Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is a highly technical, grappling-based martial art. The priority, for both student and instructor, is to become highly proficient in the techniques. Many martial arts purists prioritize technical skills training over physical conditioning. The purpose of this article is not to enter that debate.

Technique Conquers All

How do we define technique?

For our discussion, we will define BJJ technique as the ability to utilize leverage effectively to improve position or apply a submission. Leverage is the mechanical advantage, or power, gained by using a lever. So, proficient technique in BJJ means adeptly using levers to gain mechanical advantage over an opponent. This is not intended to be a physics or biomechanics text, but a basic understanding of these concepts demonstrates why strength is a crucial factor for us to consider.

With moderate BJJ experience, say a blue belt or above, you have already learned about technique and leverage. You have submitted hundreds of partners and been submitted yourself at least as often. You have also experienced a loss to someone stronger than you. Do not confuse bigger for stronger. That time a bigger brown belt beat you wasn’t due to strength; they are simply better with technique and leverage. I am talking about the times you lost to someone of a similar skill level, only because they are stronger.

Let’s Define Strength

Muscular strength is the ability to exert a force against external resistance. Remember, leverage is the ability to gain mechanical advantage or power by using a lever. Ask yourself, if your opponent is equally matched in technical ability, yet they can produce more force, who wins? The answer: your opponent strangles you!

Throw even the most technical BJJ black belt in the world into a match with a gorilla. Does this gorilla have an understanding of leverage? Hell no. Does this gorilla win? Hell yes!

Technique Conquers All, Except Physics.

Do not throw away your technical training in favor of only strength training. The benefits of technique cannot be overstated. But to become the best grappler you can be, you need to get stronger. Strength is the most important trainable physical attribute for a human being because it influences so many others. I use the analogy that strength is the cup that holds everything else.

Think about how we interact with the world each day, outside of BJJ. To move, we must produce force. Consider the other physical attributes associated with athletics. Speed is distance travelled per unit of time, basically how quickly something moves. Power is the ability to produce a maximal force in a short amount of time. A larger force produces more speed and power. Endurance is the ability to repeatedly exert a force. See a common theme? The ability to exert force is essential for human beings.

Now look back to BJJ. Is it necessary to produce maximal force? Yes. It’s necessary during a takedown, a sweep, and submissions, not to mention while frantically escaping a submission or a bad position. Becoming stronger simultaneously improves our power, endurance, and speed. Strength training must be the foundation of any effective physical training program for BJJ.

Getting BJJ Strong

While there are many different approaches to get strong, we must adhere to a few basic principles. Forget about sets, reps, and rest periods for now. Many coaches make the mistake of moving straight to laying out specifics. While these are the bread and butter of any program, first consider our goal. We want to get stronger. How does that happen?

Strength is an adaptation to a stimulus. When exposed to a stimulus or stress, in our case physical training, the body needs to recover. Recovery leads to a period of adaptation or overcompensation. In simple terms, the body grows stronger to meet the demands of the stimulus should it come again. However, in long absence of the stimulus, the body will respond by detraining, as it no longer needs to respond to that stimulus.

Think about times that you have run consistently. Over time, you can run further and faster. Now think about a time you’ve gone running after a long break. It feels noticeably slower and more difficult. We call this “unfit” or “out of shape,” but in physiological terms, our body is no longer prepared for the stimulus of running.

It is possible to apply too much stimulus. After extreme training, your body may not be able to recover in a timely manner. Think about when you have done sudden intense exercise after a long period of inactivity. You’re sore, really sore, for a long time after. Perhaps so sore, that you’re unable to train again for some time, inhibiting the adaptation that comes from repeated exposure to a stimulus.

Consider the implications on a training program. We get stronger through systematic exposure to a strength training stimulus. Too much time between exposures risks detraining, while too much stimulus leads to inadequate recovery. Throw in BJJ training and this becomes even more complicated. A program from a magazine or Google search, without a BJJ context, is at best suboptimal, and at worst, a recipe for disaster.

Getting BJJ Fit

This principle also applies to conditioning training. To improve aerobic endurance or “cardio,” we must repeatedly expose ourselves to aerobic training, and progress it over time. This concept is critical to designing an effective training program, especially when our goal is sport performance.

It’s important to note that BJJ training itself can be a stimulus for the untrained athlete. Remember how out of breath you were after a few minutes of grappling in your first class? Now, only the most gruelling matches leave you physically exhausted. Consider this when designing a training program for new BJJ athletes. Athletes with a more solid BJJ training base no longer need to consider BJJ training itself a large stimulus.

Stay tuned for the next parts of this series for training programs and a step-by-step guide to become as strong as possible on and off the mats!

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It is impossible to completely separate attribute from technique completely. When we say “don’t use strength” we really mean to temporarily minimize the use of attributes like strength, explosiveness, or unusual flexibility or mobility to highlight other skills. In Brazilian jiu jitsu, if you don’t rely on your normal physical attributes, you are forced to solve your problems with sharp timing, intelligent body weight placement, sensitivity to movement, and devious strategy.

Sharpen Your Attributes

Efficiency is one of the core principles in MovNat, and I think this concept of “not using strength” is an excellent way to train this principle. Think beyond the traditional notion of strength by trying to apply it broadly as a de-emphasizing of physical attributes. How would you crawl if you lacked strength and speed? How would you climb a tree if you had limited range of motion or strength? How would you lift and carry a heavy stone?

Like in jiu jitsu, you are tasked to solve certain problems with limited resources, so you have to focus on technical precision, timing, and clever strategy to make things happen. Sometimes you use tools to enhance your technique or momentum from a leg or an arm to sit up rather than the tension of your torso.

This is a form of constraints-based practice to develop the purest technique possible by taking away attributes. It is similar to removing a limb from play to simulate injury in training or closing your eyes to develop sensitivity of touch in certain situations. Later, when you reintroduce your attributes you have a broader and sharper set of tools to solve problems with.

If you had a broken arm, could you still climb a tree? [Photo courtesy of Pixabay]

Putting Concept Into Practice

When I teach this concept, I ask my students to perform their skills as if they are an 80-year-old with the flu. Naturally this is an exaggeration, but it gets the point across. It is also helpful to include an external task or situation to add context to the practice. In MovNat training, put something in a tree and ask your student to retrieve it, or transport a heavy log from point “A” to point “B” 10 times. Allow for as much creativity as needed to accomplish the task.

You will find yourself experimenting with improved body alignments, distributing your body weight in specific ways, using your limbs to generate momentum, timing the sequence of your body movements, and paying special attention to the placement of your points of contact with the tree and leveraging your body to achieve the goal in the most efficient way.

In addition, this type of training allows you to train longer during the hot summer months. I can’t speak for the weather across the globe, but here in Philly it gets hot as hell. When it’s hot and you are tired, it helps to have efficient ways to train, rather than burning up all your energy in short bursts, particularly if you want to work to improve your skills.

The final and most obvious benefit to developing an efficient practice is that it is something you can sustain in old age, through injury, and in times where attributes don’t do the job or when they simply no longer exist. One of the lessons I take to heart daily from my older training partners in jiu jitsu is when speed starts to leave and timing slows down, cunning is still a fine and potent weapon.

Not only is this an important concept for our own practice as we advance through life, it also gives us a better sense of how to approach these skills when we teach others. I have always believed strongly that Brazilian jiu jitsu is for everyone, not just the young and fit. I feel the same way about the skills I have learned in MovNat. Practicing this way can help you better understand the issues people who may have fewer attributes face and perform better than people who rely too much on their superior attributes.

Challenge Yourself

So here is my challenge to you for this month: Find three ways to climb a tree, three ways to lift and carry something or someone, and three ways to put something heavy over a ten-foot wall, all with minimal use of strength, speed, or energy expenditure. How would you do it if you were an 80-year-old with the flu? To make it more fun, post your solutions to Instagram or facebook and tag them with the hashtag #howwouldyoudoit.

Let’s see what you come up with!

Train with awareness and move with precision:

Be Silent to Be Efficient

The post Do You Rely Too Much on Strength? appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

I was on my back with my instructor in closed guard. One person in the other pair went to sweep his partner, and the other attempted to defend the sweep by back-stepping his heel hard. His heel landed right between my eyes. Everyone on the mat heard the crunch, although I am probably the only one who saw the stars.

A frenzied few minutes ensued, during which the assembled masses ensured that I was, in fact, still alive. There was a frantic search for an ice pack. Those attending to me only heard my muffled, barely intelligible utterings as I writhed on the ground, cradling my face.

Over the coming days, an egg-sized lump rose on my forehead like a nascent horn. I ended up with a pair of shiners and a screaming headache. I’m sure I was concussed, though I foolishly refused to go to the doctor.

A crowded training mat can be a dangerous place. All the more so if the people on it have poor mat awareness.

The Consequences of Lost Awareness

In the immediate aftermath, the person who crashed his foot into my third eye kept repeating to our instructor, “I didn’t hear you.” His partner echoed a similar refrain to anyone who would listen: “I didn’t know you were that close.” They were both contrite and scared that I was seriously injured. I was, but I recovered.

The most notable part of this story is not my injury, but the fact that the other two grapplers were completely unaware of their surroundings. At the time, I could not fathom how that could be true, particularly since my instructor had yelled repeated warnings. They were dangerously encroaching on our training session.

As relative novices in jiu jitsu with probably fewer than three years of experience combined, they lacked mat awareness. Mat awareness is a recognition of one’s physical proximity to other people or things while training. In jiu jitsu, mat awareness can protect you from the danger they pose.

In an ideal jiu jitsu academy, pairs of grapplers would train in their own circumscribed areas, never running into each other with errant feet and elbows. But as my own experience indicates, pairs of grapplers are more often like human billiard balls, rolling and smacking into each other.

Courtesy Promotes Safety on the Mat

Developing mat awareness is how we grapplers can keep each other safe. By building up our spidey senses, we’ll be better able to adjust when we infringe on someone else’s space. In many jiu jitsu academies, etiquette dictates that if two pairs of grapplers get too close, the higher-ranking pair stays put and the lower-ranking pair moves. For example, two purple belts would have to move out of the way of a black belt training with a blue belt.

There is also a convention that a pair of grapplers who are in a stable position, say with one person in the other’s closed guard, should move out of the way of a pair that is involved in a scramble and has not yet established position. The idea is that the closed-guard pair can more easily re-establish position than the scramblers. One challenge, though, is when two sets of scramblers or two sets of closed-guard people are closing in on each other, and then it becomes unclear as to who should move.

Then there are a few who refuse to move even though they see the potential for danger because their egos are dictating their behavior. Sometimes you will be one of these people – I know I have been. But since I have received a first-hand education on the potential for danger, I follow the logic of “foot beats face.” If your white-belt extremity is dangerously close to my purple-belt moneymaker, you can bet I will not stand on ceremony. I will move. After the fact, I will do my best to educate all involved about our mutual responsibilities. I am in no rush to repeat my double-shiner experience anytime soon.

There are a few rules of thumb regarding who should move and who should stay put, but immediate safety trumps them all.

Competition Hones Awareness

Unfortunately, there may be a direct correlation between mat awareness and jiu jitsu experience. The very people who have the highest need to recognize the potential for a collision are the ones least cognitively equipped to do so.

This solidifies the importance of competition experience for the well-rounded grappler. Competitors in the heat of battle must learn which stimuli to ignore (crowds cheering, announcements), and which to attend to (their coach’s voice, the referee, their own state of arousal, the opponent). Competition experience teaches a grappler how to identify what needs attention and how to focus on multiple things at once.

Mat awareness is an important part of any grappler’s skillset, but the challenge is how to propagate it in our academies and other training spaces. Should it be explicitly taught? Are lower belts more capable of recognizing potential danger than I am giving them credit for? In any case, for the safety of everyone on the mat, it needs to be part of the conversation at any BJJ academy.

What are your thoughts about mat awareness? Do you think it is important? Do you have a method of teaching it at your academy? Post your observations and opinions to comments.

More Lessons From the Mat:

• From Rehearsal to Reality: How to Train for Chaos
• 3 Training Mistakes That Leave Fighters Too Smoked for Skill Work
• Strength for BJJ: 3 Guard-Opening Exercises
• New on Breaking Muscle Today

Photos courtesy of Baltimore BJJ.

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I get to work with good people all the time in my capacity as one of the principals of Groundswell Grappling Concepts, which hosts jiu jitsu camps for female and co-ed audiences. At one of the recent co-ed camps, I had the opportunity to meet and become friends with Chris Gleeson, an attendee who thinks about how he can be a force for good in the jiu jitsu world. (No wonder we get along so well.) This article is a collaborative effort between Chris and me, and it is our attempt to contribute to a conversation about how those of us who love jiu jitsu and also care about living a principled life can bring both to bear in a positive way on the BJJ community.

If you have ever thought about how to bring positive energy to your own academy and to the larger jiu jitsu community, read on for ten suggestions from us. We hope they provide some food for thought for those of you who want to counter and ultimately eradicate the need for depressing BJJ headlines.

10 Ways to Inject Positivity

#1: Employ the Golden Rule

First, repeat it to yourself to get it in your mind: Do unto others as you would have others do unto you. Think about what it would really take to employ it, rather than immediately checking the box in your mind. Consider remembering a time when someone did not use the Golden Rule with you. How did that feel? How would you have preferred that person act toward you?

#2: Think Before You Press Send

We are constantly bombarded with opinions that differ from our own, in jiu-jitsu and in life in general. Even if you vehemently disagree with something someone in the jiu jitsu community has posted online, do you need to flame him or her? Do you honestly believe that flaming someone will bring about a change of heart? Could you instead consider trying to craft a reasoned argument explaining why you disagree? Respectful debate is a cornerstone of any healthy community, not name-calling and disdain.

#3: Support Practitioners Who Share Your Values

We do not believe jiu jitsu is about legislating behavior writ large. But if you attend the seminars or support the events of people whose priorities differ significantly from your own along the dimensions of integrity and respect for others, ask yourself why – or at least consider other options. It’s likely there are alternative events that offer just as much value and are put on by people you mesh with ideologically. Along those lines…

#4: If You See Something Bad, Say Something

Whether it is de-escalating your own training when it gets too intense, coming to the defense of someone who is being berated – online or in person – or calling out someone on his or her entitlement behavior, walk your talk. It is amazing how many awkward or uncomfortable situations can be resolved simply by having an honest conversation with the people involved.

#5: Pay it Forward

When you are in a position to help an up-and-coming enthusiast, consider throwing him or her a bone. “Like” her tournament poster. Attend his open mat. Connect them with people who can help them take their next step in the jiu jitsu world. Of course you do not have to give away your services to everyone, but chances are you have been the recipient of good will from one or more practitioners in your day. Follow in their footsteps.

#6: Consider Your Language

We like a good f-bomb as much as the next person, but there is a time and place for everything. There are jokes that are totally appropriate in context and among friends, but taken out of context or simply overheard by others they can sound totally different. For example, pejoratives based on gender or sexual orientation can be “understood” in certain contexts and still end up being taken differently by others. We are not suggesting you parse every single thing you say for the potential to offend, but rather, err on the side of speaking with caution and compassion.

#7: Be Willing to Invest in the New Members of Your Academy

Ultimately, the way people become enthusiasts is by falling in love with the art. Whether or not this happens is tremendously influenced by what kind of experience people have in the beginning of their training, before they decide if they want to stick around long term.

While it’s true that people first starting out often find the more experienced people at their gym to be a bit aloof, you can help them by going out of your way to make them feel included. This can be as big as offering to drill with them for a few rounds to help them retain the day’s lesson, or as small as a smile when they walk past you as they arrive. This investment has the potential to pay a huge return for you and your school in the long run.

#8 Remember That Almost Everyone Is Looked Up to

This is obviously true for coaches and professors, but even white belts who have only trained for a few months will be looked up to by the very newest beginners (who arrive not even knowing how to tie their belt, so help them with that, please). We all set an example for others. As writer Sam Harris says, “Specific beliefs produce specific actions.” If you understand and believe you are in a role model position (yes, even as a white belt), this will positively influence your actions on and off the mat.

#9 Have Fun on the Mat

The value of having fun on the mat is easily overlooked. It’s so easy to get swept up in the competitive nature of jiu jitsu that we can lose track of the sense of fun that inspired us to start in the first place. Sometimes people forget you can take this sport seriously, train hard, push yourself…and still have fun. Fun is a “secret ingredient” that can contribute to a positive mat culture.

“Create an environment on our mats that welcomes women and minorities, as well as people of all gender identification and sexual orientation, age, and ability levels.”

The more smiling faces you see on any given mat, the healthier that mat tends to be for everyone who walks onto it, and this is something that can be grown and cultivated. All it really takes is a willingness to try things for fun, be eager to experiment, communicate honestly, and not try to “win the training,” as the legendary Hannette Staack would say.

#10: Dig for Your Unique Qualities

Figure out what unique qualities you bring to the community. Techniques succeed when the proper force is applied in the proper direction at the proper time. People succeed in the same manner, and knowing when and how to apply yourself is a key element to achieving success. So, if you are motivated to do some good in your community, take some time to really reflect on what you have to offer. Whatever you discover will help guide you as you look to give something back. There is no such thing as a person who has nothing to offer. Check out Groundswell Grappling events or The Just Roll Podcast as just two examples of how we chose to try to contribute to the jiu jitsu community.

Ground Yourself & Keep Perspective

The Internet has connected us in ways both great and small. As a result, our definition of community has become bigger than just the people in our own school or affiliation. We live in a hyper-connected world where our BJJ family can now be linked across great distances, both geographical and cultural. We are expanding from the kind of family that we are born into to the kind of family that we choose for ourselves. As our reach extends, so does our influence, and that is why it is so important to make sure our actions align with our beliefs. This particularly applies to creating an environment on our mats that welcomes women and minorities, as well as people of all gender identification and sexual orientation, age, and ability levels.

The philosopher Plutarch said, “The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled.” We believe this is true for everyone, and we hope this list helps kindle a flame inside you to think about how you can become a force for good on your mats and in your larger community. We all have to live in the world that we help create. Why not take an active role in shaping it for the better?

You’ll also enjoy:

• How to Adjust Your Training Variables to Reach Your BJJ Goals
• How to Train BJJ With a More Experienced Practitioner
• Advice for BJJ Beginners
• New on Breaking Muscle Today

Photos courtesy of Baltimore BJJ.

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Recently I talked with with some of the students at New Breed Training Center after a class I was teaching. Upon hearing the questions and seeing the hunger for knowledge about Brazilian jiu jitsu, I couldn’t help but think about what it was like when I was the new student. I wondered what I would have done differently if I could go back.

“No matter how difficult the road may seem at times, follow the advice of others who have worn the path.”

However, I am just one tiny piece of the Brazilian jiu jitsu community. So I figured I’d ask those around me the same question: What do you know now that you wish you knew when you were a white belt? I asked a variety of Brazilian jiu jitsu practitioners: black, brown, purple, and blue belts. My goal in this article is to take their advice and provide you with some helpful tips to set the foundation for a long, healthy Brazilian jiu jitsu journey.

1. Consistency and Mindset Are Key

There is a common saying in the Brazilian jiu jitsu world: “Leave your ego at the door.” But in order to leave your ego at the door, you need to actually show up. You won’t get good at Brazilian jiu jitsu unless you are consistent. You’re better off training two days a week for years than four days a week for a few months.

Brick Welch, Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt and instructor at Team Redzovic, shared a simple motto he uses to emphasize the importance of showing up. He always tells his white belt students, “Good things happen if you stick with jiu jitsu.”

Brick is not the only one who feels that way. Mike Cimmarusti, Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt and owner of Illinois Grappling Club, shared a similar thought process. Mike’s advice was to come to class ready to learn, not compete. The difference is the mindset. Both Mike and Brick agreed that you have to learn as much as possible. Brick suggested becoming a fan of the sport, and Mike suggested watching videos and learning from as many sources as you can.

2. Remember Jiu Jitsu Is a Team Sport

Brazilian jiu jitsu appears to be an individual sport, but it is best looked at as a team sport. Without training partners, you cannot get better.

“[G]etting better is not just about you. It’s about helping the people around you.”

Danny Midell is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt and instructor at New Breed Training Center. He shared an important insight about the relationship between you and your team: getting better is not just about you. It’s about helping the people around you. His advice to new students was to be a good training partner.

3. Don’t Neglect Aspects of Your Game

When you first start training, there is a lot to take in. Often you will find yourself wondering why you are learning what you are being taught. That question is often asked when it comes to learning takedowns.

Mark Vives, head instructor and owner of New Breed Training Center, said looking back he would have spent more time learning takedowns – either judo or wrestling. Matches start on the feet, and it is easy to see how uncomfortable some competitors are in the stand-up game. Mark suggested to start learning takedowns early and learn how to combine different takedowns.

4. Train Smarter

Everyone who has trained Brazilian jiu jitsu for a long period of time has over-trained at some point. The longer you train, the harder you can push yourself, and that means you need more recovery time. Most people think the longer and harder you push yourself, the less recovery you need.

Mark Vives told me he wishes he would have learned about proper training and nutrition earlier in his BJJ career. This is an often-overlooked aspect of the game. In order to reach the level of black belt, you need to spend years on the mat. If you are new, spend some time learning how to train both on and off the mat.

Carlos Archila, a Brazilian jiu jitsu brown belt and owner of Lake County BJJ, talked about the importance of drilling and specific training. He explained that drilling sessions are perfect for the days you want to get some training in but your body is a little beat up. Training specific positions is another great option because it takes away some of the unknown variables. Pick a position, set some rules, and train. For example, you could practice a guard drill, where one person starts in closed guard and the other simply works to get out. This type of drilling is great for improving weak areas of your game.

A Different Perspective

The longer you train, the easier it is to lose sight of what it took to reach a high rank in Brazilian jiu jitsu. I asked a number of purple and blue belts of various ages the same question to see if there were any dramatic differences in answers. Surprisingly, there was barely any difference.

• Mike Leighton, Brazilian jiu jitsu blue belt, suggested new students have an open mind. While your instructor may show you one way to do a technique, try to make it your own.
• Marcelo Corpuz, a Brazilian jiu jitsu purple belt, said he would tell new students to focus on the fundamentals and work transitions when rolling, instead of holding a position for a long time.
• Brian Pufundt, a Brazilian jiu jitsu blue belt, told new students strength does not matter. He advised them to focus on the technique and not to worry about your belt color.
• Matt Leighton, Brazilian jiu jitsu purple belt, told new students to stay on the mat. “Focus on building up mat time in the beginning and everything will come in time.”

Conclusion

The Brazilian jiu jitsu journey is long and filled with peaks and valleys. No matter how difficult the road may seem at times, follow the advice of others who have worn the path. Be consistent, train smart, don’t neglect parts of your game, and you will be just fine.

More Advice for Beginners:

• What Every Beginner Should Know When Starting BJJ
• The 5 Phases Every BJJ Newbie Has to Go Through
• Advice for BJJ Beginners – From BJJ and MMA Pros
• New on Breaking Muscle Today

Photo 1 courtesy of Shutterstock.

Photo 2 by By Iliyas Hafiz Wikimedia Commons.

Photo 3 courtesy of Breaking Muscle.

The post The Journey to a BJJ Black Belt: Look Back to Move Forward appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

But if you approach rolling with the mindset of, “How many people can I tap out,” then you are going to end up with a short and unsuccessful BJJ career. Rolling is not about how many people you “bat” or the number of points you score. It’s about improving.

Making improvements and leaving the class better then you did when you walked in requires you to have a training goal. For both new and experienced students, goal setting is important. Here are my top suggestions for setting goals for your BJJ training sessions.

Setting the Tone

Before every class, take a few minutes to reflect on what you want to accomplish. Students tend to rush into the academy after a long day at work, change into their gi, and start to socialize or just hang out until class begins. Instead, try this: before you step inside the academy, set your goals for the class (more on the types of goals you can pick below).

After you pick your goals, get an idea in your head of what it would look like to accomplish each one. How do you know when you’ve accomplished your chosen goal? Once you determine that criteria and it is met, then you can move on to another goal. Keep this information written down somewhere in a notebook or electronically, whatever works best for you.

“After you pick your goals, get an idea in your head of what it would look like to accomplish each one.”

It is okay to stick with the same goals for a long period of time. I’m about to share some ideas on potential goals, and you will see there are many types. But most of them are not going to be accomplished in one training session.

The Practice What You Just Learned Goal

This goal works well for all belt levels, including students who are brand new. If you are new, you may feel like you do not know what to do during rolling. Most classes focus on one or two techniques. But despite the fact we spend the first half of class learning the technique, when it comes time to roll we often do not try what we just learned.

Instead, set a goal to attempt the techniques you learned in class during rolling. This helps reinforce what you just learned. If you can pull off the technique in a class full of people who know what you are going for, then your technique and timing is going to improve.

The Positional Improvement Goal

For example, if you have a hard time escaping the mount or passing guard, your goal would be to focus on that particular aspect of your game. When you are rolling, try to put yourself in a position where you have to work on a specific area of your game. If you never get in a bad position or work on positions that are challenging, then you will be without a full arsenal of weapons when someone puts you in that position during a tournament or in rolling. It’s easy to work on your strengths, but the best practitioners work on their weaknesses.

The Physical Improvement Goal

This one is often overlooked and is a great place to start for new students. When you have been training for a while, you often forget how physically challenging BJJ can be. Many new students find it difficult to just complete the warm ups. So, having a goal that focuses on one or two aspects of the physical part of BJJ can be beneficial.

There are many physical goals you can pick from, but here are a few of my favorites:

• Roll every other round during sparring.
• Pick a goal of how many rounds you want to do, in a row or total, and try to get that number.
• Work on your “base” if you find yourself getting swept easily.
• Work on not getting swept from the guard, specifically.
• Pick a physical component of your game that needs improvement and go for it.

Think about your strengths, weaknesses, and techniques, and you can see that the potential goals for physical improvement are endless.

The Technical Improvement Goal

This works best for more experienced students. We all have something to work on. Pick one or two techniques from a few different positions and attempt them during rolling. An example goal list for a training session may look like this:

• Open guard – work knee slide pass
• Closed guard bottom – work triangles
• Side control top – work Kimura attacks

Keep in mind, these are not the only attacks you will be going for during class. They are just the main techniques you are going to work on.

I find this approach works best over the long haul. Some of the best people I have rolled with stick to the same techniques over a long period of time. They practice these techniques until they decide they do not want them as part of their game or they have worked them enough to move on to practicing other techniques.

“It’s easy to work on your strengths, but the best practitioners work on their weaknesses.”

If you look at the top BJJ competitors, they all have a few techniques they are good at and can execute on everyone. One of the surprising benefits of picking a few techniques to work on is that when you stick to the same techniques for a long time, people may start to know what you are going for – then, when you can still pull it off, then you know you have it down.

Bringing it All Together

Brazilian jiu jitsu may appear to be random movements. But the truth is most of those movements are calculated and developed over many years. The best competitors were not born knowing BJJ. They spent years focusing on specific goals to get them to the point where their game looks effortless. No matter where you are in your BJJ journey, you are no different. Set a goal for your training and you will be ahead of those who do not.

More like this:

• 4 Steps to Increasing Strength to Weight Ration for BJJ
• How to Maximize BJJ Training With Minimum Time
• Free Strength and Conditioning Workouts Designed for BJJ
• New On Breaking Muscle Today

Photos courtesy of Ana Nieves.

The post Set Goals to Amplify Your BJJ Class and Give Your Training Direction appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

You have done everything. You’ve trained hard and have been on fire in the gym. But, despite all the training, you just don’t feel physically ready to compete. Your legs feel tired and you’ve been in a bad mood all week.

And now it’s game day. Where did your preparation go wrong?

A Common Mistake

The mistake you made is the same one many competitors make. You did not properly taper your training. Your goal is to peak at your tournament, not in the gym the week before. Tapering gives your body the chance to fully recover from all the hard training you have been doing leading up to the tournament.

Tapering before a tournament is the most important and difficult phase of training. But it doesn’t have to be a mystery as to whether it will be successful, as long as you have a plan to follow. To perform your best, your plan needs to build a base, adjust your training, and refine your nutrition.

General Peaking Rules

Before getting into the specifics of peaking for a tournament, you need to understand five basic rules when it comes to peaking.

1. Most of your time should be spent building a big base, or GPP.
2. Only peak for your main tournaments. Another way to look at is plan to peak for the tournaments that mean the most to you.
3. Start to adjust your training four to six weeks out by decreasing volume and increasing intensity.
4. Two weeks before the tournament, you will further adjust intensity and volume.
5. Nutrition must be consistent with some minor adjustments.

1. Build a Big Base

Peaking starts months before a tournament by building a big base. Many grapplers overlook the importance of general physical preparedness (GPP). The more GPP you have, the bigger engine you have created. GPP exercises are general without specific movement patterns that mimic your sport. Pull ups are an example of a GPP exercise. Pull ups using a gi are an example of specific physical preparedness (SPP).

“If your opponent cannot keep up with you, then he or she will be using more energy than planned and get tired sooner (and before you do). Starting your taper taper with a high level of general fitness will give you the edge in competition.”

Most grapplers spend a majority of their time on SPP. But building a big GPP base allows your peaks to be higher. The goal is to have your pace in the tournament be higher than your opponent’s. If your opponent cannot keep up with you, then he or she will be using more energy than planned and get tired sooner (and before you do). Starting your taper taper with a high level of general fitness will give you the edge in competition.

2. Only Peak for Your Main Tournaments

BJJ has no off-season. Most sports have a traditional cycle – pre-season, season, off-season. But in BJJ, you may compete year round, and it is impossible to peak every weekend for the entire year.

Instead of trying to peak for every tournament, just peak for the most important tournaments to you. The rest of the time, compete in whatever events you want, but don’t worry about adjusting your training. This approach allows you to spend more time building that precious GPP.

3. Reduce Volume and Increase Intensity Four to Six Weeks Out

The last weeks before a tournament require careful planning. It is easy to overdo it during this time. You feel like you have to train hard all the time out of a fear you are not going to be ready to compete. But that mentality is what leaves competitors flat on tournament day. Of course you have to work hard. But that last month or so it’s more important that you work smart.

“The goal is to train less but with higher intensity. You want your training sessions short and intense.”

Four to six weeks before your tournament, start to reduce your training volume. Volume is the amount of work being done. There are many ways to reduce volume:

• Cut back on the number of days you train BJJ.
• If you train multiple sessions a day, reduce your sessions to one time a day.
• Cut back on the time spent on each training session.

There are many options to choose from, so make the best choice for your current training program.

At the same time volume is reduced, intensity should go up. Intensity is the effort you put in during your training sessions. The goal is to train less but with higher intensity. You want your training sessions short and intense. This adjustment should be made to your BJJ training and your off-the-mat strength and conditioning training.

4. Adjust Volume and Intensity Again Two Weeks Out

The last two weeks before a tournament you need to some make additional adjustments. Volume should be further reduced, but intensity kept high. At this point, strength and conditioning session should be no more than two sessions for the week, lasting only twenty minutes each.

At two weeks out, small adjustments to your BJJ training are required. You can still drill hard, but you should limit the amount. Rolling can be done at a lighter pace to keep movement and timing. These adjustments are mostly made to reduce injury risk from sparring. A good rule of thumb during this time period is two or three twenty-minute sessions per week.

“You have trained for months leading up to your tournament, but starting four to six weeks out the hard work should be done. It’s time to put that work on display.”

The final week, all of your off-the-mat training sessions should be done by Tuesday, assuming most tournaments happen on Saturday. If you are competing on a different day allow three days of rest before your competition. Two technical BJJ training sessions will be more than enough.

For the remainder of the week, rest and do light movement such as walking or slow technical drills with a training partner who will not give you too much resistance. These sessions should be thirty minutes or less. Allow for one day of complete rest on Friday before the tournament.

5. Don’t Forget Nutrition and Hydration

Ask four different competitors how they eat before a tournament and you will get four different answers. Nutrition is specific to the individual.

When you are training for a tournament, you do not want to change anything when it comes to the type of foods you are eating. The only adjustment that may need to be made is cutting back on the amount of food eaten depending on your weight class and your weight leading up to the tournament.

“Play around with what works for you, but keep in mind you need to perform. Too many competitors make dramatic changes to their nutrition before a tournament – to the detriment of their performance.”

Try to keep your water intake high. Many competitors who need to make weight reduce water intake. This works, but can have a dramatic effect on performance.

Play around with what works for you, but keep in mind you need to perform. Too many competitors make dramatic changes to their nutrition before a tournament – to the detriment of their performance. The best bet is to stick to what is working or has worked in the past.

Sample Training Program for a Six-Week Taper

• Six weeks out – 3 off-the-mat training sessions done at high intensity for 30 minutes. BJJ training should include sparring and hard drilling done at an intense level.
• Five weeks out – Same as week six.
• Four weeks out – 3 off-the-mat training sessions done at a high intensity for 20 minutes. BJJ training should focus on positional drills with high intensity and rolling at a moderate pace.
• Three weeks out – 2 off-the-mat training sessions done for 20 minutes at a high intensity. BJJ training should be hard positional drilling, technical drilling, and light rolling.
• Two weeks out – 2 off-the-mat training sessions done for 20 minutes at a high intensity. BJJ training should focus on technical drilling and some sparring at a controlled pace.
• Tournament week – 1 or 2 off-the-mat training sessions done for 10-15 minutes. These sessions can be something as simple as walking or sled work. Must be completed before Wednesday. BJJ training is light and technically focused on details and timing. Limit live rolling to reduce injury risk. Rest completely on Friday.

Conclusion

Do not leave your best efforts in the gym. You have trained for months leading up to your tournament, but starting four to six weeks out the hard work should be done. It’s time to put that work on display. By following a program to help you peak, your performance on tournament day will truly reflect all the hard work you have done.

More Like This:

• The 4 Biggest Mistakes Competitors Make at a BJJ Tournament
• Behind the BJJ Scenes: What It Takes to Run a Tournament
• 5 Lessons to Guarantee BJJ Tournament Success
• New on Breaking Muscle Today

Photos courtesy of Breaking Muscle.

The post The 5 Rules of Peaking Before a Tournament (Plus a 6-Week Plan) appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

During the planning phase of my travels, of course I have to focus on the company at which I will be working. But I also try to do some research on the local jiu jitsu scene to find out how many clubs there are and which one(s) might best suit my needs. The search can be the hardest part.

How to Find a Club

If members of your team aren’t able to recommend a club in the town you’re visiting, a great way to locate BJJ clubs is to post a question on Facebook. Maybe a friend will be able to refer you or knows someone else who can. Facebook groups like the Women’s Grappling Network can connect you to women all around the world. If that doesn’t lead you to any answers, you can try a Google search or post the question on Sherdog or Reddit.

“Remember: you’re not only representing yourself – you’re also representing your team and your home academy.”

Once you’ve narrowed down a few options, you can read reviews for the clubs on YELP, look up their websites, and contact them to find out about schedules and pricing. It’s always better to confirm the details before showing up to a club, just in case operations have changed, but the website hasn’t.

Things to Consider in Choosing a Club

Each BJJ academy is different and when you visit a new one, it’s best to adapt to their culture for the duration of your stay. For example, do they clap when breaking away from the instructor to learn technique? Do they bow before stepping on or off the mats? Can students ask higher-ranked belts to roll or do they wait to be asked? How do they begin a match? How do they line up after class? Do they have any club rules? Is there a particular gi color required?

Sometimes you can figure out the answers to these questions by looking at photo galleries on a club’s website, and some schools have their rules posted online. While writing this article, I did a search of rules for different BJJ schools and the following were consistently present:

• Show up a little early to take care of any payments or paperwork.
• Ask the instructor if any submissions are prohibited.
• Do not speak or interrupt the instructor as he or she is teaching.
• Do not use foul language.
• Do not be overly aggressive when rolling with other students and do not wait too long to tap.
• Bring enough gis to ensure you have a clean one for each class, or find out where you can wash your gi between classes. Make sure your gi is free of rips or tears.
• Err on the side of modesty. For no gi, do not wear sleeveless tops or hot pants. Wear a rashguard and board shorts, gi pants, or spats. (I would suggest this regardless. Would you want a big tuft of sweaty armpit hair on your face? Me either.)
• Wear a mouth guard.
• Ensure you have fresh breath and no body odor. Wear deodorant.
• Cut your fingernails and toenails.
• Remove all transferable cosmetics and jewelry.
• Tie your hair back. (I recommend braiding for long hair to keep it a secure as possible.)
• Bring flip-flops to wear off the mats.
• Shower as soon as possible after class.

Rolling as a Visitor

When I roll with people I don’t know, I am very cautious. It could be because I’m a lot smaller than most people, but I am always nervous about getting hurt due to clumsiness, aggression, or unknown tactics. Big white belts are on my “do not roll” list for exactly that reason. I’ve missed so much time due to various injuries that I will do whatever it takes to stay healthy. Although it can feel bad to say no to rolls, I recommend that other travelers make safety a priority, as well.

Remember when you do roll, your partner will reflect your intensity. If you come on hard and fast, your partner may do the same. If you ease into the roll, your partner will usually do so, as well. Once you get a feel for your new rolling partner, you may be able to have a normal roll, but I highly recommend a feeling-out process.

“Remember when you do roll, your partner will reflect your intensity. If you come on hard and fast, your partner may do the same. If you ease into the roll, your partner will usually do so, as well.”

Also, it’s not a tournament. It’s just a class. If you find your BJJ is at a higher level than your partner, it’s probably not polite to tap him or her seven times in five minutes. It’s kinder to allow the person to work on their game, too. Remember: you’re not only representing yourself – you’re also representing your team and your home academy. It’s best to not be an asshole, if possible. If you’re the one getting tapped seven times in five minutes, it sucks – but hey, it was only five minutes out of your life. And hopefully you learned a thing or two.

My Experience

To date, I have thoroughly enjoyed training at every club I’ve visited on the road. The BJJ community is so friendly and welcoming, and it is always a pleasure to meet fellow practitioners and learn from them. Just do your homework before picking a club, mind your manners and their rules, be a good training partner (as you always should be anyway), and you’ll do fine.

We also love having visitors at Titans so if you’re ever in Nova Scotia, be sure to stop in and see us!

You Might Also Enjoy:

• 10 Survival Tips for Visiting a New Grappling Academy
• Don’t Stink and Wash Often: Hygiene for BJJ Gyms and Athletes
• Tips for Choosing a BJJ Academy
• What’s New on Breaking Muscle Today

Photos courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post Tips for Training BJJ on the Road appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

I moved my jaw around hoping for that pop of relief that you can get during swift altitude changes in an airplane. I shook my head to my right side like people do to dislodge water after they emerge from a swimming pool. No luck on any front. My ear was completely blocked.

BJJ and Your Ears

I had been here before, and I knew what the problem was. When I train BJJ, I frequently like to use my head as a fifth appendage to control my partner’s movement: putting it under my partner’s chin, in the armpit, in the middle of the chest, and on and on. Some people who do this end up with a bumper crop of cauliflower ear.

With the exception of a few flare-ups that I nipped in the bud, I have been able to dodge that bullet, so my ears do not resemble lima beans. And I plan to keep it that way. But what I do apparently get for putting my head where it’s not wanted is even sexier: a gradual buildup of wax that eventually blocks my entire ear canal.

Usually I can take care of it myself, but there have been one or two times when I’ve had to visit the doctor for a pseudo-surgical gunkectomy. Those times, I was dealing with blockage in both ears that I couldn’t loosen on my own, which means I was walking around stuck inside my own soundproof chamber. One doctor in particular, after clearing out my ear canals and showing me what had been crammed up there (Why do they always show you?) looked at me with utter disgust, as if to say, “I did not go to medical school for this.”

My Earwax Removal Saga

But this time, I took matters into my own hands, planning to go to the doctor only if necessary. There are several recommended ways to remove a preponderance of earwax. The method that has worked best for me is repeated flushing of the area with hydrogen peroxide, which softens the wax, followed by using a mini turkey baster-looking device to shoot a stream of warm water into the ear canal to get that hashishy-looking junk (I base this description solely on Internet research) outta there.

So I started the day with a cup of coffee, followed by several minutes of lying on the floor on my left side while the hydrogen peroxide I had poured into my right ear bubbled like a witch’s cauldron. Then I went to the sink and tipped my head so my right ear was pointing downward, aiming the tip of the turkey baster of warm water into my ear and letting fly.

I finally cleared my ear that evening, but not before, I would estimate conservatively, eight to ten sessions of hydrogen peroxide plus turkey baster. After about the fifth round, I began to wonder how I would explain this if, let’s say, my neighbor came by for some reason and I answered the door with my hair slightly wet and a ratty towel around my neck that was dotted with tan stains.

“Oh, hi there. No, it’s not blood. It’s earwax. Yeah, it got all clogged up. So speak into this one! Haha. Well, it’s from jiu jitsu. JOO JITSOO. Long story. Oh, you have to go? Did you need something? You sure? Well, of course I would wash my hands first. Okay, suit yourself. Byeee!”

What “Normal” Means to the BJJ Practitioner

When I thought about it more, I realized that BJJ had caused me to create a “new normal,” a life full of choices that had become de rigeur for me, but that, if I explained them to people who don’t train, would probably seem completely batty. And when I thought about it still further, I realized I had absolutely no problem thinking of other examples of what might seem odd to an outsider but was just part of a typical day for me and for many of the other grapplers I know.

Here are a few other real-life examples:

A family I met – a mom, dad, and two kids – who all train BJJ together, told me that in their house, everyone walks around with their chins tucked, all the time. Because you never know who might come up behind you and try to slip on a rear naked choke.

I can’t even count the number of times during class that I have carried on lengthy conversations with training partners while mounted on them or underneath their mount, or with one of us in closed guard. These aren’t even necessarily jiu jitsu-related conversations, just lulls in the training that we filled with chatting or even deeper philosophical musings.

A friend just the other day told me about how he went to a drugstore to get syringes to drain his cauliflower ear. They didn’t have SAM splint, which is a combination of thin sponge and metal that you can clamp around the ear to keep it from filling up again once you’ve drained it, so he also bought duct tape instead, hoping that would do the trick. He commented that due to the combo of the needles and the tape, the cashier gave him a little bit of the stink eye.

Also in the cauliflower vein, I have numerous male friends who express their grappling personae by night but have whiter collar identities during the day, identities that require them to wear ties and act professional. They look nice in their suits, and they are good at what they do, but while they are in professional mode, they frequently have to endure furtive glances at their ears, which resemble nothing so much as chewed gum.

These are all examples of the day-to-day behaviors of some grapplers that might look strange to outsiders. They don’t even cover the bigger crazy things some people do, like quit their jobs, sell their homes and travel around the country, or otherwise completely change their lives around to accommodate their love of Brazilian jiu jitsu. But people do those kinds of things as well, and it is these big things that give rise to the smaller but still decidedly off-the-beaten-path routines.

Have the demands of your training, whether in BJJ or in something else, prompted you to adopt habits that constitute a new normal? Describe them in comments.

Photos 1&3 courtesy of David Brown Photography.

Photo 2 courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post A New Normal: The Quirks of an Athletic Lifestyle appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Some days exercise is not fun. And that’s great, too. Because sometimes that’s exactly what you need to work through to reach the next level.

So, this week’s Editor’s Picks are all about the fun and the not-fun sides of fitness. But hopefully, the balance comes out for you on the positive overall.

The Fun

Guilty! 5 BJJ Photo Crimes You Will Recognize

While CrossFitters get picked on for all their social media photos, the truth is when you enjoy something you wind up with a lot of photos of yourself doing it. BJJ black belt Valerie Worthington shares the humorous side of her jiu jitsu photos. Are you guilty of any of these?

Fun, Fitness, and Play with Darryl Edwards – Breaking Muscle Radio, Ep 4

Coach Darryl Edwards is a firm believer that fun is an essential part of fitness. He also includes play in all his workouts. In fact, he doesn’t even call them workouts – he calls them playouts. Hear more from Darryl himself on this philosophy in this podcast episode.

Learn How to Handstand Using a Physio Ball (Video)

Having fun doesn’t mean you can’t be learning and getting stronger at the same time. Yoga expert Willow Ryan shares some fun on the physio ball in this exercise that will improve your core strength and your handstand.

Potatoes Are Not Evil

Potatoes are fun. Admit it. They’re fun to eat. So why haven’t you been eating them? Even the Whole30 says you can eat them now! Nutrition expert Jeff Taraday shares some facts on white potatoes as well as a tasty, easy recipe.

The Not Fun

Lifting Headaches: How to Spot, Avoid, and Remedy Them

If you’ve lifted heavy for very long, then you’ve probably experienced one of these. They’re definitely in the not-fun category when it comes to training. But thankfully, they are also in the category of things that is likely preventable. Check out the advice of strength and movement expert Robert Camacho.

This Is Fitness: Move Beyond Instinct and Get Uncomfortable

At some point, if you plan on continuing to improve, become faster, get stronger, or whatever it is you’re after, then you’re going to have to take a long visit to the pain cave. CrossFit Games veteran Patrick McCarty knows a bit about how being uncomfortable can actually get you towards success and fulfillment. (We might be talking beyond just the gym here, too.)

Photo 1 courtesy of Valerie Worthington.

Photo 2 courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post 4 Fun Things About Fitness and 2 Very Not-Fun Things appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

From an outsider’s perspective Brazilian jiu jitsu appears to be easy. But this thought quickly vanishes when a person rolls for the first time. At the academy where I teach, New Breed Training Center, I see new students who struggle through warm ups even though they worked out prior to beginning BJJ. I started to think and explore why this happens and how it can be prevented.

Is BJJ Aerobic or Anaerobic?

Some strength coaches feel grappling is more aerobic, while others feel it is anaerobic. The truth is it’s both. Let’s look at a five-minute grappling match to help us understand this concept better.

Five minutes is the standard match length for the white belt division and some masters divisions. It is also the shortest match length you will typically find. Have you ever tried to sprint for five minutes? It’s impossible. You can run fast for five minutes, but sprinting is a different story.

The same is true for grappling. You can only grapple at a high pace for a short time before you start to fade. Your anaerobic system is designed for short bursts of power output. These short bursts are not very efficient and result in more lactic acid being produced than the body can buffer. At some point during a match, you are going to need your anaerobic system, but for most of the time you are going to rely on your aerobic system.

The aerobic system is more efficient, designed for longer duration activities with less intensity. In a BJJ match, the majority of your time will be spent using the aerobic system. But if you are lacking in either aerobic or anaerobic conditioning, it will hurt your performance.

Why Is BJJ More Tiring Than Cardio?

I often hear students talking about the amount of cardio they are doing, yet they struggle in class. If doing cardio was enough to get you in shape, then why do some students still struggle?

First, running on the treadmill and having some big scary guy try to choke you are nothing alike. When you run or do any other type of cardio, you control the pace. Meaning, you can speed up when you want and slow down when you want. When you are rolling with someone, you are forced to react on someone else’s terms. Either you are the one setting the pace and trying to be one step ahead of your opponent or you are on the defensive constantly reacting to their movements. Either way, the pace you keep is determined by another person.

Second, when you roll you are doing cardio and weights at the same time. It does not matter how good your technique is. When you go to frame away or stand up in someone’s guard, your opponent’s body is acting as resistance. In truth, BJJ is a form of resistance training.

Third, most students are lacking in one area. People like to do what they are good at. For example, if I am really good at long-distance running, then all I am going to want to do is run long distances. When the times comes and I need to sprint, then I am going to suffer. When I do assessments on my athletes, I don’t want to know what they can do. I want to know what they cannot do.

So How Do You Get in Shape for BJJ?

For a strength and conditioning program to carryover to the mats, it needs to incorporate resistance training, aerobic conditioning, and anaerobic conditioning. What a strength-training program should not do is replace BJJ training. There is no better way to get in shape for BJJ than to roll a lot of rounds.

That being said, I understand getting in all those rounds is not always possible. Below are some suggestions to help you structure your training week:

• One Session per Week of Strength Work – Keep the weights heavy and the reps low. Do not go to failure, leave a little in the tank.
• One Session per Week of Muscular Endurance – Repetitions should be in the 6-10 range. Focus on single-limb exercises, especially for your weak areas.
• One Session per Week of Conditioning – Mix this up. Some days do sprint intervals. Other days do tempo runs. I am a big fan of sled work. Do sled drags and pulls for the specific time of a match. If your matches are five minutes, then pull the sled for five minutes.
• Daily Sessions of Mobility and Recovery – Every day you break down your body. Therefore, every day you need to help build it back up. Spend time each day on your mobility. It does not have to take long. 15-20 minutes is plenty.

The Take-Away

At first it may seem like a good idea to do hours of cardio to get in shape BJJ. But once you take a look at the requirements of the sport, it is clear that you must be in shape both aerobically and anaerobically.

Photos by Dan of Earth.

The post Why Does BJJ Make Me So Tired? appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Jiu jitsu gear is awesome. Breaking Muscle Managing Editor Becca Borawski Jenkins has even said she wants to train BJJ again, just for the gear. I think one of the reasons we have so many cool designs to choose from is because the gear is designed by people who actually train, and people who train are cooler than people who don’t train, amirite?

About Dokebi Combat Outfitters

Dokebi Combat Outiftters is a newer brand on the jiu jitsu scene. They create their own original designs and as BJJ practitioners themselves, they know what features to focus on. The company is based in South Korea and their About Us section describes the importance of martial arts in that country:

Martial arts play a prominent role in South Korea as seen by successful martial artists carrying celebrity status. MMA fighters and Olympic athletes are common faces in talk shows, game programs and commercials. Taekwondo, the national sport, is practised by every school child in the country. In other words, martial arts are serious business in South Korea. Naturally, the gear made for the practitioners is treated the same.

Sometimes I am lucky and win contests. I’d like to win the lottery, but until then, I am happy with prizes like the Dokebi Combat Outfitters Ranked rashguard I won in a Facebook drawing back in November 2013. The design of this rashguard was foreign to me, so I did a little bit of research into the Dokebi, also known as the Dokkaebi, on Wikipedia. According to Wikipedia:

Different versions of the Korean Dokkaebi mythology assign different attributes to them. In some cases they are considered harmless but nevertheless mischievous, usually playing pranks on people or challenging wayward travellers to a ssireum (Korean wrestling) match for the right to pass.

Dokkaebi love to play games, especially ssireum as mentioned above. They are extremely good at it and one will never be able to beat them by trying to push them from the left side. However, they are very weak on the right side. In other stories one should hook their leg and push them to win, as they have only one leg.

Quality and Style

In the design of the Ranked rashguard, Paul explained in an interview with Grappler’s Review that they went for the “traditional dokebi look based on stone carvings.” A physically intimidating, yet friendly looking Dokebi graces the front of the rashguard, while the Dokebi Combat Outfitters logo is displayed on the back. The shoulders feature circular symbols and the side panels and designs are colored by rank. I very much enjoy playing pranks and grappling and am happy to rep the Dobeki, although the style of the rashguard is a bit masculine for my taste.

While this is a lightweight rashguard, the seams are comparable to the thicker 93 Brand Mandrill 2.0 rashguard, which is built like a tank. The Ranked rashguard is solid and durable with no loose threads. The fabric is ultra-light, lighter than any other rashguard I have ever seen, but it’s strong and stretchy. It has a flat, rather than shiny finish, and the fabric has resisted pilling across the shoulders. Every other short-sleeved rashguard I have has pilling across the shoulders from rubbing against my gi during rolling. I’ve worn this rashguard at least once a week for seven months and aside from a small amount of pilling on the seams, it still looks brand new.

Features

• 90% polyester, 10% spandex
• Slight mock neck
• Sturdy flat-lock seams
• Sublimated graphics

Fit and Comfort

When I won the Facebook contest, I was going to ask for a size XL for my boyfriend because since it’s a men’s rashguard, I thought size small would be way too big on me. The Dokebi Combat Outfitters Facebook administrator explained that because sizing is developed for the Asian market, the small would probably fit me.

When the rashguard arrived, it was a perfect fit and I’ve found it extremely comfortable during rolling. It feels silky and lightly skims the skin as it wicks away sweat. The sleeves are long enough to protect my underarms from chafing from my gi and there are no scratchy seams or patches. Dokebi Combat Outfitters has created the ideal rashguard construction to wear under the gi as well as on its own. Because it is so light, it does not cause overheating when worn under the gi at all, but it is tough enough to withstand the friction created during rolling.

Customer Service

I won this rashguard in a contest so I didn’t receive typical customer service. It was shipped on November 8, 2013 and arrived on November 25, 2013, which is typical for international packages.

Shipping to Canada and the US from the Dokebi Combat Outfitters online store is €9.00/$13.25 CDN/$12.21 US. This rashguard is also available at Fightshop.ca for $54.99 CDN plus tax, with $9.95 shipping to Canada and $20.00 shipping for US customers.

Dokebi Combat Outfitters has also released the Balance gi, a couple of sick t-shirts, BJJ belts, wrist bands, and another long-sleeved rashguard. Like them on Facebook to get updates on all of their gear in your News Feed.

The Dokebi Combat Outfitters Ranked rashguard is available for $47.50 at DokebiCombat.com. 

The post Dokebi Combat Outfitters Ranked Rashguard (Product Review) appeared first on Breaking Muscle.