Grappler’s Spotlight on US Combat Sports

 

I recently was contacted to be featured in the US Combat Sports “Grappler’s Spotlight.” I was happy to do it, and was asked what would I like to focus on for the interview. I decided to share my journey, particularly as it pertains to the difficulties of maintaining and progressing my training in such a geographically-challenging area of the country as the Midwest, especially at the time I began my training when there were few resources for Jiu-Jitsu instruction anywhere in the states, not to mention Kentucky! Here is a link to the article:

http://uscombatsports.com/index.php?option=com_flexicontent&view=items&cid=191&id=11248&Itemid=27

 

Humbled

I haven’t posted anything in a while on this blog. Mostly because I have been busy teaching every day, and today is no exception. I just finished a lesson with a 61-year-old Marine veteran. And I am truly humbled. Again!

The most exhausting thing about teaching and training to the degree I do isn’t the physical expenditure or even the mental – these are both extreme at times, but I can handle each much more than the emotional toll it takes on me. I try to give all I have emotionally to my students, and in the process I take on a lot of what they bring in with them emotionally, which is oftentimes a lot of negativity or pain in one form or another. To call it an honor to meet and train with and teach the people I get to is a gross understatement.

Whether it is my student with epilepsy who struggles daily in a battle with her own bodily control, or the autistic children who a few months ago could barely follow a 3-step verbal set of instructions, or the gentleman I just mentioned from this morning, I am humbled and privileged to see what real strength and fortitude is, when there are so many others in the world that fall victim to self-pity, whereas these folks who overcome so much. This veteran, who is twice my age with more holes in him from bullets than I care to mention, including in his head, arms, legs, abdomen, and all points in between, showed me the utmost respect upon meeting me. At his age and in his condition, to walk in the door and sign up is amazing to me! And it motivates me to be the best version of myself and to polish my understanding of the art so as to give him the best representation of what has affected my life so greatly. There is no doubt that what we do at Three Rivers Martial Arts is extraordinary and life-altering, but if ever there were question to it, it would quickly be extinguished by the evidence of our students’ accomplishments.

These are not things that they hand out trophies or medals for (though plenty of our students have those too), and these accomplishments are not things that are widely publicized (though Three Rivers has made quite a name for itself). Rather, the quiet achievements of the unsung champions of our academy scream a brilliant emotionally-charged primal scream that resonates through the universe and advances a shift in consciousness that is inextinguishable and unstoppable.

So today, like most days, I am humbled. I bow in completed deference to the wave I am riding, and I am proud and elated to even be associated with what is going on here! I will do my best today and pray it is received by as many as possible.

Peace.

Kids and Jiu-Jitsu: How Many Ways Can You Spell Jiu-Jitsu?!

As pleased as I was that the newspaper in town did an interview with me about Jiu-Jitsu, I was surprised to see the spelling that the writer chose to go with. Here is the article. Thanks to Michael de los Reyes for the interview and keeping pretty accurate with my answers (only paraphrasing mildly):

click to enlarge the article

So why “jujitsu” and not “jiu-jitsu?” Or why not one of the countless other ways of spelling it? And where did these permutations of the spelling come from? Here is a great explanation of it for those of you interested:

Modern understanding of the nuances of language translation has improved greatly since the first contact between English and Japanese speaking people. We now know that the accurate spelling of these characters are
Ju, and

Jutsu.
Not JIU and not JITSU.

That combination of kanji characters therefore makes the word: Jujutsu (jujutsu). That’s just a fact!

Now that we have clarified the spelling issue, we still have the problem of pronunciation. As I have said, there are variations in the sounds used in languages that often pose problems in trying to properly pronounce foreign words. Such is the case with the pronunciation of Jujutsu.

First, notice the macron (bar) over the “u” in “Ju”, indicating that it is not the typical English pronunciation of the vowel. Just as these symbols are used in a dictionary to clarify proper pronunciation, the macron is used here to indicate specifically how a native speaker of Japanese would pronounce the word for the particular kanji character.

In this case, the proper Japanese pronunciation is an elongated “u”, or more specifically, “u-u”, as if repeating the “u” a second time. You might say it is truly a “double-u” (w). Of course, it would make no sense to write it “Jw“, or even “Juu”, so it is written “J“, with the macron.

[Side Note: Based on its name, "double-u", and the shape of the character "w", one could logically assume that centuries ago, this "u-u" sound used in Japanese was the same exact pronunciation used for the English "w", but let's not get side-tracked.]

The closest approximation to the Japanese “u”, or “u-u”, would be the sound of the “oo”, as in “cool”. Unfortunately, many interpreted the “u” to be the same as the English pronunciation of a “long u”, resulting in a sound like the “u” in “unit”, making J rhyme with few, leading to jiu. (or it could be jew-jitsu, the Hebrew martial art.) but as we now know, that’s just wrong.

The second kanji character has been determined to have the spelling (and pronunciation) of “Jutsu”. Notice there is no macron over this “u”, so it does not carry the same sound as the “u” in “Ju”. As we have seen (or heard), the double “u” is longer than our “u”, but, the single “u” is actually shorter (that is, more abrupt) than ours. We would typically pronounce the “u” in a word like this as the “u” in “cut”, but this sound is much too gutteral for the correct Japanese pronunciation, and should be closer to the “u” in “put.” However, the short Japanese “u” is very abrupt, making it sound almost like an “i”, as in “hit”. That is where we got “Jitsu”.

That is an excerpt taken from AllJujitsu.com. Basically, the explanation of why Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu or Gracie Jiu-Jitsu is spelled this way is due to the most common spelling of the word around the early 20th century. And why is it that I always capitalize each “J” in the word? Because it is that important to me. It is like capitalizing “God.”
Hope you enjoy the article.

Now go train!

Jiu-Jitsu Videos and More at Three Rivers YouTube Channel

This is an example of the videos posted at Three Rivers Martial Arts Academy YouTube channel. You can see me, Jason Hawkins, Jared Jessup, Brad Lynn, Derik Perry and all our other instructors and many students training, teaching and more. Check it out and come back to my blog often for updates.

Three Rivers YouTube Channel

Free Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Workshop!!!

Below you will see the poster for my upcoming, Free Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Workshop. It has all the information you need to find out how to attend. However, please read below the poster, as I have a couple thoughts to share with ya. Thanks.

Free Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Workshop!!!

I have been working on ways in which I, and my Three Rivers Martial Arts family, can give back to the community that has made us what we are. Beyond that, I have been trying to come up with as many ways, qualitatively and quantitatively, to give back to the community on a global scale. This is a simple and complicated task.

The easy part is doing: Give to charities, spread joy and kindness, harm no one, live the Golden Rule in everything you do.

The hard part is the direction and organization: How do you make compassion contagious? How exactly do you get others involved? I found what may be the most perfect answer at the most perfect time for me. I came across a TEDTalk (which are always awesome and you should check out by clicking here if you’ve never seen these before), by a woman named Karen Armstrong. She came up with an idea/initiative called The Charter for Compassion. I checked out her lecture, was blown away; checked out some videos on the topic, was amazed; and read the Charter on the site devoted to it, and was overwhelmed! This Charter has some meat to it. It is not an empty, vacuous set of ideas floating with no direction and saying “Hey guys, can you please be nice to each other if you get around to it?” No, rather, this is a mandate of sorts, it seems to me, stating that if we cannot spread compassion, and disseminate the true nature of what it means to be compassionate, then we are headed for misery and downfall.

I will explain another time what the hell Jiu-Jitsu has to do with Compassion, if you don’t already understand, but for now it is just simply my vehicle to promote awareness and get people involved with the charitable principles of compassionate awareness. Like Edmund Bourne said:

“Despite our differences, we are all in this together. No act of kindness or compassion goes unnoticed. To change the world, take compassionate action within your immediate sphere of influence. To change yourself, start by being still and making time just to listen.”

So it is in that vein, that I invite you all out to my workshop, where I will show you some of the best Jiu-Jitsu that I can, get you excited about learning such an incredible system, and hopefully (my greatest intention) create an atmosphere that breeds so much compassion that it is palpable. Bring what you can: food(canned, packaged, not highly-perishable), clothing, toys, and of course cash. Every bit of it will go to local charitable organizations and help out families and individuals in need.

If, you don’t have anything to give when you show up, I will not turn you away. You can participate in the workshop for the admission price of one promise. You must make me a promise that you will, on that day, affirm the Charter for Compassion on the charterforcompassion.org website, and also that you will do some compassionate, selfless, altruistic act of kindness. That is all. But you have to mean it.

Thank you, Dear Reader. Now, go do your practice!

A Jiu Jitsu Perspective of Yoga

“Do your practice and all is coming.”
~Pattabhi Jois, originator of Ashtanga Yoga~

I know little yoga, but I try to incorporate its principles and practice into my daily life. It affects me deeply and has offered to me a lens with which to understand the workings of life, just as Jiu Jitsu has. The following is my account of my introduction to yoga through Jiu Jitsu and the benefits of the practice I have become aware of:

In the late 90′s I attended a week-long camp in the Poconos on Gracie Jiu Jitsu. To say the experience was life-altering is a gross understatement and completely insufficient, but there are no words to describe with authentic emotion the profound impact it had on my existence. To describe the environment, I, along with my closest Jiu Jitsu family members, would wake up around 7am each day, have a clean and natural breakfast, go train in a large hangar-like enclosure for a few hours, break for lunch and recreation for two hours at midday, return for three more hours of training, and then nap briefly before dinner and gathering for discussion of Gracie Jiu Jitsu at evening. This is awesome enough, but I must tell you with whom I trained this week. The instruction for this week came from Helio Gracie, Rorian Gracie and Royce Gracie. Ryron and Rener were there but I believe they were around 12 and 13 years old, so they didn’t contribute much that week.

In addition, some other little-known people were present, such as Steve Maxwell and Phil Migliarese. It was Phil Migliarese that stood out to us among many others. Only a purple belt at the time (now one of the highest ranking American black belts in Gracie Jiu Jitsu), Phil’s expression of Jiu Jitsu seemed to embody exactly what the Gracie’s were trying to get through to us. In a word, he was equanimity. He was calm, fluid, patient, and relaxed. At a camp full of tense and muscle-bound martial arts practitioners from all disciplines, this relaxation stood in sharp contrast to many present. His Jiu Jitsu was effortless and beautiful and dangerous.

My best friend, Jared Jessup, rolled with Phil and was visibly shaken afterward. He had trouble describing the experience. We inquired as to “how he got so good,” and Phil, of course, accredited the superior instruction of the Gracies, but his first word was “yoga.” Yoga? Ashtanga Yoga to be more precise. Phil had studied yoga for longer than Jiu Jitsu, and he credited his relaxation and fluidity to his yoga practice. On a week in which we were having relaxation shoved down our throats in the form of flowing as slowly and effortlessly as we could, with no submissions, for hours at a time, and often in complete sensory deprivation, meeting him set us on a path of exploration into yoga.

Once at home, we procured some Bryan Kest instructional yoga tapes (yes, VHS), and incorporated our interpretation of Surya Namaskara into our warmup before our Jiu Jitsu practice. We went through peaks and valleys of the amount of yoga we incorporated into our practice. Some vacillating more than others, and all taking a very organic approach to it. It would be years before we saw the true benefits. But they would arrive. Oh, did they arrive.

This is yoga for me today: Centeredness rather than balance, but balance as well; Pliability rather than flexibility, but flexibility also; Power rather than strength, but strength too; and Equanimity rather than calmness. Calmness is simple.

~ Centeredness is balance internally and externally. Externally, an overall understanding of positioning and how each part of the body
is affected, contributes to centeredness. Internally, getting your physiological inner-workings to cooperate in order to allow your
body to perform your practice is what I mean by centeredness.

~ Pliability is maybe an arbitrary alternative word to illustrate something beyond flexibility, but I want to emphasize something far
beyond the physical application of flexibility. Being pliable insinuates yielding to external forces seeking to damage or influence you
in some uncontrollable way. Yielding to these forces, rather than resisting them is the way to overcome them. Resisting things
bigger and intangible is a certain way to create stress and damage. Allowing them to come, recognizing them for what they are,
and letting them run their course without feeding them benefits you much more. Holding a pose, melting into it, feeling the
vibration and hearing what your body is telling you; this is the path to pliability. Pliability is opening lines of communication
between your body and mind and breath.

~ Power is strength in its purest and most pervasive form. Power is not aggressive or tense; it is intelligent and active. The adage
states that “knowledge is power,” but in yoga, it seems that the corollary is true. Reverse the antimetabole and read it as “power
is knowledge” and you will get closer to the heart of power in yoga. Power comes in yoga in the form of energy properly placed in
the correct areas of the body, evenly distributed, and igniting the body from the foundation up. It comes from alignment,
structure, breathing, and clarity. It is a product of the yoking process.

~ One of my favorite words, equanimity, is perhaps the most immediately helpful benefits of yoga for the Jiu Jitsu practitioner. It is
balance + calmness. As I said before, calmness is simple. Put anyone in a calm situation, take away their problems, lay them down
on a soft surface, give them drugs, and anyone can be calm. A good measure of true calmness, though, is how much balance it
yields. This is something only the individual will be able to discern, and the ability to discern it comes from listening to oneself.
Equanimity is achieved not through the elimination of external stressors and tense situations, but amidst them. In yoga, the next
movement may be uncomfortable or the next inhalation may be difficult, but it is necessary nonetheless. Likewise, in Jiu Jitsu, the
next escape from the difficult position may be seemingly impossible, but it is necessary in order to survive and ultimately prevail.
Equanimity is achieved when the external forces acting upon you fail to thwart your advancement, and cease to deter your
practice. Things are just things. This bad thing happening to me is bad because I have labeled it so. Time spent in self-pity is
always wasted and never helpful. The truest calmness is not in running from the storm, but rather in the eye of it.

This is only what yoga means to me, and how it has benefited me in my life and enhanced my Jiu Jitsu. I am learning. I only wanted to share this with others, to share the beauty of it, in hopes that something I have said may reach someone and possibly help them with their journey, wherever they are headed. The God in me greets the God in you.

Namaste.

Jiu Jitsu Lifestyle

I have been doing Jiu Jitsu half of my life, and for anyone who knows my real age they know that is a pretty long time. For this reason, it becomes more and more interesting to me to look at people beginning their training and their motivations. Likewise, it interests me to watch my peers’ motivations grow and evolve, as does mine. Jiu Jitsu has become a lifestyle for me, and I would like to pass on a few ways in which I mean this.

I first came to Jiu Jitsu after some previous martial arts training that was somewhat lackluster. I had various reasons for wanting to learn, but a major one is that I saw the “magic” of martial arts training, and Jiu Jitsu offered a new brand of magic that appealed to me at the time. I was not very strong or fast or otherwise athletic. I was introverted, but I was artistic and imaginative. I enjoyed the outlet for a new expression of creativity that Jiu Jitsu gave me. However, there wasn’t anything I could clearly articulate was my direct motivation. And I think this is common. I often hear people, upon being questioned about their reason for starting their training, say things such as “I am just interested in it” or “I saw it on TV and thought it looked cool” or some variation of these responses. Others may express an interest in defending themselves or in the competition aspect, and most all students are drawn to these aspects to some degree.

As an instructor, it has become a responsibility of mine to figure out the true motivation of individuals, in order to help them in their journey. “Journey” sounds a little hokey, but that is what it is or what it has to become, if it is to amount to anything at all. Most initial responses to the question of motivation are superficial, because the individual has had no exposure yet to the benefits of training. As they proceed in their training, their motivation changes and vacillates. Eventually, if they stick with it, their motivation becomes muted, effaced, and aloof. “Motivation” as a term for why they continue training becomes outmoded, and they progress to a constant state of just “training for training sake.” Everyone knows that they are in some way trying to better themselves with their training, and the fact that they are drawn to do this is a wondrous thing. It only becomes more wondrous as they continue.

Back to me: I have had moments of doubt and uncertainty. I have questioned my motivation, as well as the amount I have sacrificed to continue my training. “What am I trying to accomplish here?” I said on more than one occasion. What a dangerous question that we are all guilty of asking! Luckily I stuck through plateaus and climbed out of valleys, as well as I fortunately survived the rush of being high on peaks. It is easy to want to give up when you are feeling poorly about your training; especially if a single or few bad events knock you off of a pedestal of superiority you may have accidentally wound up on. And I am now more thankful than anything that I have the ability to say to students, with genuine conviction and reinforcement, “This too shall pass, so be thankful for today’s training.”

You have to develop the ability to take pleasure out of the sheer state of presence that training allows you. If you come in with worries from outside or regrets over earlier occurrences, you diminish, if not completely destroy, the joy and value of the training you are about to partake in. This is one of the highest principles from training that you can apply to all your life: be present and taste every detail of the current situation, painful or splendid. No amount of worry over a late bill will pay it! If you are at your daughter’s play, watch the play! If you are cooking a meal, cook the meal! Chop wood, carry water! When you allow your mind to live in another instance not the present one, you have separated your mind and body, and no harmony can follow that. In Jiu Jitsu this is immediately obvious, because if you are not paying attention, then you get caught in a choke. And you deserved it!

These are the very important aspects I see about living a Jiu Jitsu lifestyle – these metaphorical ideas. Metaphorical in the sense that they present themselves in tangible form in training and then render marvelous abstractions in daily living. Once we are able to settle ourselves into our practice and quiet some of the noise that runs through our heads, we can hear subtler things we are not as attuned to in daily bustle. We begin to “hear” our bodies instructions on how to to treat ourselves. How far can this muscle stretch comfortably? How fast does our heart beat before we have to breathe through our mouths and not just our noses? How much weight can I comfortably support in this or that position? How sluggish or energetic do I feel in my practice when I eat an hour before? Two hours? Most of these are fairly easy to answer if we can get ourselves present and quiet enough to be receptive.

I know my purpose now. I have learned it through my training. It is not about accomplishments, although I can outline these if I want. It is not about any willful direction I have forced myself into, and it is not about proselytizing, although I do plenty of that (that is what this blog is kind of about after all). My purpose is manifest, and I try only to nourish it with love and give it space to flourish. Jiu Jitsu tells me this is the right thing to do. So I consider Jiu Jitsu my purpose.

In closing I would like to include a nice segment of a video related to this topic:

Growing Pains

“Other things may change us, but we start and end with family”
– Anthony Brandt

Watching UFC with Royce

I got a call from a student the other day about doing a private lesson. This particular student wanted to do it sometime Thursday night. I looked at the schedule, and there were group classes in the front all night and the private lesson room in the back was booked solid as well. So, I tried Friday night….same thing. Saturday – ok, but had to be late afternoon. My first thought was “Damn, we are having a bunch of lessons!” And then I thought again. “Damn! We are having a bunch of lessons!”

These are the types of growing pains an academy wants to have; too many students and lessons and not enough time or space. These types of “pains” are fixable. Easily. Happily. But, there are other types of growing pains as well. Not as easily fixable, and more painful in nature. They have to do with maintaining the environment and integrity of the academy while absorbing all these new people into the mix. “Check your ego at the door” has become such a ubiquitous maxim of martial arts training facilities that it is almost cliche now. But there is so much more than ego that needs checking.

People all carry around with them their life experiences, good and bad. We are the sum total of our experiences, and these determine or actions and reactions to what all goes on around us. If you truly keep this in mind, it makes it easier to allow certain trespasses to occur, and not be too offended by people’s lack of tact or ostensible rudeness. You see, Jiu Jitsu is not all about fighting and self-defense. Well, at first it is, then it isn’t, and then it is once more.

We come into new situations, especially those in which we feel uncomfortable and those which are performance-based (at least in our minds), with a certain air of competitive mentality. We must size up the competition – and that is everyone! We must portray ourselves as flawless and ideal as possible! We must, at all costs, be better than our peers in all aspects of our performance! And, holy shit! We must never be outdone! Tell yourself all you want that this isn’t you. “No, not me, I am just there to learn and go with the flow, and whatever happens happens….” Bullshit. You may vary in intensity of these emotions, especially on the surface and when compared to others, but we all have these feelings. We all are repelled by the feeling of being outdone. We are mathematical this way; if John has been training a the same pace as I have, and he is approximately the same age and physicality as I am, we should remain even in our abilities, right? Hmmm….Hell No!

John (or call him by whatever name you will) has a completely different makeup than you. Maybe his brain secretes hormones at different periods of elevated stress than yours when presented with a stressful situation. Maybe it is a different combination of hormones than yours causing him to perform better, while your reaction actually hinders your performance. Maybe you operate better in more confined spaces and the training space is very open and disorienting to you. Maybe you have an upset stomach, or lack of sleep. Any host of problems, physical, psychological, emotional, physiological, etc., can determine what you get out of training.

But wait, there’s more! What if I come in, guns blazing, and I am doing well. I have found my niche in Jiu Jitsu – it speaks to me and I excel at it as a result. My instructor picks up on this and appreciates it. Whenever I go to him/her with a question, it is happily received and answered. I am feeling more than just satisfaction of training after a few months; I am feeling like part of something bigger than myself. I feel like a part of an extended family. It is great….for me. However, Bob (or whatever name you want to give him) is not feeling this. You see, he joined after my progress had really begun, and he sees how accepted I am by my teachers and training partners. He wants that too, but he is not sure how to get it. But he will try in a couple of different ways:

Alpha-Bob will try to outdo me at every turn. He is progressing well, and trains extra hard, getting all those “good job”s from the instructors, and trying to be very expressive about how well he is catching on. He makes a big display when he performs in class. He puts all his effort into tapping all his opponents with the latest greatest technique he just learned. He gives it all he’s got, especially against me. Now I am his opponent in his mind; not his partner. And it extends beyond the mat. Alpha-Bob tells people how well he is doing, and compliments anyone but me. He tells others that he really doesn’t care much for the way I do a certain technique. He talks to others about how I am just an apple polisher and that is the real reason for my status in class. He would be much better than I am if he had started back when I did, he explains to other students.

Now, how I react to this once it becomes apparent to me is crucial. Either way, I am bound to go through a period of discomfort. And that is heartbreaking now that I have found such utter sanctuary in my academy. If I am unfamiliar with how to deal with this, I may make the supreme mistake of engaging in it. All of the sudden, I am talking trash about Bob, and putting extra effort into tapping him or maybe I correct his technique in front of others. Screw that guy, I was here first! So how do I handle it? How do I fix this situation?

Firstly, if I admit there is a situation at all, I have lost to an extent. Once I label it, I pit him versus me on some level. Now I have cemented the drama. Rather than this, the key lies in not engaging. Notice, I did not say “ignore it.” Alpha-Bob’s feelings are real, and if he directly approaches me to start a dialog, I will not shy from it. I will not however move from my home, just because there is a house guest visiting that does not like me particularly. And that is what he is – a visitor – unless and until he decides to acclimate. So I will continue my journey. I will thrive in my sanctuary, purifying my art and myself internally and externally.

Eventually, Alpha-Bob yields way to Beta-Bob (or whatever you will call him). Beta-Bob recognizes that I will not engage his efforts to fight me. I will not feed his Painbody, as Eckhart Tolle puts it. So, what is he left with? He is left with what brought him in the door in the first place. But even that have metamorphosed into something different. He now has to take inventory of what he has accomplished, and what he must change in order to accomplish more. He must cleanse his perception in order to see the infinite possibilities that truly lie before him in his training. Now he has really begun. After all this time, he has actually just now started his journey.

I make it a point to know something about every student that walks in the door at Three Rivers Academy. And most are more than willing to share – people like to talk about themselves. This is good. I want the students to achieve, among other things at the academy, catharsis. I enjoy the closeness created by knowing these things, good, bad, otherwise. I love my Jiu Jitsu family. And as my family grows (outgrowing the new academy already!), my heart grows, making room for new love for all those that would join my family. But when someone brings ego, jealousy, contempt, insecurity, deception, etc. into my Jiu Jitsu home, it hurts my heart, but I must only help to preserve the purity and sanctity of my environment and hope that everyone else follows suit. Either the person will acclimate or leave, ultimately. I dearly hope they all stay.

Awesome Things Happening! Check ‘Em Out!

I was just sent notification of a cool workshop coming up from our friends at the Paducah Yoga Center. The workshop is called The Yoga of Eating. Now, as many of you know, I have an impeccable diet of only healthy, natural, organic foods of only the highest quality, which I eat in perfect portions at the proper times of day. But, if you really know me, then you know that last sentence is full of more crap than that thing I ate from McDonald’s this morning. However, I eat good when I can, and I am always trying to improve my eating habits. I plan to attend this really cool workshop to get some healthful tips on cleaning my diet and so should you!

The Yoga of Eating

Also, Royce will be here Saturday! If you have never met Royce Gracie, you will want to do so this weekend at Energy Fitness in Paducah, KY. He will be hosting a 2-day seminar for Three Rivers Martial Arts Academy. He is one of the coolest guys, and most knowledgeable Jiu Jitsu men on the planet. Don’t miss this opportunity!

Three Rivers Martial Arts Royce Gracie Seminar 2009

The Quintessential Way to Break the Rules

First, I will preface this post by clarifying that I am not talking about “rules” as in competition rules; I am referring to those specific mandates that are delivered to you from your instructor. Is it OK to break the rules that you are taught and reminded of over and over? I say absolutely…but not really. Lemme ‘splain:

Prescriptive teaching is the easiest way to convey the most important elements to masses of people. Karate today doesn’t look like it did hundreds of years ago when the knowledge was disseminated to a smaller group (if not individually) at a time, in more intimate settings. But, as the need arose to teach scores of students at a time in less frequent intervals, much had to be scrapped away for the sake of posterity and information retention. This is why you go into a Karate class now and line up and do your kicks, punches, blocks, what-have-you, in very regimented fashion. Karate is one of those unfortunate arts that have been so watered down that it is rare to find someone to show you a realistic application for movements within kata. This happens with nearly anything though, when only the “rules” are taught. The rules are important, quintessential. But so is the context in which those rules operate.

Prescriptive teaching is also the easiest way to keep the student from becoming overwhelmed or confused by learning exceptions to rules as they are learning the rules themselves. For example, a decent teacher should not teach you the guillotine choke for the first time, teach you the nuances of how and why it works, and then in the same lesson go on to show you the counter. The subconscious lesson to the student is that the technique can be defended, so be weary trying it, if not avoid trying it altogether. Much better is it to teach the technique, let the student have some time to run and play with it, and bring them the counter or variation as their need arises. Let the student know that the technique is good and can work. Let them see the magic trick before revealing the prestidigitation.

Rules I find myself shoving down students’ throats all the time have to do with posture, base, superior and inferior positioning, position over submission, and many more. However, one thing I am always certain to avoid is saying that this or that “rule” is absolute. “You always hold this position this was,” or “You always apply this technique like this,” are things I avoid saying, even if I really want to drive a point home. I always want to leave open the potential for exception and variation down the road…because I have been on this road a while and the exceptions to the rules are ubiquitous.

Yet, as many exceptions as I know to a rule, I have come to understand that getting that rule across is the quintessential thing. There is that damn word again, “quintessential.” What the hell does it even mean? Let’s get some help on this one:

Man, can she explain words or what?! But that is why I call the rules quintessential; they get to the heart of the move. Just as a submission is nearly useless without the proper position, you can never go against the rule until you have learned why the rule is in place and how the rule works. Learn it before you can break it. I need more specifics, I think:

As a white belt, and even blue belt I suppose, I learned things like: 1.Don’t try to attack someone when you are inside their guard 2.Don’t extend your arms when mounted 3.Don’t keep flat on your back under side control.

As a brown belt I have 1.Submitted opponents from inside their guard 2.Escaped the mount by reaching straight the hell up and pushing my opponent off me, and 3.Play flat on my back more often then not from under side control.

This is not to say that I don’t follow the rules more than I break them – I do. I only say these things to illustrate that having an understanding of the rules and how they work, I am able to manipulate the situation to circumvent the rule. If I know how my opponent can take advantage of the situation if I try to, say, apply a choke from within his guard, then I can perhaps take necessary precautions, avoid the things I know he can do in response, and thereby dismantle whatever he attempts to do in response to me applying my technique. However, if I am ignorant to the fact that the guard is a superior position in terms of the leverage it affords the bottom person, and thinking I am on top I go for a submission, I am likely to get tapped or swept in response because I took no precautions and blindly attacked a well-guarded (pun-intended) opponent.

The rules are important. They are the product of exploration into the essence of Jiu Jitsu. Without them, your expression of Jiu Jitsu will be corrupted. With mindfulness to the rules of Jiu Jitsu, amazing things are possible. But, as with any rules, it is always a good idea to keep in mind the letter of the law versus the spirit of the law and give each its due attention.

And while it is difficult to find a video illustrating this topic per se, here is the old Gracie Academy commercial in case you haven’t seen it yet: