Epi 176 Top Mistakes Made in BJJ

Today we are talking about mistakes made on the mat. We share some personal stories and things we have noticed.

We talk about:

  • What Byron did as a purple belt that was a mistake for around a year
  • A basic principal Gary learned as a white belt
  • Learning how to take advice from your coach
  • Mistakes made as an instructor
  • Not tapping fast enough
  • Being over confident when starting BJJ
  • Having the right amount of tools in your tool basket
  • Avoiding leg locks
  • Fighting from your knees
  • Not doing the right type of drilling
  • Not letting injuries heal

Quote of the week: “The best advice I was given if that if you want to succeed and you want to achieve, you have to learn how to handle failures.” Mike Scioscia, MLB champion manager

Article of the week: Charismatic Leadership or Personality Cults in Jiu Jitsu: The Fine Line Between Respect and Worship

Korbett’s Kids Epi 1-  Korbett Miller answers a question about kids training to compete. Check out Korbett’s website here for more info on developing a strong kids program at your academy.

Garys audio book is called “The Tool Basket for BJJ, Find the Right Tool for the Job”

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Catch us next week for another episode of The BjjBrick Podcast

The BjjBrick Podcast is in iTunesStitcher radio, and Google Play Music for Andriod

Epi 175 Bernardo Faria 5X World Champion

We are so happy to have Bernardo Faria as our guest on this week’s episode. It has been a while since we have had him on the show, and we have some catching up to do.

We talk about:

  • Setting big goals
  • His plans for 2017 worlds
  • His off the mat plans
  • How getting older has affected his training
  • Why his style of BJJ game is good for the ageing player
  • How the half guard was discovered
  • His game plan
  • How he developed his game plan by only doing techniques that worked well for him
  • The growth of his blog and helping the BJJ community
  • Weight cutting and weight management
  • He has never got a DQ for missing weight
  • His diet for dropping the pounds
  • Tips for white belts competing
  • A look into turning white belts blue
  • Going to BJJ to learn and have fun
  • He answers questions for our blue belt episode
  • Focus on learning BJJ not tapping people out
  • Opening up his own school

Links:

Quote of the week: “Experience is one thing you can’t get for nothing.” Oscar Wilde

Article of the week: 22 Off The Mat Habits That Will Improve Your On The Mat Performance

Mat Tales #15 Mexican Standoff

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Catch us next week for another episode of The BjjBrick Podcast

The BjjBrick Podcast is in iTunesStitcher radio, and Google Play Music for Andriod

Epi 174 No-Gi 2016 World Champion Josh Hinger

We are excited to bring you an interview with BJJ Black Belt Josh Hinger. Josh is a first degree black belt under Andre Galvao. Josh also recently won the Medium Heavy weight class at 2016 no-gi worlds.

We talk about:

  • How he got to know Andre Galvao
  • Training with and without the gi
  • Cutting weight for BJJ or no-gi
  • His experience at no-gi worlds 2016
  • His thoughts on sub only matches
  • Trash talking in BJJ
  • The growth of Jiu-Jitsu
  • His start in BJJ
  • Competing in the adult division
  • His DVD Hingertine
  • Dealing with anxiety on the mat
  • Mental preps for competition
  • Hesitation is the death of Jiu-Jitsu technique
  • Tips for beginners
  • How difficult it can be to start BJJ

Links:

Quote of the week: “Being angry and resentful of someone is like letting them live rent-free in your head.” George Foreman

Article of the week: No Time Machine … Only Heating Seeking Missiles

Your-First-Year-Of-BJJ-artwork-1199

Catch us next week for another episode of The BjjBrick Podcast

The BjjBrick Podcast is in iTunesStitcher radio, and Google Play Music for Andriod

22 Off The Mat Habits That Will Improve Your On The Mat Performance

There have been dozens, maybe hundreds of these lists made. Some are short and concise (the top 5 things you need to know…) and some are longer, attempting to encompass more of the jiu jitsu journey. This is one of the latter. I have compiled this list based on my own experiences and feedback from my friends and training partners. When contemplating how long to make this list I settled on 22 in a nod to Mission 22 which is an organization that works to raise awareness concerning U.S. Military Veteran suicides. On average 22 veterans take their own lives every day. For more information about Mission 22 check them out here: Mission 22
1) Track your class attendance. There’s a particular number of classes per week that’s ideal for each student. Tracking your attendance will help you find this number and be consistent in hitting it.
2) Journal your class performance. This can be a simple as a note pad app on your phone where you just jot a line or two about the highlights or a more complex approach like using an Evernote template commenting on every technique, drill, and roll.
3) Create a word document that you review periodically. Some things that could be included in this document: Three “go to” moves/techniques from every position. In order, your three best positions to work from. A week area or two you’re working on.
4) Hydrate. All your bodies functions and processes are more efficient when you are properly hydrated. You will process nutrients more efficiently, clear toxins more efficiently, dissipate heat more efficiently, etc. etc. all these things will improve your performance on the mats. Proper hydration will also aid with appetite control.
5) Sleep. Most adults can function at a high level on 6-7 hours of sleep a day. For an athlete that should be considered the bare minimum. During periods of high intensity training 8 hours or more a day may be required. Most people not getting enough sleep only have themselves to blame….you do not need to watch one more episode of the Walking Dead. Turn off the TV and go to bed.
6) Cook your own meals. Cooking your own meals at home is a great way to make sure you’re eating the right portions, eating the right things, consuming the right amount of calories, etc. It will also save you money…..that you can then spend on more jiu jitsu.
7) Eat clean. No big secret here. Foods that are over cooked, highly processed, loaded with preservatives, or containing a long list of ingredients you can’t pronounce are not the ideal base for a healthy diet.
8) Eat the right foods at the right time. What you eat before training, after training, on your days off, etc. matters. Do some research and come up with a plan that fits your training schedule.
9) Supplement. As this is a very personal choice I won’t elaborate much except to say I’ve benefited from smart supplementation as have many of my training partners. If you chose to supplement: do smart research and don’t pay for hype.
10) Yoga. When polling my friends about off the mat activities they do that they feel improve their jiu jitsu performance, yoga was the number one option. Several of my friends advocated for “hot” yoga and some follow a more traditional yoga routine.
11) Stretching. If yoga is not your thing try a 10-minute dynamic stretching routine a few days a week
12) Lift weights. After yoga, this was the number 2 response I got from my friends. Most people I know chose a simple routine based on the fundamental lifts i.e. bench press, dead lift, squats, military press, pull ups, etc. These are compound movements that will build muscle mass and improve core strength.
13) Sprint/HIT training. Short bursts of intense/explosive movements are an excellent way to condition your body for the rigors of high intensity grappling. Most people I know who compete incorporate at least some HIT training in their routines.
14) Distance running. This seems to be the least popular option for off the mat physical activity. There are however some benefits worth considering. If you’re one of the many people who have never run more than a mile or two. Working your way up to a longer distance, maybe 5 miles, will burn fat and improve your cardio conditioning. More importantly it will test your will and prove to yourself that you can do more than you thought you could. It can also help with developing an overall healthy lifestyle.
15) Listen to a podcast. There are literally dozens of podcasts on jiu jitsu or more generally health and fitness. While this may be an off the mat habit that has minimal returns…. It also takes almost no effort. Find a few podcasts you like, subscribe, listen on your way to and from work
16) Watch tutorials/instructional DVD’s. While DVD sets can be quite expensive I know people, who have bought sets and have had their game transformed in as little as 2-3 weeks. If you don’t have the money or time to invest in purchasing and watching full length DVD sets there are many high quality 5-10 minute tutorials on youtube.
17) Watch competition footage. There’s nothing like watching the top athletes at your age/belt level in live action. In this day and age, it is as easy as going to youtube and searching “BJJ blue belt masters” or whatever age/belt/weight you are at.
18) Watch footage of your own training. My wife helps me with this, but if that doesn’t work for you there is almost always someone available that you could hand your phone to and say “can you film my next couple of rolls?”. This is most helpful if you save and date the video files for later review. If you review footage of yourself rolling in Jan, May, and Oct of the same year you should be able to identify some mistakes you’re continuing to make that need to be addressed as well as some areas of improvement.
19) Read something. Reading a little bit everyday will improve the quality of your life no matter what you read. I would suggest biographies of people who have accomplished great things, books on excellence, and motivation.
20) Create a morning routine. Studying the habits of highly successful high functioning individuals I’ve come to find that most of them get up early and follow a routine to get their day started. Here’s what has been working for me: Get my body moving, read something, and clean something. Time depending, I dedicate 15-45 minutes to this. Right after getting out of bed I do some stretches, yoga poses, and maybe some jiu jitsu movements. Next I read a chapter of a book. Then I do 5-10 minutes of house work. That last one really makes the wife happy. It’s amazing how much more productive the rest of my day is when I start with this routine.
21) Have another hobby …. surfing, hackie sack, parkour, etc. Having healthy hobbies is a part of living an overall healthy lifestyle. It will also give you something to do to stay in shape when you are injured or otherwise cannot do jiu jitsu.
22) Mentor another student. It’s common for students who have been doing jiu jitsu for a while to take someone under their wing in the gym—take the next step and take it out of the gym. Get their phone number and/or hook up with them on social media. Text them or message them when you see they’re making progress in the gym and hitting jiu jitsu milestones. Text them or call them if you haven’t seen them in the gym for a few days. Offer them some encouragement now and then and hold them accountable when needed. I saved this for last because not only can it help your jiu jitsu and the jiu jitsu of the student you are mentoring….it could possibly have a much larger impact on the life of the student you are mentoring. You never know when someone may be desperate for a friend or for someone to take a personal interest in their life.
No one is going to take a list like this and incorporate every suggestion into their daily lives. Many people reading this will, in fact already be doing some of these. I’m confident though, especially if you’re new to jiu jitsu, that you can find something on this list that if added to your daily routine will help to improve your jiu jitsu. Good luck and keep on rolling.

By Joe Thomas Find more articles by Joe Thomas here

Epi 173 BjjBrick Coach of the Year Larry Keith

We are proud to have Larry Keith as the BjjBrick coach of the year. Larry has been training martial arts for around 35 years. Larry is a third degree black belt in Kodokan Judo and a brown belt in BJJ. He enjoys mixing throws with ending up in a dominant position. This is a great interivew with a outstanding person that we

We talk about:

  • Starting his martial arts program
  • having a large kids group
  • He is a big guy and he talks about not using it too much
  • How to turn a student into someone who can be more aggressive
  • Starting his own dojo
  • Working with the local boys and girls club helping to prevent bullying
  • Zero tolerance policy in public schools
  • Using a buddy system to prevent bullying
  • The goals he has when teaching kids judo and jiu-jitsu
  • Getting kids to do martial arts for their lifetime
  • Kids and competing in tournaments
  • Giving kids a leadership role on the mat
  • The importance of a family atmosphere in BJJ
  • Learning by teaching
  • His plans for competing more

Links:

Quote of the week: “Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.” Thomas Jefferson

Lesson of the week: Dealing with traffic and taking a detour to still reach your goal.

The Referee Corner “Epi 2 Sandbagging” starting at 1h33m

Gary’s audio book is called “rolling with ghost- breaking spirits instead of elbows”

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Catch us next week for another episode of The BjjBrick Podcast

The BjjBrick Podcast is in iTunesStitcher radio, and Google Play Music for Andriod