bigpopparob2000

Wow! I made this post so long ago. I was randomly looking through the forums when I saw that someone posted a reply recently. Thank you for your input. For what it's worth, I made a full recovery via a combination of a lot of bed rest, slowly recovering my range of motion, walking, & slowly rehabilitating my leg with body weight squats. It was a maddeningly slow process, but I made it back to 100%.

Thank you for this. I appreciate the insight. I've researched this instructor, and he's one of those teachers who has black belts (or the equivalents thereof) in multiple martial arts, so he seems exceptionally competent. I also spoke with my current head instructor, who said his student's school wasn't quite as well versed as his own, but he still recommended him. I'll likely be with my current school through the end of this year, but I feel much better about transferring when the time comes.

I've been training in Jiu Jitsu for a little over two years now, and I really enjoy it despite the fact that during most rolls I'm only slightly more adept than a grappling dummy. My school's head instructor is especially impressive. He's a fourth degree black belt, and when I watch him roll with the other higher ranks, I sometimes suspect that he's a minor deity. However, I've really wanted to work for a particular organization for a while, and I've finally gotten to a point where I could make that change. Unfortunately, doing so would require that I move two hours away. Fortunately, my current head instructor has a brown belt student with a school of his own at the location I would move to. My concern is, would changing from a fourth degree black belt to a brown belt instructor hinder my growth? Have any of you had or witnessed such an experience? What are your thoughts on this issue?

A while ago, some of the upper belts at my school told me that Pedro Sauer wasn't able to submit anyone until he was a brown belt. Allegedly, the best he could ever do was spar his partners to a stalemate, and Rickson even told him that he was the worst student he had ever had. Until one day, Pedro was rolling with one of Rickson's black belts when something just clicked, and he started tapping out black belts from that day forward. Shortly thereafter, he was awarded his black belt. I enjoy the story because it's very encouraging, especially when I feel like my own Jiu Jitsu skills are stagnating. However, I was wondering if anyone else had heard that story and could verify it.

I finally took the plunge and joined a Gracie Jiu Jitsu gym earlier this year. About a month ago, I earned my second stripe and was allowed to start rolling. I don’t mind rolling with colored belts. I know they’ll tap me out because they’re more advanced. Actually, many of them are very friendly, and they’ll give me opportunities to try the techniques I’ve learned during the roll. However, I found that some of the white belts tend to be hungry for a kill when they roll with another white belt. I’m not aggressive when I roll. I mostly focus on trying to get dominant positions and escape vulnerable positions; however, I had an experience last Friday in which I couldn’t help but resist with much more intensity than usual. The instructor put me with a four stripe white belt. There was plenty of mat space, but he was at the far end near the wall. We shook hands, commenced grappling, and his first move was to topple me against the wall and take top mount. I really think he had picked his spot on the mat for that specific purpose. His plan was to put me against the wall, so I couldn’t practice any of my escapes, and he could just exhaust me until I gave up a submission. He wasn’t able to lock in any submissions, but he put me in a few positions where I’m not sure if I was supposed to give up from the discomfort. For instance, he placed his forearm on my neck and sunk his weight on me. It didn’t cause a choke, but having the wall blocking me from moving made it somewhat painful. I didn’t tap. Rather, I resolved to myself I was going to escape that position if it was the only thing I did. Amazingly, despite being so compressed, after expending A LOT of energy, I managed to elbow escape to full guard. As soon as I did that, he backed out, and I was able to reposition myself away from the wall and continue rolling on more equal terms. Was what he did appropriate? I realize submitting your opponent is the goal, but his strategy for doing so felt sort of cheap. I haven’t seen any of the colored belts or other white belts use such a tactic. Yes, sometimes a pair will end up against the wall, but it’s always unintentional. Should I have been less serious about not getting tapped out? The amount of pressure he put on me felt too excessive for the casual vibe the instructor tries to maintain during the lesson, and I don’t think matching his desire to win with an equal intensity to not lose was best. At the same time, if I just bow out whenever I find myself in a vulnerable position, I don’t think I’ll learn to apply my techniques against resisting opponents. What’s the best way to roll with another novice who really, really, really wants a victory?

Hi, Patrick. Yep, I may not post much, but I'm certainly still here. I was really into weight lifting and body building when I was in high school, and I used to crack my friends up by doing Scott Steiner impersonations. That's where I got my handle; it was a play on Scott Steiner's moniker, Big Poppa Pump. It's nice to see I still get laughs. I hope I didn't come across as excessively curmudgeonly. I certainly don't scowl at kids or roll my eyes when I meet instructors who offer this service at their schools. It's just a personal peeve, and it's not allieviated at all by the fact that the schools that just focus on martial arts tend to be better regarded. Specifically, MMA, Jiu Jitsu, Muay Thai, Kali, Wing Chun all seem to be in this camp. I agree that it doesn't effect me to a certain extent, but my primary discipline is in a art that struggles to be taken as seriously as those others, so I can't help but be bothered when I see a school doing something that might be exacerbating the problem. Thank you for your post, all the same. You definitely provided a perspective I had not considered.

There's a service that many traditional martial arts schools offer that drives me absolutely nuts. I'm speaking of hosting children's birthday parties. Whenever I've look at a school's website, even if everything else looks impressive, as soon as I see that it offers this service, I can't take the school seriously. I believe the purpose of martial arts and, by extention, their places of instruction is to pass on the skills to defend one's self and loved ones and the moral code to use those skills appropriately. When school seems to be simultaneoulsy competing with Chuck-E-Cheese, my McDojo detector goes bonkers. My question is why do some schools do this? I realize they need to turn a profit, but is such a service really a significant source of revenue? Is it a marketing tactic to get a bunch of kids through the door who normally wouldn't come, and some will sign up for lessons? If so, do any of you know someone who became interested in martial arts through attending such an event? Am I out of line to be so put off, or am I correctly reacting to a possible McDojo warning sign? I'd greatly appreciate any insight on the subject.

Two particular things that annoy me endlessly are: 1. Schools that host birthday parties - Really? Believing a school can help people cultivate the warrior spirit and forge their bodies into living weapons is difficult when it's is also trying to compete with Chuck-E-Cheese. 2. Camouflage belts - For some reason, schools that have this belt always have it at the earlier ranks. I suspect doing so is a means of placating young students with a "cool" belt even when they're nowhere near to testing for 1st dan. The tactic stinks of flash over substance and really detracts from what may actually be a quality school.

I've been practicing splits for about 20 years. I don't know the specifics of your stretching routine, but I can give you a couple of points that worked wonders for me. First of all, realize flexibility comes in three forms: static, dynamic, and active. Static is when you slowly stretch by bracing your body against a solid object. Doing the splits is a prime example. Dynamic is when you use momentum to carry a body part through an exagerated range of motion. Think of practicing axe kicks. Active is when you slowly move a body part through a controlled range of motion. Think of a ballet dancer holding, not swinging, his or her leg as high as he/she can. All that being said, you'll see more progress in one of them if you try to improve upon all of them. You can practice dynamic and active stretches as much as four or five times a week, but static stretches (like the splits you want to do) shouldn't be practiced more than twice a week. Otherwise, you're overtraining and holding yourself back. Also, I'd recommend giving yourself at least three days of rest a week. I do an dynamic, active, static routine all on one day, then a few days later, I'll just train dynamic and active. I'm able to practice all types of stretching each week and have plenty of time to recover. Furthermore, especially with regards to static stretching, you'll make your biggest gains in right after you've finished a solid cardio session. I mean immediately. Don't cool down, then stretch. Use stretching as your cool down. I know when people are sweaty and exhausted, they'd prefer to recuperate, but that's when you're primed for hitting a full split. Maybe do an easy and light stretching routine before working out to prevent injury, but really push yourself afterwards. Finally, don't stop at the shadow of your limits. Even today, when I'm practicing a split. I'll get to maybe several inches above the ground and feel like I've hit my limit, but if I hold that position for about 15 seconds, focus on my breathing, and push myself further down, I'll get a full split. Anyways, those are the principles that have worked for me. If you feel so inclined, give them a try, then give us an update.

Thank you for the responses everyone. This isn't a problem that happens often; it seems like it happens whenever the weather gets cooler. I'm not sure how that would cause this problem since I'm working out indoors, but that seems to be the pattern. Whenever it happens, though, it drives me nuts. For my most recent work out, I rubbed some gym chalk on my feet, and that seemed to help, but whatever condition causes this phenomena may have been absent. In either case, I may have found a fix for future notice.

I used to train in shoes, but I encountered the same problem. Besides, I think training barefoot is more practical for tournaments. Doing so keeps my feet conditioned. I once sparred in a tournament after training in shoes, and my feet started hurting to much to move effectively much less throw any kicks. I was dead in the water in my first match, not something I'd care to experience again.

Whenever I train by myself, I do so in my gym's aerobics room. It has those gymnasium style floors like on a basketball court. Every so often, the floors are really slick, and it ruins my work out. I can't hold my stances. As soon as I shift to a front stance, my back leg slides out into a split. Has anyone else encountered this problem, and do you know what causes it? It's not like I work out right after they wax the floors. Could it result from the temperature or humidity? It really seems to be completely random. Most importantly, were you able to find a solution? I was wondering if rubbing some grip powder weightlifters use on my feet (I train barefoot) would help. I'd really appreciate if someone could offer me a solution.

I'd like to take up BJJ, and I've found what appear to be some quality schools in my local area. My question is how many nights a week should train to consistently progress in the art? I could probably average two classes a week, considering my work schedule. Would that be enough? For any BJJ practitioners here, how often do you train a week and how long have you been training?

It's always hard to start anything new. Unfortunately, your resources (specifically, your time & money) are finite so you have to choose. It's hard to go back to being the beginner; you're no longer the top dawg/big kahuna of the dojo. Early on, the temptation to return to the world you're familiar with is overwhelming. If you're willing to be humble, though, it can also open your eyes, exposing you to new things and spurring you on to greater growth. In the wake of the early UFC, plenty of traditional martial artists gave up their styles to take up BJJ, so it's been done before, and I doubt any of those martial artists who made black belt in BJJ would say they regret it. The only advice I can give you in making your choice is imagine where you'll be 10 years from now for each decision. Which road appeals to you more? Do you wanna' be Tony Jaa or Jet Li? Also, what is it that appeals to you about about Wushu? Is it the forms, weapons training, acrobatics, or something else? Is there any way you could meet that need by staying with Muay Thai. If you like weapons, you could get an instructional DVD on the Krabi Krabong, a pair of Thai swords. If you would like to start practicing forms, I've seen some Muay Thai forms on YouTube, so they do exist. You just have to find a way to learn them. They're also quite impressive; granted, they're not as acrobatic as Wushu forms. Lastly, your training in Muay Thai will not be a waste of time if you do switch. Your flexibility and conditioning will carry over. If that particular school does any sparring, your timing and sense of rhythm will also aid you; you just have to be patient as you're climbing the learning curve.

Thank you for sharing, Kuma. I had seen that video, but I had never notice that Cung Le had used one on Frank's thigh. I suppose I should pay closer attention. Good points, ShoriKid. One of my first instructors told me that the MT roundhouse retains a good portion of its effectiveness even when thrown incorrectly. For example, even if you throw it incorrectly with your leg, your hip is still driving it, or vice versa. As a result, most fighters focus on developing that particular kick, and the side kick is neglected. I think Jose Canseco tried one in his fight against Hong Man Choi, and one of the announcers remarked something like, "that Tae Kwon Do kick isn't going to work," so, like you said, there's certainly some bias against it.