Phoenix BJJ Blog

Tips and tricks to take your Brazilian Jiu Jitsu to the next level!

How to shrink your brand new kimono!!!

We constantly receive questions on how to wash and care for Brazilian Jiu Jitsu kimonos.  We will start off this article by explaining how to shrink your kimono to fit when you first receive it.  In future articles we will talk about how to maintain your kimono so you can use it for many more years.

When you first receive your kimono you should try it on to see how it fits. Hopefully it will be a bit large so you have some room to shrink it.  If it just fits than you need to be very careful not to let it shrink at all.

Instructions for kimonos that fit perfect out of the box:

  • -You must be very careful not to shrink your kimono.  If the kimono is more than three finger lengths from your wrist bone when you have your arms in the Frankenstein pose you cannot compete with it in an IBJJF tournament.  The pant leg must also be within three finger lengths of the ankle bone.
  • -Kimonos will generally shrink 5% if washed in hot water, or placed in a dryer, so you will need to wash this kimono using cold water and hang it to dry.
  • -Remember even a little heat can cause the kimono to shrink.

Instructions for a kimono that is too large:

  • -Start by washing the kimono using the cold wash cycle on your machine.
  • -Now put the kimono in the dryer for 10 minute intervals.
  • -Every 10 minutes try the kimono on to see how it fits.
  • -If the kimono becomes dry and is still to large put it in the washer again and repeat the drying process checking the kimonos fit every 10 minutes.
  • -Once the kimono fits follow the instructions above for kimonos that fit.
  • -Wash the kimono on the cold cycle and hang dry the kimono.  Remember any heat can cause the kimono to shrink when washing it.

If you follow these instructions you should end up with a kimono that fits you for as long as you have it.

Mental Revelations of the Progressing Grappler

I found this article and felt it did a good job explaining the learning progression of a student in the art of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.  I hope everyone else finds it useful.

Mental Revelations of the Progressing Grappler

Mon, Jul 26, 2010

Mental Revelations Of the Progressing Grappler

By Tim Sledd | April 4, 2009

MENTAL REVELATIONS OF THE PROGRESSING GRAPPLER

One of the most exciting parts of teaching Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is the experience of witnessing students progress in skill and develop in mental acuity. Part of the progression entails improved physical abilities, but the beauty of BJJ is that, because of its intellectual components, one’s physical limitations can be overcome. This essay will explore the various mental revelations that occur with developing and progressing grapplers.

THE REVELATION OF RECOGNITION:

To the untrained eye, BJJ, submission grappling, and ground-fighting in general looks like two people pummeling around on the ground hugging, then suddenly it is over. I clearly remember in 1995 when I first saw Royce Gracie fighting in the UFC. I actually rooted against him because I did not understand what he was doing nor why it was ‘winning’ the fights. I wanted to see faces punched, heads kicked, and elbows dropped. I thought it seemed strange that none of the losers was able to shake Royce. I was not recognizing the leverage, the techniques, the skills, and the advantages of mastering grappling.

The beginning BJJ student is often overwhelmed by the lexicon of art. There are various names for the same positions, submission, and series. Some of the names make little sense (e.g. Americana bears no logical descriptive value to the actual submission) while others (e.g. cross-body) are clear. As the student is immersed in the language, observes matches, listens to his instructor and asks questions, he becomes familiar with the language of the art.

The “Revelation of Recognition” is different than just a familiarity with the names of the techniques, it is an ability to observe them and predict them or see their place in the match at hand. Frustratingly, it can often be a complete awareness of where a more advanced training partner is taking you and an understanding of the impending ending. I have had countless students say to me, “I knew what was coming and I just could not stop it!” I commend them when they say this because when they begin to “see” or recognize the attacks, they are on their way to being able to appropriately defend them. That is very significant and essential to progression.

THE REVELATION OF TECHNIQUE OVER STRENGTH AND SPEED:

Royce Gracie, Marcello Garcia, Eddie Bravo, Jeff Glover, and many other highly successful BJJ practioners would not catch many peoples’ eyes when they walk through an airport. They don’t fit the mold of professional athletes. Neither are they big, tall, stacked with muscles, nor are they billionaires who grace pop culture magazines. They are men who have twisted larger, more powerful, faster men into submission and barely broken a sweat. The interesting thing is these guys are the ‘rule’ not the ‘exception.’

Where I am from, the Mid-west, people are familiar with wrestling. They have probably been forced to participate in a match or two through phys-ed classes, or at least seen a match first hand as nearly every public school has a wrestling program. In wrestling, speed and strength are very important. Given the objective of pinning an opponent, one must be able to exert force over a short time. Again, to the untrained eye, BJJ is like wrestling, so an incorrect assumption is that the same strategies of wrestling are going to be “the best strategies” for jiu jitsu. Here is how one of my students, Josh Britt, puts it:

“We always hear in class to “use good technique” but in this situation (4 hour Blue Belt Pre-test) I was forced to do so, and it really opened my eyes at how much easier grappling becomes.  Using good technique over and again will cause certain positions and moves to become almost second nature.  The way I think of it is like a heartbeat.  You don’t have to tell your heart to pump blood throughout your body, it just does it.  It’s an involuntary action you can’t control.  When someone is on top of me in cross side, I am immediately off my back and up on my side.  I don’t even really have to think about it, it just happens, and since I don’t have to worry about trying to get up on my side, I can now focus more on other defenses and counters.

Because of the way I have changed mentally, I feel my game has improved a tremendous amount.  I’m no longer tired after sparring for long periods of time.  I’m no longer using strength or force, but technique and leverage.  I think when you start out in jiu-jitsu or any form of grappling for that matter, you rely a lot on strength and that’s fine because you don’t know a lot about what you’re doing.  But as you progress, the knowledge to strength ratio becomes more and more unbalanced, and my whole perspective on jiu-jitsu has changed because of it.  I’m more relaxed and aware of what is going on, during a match, or in training. The techniques of this martial art were developed to be used by smaller individuals against a larger opponent.  No matter what size or build you are, once you realize the meaning and purpose of good technique, can retain that knowledge, and can effectively execute against resistance, the game changes completely in your favor.”

While strength, power, speed, and fortitude to hold someone in a given position play a role in submission grappling, there is a revelation that occurs wherein the progressing grappler learns that techniques when applied with the appropriate strategy, tightness, and timing can easily force a stronger, faster, more powerful opponent to submit. This is the Revelation of Technique over Strength and Speed. A student who is truly realizing this will advance in perspective. A burden will lift from his/her shoulders. They no longer have to match their opponent’s physical abilities! The battle now is to utilize the best technique, at the right time, in the right manner.

THE REVELATION OF RELAXATION:

The Revelation of Relaxation usually comes rather contemporaneous to the Revelation of Technique over Speed and Strength. It is a change in mindset wherein the student’s approach is no longer to overwhelm the partner or opponent in the first minute of a match. Nor is the approach to resist every single movement of the partner with all one’s might. Instead, at appropriate points in the training, it is the clear and conscious decision to pause, think, and breathe.

Relaxing allows one to conserve energy, read attacks, evaluate balance, and analyze strategy. From a defensive standpoint, relaxing allows one to circle the wagons, bring the elbows in, protect the neck and move away from square with the offensive player. From an offensive standpoint, relaxation allows for the increased pressure, awareness of exposures that may not have been evident at the outset. Take for example the following:

You are underneath the mount. It is hot; he is heavy; and you are strong. Instinct tells you to push, bump, and attempt to roll. The guy on top is ready, he feels your bump and snags one of your extending arms and taps you quickly with a belly down arm-bar.

Or

You have just passed the guard and find yourself in scarf-hold position. Your favorite attack is the Americana from there. You choose to relax and cover your bases. In doing so, you notice the partner is already on his side and ready to escape. So you adjust your hips settle your weight and flatten him out. Now the arm is better exposed and ready for the attack.

The realization that a training session, match, or free spar does not have to be a whirlwind of unbridled and negligent movements greatly increases the efficacy of the art being performed.

THE REVELATION OF LINKAGE:

The Revelation of Linkage is one clear common experience of people ready for their purple belt. This revelation is often not a conscious one but rather a ‘realization’ that linkage has occurred. “Linkage” is often referred to as ‘flow.’ It is the ability to move from one move to the next in a fluid fashion. To have this revelation take place, the grappler must have an understanding of the larger picture in each position and how it fits into the other positions. Additionally, the grappler will have repeated the technical attacks to a point where he transitions from one movement to the next with little thought.

Newer students often say that they feel as though their training partners are a few steps ahead of them. Once a student has the revelation of linkage and their game begins to flow, it will seem as though that student is ‘creating’ the mistakes that the newer student is making. That is the beauty of linkage; it does not relegate you to a specific ‘plan of attack’ but rather lets your game be open to options that present themselves during a roll.

Professor Caique has always encouraged me to make sure I train with white belts and newbies. He told me they will not react the same way as a seasoned student and they will do unpredictable things. Thus, training with the inexperienced really tests your linkage challenges your flow. However, there is a lot of gratification in seeing your game become fluid despite awkward resistance and unconventional onslaughts.

THE REVELATION OF PRESSURE:

I remember training with Greg Lucas and Adam benShea when they both were brown belts and I was a new purple belt. With everyone else I trained with, even if they eventually submitted me, I could move. With Adam and Greg, there were times where I could not get to a defensive posture. Their pressure just crushed me.

I firmly believe that the Revelation of Pressure comes from the Revelation of Linkage. As you learn to link your techniques together, flow in and out of positions and transitions, you learn that certain positions afford you a higher percentage of taps. Therefore, you learn to maximize your time in those positions while minimizing the exertion of effort on your part. What you will ultimately realize is that pressure is the mechanism of maximizing suffering for your partner while minimizing your effort.

If your pressure is right, the other person will almost willingly put themselves into danger. Take for example Cent Kilos. I love to bait the head -arm triangle from this position. I have tapped several black belts with this technique and with good pressure as the secret. If you just smash someone’s chest in Cent Kilos, and they are properly defending their far arm, they have no incentive to move that arm in front of your face to provide the proper position for head-arm triangle. However, if you smash their face with ’shoulder of pain’ and drop your head-side hip low to the mat, you would be surprised how often the opponent will take his far arm out of proper defense to try to alleviate the pressure on his jaw. At that point, sliding knee across stomach to the opposite side is wide open and the attack is on.

Likewise from the guard position on the bottom, I love the arm-inside sweep/arm-inside armbar combination. I rarely get those moves if I go for it from the initial good guard position. What I like to do is break the top guy’s posture down and hug him around the neck with a Gable grip. (Once you have mastered controlling someone’s posture that way and have learned to keep your elbows tight, an amazing number of attacks and sweeps open up.) When I feel the top guy relent to trying to pull up and instead decide to drive forward into me, I then move into my arm-inside series. “I didn’t see that coming,” is a common response I get from the now mounted foe.

Pressure is wonderful because one second you can have it and then in another you can make it disappear and the whole complexion of game changes. Going from tortoise to hare then back to tortoise can stymie your opponent’s offense and cause extreme frustration.

THE REVELATION OF LESS IS MORE:

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is wonderfully organic. I think that is one of its characteristics that separates it from all the other martial arts. As of the date of this essay, no single entity has been able to mandate complete control over its techniques and restrict growth. Even today, a no-gi off-shoot of BJJ, is developing new techniques and strategies. Likewise, old standard techniques are reborn with vitality when experts submit other experts in major tournaments.

I am a consummate student of the art. I own dozens of books, tons of videos, and have watched more internet vids, read more blogs, and visited more websites than anyone I know. As such, I always hoped that I would find ‘my game’ among the next periodical, or in the next clip, or in the next tournament video.

Then came Adam benShea. Adam is a beast of a human being. He is super intelligent, built like a brick house, and his jiu jitsu is out of this world. The first time I ever sparred with him, he pulled guard, scissor swept me, did knee slide pass to side control, dug my far arm out and Americana-ed it. You might ask how I remember this in such detail. Well, he did it at least ten times in a row! I tried everything I could defend each time. I was a purple belt! Not just a mediocre purple, but one that was winning tournaments!

Later, once I was able to frustrate the Americana, he would step over my head and reverse armlock the same arm. Once I frustrated that, it was kimura time! This was months and months of training and his attacks were the same. He could recognize all the flashy crap we wanted to learn, but they were not part of his game. He was content with using the few moves he was excellent at to reek havoc.

Finding what works for your body, your game, your attitude, your mental demands and honing those to perfection is very important. Being a ‘jack of all trades and a master of none’ will only get you so far in BJJ. At some point you have to begin to develop go-to moves. It is when you make this decision that you are realizing that ‘less is more.’ There is no need for me to learn the inverted guard game. It does not fit my body, my attitude, my philosophy or my common strategy, so I will watch it and admire it, but need not spend precious repetition time on it.

THE REVELATION THAT ALL THESE REVELATIONS REPEAT:

There are probably other, very obvious, revelations that I am missing. However, the last revelation, the Revelation that all these Revelations Repeat, is the Revelation that led me to realize that all the aforementioned Revelations are real. As you progress through each belt level, you will come to recognize moves, you will refine your technique to accommodate for deficiencies in strength/speed/power, you will continue to link moves in deeper more meaningful sentences, you will explore levels of pressure from different positions to maximize your opponent’s suffering while minimizing your effort, and you will pare away techniques you have learned that don’t meet your needs. I imagine the day these progressions quit happening for me will be the day I quit grappling!

Advice From A Champion

I was reading through the new issue of Gracie Magazine and found a short article where Roger Gracie explains how he became so much better at bjj than everyone else.  For those of you who do not know who Roger Gracie is I’ll tell you a bit about him so you understand why you should listen to anything he has to say about training and progressing in bjj.  He has 15 world championship medals with 10 of those medals being 1st place.  He is also the only competitor to win the Absolute Black Belt division at the Worlds 3x.   To top that off he won his division at the 2005 ADCC submission grappling tournament submitting all 8 of his opponents-a feat that had not been previously achieved.  To top it off Roger won the 2009 Mundials (Brazilian for World Championships) super heavyweight and absolute divisions by submitting every one of his opponents from mount with a simple cross choke.  Most of the top bjj competitors consider Roger to be one of the, if not the, best bjj competitor of all time.

Now that we have introductions out of the way we will dive back into the main point of this article:

The first thing Roger spoke about was the importance of defense and watching how your opponent uses his defense.  If you watch any of Rogers matches you will see he can escape any position making him impossible to submit (Although Roger has a few losses in tournaments he has never been submitted in a BJJ competition).  He also explains that whenever he competes or spars he pays particular attention to his opponents defense against his attacks.  If his opponent effectively uses a move to stop his attacks repeatedly he takes note of that technique and will incorporate it into his own bjj game.  This is a really interesting concept in bjj since most of us do not think in this way.  Most of the time when a competitor finds their attack is not working they quickly decide that the move does not work at a high level of competition or completely focus on figuring out another attack.  If you could instead focus on what your opponent was doing to block your attack you could start using it in your own game and become instantly better than you were.  If all of us focused in this way we would learn a lot quicker and have a much better understanding of jiu jitsu.  Roger also does this with his opponents attacks.  Every time his opponent manages to break through his defense he tries to take note of the move his opponent did.  He will then incorporate that attack into his game increasing his repertoire.  This is also the exact opposite of how most of us train.  In general when an opponent breaks through our defense we focus 100% on trying to figure out how to make our defense better rather than trying to learn the technique used to defeat our defense.  I am by no means saying you should not try to increase your defense but I am saying you should try to learn the attack used against you while trying to increase your defense so you can kill two birds with one stone and learn quicker.

The second major point Roger made was about understanding technique. Many bjj practitioners learn the movements without questioning how they work or trying to gain a better understanding.  It is very easy to collect tons of movements in your game, but know very little about each.  Learning a technique by watching it is very useful and allows you to learn the gross motor movements, but it is the fine motor movements that can’t be seen by the naked eye that make the move truly work.  The competitors that always submit people with the same submission are true examples of this.  If you look at Roger’s victories in the 2009 Mundials, where he submitted every opponent with the same submission from mount, you have to wonder how every person could fall prey to the same attack.  The reason he was able to put on that performance is he had such a deep understanding of the movement he could finish it no matter what defense his opponent used.  He knew exactly how to position his hands, where to place his hips, and how to apply the pressure at all times.  I truly feel this is the way to learn bjj rather than focusing on just the major mechanical movements.  You need to look into every move and try to understand every little facet of that movement.

The last good point Roger made was that patience is the key to success in bjj. This is true on multiple levels.  BJJ is a martial art that takes a long time to truly learn and master.  If you do not have patience you will never make it to black belt.  Patience is also very important in competition and sparring.  If you get into a bad position and freak out you will almost always get submitted.  It is important to stay calm and focus on what your opponent is doing.  By staying calm you will be able to see the instant your opponent makes a mistake and launch your escape.

The next time you train try to keep the above advice in your mind and see if you start improving at a quicker rate than ever before.  Good luck in your training.

I tapped out a black belt so that makes me a black belt, right?

I have run into so many people that believe if they tap out a higher belt they should receive that same belt.  Although this is sometimes true, most of the time it is incorrect.  We need to first understand that the art of brazilian jiu jitsu and submission grappling is more than just trying to tapout all of the higher belts and receive your black belt as quickly as possible.  There is so much to learn in bjj and it takes years to even begin to understand the art.  Looking back into my own training I realize now after 10 years of training I am only just beginning to scratch the surface of understanding this art form.

There are many reasons a lower belt may tapout a higher belt.  The higher belt may be having an off day, your bjj game may just be well suited to beat the upper belts specific style, you may be a lot younger/stronger/more athletic/ heavier than the upper belt, or the upper belt may be working on parts of his game that are newer to him.  I can remember multiple occasions as a blue belt where I managed to defeat purple and brown belts.  I even managed to tap out my instructor 3 times in a row a week before he got his black belt, but I would never say I deserved to be a black belt at that time.  I happened to find a weakness in my instructor’s game and was able to grab the same foot lock 3 times.

One of the biggest differences between lower and higher belts is the understanding of movement and how it relates to our art form.  A lower belt takes longer to learn new moves because he will not completely understand the motor patterns required to do the movement and will not have a deep understanding of why the move is used.  If you were to show a black belt a newer move they will be able to understand it and start using it almost immediately. An example of this is the day after I caught my instructor he asked me to start in the same position I caught him the previous day so he could see what I did.  He worked on a  few escapes and later when we sparred again I went for that same foot lock and never came close to getting it.  My instructor’s understanding and level of jiu jitsu was so much higher than mine he was able to figure out how to stop me overnight.

Being competitive and trying hard to progress is never a bad thing.  Just remember that bjj is a journey rather than a sprint.  During your time you will learn so much and when you think you know everything you will suddenly realize you only just started learning.  Good luck with your journey.

What is the BJJ Corner?

This is going to be the part of our site that discusses any and all bjj related things.  There will be posts on how to improve your technique, better ways to train, setting up training game plans, and much more.  Please check back often and I hope you enjoy the information here.  Please feel free to leave comments on any of these posts or start discussions in the comments area.

Article

I am starting this blog off with a great article from Roy Harris. This article was written for bjj.org and explains what a bjj practitioner goes through during his/her journey from white belt to black belt.

Progression in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
by Roy Harris

Roy Harris Allow me to share with you my personal observations of the progression through the different belt levels in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. I believe this will help you to understand where you are now and where you are headed with your journey in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. I hope you enjoy this article!

White Belt

This is the belt of paying your dues. This is the belt where you will spend most of your time on his back. You usually end up doing most of the tapping as well.

Your ability to grapple successfully will depend largely on three things:

  1. your previous martial arts experience, (a grappling background helps a lot)
  2. your current fitness level, (a higher level of fitness help tremendously)
  3. your ability to learn visually (visual learners adapt and absorb information more quickly)

Students who come from a wrestling background seem to adapt very well to the slight change in grappling methods. Students who come from an athletic background also seem to adapt quite well.

Those who come from a striking background sometimes have a difficult time adapting. Many have become so accustomed to visually grabbing onto the vertical and horizontal lines of the walls, doorways and ropes to stabilize their equilibrium that they feel very uncomfortable with the diagonal world of grappling. They quickly learn that the ground has not been their friend, and, that they must take some time to acquaint themselves with this new perspective.

 The most frustrating part about being a white belt (especially if you have no experience on the ground) is the fact that most of the advanced students will make you tap, or at least positionally dominate you. (I remember feeling frustrated as a white belt.) This frustration usually leads to white belts asking questions like, “How do I get on top of these guys? How do I escape the side or full mount? How do I tap out the blue and purple belts?” Unfortunately, there’s nothing you can do right now to immediately change the tables in your favor. Get used to the blue and purple belts tapping you out. Get used to having them positionally dominating you. Consider tapping as a “form of learning”, a way of “paying your dues.” I remember when I was a white belt. I remember feeling like a rag doll in the hands of the blue and purple belts. I wish there would have been something I could have done to prevent from feeling like that, but there wasn’t. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is just one of those “time in service” things. You simply have to put your time in. There are no short cuts!

The only encouragement that I can give to you is this, “Keep training! Your day is coming. The day will come when you will no longer be a white belt. The day is coming when you will be able to escape from any position with finesse and ease. Then, it will be your turn to watch the frustration of the new white belts that enter your school. Then, it will be your turn to encourage them as I have encouraged you!”

White belts are expected to rely on speed, power, strength and explosiveness. For that is all they know. However, once a person dons the “blue belt”, the world of Jiu Jitsu suddenly changes.

Blue Belt

This is the belt of survival. It is the belt where the focus of your training must be on escaping from most of the inferior positions (the mount, the guard, the side mount, the wrestler’s cradle and headlocks). Having the ability to escape from most inferior positions is paramount to having the ability to get on top of a person, positionally dominate them and making them tap. I know that there are a number of submissions from inferior positions (not necessarily the guard), but these submissions require a high level of speed, power and explosiveness. The reason why these submissions require speed, power and explosiveness is because your body, when placed in an inferior position, can not effectively apply leverage. To compensate for the inability to apply leverage, you substitute it with speed, power and explosiveness to effect the lock. (Anyone who tells you any different is either purposely misleading you or very unknowledgeable with grappling! I know that some may argue this point, but I stand by this point.) Not only do you have an inability to apply leverage from an inferior position, you also do not have control of your opponent’s body! So now do you see why escapes are so important to building a firm foundation in grappling?

When you can easily escape the tightest pin (from just about anyone), you will find yourself on top more often. When you find yourself on top, you have more chances for submission. However, you should not jump right into submission just yet because you have not developed the skill to hold someone down with finesses and ease. I have seen too many blue belts begin their journey into submission too soon and often become frustrated because they just can’t finish their opponent. They get so close, but they often fail at finishing their opponent. This usually leads the blue belt to seeking out more and more submission techniques. He thinks that the “new” and “sneaky” techniques will make him more skilled at submissions. However, what he doesn’t realize is that his inability to finish his opponent is directly related to his inability to positionally dominate him. The blue belt feels good when he has escaped a hold down and has landed on top. However, he also feels like he has ONE SHOT at sinking in the submission. He knows if he fails, he will end up on his back and have to fight for the top position again. So, he usually stalls, waiting for his opponent to make a mistake so he can hopefully capitalize on it.

 Once the blue belt has a firm grip on positional escapes, he should then move on to positional dominance: which is “the ability to control an opponent.” When the blue belt can readily escape from most of the bottom positions, he should focus his training on learning how to control his opponent with greater ease and finesse. Although anyone can control their opponent if they can use all of their strength for short periods of time. It will take some time before a person can effortlessly hold down their opponent.

Once the blue belt has a good grip on these two aspects, he should then begin to develop a few good submissions. Still, he should not be consumed with them because there are still a few more areas to train before a lengthy period of time should be spent on submissions. (Yes, yes, yes, I know that submissions are the more enjoyable part of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. I am not saying that you should not train them at all. However, all I am saying is this, “Don’t focus on them quite yet. Wait until you are a high purple belt!”)

The blue belt should have a large repertoire of positional and submission techniques. However, his depth of knowledge of these techniques is very limited because of his experience level. And because of his limited experience, he will still require a good amount of speed, power and explosiveness to effect most of his techniques. This is to be expected.

Another interesting thing happens at the blue belt level: the bar of performance raises itself to highly competitive levels. I remember when I was a white belt, it felt OK to tap to everyone because hey, I was a white belt. However, once I was promoted to blue belt, many of the bigger, stronger and more talented white belts began to set their cross-hair on me. What once was a shared journey of joy and frustration suddenly became field of itchy trigger fingered snipers. Many of the white belts who were once fellow sojourners now wanted the privilege of being able to say, “I made a blue belt tap!” It seemed like overnight the game of Jiu Jitsu suddenly became very competitive. Well, if you think the game was interesting at the blue belt level, wait until you hear about the highly regarded purple belt!

Purple Belt

This is the belt of momentum and combinations. This is the belt level where the amount of energy you expend to accomplish a specific task should be considerably lower than it was when you were a white belt. Your game should have a certain amount of grace and finesse to it. Your game should not have rely on speed, power and explosiveness to get you into positions or out of positions. Your repertoire of techniques should be very high. However, you should begin to focus your training on your depth of knowledge. The white and blue belts are the belts where you accumulate techniques. The purple belt is the first belt where you must begin to refine your techniques. It is also the belt where you learn to put the basic techniques together into various two technique and three technique combinations, with the use of momentum.

Because you become more reliant upon combinations and momentum, the amount of speed and power required to effect your technique decreases. This is not something a white or blue belt can do just yet because of their limited amount of knowledge and experience.

As a purple belt, you must begin to focus your training on the use momentum. You must train your entire body to FEEL momentum. Up until this point in time, most everything was visual. You must develop a high level of sensitivity so that you can flow with your opponent instead of forcing techniques with speed and power, especially when you grappled people who are much bigger and stronger than you are. Pushing an opponent’s dead weight around is exhausting if you do not have a firm foundation in escapes and positioning. You will need to learn to use the momentum that your opponent gives to you, as well as create momentum when his body is not in motion. Momentum will help you to lower the amount of strength you use to perform your techniques.

 Your training should also begin to use the basic techniques together into two, three and sometimes five technique combinations. Notice I said “basic” techniques. The purple belt mentality is very different from the white and blue belt mentality. White and blue belts think the answer to their problems is learning more techniques. The purple belt thinks to himself: “I need to refine the techniques I already know and then learn how to reflexively put the appropriate techniques together into flowing combinations.” For example, when I first learned the triangle, I thought it was just a matter of throwing my legs over their head and shoulder and squeezing my legs together. Then as I matured in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, I noticed that there were a specific set of components that made up the technique (20 to be exact!). Then, I noticed that these components could be broken down even further into sub-categories. Now (as a black belt), the triangle is no longer a simple technique with three or four movements. It is now a myriad of over twenty (20) different (and subtle) moving parts that must be put together in a specific order so they can all work together towards one common goal: apply pressure to the neck. Once I had mastered the triangle, I needed to put it together with other basic techniques like the arm lock, the hip bump, the sweep, the kimura, a knee lock, etc. Knowing how to combine the triangle with other basic techniques was very important to my development in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu! Once I could combine techniques together and use them in conjunction with momentum, I now felt ready to take on the world. I’ve noticed the same in many students, both in seminars, at my school and other schools.

The purple belt’s mind set should be on the refinement of his current knowledge and the use of momentum and combinations. The purple belt is able to do this because he already has a wide base of knowledge in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. I know that white and blue belts want to learn how to do this, but they simply aren’t ready for it just yet.

This mindset, along with some rapidly developing skills by the purple belts usually sets the stage for some highly charged matches, especially amongst new purple belts. Why? Because the some of the “veteran” blue belts want to make a purple belt tap. Plus, a number of students who get their purple belts go through a period which I call “testing their wares.” They want to see just how they compare to the older, more experienced purple belts, especially those who are about to be promoted to brown belt.

Brown Belt

This is the belt of mastery of ALL the basics and something I call “at-will grappling.” This is also the belt where submissions play a big part in the training. When I decide that someone is about ready for their brown belt, I tell them in advance that they are about 9 months to a year away from their brown belt. I give them a schedule of tasks that I want them to work on.

First, they must master each and every escape. I want them to be able to escape every position with the use of their hands AND without the use of their hands (they must know how to push and pull, lift and lower with every portion of their anatomy.). I want them to be able to hold other students down with their hands and without their hands. I want to see them use all of the basic techniques in three and five technique combinations. I also want them to begin to refine their submissions. This is where I begin to use the “at-will grappling” training method. I will tell the student, “for the next thirty days, all I want you to do is apply straight arm locks when you grapple with the other students. No chokes or leg locks. Just arm locks.” Then, a month later, I will tell them, “for the next month, all I want you to do are leg locks. Then a month later, I will tell them to choke the other students. So, for each month, they have been given a specific task to master. Because they tell the other students, “All I am going to do is arm lock you today,” the student knows what the purple belt is going for. This forces the student to be creative in setting up the arm lock because his opponent knows that he will not try a different submission. Setting up an opponent is a difficult task, however, it is one that needs to be learned at this belt level. (I know the lower belt levels want to learn this stuff, but again, they are simply not ready for it.)

 Once the student has gotten pretty good at arm locks, leg locks or choke, I will have him narrow the scope of his training. Now, he must focus on one specific limb. I will tell him, “for the next month, all I want you to do is arm lock your opponent’s left arm.” This really forces the student to develop a multiplicity of ways to enter into the straight arm lock on his opponent’s left arm. The student has the confidence to go for all of these submissions because he has a foundation in positional escapes and positional dominance. If he did not have this foundation, he would be timid to go for the submission because he would not want to end up on the bottom again. However, because he can easily escape from any position, and because he can readily hold down and control his opponent, he can repeatedly try for these submissions time and time again! This is why I do not place a lot of emphasis on submissions until the purple or brown belt levels. Position and control are the most important tools to develop at first.

Once a student has a firm grip on the mastery of his basics, I will promote him to brown belt. Once he has been promoted to brown belt, he must continue to refine his game. He must seek out his weak areas and focus on them. He must also find his strengths and focus on them for an extended period of time because these will define his character as a black belt. Most black belts have a specialty. Some are good at throws. Others are good at collar chokes. I happen to be good at leg locks. I want my brown belts to find their sweet spot and train it like crazy!

Black Belt

This is the belt where a person focuses his training on counters and placing his or her signature on the art. First, let’s talk about the signature. Some black belts develop an affinity for leg locks (like myself). Others tend to focus on throws or take downs. Some are exceptional at arm locks. While others are magicians at collar chokes. This is also the belt where you really begin to refine and redefine the art. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu takes on a more personal look to it. The new black belt begins to realize that there’s more than one way to skin a cat. He also begin to notice how certain things work for some people while others don’t. (Now, let me qualify that last statement: all of these things apply to the black belt who is still refining, growing, learning and adapting. They do not apply to the black belt who is stuck in his old ways, paralyzed by his resistance to change!)

At the black belt level, the learning process starts over again. If a new black belt is honest with him or herself, they realize they know very little about their chosen art. They will also know that there is a difference between a new black belt and a black belt who has consistently been training “as a black belt” for the past ten years. For example, I am a relatively new black belt, someone you might call “a white belt amongst other black belts.” I’ve had my black belt for two years now. Then there’s Royler Gracie. He’s had his black belt for several years. As a matter of fact, he had his black belt before I even thought about Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Plus, he has so many more hundreds of hours competing, teaching and training that there’s no way to compare my black belt with his black belt. So, as a new black belt, I am introduced to a new journey, one that is as long and hard as the one I just traveled. However, because I have already traveled a similar road, I am ready to take on this new one!

At the black belt level, a person’s technical expertise is very high. However, his ability to skillfully perform all of his technical knowledge will not be as good as some might think. The black belt will obviously have some favorite moves that he does most of the time. However, over time (if he continues to train with the same intensity as he did in the earlier belts), his skill level will continue to increase. The only thing that will be different is that his game will become much smaller. He will not concern himself with “NEW” techniques, but the refining and redefining of the old ones. He will work on the small subtle movements that will make the art much easier and more enjoyable to practice. He will begin to make smaller movements to accomplish the same objectives as the other belt. For example, to a black belt, the difference between escaping and being held down is often the difference between a hip movement of less than one inch. YES, I SAID “ONE INCH!” The black belt’s feel and sensitivity of the game is so much higher than the white, blue or even purple belt’s game. The black belt begins to move like a shadow. He flows effortlessly around his opponent’s movement and follows the path they set. He finds his opponent’s weakness and then exploits it. The game is very small and tactile!

 Finally, the black belt’s knowledge and ability to execute counters will be much higher. For example, when a student performs a basic technique, the black belt is already three or four moves ahead of him. The black belt knows that for every move, there are several counters. For every counter, there are several more counters. Let me show this to you another way:

We will call the bridge and roll escape from the mount (Upa), technique “A”. Technique “A” has ten (10) counters to it:

A.1 straight arm lock
A.2 catch your balance with your head
A.3 catch your balance with your right foot
A.4 catch your balance with you left foot
A.5 catch your balance with your far arm
A.6 spin to knee on stomach
A.7 spin to side mount
A.8 turn onto your side
A.9 roll and sweep to mount
A.10 triangle

“A.1″ is the first counter to technique “A”, the bridge and roll escape from the mount position. “A.1″ also has ten (10) counters to it:

A.1.1 heel hook
A.1.2 sit up and crush escape
A.1.3 sit up and crush escape to knee lock
A.1.4 sit up and remove leg off face
A.1.5 sit up and spin to opposite side
A.1.6 roll over shoulder escape
A.1.7 basic elbow/knee escape
A.1.8 basic elbow/knee escape, go to the back
A.1.9 basic elbow/knee escape
A.1.10 shin

Now, do you see how I could keep going on and on with counters? I could list the ten counters for A.2 and A.3 and so on, and then I could begin to list the counters for A.1.1 and A.1.2 and so on and so on.

Do you now see and understand the progression from white to black belt? The process of becoming skilled at Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is frustrating, very time consuming and nerve racking, however, it is always rewarding!

I wish you continued success in your journey. Keep training hard and smart!

Roy Harris