New BJJ guy needs advice
- Thread starter BullfrogJay
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Funnily enough I have told you but you didn't either read it or wasn't interested. More likely it wasn't what you wanted to hear so you ignored it.
What you have done..... on a thread from someone starting BJJ and wanting advice you have now made it all about you, giving advice that is poorly thought out, making incorrect statements and trying to make the OP feel bad, which is simply not on.
Iggy..... now that's just funny.
Gweilo
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Just read the above quotes, twice if you have too, there is a common theme here, and its you and your lack of beleif in yourself, and because of this you have adapted a mentality of whats the point of trying, Im just not very good at this, and if you beleive this, you will be correct, so you stop trying, then you run away to the next challenge, and it starts all over again. Martial arts is not just the physical part of training, you have to think, work things out, dont just cling on for the ride, decide your no good, so set your sights lower, then blame the teachers, the art, the gym, the weather, the bigger/littler opponent, yes there is a problem with BJJ, and its not BJJ, have you worked out what it is yet?
So even though you've got less than 2 years experience, and (from what you say) that trivial amount of training has mostly been under incompetent instructors, you think you know more than someone with a lifetime of experience. Yeah. That makes sense.
Not at all. You seem to be projecting your own limitations and (lack of) capabilities on others. The fact is, most people do just fine without needing it "dumbed down".
Utter nonsense. I've never had one BJJ lesson, and yet I've somehow managed to survive literally hundreds of fights, including having a knife pulled on me three times.
Everyone starts as a beginner in the style they chose to learn, everyone has that 'oh lord what have I signed up for' moment, as well as the 'they are going to kill me as you struggle to catch your breath. It's normal and fine.
Fitness comes as you train and perhaps if you are really unfit you can do some extra fitness at a gym or go running ( I'm not a 'fitness expert' but there's plenty on here who can give sensible achievable advice on getting fitter.
Listening is a very good skill to have, listen to the instructor, ask if you don't understand and practice remembering to breath. Those of us with years of experience started the same way, don't give up, as you get older time passes quickly and before you know it you are the one with experience answering the beginners questions.
Sometimes the style you try first isn't the right fit, give it a good go and if it's not for you move on and find the one that does suit you. Be honest with yourself though about your reasons for doing martial arts and why the style you do fits you or doesn't. it's all going to appear difficult at the start, after a little while another beginner will start and you will then recognise how far you've actually come since you walked through the door, it's not demeaning the beginner but a good guide to your progress when you can start seeing the differences, the techniques.
In BJJ when you are rolling with someone first of all it's a big silent 'HELP!' as you start defending everything, then you learn to see the techniques coming and you can defend plus work out an 'attack' you can do, then you are rolling. You will tap out a lot, but it's fun and you are learning, you realise there's always more to learn and you are on the mats eagerly awaiting your next partner to roll with, it might be a beginner and you'll tell them to relax and breathe. it's a cliché I know but martial arts training is a journey, ups and downs but always great. so breathe and keep going.
Fitness comes as you train and perhaps if you are really unfit you can do some extra fitness at a gym or go running ( I'm not a 'fitness expert' but there's plenty on here who can give sensible achievable advice on getting fitter.
Listening is a very good skill to have, listen to the instructor, ask if you don't understand and practice remembering to breath. Those of us with years of experience started the same way, don't give up, as you get older time passes quickly and before you know it you are the one with experience answering the beginners questions.
Sometimes the style you try first isn't the right fit, give it a good go and if it's not for you move on and find the one that does suit you. Be honest with yourself though about your reasons for doing martial arts and why the style you do fits you or doesn't. it's all going to appear difficult at the start, after a little while another beginner will start and you will then recognise how far you've actually come since you walked through the door, it's not demeaning the beginner but a good guide to your progress when you can start seeing the differences, the techniques.
In BJJ when you are rolling with someone first of all it's a big silent 'HELP!' as you start defending everything, then you learn to see the techniques coming and you can defend plus work out an 'attack' you can do, then you are rolling. You will tap out a lot, but it's fun and you are learning, you realise there's always more to learn and you are on the mats eagerly awaiting your next partner to roll with, it might be a beginner and you'll tell them to relax and breathe. it's a cliché I know but martial arts training is a journey, ups and downs but always great. so breathe and keep going.
Very well saidEveryone starts as a beginner in the style they chose to learn, everyone has that 'oh lord what have I signed up for' moment, as well as the 'they are going to kill me as you struggle to catch your breath. It's normal and fine.
Fitness comes as you train and perhaps if you are really unfit you can do some extra fitness at a gym or go running ( I'm not a 'fitness expert' but there's plenty on here who can give sensible achievable advice on getting fitter.
Listening is a very good skill to have, listen to the instructor, ask if you don't understand and practice remembering to breath. Those of us with years of experience started the same way, don't give up, as you get older time passes quickly and before you know it you are the one with experience answering the beginners questions.
Sometimes the style you try first isn't the right fit, give it a good go and if it's not for you move on and find the one that does suit you. Be honest with yourself though about your reasons for doing martial arts and why the style you do fits you or doesn't. it's all going to appear difficult at the start, after a little while another beginner will start and you will then recognise how far you've actually come since you walked through the door, it's not demeaning the beginner but a good guide to your progress when you can start seeing the differences, the techniques.
In BJJ when you are rolling with someone first of all it's a big silent 'HELP!' as you start defending everything, then you learn to see the techniques coming and you can defend plus work out an 'attack' you can do, then you are rolling. You will tap out a lot, but it's fun and you are learning, you realise there's always more to learn and you are on the mats eagerly awaiting your next partner to roll with, it might be a beginner and you'll tell them to relax and breathe. it's a cliché I know but martial arts training is a journey, ups and downs but always great. so breathe and keep going.
And yet you make claims about an entire style (actually, sub-style, I guess) that is in conflict with the experience of many in that style.
You like that term. You seem to think it clever.
You've gotten plenty of good advice so far. I'll just add that it's almost certainly a multi-factorial issue.
- Grappling places energy demands on your body which are different from most other activities. Even if you were a marathon runner it would still be normal to feel exhausted quickly in the beginning of your BJJ training.
- If you're not in generally good shape to begin with, it will absolutely take time for your body to adapt.
- I 100% guarantee you are wasting a lot of energy. Partly this is because you haven't yet learned to relax while rolling and partly it's because you haven't refined your technique to be particularly efficient yet.
- If you are getting stuck in bad positions, that will sap your energy further. As you improve you will learn to avoid and escape those positions better. Also you'll learn subtle adjustments which will allow you to breathe easier and relax more when you are stuck in a bad position.
Quasar44 is taking some flak for his statements, but he's actually reacting to a situation which is way too common in many BJJ gyms.
BJJ is a very deep and complex art. Many instructors don't have an organized curriculum to guide students through those complexities in an efficient manner, especially students who are only training a couple of days per week. The approach of "teach a couple of random techniques (without necessarily explaining the context), drill them for a bit, then start rolling from the knees" is still fairly widespread. If the school doesn't offer beginner classes or doesn't offer them on a schedule a new student can attend, it becomes even harder for casual students to progress. Super dedicated students will improve just through countless hours of rolling, but it's not an optimal approach to learning.
Not all instructors each this way, but it's common enough to be remarked on within the BJJ community.
My personal approach to teaching is as follows: I alternate weeks between takedowns/standup self-defense and ground work. I alternate classes between gi and no-gi. I try to cover the same/overlapping material for at least a couple of classes in a row. I try to have something that beginners can benefit from in every class. I lean heavily on showing how a small handful of principles drive all the different techniques we cover. I explain the context and purpose for every technique. When rolling/sparring, I start students in positions where they have a chance to apply the material we drilled during class. In-between and after sparring rounds I have trouble-shooting/Q&A time where we can examine and fix the issues students are having applying the material we learned.
I won't claim to be the best teacher out there, but I do think this works better than the old "teach a random technique then roll" paradigm.
I'll try to find the other thread where quasar44 explained his situation and offer some advice for the casual beginner student who is stuck in a school that teaches in a less optimal way.
He's taking flak for several reasons, he is a beginner who will not accept he is a beginner, he has access, he said, to a beginner class but didn't want to start there. He is also taking MMA classes and routinely conflates MMA with BJJ. He styles bashes continuously and makes statements about arts that show his ignorance of those arts.
Reading his posts his situation is of his own making whatever BJJ is 'doing', constantly changing styles, classes and instructors after a couple of months because he's not learning what he thinks he should is always going to be counter-productive, his martial arts knowledge is informed by watching videos so there is no instructor or class that will satisfy him even if BJJ instructing was spot on.
NO to lower conflict !!! We dont need 2 people disrupting the room , so I figured this is the easiest method
you just give me a set curriculm that I like and I will do well.
BJJ I like to an extent
Gweilo
Master Black Belt
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So what do you like?
What do you wish to learn?
What elements of bjj, do you not want to learn?
What elements of bjj, do you want to learn?
What is your objective for training ma?
2/3 of BJJ is garbage
Trying to learn every guard position and sweep is a disaster unless you started at age 5
I recommend you only do the no-gi as it’s more mma and realistic . Very simplified with more leg locks
Find a coach who can wrestle as most BJJ coaches can’t teach take downs
Be sure you take some Muay Thai later
what is your age
I am very consistent trainer
I lack good athletic ability and it’s best for me to train many things because I will never be good in one
I am only 6-1 and 155 and lack power and speed
my main back ground is Krav Maga but I added on MT for yrs and now grappling
I am always the nice guy in class
The guy people like
I lack good athletic ability and it’s best for me to train many things because I will never be good in one
I am only 6-1 and 155 and lack power and speed
my main back ground is Krav Maga but I added on MT for yrs and now grappling
I am always the nice guy in class
The guy people like
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