Ju-Jitsu

Throughout his many years of practicing and competing Jiu-Jitsu, ten-time world champion Roger Gracie has gathered a vast knowledge of the gentle art and the steps necessary to evolve in the sport. In an interview with our friends at Graciemag.com, Roger shared seven tips to improve your technique and maximize your effectiveness on the mats. Check them out!

1 – Keep Calm

‘Whenever someone is surprised by my calmness, I like to say that’ losing control is losing the fight ‘. If a fighter is under attack and decides to fight without much thought, he will just move in favor of adjusting position. The good fighter must be patient. If you struggle, you will lose oxygen faster and make hasty decisions. Starting to swim without thinking can send a castaway even further to the bottom. However, if he is calm, he can emerge easily. ‘

2 – Be Creative

‘Keep an open mind and let your creativity and adaptability flow. I switched armlock from guard when a white belt clamped my kimono awkwardly and I felt uncomfortable. I saw there was a way there and developed an innovation. ‘

3 – Believe in your ability

‘Many fighters are already defeated before the fight even starts. It’s a mental issue … I don’t want to sound arrogant, but you need to tell yourself that you will win and that you can accomplish this feat. The fighter needs to be convinced of his ability. The competitive world at the highest level does not tolerate doubt, so trust your potential. ‘

4 – Use your weight:

‘Although it seems obvious, few people do what is necessary: use their weight to crush the opponent. When I’m on top, regardless of which pass I want to use, I’m always using my body and pushing myself over the opponent, distributing my weight to never convey the feeling of lightness to the opponent.

There is nothing complex or special about my passes, except that I am constantly calculating and recalculating my position in order not to give way to the opponent.

The logic is this: whoever is at the back needs space to move and thus seek replacement, sweep, or finish. If you give space and throw your weight back, the opponent will be free to move. Now, if you project your body at him, the guard fighter will have to absorb your weight, so he will not move efficiently. ‘

5 – Increase the difficulty of your training

‘It is necessary to put yourself in really dangerous situations during training. If you train against an ineffective attack, your defense will also be ineffective. And vice versa.’

6 – It is not about strength

‘What I often see nowadays are fighters who invest a lot in muscular strength and with it they can get rid of some attacks based on explosive force. It turns out that if they get tired, they will be forced to tap.

This also creates another problem. When the subject gets addicted to escaping from a position with force and wants to get rid of it somehow, he doesn’t learn to think about the mechanism of the movement.

The trick is to understand the why of things. Know why the choke is putting pressure or not. This makes it easier for you to position yourself, look for the opponent’s lever that provides the main support for the attack and disarm it. ‘

7 – Prioritize Jiu-Jitsu

‘To be physically prepared to fight Jiu-Jitsu, train Jiu-Jitsu as much as possible. Other activities can help, but they can also hinder. If you train a lot with weights, you can get stiff, and Jiu-Jitsu requires mobility and flexibility.

You can run as much as you want, but this will not be as effective as training several sessions with short breaks between sparring to get your body used to the toughness of competition. If you want to have a strong kimono grip, working out is not the main thing. It is better to train and put in as much effort as possible so that you are not broken by your teammates during training. ‘

Jiu-Jitsu is a sport that has been growing every year in the world. More and more new students are joining gyms and starting to train the soft art. Therefore, we have prepared some important tips for those who want to start training Jiu-Jitsu.

1 – Respect

The first tip is respect. Jiu-Jitsu, more than a sport, is a martial art that preaches respect for the master, fellow students, and hierarchy. Never disrespect someone during a Jiu-Jitsu training session. You can beat an opponent who is bigger, or better ranked than you, but always maintain respect for him.

2 – Physical Preparation

Speaking specifically about training, it is good that your physical fitness is up to date. A Jiu-Jitsu workout is usually long and intense. The warm-up is very strong, and focuses a lot on the aerobic part, with running around the tatami and polichinelos, for example. After all the warm-up is that comes the roll, which is when the two students face each other on the tatame, applying the blows taught by the teacher.

3 – Nutrition

Eat well before and after training, and prioritize healthy eating. A Jiu-Jitsu student burns an average of 1000 calories per workout. Therefore, pre-workout nutrition is very important, so that you have the strength and disposition to support the intense pace. The ideal is to eat something an hour in advance. The post-workout diet is essential for muscle recovery, since there is a lot of wear and tear. On this specific subject, we have written a text here on the site. Just click here to access it (insert link to the article about “What to eat before and after training”)

4 – Kimono

Choosing a good kimono is fundamental. Some brands stand out, such as Koral, Atama, Keiko, KVRA, Vulkan, Venum, Cascagrossa, and Red Nose. Besides deciding which kimono to use, you need to keep it clean. Wash it after every workout. If you train every day, buy at least two kimonos to take turns. A good tip to reduce the stink on kimonos is to use a rash guard, which is a lycra shirt that sticks to the body and prevents sweat from going directly onto the kimono.

5 – Patience

You are starting a totally new activity. The people who will train with you will be at more advanced stages, but your evolution will be gradual, and you will reach their level as well. Take the opportunity to learn from the more experienced ones. Jiu-Jitsu is a martial art that allows you to beat bigger and more experienced opponents, as long as you know the technique well. So observe a lot and pay attention to details. This will make all the difference.

6 – Dedication

If you want to develop your jiu-jitsu faster, train every day. The repetition of the moves you learn in training will make this movement become automatic for you. The more you repeat it on the roll, the more adapted you will be to it, and so, when you are in a situation where you can apply this move to finish an opponent, you will do it more easily. Always remember: in Jiu-Jitsu, technique is determinant to decide who will win.

The traditional Japanese martial art called Ju-Jitsu is a fighting system that uses grappling and striking. It is not unlike mixed martial art or martial arts in that it incorporates elements from the other martial art types. In this method of learning the art, practitioners would use the Kyokushinkai, or “four limbs”. The arms are also used as an offensive technique, often to attempt a takedown. The legs and the torso are used as a defense, but primarily as a means to throw opponents, or attempt to pin them down. There is no limit to how many techniques can be applied in this style of fighting.

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A martial art with many variations, the ancient Japanese sport of Ju-jitsu was brought to the West by Karate master Morihei Ueshiba, who founded the Universal Peace Federation in 1917. It is a self-defense system that incorporates various techniques from many different disciplines of traditional Japanese martial arts, including Shotokan karate and judo. Today, Ju-jitsu can be used as either an offensive or defensive method to defeat or subdue unarmed or weaponless attackers or to subdue any opponent.

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