A rising trend in Jiu Jitsu, thanks to great minds like John Danaher, is the implementation of comprehensive systemic methods to develop one’s skill rather than an individual technique-based game. Watching grapplers like Gordon Ryan and Garry Tonon helped me conclude that systems...

Your Mindset Needs Trained As Much As Your Berimbolos Stanford researcher Carol Dweck has studied and written extensively on the role of one's mindset on their life and performance.  In simplest terms, she posits that people's mindsets generally fall into one of two main categories,...

To paraphrase Professor John Danaher regarding his thoughts on the fundamentals of Jiu Jitsu;Everyone agrees that the fundamentals are the most important part of Jiu Jitsu and are what form the very foundation that we build our own Jiu Jitsu game.  The...

I started competing in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu very late in my journey. In fact, I waited until deep in to brown belt to begin testing my BJJ pedigree against others. I wasn’t confident in my abilities for the longest time, and where I began...

Your Mind Will Get You to Black Belt and Beyond There are as many reasons to start training BJJ as there are students currently training.  Everyone who has ever walked into a Jiu Jitsu academy for the first time, whether they have consciously...

 Change or die as the saying goes.  If you’re not growing, you’re dying, some say.  We live in an interesting and exciting time as far as Jiu Jitsu is concerned.  We have Instructors like John Danaher who are completely changing the way Jiu...

Taking the first step in training is hard.  It’s arguably the hardest step in the entire Jiu Jitsu journey.  Sure, getting your black belt is going to be a challenge, heck, getting to blue belt will likely force you to overcome challenges and...

Tom DeBlass has one of the most effective half guard games in the history of BJJ. DeBlass has molded his half guard in to a seemingly impenetrable brick wall, that’s frustrated many of the top tier passers of our time. His understanding of...

  The Half-Guard has become the most popular guard in modern jiu jitsu. It is a flexible attacking guard that allows for a myriad of sweeps and submissions, and unlike the traditional Closed Guard there is one major advantage: you only need to...

The knee shield has been a sworn protector of the guard for many years. Its saved countless BJJ players from begin smashed by bigger stronger opponents, and it’s been claimed by many of the elite level titans as their favorite utility of the...

  Half guard is one of the most commonly used positions regardless if you are a white belt or a black belt.  It is widely regarded as one of the most effective guards across both no-gi and gi in Jiu-Jitsu. One of the...

Jiu Jitsu has a cult like following.  Why is that? If you don’t train it may seem a little odd that your friends or colleagues that train Jiu Jitsu are so obsessed with it.  Sure, it seems fun and all, maybe you even...

It’s no secret as you train Jiu Jitsu for some time you will likely find certain positions that you find to be less comfortable than others.  I think it’s safe to say no one likes being mounted, or even being in bottom side...

How many times have you heard it from your friends or family, or even a random person you’re talking to about Jiu Jitsu.   It’s likely the most used excuse for not training on the planet. “I want to start training;I just...

The scissor sweep has been a long time favorite of mine.   Personally, I feel like it’s one of the easiest, simplest sweeps to learn as a newcomer to Jiu jitsu, but it is also something that you can continue to develop, get...