The Original Guard Still Has Its Place In BJJ... For many years, the closed guard was considered to be one of the dominant positions in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. For the naïve, being in the closed guard can be dangerous due to the extensive...

Easy Ideas To Get Ahead At White Belt... Being a new white belt is kind of like being a freshman in high school. The novelty of the situation combined with the natural awkwardness associated with being a newbie can induce many to make...

Learn to stifle one of the most common passes with Mikey Musumeci The Toreando is one of the most common passes that is used by the standing passer. The bullfighter pass, as it is sometimes called, involves planting the feet to the mat...

Exploring the benefits of gymnastics for the Jiu Jitsu practitioner... It is always my contention that the best way to get better at Jiu Jitsu is more Jiu Jitsu. However, many of us look for ways to augment our training.  Perhaps, family or...

I remember walking through the doors of a Brazilian JiuJitsu Academy for the first time. I asked the instructor if I could watch a class and he agreed to let me sit and watch from the sidelines. The class started with all of...

You have been training Brazilian JiuJitsu for a couple of years and finally have some color to your belt. In fact, you haven't lost a "roll session" for a few weeks and feel like your technical game is evolving by the day. Suddenly...

Ideas on this beautiful submission... When I first started training, leg locks and wrist locks were considered dirty moves.  I was fortunate that my schooled allowed them but not everyone trained them.  I would always feel a surge of excitement would someone would...

Ideas on this badge of honor... Like a child waiting for Santa Claus, I keep waiting for my cauliflower ear to come.  My wife is thrilled that my ears are intact. They are spotless like someone who has never seen the inside of...

Ideas on the Dojo Storm… Gordon Ryan recently said the following. “I love how people say ‘BJJ is built around respect and honor.’ No, it’s not! It is built around savage Brazilians kicking the shit out of people just because they could. Storming...

Exploring a great cause... In America, we are richly blessed with material goods in comparison to many other parts of the world. The holiday season is around the corner. It should be a reminder to help out those who are in need.  Many...

The Fans Were Head Over Heels for This Pass Renato Canuto's star is on the rise.  This Checkmat black belt from Sao Paolo who now lives in Las Vegas has made his mark on the jiu jitsu scene in recent years.  At just...

The structure of repetitions… Bruce Lee is famously quoted as saying, “I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced 1 kick 10,000 times.” The idea of practice is a key component to...

Chunking, slowing it down and feedback… Bruce Lee is famously quoted as saying, “I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced 1 kick 10,000 times.” The idea of practice is a key...

Getting the whole picture… I walked into the gym recently to over hear this conversation between two white belts, “It is like Rhonda Rousey said, ‘I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has...

 Even a back take can have a silver lining What's that old cliche about teaching an old dog new tricks?  Recently during a visit to Carlos Farias' academy in Arizona, Bernardo Faria met Parker Lapp and that cliche was turned on its head...