First off, let me say that in any of my posts, if i share an opinion or a claim, I am not in any way trying to pretend to be some Jiu Jitsu guru with this huge store of boundless information. I am student of this game, absolutely nothing more. This blog is simply a sharing of lessons that I learn, as I learn them. That being said, I would like to share what I learned today.
I arrived early to class today, so I thought I would watch the kids wrestling class. I heard the wrestling coach tell the kids something that was interesting. He said, "Winning is a state of mind. Not a score on the scoreboard." At first it didn't make sense to me. I thought, winning a match in its definition is scoring more points than the other guy.
But the phrase resonated in me, and I began to think bigger. I don't think he was referring to one single match. I believe he was referring to true winning; winning the title or the championship; consistent winning. I think he was right, because sure scoring more points will win you a match, but to truly win, to be a champion, you need the state of mind. It reminds of me of a quote I once read. The quote was, "success comes from a state of mind knowing that you did everything that you possibly could to prepare." This was my mantra for many of my tournaments when I thought I might face people who were more experienced than myself.
What I concluded from this lesson was that in order to succeed, you must have the right state of mind, and in order to get that state of mind, you must do everything in your power to make sure you are the best you can possibly be. Work hard for your goals and you will reach them.
I hope this post will help some of you. Thanks for reading.
Nick
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Caporera pass from halfgaurd to mounted guillotime
I was looking at some old 10th planet riverside videos and saw this from back in the Hanger days. Sean Bollinger showing a pretty sick guard pass and works well against someone that is good at clinching and gets the double under-hooks on you from half guard. Great for MMA and No-Gi grappling.
Hope this helps you guys out,
Nick
Hope this helps you guys out,
Nick
Go for it
I had a discussion with a friend of mine from work about how so many kids grow up being told that they need to be more realistic with their dreams and about how the odds of them being a rock star or an astronaut are very slim. It got me thinking about how so many people give up on their dreams. Almost every single person that I know is in a job that the settled for or stumbled into. Growing up we are told, to a certain extent, that the odds of us achieving our dreams were slim, and that hundreds of thousands of people try for that goal but very few make it. Well I think very few make it, because very few try.
So many people give up on what they want and settle for something that will just get them by. They may say that they tried, but they didn't put their heart and soul into achieving their goal, for hours, days, and years, ignoring everything in their way. The just bought into the statistics and gave in. I want to share my belief that if you want something bad enough, and if you work hard enough, there is nothing that can stop you from what you want. I want more than anything to be a world champion, and I will get there.
Forget what you were told by society, don't believe in them, believe in your self. Find something that you want to do and go for it, and never let go. If you put in the work, and you never give up, than you can't fail. One of the biggest things that Jiu Jitsu taught me is that the person who trained more, almost always wins. And I'm not just talking about who trained more for that particular match, I mean in their entire life. If I put more hours on the mat than the guy across from me, I'll beat him.
I want to challenge anyone reading this to go for something big. If you a Jiu Jitsu player, then I challenge you to put in the work and win the next World Championships. You can do it. You can win. Dream big, think big, win big.
Thanks for reading guys,
Nick
So many people give up on what they want and settle for something that will just get them by. They may say that they tried, but they didn't put their heart and soul into achieving their goal, for hours, days, and years, ignoring everything in their way. The just bought into the statistics and gave in. I want to share my belief that if you want something bad enough, and if you work hard enough, there is nothing that can stop you from what you want. I want more than anything to be a world champion, and I will get there.
Forget what you were told by society, don't believe in them, believe in your self. Find something that you want to do and go for it, and never let go. If you put in the work, and you never give up, than you can't fail. One of the biggest things that Jiu Jitsu taught me is that the person who trained more, almost always wins. And I'm not just talking about who trained more for that particular match, I mean in their entire life. If I put more hours on the mat than the guy across from me, I'll beat him.
I want to challenge anyone reading this to go for something big. If you a Jiu Jitsu player, then I challenge you to put in the work and win the next World Championships. You can do it. You can win. Dream big, think big, win big.
Thanks for reading guys,
Nick
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Feelin Burnt Out
Jiu Jitsu and I have a love hate relationship. Mostly love, but every once in a while I get burnt out. I feel lazy in my rolls. I get frustrated easier when I cant escape something or when I'm in uncomfortable positions. Guys that I usually tear up give me a hard time. I can't think that I'm alone in having this feeling from time to time. It always passes though, I have one more training sesh this week then I'll take the rest of the weekend of feeling fresh.
I look at training the same way I look at competing, and almost everything in life for that matter. If I"m not enjoying it, then whats the point? Of course, you can't just go home every time you're not having the roll of your life. It's like a relationship though, sometimes you need time away to realize how much you appreciate something. I usually take Saturday night and Sunday off any ways so this will be a good time to get relax with my friends and get away from the gym.
I spend almost all of my time in the gym and sometimes I think maybe I train to much, but I can't imagine that guys like the Mendes bros are training only 2-3 times a week. If this is what it takes to be champ, and I'm having fun, then why would I not do it?
I look at training the same way I look at competing, and almost everything in life for that matter. If I"m not enjoying it, then whats the point? Of course, you can't just go home every time you're not having the roll of your life. It's like a relationship though, sometimes you need time away to realize how much you appreciate something. I usually take Saturday night and Sunday off any ways so this will be a good time to get relax with my friends and get away from the gym.
I spend almost all of my time in the gym and sometimes I think maybe I train to much, but I can't imagine that guys like the Mendes bros are training only 2-3 times a week. If this is what it takes to be champ, and I'm having fun, then why would I not do it?
Monday, January 23, 2012
Competition: Jiu Jitsu
Won gold in the blue belt division at the sub-fighter tournament. Hard work pays off. Each tournament I compete in I have done better. This may be an obvious statement, but there seems to be a direct correlation between training time and confidence in tournaments, also between confidence and success. Every one seems to have these rituals when it comes to tournaments, few groups of people are more superstitious than athletes, whether they realize it or not. But none of that matters when you know you have more hours on the mat than the guy on the other side of the ring. With 5 hour days, 6 days a week, I feel that as long as I compete with in my division, no one can beet me. I could be wrong, but I believe it was Buddha who said, "what you think you will become", and if I believe I can win, than I usually will win.
If you train harder than someone, and you believe in your self more than some one. You will win. Marcelo Garcia said in an interview that when he started competing he would always try to act and look tough; to show no fear. However, as he started winning competitions he realized this had nothing to do with it his success, and that it came down to the simple fact he trained more than his opponents. Perhaps I am wrong, with only 5 tournaments under my belt I am still a newbie to this sport, but it worked for Marcello and it seems to be working for me.
Gracie Nationals is this weekend, time to put my theory to the test on a slightly larger stage, trying to round up the money for this expensive tournament ASAP. ;)
If you train harder than someone, and you believe in your self more than some one. You will win. Marcelo Garcia said in an interview that when he started competing he would always try to act and look tough; to show no fear. However, as he started winning competitions he realized this had nothing to do with it his success, and that it came down to the simple fact he trained more than his opponents. Perhaps I am wrong, with only 5 tournaments under my belt I am still a newbie to this sport, but it worked for Marcello and it seems to be working for me.
Friday, January 13, 2012
natural ability: Jiu Jitsu
The thing i love about Jiu Jitsu is that everyone can do it. Of course, there are those with severe situations, but no one will be held back in this sport by lack of natural talent, physical strength, speed, or any thing of the sort. Natural ability itself, is a western idea. In Thailand, the Muay Thai gyms raise fighters from a young age, these kids eat, sleep, train at the gyms. There is no physical ability test they have to pass, they just have to have to be young enough to be able to put a sufficient amount of time in. In Jiu Jitsu, even the age hardly comes in to affect. Thai fighters usually retire by the time they are in their late 20s, due to the physical toll it takes on your body. In Jui Jitsu this is not the case, at my old gym, there was a brown belt that didn't have a single colored hair left on his head, and he was one of the best guys there.
The point is, all jiu jitsu requires is time. If you can put the time in, you get the skills. In a book called Outliers, by Malcom Gladwell, it talks about the 10,000 hour rule. If you put 10,000 hours in to something, no matter what you natural ability level was, you will be a master. There was a study done in Asia where they looked at the famous musicians playing in the big orchestras. There was a connection made that showed if the kids growing up practiced 30 hours a week, they would become successful musicians. There was not a single person who put in 30 hours per week, and just couldn't cut it. On the other side of that, the study was full of musicians who were brimming with natural talent, and there for practiced less than 30 hours per week, these students grew up to be high school music teachers and other things of the sort.
When Marcelo Garcia started Jiu Jitsu, he lived far from the gym, so he could only train three times per week. Eventually, he moved in to the gym, and reportedly trained for 4 sessions each day, with the sessions being upwards of an hour. Marcelo Garcia is now widely considered the best pound-for-pound grappler in the world. In fact, it was Marcelo Garcia's story that inspired me to commit to Jiu Jitsu and begin living at the gym that I train at.
Never get discouraged when you train. Do not worry if you have what it takes. If you have the time to commit, you have what it takes. Just keep training and keep motivated, and you will reach your goals. Take it from 78 y/o Gene Pace. Check out this link to read about how he got his black belt at such an advanced age.
The point is, all jiu jitsu requires is time. If you can put the time in, you get the skills. In a book called Outliers, by Malcom Gladwell, it talks about the 10,000 hour rule. If you put 10,000 hours in to something, no matter what you natural ability level was, you will be a master. There was a study done in Asia where they looked at the famous musicians playing in the big orchestras. There was a connection made that showed if the kids growing up practiced 30 hours a week, they would become successful musicians. There was not a single person who put in 30 hours per week, and just couldn't cut it. On the other side of that, the study was full of musicians who were brimming with natural talent, and there for practiced less than 30 hours per week, these students grew up to be high school music teachers and other things of the sort.
When Marcelo Garcia started Jiu Jitsu, he lived far from the gym, so he could only train three times per week. Eventually, he moved in to the gym, and reportedly trained for 4 sessions each day, with the sessions being upwards of an hour. Marcelo Garcia is now widely considered the best pound-for-pound grappler in the world. In fact, it was Marcelo Garcia's story that inspired me to commit to Jiu Jitsu and begin living at the gym that I train at.
Never get discouraged when you train. Do not worry if you have what it takes. If you have the time to commit, you have what it takes. Just keep training and keep motivated, and you will reach your goals. Take it from 78 y/o Gene Pace. Check out this link to read about how he got his black belt at such an advanced age.
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Commitment
I discovered Jiu Jitsu a little later than some. I had a brown belt in Karate and found my self in a MMA fight in Kentucky with absolutely no idea what MMA really was. The extent of my ground game was ground n' pounding a punching bag in my garage for 6 weeks before this fight. While the fight was close, I lost in a split decision, and it gave me the same wake up call that Royce Gracie gave the world when he won UFC 1 in 1993. I knew then this was something that I HAD to learn.
To make a long drawn out love story into something short and sweet. I spent more and more of my time in the gym. Eventually realizing that this was the life path for me. I have reached a crossroads in my life and have come to the realization that at age 21 it is time to either take a risky plunge into full time training and accomplish something great, get lost in the seemingly infinite crowd of people trying to find their way through the American education system.
I chose the former. I had always felt my future laid outside the world of endless 8 hour days, and working simply to make a living. I wanted something more, and in Jiu Jitsu I had found it; a way to spend my life doing what I love. In this blog, hope to inspire others to do the same. To go after what they want and leave behind the limitations of what they think is possible. To forget the underestimations of themselves and just take a leap of faith. This is the story of my leap of faith. This is the live update of what happens to me as I decide not to believe that growing up means making compromises. This is my journey into the alternate universe that is Jiu Jitsu.
I have quit school, working part time between my training sessions to pay for training and things related to it, and moved in to a small room in the back of the gym. It's all or nothing. Let's see how this works out for me.
To make a long drawn out love story into something short and sweet. I spent more and more of my time in the gym. Eventually realizing that this was the life path for me. I have reached a crossroads in my life and have come to the realization that at age 21 it is time to either take a risky plunge into full time training and accomplish something great, get lost in the seemingly infinite crowd of people trying to find their way through the American education system.
I chose the former. I had always felt my future laid outside the world of endless 8 hour days, and working simply to make a living. I wanted something more, and in Jiu Jitsu I had found it; a way to spend my life doing what I love. In this blog, hope to inspire others to do the same. To go after what they want and leave behind the limitations of what they think is possible. To forget the underestimations of themselves and just take a leap of faith. This is the story of my leap of faith. This is the live update of what happens to me as I decide not to believe that growing up means making compromises. This is my journey into the alternate universe that is Jiu Jitsu.
I have quit school, working part time between my training sessions to pay for training and things related to it, and moved in to a small room in the back of the gym. It's all or nothing. Let's see how this works out for me.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
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