Today I was back in class. For some reason, it was a small one. Only myself, curtis, Adam and Andrew were there. Adam is very keen on getting in as much practice as he can, because he's testing for purple next week. I wish him the best.
I came in 15 minutes late because of a dental appointment. On the positive side, no cavities.
Anyways, we went over rear mount escapes. The scoop and the bridge escape were the orders of business. We went over it a few times each, then rolled.
I'm not a big fan of the way Andrew rolls. In my mind, he's unnecessarily rough. I mainly roll with blue belts, and while he definitely has skill, he likes to crank. For example, when he transitions to knee on belly/chest, he likes to jump up and drive down. It was pretty painful, and I've never seen a blue belt do that before. I thought it might be in response to something I did (spazzing?) but Curtis told me that he nearly killed him too. I was pretty sure I wasn't spazzing, because at the time I was mainly defending, and focusing on keeping my arms in.
When I rolled with Curtis, a fellow no-stripe white belt, he was really able to use his size to school the hell out of me. He submitted me two or three times and I wasn't able to get anything on him. He works really hard, and trains five days a week. It absolutely makes sense that he is out-performing me. I wish I could commit to that much training.
I just felt like I regressed today. I hear that is fairly common, but it still is not very encouraging. My ribs and breastbone are sore from Andrew's attacks. I am going to focus on training more regularly. This hit an miss training has to stop...but real life keeps getting in my way.
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
Sunday, June 9, 2013
No training last week
Unfortunately, I had to skip a whole week of training. I wasn't injured or anything, it was just a busy week. I had my third wedding anniversary, my best friend's birthday, and then my cat nearly died and required an expensive surgery to save her. So, this week I plan on hitting the training hard. I've decided that I should probably make some goals. I feel like I'm getting pretty decent at defense, thanks partially to great training partners and following Ribeiro's advice from "Jiu Jitsu University"
That isn't to say I don't have a long way to come, I'm just saying I'm recognizing my improvement in those areas. Blue belts are starting to have to work to tap me out.
I've been thinking about what I want to achieve in BJJ. Its good to have goals, other than "I want a stripe on my belt" or "I want to make blue belt within a year." Those are noble things, sure, but I want something more skill oriented. So here goes:
1) I want to focus more on escapes -
I've mentioned that I'm developing ok defensively, but I still don't know what to do when I'm in a bad position.
2) I want to develop better guard passing skills -
This is a skill that is vital to the BJJ player, and my skills aren't very good. I know I'm just a white belt, but I think that developing good guard passing skills should start early. I don't think it something that should be ignored until I've been around longer
3) I want to develop my own guard game -
I'm one of the smaller guys in class. Those that don't outweigh me are in Adonis-like shape. I'm pretty comfortably "middle weight" but I"m not in shape. I've noticed that bigger guys have no trouble at all breaking my closed guard, so I need to learn how to fight from more open guard positions.
4) Develop a specialization -
I know it sounds weird that that I'm a white belt who has been doing BJJ less than five months, but wants to specialize in something. I just think its important to try to find out which skills I have a knack for. An example is been able to use omoplatas several times during rolling, despite only having been showed how to do it once. Does this mean I have a knack for that move? I'd like to explore this further, and just see what I'm good at.
5) Go to more classes -
I've been pretty consistently going to at least two classes a week, minus last week. I'd like to make an average class attendance of three time a week in the next six months. Its difficult because of how hectic my life is at the moment, but if I can manage to get some easy classes in school I think I can manage it. I'll only be in school another year, I definitely want to increase my BJJ sessions after that. I just see so many people going twice a day, and I realize that I'm never going to be able to match that level of dedication. There are several people in my gym who go six days a week (we generally don't do Sundays), and I"m just in awe of their dedication.
I will note that none of the people training that often have children :P
Speaking of which, my daughter's first birthday party is next weekend, so I won't be attending the Bluegrass Open. I think that several of our team mates are going, so I wish them the best of luck.
That isn't to say I don't have a long way to come, I'm just saying I'm recognizing my improvement in those areas. Blue belts are starting to have to work to tap me out.
I've been thinking about what I want to achieve in BJJ. Its good to have goals, other than "I want a stripe on my belt" or "I want to make blue belt within a year." Those are noble things, sure, but I want something more skill oriented. So here goes:
1) I want to focus more on escapes -
I've mentioned that I'm developing ok defensively, but I still don't know what to do when I'm in a bad position.
2) I want to develop better guard passing skills -
This is a skill that is vital to the BJJ player, and my skills aren't very good. I know I'm just a white belt, but I think that developing good guard passing skills should start early. I don't think it something that should be ignored until I've been around longer
3) I want to develop my own guard game -
I'm one of the smaller guys in class. Those that don't outweigh me are in Adonis-like shape. I'm pretty comfortably "middle weight" but I"m not in shape. I've noticed that bigger guys have no trouble at all breaking my closed guard, so I need to learn how to fight from more open guard positions.
4) Develop a specialization -
I know it sounds weird that that I'm a white belt who has been doing BJJ less than five months, but wants to specialize in something. I just think its important to try to find out which skills I have a knack for. An example is been able to use omoplatas several times during rolling, despite only having been showed how to do it once. Does this mean I have a knack for that move? I'd like to explore this further, and just see what I'm good at.
5) Go to more classes -
I've been pretty consistently going to at least two classes a week, minus last week. I'd like to make an average class attendance of three time a week in the next six months. Its difficult because of how hectic my life is at the moment, but if I can manage to get some easy classes in school I think I can manage it. I'll only be in school another year, I definitely want to increase my BJJ sessions after that. I just see so many people going twice a day, and I realize that I'm never going to be able to match that level of dedication. There are several people in my gym who go six days a week (we generally don't do Sundays), and I"m just in awe of their dedication.
I will note that none of the people training that often have children :P
Speaking of which, my daughter's first birthday party is next weekend, so I won't be attending the Bluegrass Open. I think that several of our team mates are going, so I wish them the best of luck.
Saturday, June 1, 2013
Decent
Last night's class was small.
Darrin, our black belt, teach on Thursdays and Fridays now. His work schedule became a bit more stable for the time being, which is awesome for us. I honestly expected last night to be crowded, because of how packed it was thursday. There was only four of us though, five with Darrin.
We worked mount escapes, then rolled.
I started off rolling against Adam, who is a very good 4-stripe blue belt. He tapped me like six times...which is better than usual. I went against a new blue belt to our school as well. I can't remember his name, but he's a 4-strip blue. He wasn't able to submit me...but I don't know if he was actually trying. I did have some pretty decent defense going.
My third roll was with Curtis, whom is much larger than me. He's so big that I can't close my guard around him very well, so he passes pretty easily. He's only been coming for a month, but he's a cop and has trained in the past. Plus, he has been going, literally, every night we have class. I really admire his dedication. He serves in the police with Paul, who also comes everyday.
Anyways, I had some decent defense against him. I was able to pull off a cross collar choke against him. This is the first time I've been able to get it to work with a resisting opponent. He wasn't able to submit me, which makes me happy. He's so much stronger and larger than me, that its a testament to the effectiveness of jiu jitsu that he wasn't able to man handle me.
My final roll was with Darrin. He kinda just toyed around with me, and let me work on some of the stuff we'd been doing in class. Its always fun to roll with him, because he's so playful. I tried an omoplata against him, but I hit it too shallow.
Anyways, it was a decent night. It wasn't my best crappling, but it wasn't the worst.
Darrin, our black belt, teach on Thursdays and Fridays now. His work schedule became a bit more stable for the time being, which is awesome for us. I honestly expected last night to be crowded, because of how packed it was thursday. There was only four of us though, five with Darrin.
We worked mount escapes, then rolled.
I started off rolling against Adam, who is a very good 4-stripe blue belt. He tapped me like six times...which is better than usual. I went against a new blue belt to our school as well. I can't remember his name, but he's a 4-strip blue. He wasn't able to submit me...but I don't know if he was actually trying. I did have some pretty decent defense going.
My third roll was with Curtis, whom is much larger than me. He's so big that I can't close my guard around him very well, so he passes pretty easily. He's only been coming for a month, but he's a cop and has trained in the past. Plus, he has been going, literally, every night we have class. I really admire his dedication. He serves in the police with Paul, who also comes everyday.
Anyways, I had some decent defense against him. I was able to pull off a cross collar choke against him. This is the first time I've been able to get it to work with a resisting opponent. He wasn't able to submit me, which makes me happy. He's so much stronger and larger than me, that its a testament to the effectiveness of jiu jitsu that he wasn't able to man handle me.
My final roll was with Darrin. He kinda just toyed around with me, and let me work on some of the stuff we'd been doing in class. Its always fun to roll with him, because he's so playful. I tried an omoplata against him, but I hit it too shallow.
Anyways, it was a decent night. It wasn't my best crappling, but it wasn't the worst.
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Big Crowd
Tonight we had a lot of people. A lot of new faces, and a couple that I haven't seen in a couple of months. Mats were very crowded...i'm actually surprised nobody went crashing into each other.
We worked on mount escapes. Nothing major, just good basic skills to have. I really wish I had time to train more.
I did a few sparring matches, starting with Curtis. He's a large cop. I can barely close my guard on him. We had a good match, he choked me with an ezekiel, but I caught him with an Americana. I rolled with a "new guy" named Curtis. I was surprised at how poorly I was doing against him, until he told me that he has a few years of experience at a no-gi school, and has been going to this one on an off for a few years. He's still only a white belt because he primarily no-gi.
I also rolled with Heath, he didn't get me in anything, but I didn't get him. Then I rolled with Adam, and he was bustin' me out every couple of seconds, it seemed.
Overall, I had a decent night. Not good, but not horrible. I managed to catch a few omoplata attempts...which surprised me. I wasn't able to lock any in, well except one on Rodney...but he was saved by the bell. So far, Omoplata has been one of my more successful moves. I even almost landed one on Adam...but he's big and was able to push his way out.
We worked on mount escapes. Nothing major, just good basic skills to have. I really wish I had time to train more.
I did a few sparring matches, starting with Curtis. He's a large cop. I can barely close my guard on him. We had a good match, he choked me with an ezekiel, but I caught him with an Americana. I rolled with a "new guy" named Curtis. I was surprised at how poorly I was doing against him, until he told me that he has a few years of experience at a no-gi school, and has been going to this one on an off for a few years. He's still only a white belt because he primarily no-gi.
I also rolled with Heath, he didn't get me in anything, but I didn't get him. Then I rolled with Adam, and he was bustin' me out every couple of seconds, it seemed.
Overall, I had a decent night. Not good, but not horrible. I managed to catch a few omoplata attempts...which surprised me. I wasn't able to lock any in, well except one on Rodney...but he was saved by the bell. So far, Omoplata has been one of my more successful moves. I even almost landed one on Adam...but he's big and was able to push his way out.
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
It Ain't the Years, Its the Mileage
So, I had an absolutely wonderful class tonight.
We didn't do any drills or anything, we just straight up rolled for an hour and a half. I gassed out after about 45 minutes, but stayed in the mix because you have to know how to keep going when you're tired. Doing this helped me figure out some ways to save some energy, and I found that even after rolling, I got a second wind a few minutes later.
I did some stuff that impressed my sparring partners alot, including our coach. He let me get him in half guard, and I caught him in a straight arm bar from there. He told me he was surprised by that, but that I should have had control of his arm more. He could have gotten out of it, but he was just happy that I locked something in. It was kind of a big moment for me :D
When rolling with Ken, I took him by surprise by nearly catching him in an arm bar. He barely escaped, and actually stopped our roll to tell me how awesome my transition was.
Days like this is why I keep going back to BJJ. Even if I have a bad day, as long as I have one of these every now and again, I'm happy. Its fun.
The bad part though...
I somehow pulled my neck. I must be getting old, because I wasn't an any head holds or anything. In fact, I didn't feel anything until I stood up after working scarf hold on Joe. As soon as I did, I felt it. I sparred lightly after that, and then sat the remaining round on the sidelines. I'm icing/resting and medicating right now, but it hurts like a bitch.
My wife tells me I'm just getting old....I'm only 27.
It must be the mileage.
We didn't do any drills or anything, we just straight up rolled for an hour and a half. I gassed out after about 45 minutes, but stayed in the mix because you have to know how to keep going when you're tired. Doing this helped me figure out some ways to save some energy, and I found that even after rolling, I got a second wind a few minutes later.
I did some stuff that impressed my sparring partners alot, including our coach. He let me get him in half guard, and I caught him in a straight arm bar from there. He told me he was surprised by that, but that I should have had control of his arm more. He could have gotten out of it, but he was just happy that I locked something in. It was kind of a big moment for me :D
When rolling with Ken, I took him by surprise by nearly catching him in an arm bar. He barely escaped, and actually stopped our roll to tell me how awesome my transition was.
Days like this is why I keep going back to BJJ. Even if I have a bad day, as long as I have one of these every now and again, I'm happy. Its fun.
The bad part though...
I somehow pulled my neck. I must be getting old, because I wasn't an any head holds or anything. In fact, I didn't feel anything until I stood up after working scarf hold on Joe. As soon as I did, I felt it. I sparred lightly after that, and then sat the remaining round on the sidelines. I'm icing/resting and medicating right now, but it hurts like a bitch.
My wife tells me I'm just getting old....I'm only 27.
It must be the mileage.
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Back in Action
I've been slacking this week, and tonight is the only night I've actually gone to BJJ.
Honestly, I've been feeling like crap. My CFS flared up, and I haven't been up to doing much at all. Today I still felt shitty, but doing slightly better. So, I forced myself into going, and I'm glad I did. I'm ungodly tired right now, but during class I was feeling better.
We started off doing guard pass drills, and I partnered with Heath, a no stripe blue belt. He's a good partner for me, because he's not too much beyond me. He knows enough to help me out, but during live drills, he has trouble submitting me. I can't get anything on him either, but the fact that I'm holding out against a blue belt does wonders for my confidence.
I'm the type that feeds on positive reinforcement. If I can see I'm doing well, I start doing better. So, when I roll against somebody that is really good and I feel like I 'm flubbing up...well, I get worse. I have a history of not doing well under pressure. I remember when I was in middle school I won my county's geography bee. I was excited to go to state, but when I got there, I was so nervous that my nose started bleeding and I completely didn't get a single question right. Anyways, the point is, I suck under pressure.
Anyways, I was glad to be back. I did three rounds of live rolling with Heath, Ken, and Paul. Nothing much to say, except that I am doing a lot better defensively. Paul is really good and can create holes in my game, but Heath and Ken couldn't get anything on me. I'm just happy to see progress.
Honestly, I've been feeling like crap. My CFS flared up, and I haven't been up to doing much at all. Today I still felt shitty, but doing slightly better. So, I forced myself into going, and I'm glad I did. I'm ungodly tired right now, but during class I was feeling better.
We started off doing guard pass drills, and I partnered with Heath, a no stripe blue belt. He's a good partner for me, because he's not too much beyond me. He knows enough to help me out, but during live drills, he has trouble submitting me. I can't get anything on him either, but the fact that I'm holding out against a blue belt does wonders for my confidence.
I'm the type that feeds on positive reinforcement. If I can see I'm doing well, I start doing better. So, when I roll against somebody that is really good and I feel like I 'm flubbing up...well, I get worse. I have a history of not doing well under pressure. I remember when I was in middle school I won my county's geography bee. I was excited to go to state, but when I got there, I was so nervous that my nose started bleeding and I completely didn't get a single question right. Anyways, the point is, I suck under pressure.
Anyways, I was glad to be back. I did three rounds of live rolling with Heath, Ken, and Paul. Nothing much to say, except that I am doing a lot better defensively. Paul is really good and can create holes in my game, but Heath and Ken couldn't get anything on me. I'm just happy to see progress.
Monday, May 13, 2013
Friday
I know I'm a few days late with this training log, but I've been busy.
Anyways, it was storming friday night, so when I went to class I wasn't suprised to find a low turn out. In fact, only myself and Adam had shown up. Adam is a really good practitioner, and by rights should be a purple belt. He's been a 4-stripe blue belt for over a year, and just hasn't tested because the tests are performed in another city. Supposedly, Brian Jones, our head black belt dude out of Valhalla, is going to be coming in to evaluate people in June or July, so he's hopeful.
Anyways, we were the only two that showed up, so I essentially got a private lesson. He showed me some sweeps from butterfly guard for about 20 minutes, and then we rolled for nearly an hour. I was showing definite improvements in my defensive technique, and Adam was quick to point it out. I credit most of this to Ribiero's Jiu Jitsu University, because we haven't actually covered any in the short time I've been going to class. I was really getting the hang of defending my neck.
I did a lot better on Friday than I did on Thursday, so I'm happy. I'm grateful to Adam for taking the time to work with me. He didn't get anything out of it, and could have easily just left and went home when nobody else showed up. He's a good dude.
Anyways, it was storming friday night, so when I went to class I wasn't suprised to find a low turn out. In fact, only myself and Adam had shown up. Adam is a really good practitioner, and by rights should be a purple belt. He's been a 4-stripe blue belt for over a year, and just hasn't tested because the tests are performed in another city. Supposedly, Brian Jones, our head black belt dude out of Valhalla, is going to be coming in to evaluate people in June or July, so he's hopeful.
Anyways, we were the only two that showed up, so I essentially got a private lesson. He showed me some sweeps from butterfly guard for about 20 minutes, and then we rolled for nearly an hour. I was showing definite improvements in my defensive technique, and Adam was quick to point it out. I credit most of this to Ribiero's Jiu Jitsu University, because we haven't actually covered any in the short time I've been going to class. I was really getting the hang of defending my neck.
I did a lot better on Friday than I did on Thursday, so I'm happy. I'm grateful to Adam for taking the time to work with me. He didn't get anything out of it, and could have easily just left and went home when nobody else showed up. He's a good dude.
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