Post: #26

Never, but that's maybe because i usually tap them out pretty hard during sparring session. I only managed to grapple for 8 months before a freak accident tore my acl. I am so excited to get back soon.

Post: #27

Non-aggressive, cerebral/intelligent guys do GREAT in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. I think you'd fit right in from what I can tell.

Post: #28

(11-26-2014 10:38 PM)Vaun Wrote:  

(11-20-2014 05:36 AM)Snowplow Wrote:  Then something totally unrelated lead me into systema, Russian martial arts. It's the stuff KGB agents learn. Fucking changed my world! It's all about breathing and staying loose.
Honestly it was a God send.

I tried a free free Systema classes and it seemed like it wouldn't really translate into street fighting and self defense without many hours of practice. Am I wrong?

No, not wrong. It does take some practice. What it teaches you is basics. Punches, kicks, grappling so on. But they also teach you how to take a punch, how to take and bear pain in a submission, how to stay calm when fear sets in.

Then they teach you advanced stuff like how to fight multiple attackers, how to disarm weapons, how to fight handcuffed. There is a lot of breathing and meditation involved as well. You will not learn going to a couple classes.

Post: #29

It wouldn't be the internet if there wasn't a TMA vs BJJ debate.

The number one reason why BJJ is great and more beneficial than others is because you can go 100% intensity sparring in the gym with your partners. This breeds real effectiveness. Other "Arts" you never go 100% sparring because that'd be ridiculous. But because of that, you rarely if ever get to fully implement what you've learned, thereby making it all kinda "Faked"

Post: #30

On the subject of anger issues - I'd say there are far fewer dudes with anger issues at a BJJ gym than in real life. Fighting, rolling, sparring, whatever is about being relaxed and focused - not about spazzing out.

One of the biggest things I was worried about when I first started with all this stuff ten years ago was that the guys at the gym would be all bad ass tough guys with attitude. The truth couldn't have been more opposite.

Post: #31

Yeti: I have practiced BJJ for over 10 years and instruct a class at the local university. You mentioned that one of your primary motivations for training is to gain muscle mass. Unfortunately, in itself, BJJ will not give you the muscle mass that you are looking for. Especially if you are training at a "sport jj" place that doesn't emphasize starting from your feet. While sparing, your back and legs are almost completely neglected. As far as the rest of the body, think low rep/high volume weight training. You will lose fat and get stronger but you won't really put on size.

As time goes by I am becoming less and less disillusioned by the mystique of BJJ. It just has too many weaknesses the way it is practiced today, as Rionomad alluded to earlier. That being said, I would never advise you to not train jiu jitsu, but I would couple it with weightlifting or wrestling/boxing/kickboxing which most BJJ gyms offer anyways.

Don't get me wrong, I'll probably train for the rest of my life. The camaraderie that I've experienced with BJJ is unlike anything I've experienced in other martial arts or sports in general. Everywhere I go in the world I have an instant social circle because of BJJ and have gotten some bangs too

And about the aggressiveness issue. If you freak out while sparing at a gym someone is going to put you in your place real fast. Serious aggression is best left for competition or against a well-known opponent.

Post: #32

(12-03-2014 11:13 AM)bounce Wrote:  As time goes by I am becoming less and less disillusioned by the mystique of BJJ. It just has too many weaknesses the way it is practiced today, as Rionomad alluded to earlier. That being said, I would never advise you to not train jiu jitsu, but I would couple it with weightlifting or wrestling/boxing/kickboxing which most BJJ gyms offer anyways.

Don't get me wrong, I'll probably train for the rest of my life. The camaraderie that I've experienced with BJJ is unlike anything I've experienced in other martial arts or sports in general. Everywhere I go in the world I have an instant social circle because of BJJ and have gotten some bangs too

Within an hour or so walking of my place there are at least two BJJ schools: one, a Gracie school (run by one of the Gracies),

And the other a Mickey Mouse school that's much closer to my place (easily walkable) but catered kind of toward kids and families, at least that's the vibe that they give off. I requested a trial lesson and the instructor has been wishy washy.

Post: #33

I've done a decade of Judo and BJJ concurrently, 5 years Muay Thai and traditional boxing, but ironically started out in traditional Aikido. Ironically I've found the aggressive jerks to be in the Aikdo clubs as they are generally insecure guys/ladies that don't practice their technique in a realistic manner, thus they walk around with their chest puffed out waiting for street urchins to ahem..."grab their wrist" and trip over their magic pants.

Judo, BJJ, Boxing, MT all have deep levels of respect and in the hundreds of sets of sparring, well almost thousands, I can't recall someone going full rage on me that had some rank or time into the system. People that come off the street with something to prove quickly get dispatched as their ego cannot hang with getting arm barred by a female 100lb purple belt.

I cannot stress enough how martial arts/sports can be life changing and extremely beneficial for one's health, mental strength, and physical conditioning.

Also there is nothing like the feeling of waking up the next morning being sore, stiff, and tired from a hard set the night before.

Post: #34

(11-27-2014 06:03 AM)Kvothe Wrote:  Without making a new thread, is it possible to train martial arts being very shortsighted or nearsighted?

Post: #35

I think anyone practicing a martial art who is interested in "practical application" should be very careful about what they do in a real world situation, especially since a lot of RVF members like to travel to 3rd world shitholes where life is cheap.
My personal opinion is that 99.9% of fights/assaults are avoidable. As for bar or club or sports match related fights, that's just retarded. Fighting in a controlled setting against a trained opponent is probably fun though, and is on my list of things to do.
In terms of being robbed in the 3rd world, it is very very rare that someone would try to stab or shoot you if you comply.
They might slap you around a bit, but that's it. Chances are, they are high on crack or meth, and jittery, so don't look away but don't look them in the eye either. So what if you lose a camera or a few bucks? Carry a decoy wallet with expired IDs and a small amount of money, etc.
Really the only thing that would cause me to resist would be if I was traveling with a female and they were going to rape her...I would put my life on the line for that. In fact that's one of the reasons I never traveled with a girlfriend in central and south america.
I broke my own rules once when I was being robbed, and fought back, and it almost cost me my life.
In general, when you bring force into the equation, anything could happen. You could be the toughest, most badass MMA master on the planet, and be kicking the shit out of a couple of Peruvian street kids who tried to rob you, but that won't do you any good when a 3rd one you never saw comes up from behind and stabs you in the back to rescue his friends. And then you die a slow agonizing death over a twenty dollar hat and some pocket change. This happened to the hundred kilo, body builder and judo instructor who was the uncle of a Peruvian friend.

Post: #36

The Psychology of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/wome...-jiu-jitsu

Quote:As a clinical psychologist, and a long-time student of BJJ, it is the psychology of this sport which I find most intriguing. Why is BJJ so powerful and captivating for so many people? Why has BJJ become so popular, with so much dedication from its students, who so often describe the experience as uniquely addictive? BJJ offers many unique experiences which trigger rich, subtle and fulfilling psychological changes in its students, changes which promote positive transformation, and keep people coming back to the mats.

Post: #37

I don't have anger issues. I've been doing gi and no gi jiujitsu for 4 years now.

The guys who walk through the door with a chip on their shoulder never last beyond blue belt. All the higher belts I know are all gentlemen. If you're intimidated by guys who are aggressive and strong, BJJ would be a great step in breaking that fear. Since JJ is highly practical and a lot of the training involves sparring, you'll come across and find ways to deal with all sorts of characters.

You don't need to be Alexander Karelin to survive on the mats. If you're lightweight and "non-aggressive" you can develop a good guard game to nullify the heavy strong players.

My advice to you is to just stop thinking about it and walk into a gym and sign up. It will do great things for your confidence

Post: #38

I'm just going to throw this out to the OP and he'll see if it applies to him.

I don't think it's a lack of anger issues, the issue at hand is fundamentally different, it's a lack of competitiveness.

People tend to avoid competition when they fear that if they took it very seriously they'd still fuck up and fail. So that competitive vibe gets bottled up and and a "relaxed attitude" or "lack of anger issues" is cited every time performance is particularly shitty.

The only solution here is try hard and win, winning is the important part, get back on that rollercoaster and start fucking shit up.

Post: #39

(10-14-2015 10:05 AM)Hades Wrote:  I'm just going to throw this out to the OP and he'll see if it applies to him.

I don't think it's a lack of anger issues, the issue at hand is fundamentally different, it's a lack of competitiveness.

People tend to avoid competition when they fear that if they took it very seriously they'd still fuck up and fail. So that competitive vibe gets bottled up and and a "relaxed attitude" or "lack of anger issues" is cited every time performance is particularly shitty.

The only solution here is try hard and win, winning is the important part, get back on that rollercoaster and start fucking shit up.

There's a lot of truth to this. It's an issue of perfectionism and ego. It's important to understand that you're best may still not be good enough. Just try to be the best version of yourself that you can be. That's all that can be asked of this life.

Post: #40

(11-16-2014 08:39 PM)Yeti Wrote:  I'm looking for guidance both from guys who have anger issues and guys who don't have anger issues, who practice martial arts and specifically Brazilian jiu jitsu.

It seems like guys with anger issues tend to do well with martial arts/Brazilian jiu jitsu to help them resolve their stress. If they don't keep up with their trainings, the darkness starts to take control again and they get irritable and angry.

My question is, what about guys who don't have any anger issues? I am a pretty laid back guy and am probably going to start training BJJ soon. But I'm concerned that I am not aggressive enough - that I'm going into the wrong arena, that I should pick up weight lifting instead to up my testosterone.

Can anyone provide guidance?

The pro guys I spar with display no signs of anger issues at all. You develop a switch, I also do not have anger issues but when it's time to spar you flip that switch. When you realize that you aren't trying to kill the guy, but do want to win you start to learn to utilize and create that key aggression.

Post: #41

(11-29-2014 07:15 PM)Checkmat Wrote:  Non-aggressive, cerebral/intelligent guys do GREAT in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. I think you'd fit right in from what I can tell.

This is dead on. Joe Rogan talks about that all the time, how important intelligence is for grappling because (paraphrasing) you need to be able to think critically under intense pressure and while tired.

Post: #42

(11-16-2014 08:39 PM)Yeti Wrote:  I'm looking for guidance both from guys who have anger issues and guys who don't have anger issues, who practice martial arts and specifically Brazilian jiu jitsu.

It seems like guys with anger issues tend to do well with martial arts/Brazilian jiu jitsu to help them resolve their stress. If they don't keep up with their trainings, the darkness starts to take control again and they get irritable and angry.

My question is, what about guys who don't have any anger issues? I am a pretty laid back guy and am probably going to start training BJJ soon. But I'm concerned that I am not aggressive enough - that I'm going into the wrong arena, that I should pick up weight lifting instead to up my testosterone.

Can anyone provide guidance?

From my personal experience anger is a weakness. It's an emotion that overrides logic. The best BJJ athletes in the game work with their mind. The most elite in the game just so happen to have the athletic prowess to couple their cool heads under pressure.

The ability to stay calm is paramount. Anger and aggression are second to this. I've been a life long martial artist and this is the recurring theme that I've had the luxury of hearing from my low level trainers, right through to guys such as Anderson Silva and Antonio Nogueira who have provided seminars at some of the gyms with which I have trained.

Your own competitive nature will provide aggression through a will to win. Getting angry will only serve to cloud your focus.

Post: #43

I've posted quite a few times on TravelerKai's martial arts datasheet, but I don't really want to hijack that thread. This thread seems more appropriate.

BJJ changed my life. I'm not sure how else to say it. I'm 14 months in and addicted. For the first 6 months it was discipline. I didn't really like doing jits, mostly because I knew it was good for me and I was hopefully getting better.

From 6-9 months I'd say I started feeling the hook but it was still summer and I had a lot of distractions.

I had my first tournament 10 months in (last October), and leading up to it I really focused. I took a private lesson with our owner/blackbelt and we worked on side control and over-the-shoulder to taking the back. I drilled it over and over, finding and fixing my errors. I'd say the training for the tournament is what really lit the fire, because I finally had a sequence that I could use and dominate a few guys with.

Of course as a white belt, confidence in a move or sequence is quickly doused with reality and humbled.

Then x-guard. My dumb joke is, I used to say jujitsu changed my life...now I say x-guard changed my life. Really half x and x guard. We drilled it a bit, then had someone come in and do a seminar, and it was made for me. I've pulled it on so many guys who were on top and had me in half guard or mount. I'm sure I'm relying on it too much, but I'm perfecting it and it's really helping my bottom game.

I know my weakness. My weakness is leadership. I mean that as a personality trait of course, but also reflected in my jits. My coach the other day said I'm still a bit too tense. I told him "you mean on top, because on bottom I feel comfortable. I'm always confident in my moves that I'll get out of a bad spot, even if I won't". Yep. When I'm on top, he can tell because if I'm not in motion, there's a slight tense shake. There's a certain level of action, aggression, leadership that I don't have. That I'm not comfortable with. I'm more of a reactor, always have been.

This is why I started combat sports (I'm sure it doesn't only apply to jujitsu). Besides actually learning and working at something productive, I wanted to carry myself with more confidence. Of course what I didn't understand was that will be a humbling process. Develop confidence? No, discover your insecurities. Discover them in an area of life where you can't avoid them. You can't avoid working through them.

So besides perfecting x guard, my next goal is to become more comfortable in the aggressive position. I plan on grabbing my coach during open gym and going over some things.

To the point of the thread, anger and aggression aren't too different, and both are reflected in leadership and action. Jujitsu, or any combat sport probably, is a great way to discover the importance of these motivating factors.

Edit: One little story. We had this short but really stocky (PEDs?) aggressive black dude in the other day. I rolled with him, and he was tough, a real fighter. More of a fighter than a jujitsu guy...his jits sucked. But it was cool because he was digging his fists in, palming the face, doing little slaps. Nothing harmful or anything, and I told him keep it up. Keep us honest to fighting. He was really trying to piss me off, and for most of the roll he was giving me trouble. No worries, I just slowly, inch by inch moved into my position, then bam, grabbed x guard and swept him so hard. His aggression made him fall hard but scramble to get up. Nope, I wasn't having that. I went right at him and kept him down. It was a good exercise in "this is why I do jits".

Post: #44

Bjj brown belt, almost a decade of training here. For whatever reason, after BJJ I’ve had very few issues at bars/clubs/etc with guys posturing to me. Even being out with beautiful women, and I’m not a big guy. But I have the cauliflower ear and the shaved head. I don’t puff my chest and try to be tough with anyone. It’s just a low key, unconcious confidence.

Nobody should not know how to fight on the ground.

Post: #45

The best feeling in the world...panting, feeling exhausted, ready to step off the mat and go home...then I meet eyes with one of my gym friends, a purple belt who you know can kick my ass, and I think, "one more".

Those are always the best rolls for me. The "one more roll". I think the only way to understand the feeling is being fully exhausted but your mind telling you "fuck you dude I'm going 100% anyway".

Maybe it's because I didn't grow up a fighter, so when I get that drive, I love it.

Post: #46

(12-14-2014 05:27 PM)Checkmat Wrote:  The Psychology of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/wome...-jiu-jitsu

Quote:As a clinical psychologist, and a long-time student of BJJ, it is the psychology of this sport which I find most intriguing. Why is BJJ so powerful and captivating for so many people? Why has BJJ become so popular, with so much dedication from its students, who so often describe the experience as uniquely addictive? BJJ offers many unique experiences which trigger rich, subtle and fulfilling psychological changes in its students, changes which promote positive transformation, and keep people coming back to the mats.

This video was the fastest two hours or whatever I have ever spent on YouTube.

Post: #47

I strained my groin this weekend doing BJJ.

It's not debilitating at all, but it definitely is a little sore. Even hurt when I coughed yesterday.

Should I take a week off? Or should just not play much guard (positions that would bother it)? Or should I just try to go easy?

Post: #48

(03-26-2018 01:36 PM)heavy Wrote:  I strained my groin this weekend doing BJJ.

It's not debilitating at all, but it definitely is a little sore. Even hurt when I coughed yesterday.

Should I take a week off? Or should just not play much guard (positions that would bother it)? Or should I just try to go easy?

I've strained my groin twice, and both times it was because it only hurt a little and I still thought I could train. Wrong. Do not train until there is absolutely NO pain in your inner thigh and you can do a butterfly stretch with zero discomfort. Your groin muscles are extremely delicate and once injured, it is extremely easy to make the initial injury worse or reinjure yourself by trying to exert the muscle again too soon. No squats, no running, definitely no closed guard. I wouldn't spar at all. Although you can do some light drills if you feel comfortable and there is no pain.

Just for the record, both times I strained/tore my groin it took at least three months to heal 100%. The first time I reinjured and it took more than six. It sucks. I'd say it's one of the most frustrating injuries there is. If the tear/strain isn't too bad, maybe two weeks to a month is all you will need. But you have to take it seriously or you're just adding time on until you can get back on the horse.

Post: #49

Reporting again here...

Two months ago I hurt my lower back. I don't have a great back (dad had surgery at 48, brothers and sister all have low back issues), but in this case, I was rolling no-gi and I held on guard for too long (we were drilling) and I got hyper-flexed. A couple weeks later I noticed a slight pain in my left heel which freaked me out.

So for 2 months I took some physical therapy, then continued doing the roll-outs and stretches they taught me. It helped not doing BJJ because I was able to focus on my back.

Anyway, after 2 months I went back in the gym last Friday. Felt great. Not only was I an addict coming back for a delicious fix of fighting, but I quickly realized if I simply don't get stacked (holding on to guard or triangle or whatever) I greatly reduce my chance of back injury or soreness. Add on the fact that I know now how to release those tight muscles with PT, and I feel awesome.

Weird thing though. My top game is noticeably better than when I left. Leading up to my injury, I was going to the gym a lot consistently for months. It's like the 2 months allowed my brain to consolidate all that information from all the drilling, training, and time on the mat.

I'm addicted again. I've rolled the last 4 days, might go in today. After 2 months, it is surprising how much of a full-body workout it is.

Post: #50

One of the things about Gi vs No-Gi is that no-gi is a bit better on your back as people can't just grab the gi and pull you into them while you fight against them with your lower back.

I've always been a strong advocate for taking the occasional week or two off to let everything settle. Often times I find constant training can lead to lazyness or lack of effort while training. When you get back in after a break things become clearer and more often than not, just as you experienced you come back stronger.