Treebranch

Believe me with no rules involved I'm getting out of that position pretty quick. I've got lots of dirty little tricks to get out of tough spots. Plus the guard isn't the safest place anymore, especially against someone with MMA training. I do like competitions though. I think they make you sharper and I'm only doing them for that purpose. They're a great place to test ones skills against someone who knows nothing about you, in a controlled environment. Also, my goal is to be able to attack from any position and I'm starting to get there.

I get your point about competition, but I really doubt that would ever happen in real life.

Yeah, but once you have the position you should go for the submission. Just sitting on someone seems like a detriment to the art.

Agreed

I think MMA is a thing of pure beauty and that's how feel about many of the arts. The aim of true combat is to kill. That kind of fight would look really different. Most street fights are basically two people fighting for their pride, not their lives. If someone attacks me on the street I assume they want to kill me and I won't fight unless I'm attacked. MMA is a sport with rules, money on the line and fighters that want to keep fighting to make money. They are extremely talented and trained and in a fair fight can wipe the floor with me, but combat is another story.

My friend and I went to World Championships and I was his coach or corner man, whatever you call it. We're the only ones at our small school that compete. I didn't compete this time, because I'm still recovering from an injury to my elbow. Basically my friend entered the competition. We believe that Jiu-jitsu should always be about the submission. You should always go for the submission no matter what. That if you loose going for a submission, then you loose with honor. We feel that sitting on someone and getting the points isn't realistic. Anyway, he got the takedown, he was pulled into guard, he was controlling the fight. I kept telling him to pass, and he saw the opportunity and got caught in an armbar and lost. Should he have sat and won or lost by trying to get the submission? Which in the end is the purer of the two?

Very cool!

It did in so much as Koma had rank in Kodokan Judo. However, you have to realize that the Kodokan Judo of that time was far different from what we see now. It still taught strikes and more ground play involved. In addition, because he was Japanese, when Koma changed the focus from being a Do system (Do=referring to a way or path to self enlightenment) to one of combat; he changed the name to Ju (Jiu) Jitsu (Jitsu= referring to an art or a complete method; in this case of combat). The reason for the spelling is that Japanese is phonetic. That is, because their language is spelled with Kanji (symbols) it doesn't matter how you spell it with letters as long as you pronounce it correctly. Which Japanese Jujutsu do you do? By the way, is this what you were talking about in reference to Judo?

I thought BJJ came from Kodokan Judo?

Haha, I found out the guy that beat me is a pro mma fighter. That's awesome!

The interesting thing about competition is that you can be going up against someone that is about to be promoted to a higher belt. It's a good learning experience, but it's really not an equal playing field all the time.

I learned some new tricks since then so I think I'll better prepared next time around.

Thanks brotha!

Not sure. I think I should keep dropping weight. For my height I should be below 200 lbs. It was fun grappling with the giants, but I'm in the process of slimming down anyway. I'm sure I'll see him again.

The rules for Blue Belts were no ankle locks or leg locks of any kind. It was the Copa Pacifica tournament in Orange County California. It was a great time. I had a blast! It was a 4 minute round and I had to go up against a beast. This guy was huge! He shot in and I avoided the take down and immediately went for the guilliotine, but needed to adjust it to really sink and he popped his head out. After that it was 3 minutes of him trying to mount from side control and me trying to get him into my guard. I was calm and I wasn't close to tired yet. I tried everything, but this guy was good and fricken strong as an ox. He eventually trapped my left arm and went for the armbar. I grabbed my arm knowing what was coming. We fought for a little and he yanked and got the armbar. He tapped me at 3 min 36 sec. I was proud to loose to this guy. He ended destroying everyone else and winning gold. If my technique was a little sharper I would have tapped him in first few seconds. Next time I'll be sharper.

I made weight, competed and lost. It was a blast!

Yeah, good points. Some strategy are more adaptive than others.

Is it ok to drink some distilled water today? I don't plan on drinking or eating anything the morning of the weigh in. I'm less than a pound away from my weight. I just did 40 minutes of cardio at lunch and tonight I'm training for 3 2 hours.

There's always someone stronger. If you only have one set of skills which are Ground and Pound and if your opponent nullifies your attacks every time you try it, what have you got left? A skilled fighter a true MA'er has an arsenal to choose from to adapt to most situations better than a Ground and Pounder. It would be safe to say that if both are equally tough, strong with the same endurance of equal weight and height...etc. The more skilled Martial Artist will win over the Ground and Pounder more times than not...no doubt.

My weigh in is tomorrow and today I'm .8lbs away from making weight. Thanks for all the good advice people!

Yeah, I think I could probably loose 5lbs in water weight. I'll try it.

Those kind of guys seem like they take way too many hits and their tactics may work for them because of their toughness and strength. I don't it will work for most people. It's not an intelligent way to fight. Their careers will be short lived if they don't start incorporating some real skills.

I don't consider them Martial Artists. They are tough guys with alot of aggression and strength, but that eventually will run out. Besides, who would you rather be trained by? A ground and pounder or a MA'er like St. Pierre or BJ Penn?

I have 3 days to weigh in and I'm still 5 lbs away. Any help would be appreciated. I'm going to do cardio everyday for an hour and roll at night for an hour or more. I've cut my food way down and no sodas. If anyone knows any tricks let me know.

My teacher said he can teach 4 techniques from inside the guard. I'm curious to see what he's come up with. He's taught me crazy techniques so far.