Roger Gracie Interview

Great interview by one the greatest BJJ players in the world.

Chael Sonnen... What a great interview!!!!

Training in the Gi CAN and WILL make your BJJ better for MMA/NOGI

I ran across this write up this morning that I had to share with you guys.  I don't know how many guys I come across saying stuff like "You don't wear Pajamas to the cage" or "take that thing off and there is no way you can submit me".  I hear it all the time, but the truth of the matter is BJJ in the Gi makes your Nogi game much tighter and precise.  Which in turn can translate to MMA.  I found this write up at mixedmartialarts.com posted by a professional MMA fighter whose name on there is The Sultan.  Here is the post and below it is my reply to it.

I know this topic touches on the age old debate of gi vs no gi for MMA training, but bear with me for a moment.

What I have found in my years of doing BJJ in the gi is that there are certain ways you can train in the gi to help reach your goal.....whether that goal is ultimately competition jiu jitsu, gi or nogi and MMA.

Here is my take on the subject.

If your ultimate goal is to fight MMA, you can still train in the gi and still learn effective grappling concepts that translate to MMA.  However, the manner in which you train in the gi is the key.  When I roll in the gi, I use a no gi style (for the most part) while rollilng.  What that means is that instead of relying on gripping sleeves and pants, I grip wrists, ankles and legs.....I go for wrist control, overhooks, underhooks and I spend a lot of time working on sweeps that use this idea of training "no gi style"......

The immediate question one would ask is WHY would you train in the gi, but use a  no gi style instead of just training no gi?

IMO, the gi eliminates the slip factor when you start to sweat....It limits the explosive, "hercules" style of powering out of submissions and bad positions.  The reason this is important is because it forces you to technically escape these positions using perfect technique BECAUSE you cannot just power out of a move.  The coefficient of friction of the gi does not lend itself well to this.  Therefore, it's much harder to perform some of these same manuevers in the gi, than it would be in no gi.

Ultimately, this leads to an extremely elevated awareness of submissions.

Here's a specific example of what I'm referring to.  Let's say, for instance, a person has your back with the hooks in and is looking for submissions.  The amount of submissions available to your opponent is basically multiplied by 2, 3 or even a factor of 4.  For all of the standard chokes you have...IE....RNC or even armbars, you have numerous other gi chokes as well.  Defending from this position is harder because you have so many more submissions to worry about in addition to the fact that you cannot just explosively bridge or twist right out of back control......You need to defend numerous submissions while calculating and executing your standard escapes.

From an offensive standpoint, the same coefficient of friction factor plays in your application of submissions as well.  Trying to get a standard RNC with the gi is difficult because while you are sliding in to position, the person can grab your sleeves, etc.....Also, the gi makes it difficult to just slide in there for a choke easily because of the high coefficient of friction.

What does all this mean?  It means that if you spend a lot of time training in the gi, while observing some basic concepts of no gi training, (Again, gripping the body instead of the sleeves, for example), your application of your jiu-jitsu when it comes to no gi training and even MMA training will be sharper and much more technically sound, IMO.

My professor also incorporates the idea of striking when he discusses and teaches certain positions.  For instance, when we are covering mount escapes, he incorporates the opponents ability to strike from this position and to how to defend it while escaping the position.

Personally, when I train no gi and MMA, I never miss a beat....I don't feel "lost" and my jiu jitsu still works just fine.....In fact, I feel loads of improvement when I go back to no gi or MMA training.  I feel smoother, my control feels much tighter and i don't experience any regression in my game.  The place where I really notice a difference is in my ability to regain guard or escape bad positions....I'm so used to getting stuck in certain positions or working really hard to get out of these positions because of all my gi training and the difficulty involved with that.

I purposely pay attention to this while rolling no gi or MMA to see if I'm missing or losing stuff when I go from gi to no gi or MMA.....in short, for me, the answer is not only do I not lose any portions of my game, I feel a significant IMPROVEMENT in my no gi game as well as my MMA game.

Anyone have any thoughts on the subject?

I think you hit the nail right on the head here! I've always felt that training in the gi has made my no gi game much tighter and cleaner. Wearing the Gi makes you really focus more on your technique. Whether it be passing, sweeping, or submitting because of the friction it causes and the grips available to your opponent everything has to be precise especially at a higher level. Your good technique will easily translate to Nogi in these departments with the use of different grips.

And another one

Another Nick Diaz Interview

This one is long and a little different type of interview that I have ever seen from him.

Nick Diaz Interview

With the UFC 137 coming up this weekend and the main event now featuring BJ Penn vs. Nick Diaz I came across a pretty good Nick Diaz interview.  I really like this fight, two true warriors of the sport are going to go head to head its a very tough pick.  Who do you think will win.

Roger Huerta Documentary

Check out this video.  I have always liked Roger, he seems like a down to earth guy and some of the things he stands for or doesn't stand for makes me a fan.  Check out the video at the link below.

http://fcfighter.com/post/documentary-roger-huerta-in-thailand-%e2%80%93-talks-upcoming-showdown-with-war-machine-re-lives-street-fight-incident

From the Mind of Babalu- Trials, Tribulations, and Victory!

Today I am posting my first blog in a while.  After being injured and not being able to train full speed, not being able to workout the way I need to as well as taking a hit to my confidence because I felt out of sync, I can finally take a deep breath and relax a bit.  As most of you know the Gracie Barra Compnet Tournament was this past weekend.  This is where you get all the Gracie Barra schools from the southern region together and hold a tournament.  In my eyes the tournament was a huge success drawing about 400 competitors with some exciting matches, and some great displays of Jiu Jitsu from all.  As the tournament approached I did the best I could to prepare my mind and my body for competition.  I was in great shape before my rib injury from the ESP-XC workouts that I was doing and all the mat time that I had I was feeling awesome.  The injury took alot of that away.  I could no longer do the ESP-XC workouts and I couldn't do the things I wanted to do on the mat.  This really messed with my confidence!  I was easily losing positions, getting swept, and couldn't move enough to win scrambles.  This was the case up until about 2 weeks ago. 

I want to thank Dr. Lance Campbell for giving me this anti-inflammatory cream.  This stuff was amazing and is what actually got me back on the mat sooner than later. Two weeks ago I still wasn't registered for the tournament, and as I started to feel better and better each day something crazy happened!  My BJJ started coming back around!  I made the decision to register for the tournament on the last day of registrations, thinking what the hell I might as well do it.  I was pretty close to weight (with my gi on) so that wouldn't be a problem. It was official I was competing again and the nerves started kicking in.  For those of you who say you don't get nervous, you're lying!  I've competed in sports all my life, from the time I was 4 until now that is almost 30 years of competition and I still get nervous.  I think its a natural thing to be nervous at least a little bit.  I was nervous, but very calm.

The day came and I left with a gold medal.  The finals match was a tough and ugly match.  The action was very limited, I pulled guard, attempted some subs from there with no luck.  During the match even the ref was bored LOL, he told us to pick up the pace!  I just kind of waited to see what he was going to do, I saw an opportunity and landed a basic scissor sweep to score.  I was in the half guard the rest of match trying to pass and try to keep him from going to deep half.  As the time ran out my leg finally slid out of his half guard, it didn't matter it was over.  I was still completely relaxed and still had a pretty full gas tank which made me very happy!

I want to thank my instructor and mentor Professor Draculino for coaching me through the match and giving me the knowledge to be very successful on the mat!  All my teammates, you are only as good as your training  partners and I'm privileged to say I train with the best dudes that anyone could train with!  I also want to send out a thanks to the guys over at ESP-XC MMA Fitness doing their workouts as you saw from my workout blogs got me in the best shape I have been in probably 12 years.  My weight the morning of the tournament was 209lbs.  I was still eating and drinking everyday, even the day of the tournament when you weigh in before your first match.  If you guys want to get in shape, lose some unwanted pounds, and perform at your best check these guys out, I highly recommend their program.  My body feels stronger, cardio is great and my body is leaner than I have been in YEARS and their program played a huge part in that. I will definitely continue to use their program for my training needs.  I also want to send thanks to USP Labs Direct for making some of the best supplements money can buy.  As you saw from my product reviews I loved Jack3d and Prime.  I appreciate the kindness this company has shown to me as well as your great products!  I look forward to working with you guys more in the future!

 

Product Review- USP Labs Jack3d

 

Ever wake up in the morning for that early morning workout or run and just can't get motivated?  You know the mats or weights are calling you, but all you want to do is crawl back into bed?  I have had many of mornings like this, shoot I've had many of evenings like this.  I just can't get going sometimes.  I have tried sugar free energy drinks (honestly used to drink them all the time) and many other Preworkout drinks, which some have worked and some didn't.  Some of those preworkout drinks tasted so terrible that I had to hold my nose just to be able to choke it down.  If you are like me and need that pick me up, I have found the be all end all to preworkout drinks.   

JACK3D!!!

This stuff to me is pure gold! I am what you would call a connoisseur of energy of drinks. I have tried pretty much every one of them that is out on the market, I can't help it I'm a junkie when it comes to this stuff.  Jack3d for me is leaps and bounds over all the rest.  I am on my second batch of this supplement and everyday that I train I make sure I have it in my system before my workout begins.  For me it helps me just keep going.  When ever I think man I'm tired or I can't go anymore there is always that proverbial 2nd wind that I catch.  I am able to blast through very tough workouts in the weight room and train jiu jitsu at a very intense level.  

It started with the Lemon Lime flavor, which honestly doesn't taste bad at all and now the Tropical Fruit Punch which taste great.  This potent powder mixes very easily in a regular water bottle or shaker cup with just a couple of shakes.  Please make sure you follow the directions on this stuff.  If you taken this kind of supplement before like me your tolerance for caffeine should be pretty high, but Jack3d is potent.  I started by using one small scoop (which is provided in the canister) and felt great then.  Now I still only use 1 and a half scoops because it still works just fine for me.  So don't jump in head first thinking "I take this kind of stuff all the time so I can handle 2 scoops" on your first serving, just follow those directions and you will have some of the best workouts that you ever had.

Dustin Denes on Winning

This guy is great!  He is as tough as they come on the mats, but not only that he puts out some great videos.  For me I don't know if he is serious half the time but some of the stuff he talks about is very motivational.  Check it out!

Training Blog- 08/22 ESP-XC

Well last week was not a good week for me.  The week started fine, but I finished with a popped rib.  This is my third one this year!  I don't know how or why I have been targeted for this rib popping but I'm done with this injury!  This first 2 ribs this year I was out 2 and 1 weeks respectively.  What can I say I have a high tolerance for pain, but this one was more painful than the last 2 it actually took my breath away!  So I don't know how long I will be out.  Since you use your core muscles for almost everything in BJJ, I'm gonna play it by ear.  Same with the ESP-XC workouts.  I can't do the Core stuff, I can't move too fast right now, so pretty much all exercises have been shelved for the time being!  This happens to me everytime I am working towards something.  I get to the point where I'm feeling great, training great in all aspects and boom I get injured.  I'm sick of it.  This weekend I was really down in the dumps... I haven't touched a beer in a while, but this weekend I made an exception.  I watched some football, drank some cold beers and ate some bad food to make me feel better LOL!  I know its just another bump in the road that I will have to overcome, I just need some time to recover fully again.  Once I've healed I will jump back on to that horse again, but until then there will not be a training blog!

Product Review- USP Labs Prime

For those of you that know me, know that I'm far from a body builder.  I workout and train BJJ, but a body builder is something that I will never be mistaken for.  With that being said I wanted to try something in conjunction with all the workouts that I have been doing from my training blog.  As most of you know all supplements work differently for everybody.   If you are like me and love taking supplements properly to help you achieve your goals, then you are already aware that USPLabs puts out great products, but of course   there really isn't that LEGAL magical pill out there that will help you get stronger, gain muscle mass, and stay lean.  Or is there???  I just finished taking PRIME from USP Labs, and let me tell you this supplement is as close to magic as they come.  When I first started taking them with in the first 2 or 3 weeks I noticed something different within my workouts.  Workouts that used to leave me on the brink of death, I somehow began to run through them and want more.  Weights that I would struggle getting the last 2 reps out of, I would finish the set easily and add more weight or reps to the next set.  When I first started using these pills I weighed 211 lbs, after one bottle of Prime I am at 216 right now.  Now you would think that my diet is horrible, but I will tell you that my diet is clean about 90% of time. It would be impossible for me to gain weight without gaining fat, right?  Here is the kicker to the whole thing, I gained this weight all while getting leaner!  I look leaner, my clothes fit more baggy, people have been asking me if I am losing weight, but really I'm not my numbers on the scale have increased, but my fat has not.

For you BJJ guys out there let me tell you how this helped me out on the mat.  Along with a proper diet and workout, Prime has given me on the mat:

1. Muscular Endurance beyond belief
2. Fantastic Recovery ability, in between sets, in between rolls with little rest, and very importantly in between those mad scrambles that you tend to have during the course of a rolling session.
3. Strength, now regardless what you may think, you use strength in BJJ.  You have to have strong grips, you have to be able to explode in certain occasions, if you are competing against some one with a similar skill level and weight as you, the person with the better strength and conditioning more than likely will come out victorious. 

So if you are like me and really want to excel on the mat, you put in extra work in the gym, and eat right.  This product maybe for you.  Combined with proper diet and workout regimen this may help you get to where you want to be.  I think this product is great for anyone not cutting weight, because of the size gains, but leaning up, gaining that needed extra strength and endurance, and recovery I give it a 10!  In the past 3 months I feel like my BJJ training has grown in leaps and bounds, not just from this pill, but putting in the work on and off the mats as well.  If you want to learn more about this product and all the other fine products USPLabs offers check them out here USPLABS Direct Product Page Now that I am out of the product I need to get some on order very soon!

Training Blog- 08/16 ESP-XC

Week 2 of the power phase has ended. Everything is still going strong. I have 2 more weeks in the current program and when that is done I plan on continuing down this same path. Maybe I do the power phase again or start over and do the strength phase again just to keep the workouts going. My time is very limited so I will have to see what and when I can do this again. The power phase is definitely not for the weak of heart. Its a good test for your physical conditioning. Tonight I will train BJJ for the first time since Thursday, our gym has moved locations so as an employee of the gym I was in the mix this weekend helping getting the new spot all set up. With this I had trouble getting all the workouts done in the correct order last week but I still got them done. So hopefully tonight I will hit the upper body workout and go from there.

Hahahaha check this "friendly" Muay Thai sparring match!

Training Blog- 08/8 ESP-XC

Still going strong... I finished up week one of the Power phase over the weekend with the cardio combo workout.  Last night was the beginning of week 2 and it started with the upper body workout.  Yesterday I trained in the MMA class and did some live training in the BJJ class.  I hadn't done an MMA class in probably about 2 years, since then I have been just sticking with BJJ.  I was surprised with the amount of the endurance I had while training in the MMA class, since it was something that I had been away from for a while.  I went through rounds of takedowns off the cage, rounds of getting back up while being up against the cage on my butt, a few rounds of side control drills,  and a couple rounds of no gi rolling.  It was kind of a accident that I did train because it was a small class and some of the bigger guys were going to be too tired to finish it so the instructor requested that I train with them to keep from dying.   So I did.  After that I did 3 rounds of Gi BJJ and my wind felt great.  After I left the academy I had to hit the garage for my upper body workout.  I did get very tired during this workout.  My heart rate was elevated throughout, but I was able to push through and finish every exercise including the finale which is 100 weighted punches.  The weighted punches were Left and right punch equals one rep.  By the end of the workout I was drenched with sweat!!!! 
Tonight I will train just BJJ and take a day off from the ESP-XC workout.  Today I am a little worn down and sore, I guess its from the MMA training since I haven't done it in a while.  Regardless my body just doesn't recover like used to and today was hell getting out of bed.  Hopefully tomorrow will be a better morning.