Philosophy and Thoughts »

Ju-Jitsu Training

Last night was packed at ju-jitsu, we had 10 guys plus a new student. Sempai Steve was there as well. Steve is a Judo blackbelt as well as a Kobukai Ju-Jitsu blackbelt and is EXTREMELY good on the mat. There were 2 brown belts and 2 black belts (myself included) that all worked together to go over our brown belt techniques. It has actually been a long time since I’ve worked on those techniques… And last night it showed. It was a combination of having a shoulder injury / surgery recovery / being overly concerned about shoulder / needing a refresher that all caused my techniques to not be as crisp as I would have liked them and remember them being. I keep telling myself that things will eventually come back, I just need to heal and get back to regular training.

Newaza or sparring

I ended up having a “decent” roll. Obviously I favored my shoulder, but overall it went fairly well. My hardest thing is not reverting back to old fighting methods. During newaza I really want to challenge myself and try new techniques and “positions” or variations of positions… especially guard. I think this is a key point for any grappler or fighter. Its great that you have favorite techniques or having go-to techniques, but challenging yourself and forcing yourself to learn new techniques can only help you improve. We do this a lot by restricting a certain person from going for their favorite technique, or telling them they can only finish using BLANK submission or you can only do BLANK technique. So if you’re a triangle choke guy, you are restricted to only finishing in a knee bar. Or if you sweep a lot from guard, you’re only allowed to go for submissions in guard.
I rolled with Jake (toughest lawyer) and Normal Dave. Jake and I went one and one for footlocks. It was a good roll! I haven’t rolled with him in a long time, and he’s gotten a lot better. I love getting knee on stomach and transitioning to whatever from there. He knows this, and was doing an excellent job last night keeping me from it.
The roll with Normal Dave was more of a play session. I wanted to try some different stuff and I wanted to let Dave try and execute different techniques. Dave is a yellow belt and progressing really nicely. We call him Normal Dave, because we have another Dave in class who is a GIANT. 6′4, 300lbs and not fat. INSANELY strong, yet extremely nice.

Lessons Learned

I learned from this class and the past couple classes that I need to be patient, and I need to realize that I am not where I was 1-2 years ago. It has become mentally taxing to not be able to do certain things, and not execute proper techniques. This is especially true when you are in a room of people underneath you (belt wise) and they look up to you for proper direction. I know that in a few months I will be right back to where I was, but when you think about it, that actually puts me behind. Everyone else as been progressing while I remain “stale”. Very tough to deal with.

Sometimes when I drive into work, I just turn off the radio and let my mind wander for those 30 minutes. I think about my goals (far too many to count), finances, the internet, and martial arts. Most of the time my mind wanders towards my “martial arts and strength goals”. Where I would like to be, what I would like to accomplish, and how I am going to get there.

There a few factors which cause my mind to go there a lot….

1. I am completely obsessed with martial arts, particularly jiu-jitsu and strength. I’ve always had this problem where I just want to do it ALL.
2. I am about to turn 31. I had set a lot of goals for 30. And besides one, (I thought I would be an internet millionaire by now), I would say I am right on track. But I also realize I am getting older, and I cannot do it ALL. My wife and I want to start growing our family and I have to be realistic about what I want to accomplish in the next 4-5 years. 35 years old is my next benchmark. So, I have been trying to analyze what goals are truly feasible and most important to me.
3. I am injured right now. 5 weeks after surgery and still a shoulder that is about 40% of where I want to it to be… or let me say it should be. If its where I want it to be, it would probably be around 10%. So, because I am injured it has been causing me to refocus my goals. Its also brought the fire back into me for some things.
4. I have been reading a lot… Strength, Grappling, Martial arts, etc

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I run a Ju-Jitsu class at a Kyokushin School in Cromwell, CT. I have very small student base because there is really no advertising done and I do it out of passion. I don’t even get paid :). Last night I was fortunate enough to walk into the class to see 2 new students! I have a total of 7 people training! Unheard of in my small little place in the ju-jitsu world. Both of the new students were interesting, one more so then the other. Both were very eager, and both felt like they had something to prove. They had to tell me of their past martial arts experience and they both felt the need to somewhat show off.

I can understand that new students are nervous and it is a “fighting” class where men need to be men and try to assert themselves as the dominant person, but there are just certain things you should not do and ways you should not act in a martial arts class, whether you are a new student, or a returning one.

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I have been training martial arts seriously for a little over 10 years, and off and on for about 15. I do not consider myself a Mixed Martial Arts Fighter. I consider myself a martial artist and a ju-jitsu “artist”. You can read a little bit about me here: http://www.kobukaijujitsu.com/resume.html (I’m Matt). I do have a great deal of experience with MMA though. I have worked with a lot of MMA fighters. I have helped prepare them for fights, and have even cornered for them. One of the things I am starting to despise, as MMA gets more popular, are people pretending they are MMA fighters. I understand with every main stream sport this happens and I think it’s actually great that MMA is getting this popular. The thing about it is, MMA has “Martial Arts” in it’s name. I don’t think these wannabe tools fully understand the meaning of that. Martial arts is just not about beating up other up. Its a unique experience that can only be had by actually taking the journey. When I see or hear these things (this is a list of actual things I have experienced in my years of training), it frustrates me a little. But the reason it frustrates me is because of the way I experienced martial arts and that these people just don’t “get” what its really like to train and be a martial artist.
So, here is my list of 10 ways to know if you are an MMA Tool, enjoy!
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I recently discovered that one of the guys I train with Trey has a JuJitsu Blog, conveniently named JuJitsuBlog.com I recently read a post there:
Camaradie talking about the martial arts class, laughing and having respect for one and other.

One of the things I love about martial arts training and particularly our school is the people I train with. I stated in a comment on Trey’s blog that I have always felt that the best friends you have are the ones you fight. Two of my closest friends are people who have fought and trained with extensively. My friend Mike and I met in a boxing ring. We were told to go in there and beat the shit out of each other. We had never met and barely even said hi. It was one of the best fights of my life and an all out war. And from it a mutal respect was formed and a great friendship. My best friend Oz and have been training and workout partners for years. We have pushed each other to become stronger and better, we have fought great battles, and we have grown together as martial artists and friends.
I really think the backbone of these friendships is respect and honor. Its hard to say exactly what causes this to be formed. All I know is that it is formed and I can’t WAIT to get back to training!!!!

Side Note: I recently had shoulder surgery for a torn LABRUM, NOT labia and a bone spur. About that labia…. When I first found out about the torn labrum I was going around telling people I had a torn labia….. Caught a lotta flak for that one.
But, I’m out for 6 weeks. Tuesday will mark only 3 more weeks to go, then back in action.

Take a moment to watch this brief video (you must watch the end to appreciate the significance).

This video reminds me of a famous Thomas Edison quote. In his words, “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.”

I’ve seen truth in these words at all levels. I know professional fighters who have starred in main event title fights on national television who still doubt their ability. The physical talent is there, but the mind is still trying to hold them back from reaching their true potential.

The mind is certainly powerful. There is no denying this fact. Unfortunately, the mind’s power can work in both directions. The mind can either propel you forward or hold you back. More often than not, the physical talent and potential is present, but the mind prevents the athlete from moving forward.

There are times when you need to turn off that little voice inside your head. Turn it off and go! Don’t think about what you can or cannot do. Just go. Think less and do more. Challenge yourself. You’ll be surprised at what you can accomplish.

As mentioned in the past No Excuses article, I often see athletes who constantly search for a new and better plan. If something isn’t going right, they rarely take personal responsibility. It must be something else, right? Wrong! Often times you simply need a reminder of what REAL work is all about. Hard work is interpreted differently by different people.

For a combat specific example, we occassionally call for additional rounds of sparring when the athlete thinks he is in the final round. For example, the athlete believes he is sparring 6 rounds, but we may call for 8 or 10. Initially, you may be mentally conditioned to assume that you are fatigued in what you believe to be the last round. When you are forced to “suck it up” and continue however, you’ll often surprise yourself (and realize that you have more gas in the tank). Clearly, this isn’t something that the novice should attempt, but as you climb the ladder, you need to do more than is expected of you.

Ross