BJJ — Arcanum

Help me collect data about back pain in BJJ and vote in the latest Fightworks Podcast poll!

June 4, 2011 By SkinnyD Leave a Comment

I would really appreciate a favor from anyone who reads this – if you can vote in the latest poll at The Fightworks Podcast, it would be very helpful in my latest project: to write an article exploring the relationship between BJJ and back pain or injury.

Back pain is a fairly common ailment, and for most people it comes and goes. There are a handful of practitioners, though, who deal with it chronically, and I’m curious about the relationship between jiu-jitsu and back pain. I’m especially curious about how BJJ practitioners mitigate symptoms of back pain and whether BJJ contributes to the problem or the remedy.

If you know of anyone who has had a back injury or surgery and does BJJ, I’d love to be able to talk to them. Just contact me or leave a comment below and we’ll get in touch.

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Filed Under: Brazilian Jiu-jitsu Tagged With: back injury, back pain, BJJ, grappling injury, jiu-jitsu, jiu-jitsu injury, poll, the fightworks podcast

When life throws you lemons…

February 26, 2011 By SkinnyD 5 Comments

Hi everyone. I just wanted to jump in and explain my absence over the last few weeks. First, I lost my job. I worked for a small business that went south (figuratively) this quarter and had to lay off most of its workforce. Bleh. For the last several weeks, I have spent every spare minute of time building resumes, making phone calls and interviewing. Result = SUCCESS: I secured a job that pays higher than my last one. I start Monday.

So, next, we got a letter from our landlords giving us 60 days notice to move out so they could move back in. So on top of worrying about a new job, I’m hurriedly scanning the horizon for a place to shelter my family and call home for the next year or two.

Change is good. Really, I like being faced with challenges and having to cope. It’s like fighting a new guy who comes into your school wearing a blue belt. You just don’t know what to expect, but without a doubt it will require you to be alert and creative. Problem is, change is also stressful. And right now it’s very…very…stressful.

I have lots to talk about, including some fun shirts that I want to share with you all. Training has been really great lately. Plus, you can expect an upcoming review of the Padilla lightweight, and an interview with Rigan Machado.

But first, I have to find a place to live. Excuse me while I go take 15 Advil.

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Filed Under: Brazilian Jiu-jitsu Tagged With: BJJ, jiu-jitsu, moving, stress

Rigan Machado Seminar April 9

February 9, 2011 By SkinnyD Leave a Comment

Rigan Machado

I’m thrilled to be able to announce that Rigan Machado will be in Utah for a BJJ seminar in April. Rigan is the coach of one of my coaches, Jeff Kunze. I’ve used the term a little loosely before, perhaps, but Rigan is a true legend in BJJ and widely considered one of the best grapplers in history.

I don’t have details yet, only that the date is April 9 and the invitation is open to anyone who wants to come.

I’m not going to spend a lot of time expounding on why you need to be at this seminar. If you don’t know who Rigan is and why you should not miss this, it’s time to do a little research and learn about your chosen hobby.

More good news; Finish Reading…

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Filed Under: Brazilian Jiu-jitsu Tagged With: BJJ, black belt, Jeff Kunze, Lehi Judo, Rigan Machado, seminar, Team Machado Utah

The cast of 300 didn’t train BJJ, but…

January 23, 2011 By SkinnyD Leave a Comment

…they could teach most of us a thing or two about focus and discipline.

If you have never read this post by Mark Twight of Gym Jones about training the cast of 300, you ought to do so. Here’s the link, right HERE. Mark responds very forcefully to the long list of doubters who believed the amazing physique of the Spartans came from years of training and steroid overdose. (It didn’t, by the way…it came from a few months of killer cross-training and a responsible diet.)

The question is, have you ever been a “doubter” at BJJ training? Have you ever been frustrated at that lower belt who gets you with the same submission over and over, and made the excuse that they were “just using muscle?” Or maybe you’re not progressing as fast as the next guy / girl on the mat. Or maybe you’re the one who offers excuses every time you get tapped.

If you’re that person (I find myself there every now and then, I’m ashamed to say), read and re-read Mark’s post. And then get off your butt and go to work.

Finish Reading…

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Filed Under: Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, CrossFit, Just For Fun Tagged With: 300, BJJ, discipline, doubter, Gym Jones, jiu-jitsu, steroids

Don’t Build a House (or a guard pass) On A Sandy Foundation

January 22, 2011 By SkinnyD 2 Comments

Don’t put the cart before the horse.

You must walk before you can run.

Pick your proverb.

I’ve been so excited about trying out angles and pressure from inside the guard that I forgot something very important. Randy was good enough to point it out to me. Whenever I focus on passing like that, my posture and base goes to crap (thanks, Randy!). He didn’t say it that way, of course, but it’s the truth. My poor posture was opening the door for sweeps and shutting down any power I had, putting me in danger of submissions.

This new guard-passing technique feels really different from the basic guard passes I’ve been doing since day 1. I’ve been excited to try it, but I could feel myself muscling the move and losing patience.

Then it hit me. I have been harping on the whole idea of position before submission. Well, the same idea applies to guard passing. Finish Reading…

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Filed Under: Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, Training & Experiences Tagged With: angles, BJJ, goals, guard pass, jiu-jitsu, pressure

Check out my article on The Fightworks Podcast!

January 19, 2011 By SkinnyD 2 Comments

Good news! The Fightworks Podcast just published an interview I did with one of my coaches, Brandon Ruiz. Brandon is awesome at using goals to advance his grappling training, and he shares some of his secrets in this interview. I’ve been applying the stuff he teaches over the last month or so, and I have already noticed how much more focused and beneficial my training is.

Check out the interview, it’s good stuff!

http://thefightworkspodcast.com/2011/01/19/set-goals-bjj/

Brandon Ruiz at FILA 2009 Grappling World Championships

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Filed Under: Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, Interviews Tagged With: BJJ, Brandon Ruiz, Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, goals, grappling, the fightworks podcast, training

BJJ Legend Pablo Popovitch asks for BJJ community to help after tragic landslide

January 18, 2011 By SkinnyD Leave a Comment

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Pablo Popovitch, he’s an incredible grappler who has won numerous world titles and was recently inducted into the NAGA Grappling Hall of Fame. He’s probably most famous for defeating Marcelo Garcia at the ADCC world championships in 2009.

This post on Pablo Popovitch’s website recently came to my attention.

I can’t imagine the absolute nightmare Pablo is going through right now, but I know it takes a huge amount of humility and desperation for a man to ask for money. Many of us are very sheltered in our safe little corners of the world, away from the seemingly endless natural disasters that cause so much devastation.

Thankfully Pablo has a support group to reach out to in the BJJ community. I can’t think of a better support group. If you’re able to even throw a few dollars his way, every little bit will help.

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Filed Under: Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, Videos Tagged With: BJJ, Brazil landslide, Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, community, donations, Pablo Popovitch, tragedy

How To Get Choked Out With One Easy Technique…Guaranteed!!!!

January 15, 2011 By SkinnyD 3 Comments

The technique is, let your ego get in the way of your survival. Works for me every time.

It must feel great to be choked. Because I sure haven’t been defending it seriously, and it should be the first thing I am worrying about, according to pretty much every published black belt. Saulo’s Jiu-jitsu University, for starters, prioritizes things this way:

Survival

Escapes

Guard

Passing Guard

Submissions

Sort of like Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs, but for jiu-jitsu.

As the chart indicates, survival is the first step. Check out this quote from Jiu-jitsu Brotherhood:

“I once asked Roger Gracie, the best jiu-jitsu fighter on the planet, what made him so good. After thinking about it for a while, he replied: ‘I built my game off a solid defense. I first made it almost impossible for anybody to tap me out.’”
Finish Reading…

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Filed Under: Brazilian Jiu-jitsu Tagged With: BJJ, cross-collar choke, ego in BJJ, Jiu-jitsu University, Maslow's Hierarchy Jiu-jitsu, Roger Gracie, survival

Sneak Peak: Interview With a 7th Degree Red/Black Belt

December 17, 2010 By SkinnyD Leave a Comment

A couple months ago I had the privilege of sitting down to chat with a jiu-jitsu master. Sylvio Behring has forgotten more jiu-jitsu than most of us have even seen, and trained more than 100 black belts and fighters.

Here’s a sneak preview of I asked, just to get you excited for Monday (when I’ll post the entire interview):

“There are a lot of different styles of rules in jiu-jitsu. You have Abu Dhabi rules, Grappler’s Quest, Federation rules. Do you see eventual unification of rules like that, or do you think there is a particular set of rules that is best for the development of jiu-jitsu?”

“From your experience, what is it that separates someone at that high level of competition, as opposed to someone who is really, really good but doesn’t reach that level?”

Be sure to check back in Monday!

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Filed Under: Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, Interviews Tagged With: BJJ, bjj rules, Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, interview, red/black belt, Sylvio Behring

First Impressions: CrossFit for Brazilian Jiu-jitsu

December 8, 2010 By SkinnyD 3 Comments

Note: I realize that sport-specific workouts are probably the best way to go, but I enjoy a good, general workout as well. There will probably be a time when I move almost exclusively to sport-specific workouts. For now, though, I’m making the rounds to different “styles” of fitness routines to see how I like them and if I notice any peripheral benefits as a jiu-jitsu practitioner.

I’ve been consistently doing CrossFit now for just over a week. I joined CrossFit Draper in the hopes that it will produce significant gains in strength, speed and flexibility for Brazilian jiu-jitsu over the course of several months.

My natural tendency is to compare this to P90X, since that’s what I’ve been using as a basis for my workouts over the last year. So far there are two areas where P90X stands out for me; the Ab Ripper workout and the Yoga X workout. Other than those two routines, after one week I’m tempted to give CrossFit a distinct edge over P90X. When it comes to enjoyability, variety, practicality and difficulty, CrossFit has been awesome. In 30 minutes of CrossFit I reach a point of exhaustion and near-puking every time. P90X rarely pushed me to the puking point; muscle failure, yes. Puking…not quite.

Bottom line is, CrossFit is more well-rounded, interesting and challenging for me than P90X (not to say that P90X wasn’t challenging…it was).

The real question is, will I see improvements in my jiu-jitsu if I stick with this for a while?

I had a long conversation with my CrossFit trainer this morning that shed some light on the relationship between CrossFit workouts (particularly the Olympic style lifts) and jiu-jitsu.

Brandon, who runs CrossFit Draper, explained to me that power in lifting comes from the hips. Lifting heavy weight in the power clean, thrusters and deadlift (to name a few) involves transferring explosive power from the hips through the body. By doing so, you can generate tiny windows of “weightlessness” that allow you to boost the weights through the air and complete the lift.

Sound familiar? If there’s one thing I’ve heard over and over about jiu-jitsu, it’s that power comes from the hips.
Finish Reading…

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Filed Under: Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, CrossFit, Fitness Tagged With: BJJ, CrossFit, CrossFit Draper, fitness, hips, jiu-jitsu

Help me collect data about back pain in BJJ and vote in the latest Fightworks Podcast poll!

When life throws you lemons…

Rigan Machado Seminar April 9

The cast of 300 didn’t train BJJ, but…

Don’t Build a House (or a guard pass) On A Sandy Foundation

Check out my article on The Fightworks Podcast!

BJJ Legend Pablo Popovitch asks for BJJ community to help after tragic landslide

How To Get Choked Out With One Easy Technique…Guaranteed!!!!

Sneak Peak: Interview With a 7th Degree Red/Black Belt

First Impressions: CrossFit for Brazilian Jiu-jitsu

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