BJJ White Belt Curriculum - Week 2, Day 3

Life got in the way of posting a little this week but I am back with the next installment of the White Belt Curriculum. As a review, it is the standard structure our academy follows to welcome new students, build from self-defense into solid foundations, and review for more advanced students as they adopt a white belt and work on the details.

Week 2 and 3 has a good focus upon the closed guard which is definitely one of the foundations of traditional Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

Drilling is generally mixed in with technique and rolling so that you not only learn the technique, but you push yourself physically, and build the muscle memory for fluidity and repeatability.

Key Takeaways for me

1. Drilling makes it so that my body remembers what to do in basic situations so my brain can work on planning the future
2. You build good training partners with a cyclical drilling pattern like this
3. The judo seminars Ryan mixes in are really sticking with the loud and consistent mat slapping!

Drilling is awesome but you need some attacks to add to your game! Here is the next class where Ryan gets into the basics of the arm bar. You see so many of these in sport jui jitsu, MMA and increasingly in street fights for people who just can't contain their fighting to the gym.

Personal Key Take aways

1. Avoiding grips on cloth makes your nogi game stronger, and actually makes rolling more adventurous.
2. If you are having a tough time closing an arm-bar from the guard, try swinging your hips to the side a little more for a better angle.
3. Both legs down, controlling posture, secure arm to your chest, finish with HIPS!
4. Be a good Ookie (training partner during technique) for maximum benefit of your partner!

Comments section is for conversation and stories and questions so don't hold back. Happy to return to this post over and over to talk about it.