Rumina Sato was undefeated in Shooto, Japan's oldest MMA promotion. Think of him as an early version of Georges St Pierre - an explosive, unorthodox fighter who could punch, kick, and attack with a dizzying array of upper and lower body submissions. In this era Japanese MMA stars … [Read more...]
Interview with Yuri Simoes, 2 x ADCC World Champion
Yuri Simoes is a two time ADCC World Championship, a two-time IBJJF black belt Absolute No-Gi World Champion, and a two-time Pan American Champion. In our chat we go deep into developing the motivation required to train at such a high level, recovering from 2 horrific knee injuries and winning ADCC, the importance of self defense training, how he took down a Olympic Judo champion in … [Read more...]
Jiu-Jitsu Saved My Life, with Jamie Kilstein
Jamie Kilstein is a BJJ brown belt and Joe Rogan approved professional comic who has been making a stir (and ruffling some feathers) in BJJ circles with his satirical videos on Instagram recently (follow him at @thejamiekilstein, on the JamieKilstein podcast, on Rear Naked Radio and on his Youtube channel). We got to know each other because we've both been vocal about the BJJ and Coronavirus … [Read more...]
Sports Psychology for Dummies, with Dr Leif H Smith
Dr Leif H Smith has worked with NBA teams, NFL players, and athletes from almost every sport. He's also the author of "Sports Psychology for Dummies," the best-selling book on optimising your performance in training in competition. I was thrilled to have Dr Smith on my podcast recently and get deep into the weeds about the mental components of optimal performance recently. We discussed … [Read more...]
Coronavirus and BJJ {Podcast Episode 262}
Earlier today I appeared on The Verbal Tap Podcast to talk about what grapplers and martial artists should do during the coronavirus and COVID 19 outbreak and I'm sharing that with you now. Based on training in martial arts for 40 years, being a first responder, and also having a master's degree in biology my recommendation is that YOU DON'T TRAIN FOR THE NEXT COUPLE OF WEEKS at least. After … [Read more...]
Himalayan Quality Cardio Training with Scott Loughney
In today's episode I talk to Scott Loughney about an incredible 640 km ultrarunning challenge in the highest mountain range of the world. Scott together with Ryan Wagner and Upendra Sunuwar successfully linked Katmandu, the capital of Nepal, with Everest Base Camp, a round trip distance of 640km. We really get down into the weeds with this one about the nuances of training for, and then … [Read more...]
An In Depth Interview with Oliver Taza from the Danaher Death Squad
Oliver Taza trains at Tristar in Montreal with Firas Zahabi and at Renzo Gracie's in New York City with John Danaher. With his impeccable technique and aggressive grappling style he has amassed an impressive array of wins at Polaris, Metamoris, the ADCC Trials, the No Gi Worlds, and many more competitions. In this episode we go deep into the training and technical development required to … [Read more...]
Creating Your Optimal Training Environment, with Jon Thomas
In this conversation BJJ black belt Jon Thomas and I go deep into training and drilling methodologies that give you results as fast as possible. Jon is originally from the US but teaches at a school in Sweden. He still competes at a high level, so he has had to take extreme ownership over his results using reverse-engineering and a very analytical approach to his training. In this episode we … [Read more...]
Green Beret Selection and Training, with Zack Hughes (Podcast)
In this episode of The Strenuous Life Podcast I talk to Green Beret Zach Hughes about Special Forces selection and training. Find out why incredible athletes like Olympians, NFL players, and Division 1 college athletes mostly fail Special Forces selection. And how the real distinguishing feature between people who make it and those who don’t is actually mental, not physical. Related to … [Read more...]
Interview with Greg Nelson, Brock Lesnar’s MMA Coach
How do you turn 290 lb WWE superstar and human wrecking ball Brock Lesnar into a UFC champion in a relatively short amount of time? And assuming you have those skills, then how do you then pivot to train smaller fighters, including 155 lb UFC champion Sean Sherk and 115 lb 'Thug' Rose Namajunas? In this interview I go deep into fight strategy and training camp design with MMA master … [Read more...]
BJJ for Law Enforcement
I recently sat down with my friend Rory Van Vliet to talk about the applicability of BJJ in law enforcement, including policing, corrections, security work and even bouncing. If you work in any of these fields then you should probably have a listen because there are some good war stories here! Episode 250 of The Strenuous Life Podcast in Video Form You can watch and listen to the entire … [Read more...]