Yea, I'm having a hard time getting out the bottom as well. I'll try to bridge and even grab their one arm, but I'm not able to then roll them over.

This morning the guy I was rolling with only had been doing it for 5 months, but he locked my arm at least 6 times in the 6 minutes we rolled at the end. He's 23 and maybe 160 lbs, while again I'm 37 and 225 lbs.

I do find it encouraging that multiple guys have commented on my strength and say when things start coming together for me, I'll be a challenge. Now I'm trying to use brute force which doesn't last.

While I'm not much more experienced than you are (I'm 32 and been rolling about 8 months) what's really helped me is to learn the basic position hierarchy and try and work an escape and submission from each. Also, when rolling with upper belts I just try and play defense and survive for as long as possible haha.

We're in need of a Texags bjj get together.

I'm down (live in Conroe).

In reply to newhowdyag2004 You're going to have to force yourself to not use your strength and pretend you're around 175 lbs or so. True jiu jitsu is leverage, not strength.

I find that when I miss a step in a technique and it doesn't work, I tend to rely on strength to accomplish the technique.

As you progress, instead of relying on strength, you'll abandon that technique or position when it fails for another one.

In reply to chipotle

chipotle said:

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We're in need of a Texags bjj get together.

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I'm down. I live in New Orleans

In reply to Wheatables02

Wheatables02 said:

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True jiu jitsu is leverage, not strength.

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I've kept hearing that in my 9-10 years of jiu jitsu but I've never been finessed during a tournament. Yeah yeah you shouldn't rely on it but dammit it sure does help.


Looks like if we'll ever have a jiu jitsu meet up it will need to be in Houston. I'm out in Austin. Maybe a football weekend watch/roll party.

In reply to chipotle True. Strength does help in a tournament and in real life.

But I train on the self defense side where I assume I'm going to be in a fight for my life with someone bigger and stronger.

In reply to chipotle

chipotle said:

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We're in need of a Texags bjj get together.

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I'm definitely down for a Texags hangout. I'm in The Woodlands/Conroe area

Quote:

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I've kept hearing that in my 9-10 years of jiu jitsu but I've never been finessed during a tournament. Yeah yeah you shouldn't rely on it but dammit it sure does help.

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other things being roughly equal, strength absolutely matters.

Strength is definitely an advantage when rolling with someone with comparable skill, but pressure, leverage and angles can definitely be game changers.

In reply to chipotle

chipotle said:

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We're in need of a Texags bjj get together.

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Count me in. Houston here!

Conditioning is probably more important than strength (by itself). But being strong doesn't hurt, that's for sure.

I'm definitely up for a Texags BJJ get together (I'm in Houston) and know of several "open" gyms that run open mats (regardless of affiliation).

Not sure where in Houston everyone is located, but my gym in The Woodlands off 1488 has open mats on Fridays and has a sports bar and a pizza restaurant next to it if that sounds like a good meet up place

Got put through the gauntlet this morning. Two purple belts and a blue belt MMA fighter. Five 6 minute rounds.

In reply to A. Solzhenitsyn Oh damn, I'm gassed after two 6 minute rounds. Although I'll say, going against a higher belt is nice because they aren't as frantic (as me) so it slows me down. I was called out after class on Tues morning to calm down and slow my breathing. I need to spend more time protecting myself (arms and knees in) and thinking what I should do next, and if it fails going back to protecting myself.

BeIng able to budget energy/effort while rolling is a huge deal in BJJ. But it's really be hard to tell the difference between rolling hard and spazzing-out when you're first starting out.

Happens to everybody though. I still find myself reverting back to my spazzy white belt ways occasionally and I've been training for twelve years.

But just keep training and try to roll with upper belts as often as possible. It'll sharpen your game and force you to develop defense, energy conservation and technique.

I'm going to be starting BJJ for first time in next week or so (one more week at current gym).

I ordered 2 gi's from Amazon- seems I am almost right in between sizes. A2 fits well w pants and sleeve length but a little tight on chest and shoulders. A3 fits right in shoulders and chest but long/baggy everywhere else.

What is it better to have a snugger fitting gi our of the box, or a looser one and try to shrink it to fit in the washer/dryer?

definitely looser.

sizes are all over the place. I've bought two gis online, and both of them I had to return either the jacket or the pants because they were either too big or too small. I have gis in sizes A2, A3, and A4 that all fit about the same. there doesn't appear to be any actual standard associated with the sizing system. best bet is probably to call the company you are ordering from and ask them how their gis fit.

which one did you order from Amazon? Sanabul?

In reply to OaklandAg06

OaklandAg06 said:

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I'm going to be starting BJJ for first time in next week or so (one more week at current gym).

I ordered 2 gi's from Amazon- seems I am almost right in between sizes. A2 fits well w pants and sleeve length but a little tight on chest and shoulders. A3 fits right in shoulders and chest but long/baggy everywhere else.

What is it better to have a snugger fitting gi our of the box, or a looser one and try to shrink it to fit in the washer/dryer?

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I wouldn't spend too much on your first gi and I would have only bought 1. Toughest part is finding a good brand that works for you. Some brands wash well but don't do well in the dryer, vice versa. There are folks that only wash and line dry. It goes on and on. Also, if you plan to complete make sure the fit complies with tourney rules. If you plan on sticking with it this site is good to follow for deals:

https://www.bjjhq.com/

Go a little loose on the first fit. Read brand reviews to see how much they shrink (no brand is alike).

I got the Sanabul light weight Gi. I am 5'11, ~210lbs so right on the line for A2/A3 per their sizing guide. After trying them both on several times I am leaning towards the larger one and seeing how much it shrinks in the wash.

Go with the larger gi. Even the pre-shrunk gi will shrink (despite claims that they won't). I cold wash and hang-dry my gi's and the pants still end up looking like capri pants after a few months.

In reply to Sweep4-2

Sweep4-2 said:

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Go with the larger gi. Even the pre-shrunk gi will shrink (despite claims that they won't). I cold wash and hang-dry my gi's and the pants still end up looking like capri pants after a few months.

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Mine are all capri pants now except the gi i bought from Origin. The pants are a different fabric that didn't really shrink. Of course I'm also 6'4 205lbs so it's hard for me to find pants that are long enough that don't swallow me

Week 5 and I'm going strong! I do get discouraged because what I've learned in previous classes/weeks gets lost when we do something new the next week. But I know it'll come together eventually. I do feel my learning curve may take longer than average because guys who started around the same time as me are getting the nomenclature and idea of the next move where I'm clueless. I don't feel like a "natural" but that's fine by me!

Like I've stated before, I'm a heavy weight lifter (got 5x5 340lbs on DL Monday AM), and I have an easier time against bigger guys because I don't "go easy" on them. I've noticed that subconsciously I lighten up on the smaller guys so they get me quick because I feel like it's an unfair advantage. Should I? Or should I treat an experienced white belt and up the same as a bigger guy? I'm not saying I'd now be able to get them, but I'd make it a lot harder.

Also, can you kick the guy off you? A few times I've had my foot on a guy's upper leg and I've extended knocking them back a few feet....I was compared to a mule. Is that legal?

I do also look forward to no Gi training as I advance to translate some of this to real life if ever necessary.

tl;dr It's still awesome!

In reply to newhowdyag2004

newhowdyag2004 said:

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Also, can you kick the guy off you? A few times I've had my foot on a guy's upper leg and I've extended knocking them back a few feet....I was compared to a mule. Is that legal?

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Probably not unless you use this to reengage. Refs want matches to move along and constant pushing off defeats the purpose of the sport and prevents progress of the match. Thre's also a fine line between pushing and striking. You have to have contact to push off otherwise it will look like a strike and you could be disciplined.

I wouldn't recommend using the leg/foot push (for the same reasons chipotle mentions.

Also, while it may work against opponents who are new to the sport, an experienced opponent will get hold of your foot/leg and footlock or leg drag you.

One thing that may help with your other question (rolling hard, smaller people, etc). Don't keep track of how many rolls you "win" or "lose" or how many times you get tapped. When people approach live training with the win/lose mentality they often plateau (b/c they won't train with people who tap them and their technique stops developing).

Just keep enjoying the training, and have fun with it (and keep asking good questions too, that's a great way to learn how to approach the physical and mental aspect of the sport).

In reply to Sweep4-2

Sweep4-2 said:

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I wouldn't recommend using the leg/foot push (for the same reasons chipotle mentions.

Also, while it may work against opponents who are new to the sport, an experienced opponent will get hold of your foot/leg and footlock or leg drag you.

One thing that may help with your other question (rolling hard, smaller people, etc). Don't keep track of how many rolls you "win" or "lose" or how many times you get tapped. When people approach live training with the win/lose mentality they often plateau (b/c they won't train with people who tap them and their technique stops developing).

Just keep enjoying the training, and have fun with it (and keep asking good questions too, that's a great way to learn how to approach the physical and mental aspect of the sport).

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My fighting record over the last two years is about 13-7,305

In reply to A. Solzhenitsyn Wait a minute! That's my record too!!! Oh wait, I don't keep score...

13-7,310 now.

In reply to A. Solzhenitsyn Sounds like we had similar training. At competition training recently, we did nine or ten 7 minute rounds (start standing). It was brutal.

I started my rolling with 4 brown/black belts which is always tough. But the two hardest roles I had were against two of our young (20's) competition blue belts. Former college athletes, both around 6'2" and 230 or so. And they are learning FAST and compete frequently.

My pride says "I'm way more experienced than them and should be able to cruise". But reality sets in (that they are half my age, 3" taller and 50 lbs heavier) and I'm quickly reminded that my belt is just a piece of cloth that keeps my gi top closed.

Before a promotion ceremony I was rolling with a white belt wrestler who absolutely destroyed me. He never got the sub (wrestlers are still terrible at that) but I was going no where on that roll.

How's everybody's training going? I'm seesawing back and forth, some days I feel like progress, other days I get owned.

My two challenges are remembering how to finish a move, and also trying to muscle my opponent versus fitness. I'm trying to slow down and keep my arms in which is minimizing the arm bars.

I feel my biggest issue is my own body awareness. I see a move during training, but when I try to execute I'm all sorts of messed up.

But, it's still fun and I'm going strong!

In reply to newhowdyag2004

newhowdyag2004 said:

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How's everybody's training going? I'm seesawing back and forth, some days I feel like progress, other days I get owned.

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Purple belt here... training will always be like that I think. At least it has been for me. Sometimes the down swings are on purpose like when you're intentionally trying to get better at something you know you're not good at. Sometimes it's not on purpose either because of an injury, busy schedule that leaves you tired, etc. Sometimes it's purely mental! After I got blue, I felt like my training hit a wall. Felt like nothing I did went the way I pictured it going in my head. Next thing I know my coach was adding 2 more stripes to my belt!

As long as you're having fun, then just enjoy the ride. A black belt once told me that the jiu jitsu journey is a series of small ups and downs that trend upward over a long period of time. That makes a lot of sense to me...

In reply to newhowdyag2004 Glad to hear that your training is going well, and that you're having a good time! It's such a great sport, and even though there are ups and downs, the ups will always be higher/longer than the downs as long as you keep getting back on the mats and training. What kind of moves / positions are you working on at the moment that are giving you a hard time? Sometimes the difference between finishing and missing something are just a couple of inches.

Things are going good with my training. I'm relatively injury-free, and training 3-4 days a week. Adding some new leg lock entries to my game, as well as a new guard that I've never used -- so I'm getting smashed by all of my training partners, but hoping it pays off in the long run. If I'm still getting smashed in 3 months, I'll have to decide about whether to keep using the new stuff, or whether to put it away and go back to my comfort zone.

You mentioned that it's still difficult to use technique rather than strength - so wanted to make a suggestion that may help. Find a way to either A) Train with very big, very strong people whose size will take away from your strength or B) Roll exhausted.

Option B is probably more feasible. We do a Competition Training class, and it consists of ten 7-minute rounds, from standup. Breaks between rounds are jogging, and only 30 seconds. Nobody sits out. Anyone without a partner when the 'start' signal rings has to go with the instructor (he's a 4th degree black belt from Brazil). It's a soul-crushing workout, but it's a great way to develop technique and mental toughness.

I am now about 6-7 weeks in myself and am really enjoying it. Between the mental and physical challenge, it has been great. Not to mention losing 7-8 lbs so far as well. Also my flexibility is now as good as it has been in a long time.

The last two weeks I have really been trying to focus on getting into and maintaining Single Leg X and DLR when playing guard and the Over-Under pass when I am trying to pass. Also my primary focus so far has been trying to recognize my position, what might improve it, what would make it worse, and what I need to do to improve my degree of control. Starting to regularly catch other white belts in submissions here and there.

My biggest challenges so far have been conditioning as cardio was not and really never was part of my workout programing, and not relying on brute force and focus on technique.

Getting the usual bumps and bruises, but that just part of the fun. Trying to do the extra work at home to keep my shoulders and back healthy so I can train as often as possible.