The Grappling Gospel

  Recommendation:  Watch Video " Principle #7 "Velocity " on GracieUniversity.com (Disclaimer: I am not being paid/sponsored in any way to promote "Gracie University". I have found their "The 32 Principles" videos incredibly beneficial and I hope you do too! But it's not necessary to watch these videos to benefit from this blog.) Thoughts : Whoever controls the distance in a fight, controls the damage. But whoever controls the pace, controls the fight. This is why velocity is so important. You must keep your opponent guessing, not just about your next move, but at the speed in which you may (or may not) get there. What is the best speed in a fight? It's the speed that makes your next move the hardest to predict! This makes it harder to prevent, and harder to control or neutralize. The other day for my training, I was rolling with a fellow white belt, and I was learning a lot from her. I would break her closed guard, but without a quick knee sl...

 Recommendation: Watch " Principle #6: Acceptance " on GracieUniversity.com (Disclaimer: I am not being paid/sponsored in any way to promote "Gracie University". I have found their "The 32 Principles" videos incredibly beneficial and I hope you do too! But it's not necessary to watch these videos to benefit from this blog.) Thoughts : Sometimes in our practice of Jiu Jitsu, you find yourself fighting for a losing position. You had a certain technique in mind, a certain hold or favorite sweep, and now for whatever reason the moment or opportunity is gone. You now have two choices: Either fight for the lost position (and burn unnecessary energy), or practice acceptance of the situation and take a fresh look at things.  At this point, when you accept that you are now in a new situation, your mind is free to think more clearly and naturally for what to do next. But if you are still fixated on the old move that is gone, the present moment is will now be los...

  Recommendation: Watch " Principle #5: Creation " video on GracieUniversity.com (Disclaimer: I am not being paid/sponsored in any way to promote "Gracie University". I have found their "The 32 Principles" videos incredibly beneficial and I hope you do too! But it's not necessary to watch these videos to benefit from this blog) Thoughts : This was one of the most meaningful videos about Jiu Jitsu that I have ever watched. It basically reminds us that we are like artists, the mat is our canvas, and we can create our moves on the fly or as some thoughtful strategy. But either way, as you create your move or execute your technique, your opponent will have a REACTION. And it's important to have an idea of what you anticipate your opponent will do as a reaction to your move .  Then, this is where the hammer drops! When your opponent reacts the way you expected, you are then able to execute the move you are REALLY setting up! The trap is set, your oppone...

Will AI ever take over Jiu Jitsu? I recently asked an AI portal to create a picture of a Jiu Jitsu match, and the above image was generated. At first glance, it looks cool, like she's got the guy right where she wants him and is about to get a submission after taking his back. But when you look closer, count the number of legs she has.  Yep! You're not seeing things -- SHE HAS THREE LEGS!  Sometimes in your Jiu Jitsu, you're going to feel like your opponent has three legs. It seems that whatever you do, you get wrapped and controlled and can't escape. And that's how life can feel for us sometimes. No matter what we do, or how hard we try, we are facing an opponent with extra limbs. Here's what I do... When I feel like tapping out, because I'm being tightly controlled and can't get free, I ask Jesus for help. I know that's a simple idea, but I've found it's something he wants to do -- he wants to help. Check out this story in Matthew 9:27-30 ...

  Recommendation:  Watch " Principle #4: Pyramid " video on GracieUniversity.com   (Disclaimer: I am not being paid/sponsored in any way to promote "Gracie University". I have found their "The 32 Principles" videos incredibly beneficial and I hope you do too! And it's not necessary to watch these videos to benefit from this blog) Thoughts : Back in 1999, I had the fun adventure of staying in Cairo, Egypt, and from there, visiting the Great Pyramids of Egypt. I actually rode on a camel around the famous pyramids, seeing them up close and in person. It was an experience I'll never forget! What makes a pyramid structure so solid is simple to see: it has a secure base . As long as that base is strong and secure, it's very difficult to take the structure down. That's probably why the pyramids are still standing strong after so many years! (about 4,000-5,000 years old!) In the same way, the video entitled " Principle #4: Pyramid " on Gr...

  Today was my weekly class for Jiu Jitsu, and I caught a phrase by our Professor (lead teacher) that I'll always remember. We were learning a new move (at least for us who were newer to the class), and our Professor was reminding us to put aside our egos, and just focus on learning.  He said, "If you get the pin, the submission, great! you win! but if not, you learn. You only lose when you stop learning." Did you catch that? "You either win or learn." Now, if that's not a good perspective for us as learners of this incredibly complex martial art, I don't know what is. And in the same way, as a person trying to follow Jesus, this holds true too. Even the word "disciple" means "learner." Maybe instead of focusing on living perfectly, we should focus more on learning. Learning about our Savior, the Shepherd Jesus we are trying to follow. And learn about the world around us, and how it works (or often is simply broken). And yes, learn ab...

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  Recommendation:  Watch “ Principle #3: Distance ” video on GracieUniversity.com (Disclaimer: I am not being paid/sponsored in any way to promote "Gracie University". I have found their "The 32 Principles" videos incredibly beneficial and I hope you do too! And it's not necessary to watch these videos to benefit from this blog) Thoughts : “Whoever manages the distance manages the damage.” This is one of the top quotes from the video by Rener and Ryron Gracie in their “ The 32 Principles ” instructional course on the teaching platform at GracieUniversity.com . This video teaches about the importance of managing the distance between your opponent during a fight. Sometimes you want to be close, sometimes you want to be farther away. Either way, you should seek to manage the distance, so the fight goes in your favor, and you are able to control the flow of things more efficiently. The goal is to DISRUPT THE DISTANCE!  This means, you are working to disrupt the o...

  Recommendation: Watch “ Principle #2: Detachment ” video on GracieUniversity.com (Disclaimer: I am not being paid/sponsored in any way to promote "Gracie University". I have found their "The 32 Principles" videos incredibly beneficial and I hope you do too! And it's not necessary to watch these videos to benefit from this blog) Thoughts : This video taught me about the importance of detachment for the sake of finding a new opening or opportunity. Sometimes in BJJ, we have to make the decision to detach from a certain connection – to let it go, to release it, so that we are free to embrace something better. If we focus on maintaining a connection that is no longer advantageous, we could put ourselves in a compromising position, and ultimately lose our chance to win the fight. We don’t want to be too stubborn by holding onto a certain position when it’s no longer advantageous – when our energy is being drained and it’s not working. Now let’s pivot and apply thi...

  Recommendation:  Watch “ Principle #1: Connection ” video on GracieUniversity.com (Disclaimer: I am not being paid/sponsored in any way to promote "Gracie University". I have found their "The 32 Principles" videos incredibly beneficial and I hope you do too! And it's not necessary to watch these videos to benefit from this blog) Thoughts : Wow – I was blown away by all the different connections that Jiu Jitsu offers! This is AMAZING! Feet, hands, arms, elbows, knees, head, etc – so many different ways to connect! My favorite quote from the video was “ If Jiu Jitsu is the language, then connection is the alphabet! ” The Connection Principle teaches us that there are three basic purposes in each connection:  (1) movement prevention , (2) movement promotion , and (3) movement prediction . We either use connection to  PREVENT  a move, to  PROMOTE  a move (make something happen), or to feel the push and pull (energy transition of our opponent) to  PR...