Grapple Smart

As in any sport you will have ups and downs in your training.  Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and submission grappling are no different.  Every grappler will encounter sore joints and even need to take time off to let an injury heal.  The treatment for an injury, although not fun, is typically fairly straight forward.  Ice it, elevate it, take some Motrin, or even go to the doctor if you need to.  But there’s no doctor that can heal you or pill you can take when you hit a plateau in your training.

What is a training plateau anyway?

The dictionary defines a plateau as: When an individual’s adaptation or performance levels off or gets worse, a plateau has been reached and retrogression has occurred.  In my time I’ve hit several plateaus that you may be able to relate to.

1. You feel really mechanical when rolling and can’t execute moves that used to come naturally or seem simple.  There have been times when I know what I need to do to execute a technique but for some reason my body refuses to do it.   Maybe I eventually execute the desired movement but my intentions are telegraphed and my opponent easily defends it.
2. You’re getting your guard passed like it’s not there or getting submitted more frequently than usual and you just can’t put your finger on why.
3. You can execute a move well when drilling but blank out when live sparring.
4. You’ve learned new techniques but you just keep going back to your same old style of grappling even though you’d like to incorporate new techniques.
5. You just feel discouraged or burnt out.

Things I’ve done to push through plateaus that you may benefit from.

1. Understand that if you stick with the sport long enough everyone hits plateaus.  Even the best grapplers in the world will tell you that they too hit plateaus.  Try not to get discouraged and understand that you’ll eventually push through it.
2. Take a break from training to clear your head.  I’ve gotten into a training rut where I’m physically present and doing the movements but my mind is just not into it.  It can very beneficial to take time off and do something else.  You’ll know you’re ready when it’s fun to be in the gym again.
3. Focus on other things you can improve and quantify.  The goal is to be successful at something else, anything else in order to neutralize the negative experience you have on the mat.  You can focus on improving your conditioning, flexibility, or strength.  I have found that flow drills can really help get past plateaus.  A flow drill is where you move (with a partner) from one submission to another, linking one submission or sweep to another.
4. 

   Master Lloyd Irvin and Mike Fowler

   Mental Strength training is yet another underrated Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu technique. We’ve all heard of Olympic athletes visualizing a world record performance or executing perfect technique to win the gold.  Developing a grappling game plan puts some structure to that mental training.  Developed by the world class Judoka (Judo player) and BJJ champion Lloyd Irvin, a grappling game plan will make you a more tactical and effective grappler.  Basically, a grappling game plan is a plan of attack that you will use in a match and drill during practice.  You will develop combination’s of sweeps, submissions and escapes that you will test in practice.  After being in a slump in the gym I spent a week working on my grappling game plan and found that this increased mental training helped me push past my training plateau.

Hopefully, you can utilize one of these techniques to push the next training plateau you encounter.

Grapple Hard but Grapple Smart!

If you’re ready to take catapult yourself ahead of the competion then check out my E-Book and audio “10 Things I wish I knew before I started Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu – A practical introduction to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and submission grappling”.

I had the honor and the opportunity to gain some insight into some valuable Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu philosophy.  Elias Gallegos a black blet and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu instructor told me about his philosophy on grappling. 

Elias described a technique called “chain gunning” where you launch a never ending chain of attacks at your opponent.  Like a machine gun firing a stream of bullets, eventually one will hit the mark.  The same is true about attacking submissions in grappling, if you launch your attacks and chain one attack to the next, to the next, eventually you’re opponent will fall behind not be able to keep up with your continuous attacks.  Elias said you need to accept the fact that you will probably end up losing positions and submissions a lot for about the first 3 months as you get used to the increased frequency of attacks.  After internalizing this technique by practicing it for a few months he says I’ll notice that I’m catching people in submissions much faster and with higher frequency.

Tyrone Glover

In the same vein as Elias’ “Chain Gunning” is a technique taught to me years ago by grappling phenomenon Tyrone Glover called a “flow drill”.  In this drill you work with a willing partner and move through a sequence of ten connecting submissions.  The goal of the “flow drill” is to help you learn how to instinctively move from one submission to another when you meet resistance.  For example, you could move from a Kimura (shoulder lock using arms), to triangle, to Omoplata (shoulder lock using your leg), back to triangle, and to an arm bar.  Eventually, as I have found you will begin to expect resistance to your attacks and be ready to immediately move to the next attack.

In addition to attempting to spar from open guard I’m also attempting to attack even if I’m not in exactly the optimal position.  For example, I’ll be playing open guard and my opponent is trying to pass my guard, I’ll attack a guillotine choke just to see how he reacts.  Interestingly, it causes him to fight my hands and defend the choke instead of continuing to try to pass my guard.  Then I’ll attempt to lock up full or half guard to finish the choke.

See if you can implement some of these techniques and let me know how it goes.

So Grapple Hard But Grapple Smart!

Want the secret to longevity in BJJ, submission grappling, or any martial art for that matter? Check out my E-book and Audio!

Question: “Hi, I’ve been getting an accumulation of small injuries from sore joints, to minor muscle strains.  It’s getting more difficult to train on a regular basis because these little injuries are beginning to add up.  I know I should stretch before practice but a lot of times I get to practice with just enough time to throw on my gi and go.  Please help.”

Grapple Smart Answer:

I’ve had the same problem in the past.  Making time to stretch out before class will definitely help to prepare your muscles and joints for the strain they will go through.  Stretching after working out can also help to minimize injuries.

One of the best decisions I ever made was to incorporate yoga into my training regimen.  I’ll have to admit I felt a little bit awkward going into my first yoga class but it was well worth it.  With increased flexibility and core strength I basically stopped getting injured.

I know yoga was the answer for me because the times that I stopped attending yoga for whatever reason resulted in injuries cropping up again.   Although there are many great DVD’s on Yoga out there, I needed an instructor and a set time to stay consistent.   Although any amount of yoga will help, regular attendance will truly yield the best results.

Take steps to ensure your grappling future.  Check out “10 things I wish I knew before I started Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu” E-Book and Audio.

If I could go back in time and start my training all over again I’d force myself to train both sides.  I now see the value of training your weak side as well as your strong side.  For example, I am very confident with my left leg triangle, where my left leg is by my opponents head and back and the right leg locks in the triangle.  However, I have almost no confidence in my right leg triangle.  When I first started grappling, I had moderate success with my left leg triangle so I only trained that side.   Yes, my left leg triangle got much better but since I neglected to practice the right leg triangle, I rarely attempt it when I spar or compete.  It is not really a legitimate part of my arsenal of attacks.

Now that I realize my mistake, I force myself to train both sides of every technique my coach gives me.  If it’s a sweep, I’ll do it to the left and to the right.  It is still a little uncomfortable for me to train my off side because I spent several years favoring one side over the other.

By starting this discipline at the beginning of your grappling career you will perfect your techniques from on sides.  You’re opponents will be guessing which side you’ll try to sweep, throw, or submit them.

Check out “10 Things I wish I knew Before I started Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu – A practical introduction to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and submission grappling” E-book and audio.

If you’ve ever watched videos of BJJ matches on the internet then I’m sure you’ve seen a distinct difference between white belt matches and black belt matches.  As I began to watch different black belts battle it out I noticed that there was much less scrambling around for positions than there was in white and blue belt divisions.  At first glance it appeared that both black belts stalling because there was very little movement going on.  But after watching more closely I began to realize there was a lot going on but it was happening on a very small scale.  They were improving their position inch by inch until they secured the position or sunk in their choke.  As I began to look closer I realized that there was a lot happening it just happening in very small, nearly imperceptible steps.  It was only then that I understood the saying “Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is a game of inches”.  As I began to talk to other black belts about this I learned that the biggest difference between the beginner and expert game is the amount of mistakes made and the severity of those mistakes.  It may take several minutes for a black belt competitor to make a mistake big enough for his opponent to capitalize on and that may only result in a slightly more advantageous hand position or grip on the gi.  Many times the competitor who made the mistake may immediately defend the attack to get back to the previous neutral position.

As most of you have seen many white and blue belt matches do not look anything like the above example.  I’ve heard many black belts compare beginner matches to a “dog fight” where there are flurries of position changes, submission attempts, and scrambling.  I consider this “scramble” to be the defining characteristic of beginner matches.   Because beginners typically have not built a solid foundation in technique yet they are forced to use strength and instinct when attacking and defending positions and submissions.  So what you end up with is a cacophony of reversals, sweeps, mount attempts, attacks, and defenses which tend to resemble a cartoon depiction of a dogfight.

I’m not saying this is in any way bad, it’s just how we all look when we first start live sparing and I would suggest that one of the best lessons I can give is to focus on winning those scrambling moments.  So what does that mean?  It means that you will be prepared to act on the moments when neither you nor your opponent has solidified a position.  Many times you’ll hear a coach yell out to their student to “solidify the position” which means to make sure you’ve position yourself properly on your opponent before attempting to attempt a submission or advance to another position.   For example, you’ve just past your opponents guard advance to side mount (A.KA. 100 Kilos).  It is vitally important to solidify that position and make sure that you’re blocking his hips, have your weight evenly centered on his chest/ hips, and have positioned your arms technically correct.  Now that you have solidified the position, it will be difficult for your opponent to escape the position. You will now have an opportunity to then advance your position (to mount or knee on stomach) or attempt a submission (Kimura or Americana).

So I would suggest that you take advantage of these scrambles and make it a point to win as many of them as possible.  This will make a huge difference when you live spar or compete.  You will begin to recognize these scrambles and be ready to act on them.  This will also help you do better against more experienced grapplers.  I find that I have the most trouble with what I call “scrappy” grapplers even if they’re new.  Although they may not yet possess technical proficiency they make up for that deficiency in the scrambles.  I find that it is much harder for me to solidify positions on guys that choose to scramble out of a position before I solidify it.

Having this scrappy mentality will continue to help you even as you advance in technical ability.  As you progress you will see that you will begin to see that you’ve trained your mind to see openings for attack as well.

So Grapple Hard But Grapple Smart!

For a great resource for please check out my e-book and audio “10 Things I Wish I Knew Before I Started Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu – A practical introduction to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and submission grappling” at www.GrappleSmart.com

Question: Think this is a good way to start MMA off?

I have been a fan of mixed martial arts for a few years now and love everything about it. I joined a gracie gym up the street from my house a few months ago and am progressing fast. I just thought that I would share my steps on becoming a MMA fighter and see if the world agrees with my steps.

#1- Have a good ground game. I think to become a great fighter one must posses a great submissive ground game because it can be used as offense as well as defense. If you’re getting owned on the stand up you take it to the ground. I see a lot of really good strikers but their weakness is ground game and that’s how they lose.

After you have a fantastic ground game you work on striking.

#2- First work on technique- I think you should work on the technique of kicking and striking before you jump into strength and conditioning. If you have the right technique down it will only get better with strength and conditioning.

#3 Condition your bones- I think after the technique is perfected for all striking you should condition your bones as much as possible.

And lastly

#4 Strength- After you have perfected all of the other things you should work on your strength. But not just bulking up you must posses lean and dense muscles. Having big muscles is only for show and will slow you down. But building your muscles after you have completely all of the other things will just help. You will have muscle memory for all of the striking as well before you get them stronger.

So this is just my opinion on how I am going about becoming a fighter. If anyone thinks they have a better theory onto become a great fighter please tell me in the comments.

Respectfully,

FailingIdeals

Grapple Smart Answer:

Great well thought out question!

Overall, I think the simple fact that you’ve already have several months of Gracie JJ under belt shows that you’re off to a great start!

If you’re ultimate goal is to be an MMA fighter you’ll have to cross train in many of the disciplines you described above since the window of opportunity for most MMA fighers is relatively small (most are in their 20’s).

You may have heard of the 3 pillars of MMA: Muay Thai kickboxing(or similar striking art), BJJ, and grappling experience. You need all 3 to even put yourself in a position to be a competitive MMA fighter.

Since you’re already doing BJJ, train it hard and begin competing. That will be your your second hurdle on your MMA quest. You’ve already completed the first by surviving live sparring in BJJ for a relatively extended period of time (good job!). Competing in BJJ/ sub grappling will allow you to realistically assess your overall strength and conditioning as well as how well you execute technique under duress.

You’ll probably want to get your feet wet in Muay Thai and eventually begin live sparring there as well. In terms of your #3 (condition bones) you’re bones will harden as you hit and kick the bag. In the beginning you shins will get bruised and swell but that’s part of the process. Soon the nerves in your shins will begin to dead’n and it won’t hurt so bad.

Of course you want to train some MMA to integrate what you’re learning in stand up and ground. MMA sparring takes training to another level as you’re thinking about striking and takedowns simultaneously.

The final step is to fight pankration which is essentially MMA without the head strikes. You also sometimes wear shin pads but that depends on the tournament.

Since you probably have a full time job or school you may not have time for everything so keep up with BJJ and start competing. Don’t worry about wins and losses at first just focus on executing what you know, the wins will come.

Good Luck!

I’ve written an E-book and audio entitled “10 Things I wish I knew before I started Brazilian jiu-Jitsu – A practical introduction to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and submission grappling” I cover physical and mental preparation as well as executing technique when under duress.
Check it out at http://www.GrappleSmart.com