Why BJJ?

[hizaguchi]

I'm considering the style but I worry about the kind of people I'm going to end up training with. I'm easily annoyed, so I'm using this poll to create my own sweeping generalization of the type of people who study BJJ. :D

[moogong]

Why BJJ? Because BJJ is:

a) extremely effective means of self defense
b) an awesome cardio work out
c) fun to learn and practice
b) largly unsullied by consumerism
d) gives a tight, family vibe in the dojo. (that is bound to happen when you spend hours rolling with one another)
e) well respected in the martial arts community
f) it is a style that you can not fake credentials
g) is a fun sport to engage or watch
h) teaches a vital part of real fighting, the ground game.
I) incorporates vital elements of judo.
J) the originators family is still alive..therefore no false myths about its origins.
K) seems to blend nicely with other arts
L) very simple style to learn. most matches or fights are won by the basics
M) has a large seminar community which gives you access to many new training methods
N) it is constantly evolving
O) chicks dig it!
P) belts are earned only through hard work
Q) majority of training products are top quality
S) dojos are usually filled with people of various sizes which is very helpful in developing your game.
T) becomes a very different art depending on the use or non-use of gi
U) despite it appearance, it is a very soft art and teaches sensitivity.
V) most instructors have good knowledge of sport nutrition to pass along
W) abbreviates nicely.
X) forces students to "think outside the box" rather then being limited to only a few chosen concepts
Y) dojo atmospheres are very relaxed
z) helps you to remember the alphabet.

[Erik]

Great mixture of action and chess.

Non uptight pseudo-Asian culture (I don't think they're so uptight in Asia as the airs people put on here).

A sport.

Seems like good training for some of the stuff I've seen/experienced/heard about on the street.

Minimal BS in terms of "this is the right way" "no, that is the right way" arguments. If you can make it work, it works for you. Period.

I like my buddies there.

[Cliff Hargrave]

What they said.....

For me, I was teaching JJJ and karate and two of my students started training at a BJJ school also. After about two months they both could beat me on the mat at will and I had over 15 years in martial arts at the time. They drug me along to the BJJ school where people wiped the mat with me. I became a convert. Now I mostly train in just BJJ and kickboxing. The only older stuff I still do are the throws, and the JJJ stuff that I have added to the LEO defensive tactics I teach.

[AndrewSimonsen]

I'm considering it because it is supposed to be less intense on the neck as wrestling, even though I might have to wait another year before I start.

[ssenniug]

I understand where you are coming from. I wanted to learn BJJ/ground grappling and thought it was going to be full of unsavory people that just want to hurt someone.

What I found was the exact opposite. Everyone I have met so far has been 100% nice and helpful. I'm sure there are people out there with bad intentions, they are everywhere in every aspect of line. So far, everyone has just been training to better their game.

I think you should definately look into it and try a few classes. I am sure you will like it.

[Cliff Hargrave]

Ditto on that, I have met far more dirtbags, fakes, frauds, disrespectful idiots, etc., in regular martial arts. Those types don't tend to last long in BJJ.

[Erik]

You guys must have a great BJJ culture in Texas!

We're not too bad here in Mountain View, but I've been to some grappling clubs filled with guys I would not let near my sisters (to put it politely).

[TonyU]

...because Cliff told me to.

[hizaguchi]

Thanks alot for all the helpful input. The main reason I started considering BJJ is that I'm having a hard time finding a TKD school in my area that doesn't feel McDojo-ified. I've looked into Kung Fu and several other arts, but I never really gave BJJ much thought. I assumed that, with all the emphasis on MMA tournaments and other such things that just don't interest me, the local BJJ class would just be full of guys who want to fight and hurt people. I've met my share of those, so I have been avoiding trying a class. But reading your opinions and looking at the pictures on the Knoxville BJJ School Site (http://kbjj.com), I'm starting to think that the class atmosphere may be more similar to my original TKD school: laid back, friendly, and helpful. I'm really excited to give it a try now. Thanks everybody.

[Tony Dismukes]

I'll confirm that in my experience with BJJ, most students and teachers have been very friendly and laid back. Training is rough, but no one wants to deliberately hurt anyone.

[LJS93]

I chose Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu for several reasons. One being I was very bored with the whole karate thing, the kata, the light sparring, just wasn't doing it for me anymore. Two, after watching UFC and seeing Royce in action, I knew there was something to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, so I had to do it. Three, chicks LOVE jiu-jitsu players. I don't know how many times we've had girls just walk in to watch us train, something which NEVER occurs in karate. Karate tends to be filled with nerds and geeks for some reason, something BJJ does not attract for the most part. For instance this girl I was seeing for awhile understands why BJJ guys have great hip movement, and why it's useful in other endeavors. :wink2: ;)

[Dennis Monk]

Yeah, man the chicks dig triangle chokes. :)

[Erik]

Girls dig BJJ? Are you kidding?

Out here is is about as uncool as can be.

They seem to just not like seeing guys in each others' guards or something.

[hizaguchi]

By the way, am I going to get broken doing BJJ? I started TKD back when my body was still growing, so in exchange for great flexibility I've ended up with some joint problems. By "joint problems" I mean "if I jog alot my knee falls out of the socket" and "ridgehand strikes made it so my arms aren't attached so well at the shoulder." Since I don't have health insurance right now (part time job/college student), I'm a little warry about having somebody torque my body in positions it doesn't like. I just don't want to tear any connective tissue that I can't afford to have fixed. Do I have anything to worry about?

[Erik]

Yes, you do. It's a rough sport. Start nice and easy, be a wuss for a while, and seek training partners who don't clobber you much. You'll figure out who they are soon enough.

I had no health insurance for a long time and always took it easy. When the guys got frustrated with me I told them I was a computer science graduate student - a nerdy wimp - and that I couldn't practice as much as they (most trained for MMA, too).

[Tony Dismukes]

By the way, am I going to get broken doing BJJ?

BJJ can be rough (although it can vary according to the school), but there are some things you can do to keep from getting too beat up.

As Erik said, be a wuss at first. Tap early and often. Don't worry so much in the beginning about winning or losing. Instead, try to discover in each grappling session how relaxed you can be without getting sloppy.

I know several students who regularly wear knees braces or tape their joints to protect problem areas. If you have an injured or almost injured joint, be sure to tell your training partner so they can avoid attacking it.

Try to be technical and precise rather than fast and explosive. There are many benefits to rolling slowly, even when your training partner is being explosive. Among them is the result that you're less likely to injure yourself.

I've found that doing power yoga consistently makes a big difference in preventing soreness. It gives me flexibility combined with functional strength through my full range of motion. If you have a problem with hyper-flexibility, you might consider some slow, strength-throughout-range-of-motion exercises to protect your joints.

After workouts, soaking in a hot tub, massage, and gentle stretching seem to significantly reduce soreness.

Good luck! Whether you train at a self-defense oriented school or a more competition-oriented gym, BJJ is just a whole lot of fun.

[Erik]

Hi Tony,

What sort of yoga? Which positions and transitions?

Gawd dang, do I need something like that in my routine.

I'm too young to be this old.

-E

[Tony Dismukes]

Erik, I've been doing primarily work off of DVDs and CDs. Baron Baptiste and Shiva Rea are two of my favorite instructors. Rodney Yee has some good DVDs, but he tends to go for more of a continually moving workout, whereas I prefer a routine which gives more time to explore each position. My wife and I just discovered a yoga center close to our house which we'll be getting a membership to on my next paycheck. The 2-hour Saturday morning workout there is as tough as any workout I've done in my life, and I include training at professional muay thai gyms in that comparison.

So in general, I tend to go for more vigorous routines about 2/3 of the time, and softer, more relaxing routines on days when I need to recover and heal.

The vigorous routines will usually start with some variation of a sun salutation to warm up the body, for up to 20 minutes or so. Usually I'll spend quite a while holding downward facing dog, which really helps my shoulders and also loosens my back and hamstrings. Next I'll typically do a series of standing poses - warrior 1, warrior 2, half-moon, triangle, etc. I might do some upper-body strengthening poses, such as crow or pendulum pose. Next it's down to the mat for some back bending poses (locust, bow, bridge, wheel). some ab work, and then winding down with some forward bends and spinal twists. Some stretches for the hips & butt cheeks (such as pigeon & half-pigeon) seem to really help my guard work.

The big trick seems to be in focusing on the breath and staying relaxed. Don't push any stretch past the point where you can relax into it. Do try to stay calm when you're holding a pose that pushes your strength and endurance. Don't worry about how deep you get into a pose. Do focus on internal awareness and good form. For example, when performing triangle pose, the natural tendency is to let the side of the torso facing the ground crunch inwards while the side facing the ceiling stretches. In fact, the bottom side should be lengthening as well. You don't want to go any deeper into the pose than you can go and still hold that long feeling on both sides of the torso. A good teacher will help you get the feel, and then the DVDs & CDs are good if your schedule makes it hard to get to a studio on a regular basis.

Given the injuries I've seen you complaining about on other threads, some yoga might be good stuff for you. I know I get hurt a lot more in the dojo whenever I neglect my yoga workouts.

[LJS93]

Man seriously Erik, we actually have hot girls hanging out all the time. Of course we run a clean ship, no shirts off, clean clothes, real professional atmosphere. By no means all amped up with machismo, something some BJJ schools are filled with.

[Tony Dismukes]

By the way, Brandon, BJJ can be rough, but at least it doesn't tear your body up as quickly as judo does. ;)

[jwinch2]

By the way, Brandon, BJJ can be rough, but at least it doesn't tear your body up as quickly as judo does. ;)

Tell that to this guy Tony...

BJJ Article (http://www.dailybulletin.com/Stories/0,1413,203~21481~2986160,00.html)

[Archimedes]

Tell that to this guy Tony...

BJJ Article (http://www.dailybulletin.com/Stories/0,1413,203~21481~2986160,00.html)

Looks like Torre's now 2-0-0...

[jwinch2]

Yeah we'll see how long that lasts in prison I guess...

[Archimedes]

Yeah we'll see how long that lasts in prison I guess...

From what I understand, he spent time in jail before the trial and took a few beatings. Of course, he went in bragging about what a hotshot MMA fighter he was, thus making him a magnet for all manner of abuse. He had also snookered a lot of people into thinking he was a BJJ black belt.

[Erik]

He's toast....

[hizaguchi]

By the way, Brandon, BJJ can be rough, but at least it doesn't tear your body up as quickly as judo does. ;)
That's good news. I've only seen one judo competition, but 2 people ended up with broken arms in it. I'm sure that's not par for the course, or judo would be out of capable students by now, but sitting 10 feet away and hearing that bone SNAP made an impression. :)

What really worries me though, as far as injuries go, is the competitive nature that I'm beginning to suspect is part of a BJJ school. My screwy joints have odd catches and move in some strange directions, so even the few Aikido and TJJ seminars I have attended have occasionally come close to causing me problems. I'm worried that with that competitive nature will come a little too much enthusiasm for rag-dolling the new guy around. Won't know for sure though until next week when I get a chance to try a class out. It may be that I'll need to get into a slower, softer grappling style for a while first, just to toughen up my tendons and stuff. Guess it'll just depend on how gentle the other students are going to be.

[Cliff Hargrave]

tap early, tap often.......

[TIRAGION]

In my experience most guys will take it easy on you early on. As a suggestion try to roll with blue belts and up in the begining they have better control and rely less on brute force, therefore less chance of injury. Plus another perk, you will learn more from them. I don't remember who said it but " A little knowledge is dangerous...".
Good luck to you in BJJ, hope you like it.


______________________________________________
Alexander Rakita

[hizaguchi]

Alrighty, last week I got a new job, so now my nights are free and tonight I finally made it to a class. Wow. The people were really great, the class was tiring enough that my muscles trembled for a good hour afterward, and despite tapping out constantly, nobody broke me. I'm really going to like this. Turns out that the TKD approach to building a school full of people with good character and mutual respect isn't the only way to go. You don't need lots of "sirs" and bowing... you need to talk about keg-stands and listen to Tool. :) I'm a convert. Thanks BudoSeek! *gives cheesy thumbs up and wink*

[ssenniug]

Thats great to hear, I am glad you liked it.

One thing to remember, coming from TKD myself, is that rank advancement is slow. There is white, blue, purle, brown and black. It can take quite a bit of time to advance a belt level. I think they say the average for black belt is 10 years. I am not about rank, just an FYI.

Sit back, learn all you can, enjoy.

[hizaguchi]

^ Yeah, I knew about that. It's actually one of the things that interested me about BJJ. Alot of styles consider a black belt to be the beginning level for really understanding a martial art. I think it should mean more than that. Also, in TKD, there is often little difference in skill between students several belt ranks apart. From my first night alone, it's obvious that that isn't the case in BJJ. I'm not at all hung up on belt rank, but I would like to know that when I do get a different color it actually means something.

[Martin]

I remember after my very first BJJ class, back in March, I went over to my buddy's dorm room. A bunch of us were all watching Nogeira vs. Bob Sapp wotsit and I was like 'Dude, Steve, I'm going to armbar you.' Steve's like 'No way man, you can't armbar me'. I'm like 'Alright, bring it'.

So we go down to the campus mat room and throw each other around like untrained rabid monkeys for about 25 min until I get the 'mount' and muscle an armbar. Afterwards Steve threw up and I realized that I had broken a toe during the madness. I have been hooked since.

That is 't3h r34l BJJ'

Let me begin the chant:

ZHOO ZHJITSU ZHOO ZHJITSU

[Gae-Bek]

So we go down to the campus mat room and throw each other around like untrained rabid monkeys for about 25 min until I get the 'mount' and muscle an armbar.

You know, rolling isn't about strength and you're not really suppossed to "muscle" anything in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He's lucky that you didn't break his arm. YOU are lucky that you didn't break his arm.

A friend of mine who runs a school just had one of his students tear his ACL because some new guy *thought* he knew what he was doing with a heel hook. After his surgery, his leg got infected, and last week the doctors told him that they aren't sure if he'll ever regain full use of his calf and foot again.

And it was all because of some idiot who didn't know what he was doing with a submission.

[sprite]

after watching UFC i was convinced that bjj was effective.

that and i kinda miss high school wrestling

[genin77]

I'm surprised noone else has commented on the outstanding repsonse by MooGong. If you were on the fence and that didn't push you over I don't know what will.

[genin77]

And then there was Martin's comment

[moogong]

I'm surprised noone else has commented on the outstanding repsonse by MooGong. If you were on the fence and that didn't push you over I don't know what will.

Thanks Tommy, it's okay. I don't expect to be appreciated in my own time. :D

[oneinchpunchmaster]

I joined BJJ seeing its a great martial art for self defence, as well as really strengthing up someone, seeing the classes are probably the roughest ones you'll ever go to.

And yes, do tap. On my first day, i didnt tap and my neck was soar and it had a rash for 4 days! I guess you can tell we were doing locks.

[Antares33]

Locks, in a BJJ class?!?


I call shennanigans!

[oneinchpunchmaster]

Head locks......

And yes, BJJ do locks. You should know as you do BJJ. It contains many arm locks in the self defence part of BJJ.

[oneinchpunchmaster]

Sorry for double post, i couldnt edit my first one as i exeeded the time limit. Anyway, i could be wrong Antares with you. You might do Sport BJJ. I do the BJJ thats lineage is right under Helio, founder of GJJ.General difference is that GJJ was created for self defence and uses body mechanics.SPORT Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is an evolution from its traditional and original version from Carlos.

[Dennis Monk]

I think he was just joking with you, and I bet he is pretty much "in the know" when it comes to BJJ/GJJ lineage.

[oneinchpunchmaster]

Lol. Come to think of it. He probably was :S

He shouldve added "*being sarcastic*".

Ah well, cant blame him for my puny mind. :P

[4rm1ock]

If youre in guard and you have head control with a front headlock or guillotine, can you set up a triangle??? What are some other ways to set up triangles and armbars?

[TonyU]

? What are some other ways to set up triangles and armbars?
From almost positon as long as you have control.
Keep training, you'll eventually get it.

[rgoad]

The detailed study of leverage and balance helps nearly any martial artist. It offers a fun way to practice and study with nearly unlimited combinations so you don't get bored. Because you are working hard time flies, too.

[Flashlock]

I'm easily annoyed, so I'm using this poll to create my own sweeping generalization of the type of people who study BJJ. :D

I went to my first BJJ class today. I can't speak for any other dojo, but the type of people I encountered were very friendly, helpful, and had great attitudes. It's a very relaxed thing, and I have to admit, after years of studying martial arts, out of all the styles I've experimented with, I would rather fight someone from any other style than BJJ.

Also, being able to really give it 100% against someone (though I only have a couple techniques in my BJJ vocabulary) was awesome! I walked out of there with rubber legs, but high as a kite (on endorphins, I guess, unless they slipped something in their water). If you go, expect to get addicted after one shot--it's MA crack! I'm going to be going as many times as I can, it was so fun and the people not half bad at all.

Your first day might be like mine--like trying to play chess when you don't know how the knights jump.

Good luck--I hope you go for it and enjoy it!

[TEA]

I went to my first BJJ class today. I can't speak for any other dojo, but the type of people I encountered were very friendly, helpful, and had great attitudes. It's a very relaxed thing, and I have to admit, after years of studying martial arts, out of all the styles I've experimented with, I would rather fight someone from any other style than BJJ.

Also, being able to really give it 100% against someone (though I only have a couple techniques in my BJJ vocabulary) was awesome! I walked out of there with rubber legs, but high as a kite (on endorphins, I guess, unless they slipped something in their water). If you go, expect to get addicted after one shot--it's MA crack! I'm going to be going as many times as I can, it was so fun and the people not half bad at all.

Your first day might be like mine--like trying to play chess when you don't know how the knights jump.

Good luck--I hope you go for it and enjoy it!

Ah, another convert. :D Can't wait to hit the mat tonight.

Charles, that ABC of why to BJJ was awesome.

[Flashlock]

Ah, another convert. :D Can't wait to hit the mat tonight. Charles, that ABC of why to BJJ was awesome.

I roll for my 2nd time tonight--can't wait! I feel I've been initiated: I have the mysterious bruise on my upper bicept.
:clapping:

[moogong]

Charles, that ABC of why to BJJ was awesome.

Thanks. I had time on my hands. :D

[TEA]

I roll for my 2nd time tonight--can't wait! I feel I've been initiated: I have the mysterious bruise on my upper bicept.
:clapping:

Only one? After last night, I noticed I'm starting to get bruises on top of my bruises.