Tuesday training report

It was dad and lad day at the dojo.  Everyone opted to stay home with the storm approaching.

We worked on 3 mount attacks.  the first one was the high mount armbar.  The review of this attack went smoothly and the confidence Aidan has in this attack was good to witness as he had my arm bending the wrong direction. Next we reviewed the Americana and remembering to grapevine at least one leg to shutdown a sweep attempt.  The Americana has earned a solid spot in the tool box.  We played with the s mount armbar however we decided to work that armbar and stay on top.  It took a little more work to get this one looking sharp.  We nailed it after drilling repeatedly.  

Once we accomplished our armbar work I showed Aidan a sweep from side control.  When he was rolling last Saturday he started working the sweep not knowing that he was doing the right things.  He just need the final piece of the puzzle to make it work. It will need a little time with an opponent his size to add it to his tool box.

See you all Saturday.

A surprise visitor

Saturday's class was fantastic.

We had a surprise visit from Professor Serge Morel.  I'm very happy that he came to see how our class goes and to meet the students. Serge and Stuart run the Auckland BJJ school which is were I continue my study in Jiu Jitsu.  I'm very lucky to have such great students to teach and to have high level Professors helping and teaching me.

It was great to see some of the students that have been gone on holiday return to class.  We continued to work the arm bar.  The day's arm bar position was from the mount using the s-mount.  Like the arm bar from the guard there are a lot of technical pieces that have to come together to accomplish the attack.  This attack will take time to execute efficiently so don't get discouraged if it takes a while to nail it.

Tuesday's submission class

What a great bunch of students I have.  The concentration and focus that was displayed

in class was spectacular.

It's all about the arm bar this month.  We reviewed the arm bar from the guard and all the pieces are coming together nicely.  Everyone did some really nice work learning the attack.

The second arm bar attack we worked on was from the knee on the belly position.  This arm bar always looks impressive as the movement is very dynamic.  Everyone has a good grasp of the movement.  We will be working both arm bar attacks a lot this month.

Our 3rd arm bar attack will be from the mount.  This attack has one basic setup however we can finish the job in many ways.

A cool morning at the dojo

Good day everyone

It was a pleasure having class this morning.  The cool weather was welcomed by all.

Today we started working on the arm bar in the guard.  This attack has a lot of invisible techniques and can seem overwhelming in the beginning.  With steady and focused practice it will all fall into place.  This is one of Jiu Jitsu's fundamental attacks from the guard position.  Overall everyone did a great job getting to know this attack. 

We will be working on arm bar attacks and defense this February.  Once a BJJ fighter learns how arm bars are applied in a few positions a light bulb switches on and they start to see that opportunities present themselves often for this attack.

Tuesday's training report

Wow it was hot Tuesday!  I was very happy that everyone got through training without any complaints about the heat.  That's the tough mental attitude that I love seeing in all of you. 

It was fantastic to have a new student visit us.  She enjoyed the class and we all hope we see her again.  I'm very pleased to see that everyone was a good helper with the new student.

In our class today we reviewed the first mount escape and then transitioned to the second.  the second one will need more work.  It is a bit more technical however I'm confident that everyone will have it in their tool box for the competition.

Competition Rules

Good day everyone

It's time for everyone to become familiar with the competition rules.  I've placed a link below for the IBJJF rule book.  Let me know if you have any questions or need clarification about any of the rules.  See you on the mats!

IBJJF Rule Book Download

Saturday at the Dojo

Three of a perfect pair for training today.

The boys learned a new mount escape today.  It took a bit of work, but we got there in the end.  There are a few more steps in the new escape.  This technique will prove to beuseful in competition with some more practice.  We will review the technique Tuesday.

I will have the BJJ Game Plan document for everyone Tuesday.  This will allow the students to sit and think about what techniques they have learned and in what scenarios they would put them into practice.  We can do it as group in class.  I did this brain storming with Aidan last year and it was a huge eye opener of how much Jiu Jitsu he has learned. 

Here is a challenge for our students

Aidan and I have been doing a push up challenge.

We started with 10 push up before bed. The next night we did 11 and the next we did 12 and so on.  The goal is to get to 30.

The push up should be done  slowly and with proper technique.  It is better to start from the knees and use good technique and when your strength grows move to your toes.  Check out the video below for some tips on getting it right.