We can learn lessons from anywhere and find ways to bring these lessons to BJJ. An easy cross over is MMA. This episode we will be applying MMA ideas to BJJ and BJJ ideas to MMA.
BJJ learn from MMA
Athleticism maters
Top game is fun (and less tiring)
Position before submission or winning
Getting stuck can be game over
Have more than one coach (guard passing coach, takedown coach)
MMA learn from BJJ
Cleaner guard passes
Try a gi class to roll with the best grapplers in the area
Training not to win but to learn
Escapes with a gi
Long term focus
Quote of the week: “Never pick a fight with an ugly person, they’ve got nothing to lose.” Robin Williams
This week we talk to Ricardo Almeida black belt Eddie Fyvie. Eddie is organizing an innovative tournament called the Rickson Gracie Cup. This tournament will feature both BJJ, self-defense, and a seminar by Rickson Gracie.
We talk about:
The Rickson Gracie Cup September 9 and 10
A Rickson Gracie seminar the evening of September 10
Promoting self defense with BJJ
The basic rules for the self defense contest
What is was like to host the biggest BJJ seminar in US history
Teaching BJJ to 320 people at the same time
What does self defense bring to jiu-jitsu
Not having advantages in this tournament
Using a stalling clock like a shot clock
Giving incentives for competitors to finish the match
We are proud to reach episode 200. We could have not made it without great listeners and guests. At this landmark episode we are thrilled to bring you an interview with BJJ black belt Korbett Miller. Korbett is dedicated to helping schools grow and promoting BJJ to the next generation of grapplers.
We talk about:
Being a successful school owner
The potential for a youth program in a BJJ school
Some of the benefits for kids doing BJJ
Kids BJJ compared to other martial arts programs for kids
Kids BJJ Revolution online training
Having over 200 kids at his school
Scheduling a kids class based off of when school gets out
How to get kids to pay attention and learn techniques
Having drills work like a game
Slow and right and fast and tight drills
Building grit in kids with BJJ
How to properly praise a student by talking about effort or strategy
Rolling vs drilling for kids and adults
How kids earn their white belt in his program
Goals of a kids program
Controlling the environment the kids are in not the kids themselves
Hanna and Venla are BJJ black belts currently in Sweden from Finland. They are both active competitors with busy schedules. Hanna is in med school, and Venla is a school teacher. Venla won worlds as a black belt in 2014 the same year she was awarded the rank of black belt.
We talk about:
Training BJJ in Sweden
BJJ in Finland
Treating BJJ as a hobby
Venla competing in Finland at ADCC 2017
They always follow the same training routine and it is working
Training 5-7 times a week
Having simple and focused training
Doing lots of positional sparring
Dealing with injuries
Traveling and doing BJJ
They share some of their teaching methods
Teaching 5-10 seminars a year
Teaching training methods not just techniques during a seminar
Quote of the week: “I wasn’t naturally gifted in terms of size and speed; Everything I did in hokey I worked for, and that’s the way i’ll be as a coach” Wayne Gretzky
It is great to have a coach that will get on the mat with the students and train. It is often a badge of honor, a way to lead by example, and proof that the coach is a legitimate source of instruction.
This article is not an aid to help determine if your instructor is a sham. I simply want to invite coaches to consider an important tool for teaching jiu-jitsu.
If you are a coach and you roll every round, you might consider a different option. Try rolling most of the rounds with the students. Use the rounds that you sit out, to watch the students roll. This is a great opportunity to look for areas of improvement and discover strengths of your students. I know that you can do this when you roll with your students, but students roll differently with their coach. By watching your students roll, your lesson plans can be adjusted to the needs of the room. Simply guessing what technique to work next is unlikely the most beneficial way to plan future lessons.
Observing students roll is also a good way to correct poor mat behavior. Someone may not be a mat bully to you or even able to put you in unsafe positions. But when you take a step back you can better identify a mat bully, and request that a change in behavior is made (something the rolling partner may not be willing to do for themselves).
Look across the spectrum of sports- coaches don’t typically take the role of participating to the degree of a BJJ coach. Why is that? I have two main reasons. The first, is most coaches in BJJ are actively trying to get better at the sport so their participation is benefiting themselves. The other reason speaks volumes about jiu-jitsu. In many cases coaches can outperform the students (even if they are significantly older or not as athletic). Therefore by being an “on the mat rolling coach” is providing the students with competitive and technical training sessions.
I am not advocating that coaches stop rolling with students. I am saying that it may be beneficial to take a step back and make observations and corrections from the sidelines. After all how many football coaches do you see putting pads on? How many basketball coaches are blocking shots? How many baseball coaches do you see hitting home runs? How many boxing coaches do you see land a knockdown punch?
Watch the video below to learn more about rolling too much with your students.
Great coaches may not always be doing the sport, but they are great at transferring knowledge and changing habits.
A wise coach will spend some time observing students and making changes.
