A glance backwad and a launch forward

I've been sick the past week or so with bronchitis, once a year or so my body has to fight through it. Though in a strange way, I think its God's way of telling me to slow down and rest. For the last week or so it's also given me to think and reflect. My thoughts go back to when I was a grappling instructor for my dad when he owned a Dojo. I think of how fast my body was able to move back then, that my skill level (at the the time) could have very well owned my several world championships in Jujitsu and Submission grappling.

The problem rests in the fact that, after a ten year lay will about murder a persons skill and ability. I had no belt at the time in Jujitsu, but I was a certified level one instructor Marc Mcfann, who teaches the concepts of Jeet Kune Do.

(If you want to know more about JKD and one of my past instructors, feel free to google them both).

Reflecting on the past is one thing, but allowing your self to stay there is another. All of this has stirred a sort of anger in me to be back at where I once was, but that may very well never happen. I might in some ways get better. A lot better.

What I'd like to do upon gaining my black belt (maybe even 2 black belts) is start my own Dojo, one that has a program dedicated for those who have special needs, it's the most amazing feeling ever when I watch a young man learn to both defend himself from his chair and out of his chair (on the ground). I honestly feel that a lot of Jujitsu schools, don't really know what to do with someone that has Cerebral Palsy, visually impaired and so on.

In short. I want to be a great teacher.

-Brandon

My Christmas Gift

Love it, love Catch Wrestling, love Jujitsu- wish that they both would get married and have babies finally.

PS.. I've been off the mats for a few days due to being sick, but I can't wait to get back at it.

Three Things Jujitsu Teaches us About Life,

Jujitsu, in my opinion is similar to a love-hate relationship. What I mean by that is, in life, we have people that we love and care about deeply, but sometimes (maybe even a lot) they get under our skin and annoy us. Going further with that analogy, we can sometimes throw are arms up in the air and not bother with those who don't rub us the right way. So to speak.

As I have documented on this blog, the times that I've wanted to walk out of the Dojo and hang my head in shame, never to come back. But is that truly how we are to handle life as human beings?

No, it's not. Jujitsu has taught me much about the ability to persevere in life. In our modern context, especially that being the American one. We love instant gratification, everything has to come to our grasp this second, if not then it isn't really worth having. Or so it would seem. Jujitsu does not provide that open, some people who have chosen to partake on the journey have earned their black belts in as little as 4 years. Others, it has taken twenty years, sometimes longer.

The one that takes 4 years, is to be celebrated, because he or she has earned it and put in the many exhausting hours and took their beatings. The one that takes twenty or more is to be celebrated as well. Why? Because they stuck with it, they fought through discouragement, injuries and kept a proper perspective while other team mates earned their belts.

In reality, I will probably be on the twenty year track, and that's okay. Why you ask? Because not only will I work not only will I keep pressing on toward my next goal. I get the joy of helping others along the way. I have the honor of helping kids learn the joy and fun that is Jujitsu. I get the honor to encourage as well.

So, what are the three ways Jujitsu teaches us about life?

1) It teaches us to persevere in tough time.
2) It teaches us to keep our fixed on goals.
3) It teaches us to get the focus off ourselves and onto others.  

Always growing and adapting on the journey.

Well,

as usual my time for updating the blog has been few, far and in between. I was going to write about the earning of my first gold medal, but the emotions from that has since faded. That is not to say  that the desire to win more has faded too. (it hasn't) but that my knowledge to learn has grown even more.

I haven't been able to train much, (on the mats that is) but I have been keeping my strength and conditioning up, been eating a lot of fruits and veggies, drinking lots of water and even have a few friends here on campus that I can work on basics with.

Fundamentals have become huge for me, I know that the 10th planet system is very detailed one, but not having the time to practice all the details is the problem. The more I train and compete the more I discover what best suits my body.

Perhaps that why Bruce Lee said to accept what is useful, reject what is useless and add specifically what is your own. I am NOT in anyway suggesting that certain techniques in the 10th planet are useless to me, (their not) however with my condition, it will take me much longer to learn and perfect certain techniques. Which is okay.

For me, in tournaments, it comes down to the essentials. Arm-bars and choke,  (maybe leg locks when I get up to different skill levels) I know it's nothing glamorous, I just don't feel very confident in my rubber guard, although I have used it in a match.

When I first learned the electric-chair sweep, I was using the half-guard, rather than the lock down. Why? I'm not very confident in my ability with it. Eddie Bravo saw me doing it with half-guard and he said it was awesome and to do what I could.

That to me meant the world to me, probably because he was affirming me as a grappling artist. As I've mentioned before, my hunger to learn has grown a great bit. Even while being in school, I am thinking about jujitsu and grappling all the time. I'm watching videos and always finding things to add to the bag of tricks.

I want to "master" a handful of techniques and do them well. All this to say, that one can learn, grow and be thankful for the gift with have in jujitsu. Never give on the journey.     

My gold medal frm today!

I won 2 matches with double wrist lock submissions. I'll write my thoughts out after awhile... I need to let this all sink in.

-Brandon

Days before the tournament.

I am at school, however I am eating well and keeping my stamina up to par. I'm mentally going over my game plan. I'm ready to go!

Weigh in's are friday, and go time is saturday.

Never Out of Options

I weighed myself this morning before my workout, my weight was 126 lbs. I'm feeling super strong and have had a lot of energy. My workout consisted of:

Turkish get ups- five on each side. On the left side a ten pound kettle bell and on my right, a five pound dumb-bell. (these are great for jujitsu in general).

After that- The military press, three sets of ten.

Lastly- bridge ups, another great exercise that is great for the core and legs. It might not seem like much, but if you can do this within a fifth-teen minute time period, your heart will beat pretty fast and you will sweat a great deal.

Ever since I got my blue belt last Saturday, I have felt a great intensity inside. One that wants to hunt for submissions on any angle. Erik Paulson once said that the human body is a submission waiting to happen. I take that to mean that, at any position I am in there is always ways to attack.

I've been working hard on fighting from the bottom, as it's still very easy for people to get passed my guard. So my sweeps and transitions to deep half guard must be legit. Beyond that I've been working my top game a lot as well, mainly improving my posture. The submissions are there. It's about being heavy on top.

That's one of reasons I love the catch style of wrestling so much, because it weighs heavily on dominant position and attacking non stop. For me, I try and merge that same attitude within the practice of Jujitsu. I'm always trying to attack, whether I am on my back or not. Attack,  attack attack.

Lock flows then, are so very important to all grapplers, in the JKD spectrum of grappling one will learn to transfer from submission to submission without having to give it much thought. Personally I feel that that is something that is missing from a lot of grappling arts these days.

Sifu Larry Hartsell pounded this into the mind of his students, for the simple reason that you are never out of options in ways to submit your opponent.