BJJ Instructor reveals the best way to achieve your next
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu belt:
Italian physicist, astronomer, mathematician, and philosopher Galileo Galilei once said, “You cannot teach a man anything. You can only help him find it within himself.” I wish I discovered Galileo’s wise words when I first began my Jiu-Jitsu journey. To move up the ranks in BJJ, I recommend the following tips:
Tip #1:Find an academy that you enjoy going to
You are going to be spending a lot of time at the academy. If you’re not comfortable, it’s not going to work. Make sure your training partners are interested in the well being of the whole team, not just who can “tap” whom. Look for an academy that has instructors and higher belts that are eager to answer any questions you might have.
Tip #2:Train consistently
This tip is quite obvious but many practitioners still miss it. The students that get better are the ones who train hard but also are those that stick around for the long term. It’s obviously better to train 2-3 times per week for years than it is to train everyday for months.
All too often individuals join up, come almost every day for one to three months and then they disappear. They experience either physiological or psychological burnout. Their intentions are good but it’s too much, both mentally and physically. I recommend that beginners train 2-3 times per week.
To be a successful BJJ practitioner, you must be long-term minded. While there are short cuts and more efficient ways to do things, it still will take many years to achieve greatness.
Tip #3: Spar frequently
This is better known in BJJ as “rolling.” Without it, you’ll never get to that next level. When your instructors are looking to promote you, they want to see that you have knowledge of techniques and that you can put them into action in a live situation (during rolling or a competition).
Tip#4: Participate in Competitions
While competitions aren’t for everyone, it can be a great way to test your self against students of comparable skill level from other schools. Even losing in competition can be just as important as winning in the long run. I’ve learned some lessons in tournaments that I never would’ve learned just rolling at the academy. For me, the main benefits of competing are that it forces me to train harder and prevents me from becoming lazy with respect to my training.
Tip #5: Practice drills and positions
When you repeat a move or position enough, it becomes second nature. When sparring, competing, or in a self-defense situation, instinct will take over. Instinct is much quicker than thinking about your next move. Trust me, you will be amazed by when you find yourself in a situation where you didn’t think, and suddenly you made the right move…it just happened.
Practicing attacking and defending from certain positions will be vital to your progress. While you may end up escaping from cross side during a match, you’ll more likely to escape from cross side if you have been practicing drills of “escaping from side control” during a one hour class. The students who skip the drills because they aren’t as fun as rolling are making a mistake.
If you follow these guidelines you will have no choice but to get better and move up the ranks. While it’s important to set goals, don’t forget to enjoy the process. Train hard and train smart.
