This is my strong hand...

Have you ever been drilling a technique and realized that it works better from one side or the other?  The thought of my left side being so inefficient and my right side techniques flow a lot smoother has been bothering me for several weeks now. I am to the point, where I need to focus on improving my weak side to improve my techniques from any position and help me work more escapes and others.

Since my loss in focus and concentration a couple of weeks ago, I stumbled across a gem of a book called, Body-Mind-Mastery: Training for Sport and Life by Dan Millman. This book discusses how to use natural laws in nature and life influences your training and performance in whatever sport you are currently involved.If it outlines some really deep ideals on training and performance in sports and how it interacts with your life.

Now, I was reading the other day in the book about symmetry between your body and muscles. If you were capable to perform any movement with either your weak or strong side you could reduce injuries, by not limiting yourself to one side, you could train longer, by switching side to side, and you would be come more versatile in your sport.

 Naturally, you are going to favor your dominant side and move somewhat effortlessly in your movements. If you could train your weak side to be as strong as or stronger than your dominant side, would you take the time? I am sure a majority of you would say, “Yes!” Who would not jump at the chance to improve their game?  The list of pros definitely outweighs the cons in my book.  The only con I could come up with is the sheer awkwardness of trying techniques from the other side. I am sure there are others, but the pro for me would be less fatique on my dominant side, more escapes, more submissions, and the ability to increase my skill level by utilizing 100% of my body.

I am going to start trying to do things with my left side and see if I can activate the opposite side of my brain and increase my efficiency on my left side. Some things I have already started doing, I moved my mouse over to my left side and I have started trying to do things with my opposite hand. I managed to write the alphabet 10 times with my left hand, it looks like chicken scratch, but I felt like I was concentrating and focusing a lot more than I would have done if I were just writing with my dominant hand. This is going to be a fun experiment and I will try to keep you posted on my progress. How do you train your opposite side or have you ever tried to use your non-dominant side during your daily activities?

First Tournament Results

Well,  last weekend I competed in my First tournament and I had an absolute blast despite being really nervous.I was so nervous, I thought I was going to throw up on the way to Myrtle Beach and while I was weighing in at the tournament.

I made it through the weigh ins at 213lbs, which is where I wanted to be and started looking at the competition that had signed up, only 3 people in my division. One of which was, Billy, another white belt from my school. He and I would square off against each other in the 200-225lb division and have several matches to boot.

Billy lost his first match by points, and that set me up to go against my first opponent.We squared off and slapped hands and the crowd went silent. My heart beat was echoing in my ears and my breathing was erratic. I kept trying to get the take down, and pulled a very sloppy guard. There was a back and forth exchange of positions and we ended up back on our feet. I managed to grab a leg and get the single leg take down. I tried several kimuras from the top and got swept. He left his arm in and ended up getting him in a triangle. After watching the video and getting some feedback from everyone at my school, I missed several opportunities earlier in the match to go for a triangle.

I was on an high as I rolled into gi and submitted the same guy with a triangle I had submitted in no-gi. Then Billy and I faced off, there were several reversals back and forth. He got me in an Omaplata and rolled out and got side control. Eventually I caught my friend in a key lock and won the match by submission to take 1st in Gi. Do not worry Billy got his revenge on me in the Absolute white belt

  Going into white belt absolute, I was more nervous for this division. I ended up going against a guy that was about 175lbs and who seemed to me to be the Flash, disguised as a white belt. He was all over me and I could not shake him. He had my back and racked nice cushion of lead of 9-0. I ended up trying to escape and forgot to block his leg and ended up in a triangle. Ironic, huh?

Then Billy came back, and took third place in absolute, by defeating with an arm bar submission. By this point my cardio was shot and I was tired and hungry.

I ended up with 2 first place finishes and a not so bad showing in absolute for my first time. Overall, I am proud to have finished like I did. I never would have thought that I would have ever got enough nerve and would have ever been this physically ready to do something like this. I have exceeded a goal and met my biggest fear by doing this tournament. Now, unfortunately, I have the bug and I want to compete again! Congratulations to Billy, for a great showing in his first tournament!

Things to work on before my tournament:
1) Cardio- Back to Crossfit and Rolling more
2) Game plan- Get one and use it
3) BREATH!!!!
4) Drill my escapes over and over
5)Do the best I can, and learn from what I did wrong

Any and all feedback is welcome and let me know your thoughts on my performance or any tips that you would give me to work on for my next tournament. 

Upcoming Tournament, This weekend!

I was out of town all last week in Virginia and did not get a chance to train at all. Now I am back in good ole South Carolina, and back to hitting the mats and the weights in preparation for this tournament this weekend at Myrtle Beach, SC.

This is my first tournament and I definitely felt the butterflies earlier in the week. After talking with all the guys they reassured me I would do fine and I probably would have some adrenaline rush and gas out early. It actually felt like I was already competing; I was sweating and my heart rate was through the roof since from listening to them describe my first tournament.

I then turned to internet for guidance and searched through several blogs I follow, and read everything I could about tournaments and competing in all of them. It was nice to see all the people that have competed for the first time and survived to compete again, and kept us newbies informed so that we can learn from their experiences.

Preparation for this tournament is nil, but I am going in with no expectations and will definitely learn from this weekend. My mind has been racing all week with antici......................pation (using my Dr. Frankenfurter voice).

After 8 months of training, here I am face to face with something I thought I would never do. This is a milestone for me in my life. Win, lose or draw, I am going to have fun and meet some fellow practitioners and do I what I love to do, Jiu Jitsu. Wish me Luck!

Roberto "Cyborg" Abreu Seminar Report

I drove down to Savannah, GA to Team Roberto Traven's affiliated school Serg BJJ for an awesome opportunity to take the Roberto "Cyborg" Abreu's seminar. I was pretty stoked about it and really did not know what to expect.

Since I have been studying Jiu Jitsu this guy has rocketed to the top of my favorites list, not just because he is a world champion, because he is a motivator, innovative, and a big guy that moves with the speed and agility of a small guy.

Speaking of innovation,have you ever seen the movie "Beautiful Mind," which chronicles the life of John Nash, who has a unique gift of solving mathematical and statical data that have stumped even the brightest minds? Cyborg's mind seems to cross that of Nash's and he sees the puzzle and reacts to solve the enigma of Jiu Jitsu.

I have never encountered someone that thinks and reacts to Jiu Jitsu like he does. Maybe because he is a self taught, hungry competitor that is consistently improving himself and studying for his next opportunity to show his skill and knowledge of Jiu Jitsu. He believes that for every technique you drill you should come up with at least three variations in case your opponent counters and you have to adjust your game plan. His theory on variations was shown on the techniques that the group of us eighteen guys drilled.

We started with a simple half guard transition to deep half guard. Now this where I got to see his mind at work. He showed us the counters to deep half from top and how to control the opponent. Then he showed us the counters to the counters from the bottom. This is where he spoke of the reaction to the position. You cannot drill the technique and understand it if your partner just follows; they need to react so that you can get a real simulation of the movement and drill correctly.

We probably drilled 10 techniques by my count from deep half with a lot of variations. We worked a lot of sweeps and passes from deep half also. I always wanted to learn some deep half techniques and now I know several.

His instruction on the movements and drilling were something I would not have pictured. He would sit and watch each of us drill what he had just shown,not like an observer, but you could actually see him breaking down our movements in his head. Once he spotted us doing something abnormal with the movement, he would come over and coach us through it.

It was something of a honor to sit and listen to his philosophy of Jiu Jitsu and how he opened his first school as a purple belt with all new white belts, how he encourages his students to develop their own games and variations on Jiu Jitsu, and how the art has changed his life.

The art is full of guys that have the same game and learn and train the same techniques, it was refreshing to learn from someone who has developed their own moves, style, and philosophy on the art of Jiu Jitsu.

I do want to thank Michael Sergi and Cyborg himself for this opportunity. It was definitely an experience I will never forget. If you get a chance to experience one of Cyborg's seminars, I would encourage you to spend the money. The rewards out weigh the risk, and you will be glad you did.

Out of Focus

"The successful warrior is the average man, with laser-like focus." Bruce Lee

Recently, I have lacked focus during rolling and even during drilling. Random thoughts pop into my head, or I take my mind off of what I am doing. Has that ever happened to anyone?

I just seem to zone out and make stupid mistakes. I do not know if the arrival of my first child has me nervous, the due date is a mere 11 weeks away! Yikes!! I think about it quite often, will I be prepared, what will I do if.., or will she like jiu jitsu?

It is just randomness and worries that pop in my head. I have never been able to keep my thoughts to myself. Like tonight, I mentioned during drilling that I would like to go to Checkers (a fast food burger place). Why did that pop in my head? I was hungry no doubt, but did I have to say it out loud. Yes, my buddies laughed, but that should have not been said during technique drilling.





I need to figure out how to recapture my focus before I lose it, and I need to stop the random thoughts and focus on the mat and time. I used to think about rolling, getting out of bad spots, and working techniques. Instead now, I am worried I am worried about all sort of craziness!

This weekend I am visiting some friends in Savannah,GA and going to check out Serg BJJ and catch Roberto "Cyborg" Abreu there for a seminar. Then Monday I am leaving for Virginia, and I am hoping I can hone my focus by attending another school and meet some new people. Yep, that should focus me back up.

Professor Luis "Limao" Heredia Seminar

I had the chance today to travel to Bluffton, SC with two of my buddies from Swampfox BJJ, Mark and Mike, and attend a seminar at Cross Rhodes BJJ  from the very much accomplished and well renown mind of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Professor Luis Heredia. First of all this is was my first seminar and it was truly a life and game enhancing experience.

A little background about the Professor: He was the first purple belt to step foot in the United States. With friends and training partners, Rorian and Rickson Gracie, he helped to start the spread of Jiu Jitsu throughout the US. He has trained with the Gracie Family and associated with the founders of the gentle art since he was around 14 years old. He is a 5 time Pan Am champion and world class instructor and professor at Maui Jiu Jitsu Academy. You can visit the site and find out more about this pillar of the Jiu Jitsu community.


Now, this was my first seminar ever, and with such a honored member of the Jiu Jitsu family. So let's get the awkwardness out of the way. That's right, I showed up in a Black Kimono. Yes, I now know that I am to wear a white one. I felt kind of bad and embarrassed about the whole ordeal.


After Professor Heredia gave some background on himself. We started with some techniques from questions that everyone was asking. It was kind of overwhelming to see his mind work at the puzzle of Jiu Jitsu. The first question was about your opponent being off balance while in knee-on-belly mount and they have bad posture for setting up the choke, what do you do on bottom? You could see the 30 plus years of experience in the art at work immediately. He started instructing us on some sweeps from bottom while in knee-on-belly mount.

His technical skills and ability to teach techniques was amazing. He flawlessly flowed from one question to the next and the next. Answering each one and demonstrating each technique to the counter and the attack. All of us listened to his detailed explanation of each move.
 How to control the head and the hips were the keys to all of the techniques; if you allow an opponent to have movement of their head or their hips, they can escape or counter.

He explained his progression through Jiu Jitsu and how he became to wonder about being a small frame guy and learning to keep mount position after he had been playing bottom and guard for a majority of years. He started to learn about weight distribution and started working full mount and submissions from mount. His coaching for mount positions and submissions is something, I think, I will never forget.

With this, he started his tutelage on mount position and submissions from mount. We worked the choke and went over the orientation of the wrists and how crucial it is to the choke submissions. While drilling these moves, I learned a lot about the cross choke, hip placement and weight distribution.

He shared stories with us about some of the tournaments, and his thoughts and beliefs on Jiu Jitsu. He told us that Jiu Jitsu is the only sport that he can feel present in and focused on, and not think about anything else.

This being my first seminar, Professor Heredia and Cross Rhodes BJJ have set the bar and exceeded my expectations. I look forward to utilizing and adding some of these moves to my game. If you get a chance to attend a seminar from Professor Heredia, I suggest you take it. It will be the best investment and experience you will make to your life and Jiu Jitsu.

Thanks Professor Heredia, Ben Rhodes, Cross Rhodes BJJ guys/gals, and my training partner during the seminar, Andrew.

Please feel free to post your comments or your feedback.

And now some videos of Professor Heredia:

Top 30 Signs you are addicted to Jiu Jitsu:

Here is a list that was posted on thejiujitsufighter.com/.

The list was posted in 2008, but I decided to bring it out and dust it off, due to the discussion over at jiujitsuforums.com.

Enjoy!

You know you're addicted to Jiu-Jitsu when...

1. On your way home after Jiu-Jitsu class you always stop to go shopping so you can show off your kimono and belt.

2. All of your enemies, "gotta big mouth!"

3. You begin pronouncing the word Jiu-Jitsu (jew-jit-su) as "zhuzhitsu."

4. You're constantly thinking up a new setup or move that no one has discovered just so you can “put your name on it."

5. While in bed with your wife or girlfriend you're doing Jiu-Jitsu reversals to maneuver her into the position you want.

6. While talking with friends, bosses, or relatives you eye them up and down to see which would be easier to get on them: the armbar or the choke.

7. You're constantly staring at other people's ears while at bars and clubs to see who is a grappler.

8. Only when you're explaining a move to a friend do you develop a slight Brazilian accent.

9. Waiters, waitresses, and the cable guy are all now "my friend, my friend."

10. You turn over in bed at night by posting your foot and sliding your hips to turn instead of just rolling over.

11. You spend hours on end looking at BJJ sites trying to think of things you can say.

12. You try to get grandma to do a footlock on you.

13. Your family members begin to lose feeling in their joints.

14. Last night you dreamt that Royce Gracie put you in an armbar, and when you woke up your arm was caught between your desk and the edge of your bed.

15. Asked how BJJ deals with multiple attackers you say, "I don’t know, I've never found more than one person dumb enough to try."

16. You find it fun putting house pets (e.g. dogs and cats) into locks, chokes, and holds.

17. You start wanting to test your BJJ skills against big guys at bars and clubs.

18. It becomes increasingly difficult to say, "So you’re a black belt in Taekwondo, that's very impressive," with a straight face.

19. You catch yourself attempting to pass your girlfriend’s guard.

20. You talk in broken English, even though you're a college graduate.

21. You practice chokes on anyone that turns his back to you.

22. Someone tries to give you a hug you immediately drop into base and execute a hip throw.

23. Your girlfriend comes over and you greet her with an open guard instead of a hug.

24. You find yourself twisting and mangling your ears trying to get the cauliflower to look cool.

25. You start teaching your 10-month-old baby the mount, the side mount, and the guard.

26. Breaking joints becomes an everyday thing.

27. While nobody is around, you start doing submissions to your pillow.

28. Your Gi has more patches on it than a whole company of Girl Scout uniforms.

29. During the winter you wear your Gi top around the house instead of a sweater or turning on the heat.

30. You’re trying to get your friends to the BJJ dojo just to show them what a great Lion-Killer you have.