Living the BJJ life style

Class 55 - 70 of 200 BJJ classes
Weight 170 lbs.
Instructor(s):Cassio Werneck, Sergio Penha,  Brent Goodall

First off just let me say I have not kept up with my blogging the past couple of weeks but in my defense I took my wife on vacation(Las Vegas..more on my trip later) and have been really busy developing apps for the iPhone and Android platforms with iFightVideo.com so cut me some slack.

Class(es) Overview: 
I was in Las Vegas during the last week of April and had the pleasure of training at Sergio Penha's academy. Sergio is the instructor to my instructor Cassio Werneck and everybody told he was a legend. Still upon meeting the guy I had no clue what I was in store for.

The guys at Sergio's academy were really cool(By the way Sergio would not accept my mat fee) and I did not feel like anyone was gunning for me.  I got some solid rounds in with some of Sergio's brown, blue and white belts.  Oh and of course Sergio himself.  I held my own against his students but Sergio Penha is on a whole different planet. 

To say he is good in BJJ is like saying Magic Johnson was good in basketball.  I got tapped 5 times in 10 mins training with Sergio which included: A wristlock, two straight armbars, an Americana off a Brabo(something I have never seen before) and a Cross Choke from the mount.

His pressure from side control is ridiculous he felt like he weighed 400lbs. However his best position by far was the closed guard.  Quite simply the best closed guard I have ever felt...EVER!!  He uses hip and leg movement along with grips to destroy your base.  

Here is one of the sweeps he got on me which ended up with a cross choke from the mount:

Here is the mount wristlock that I got caught with I never saw it coming:
One of his students after class was telling me that Sergio got his black belt in 1974 and that he was only one for 4 Black and Red belts in the U.S.  and I believe it. If you are ever in Vegas I highly recommend you check out Sergio Penha - Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu you will not be sorry.


After I got back to town Cassio continued his positional training and focused on sweeping(or escaping) the Big 6 positions(Closed Guard, Half Guard, Side Control, Mount, Back, Sitting up guard) . During this past week it has been all about the under stack pass.

Check out the variation of this pass by Judo Ne-waza legend Kashiwazaki.

What I really like about the Kashiwazaki variation is how he controls to far side arm to complete the pass.
Tip(s) of the week:

1. On the under stack pass square up to the opponent and drive your weight forward putting his knee onto his forehead.
2. Control behind the knee and not in front of the knee to reduce the chance of the triangle.
3. Stack the opponent so that only his shoulders are touching the mat.
4. Use your chest to pass instead of lifting up to clear the head.

Rolling Overview:
Kneebars and footlocks are everywhere!!

Judo Overview: We worked foot sweeps this week.  I still need to work on my but I am committed to at least two judo classes a week.

One of the black belts(Marcos Torregrosa) from my school released a BJJ app for the iPhone/iPod touch called "Gi Subs 1 - The Chokes" in the summer last year.

Well they finally got around to releasing a free "Lite" version for the Android Marketplace. The "Lite" version contains all of the step by step technique breakdowns but only 3 of the video instructional. They encountered some issues with the size app containing all of the video so they decided to give away a scaled down version for "Gratis".

Just search for "BJJ" or "Gi Subs" in the Android Marketplace.
or
use your Barcode Scanner and scan this image:

Here is a technique from the Android application:



This is their first Android app so any feedback you might have would be appreciated.

Class 48 - 54 of 200 BJJ classes
Weight 166 lbs.
Instructor(s): Cassio Werneck
                    Daniel Morales
Class(es) Overview:
Cassio worked a bunch of positional drills from not only the Big 6 positions(Closed Guard, Half Guard, Side Control, Mount, Back, Sitting up guard) but also some of my new favorite(again) the X-Guard. However you cannot talk about the X-Guard without talking about Mr. Marcelo Garcia.



This is an interesting transition into a kneebar from the X-Guard that I have been working:



In this video this guy shows an attack on an armbar from the X-Guard as well.



Tip(s) of the week:
My biggest problem with using the X-Guard against advanced students is the transition to into it. Cassio showed an "alpha" guard entry which I plan on filming in the near future that has been working pretty well for me.

Rolling Overview:
I was rolling at full strength and my cardio is starting to improve. I continue to refine my grappling gameplan ...going to give the America's Cup a shot..God help me!




Daniel(Judo) went over the O-Goshi and Harai Goshi. Here is what the Harai Goshi looks like:



Check out this guy's modified low O-Goshi against a crotching opponent:


Judo Overview: Taking falls hurts...PERIOD.  I do not care how good your ukemi it still never feels good.  Getting the timing for executing throws has to be the most difficult part to learn.  I am going to keep at it twice a week. 

As BJJ practitioner who is nearing 40 years old I feel a kinship with the "O.G." BJJ guys.  I have been a long-distance fan of Fabio Santos for awhile and this video epitomizes why...Enjoy!

Class 44 - 47 of 200 BJJ classes
Weight 167 lbs.
Instructor(s): Cassio Werneck

Class(es) Overview:
Cassio This week we worked on some of the standard half-guard sweeps including the old school and basic deep half guard sweep.

Tip(s) of the week:
I have been playing a lot of deep half guard the past couple of months and one thing that I noticed was that there is a danger of getting caught in a shoulder lock when sweeping you opponent to the back. If you do not hide your far arm under their leg. I will be releasing a video in the next few weeks that addresses this problem.

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Rolling Overview:
I was rolling at full strength unfortunately my cardio is now suffering the effects of not training hard for over a month. Lots of "sweep and hold" to control the pace of my rolls. Really starting to work my grappling gameplan my goal is to go through the exact same steps every roll without having to think about it and end up getting the same submission.

Additional thoughts:
Happy hunting to the guys(and gals) going down to the 2010 Pan-Ams in Irvine, CA from Capital City BJJ and Cassio Werneck Jiu-Jitsu. Kick some ass!!

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Don't forget people the BJJ Pan Ams 2010 is being streamed live courtesy of Budovideo.

Class 40 - 43 of 200 BJJ classes
Weight 165 lbs.
Instructor(s): Cassio Werneck and Marcos Torregrosa

Class(es) Overview:
Cassio did hour long rolling sessions this week.  These are really cool because it forced me to find my rhythm and flow with my technique. I was definitely tired when the class was over but rolling without having to think about the timer allow me to focus on technique and not strength.

Marcos went over some very nice guard passing technique.  He allowed me to record several of them which I will be posting to my blog when I get the "go ahead".

This is a sweep that I have been working from the guard.  Enjoy!

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Rolling Overview:
I was just coming back from the pinched nerve in my neck this week so I was still only rolling at about 75%.  However I did roll for the entire hour(s) at Cassio this week.

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Don't forget people the BJJ Pan Ams 2010 is being streamed live courtesy of Budovideo.


On April 11th, we will be streaming the 2010 Pan Jiu-Jitsu Championships live from the Bren Events Center at the University of California, Irvine!

Check out the trailer

Yeah, I know drilling moves you already "know" really sucks when you could be working on the new "Super Reverse De La Riva Helicopter Kimura Armbar" that you saw on YouTube last night.

I will admit that even after five years of training BJJ that I can count on both hands the number of times I have actually drilled the same technique more than 25 repetitions in a row.

Think about it....how much longer do you think it would take to "really" learn a sweep when the only time you actually execute it is during rolling with an opponent who is offering 100% resistance, compared to doing same sweep 100 times in a row against an opponent who is giving you varied levels of resistance?

Look at the numbers:
10 minute rolling session = 2-4 technique reps.
vs.
10 minute drilling session = 100 technique reps.

Based on the math you would need at least 20 rolling sessions(probably closer to 50) to get the number of reps from strictly rolling that you get would from a single drilling session.

Personally I love music when doing BJJ drills because it helps me develope rhythm.  Check out the reggae music they use in this one:


Although no one has formally defined the number of reps required for drilling a technique. In my humble opinion it has to be at least 100 reps. After all one of the key points of drilling is to develop muscle memory for each technique.


By the way I would like to see people stop hating on Lloyd Irvin so much. People hate his marketing strategies but no one can hate on the fact that the guy creates World Class levels BJJ fighters.

Class 38 - 40 of 200 BJJ classes
Weight 162 lbs.
Instructor: Cassio Werneck

Class(es) Overview:
Cassio went over back control escapes.

This is basically the escapes that Cassio went over:


This escape from Saulo Ribeiro Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Revolution Series 1(the best BJJ instructional of all-time in my opinion) is still my favorite:


There are a few guys at my academy that love the "Body Triangle" so here is my go to escape:

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Rolling Overview:
Still only rolling at about 50% because of the pinched nerve in my neck. However I did roll every round which is a good sign.

Class 36 and 37 of 200 BJJ classes
Weight 164 lbs.
Instructor: Cassio Werneck

Class(es) Overview:
Cassio has been going over Turtle Guard the past two classes. Several of the sweeps that he showed are also shown by the "Turtle Master" Eduardo Telles in his DVD series Turtle & Octopus Guard Starring Eduardo Telles.  One of the things that is interesting to remember about the turtle is that it is  primarily a reactive position.  An over-aggressive opponent can expose himself to a plethora of sweeps and submissions.

I think these two techniques turtle techniques go together like "peanut butter and jelly" the basic difference is where your opponent is controlling you from.

1.) Turtle Roll Over(Inside)

2.) Turtle Roll Over(Outside)

Key Points:
1. Protect your neck!! This should go without saying but in the Turtle guard it is the first rule.
2. Make sure you dominate the elbow of the arm that the opponent is trying to hold you with. No elbow control..no sweep!
3. Keep your hips attached to your opponent to maximize the power of the roll.
4. Use this techniques in combination!! Often the first attack with simply off balance your opponent, forcing him to focus on maintaining position. It is at the time that you transition into another technique.

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A big problem I have using the Turtle guard against higher level opponents is them getting ahead of me from a technique standpoint and getting to my back. Here are some techniques I use to prevent that from happening.

1.) Ankle Control(Running to the back)

2.) Tackle them!
This is easy technique that I like to use when the opponent tries to circle to the back. It is pretty high percentage but your timing has to be on point:

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Rolling overview:
I am still feeling the effects of that pinched nerve therefore I am still rolling "light". I think I am going to ratchet it up today and have normal training so that I can gauge my progress. I gotta start back on my grind ASAP if I have any hopes on fighting at the Pan-Ams.



The hustle never stops.

Class 35 of 200 BJJ classes
Weight 167 lbs.
Instructor: Cassio Werneck

Class Overview:
Cassio had us working Granby rolls to escape side control, turtle and to re-establish guard. However after being off the mats with a pinched nerve in my neck I wanted no parts of any shoulder or neck rolls.

Key Points:
1. Sit up before the opponent has established full side control.
2. Clear your hips before you initiate the Granby roll.
3. If the opponent follows you continue to a second Gramby roll to regain guard.

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Here is a video which shows some pretty interesting Gramby style sweeps which can be done from multiple different positions:

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Rolling overview:
I after being out for solid week with a pinched nerve I decided to forego rolling in order to one see how my neck would be after class. I believe that was the right move because I did have some pain later on in the day. I gotta start back on my grind next week if I plan on fighting at the Pan-Ams.

Here I am sporting some serious bling around my neck..check out my "Meds" smile!!



The hustle never stops..

Well the neck stingers that I have been getting while rolling have finally caught up with me. On Friday I started having what I can only describe as excruciating pain in my left shoulder that kept getting worst during class and the subsequent crossfit training. I finally broke down and went to the doctor and was diagnosed with a pinched nerve:

I am supposed to be out for two weeks but I am going to the chriopractor tomorrow to see if I can cut that down to a week. Keep your fingers crossed for me!!

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Chad of MMAHitFit had us do his Workout of the Day today:

6 Tabata rounds of:
Squats
Burpees
Situps
Sprawls
Pushup
Sitouts

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Class 35 of 200 BJJ classes
Weight 165 lbs.
Instructor: Cassio Werneck

Class Overview:
Cassio continued his single leg takedowns from the sitting up guard against an standing opponent.

Rolling overview:
With my shoulder killing me I only rolled twice and just worked on flowing.

As part of my on-going obsession with the Brabo Choke I have put together a YouTube playlist of some really cool Brabo Choke instructional video.


The hustle never stops..

The Crossfit is really starting to effect my cardio. In fact this is how strong I am feeling:

Chad of MMAHitFit had us do his Workout of the Day today:
10 rounds of:
10 Seoi Nage(Entry - 5 each side)
10 Box Jumps
15 Pushup

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Class 34 of 200 BJJ classes
Weight 163 lbs.
Instructor: Cassio Werneck

Class Overview:
Cassio continued his single leg takedowns from the sitting up guard against an standing opponent.

Rolling overview:
I tried working gi brabo chokes every roll with very little success. My "T-rex" arms are really a problem. Even when I have my opponent's posture completely broken I still cannot lock the choke in against anyone over 130 lbs. My plan is to continue trying to work the brabo until I figure out an entry that will allow me to actually finish the choke. In fact I am putting together a huge blog post with all of my brabo notes.

In addition I got a chance to roll with "Yemaso" and was fighting for my life the whole round...hail storm of submissions!!

The hustle never stops..

Class 34 of 200 BJJ classes
Weight 163 lbs.

Instructor: Cassio Werneck

Class Overview:
Cassio had us working single leg takedowns from the sitting up guard against an standing opponent.

Key points(Turtle/Double Leg):
1. Keep you head inside.
2. Maintain firm control of single leg.
3. Keep arms tight to reduce chance for under hooks

Rolling overview:
I rolled 3 rounds one handed because my left hand is still giving me trouble. It is funny how some training partners are cool and will stay away from your injury and others could really give a damn if you are hurt. My buddy Pedro saw I was rolling one handed and put his arm under his belt as we rolled. Mi hermano!! Another guy I rolled with early actually grabbed my hand and squeezed it. Oh well it beats sitting out. I am really starting to research and drill my brabo chokes. I will be posting about it in the near future

Chad of MMAHitFit had us do his Workout of the Day today:

10 rounds of:
1 min of jumping guard
1 min of grip fighting
1 round of academy carrying your training partner.

I can really feel the difference that the crossfit is starting to have on my cardio. If you have a chance stop by and workout with Chad the Mad Scientist.

The hustle never stops..

Class 33 of 200 BJJ classes
Weight 165 lbs.

Instructor: Marcos Torregrosa

Class Overview:
It was picture day over at Capital City BJJ so I went over there to train. We had a pretty big turnout.

Marcos continued his guard retention series and had us drilling keeping guard without using our hands. However your opponent is allowed to use his hand....Very tough!!

Capital City BJJ has a very nice academy
and I must say I love the big timeclock they have for keep time on the rounds.

Rolling overview:
I rolled two rounds but my left ring finger continues to hurt like hell. I was able to train one handed. On Monday I am going to Kaiser for x-rays but there is not much they can do.

I spoke with Marcos after class and he said I need to start working on my leglocks and refining my guard passing so be on the lookout.

The hustle never stops..

Class 32 of 200 BJJ classes
Weight 165 lbs.

Instructor: Marcos Torregrosa

Class Overview:
Marcos had us working to regain position after the opponent ACTUALLY passes the guard into side control. He showed the initial setup into turtle position and a transition into a double leg when the opponent is passing with the "Over Under" pass(or Pancake pass) as it is shown in the following video:



Key points(Turtle/Double Leg):
1. Sit up and away before opponent before he establishes head control.
2. Turn into turtle position keeping elbows in tight.
3. Be aware of any collar grips as you finalize position.
4. Continue to turn in the direction that you sat up in and use near side arm to check the opponent's near side leg.

Rolling overview:
I rolled all the rounds but I probably broke my left ring finger after my training partner. He rips my seemly tight collar grip with both off hands and finger felt like I slammed it in a car door. I am going to train over at Capital City BJJ tommorrow with Marcos but it will probably be one handed.

Chad of MMAHitFit had us do his Workout of the Day today:



As many as possible rounds in 12 mins.
20 Double leg takedowns(setup and entry)
10 Jump Squats

I did 7 rounds and it was horrible!! My legs and back are completely fried..


The hustle never stops..

Class 31 of 200 BJJ classes
Weight 163 lbs.

Instructor: Marcos

Marcos had us drilling to defend the guard pass this week. Pretty much the same stuff we drilled on Monday. He also showed a cool entry to the reverse triangle/kimura and a reversal sweep off of a guard pass.

Key points(reverse triangle/kimura);
1. Control the space with inside knee.
2. Rock your opponent to create enough space to secure reverse triangle.
3. Continue to pull on the opponent's arm to tighten triangle.

Key Points(reverse sweep):
1. Off of the opponent's over under leg control he attempts to pass.
2. As the opponent passes the near leg and begins dropping shoulder onto your check push his near side arm in towards his chest(Toby suggested pushing at the elbow...good tip brah!).
3. Secure an over the back belt grip and pull on the belt as you bridge and roll under him to secure sweep.

Chad of MMAHitFit had me do his Tuesday WOD today:

Gi or No Gi.
4 rounds
25 pushups
25 pullups
25 situps
25 squats

I only rolled 3 rounds and my allergies are starting to act up. My cardio still is not where it needs to be. I have to make sure I drink my green shake in the morning and hit it hard in class. I have to push harder!!


The hustle never stops..

Class 30 of 200 BJJ classes
Weight 163 lbs.

Instructor: Marcos

Marcos had us drilling to defend the guard pass this week. We were doing basic hip movement to defend the toreando pass as well as spinning through in order to take the back.

Key points:
1. Hip movement in order to get the space to move.
2. Using hands to control the distance between you and the opponent.

Chad(of MMAHitFit) began his 8-week Crossfit preparation for the 2010 BJJ Pans-Ams.  Here is what the workout looked like:  





With a training partner using a Gi or No Gi.
5 rounds
Row 500 meters
50 sit-outs
50 reverse hip escapes

It was not too bad in fact I did 6 rounds to push myself.  However I know that the intensity is going to ramp up over the next few weeks. Looks like I will head over to Capital City BJJ and train some judo as well tonight.

The hustle never stops..

As promised I broke down and shot the video for "Unmountable" last week.  At my academy there are a couple of guys who have outstanding mount control so I started using the technique in this video to keep those guys off of the mount.



The biggest thing to remember is that the timing has to be right although compared to other movements in BJJ the margin for error is actually quite large.  As long as you maintain control of the near-side leg and move your hips before the opponent finishes his move to the mount you are golden.

To be honest I am not really that comfortable in front of the camera but what the hell.  We also shot two sweet videos with ADCC West Coast Trials Winner Marcos "Yemaso" Torregrosa so be on the look out for those next week.

Class 29 of 200 BJJ classes
Weight 163 lbs.

Instructor: Cassio

Cassio showed a guard pass off a Butterfly sweep attempt today.

Key points:
1. Bring free leg back so that the opponent cannot underhook it.
2. Lift up on the opponent's inside leg(non-hooking leg) driving him back.
3. Secure top side underhook and drive weight forward opponent's head.
4. Continue to drive weight forward putting your head next to the opponents.
5. Drop hips and drive through into side control.

Even after the rest day yesterday my hip is in worst shape today. It appears that I am dealing with a touch of sciatica. It feels like I got kicked in the ass by a horse but come to think of it I should be used to getting my ass kicked by now.

The joy of being a middle-aged BJJ guy. I rolled three rounds and paid for it this evening.

We shot a bunch of video today with Marcos and Shavz. I should have it all edited by Tuesday so be on the look out for it in the next few weeks.

Cassio is interested in shooting some techniques on a regular basis. If I can get him to shoot something once a week that will be really cool. He had a funny blooper during our filming with Marcos.

My BJJ brother Chad Satterfield(BJJ brown belt and owner of MMAHITFIT) is starting an 8 week Crossfit program for the Pan-Ams in April. It is going to be 2 months of hell but our cardio is going to be off the hook.

Thanks for the help Chad...but you are still an evil man!!

The hustle never stops..