The Party
I've decided not to go to the tournament because forty dollars is too steep just to compete and lose. I went to this special party that the BYU BJJ club today. It wasn't as fun as Wednesday night. I think it's because I got to work with Brian that night. I love working with him because he likes to joke around a lot. He's lots of fun to work with and has tons of knowledge because he's a purple belt. However, he doesn't wear it. He's really good. I need to ask him if I'm still using too much muscle because Eric said I was tonight. Colin said that I need to be nicer when sparring too. Like trying not to shove my forearm in Logan throat so he can let go of me from his guard. That didn't work anyways. I don't know. I learned that I can use any pain compliance technique that I want. That's how I learned to be more aggressive and not afraid that I'm going to cause someone pain. I remember that I gave older Nick a huge scratch on his chest on accident. It was all good though.
Logan is a beginner at the club, so he won the first match with ankle lock. Then, we went had a second match that lasted forever. We are evenly matched for the most part. However, he had the advantage because he was on top of me for most of the match. He loves closed guard which I'm horrible at getting out of. So, I tried stacking, choking, and wearing him out so he can let go of me. However, that didn't work. It was weird going that slow so long. If we any of us slowed down and stalled in Roberto's dojo, we count down until someone got a better position. If nobody did, he stop us and say it was a tie. Colin says that the club likes to have slow matches like that. I think it's just weird.
I don't know who's right about BJJ any more because Roberto thought that not many of the guys knew much basics. They know finishing moves, but they know how to properly defend. They don't know all the things in the middle. All I want is a black belt in BJJ who can tell me what's good and not good. It's like Roberto thinks that a gym like school called Throwdown sucks. He says the guys that train there has awful technique. However, Coach Pease says that the instruction there is top notch. He says it's not for everyone because the class sizes are big. I don't know who's right anymore. I don't have much knowledge of BJJ like I do with Goju-Ryu. All I know is a principle from what I learned when throwing the discus. It all technique and speed while throwing it. One cannot use muscle because that tenses the body. A tense muscle doesn't move as fast as a muscle that not tense. Plus, it's better to be more flexible so the muscle has more elasticity like a rubber band.
3 comments:
From personal experience I know that a black belt in any given art won't be able to tell you what is the best way to do something, or what is the right way or what is the wrong way. Any given move will be right in a certain situation. It is developing the mental aspect of the art and the logical thinking that will provide you with the answer. Then you can tell yourself what works and what doesn't.
Logical thinking might have a place on the floor, but one needs to internalize to the point where there is no thinking.
Thinking takes too long in any situation, certainly you must ascertain and judge, but when it is time to throw down, there is nothing else. Let it flow.
When looking for a good BJJ school, you first need to consider the basics:
1. Schedule
2. Cost
3. Location
You need to be able to attend a reasonable amount of classes per week, at a cost you can afford, in a place you can reach.
Once those are sorted, then I would consider the following about the school itself:
1. Lineage
2. Competition Record
3. Senior Belts
If I can see that the instructor got their rank from somebody well respected in the BJJ world, like Pedro Sauer, Carlson Gracie, Roy Harris etc, then I can rest assured they're legit, and should know their stuff.
If the school has a decent competitive record, then I know that the instructor is able to transmit what they know to the student base. Competition isn't everything, but a good record reflects well on a school.
Finally, it is useful to have a good number of senior belts on the mat. Naturally this will vary depending on your own rank: as a white belt, it doesn't matter too much, as long as the instructor is at least a purple. As a blue, you'll want a few blues to train with, and preferably some higher belts as well.
Having said that, you can still develop even if you're only ever rolling with junior belts. After all, my old instrutor Roger Gracie just trains with his students, who obviously aren't on his level. Doesn't seem to have done him any harm. ;)
Post a Comment