Despite the innumerable musical genres we might associate with jiu jitsu, one thing is certain: the following song is not one of them.

That’s right – Ralek Gracie, the brother of Rener and Ryron Gracie of Gracie University fame, has burst onto the musical scene with his debut album “Ginagi.”  His first single, titled “G-in-a-gi,” after which the album is named, refers to Ralek who fancies himself a G (i.e. a “gangsta”) who wears a jiu jitsu gi.*  However, with lyrics such as “I rock the kimono like I’m rockin’ with Bono” (0:52) and “shit could get heavy like tons of broccoli” (1:54) I would beg to differ.

Most definitely not a gangsta

Ugh… having listened to that song more than once to find those gems**, I think it’s only fair that everyone I train with also be subjected to it.  I’m going to sneak this song into the playlist I use for open mat.  On a more personal level, I intend to use it as motivation – if music can represent different styles of BJJ, I intend to train extra hard so that nobody will naturally associate my style of jiu jitsu with “G-in-a-gi.”

*I suppose it’s also possible that the “G” Ralek is referring to is the fact that he is a Gracie.  I hope so, since it would make this song slightly less silly.

**Hilariously (or perhaps because he is in on the joke), Ralek’s Youtube channel describes his music as “surprisingly wide-ranging and thought provoking.”

“Get my ____ belt”

Too many posts indicate that a practitioner wants to achieve a new belt color in the coming year. In general, these goals seem to be particularly common among less experienced practitioners (white and blue belts). I’d argue that these types of goals tend to miss the point of jiu jitsu – to improve as a practitioner. Your belt color will follow as a consequence of your skill level and dedication. Often, they are also unrealistic – it usually takes several years to transition between belts in BJJ, and promotions are ultimately up to your instructor. By focusing too much attention on your “rank” you may simply end up frustrated and de-motivated.

“Win ____ division at the ___ tournament”

Competition is a great way to test yourself against practitioners of similar experience. Accordingly, competing is an excellent way to identify areas of your game that need improvement. In addition, upcoming competitions provide excellent motivation for training. However, setting an overly specific (or perhaps unrealistic) goal such as winning the -85kg blue belt division at the Pan Ams may be counter-productive if losing a match at the tournament will overly discourage you. Perhaps a more productive approach would be to set a goal such as “compete at 2 regional and 1 national tournament in 2012.” This still provides a concrete framework to motivate you to train, but will direct your focus towards learning from each competition rather than placing too much emphasis on a specific outcome.

“Get better”

These types of goals are too vague to be helpful. Of course, you will get better with regular, consistent training. A more helpful goal may be something like “attend __ classes per week” or “train ___ hours per month.” This approach provides a manageable timeframe in which to assess your progress, and allows you to keep track of something objective (hours trained/ classes attended) rather than a vague sense of your skill.

Of course, I’m no personal trainer or life planner. I can only speak from personal experience – I’ve made these same sorts of goals in the past, and found them to be either too vague to be useful or so unrealistic that they were frustrating. So what are my BJJ goals for 2012?

1. Drill 2 techniques per week from Pedro Sauer’s blue – purple belt curriculum for at least 20 minutes each outside of class.
2. Learn/polish the sweeps on Pedro Sauer’s blue – purple belt curriculum until I can reliably execute them on resisting opponents.
3. Gain at least an additional 200 hours of mat time in 2012.
4. Each month, attend at least 1 class/open mat at a different academy.

Watching Frank Mir harvest Nogueira's arm at UFC 140 probably doesn't help either...

It’s true – injuries are an unfortunate part of martial arts training.  Minor injuries are the most common (mat burn, bruises, etc), but are only annoying when you shower after training.  More serious injuries are rare (broken bones, torn ligaments, etc), but can take a substantial amount of time to recover from.  However, the bright side is that while training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, you have a huge amount of control over your injury rate (perhaps more than any other full-contact martial art).  If you feel at all uncomfortable, you have a 100% effective escape from any submission or position you find yourself in – tapping out.  If you keep your ego in check and tap early to submission attempts, you drastically decrease your odds of becoming injured.  You can also improve these odds by being selective in your training partners – you aren’t obligated to train with the hot-headed bodybuilder who seems to injure everyone he trains with.  Finally, by limiting your (and your partners’) speed while training, you can cut your injury rate even further.

Of course, there are injuries that can’t be avoided – sometimes freak accidents happen.  You could be rolling at 10% speed with a trusted training partner, and blow out your knee just by moving it at a weird angle.  However, I shouldn’t have to point out that this could just as easily happen while playing catch with your nephew.  And while this is legitimate (though unlikely) risk of doing any physical activity, I’d argue that the benefits of training BJJ (e.g. improved physical conditioning, flexibility, confidence, social atmosphere, etc.) easily outweigh the minor risk of an accidental freak injury.

Interestingly, this poll found that over 50% of respondents would continue to train Brazilian Jiu Jitsu even if they knew it would decrease their lifespan by at least 5 years!  An additional 22% would continue to train if it shortened their life by only 1 year.  Only 25% of respondents would stop training if they knew it would shorten their lifespan at all.

Take what you will from the poll results, but it seems obvious that the respondents highly value the benefits they gain from training BJJ.  And luckily, by adhering to a few simple rules of thumb while training (e.g. checking your ego, tapping early, and being selective in your training partners), you can significantly shift the cost-benefit ratio of training BJJ in your favor.

Before experiencing the effectiveness of jiu jitsu, I thought the key to winning fights was strength and speed.  I figured that if I just put in enough time at the gym, or if I could force myself to do enough push-ups, I could ensure that I would be bigger, stronger, and faster than anyone I’d come across.  Of course, this was a fantasy I clung to in high school before realizing that I seriously hated working out.  Not to mention that I was smaller and skinnier than pretty much everyone I knew, which meant I was already at a massive disadvantage in the muscles category.

Besides, there's a reason that Mariusz Pudzianowski (the world's strongest man) isn't also the UFC heavyweight champ. Muscles =/= Fighting ability.

Eventually, I decided to try out Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.  After my first class (and after sparring with 2 or 3 people) I was breathless, exhausted, and demoralized.  I had been choked against my will by people half my size (so clearly it wasn’t a matter of strength), was unable to do anything about it, and was determined to find out the secret to becoming better at jiu jitsu.  In my mind, there had to be some physical attribute that was allowing these people to beat me.

For some reason, I latched onto the idea that the key was flexibility.  I saw Youtube videos of jiu  jitsu legends like Nino Schembri and Eddie Bravo folding their bodies in half to secure unbelievable submissions.

In case you were wondering - yes, that is Nino Schembri with his left foot poking out from around the back of his head.

Naturally, I began stretching religiously.  During class, at parties, sitting in front of the TV – any time I had a chance, I’d find some way to stretch my legs, hips, or arms (to the annoyance of everyone around me).  Unfortunately, even after I had improved my hip flexibility, I wasn’t “winning” my sparring matches.  I began trying to accelerate my progression in other ways as well – I’d spend hours each day watching countless youtube instructional videos.  I’d go running and do rounds on the speed rope to boost my endurance.  It wasn’t long before I found myself overwhelmed with “new techniques” to try in class.  I was also always tired and sore, and although I was improving as a practitioner, I was discouraged at my progress.

Eventually – and very slowly – I began to put pieces together.  After drilling arm bar setups over and over, I was finally beginning to catch people with a smooth setup.  A few dozen classes later, I was beginning to notice openings for other techniques when my arm bar setups failed.   Suddenly, I came to a realization that I wished I had arrived at months earlier: there is no magic secret to becoming better at jiu jitsu.  Like almost everything else in life, you have to put in lots of time and hard work.  At least in my experience, success on the mats is a direct function of the effort you put in.

However, there’s more to it than just spending time on the mats.  We’ve all seen students who show up to class and spend their time talking rather than drilling the techniques.  Personally, I’ve seen the fastest improvements in my game when I’m both consistent in my class attendance and in my effort while in class.  By effort, I don’t mean using every ounce of energy to smash your training partners – I don’t think that kind of training is sustainable for you or your training partners.  Rather, you should be trying to make the best possible use of your time while in class.  Maintain your focus while you drill and while you train, and ensure that you have goals for each.  Then, with regular attendance, you’ll continue to improve by leaps and bounds.

Of course, flexibility, strength, and a knowledge base will certainly help you progress.  But luckily, these will come as benefits of consistent training rather than as prerequisites.  Don’t burn yourself out by trying to improve as fast as possible.  Be consistent in your training and eventually you’ll find yourself miles ahead of those “twice a month” badasses that used to demolish you.

If you didn’t watch it live or purchase the DVDs, check out this amazing short film by Stuart Cooper for a glimpse at what you missed.

If your opponent blocks your hips with a hand, you have a different set of escape options than if she used a knee.  Securing an underhook in butterfly guard allows for the application of a variety of techniques that would not otherwise be available, and a corresponding shift in the options available to your opponent.  In back control, trapping an opponent’s defending arm with your leg (thereby leaving him with only one arm to defend against your two attacking arms) is the jiu-jitsu equivalent of putting your opponent in check.  Securing the rear naked choke is the equivalent of check-mate.

As a white belt, jiu jitsu is like playing chess with only pawns (and perhaps not even knowing the rules).  As you progress and learn more techniques (but more importantly, sharpen up the techniques you already know), you begin to acquire more “pieces” with which to play the game. The goal, of course, is to eventually acquire a complete set of pieces.

In practice though, this is impossible.  Nobody – not even the greats like Marcelo or Roger – can specialize in everything.  If mastery of a technique is equivalent to acquiring a new piece to use in a chess game (or perhaps, exchanging a pawn for a king), nobody will ever have a complete set.

This is where general strategy comes in.  Knowing how to use your strengths against your opponent’s weaknesses is perhaps equally as important as acquiring new pieces.  Knowing when and how to avoid an opponent’s strengths, and how to take advantage of their weakness is what separates high-level competitors from the elite.  As an example, I recently heard an interview with Ryan Hall where he discusses his experience rolling with Marcelo Garcia.  Ryan Hall is famous for his mastery of the guard and the triangle choke, but he pointed out that when training with Marcelo, he was never given an opportunity to play his game.  Marcelo’s distance, timing, and positioning forced Hall to over-commit on any submission or sweep attempts, effectively nullifying the strongest part of his game.

I think this is an important point that is often overlooked by new students (including myself).  Progression in jiu jitsu doesn’t simply consist of learning new techniques.  Rather, it entails a deeper understanding of why certain techniques work and when to use them.  Too often we become fixated on learning a plethora of new techniques, without spending enough time on developing strategy.  As any chess master would likely point out, success is a function of both the pieces you have available to you and the strategy you employ with them.

I have mixed feelings about training these techniques.  In general, I think it’s an extremely bad idea to engage an attacker if they have a weapon (or even if they don’t) unless you have exhausted every other option (de-escalating the situation, running away, getting into a crowded area, screaming for help, calling the police, etc.).  I also worry that naive jiu jitsu practitioners might get the impression that they can successfully and safely defend themselves from an armed attacker by knowing these techniques, and might opt to engage their attacker rather than run.

On the other hand, there is potential for these techniques to save your life in a worst-case-scenario, and I understand that weapon defense training is probably particularly useful for law enforcement.  In addition, the general principles of the techniques apply to other situations as well; staying out of the “power arch” of a baseball bat can apply to a variety of situations, including protection from punches and kicks.

As a lowly blue belt, perhaps it’s not my place to question a well-established curriculum.  However, I do think that instructors should explicitly couple self-defense technique lessons with general self-defense awareness.  Practicing a knife-stab defense technique in class a few times doesn’t make you stab-proof.

I think it would be useful to spend a night training with something like this Shocknife, which apparently packs a walloping 7,500 volts. It would help reinforce the idea that entirely avoiding a knife attack situation is better than engaging an opponent.

And he also believes some pretty bizarre stuff.

Once upon a time he was also a boxer, and believe it or not, a stunt double on Baywatch.

According to Erik Paulson, we should all be very selective with whom we choose to train in case our partners’ negative energy latches onto us.  In the most recent episode of Rolled Up with Budo Jake (this part of the interview begins at 29:22), Erik Paulson explains :

I used to roll with people all the time, and I’m very sensitive to energy, and a lot of times I’d go home and I’d have nightmares.  … Like bad nightmares, like monsters and stuff like that.  … I have a few people that I talk to, they did a scan on me through archangels, and they’re like “your job is bringing negative energy home with you.”

He goes on to explain:

A lot of times when you roll with somebody you pull the energy off of them because you’re dipping into their etheric layer which is their protective layer, and some people are negative.  Some people don’t believe in God, they never pray, they party, they do a ton of stuff that’s not right.  You attract negative energy, it latches on you, it sticks to you, and a lot of times you’re gonna roll with guys and pull stuff off them.

This is definitely one of the strangest beliefs I’ve heard regarding training.  At first I thought he was joking, but he continues the interview to explain how to rid one’s self of this negative energy – namely, through showering, using Epsom salt, and through the liberal usage of the medicinal herb sage.

It almost goes without saying – obviously, there’s absolutely no scientific evidence that the human body is shrouded in magical energy auras, so we shouldn’t lose any sleep over worrying about negative energy clinging to us.  And while I certainly can’t deny Paulson’s  selectivity of training partners has gotten rid of his nightmares, we don’t have to reach out for supernatural explanations.  There are very likely psychological benefits to training with only people you trust (in Paulson’s case, people that share his affinity for prayer), and the elaborate cleansing rituals he performs after training also probably put his mind at ease.

We can chalk this strange confession up to bizarre religious beliefs on Paulson’s part – he’s certainly a world class martial arts instructor, and maybe this one little weirdness is just an unfortunate part of the package.  But regardless, I can’t help but wonder how some of his students feel.  Personally, I might consider switching schools if my instructors refused to train with me because of my personal opinions about the existence of supernatural deities.  There are certainly legitimate reasons for refusing to train with people – overly aggressive partners, inexperienced students who have a penchant for dangerous heel hooks, or personal injuries are all good reasons to avoid training.  Wacky religious bigotry is not one of them.

The beautiful thing about jiu jitsu is that it brings people together from all different ethnicities and walks of life – students, business owners, blue collar workers, white collar workers, atheists, theists, democrats, republicans, seasoned fighters, and recreational enthusiasts are all placed on a level playing field.  When we step out on the mats, our disagreements about political or religious opinions couldn’t be less relevant.  We should realize that we’re all working towards the same goal – improving ourselves as martial artists – and leave all that “other stuff” out of it.

At 0:55 of the video, you see Galvao’s opponent (Martin Suarez) attempt a leg-lock by reaping Galvao’s knee.  This is illegal in most BJJ tournament because it puts enormous pressure on the knee joint and can lead to serious injury.  In any case, Galvao clearly didn’t appreciate the attempt, and made Suarez pay for it (fast forward to 1:05 and watch in amazement).