Random: BJJ as escape/coping mechanism

BJJ is my escape. I'm going through pretty severe depression, and I thought it would affect my tournaments. I actually haven't lost one of the last ten matches since I got depressed--It's like my drive to distract myself got much stronger. In spite of that, it still feels so meaningless when I'm sitting at home. But so does everything. So I just keep rolling. BJJ is the cliff edge of my sanity I'm holding onto.

"Warm ups"

I fucking hate warm ups. I'm there to do BJJ, which will get you in shape all on its own btw, thanks much. One can warm up the whole body in 2 minutes with intense burpees, anything else is just wasting my time. Mobility drills, where you learn movements, can be a useful part of a curriculum at certain stages. I don't think they're as valuable as other forms of practice after you're past a certain level, but they definitely have their place. We still do these at my gym. But not with the purpose or intent of having people 'warm up', and not every class. I could see having these things in a beginner's class, though. We do waaay too much in the way of warm ups for my judo class. Recently we're doing less. When we do 30 minutes of that, but only get 2 or 3 rounds of sparring at the end of class, I'm pissed. I keep it to myself, of course, but good God, priorities people.

How I treat guard.

There are many other positions than guard in jiu jitsu, and an infinite number of transitions. Guard is the 'safest' and most defensive, and the lowest percentage attacking position. If jiu jitsu is about surviving, as the helio camp would say, then guard is a fine, boring strategy. But I'm more interested in going for the kill. That's where the fun is. I treat guard the way most people used to treat half guard--something to look for as an escape to a bad position. And while I get some subs and sweeps and so on from there, if I sense that I can safely reset and get onto my feet, that will always be my preference. (if they keep a bunch of pressure on me and are trying to pass aggressively, sometimes you cannot get up, which is why having a developed guard game is so useful--but it should be a secondary focus to getting up on your feet in most cases, imo).

BJJ: The video to show your friends who want to know what you're doing

My BJJ gear. Makes me happy to look at.

Seen on reddit

My teammate works hard on the mat and has been a great teammate. He started his competitive career on what i think is close to a 10 or 11 match losing streak. In 3 of his last 4 matches, he had the lead before losing the match. He won this weekend and I was so proud of him. People don't realize how much heart it takes to step out there and fight through what he went through. Coming up close, but then not pulling it off could be heartbreaking and demoralizing. After each match, he wanted to watch the matches and see what he did wrong and work on it. He never complained, blamed his coaches or teammates. He could of easily quit and said this isn't for me, but he fought. He fought on the mats at the gym and he fought hard at the competitions. I am lucky to have such a great guy on the mats with me.

--http://np.reddit.com/r/bjj/comments/2h64yg/my_friend_and_teammate_broke_his_long_losing/

How much have you invested in BJJ so far?

I've been incredibly lucky/frugal. 700 first school + 600 second school at a very discounted rate + 150 judo at a non profit+ 600 in various competitions... -100 prize for one = $1950

30 + 70 + 80 + 60 + 40 = $280 on 8 gis / 10 pairs of gi pants

Two months lost wages from an injury, slowseason though, probably about 2 grand.

4250ish? Train BJJ free right now, still doing comps, pay 45/mo for judo.


Not bad for a bachelor's degree equivalent? Heh. Woah, that's a lot of money.


Some other people paid a lot more, though... http://np.reddit.com/r/bjj/comments/2hmcwz/how_much_money_have_you_invested_in_your_current/

BJJ past blue belt?

'What's the point of learning past blue belt? Isn't it all just fancy, useless guards?'


As a purple, there are still chokes that I can't do reliably (N/S choke, reverse guillotine from side mount, and there are probably some others). My familiarity with the crucifix is still limited. I have never tried a reverse omoplata (unless I've improved one at some point before I knew what it was). The variety of knowledge to gain is vast, and I constantly see new things I want to try--even black belts still, constantly, find new things to try out online.

As for not needing to study past blue, remember: in the real world, not everyone is the same size/strength/speed. I could think of my experience as extending my range of opponents I could beat not just in skill, but in physical attributes. As a 160 lb guy, if I want a chance against a 270 lb weight lifter, the differences between purple and black matter.

I'm puzzled by people who seem to think that all of 'advanced' bjj is fancy weird guards. People like Kron Gracie don't even touch the things. Royler clearly never did either. That really isn't what separates blue from black, fancy guards are just the kind of things that you start to figure out when you're an expert at moving on the ground and play with. They are the result of becoming an expert, not the cause.

Cheap gi?

Fuji is solid. Keep an eye on CL, I live in Austin as well and usually there is a gi online for a good price--watch for a while and you'll see one your size. (I've gotten two fuji's this way: one brand new for $70, another used 3 times and accidentally shrunk to exactly my size for $30).

Buuut if you need one NOW, look up "Your Jiu Jitsu Gear" on Amazon. I've been very impressed by these seemingly 'cheap' gis. Plenty of the cheap no-name gis are bullshit, but this one seems to be different. Recommended to me by a brown belt at my gym, has been good to him too. Feels light, but didn't shrink as much as the fuji's did, even when hotwashed/dried... A Fuji A3 fits me when shrunk down, but in this brand and A2 is perfect and seemed perfect out of the box and after wash/dry.

Consistently $69, free shipping if you're a prime user: http://www.amazon.com/gp/node/index.html?ie=UTF8&marketplaceID=ATVPDKIKX0DER&me=A1EKFEYA9IIA1C&merchant=A1EKFEYA9IIA1C&redirect=true

(no affiliation, just helping a brother out)

I think Inverted Gear is amazing and underrated in general, though, when you do finally want to splurge. Bells and whistles of the very expensive gis, cost of a normal gi. Amazing customer service experiences.

Welcome!

And yes, much of the cost is just brand name and recognition, above $150. Up to $150~, quality actually does improve per cost, roughly.


Btw, if you can find the MMA Core gi, it's usually a sweet deal at a great price...

Seen on Reddit

"...I rarely ever plateau.


"I may feel I had a bad week day or month, but the fact is: I'm not getting worse.


I might be becoming aware of mistakes I'm making, or trying positions I'm weaker in--but I'm not getting worse. People that whine all the time after plateauing are doing it wrong because they don't understaffed frustration yet. If this sets you off get ready it's going to get worse. I remember when I was super frustrated by it was wrestling I felt I wasn't getting better. I wasn't wining matches. But I was not getting pinned I wasn't getting teched and I was making guys who used to steam roll be regret a battle with me.

You don't know what frustration is when you don't win a match for 2 years. It took a lot of self reflection on it and evaluation but there was growth.


It's all in your head."


--http://np.reddit.com/r/bjj/comments/2iseqd/how_to_black_and_brown_belts_get_better/