tallgeese

I'd concur. The most important aspect has to be the sprawl. Keeping the fight in an area you're comfortable with is key. A good sprawl will go a long way to keeping you there. In addition to the other two suggestions put forth by JJN, I'd add that understanding a couple of good dominate positions, say side and full mount, is important. How to technically apply them correctly and effectively and how to maintain them. This will give you a control edge if you land on top. Futher, I'd learn to work strikes from said dominate positions. Good effective strikes without giving up posture. Again, just because you're dipping into your grapping bag of tricks shouldn't mean you forgo your comfort zone tools. But it's important to train this, and do so correctly so you don't lose position.

9/21- Drilled takedowns for rounds. Worked open guard to arm bar. Then moved to closed guard sweeps follows by movement to triangles. 30 min free roll.

The BJJ school I attend does 1 hour technical classes, 10-15 min of which is warming up. After that, it's 40-60 min of open mat time so you're looking at close to a couple of hours total. Sat. classes are entirely open rolling for 1-1.5 hours total. When I train guys, I spend alot of time working the standing systems I come out of, however, lately, I've been using it as another lab to work stuff I need to spend extra time on with the BJJ. Usually those run around 1-1.5 hours and include technical work, mitts or drilling, and sparring of some sort. 9/20 BJJ nite: Drilled collar choke from guard, flow into armbar, finish with dealing with being stacked from said armbar. 40 min free roll.

There has to be a training balance. Most sparring sessions will have to go at a lower percentage of contact. It's the only way to hold the body together to continue to train regularly. One does need to turn it up here and there, just to check progress and training programs. Not to mention mentally preparing one of actual conflict. There does need to be some sort of contact each time, though. Even if it's minimal.

The day in, day out grind of sparring should focus mainly on technique and control. That's the cornerstone of all other attributes of the game. Not to mention that constant heavy contact, especially to the head is just asking for a short career. Now, you do need to turn it up occasionally to keep things real. How often really depends on your usage of the art and the consequences of not being at the top of your form. However, it's important to note that the heavy contact stuff should still show the technique you've been striving to develop. If it doesn't, then there's a disconnect in your training and you're not developing as well or as quickly as you could be and it's time to get diagnostic about what you're doing. Often, I find, this is due to a disconnect between what one's perceived goals are and what one is actually training to do. But that's another post.

9/19 Drilled pummelling to takedowns. Worked on open guard sweeps. Basic positinal drills. 30 min free roll 30 min mma sparring w/ striking on ground

9/18- back/chest abs

9/17- 3 mile run abs 15 min of movement drills on the mat to cool down.

bushido man- unfortunatly, work scheduling got in the way. I had to take a pass on it this time around. 9/17 BJJ nite: 45 min of open guard vs. pass drills. Round robins to end. 40 m in free roll

9/15 3mile run arms abs

9/13 BJJ nite: Worked on passing the open guard. Closed out with bow and arrow choke from back mount. 30 m in free roll.

9/12- 75 min free roll. Some half guard work.

9/11 BJJ: 75 min free roll

9/10 3 mile run back abs

9/8- am: chest/trs abs 2 mile run pm: BJJ Worked over half guard sweeps, guard pass counters, finished with arm bar drills. 40 min free roll

Right, and most are more versed in full speed conflict that the average trad artist. It makes them very dangerous. It's a bit of a side note, but the wrestler is the most common ma-ist that most people will face in most corners of the states, due largly to the prevalance of high school wrestling. It's also a safe bet that the average wrestler can shoot in and successfully take down an average ma-ist with frightenly frequent reqularity. Unless, and this is big, the ma-ist has taken the time to learn to sprawl and cut angles. The basics of the craft will give the ma-ist the chance to use his strikes.

Easier said than done. Any counter striking HAS to be done off a solid training platform of wrestling basics. In other words, one has to understand the timing and distance of the shot and further, understand the mechanics of the sprawl above all else. Hips will win the day. Being able to keep yours away will give you the opportunity to counter with strikes.

There might be some of that; humiliation for for humiliation's sake. However, lots of stuff I've seen is just a factual statement of the effectiveness of the art. I've said it before, when one gets confronted by this you can a) admit there is a hole in your game a do something about it, of b) ignore it and hope you don't run into "that guy". Of course, I suppose that there is the third option of slamming grappling despite the obvious effectiveness of it. It's the last reaction that tends to lead to grief. If you see that it's a weakness and train some sort of grappling, then good for you. If you don't want to do that because you like what you do already, then you've got a good handle on why you're training. Again, good for you. if you take the third option, then friction ensues. I have seen a few, FEW, ego driven cases that are out to just put TMA's down. However, I see WAY more BJJers that just want to point out the effectiveness of their art. It's a tradition that believes in what can be defended against a resisting opponent. Of course they will be skeptical about theoretical effectiveness. I think a bunch of the animosity is still hanging around from early in the UFC era when the Gracies made the rounds tapping out trad practitioners. It upset alot of people, but you'll notice that VERY few times were they jerks about it. It was pretty classy. And how else were some guys from Brazil going to impress upon the world the effectiveness of their art? Especially one grounded in working off a fully resistive opponent? I think that the wake up call they gave us all has still left some sour. Personally,I think they did us a favor. How many trad guys REALLY dealt with the ground prior to the Gracie invasion of the early 90's.

9/6- Trained BJJ today. Worked takedowns, moved on to a review of open guard sweeps. Drilled rounds of this. Went on to cover half guard sweeps. 20 min free roll.

9/5 legs abs

Congrats!

9/4- BJJ day: 10, 6 min rounds of free roll. No breaks.

today- am: Long gun shoot at the dept. Rilfe manip and qual, same with shotgun and rapid deployment force on force. pm: BJJ nite: Drilled over passing the gaurd, over/under and moved into countering the guard pass and a variant of the same motion from half guard. Free roll for 20 min.

today- 2 mile run chest/tris abs

yesterday- 2 mile run back/bis abs