Old Man Jiu Jitsu all the way!
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Friday, 27 April 2018
Thursday, 26 April 2018
Keepin' it real!
Had a lot of fun teaching last night, now we are back in the Gi and getting ready for the LFF Interclub in May; in class I like to show as many techniques as possible from my many years training in various grappling arts, many of which the IBJJF would frown upon if they were attempted at white belt level, resulting in a DQ.
Jiu Jitsu is bigger than the limitations the IBJJF impose along the belt levels and back in the day when I was first starting out and training, pretty much all submissions were valid, be they heel hooks, toe holds, neck cranks, bicep slicers and much more and I am still here today and able to type this article without any assistance and with my own fingers.
Last night I brought my old friend the face bar to the group, a lovely technique that separates the wheat from the chaff so to speak; slap one of these beauties on when some one covers up when their back is taken, instead of fighting the position and they learn very quickly not to cover up.
Really digging in down across the ear and along the line of the cheek bone to sink in the face bar, or grinding in across the cheek and onto the the nose, to get them to expose their neck is very satisfying when attacking and for the recipient, it's what they describe in the Armed Forces as 'character building'.
Sure, the move is illegal in IBJJF comps, but just rolling to their rules and not doing a wrist lock when rolling in class until blue belt and worse, waiting until brown belt before you can knee bar is detrimental to a student's progression. Most people are lucky if they stick it out after they get a blue belt or even make it to blue belt, never mind making it to brown or black belt, so why limit their submission options and only roll to their belt limits as per the IBJJF rules?
In sparring my white belts use heel hooks...in a BJJ class - there I said it!
I can hear the pitchforks rattling already, but it ain't rocket science when applying one, we use catch and release and carry on with the roll; no need to sink the heel hook in for dear life and have the other guy spaz out and roll the wrong way into the move and blow out their knee.
It all boils down to the ego and having enough common sense to realise that you have been caught in whatever submission you are in, you've tried your escape and still they have the move locked in, so tap out, do another fist bump and carry on rolling and at the end of class, you can walk home instead of spending the rest of the night in A+E.
After typing this, I bet the new school guys will think my classes are something akin to the last days of Sodom and Gomorrah, arms and legs flailing around in the air, blood on the mats, the walls and ceiling, pure pandemonium.
Far from it...
We're just regular guys training every week to be the best we can and having fun along the way; I'm constantly on their backs to get them to relax when rolling and to use common sense when applying all subs and knowing when to tap out to prevent serious injury. If they ignore me, hell, I'm already on their back and I just drop a face bar in and they soon get the message...
If anyone uses face bars and other IBJJF none friendly moves, then drop me a message on here, let's see how many are still keepin' it real...
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| The face bar is your friend... |
Tuesday, 24 April 2018
Well done guys!
Back training in the Gi's last night and managed to get a group photo with the lads who managed to bag some bling at the South East Open on Sunday. Huge congrats to you all, hard work does pay off and I'm sure this will keep you motivated to push even harder and get ready for the LFF Interclub in May...
Last night's class - the Gi's are back!
After the successful No Gi training camp, the Gi's are back on as we get ready for the Interclub at London Fight Factory; the mats were busy as usual, with everyone working hard and getting used to being back in the Gi.
Looking forward to the Interclub in May, which will be an action packed day as always, with Luis having one or two surprises up his sleeve...
Oooss!
Monday, 23 April 2018
Medals at the South East Open...
A great result yesterday at the South East No Gi Open, as we took five students along and came away with a gold, silver and bronze medal for our efforts; two of the lads fought some very tough opponents, but it wasn't to be their day, both have learned a lot from their respective matches and are looking forward to compete at the LFF Interclub in May.
As always, getting these guys ready to compete is a team effort and everyone involved in the recent training camp have all played a part in getting them ready, so a huge well done to everyone at the club.
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| Great to see Colin Nwadike from CM Croydon and Martin Hollis from Reigate Martial Arts |
What makes winning these medals a little sweeter, is the fact that I only have these guys twice a week at the minute and they are regularly competing against opponents from full time academies, so their achievements are a testament to all the hard work they put in every class and their commitment and dedication to their club.
Our next event is the LFF Interclub, so tonight we are back in the Gi, sharpening up for what's going to be another awesome event...
5 reasons to train in a Gi...
Here's an interesting article from the guys at Attack the Back, certain to add fuel to this everlasting fire of contention - to train Gi or No Gi?
Thursday, 19 April 2018
Last night's class
Last night was the end of the training camp for the South East No Gi Open on Sunday; it's been a fantastic camp with lots of hard work from everyone over the last seven weeks and thankfully no injuries to any of the guys competing, a sure sign of good fortune from the grappling Gods...
I've really enjoyed teaching and joining in the classes, we've had a lot of fun along the way and I am really excited about the competition and watching my guys in action; five guys have stepped up which is an improvement on numbers from the last competition and we have seven students competing at the LFF Interclub in May.
Slowly but surely the numbers are increasing for each event the club enters, which can only be good thing for all concerned; competing is a great way to test you and your skills under pressure and gives instant feedback on what needs to be worked on in the future and also gives me feedback on each student's performance.
All the hard work has been done and the hours on the mats are in the bag; all that's left is for the lads to chill out, drink plenty water, do lots of stretching and just go out there on Sunday and have fun :)
Huge thanks to our female student Veronika for the Yoga session at the end of the class, it was really beneficial for everyone...
No Gi Training Camp ends - South East Open on Sunday!
All the hard work has been done over the last seven weeks, as we have been preparing for the South East No Gi Open this coming Sunday; five students will be putting it all on the line and I for one am very excited to see them all in action.
Everyone at the club has worked hard for this competition, including the ones not competing; they say when you step out to fight you're on your own, but it takes a team effort to get you out there ready to fight and everyone has played a part in getting their fellow team mates into tiptop condition.
I'm very proud of all my students since we started the training camp, everyone has worked hard and helped push each other in every class, so everyone has improved massively, a win-win situation for everyone.
Until Sunday guys...
Tuesday, 17 April 2018
GCP Episode 277 - 'Gordo'
I am back after a well deserved break and have a number of episodes of the Grappling Central Podcast to catch up on, so plenty of podcasts to listen to this week on your lunch breaks...
Tuesday, 3 April 2018
Last night's class
A killer Bank Holiday session last night to kick start the month of April, not long now before the South East No Gi comp, so every session counts!
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