25 August 2014

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES – ARE YOU DOING IT RIGHT? pg26 NUTRITION, CONDITION, TECHNIQUE, SUBMIT

BIG FROM RHD UDA THHEEN G ” ALL “PESA ELO STEP

FAMILY

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a m i t s E r o t c i d V ey’re So Good!

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E BEGSET? H T S ’ O H W WORLDS COVERA IBJJF

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AUGUST 2014 / ISSUE 25 JIUJITSUMAG.COM

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CONTENTS AUGUST 2014 / ISSUE 25 MEET THE EXPERTS MATTHEW CORLEY

Matthew Corley is a blue belt and Registered Pharmasist and clinical phramacy manager who trains under Ezra Lenon. The best way to keep up with my articles and reviews is at www.facebook.com/ MappingMyBjjJourney

NAVEED SHAN

Naveed Shan is a strength and conditioning coach at Siege MMA/Lotus Club BJJ in Glendale, AZ and Revolution Training Systems in Tempe, AZ. He is a blue belt under Giva Santana and is currently finishing his post-graduate studies in Exercise Science and Psychology at Arizona State University, focusing on athletic performance. You can contact him at naveedshan.com

REGULARS 08

EDITORIAL Know Pain Know Gain

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CHECK-IN Fine Art Indeed

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PRO MOTIONS Belts and Stripes

FEATURES

116 MIND GAMES Student teachers?

120 STRENGTH & CONDITION Band together 126 SPOTLIGHT Tales from the Worlds 130 SUCCESS That’s a lot of stones

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GRUB How do you measure?

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SUPPLEMENTS The banned list

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WARM-UP Get more mobile

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BACK ESCAPES Allen Hopkins

112 GEAR LAB Rockin’ Green Athletic Detergent & Kettle-Jitsu Revolution

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CLOSED GUARD Stephen Hall

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EVENT COVERAGE 2014 IBJJF Worlds

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COVER FEATURE The Brothers Estima

108 GEAR LAB FEATURE The tools you need

TECHNIQUES

108 GEAR LAB Tools of the Trade

MACKENZIE ARRINGTON

MacKenzie Arrington is an award winning chef out of Boothbay, Maine. He is the author of GrapplerGourmet.com, a comprehensive guide to cooking for the BJJ lifestyle. On the mats he is a blue belt out of PSABJJ in Brooklyn, NY, and a personal chef off the mats. Go learn a thing or two about cooking and the food you eat by following MacKenzie at www.facebook.com/grapplergourmet.

ON THE COVER: Victor and Braulio Estima COVER PHOTO: Jason Boulanger

GAMES 116 MIND The student is the teacher

130 SUCCESS Losing The Weight

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JEREMY REID

M.S.ED, CSCS, CISSN Jeremy is a nutritionist and strength coach who works with MMA and jiu-jitsu champions. He obtained his master’s degree in exercise physiology from Baylor University. He is a brown belt under Robert Drysdale.

DR. ETHAN KREISWIRTH PhD,

ATC of “Kreiswirth Sports Medicine” is the Medical Director for the International/United States Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation. Dr. Kreiswirth is a Black Belt in BJJ and has provided medical coverage for BJJ events since the mid-1990s. Ethan can be reached at ekreiswirth@gmail.com

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GRUB Don’t mess it up

IBJJF/WADA BANNED SUBSTANCES FAQ Changes coming soon.

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BIG FROM THE GUARD

STEPHEN “PESADELO” HALL

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WHO’S THE BEST? IBJJF WORLDS COVERAGE It’s good to be a winner.

FAMILY

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a m i t s E r o t c i d V ey’re So Good!

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JJMEDITORIAL::::::::::::::::

NO PAIN, NO GAIN

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OU’VE HEARD THAT SAYING BEFORE. Sometimes it rings pretty true.

For me, there’s no better feeling than waking up sore all over from a long hard training session the night before. Being just 30 days shy of 40 the soreness happens quite regularly these days. To quote Arnold from the movie Pumping Iron, “And so can you believe how much I am in heaven?” You can look up the rest of the quote, there might be kids reading. Anyway, feeling like I worked hard in training makes me feel good. It makes me feel like I’m accomplishing something, growing through my journey. However, the pain that I’m not quite a fan of is from injury. Injuries suck. Sometimes they just happen. A few years back, I went to Cub Scout camp with my son and was drafted into a game of volleyball between the camp staff and the parents. Thanks to a lack of proper warm up I hurt my calf during the match. I looked like a soccer player flopping off the ground from a phantom contact. However, it was real, I was in real pain. The first thought through my head wasn’t, “Oh no, I can’t walk” it was, “Oh no, I can’t train jiu-jitsu!” As we get older it takes longer for our bodies to heal, this is true no matter how great of shape you’re in, it’s relative. At this year’s IBJJF Worlds there were quite a few injuries, some very serious. You’ll read about all of them in this issue, but some times injuries just happen, fluke things that are nobody’s fault. An odd roll of the body, or twist of a limb. For those times it’s part of the choice we make when stepping on the mats.

However, sometimes injuries result from not tapping soon enough. During sparring with our teammates there’s a certain amount of trust that our teammate isn’t out to injure us. Aside from a few of us, we’ve gotten to show up at work the next day, put food on the table, etc. If you’re the type that goes “agro” on every roll, think twice before bringing your partner’s fingers to their ear when you’re hitting that Kimura. On the other side of the coin, if you’ve exhausted your options and you’re in a bad spot, it’s okay to tap. The sooner you can slap hands and reset the sooner you can figure out what you did wrong and change things up so you don’t end up in the same spot again. As Rener and Ryron Gracie say, “Keep it playful;” at least when you’re rolling with your teammates.

In competitions, maybe not so much.

Keep Rolling!

MIKE VELEZ

PUBLISHER/EDITOR MIKEV@JIUJITSUMAG.COM

EDITORIAL STAFF EDITOR & PUBLISHER Mike Velez ASSOCIATE EDITOR Deb Blyth ASSISTANT EDITOR Travis Guesnon CONTRIBUTING AUTHORS Gerry Costa, Jeremy Reid, Matthew Corley, Dr. Ethan Kreiswirth, Hywel Teague, Edwin Najmi,Naveed Shan

ART & PHOTOGRAPHY ART DIRECTOR Dave Palacios CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Jason Boulanger, John Cooper Kenny Jewel, Mike Lee, Mike Calimbas, Kristen Mendes

PRODUCTION & ADVERTISING PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Paula Fountain ADVERTISING SALES Mike Velez CIRCULATION MANAGER Tom Ferruggia

ADDRESS CHANGE & SUBS Phone: 1.877.834.3552 ext. 227 Web: jiujitsumag.com

ADVERTISING & SALES INFO Available upon request, Contact: Jiu-Jitsu Magazine PO Box 2405 Chino Hills, CA 91709 ph: 1.877.834.3552 ext. 221 fax: 909.591.1251

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL NEWSSTAND DISTRIBUTION The Curtis Circulation Company Jiu-Jitsu Magazine (ISSN 2157-6173) is a publication of Recon Media Inc., PO Box 2405 Chino Hills, CA 91709; Phone: 877.834.3552; Fax: 909.517.1601email: info@ jiujitsumag.com. Subscription rates are $37.99 for 10 issues (1 year), $57.99 per year Canada, and $87.99 per year for foreign airmail. All rights reserved, The entire contents are copyright 2014 Recon Media Inc, and may not be reproduced in any manner in whole or in part without written permission from the publisher. The views and the opinions of the writers and advertisers are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Recon Media Inc., the Publisher, or the editorial staff. The Publisher assumes no responsibilities for advertising claims, errors, and omissions.

Some of the techniques described in this magazine can be dangerous. Always practice safe procedures and use common sense. Recon Media Inc., and the Publisher can not be held responsible from any injuries or damage caused by these techniques. Perform at your own risk.

Jiu-Jitsu magazine is published 10 times per year. Application to mail at Periodicals Postage rate is pending at Chino, CA and at additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to Jiu-Jitsu Magazine PO Box 2405, Chino HIlls, CA 91709.

100% Recyclable.

Save the Planet.

Roll Frequently, Read Jiu-Jitsu Magazine Printed in the U.S.A

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That was Mike after Cub Scout camp.

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INFOCUS:::::::::::::::::::::::

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A new level of “never let them see you sweat.”

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NO SWEAT Photo: Mike Calimbas

Clark Gracie lines up an armbar and a pose.

Looking good.

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CHECKIN:::::::::::::::::::::::

STUART COOPER

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F YOU’RE A LOVER OF JIU-JITSU, CHANCES ARE YOU’VE SEEN ONE OF STUART COOPER’S FILMS. If you haven’t, or are brand new to the art, I highly recommend you check them out. Stuart is a brown belt who has traveled the world to train with and document the highest level athletes in jiu-jitsu. His films are visually stunning, inspiring and provide the viewer with a very honest look into these individual’s lives. The list of talent he’s done work with is so long I wouldn’t be able to fit all the names on this page. Stuart recently relocated to Oregeon thanks to an arrangment with FIVE GI.NOGI Grappling and will be producing a number of films for the promotion.

Stuart has high goals of continuing to provide quality videos chronicling great BJJ and MMA athletes; however, being an independent filmmaker (or anything independent for that matter) is a tough go, especially financially. We at Jiu-Jitsu Magazine support Stuart in all of his endeavors and hope you will as well. For more information on donating to the cause, please check out the following sites.

STUARTCOOPERFILMS.COM YOUTUBE.COM/USER/STUARTCOOPERFILMS FACEBOOK.COM/PAGES/STUART-COOPERFILMS/297651150246415 VIMEO.COM/STUARTCOOPER TWITTER.COM/STUCOOPERFILMS

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We love Stuart’s work.

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JIU-JITSU FINE ART

This isn’t your average jiujitsu art; we’d consider it fine art of the gentle kind.

These are just a sampling of Maria Schweitzer works.

She’s a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art and she’s also a fan and practitioner of jiu-jitsu. Maria has taken the beauty and art that many of us recognize through the feel of jiu-jitsu and captured and displayed it on canvas. Her work is done in large format with charcoal, pastel crayons, and paint. She uses long wooden rods to extend her arms so that her large works get the full feeling of bodies in motion. To see more of her jiu-jitsu portfolio and learn more about Maria be sure to check out her website.

WWW.MARIASCHWEITZER.COM

GRIPS AMAZONA KIMONO

Here’s a look at the newest gi from Grips, the Amazona. It’s a cut tailored for women who float like butterflies yet sting like bees. The Amazona features COOLMAX® padding in key areas to help keep the wearer dry and cool. The jacket is made from 100% Pearl Weave cotton, the pants are a durable rip stop poly-cotton blend. All of the panels are reinforced with triple stitching across every stress point. It’s lightweight for quick drying and breathability. The new gi comes in white with silver contrast stitching. It’s available in sizes F1 through F4 and Grips has a sizing chart available at their website. This fact, coupled with the promise of being pre-shrunk, means you should be able to find the perfect fit. For more details and to purchase check out their website. The Amazona is also available at BJJ Warehouse and BJJ Sports for under $179.

WWW.GRIPSATHLETICS.COM WWW.BJJWAREHOUSE.COM WWW.BJJSPORTS.COM

THE ONLY BAG YOU’LL EVER NEED

Fuji’s new High Capacity Duffle Bag could be the only bag you’ll need for all your jiu-jitsu gear and everything else. First off, the bag is made from a variety of high-quality materials, including ballistic nylon. Along with a large main compartment for your gi, belt, street clothes and more. There are a number of additional compartments for all your needs. A thermal section is perfect to help keep fruits, snacks or drinks cool. A padded compartment easily fits your 15” laptop and even a tablet sleeve. There’s also an area for your sweaty post training gear. Lastly, there’s room for your toiletries or whatever else you need to lug around. The new bag is available in either grey with red accents, black with red accents, or all black. It measures 26” long by 14” wide and 14” tall and will set you back less than $95. It’s available from Fuji at their website, along with ROLLMORE.COM and BJJWAREHOUSE.COM. WWW.FUJISPORTS.COM

What’s for lunch?

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Face It!

We’re always asking questions on our facebook page (facebook.com/jiujitsumag) and for this issue we asked a pretty simple question and were floored by how many inspiring and meaningful responses we got back. There were so many good ones it was really hard to choose.

Thanks to everyone who commented.

What one thing do you do daily off the mats that improves your performance on them?

HERE’S A LOOK AT SOME OF YOUR RESPONSES: JAKE MICLOT Sleep.

Always feel better to train with a good night’s sleep and even a little 20 min. nap before I start my drive to the academy.

JOHN KEWITZ Rock climbing.

DEREK FORRESTER Flying triangles on passer-bys.

OSCAR TARACENA Swimming and yoga. Gives me extra flexibility in matches, speeds recovery and swimming helps with

cardio. Just ask the three guys I fought and won that were gassed out after 15 minutes.

DAVID HULT Play chasing my kids on the trampoline.

Rolling around inverted and catching them in my guard. Then they have to escape by pushing my legs. They love that game!

ANTHONY BAUMGARTNER I work construction as a day job.

I practice follow throughs for my submissions when breaking down piping that is bad. When I move slabs of concrete

that are rubble, I carry and toss it in a way that is practice for take-downs. A lot of times I will put butterfly hooks into a support beam and simulate choking out an unyielding opponent. I also bend scrap rebar by locking in a submission.

BRIAN CUNNINGHAM Play chess SERGIO QUINTERO Spend time with my wife and kid to make sure they are happy.

Happy wife=plenty of mat time. As far as sport specific stuff I do kettle jitsu and shadow jitsu.

TRADING THE GIS FOR GLOVES Three of jiu-jitsu’s biggest stars are entering the world of MMA. Falling into the footsteps of his legendary father, jiu-jitsu royalty Kron Gracie has signed with Real Fight Championship and is set to make his debut sometime this year during an event in Japan. He’s been pictured training with the Diaz brothers (primarily Nate). Gabi Garcia has also signed with Real Fight Championship and has been training Muay Thai with MMA great Pedro Rizzo. She is scheduled to fight on August 17th, which would be the same date as Kron. The best American-born black belt to date, Rafael Lovato, Jr. has intentions of doing the same. Lovato has not signed with a promotion yet, but it will be interesting to see how he would do in MMA, considering he was training in boxing and kickboxing under his father prior to starting jiu-jitsu.

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We wish them all good luck in MMA!

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UPCOMING TOURNAMENTS

Looking to test your skills? There’s a ton of upcoming tournaments available for you to do so and these are just a few.

“Holy Jiu-Jitsu, Batman!”

NABJJF NABJJF.COM

BJJ TOUR BJJTOUR.COM

IFBJJF IBJJF.ORG

NEWBREED ULTIMATE CHALLENGE NEWBREEDGEAR.COM

07/19: Lone Star State Jiu-Jitsu Championship; Arlington, TX 08/09 - 08/10: North American Tournament; Carson, CA 09/06: New Jersey Jiu-Jitsu International; Lawrenceville, NJ

07/19: New York Summer International Open in New York, NY 07/31 - 08/03: Rio Open and Masters International Championships; Rio de Janeiro, Brasil 08/02: Toronto International Open; Toronto, Canada 08/09: Vegas International Open; Las Vegas, NV 08/09 - 08/10: Chicago International Open; Chicago, IL 08/23: Boston International Open; Boston, MA 08/23 - 08/24: Sao Paulo International Open; Barueri, Brasil 08/30: Atlanta International Open; Atlanta, GA

FIVE GRAPPLING FIVEGRAPPLING.COM 07/19: Ontario 2; Ontario, Canada 08/16: Arizona 1; Phoenix, AZ

08/23 - 08/24: Jiu-Jitsu By The Sea; San Diego, CA 09/27: BJJ Tour Florida; Orlando, FL

07/19: Chicago Grappling Championship; McCook, IL 08/02: Tennessee Grappling Championship; Nashville, TN 08/16: Tampa Grappling Championship; Dover, FL 09/06: Houston Open; Houston, TX

THE GOOD FIGHT THEGOODFIGHT.TV

07/19: River City Classic; Jacksonville, FL 07/26: New York Summer Classic; St. James, NY 08/02: Steel City Submission Tournament; Canonsburg, PA 09/20: Atlanta Open; Atlanta, GA

GRAPPLING X GRAPPLINGX.COM

08/24: Youth Gi World Championships; San Diego, CA

GRAPPLERS QUEST GRAPPLERSQUEST.COM

07/26: National Grappling and Jiu-Jitsu Championships; Morristown, NJ

NAGA NAGAFIGHTER.COM

07/19: Georgia Grappling Championship; Riverdale, GA 07/26: Cincinnati Grappling Championship; Cincinnati, OH 08/02 - 08/03: Battle At The Beach; Wildwood, NJ 08/09: Myrtle Beach Grappling Championship; Florence, SC 08/16: New York Grappling Championship; Glens Falls, NY 08/16: Austin Grappling Championship; Austin, TX 08/23: West Coast Grappling Championship; Las Vegas, NV 08/30 - 08/31: United Kingdom Grappling Championship; Birmingham, UK

DREAM DREAMJIUJITSU.COM

07/26: Dream No-Gi Open; Cerritos, CA

HAPPY COUPLE BLACK BELTS Dear JJM, I had to share this with you. As I type this to you I have a nice shiner on my right eye from rolling this week. I have been dating my brown belt boyfriend for over 5 years now, and training for almost 3 years. It’s funny how I fought for 2 years to not participate in jiu-jitsu; now not only do I wish I started sooner, but I couldn’t imagine life without it. My boyfriend travels down to Miami on a Thursday with the boys after doing a grueling choke seminar with Dustin “Chop” Denes the night before at Giron BJJ in NJ. I seriously couldn’t eat for two days afterwards - this choke was no joke. A few days

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later I am down the shore sitting on the beach reading JJM issue #24 with Keenan on the cover which had just arrived in the mail.

Overwhelmed with excitement and knowing I can make my boyfriend jealous even while he is in paradise I send him the picture below from Manasquan, NJ. Only to receive a picture back of him reading issue #23 in South Beach.

It’s funny how you could be in two different places doing that same thing without even knowing it. The pictures are below.

Oss!!

CASSANDRA HILL Saryreville, NJ 539 BJJ - Blue belt This is our kind of power couple.

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IBJJF Hall of Fame Just prior to this year’s Worlds, the IBJJF honored its newest members into the IBJJF Hall of Fame. Some of the world’s best jiu-jitsu competitors were honored for their past and present contributions to the sport, along with the best competitors of the previous year, 2013. On hand to receive their awards for being among the top 10 competitors in the black belt divisions were:

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Females: Michelle Nicolini (3rd), Beatriz Mesquita (5th), Mackenzie Dern (7th), Fernanda Mazzelli (8th), and Luzia Fernandes (9th). For the males; Marcus Buchecha (1st), Rodolfo Vieira (3rd), Otavio Sousa (6th), Victor Oliveira (7th) and Romulo Barral (9th). Furthermore, a very distinguished list of competitors was inducted into the Hall of Fame. For the ladies,

Michelle Nicolini was the first to receive the honor, followed

by Leticia Ribeiro and Hannette Staack. For the men, the newest class consisted of some still very active competitors, such as Rubens “Cobrinha” Charles, Romulo Barral, Bruno Malfacine, Rodolfo Vieira and Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida.

Also included was four time world champion and “The General” of Team Alliance,

Fabio Gurgel. The two most dominant brothers in IBJJF history, Xande and Saulo Ribeiro, were inducted along with Roger Gracie who, during his speech, announced that he would soon be competing in jiu-jitsu again. Congratulations to all of these fine athletes and competitors on their achievements.

WWW.IBJJF.ORG

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OLD NAME

NEW GI

The newest gi brand to hit the scene carries with it one of the oldest names in jiu-jitsu. Maeda Premium Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Kimonos bears the name of Mitsuyo Maeda. Maeda was the judoka who taught the Gracies and is regarded as the father of Brazilian jiujitsu. The first gi out of the gate for Maeda is this single-weave competition gi with cotton twill pants. Features include taped cuffs, sublimated shoulder pad, strong triple stitched panels, soft tape cuffs, rope drawstring, and six belt loops. Available colors are white, blue, and navy.

NEW GEAR COMING

Now that the Joose is loose, it’s time to make room for the Queen. It’s the next gi in the works over at CTRL Industries.

Also coming soon from the apparel/gi maker are these new shirts about to drop soon! For more information on the Queen and these new T’s check out their site.

WWW.CTRLINDUSTRIES.COM

WWW.MAEDABRAND.COM

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Change For The Better?

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RIOR TO THIS YEAR’S WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS, THE IBJJF RECENTLY MADE A FEW RULE CHANGES IN HOPES THAT IT WOULD CREATE MORE EXCITING MATCHES AND AS PRECAUTIONARY SAFETY METHODS. The new rules are as follows:

01

Single leg takedowns with the head on the ‘outside’ of an opponent are no longer allowed for kids and white belts. The referee will stop the match and restart it. No penalties will be given to either athlete.

From blue up to black belt this is allowed, but if an athlete does a counter takedown to roll by grabbing the belt like a ‘Sumi Gaeshi’ then that athlete will be disqualified. This rule was made in order to protect the head and neck of the athlete attempting the single leg.

02

In the event where an athlete’s leg is wrapped up and around his/ her opponent’s opposite leg and the foot is in the center of the body, the referee will stop the match, penalize the athlete a disadvantage point for knee reaping, adjust the foot placement of the athlete and then restart the match.

Should the foot go entirely across the

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center of the body the referee will stop the match and disqualify the athlete.

03

If athletes double guard pull both will have 20 seconds to improve position or stand up; otherwise both will receive a penalty. Should an athlete come on top from a double guard pull the athlete will receive an advantage point.

To view these rules in action check out IROLL.TV/?P=5355.

Some controversy took place at this year’s World Championships when a well-known competitor was disqualified for a questionable knee reap, as well as competitors both taking disadvantages for double guard pulls since the score would still be tied.

What do you think about the rule changes?

Overall we like the changes.

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PRO MOTIONS

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GOOD MAN! Nate Goodman (center) has been on quite an impressive run that would make adults envious. He began training in May of 2013, out of the UFC Gym in Corona, CA. The 11-year-old has competed in seven tournaments earning 1 bronze, 2 silver and 4 gold medals. Recently, he received another stripe on his gray belt from Thomas Kenney (right). Awesome job, Nate and keep it up!

LINEAGE One of the grandsons of the great Helio Gracie, Kroyler Gracie was happy to promote Steve Dickson out of The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Academy in Elkhart, IN to purple belt recently. Congratulations, Steve!

END US YOUR PROMOTION PHOTOS ALONG WITH YOUR NAME, SCHOOL, INSTRUCTOR, AND A LITTLE BACK STORY. Email us with the subject line, “Pro Motions” to feedback@jiujitsumag.com and keep an eye out for your Pro Motions in a future issue. School owners, please hold off on sending “group” promotions, and please keep it to specific individual students.

OFF THE DL Welcome back and congratulations, Sid Ramirez! It’s always good to hear that someone is back on the mats after dealing with an injury. Sid was excited to be promoted to purple belt by Derek DiManno of WAZA Jiu-Jitsu; his son was just slightly more.

AWWWW… Who needs cupid when you can literally put a choke hold on love? Hannah Scott and Jake Ostrom met the first day she started training at Anchorage Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (under the guidance of Justin Charron, Todd Palmer and Ryder Spadafore) over two and half years ago and have been winning together both in love and jiu-jitsu ever since. Both won their divisions in the Alaska State Jiu-Jitsu Tournament in 2013 and 2014, as well as were promoted together after that. Hannah received her blue belt and Jake his purple belt. Hannah said, “It is awesome being able to share our passion in life together and be able to encourage each other through our jiu-jitsu career.” Congratulations to you both and we wish you many great years together both on and off the mats!

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Nate’s got a future.

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I’M GOING TO SHABOOMS! Congratulations to Kenny Cross of the Nashville MMA Team under Shawn Hammonds for being promoted to blue belt, as well as your newfound health! What we found even more impressive was that Kenny went from 250lbs to 200lbs and quit smoking cigarettes a year ago after 13 years of smoking a pack a day!

DON’T YOU WISH YOU STARTED THIS EARLY? Way to go, Elliot (left) and Owen (right) for completing almost four years of training under Kalo Lopez at Clube de Jiu-Jitsu Pitbull in Albuquerque, New Mexico!

Elliot was presented with his orange belt with white stripe and Owen with his yellow belt with black stripe. Great job you two!

NOT AFRAID TO GO TO HIS BACK Congratulations to Justin Ray for achieving the rank of black belt from Professor Helio Soneca! Justin has spent most of his life on the mats in one way or the other as he started wrestling at an early age. Once his wrestling career ended, he found jiu-jitsu to fill the void and never looked back. After training for many years he has achieved the great honor of becoming a black belt. Osss!

DON’T LET THE SMALL ONES FOOL YOU Proving that it’s not about age, but skill, jiu-jitsu prodigy, Nico Antonelli is the next big thing on the scene. Clark Gracie did a seminar at Richmond Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Self Defense Academy in Richmond, VA and was so blown away by Nico’s technique he promoted him immediately to black belt, becoming Clark’s first. Jon (Nico’s father) said, “Obviously, Nico was a little overcome with emotion when Clark promoted him, I guess he never thought the day would ever come! Clark is such a class act and I am thankful for the time he spent with my family, especially my son. I hope you guys find these pics as adorable as everyone else and I hope to see it in the magazine in a few months!”

DOWN WITH BROWN! Cody Hudson got caught sleeping by Samuel Braga on March 29th when he was surprised with his brown belt promotion. Coming out of Gracie Barra Knoxville, Cody let us know, “It has been an awesome ride so far and can’t wait to see what is in store for the remainder of my BJJ journey.” Nice job, Cody!

You’re one step closer and we hope to see you in another future ProMotions wearing a bit more black.

NICE BELT, EH?

ty Shearer from ing your black belt! Professor Mis Great job, Bryan Hogeveen on earn how proud she and Canada wants everyone to know Brazil 021 Edmonton in Alberta, t: Hannette mplishment. Osss! (From left to righ your team are of you for your acco n Hogeveen) re Terencio, Marcos Cerqueira, Brya Staack, Misty Shearer, Professor And Lots of champions on this page! Oss!

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UNITS OF MEASURE Getting a better grip on reading recipes. words: MACKENZIE ARRINGTON

W

E HAVE ALL TRIED TO COOK A MEAL USING A RECIPE IN OUR LIVES. How did that go? Did you find yourself scratching your head trying to figure out how many onions you need to buy to end up with a cup of diced onion? Did you find yourself thinking, “What the hell is the difference between an ounce and a fluid ounce?” Have you ever reached into your cabinet and realized you don’t have a tablespoon measure but only a teaspoon? All of these issues are a pain and cost us valuable time, and in the long haul, money. “Ain’t nobody got time for dat!” If you can figure out the different weight divisions you can nail down units of measure. So, let’s dothis together. I’m here to help guide you in figuring out exactly how many damn onions you need to buy for a recipe!

BASICS:

Units of measure were put in place to keep all of us creative free thinkers on roughly the right path while cooking. In culinary school you are forced to follow a recipe to the exact gram for the recipe to work. Does it taste spectacular? No. But is it a successful meal that is at a baser level exactly what it claims to be? Sure. In restaurants you learn that a recipe is more of a guideline that points you in the right direction and they are open to your interpretation.

TIP #1: COOKING IS IMPROV, BAKING IS SCIENCE. The seasoning for a mashed potato recipe can be increased or decreased without measuring, no problem, where as the salt in a pastry dough could ruin the whole batch if you are just slightly over what is called for.

This is where you 10th Planet guys come into the mix. Imagine being taught how to omoplata

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from guard. The steps are broken down to a minimal level with the starting point being some poor sap in your guard, and ending with the tap via omoplata. That is our base recipe. Give that recipe to Eddie Bravo and what does he do? He puts his own tweaks on it and modifies it to a rubber guard set up and finishes with an omoplata. The start and

end result are the same, but the details are different.

That is how cooking with a recipe works. Can you just go right out and nail that omoplata from rubber guard without even learning it from the most basic of details? Maybe, but it won’t be nearly as good. Imagine that all those units of measure in a recipe are the details of each and every step.

Alton Brown does not endorse Jiu-Jitsu Magazine in anyway, but he does know the science in baking.

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MASS VS. VOLUME When you’re busting out recipes, whether they’re your grandmother’s classic superwhey-protein-powder-gutbusting-six-pack-developingwhole-wheat-snack-bar-fruitjuice-smoothie or some health food website’s meatloaf and mashed potatoes, the first question to ask yourself after looking at the ingredient list is, “Do I need measuring spoons or a scale?” That’s because us chefs are crazy and use two different means of measuring our ingredients. One way is by weight, which would call for a scale, and the other is by volume, which would require busting out the measuring spoons.

VOLUME: This is the most common way you will see recipes written because those recipes

have been written by home cooks. This is because home cooks used what they had on hand, measuring spoons and cups. Volume measure in short is how much space an ingredient takes up. For instance, a cup of water is a cup because it takes up the entire cup. This method is very accurate when we are measuring liquids, but when measuring dry ingredients it can be a little off. If you have a recipe that calls for 1 cup of almonds, the space between each almond in the cup can be different every time resulting in an inconsistent amount each time. This is when measuring by weight comes into play. Volume measurements are all over recipes. Learning the conversions is a great time saver. Knowing how many tablespoons are in a cup cuts

down time on having to look up a chart or produce a college sized chalkboard to work a formula.

Understanding cups, ounces and teaspoon measures seems pretty simple, but there are a lot of variables, such as: what the recipe is - a few extra drops of water in a soup won’t change much, but those same drops of water into bread dough will; as will the condition your measuring spoons are in. Are they dented?

These details can change the final outcome for better or worse.

WEIGHT CONVERSION BASED ON H2O 16 oz = 1 lb 1 tsp = 0.167 oz 1 Tbsp = 0.5 oz ¼ cup = 2 oz ½ cup = 4 oz ¾ cup = 6 oz 1 cup = 8 oz 1 pint = 16 oz (1 lb) 1 quart = 32 oz (2 lbs) ½ gallon = 64 oz (4 lbs) 1 gallon = 128 oz (8 lbs)

TIP #2: A PINT IS A POUND THE WORLD AROUND. A good golden rule is that a pint of most items, such as water will weigh a pound no matter what, and alternatively a pound of butter will equal a pint.

MASS: I am not talking about where Boston is, but rather a unit of measure we are all familiar with, especially those of us who have competed and cut weight. It is a very simple method. You only need a scale rather than all sorts of cups and spoons. The best part is that it is accurate; 3 oz. of rolled oats will My brain hurts.

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always weigh 3 oz., whereas a cup of rolled oats will weigh 3.2 oz the first time you make the recipe, but the next time they’ll only weigh 2.8 oz. because the oats stacked differently.

Those types of variables can really throw off the texture of your breakfast from delicious perfect oatmeal to dry undercooked oats. Most recipes will call for what we know already, ounces and lbs. Not often will you need more than a pound of an item or a fraction of an ounce.

VOLUME CONVERSION 1 Dash = 1/16th tsp 1 Pinch = 1/8th tsp 1 tsp = 1/3rd Tbsp 3 tsp = 1 Tbsp 1 Tbsp = ½ fl oz 4 Tbsp = ¼ cup 4 fl oz = ½ cup 8 fl oz = 1 cup 2 cups = 1 pint 2 pints = 1 quart 4 quarts = 1 gallon AUGUST 2014

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TIP #3: IF IT FLOWS LIKE WATER, IT WEIGHS LIKE WATER. Water is what kind of threw the difference in ounces and fluid ounces into a scramble, like when you’re unsure if you should be attacking or defending. One cup of water will always weigh 8 ounces AND be 8 fluid ounces, but on the contrary, 1 cup of flour weighs 4 ounces, but is still 8 fluid ounces. Talk about a headache, right? Try not to over think it or get overwhelmed.

TOOLS OF THE TRADE

Do you find yourself cooking often? Of course you do, or at least you should start to. With that you need to invest in some crucial equipment besides a knife and cutting board, which will save you a ton of time, money and headaches. All recipes use a few different units of measure so you might as well be prepared. And they cost much less than a gi and will last a whole hell of a lot longer.

MEASURING SPOONS A trusty set has to pass a few quality tests. They have to be metal and sturdy, have narrow cups for easy entry into containers and some sort of magnet or key ring to hold them all together. You see it all the time when it comes to seasonings. In many cases you can fluctuate a little bit on them, but truth be told you should measure seasoning because “eyeballing” ¼ tsp of cayenne pepper could result in a serious blow out.

CONVERSION CHEAT SHEET

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MASS

VOLUME

1 lb whole wheat flour

3 ¾ cups

1 lb butter

2 cups

1 lb rolled oats

5 cups

1 lb chicken

3 cups chicken, cooked, cubed

1 lb honey

1 1/3 cup

1 lb almonds

3 cups

1 lb walnuts

4 ¼ cup

1 lb dried cranberries

3 ¾ cup

1 lb potatoes

2 ¼ cup cooked

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MEASURING CUPS A strong set of measuring cups is a must. If they get dented and are uneven your measurements will be off and your food will taste worse than your dirty rash guard. I’m kidding, but it is important. Also you want a set that will be able to fit into the tub or rice, bag of flour, etc. I personally enjoy the collapsible silicone ones because they store and clean easily, plus they are durable. I live in Brooklyn, so space is limited.

SCALE Not the kind you sweat over in a panic the night before weigh-ins, but a small digital scale. This is a clutch purchase for your nutrition, along with your recipe measurements. A digital scale that is convertible from ounces and grams will run about 20 bucks. It comes in handy when we run into recipes calling for grams. Not only will it be of use there, it will help you nail down your portions of protein, carbohydrates, vegetables and fats.

RECIPE CHEAT SHEET 1 cup chopped onion

1 medium onion

1 Tbsp minced garlic

3 garlic cloves

1 ½ cups broccoli

1 average head of broccoli

1 cup egg whites

8-10 eggs

2 cups asparagus cooked 1 lb ~15-20 spears 3 cups Pineapple

1 medium pineapple

2 Tbsp chopped cilantro 4-5 stems 1 cup brown rice

2 cups cooked rice

CONCLUSION

The best advice I can give in general on how to measure ingredients for a recipe is to work by weight rather than volume. It is a lot more accurate and very simple. Much like every move in jiu-jitsu, there is a time and a place for them. Having a vast arsenal of measuring devices will help more than it will harm your cooking now that you know how to use them. Now, go eat better to train harder. OSS!

Just a pinch will do.

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IBJJF/WADA BANNED SUBSTANCES FAQ words: MATT CORLEY

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HE IBJJF INTRODUCED DRUG TESTING TO THE WORLD OF BRAZILIAN JIU JITSU COMPETITION IN 2013. In that time there has been controversy over the extent of the testing (only certain groups are tested), the selection of athletes tested, testing procedures and the banned substances list. In this article we will take a deeper look into what is banned in the IBJJF. The IBJJF has adopted the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) list for banned substances, which was developed for athletes in a wide variety of sports. The banned substances include hormonal and non-hormonal performance enhancers, as well as illicit drugs. To help you understand this list better we’ve put together an outline of different types of PEDs that are banned.

ANABOLIC ANDROGENIC STEROIDS (AAS) AAS were first developed in the 1930s by several groups of scientists in Europe, notably Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland. In fact, the 1939 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to two pioneers in early research on synthetic testosterone.

The earliest known reference to AAS, in the context of performance enhancers, was in a letter to the editor of Strength and Health magazine in 1938. The 1940s saw widespread experimentation with AAS in the Soviet Union and Eastern Bloc countries as they pursued athletic accolades in the Olympics and in international weight lifting competitions. The International Olympic Committee placed AAS on the banned list in 1976.

AAS are particularly appealing to athletes in combat sports for a few reasons. There is considerable data to support the assertion that

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AAS will increase strength in athletes. More specifically, there are agents that have been shown to increase strength while keeping the users overall body weight constant. In a sport ruled by weight classes, this can give a considerable advantage to the user. A related advantage is enhanced muscle sparing while dieting. Athletes on AAS who are cutting weight and/or dieting will preserve more muscle than athletes who are not.

Another significant advantage is increased work capacity and recovery. Athletes using AAS are able to train more intensely and for longer periods of time than they would if they were not using AAS. Their ability to recover from those sessions is also enhanced.

levels of testosterone. Possible acute side effects include: clots, acne, gynocomastia, virilization, a variety of effects from excess estrogen and abnormal liver function.

Long-term effects can include infertility, permanent atrophy of testes and impotence.

AAS are associated with side effects and this is especially true for anyone using them without medical guidance and/or using them to achieve supra-physiologic Don’t cheat.

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OTHER ANABOLIC AGENTS

CLENBUTEROL was developed to treat breathing disorders and is not currently an ingredient in any FDA approved drug. Clenbuterol’s use as a PED was initially because of its ability to increase fat loss. Typically thought of as a “cutting” drug, clenbuterol use was rampant in any sport that valued a high strengthto-weight ratio. When it was discovered that clenbuterol also has anabolic, musclebuilding properties, use further increased. Clenbuterol was banned as a food additive in 1991. Prior to 1991 it was used to encourage muscle growth and create meat with a higherto-fat ratio. Alberto Contador was banned for 2 years for testing positive for clenbuterol in 2010. He was also stripped of his 2010 Tour de France and 2011 Giro d’Itlia titles.

The side effects of clenbuterol are typically cardiac in nature and can include high blood pressure, nausea, vomiting, excessive sweating, heart palpitations and heart attacks.

BETA-2 AGONISTS ARE BANNED BY WADA. The products are used to treat asthma, exercise-induced brochospasms and other breathing disorders.

Beta-2 agonists can be injected, inhaled or taken as a tablet.

Anecdotal reports suggest that they improve airway responsiveness, but the improvement in nonasthmatics has little support.

There is some data that other oral beta-2 agonists have similar utilization as clenbuterol. Side effects for Beta-2 agonists are similar to clenbuterol, another beta-2 agonist.

SELECTIVE ANDROGEN RECEPTOR MODULATORS (AKA SARMS) are intended to mimic the positive effects of AAS, but with more specificity.

The improved selectiveness of the drug could decrease side effects and improve overall safety for the user, such as

virilization or testicular atrophy.

Targeted areas are typically muscle tissues and bones. To date there are no SARMs that have achieved 100% selectivity.

The properties and side effects of SARMs are reportedly similar to AAS, but to a lesser extent.

PEPTIDE HORMONES, GROWTH FACTORS AND RELATED SUBSTANCES Erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (aka ESAs or EPO) have a long history of use in patients with anemia, due to chronic diseases and/or treatment of those diseases. The most common uses are for patients with kidney disease and in patients with advanced cancer. EPO improves the body’s red blood cell counts (RBC).

Increasing a person’s RBC will increase the blood’s ability to transport and utilize oxygen.

The goal of an athlete using EPOs is to have increases in their work capacity, aerobic endurance and recovery. The side effects of EPOs can include high blood pressure, strokes, and heart attacks.

Chorionic Gonadotropin (CG) and Luteinizing Hormone (LH) are the first on the list that have been added for a reason other than directly enhancing performance.

These substances are only banned for male athletes and are used primarily to treat secondary hypogonadism, a noted side effect of AAS use, and infertility. Increases in CG/LH are almost always accompanied Your gold is worth nothing when you do.

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by a subsequent increase in testosterone levels. CG has been linked to several weight loss plans recently as a supplement that will aid in preserving muscle mass while on severe caloric restrictions. The supportive data for this use is inconsistent. Side effects of CG and LH can include clots, fluid retention, gynocomastia and a possible link to certain types of cancer.

Growth Hormone (GH) has been linked to many athletes in a variety of high-profile sports.

A study in a 2008 issue of Lancet suggested that as many 5% of high school athletes have used GH. The medical use of GH is typically reserved for children with growth hormone deficiency and other similar disorders. The use of GH as a PED has been studied in both men and women, as well as in combination with AAS. The data shows a distinct benefit in muscle growth, fat loss and work capacity. The ergogenic effects of GH may be amplified when combined with AAS. Side effects for GH can include diabetes, fluid retention, high blood pressure and abnormal growth of internal organs.

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HORMONE AND METABOLIC MODULATORS CLOMID (AKA CLOMIPHENE) is a selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM) and is prescribed frequently to women to treat infertility. Clomid has also begun to experience an increase in popularity in men. Clomid has been shown in studies to be an effective alternative to testosterone replacement therapy for men with low testosterone. Additionally, Clomid does not adversely affect fertility in men and is not likely to adversely affect the body’s natural ability to produce testosterone. Clomid

can also be used after a cycle of AAS to restart the body’s natural production of testosterone.

SERMs decrease the risk of estrogen related side effects from testosterone use, such as gynocomastia. Side effects of SERMs can include impotency and increased risk for clots.

AROMATASE INHIBITORS (AI) are used in the treatment of women with certain types of cancer, notably breast and ovarian. For these patients AIs are used to block the production of estrogen and/ or to prevent estrogen from acting on receptors.

AIs are used in a manner similar to SERMs for users of AAS. The two may be taken together to inhibit the creation of excess estrogen and to mitigate effects of estrogen within the body.

Additionally, there is some data to suggest that AIs could be used to reverse the decline of testosterone that is a natural by-

product of aging. Side effects of AIs are very similar to SERMs. DIURETICS AND MASKING AGENTS can be used for a few different functions. In the context of our sport they’re most likely to be used for the following: diuretics can increase urine volume to the level that other banned substances will be more difficult to detect. They can also be used to assist in rapid weight cutting by ridding the body of excess water. Side effects of diuretics can include electrolyte imbalances and kidney damage, especially if the user is fluid restricted.

STIMULANTS are on WADA’s banned list for a

variety of reasons. A study of college hockey players in 2006 found that over 50% had used stimulants. Legitimate medical uses include the treatment of ADD/ADHD, narcolepsy, depression, congestion and excessive fatigue to name just a few. For a combat athlete who is fighting the daily grind of training, stimulants could be used to control hunger, improve motivation, increase focus and enhance alertness. Stimulants are also thought to increase fat loss, improve reaction time, and improve endurance. Side effects of stimulants can include nausea, sleeplessness, anxiety, increased heart rate, heart attacks and stroke.

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he information included on this article is for informational purposes only and does not recommend self-management of health problems. It is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. The reader should always consult his or her healthcare provider to determine the appropriateness of the information for their own situation or if they have any questions regarding a medical condition or treatment plan.

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“Nice rack?”

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IMPROVING MOBILITY words: TRAVIS GUESNON

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| photos: MIKE VELEZ

OMETIMES IT CAN BE FRUSTRATING LEARNING THE MECHANICS OF A NEW TECHNIQUE. It’s even more frustrating when you can’t move your hips properly to complete it, even when you do understand the mechanics. Greater hip mobility and strength make learning jiu-jitsu that much easier.

Other benefits include keeping you on the mats longer (as you’re less likely to suffer injury) and making your moves more explosive and powerful.

I can’t emphasize this enough... there isn’t one position in jiujitsu where hip movement isn’t involved! Not one! You may either be hipping forward to apply pressure, away to create distance, or moving around in a scramble. This is certainly more noticeable when an armbar, triangle, hip escape, or a hip bump is performed correctly; however, even when on someone’s back or mounted you push your hips forward to either stretch or flatten them out. Sprawling, pressure from bottom (check out Henry Akins in issue 19), and sweeping also involve hip movement. Sweeping is probably the most underrated and ignored by practitioners.

From personal experience I’ve learned that it makes sweeps that much easier to execute, not just because I’m doing it, but because the practitioners who

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use their hips more find it easier to move in awkward positions transition to a better position, and then use the strength from their hips to elevate me. You name a move and hip mobility is involved in it!

You may be saying to yourself, “I’m not flexible.” Don’t fret because mobility and flexibility aren’t the same thing even though most people generally assume they are. Flexibility is when muscles lengthen passively through a range of motion; mobility on the other hand is when a joint moves actively through a range of motion. Yes, being flexible will help your game, but lying still on your back trying to wrap a leg over someone’s shoulder and head is much less effective than being able to move just a slight angle here or there to secure that same position and better control

your position. Everyone can improve hip mobility regardless of flexibility and we’re going to show you a few drills to do so.

The first two drills I discovered from Steve Maxwell. He advises us that, “The movements are meant to strengthen the connective tissue and tendon of the feet, ankles, knees and hip. Specifically, its practice will increase the mobility of the ankles. Immobile ankles are a primary source of knee injuries--especially in grappling.

The knee, after all, is a mere hinge--one of the crudest kinds of joint. The injuries come because the knee is forced to do other than hinging in compensating for ankles that aren’t able to bear weight in multiple positions. This is an 8-movement kinetic chain. One of the eight moves is called a shin roll, which is crucial for

ankle mobility and knee health.

You cannot get this kind of strengthening through the conventional channels--through normal weight-training.” This is just one of many of movements he teaches.

Steve Maxwell was the first American to earn a black belt from Relson Gracie, and the first person to teach Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and kettlebell classes in the USA. Considered one of the top 100 trainers in the USA, Maxwell trains professional athletes, various government agencies staff and travels the world conducting seminars for strength and conditioning, kettlebells, jiujitsu and mobility. He is the father of World and Pan Ams champ, Zak Maxwell. For more information visit his website at MAXWELLSC.COM.

Mobile is good!

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Perform this movement 10 times toward each side for 1-2 sets.

NOTE: If you are having issues with raising your knees you can assist by cupping and pulling them with your hands.

SHIN BOX SWITCH

01

Start in a squatting position as if you are attempting to shoot in on an opponent.

02

Drop to your right knee, and turn your foot sideways. Your left leg should be posted ahead.

03

Drop to your left knee. A small triangle will form between your left foot and right knee.

06 04

Next, sit down so that your left heel will be near your right knee and your right leg will be bent to the side of/ behind you.

05

Draw your hips back while simultaneously raising both knees up and toward your right side and bringing them to the mat.

You should now be in the same position as in step 4, but on the opposite side.

SHIN ROLLS WITH BOX SWITCH

04

Repeat steps 1-4 of the shin box switch. Keep in mind that they will be the opposite side so you’ll be dropping your left knee first, not your right.

01

Once you’ve completed the knee switches from step 4 of the shin box switch, bring your left leg forward in front of you so that it is over your right ankle.

Perform this movement 10 times on each side for 1-2 sets.

NOTE: Do not lift your foot off the mat in step 3. You are rolling your hip backward to the position.

02

With your left heel firmly planted into the mat pull with it to roll over your right shin until your left leg is posted.

It’s all in the flow.

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Repeat the movement in step 5, but go to your left until you are in the same position as step 4.

Your feet should remain in the same spot they are in during each knee switch.

03

Lift your right knee off the mat and roll it backward so you are now in a deep squat position with your toes pointing outward.

05

From the shin box position bring your right leg forward in front of you so that it is over your left ankle.

Repeat all the steps and keep alternating sides.

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BELT GUARD

From a sitting position have your legs stretched out in front of you.

Place your belt around the bottoms of your feet and grab the ends of your belt.

Loop the ends of your belt around your hands, secure the grip, and pull back some to create tension.

Lie back as if you are playing open guard. From here you can perform a variety of movements like those of the spider, lasso and De la Riva guard.

NOTE: You want to have tension, but not too tight so you can’t freely move and not too loose so the belt falls off.

These moves were inspired by Steve Austin of Sion Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. They’ll increase your mobility while improving your spider, lasso and De la Riva guard games, “And that’s the bottom line…”

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SPIDER GUARD FOOT ON THE BICEP/HIP

01

Simultaneously extend and push forward with your right leg while pulling back with your left arm.

02

Now alternate and do the same movement with hand and feet placement in the opposite position.

Repeat the steps and perform this movement for 1-2 minutes.

NOTE: The extended leg can be either placed high for the bicep or low for the hip.

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LASSO GUARD ARM TRAP

01

Simultaneously extend and push forward with your right leg while pulling back with your left arm, disengage your left foot, and point it up in the air. Your belt will go in front of your left leg.

02

Drop your left shin downward; loop it counterclockwise up and around your belt so your left foot is laced around the belt like an arm trap.

03 04

Let go of the hook and loop your left shin clockwise around your belt.

Place your left foot back against the belt and then repeat steps 1-4 alternating legs.

Repeat the steps and perform this movement for 1-2 minutes.

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DE LA RIVA GUARD

01

Simultaneously extend and push forward with your right leg while pulling back with your left arm, disengage your left foot, and point it up in the air. Your belt will go behind your left leg.

02

Loop your left shin clockwise around your belt and downward so your left foot is laced around the belt like a De la Riva hook.

03

Let go of the hook and loop your left shin counter clockwise around your belt and upward.

04

Place your left foot back against the belt and then repeat steps 1-4 alternating legs.

Repeat the steps and perform this movement for 1-2 minutes.

Every practitioner should take the time to improve their hip mobility. It will make learning easier, make you less susceptible to injury, and improve all of your techniques. Like Chubbs said, “It’s all in the hips. It’s all in the hips. It’s all in the hips. It’s all in the hips.” It worked for Happy and it can work for you.

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You feeling it?

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SAFELY ESCAPING BACK CONTROL With Allen Hopkins words & photos: JJM STAFF

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LLEN HOPKINS IS A 3RD DEGREE GRACIE JIU-JITSU BLACK BELT UNDER MASTER PEDRO SAUER. Allen’s introduction to jiu-jitsu took place more than two decades ago when he was one of seven students who attended a 10-hour seminar taught by Master Rorion Gracie.

From that point, Allen was hooked.

Soon after he began training with Master Pedro Sauer at his school in Provo, Utah and even moved in

with the Sauer family and started working for Master Sauer for the next 12 years. In 2004, Allen was awarded his black belt, becoming Master Sauer’s second black belt here in America. Since then, Allen has opened the Team Hopkins team of affiliate schools across the south with schools in Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, and Florida.

His home school is in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.

We got together with Allen and fellow

Pedro Sauer black belt Mike Diaz and had the pleasure of learning a couple different escapes to employ the next time you’ve got someone on your back. Both of these escapes keep you safe from your opponent going to the mount. This is often the result when someone escapes back control without a real plan, the aggressor will move from back to mount. The guy on bottom will many times feel like he escaped a worse position for a bad one. So pay attention and don’t settle for anything less than a full escape and being the one with the upper hand.

BACK ESCAPE TO SIDE CONTROL (WITHOUT GIVING UP THE MOUNT)

01

Starting off, Mike has Allen’s back, hooks are in and Allen defends the collar. However, even if Mike had his right hand deep into Allen’s left side collar, this technique would work. If Allen turned into him to relieve the pressure from the collar, Mike would be in a great position to transition into the mount. So, Allen doesn’t want to do that.

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02

Allen bends his right knee so he can push off to his left side, and at the same time he brings his left hand to his own left thigh to help keep Mike’s hook in place. Next, Allen drives to his left bringing his left shoulder and head to the mat, looking upwards at the ceiling.

This should be required reading for every white belt.

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03

At this point, the position of Allen’s body defends the choke.

If Mike had been choking with his left hand Allen would have driven off to his right; whichever side is opposite the choking arm.

04

Allen maintains the grip of his own left thigh through the entire technique so far. This is key; Allen doesn’t want Mike to remove that hook. This prevents Mike from going to the mount.

05

As soon as Allen is able, he grabs Mike’s right leg at the knee and pushes it away.

07

As Allen’s scooting back, he keeps contact between his left leg and Mike’s left leg.

Once it’s clear, Allen brings his left leg up and over Mike’s left leg, but keeps his right leg hooking the back of Mike’s left knee. This keeps Mike from moving to turtle position.

06

At this point, it’s safe for Allen to release the trapped leg, place both feet on the mat and scoot his hips off to his left side maintaining pressure on Mike’s left leg above the knee.

08

Once Allen’s hips are completely clear of Mike’s leg, all Allen has to do is straighten out his right leg and it will release the hook of Mike’s leg.

KEY POINTS

When Allen goes to take Mike’s right hook out, he may have to bring his own right leg in to help unhook it in case his arm’s fully extended and the hook is still in place.

09

At this point, Allen has passed Mike’s legs while maintaining pressure on Mike’s chest and keeping a grip of his right knee. With both of his legs clear Allen can quickly turn into Mike with him in his side control.

Heck everyone!

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ALTERNATE ESCAPE TO THE STRONG SIDE

Here’s a different way out, just in case Mike would have been able to drag Allen over to his strong side earlier in the escape attempt.

01

Mike’s pulled Allen over to his stronger right side, in this case Allen must first neutralize the choke. To do this he reaches up with both hands and firmly pulls Mike’s entire arm down towards both their stomachs, with his elbows down to his own body.

This will relieve the choke and give Allen enough time to form his escape.

02

There’s very little, if any, space between Allen’s head and Mike’s right arm, it’s tight. But Mike will undoubtedly use the position he has and attempt to finish that choke. As soon as Mike begins the squeeze, Allen pushes Mike’s arm up to the ceiling with both hands and brings the back of his head down to the mat.

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With the arms pushing and his head driving, Allen pushes Mike’s arms away and turns toward Mike.

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04

Allen takes this opportunity to unhook Mike’s right hook with his hand and scoot back away from Mike.

Pop that arm up!

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KEY POINTS

Timing is everything on this one.

You need to execute your escape when your opponent goes for the choke.

When you begin to grab his arm and defend to choke, turn your head towards his elbow to help relieve the pressure.

05

Now, Allen can attempt to completely pass Mike, pull him into guard, or go turtle. Whichever way you cut it, Allen’s escaped Mike’s back control and will live to see another position.

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JJMTECHNIQUE::::::::::::

ESTIMA B W words: TRAVIS GUESNON

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photos: JASON BOULANGER

hile I don’t have a biological brother, the bond I have with certain friends and teammates has proven to be an invaluable entity within my life. These individuals have been there for me during happy times, as well as some not so happy times. They may have been tough on me, disagreed with me, or sometimes let me fall on my face (so to speak) at times, but whether I agreed with them at the time or not they’ve always guided me in a positive manner because of their love for me as a person. I am really lucky and extremely grateful to have them in my life. ¶ I mention this because I can only imagine what it would be like if that bond were even closer. There’s a saying, “Blood is thicker than water” and when I met the Estima’s I was truly blown away at the dynamic they share. You could easily see that it wasn’t fake and it made me understand just why these two are so excellent at their craft. While they are individuals and have their own styles, if you’ve ever seen them compete you will see that Braulio complements Victor as Victor does Braulio. They have suffered together through the loss of their judo instructor at an early age, wanted nothing to do with the martial arts at some point, and witnessed the splitting up of their family, but they have always supported, guided, helped, fought, and laughed together from their childhood until now. The Gracie Barra credo, “Organized like a team. Fighting like a family” runs strong through their veins. Sure, Braulio wanted to be choking or sweeping Victor on the cover, but that’s what big brothers are for. ¶ Considering that these brothers hail from Brazil, it’s amazing to think that they actually started late (per se) in jiu-jitsu. I guess that worked out better for the opposition. Just prior to the IBJJF Worlds, this dynamic duo took the time out of their busy World’s training camp (literally days before) and totally obliged our requests to provide our readers some insight into their lives, relationship, and of course demo some amazingly, killer moves that are flashy, but effective; such as the Estima Lock that Victor used to submit Clark Gracie and the step around pass to inverted triangle that Braulio executed at the Copenhagen Open. Enjoy! ¶ You’ll be able to get more of a glimpse with Braulio’s website www.estimainaction.com and Victor’s DVD, The Estima Lock at www.budovideos.com.

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Brothers in arms.

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A BROS. WHAT IS THE ONE ASPECT OF YOUR BROTHER’S GAME THAT YOU ARE ENVIOUS OF AND WISH YOU HAD? WHY? Braulio: Victor is a very explosive fighter. I would love to have his core strength. He is a natural, top-level athlete.

Victor: My brother is a very strategic fighter, much more than I am. He calculates details in most of his fights. I think that is the thing I lack the most in my game. I have always been the kind of competitor that goes

“What’s up bro?”

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for the finish from whatever position I may be in, but if I had his strategies it would complete my competition game.

HOW AND WHEN DID YOU START TRAINING JIU-JITSU? HOW LONG DID IT TAKE FOR YOU TO GET YOUR BLACK BELT? Braulio: I started in ‘96 when I was 16 years old. I fell in love and felt that the art fitted me like a glove. It took me almost 8 years to get to the black belt.

Victor: I started training BJJ

in 2000 through my brother’s influence. He was already doing pretty well at local competitions when he went to the Pan Americans in 1999 and he got the gold medal, so it inspired me. I decided straight after to join Gracie Barra Pernambuco.

I also had some pressure from my dad, as I wasn’t doing much apart from playing my guitar.

I thank them for motivating me. Exactly 6 years from there I received my black belt from my professor Ze Radiola in 2006.

ANY UPCOMING EVENTS, COMPETITIONS OR PRODUCTS THAT YOU CAN SHARE WITH US? Braulio: I’m focusing on opening new schools. I just opened one in West Palm Beach, Florida with my friend and partner Wally Holem and I’m in the process of launching “Estima In Action.” That is one project that I’ve been putting a lot of effort into to make it the best out there: www. estimainaction.com. As for my career, I’m having some exams done on my neck as I’m having

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JJMTECHNIQUE:::::::::::

some negative effects and I don’t want to risk having a normal life in the future. So, I’m thinking about fixing my body right now.

some long-term plans, which include creating a top-level competition team. I am already working on it, but concrete things take time to build.

Victor: I am considering the possibility of fighting at the World Jiu-Jitsu Expo again in October. I will be focusing on NoGI for a bit, now that the Worlds and Pan Ams are coming and I have the ADCC in mind for next year on top of all the major competitions on the IBJJF calendar. There is also an 8-man competition I will be fighting in January, but I can’t mention the organization yet.

So, I will keep myself pretty busy. :-)

YOU AND YOUR BROTHER REALLY SEEM TO HAVE A GREAT RELATIONSHIP. HAVE YOU TWO ALWAYS GOTTEN ALONG THIS WELL OR DID YOU FIGHT AT ALL WHEN GROWING UP? Braulio: My brother is my best friend. If I’m wrong or right he is always there for me. We had some fights when growing up, but I guess it’s just a brother thing. We are very close and we respect each other very well and we listen to each other. It has been like that for most of our lives.

GOALS FOR THE FUTURE? Braulio: Focus on my schools, spread my jiu-jitsu to the world via my website and enjoy my family to the fullest.

Victor: I want to make the most of the next two years of my competition career and I have

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Victor: My brother and I always had a very good relationship, as we have a great example from my family, but for sure we had our little problems as all children do. When I was a

teen, our parents got divorced, so my brother as the older one by almost 5 years became an important male figure in the house. I respected that a lot so that made us closer. After I started training, our bond started to grow so once I grew up, it became easy as we share the same passion and career. I could say he is my best friend.

BRAULIO, YOU FOUGHT MMA ONCE AND DECIDED TO RETIRE IMMEDIATELY EVEN THOUGH YOU WON. WHY IS THAT? Braulio: I wanted to try and put my BJJ to the test out there.

I could have done well, but I chose to refocus on my family and on my health instead. My neck wasn’t very happy with all the punches and impact daily.

WILL YOU EVER RETURN TO MMA? Braulio: No, I’m done with it. Health first.

BRAULIO, CONGRATS

ON YOUR FOURTH GI WORLDS. DO YOU THINK THAT YOU’LL BE INCLUDED IN THE NEXT IBJJF HALL OF FAME CLASS? Braulio: This year was a great year when I stop to think that I’ve won two of the hardest tournaments of the year. The World Pro and the Worlds IBJJF. I’m very proud; especially being 34 (I guess I’m the oldest one to ever win it). It gives me hope to carry on. Being in the Hall of Fame is a great status and it registers my name in the history books of BJJ. I’m happy.

DO YOU STILL WANT TO HAVE A JIU-JITSU MATCH WITH NICK DIAZ OR FIGHT HIM IN MMA? Braulio: Nick Diaz was a crazy story in my career. There were lots of misunderstandings and talking. I don’t think about him. It’s passed. If one day he enters a BJJ tournament, we could match up. MMA I’m not into anymore.

Age is just a number.

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VICTOR, TELL US ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCE AT METAMORIS 2.

Victor: I fought against JT Torres. It was a last minute match, as so many fighters canceled at the last minute.

First, I got in by replacing Ryan Hall because he got injured. I was supposed to fight Jeff Glover, but something happened and Metamoris stopped him from fighting. So Keenan Cornelius stepped in, but then also pulled out from a knee injury, which finally led me to JT Torres. This all happened within 4 days. We both fought at the last minute and we had a draw, as I couldn’t finish it.

VICTOR, YOU’VE COMPETED BOTH IN IBJJF AND METAMORIS COMPETITIONS. HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE DIFFERENCES IN RULE SETTINGS, WHICH DO YOU PREFER AND WHY? Victor: One thing I have noticed is when you take away points we lose the motivation to push for a pass or even defend a sweep as we know nothing will be awarded, so if you keep trying to finish straight away it’s easy to be stopped. We have to step in with a different mindset.

As we are so used to competing in the IBJJF where the points are very important. It would be good to have some time to train with a different mindset, specifically for Metamoris rules.

I personally prefer IBJJF only because I am used to that. I am sure if I trained with Metamoris rules I would feel different about it, especially since I love to go for submissions.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO COMPETE AT METAMORIS AGAIN?

Good genes and lots of hard work.

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IF SO, WHOM WOULD YOU LIKE TO COMPETE AGAINST THIS TIME? Victor: I would love to do it again! I believe a fight with Leandro Lo would be pretty cool, as we have been facing each other quite a lot lately. It would be cool to see what would happen if there was no points.

VICTOR, I KNOW THAT YOU ALWAYS LOOK FOR THE SUBMISSION. DO YOU EVER FEEL LIKE YOU MAY BE GIVING UP POINTS TO WIN THE MATCH BY HUNTING FOR IT SO MUCH? Victor: I believe it’s a balance you need to find. I’d rather give up a position to hunt for a submission as I believe jiu-jitsu is about the finish and not the two points or advantages. So many fighters are so concerned about the points they forget to open the game and it becomes a boring fight to watch. I notice that to win you have to control that well. Get a point when can get one and if the finish is there, I have to go for it and try to stop the points.

If you look back to my last Worlds fights, I had a good balance of finishes and point wins. I’d rather be remembered as the fighter who was always looking to finish than the guy who won by advantages.

at the 2012 Pan Americans when I fought Kron in the semi final and I won by 6:2.

When I celebrated, I did the same celebration Bebeto did for his son in the World Cup in 1994 (it’s the most recognized celebration in Brazil), shaking both my arms like you are holding a baby. I hadn’t seen my son for a while, so it was for him. I found out that Kron requested to fight me in the first World BJJ Expo and I said, “Yes” without hesitation.

I had a 5-day seminar in 5 different cities in Italy and then I left to California to fight him completely jet legged. This time he won by 1 advantage.

He celebrated the same way I did, but he threw it at me very sarcastically. I didn’t like that because I thought it was mean and disrespectful and I never did that to him. I asked, “Why did you do that? I did it for my son.” And he said, “What do I have to do with your son?” So, I just ignored it. We walked towards each other and we

both kept our shoulders stiff and he tried to push me after.

I had a conversation with him afterwards and we sorted it out, but I don’t believe we are friends now, though.

ANYTHING ELSE YOU’D LIKE TO SAY OR ANYONE YOU’D LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE? Braulio: I would like to thank my family who has always supported me, especially my wife, my Gracie Barra team, my brother, my teammates, and my sponsors Storm Kimonos, Brazilian Fight Wear and Jaco Clothing.

Victor: I would like to thank my sponsors Storm Kimonos for always supporting me, all my teammates from Gracie Barra and a special thanks to my Professor Ze Radiola for always believing in me.

THANK YOU SO MUCH GUYS!

VICTOR, SPEAKING OF SUBMISSION HUNTERS, ONE OF THE MOST EXCITING MATCHES I’VE EVER SEEN WAS BETWEEN YOU AND KRON GRACIE AT THE 2012 WORLD JIU-JITSU EXPO. THINGS GOT HEATED AFTERWARD. WHAT WAS SAID AND WILL YOU TWO EVER MEET AGAIN? Victor: Everything started

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STEP AROUND PASS

Braulio believes that the best defense is to be offensive and counter attack in order to throw your opponent off. Even when passing guard his mentality is the same; move forward and attack.

01

Braulio begins from inside of Victor’s DLR (De la Riva)

guard.

02

Using his right hand Victor grips near Braulio’s left wrist and begins to sit up. 8823

03

Without hesitation, Braulio reaches a thumb inside and grabs the back of Victor’s collar with his right hand, while his left hand is on Victor’s right knee.

04

Victor wraps his left arm around Braulio’s right leg trapping it. At the same time Braulio pushes Victor’s knee down toward the mat.

05

From here he circles his foot outside of Victor’s left leg so they are now shin to shin.

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Pass it like you just don’t care.

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06

07

Keeping the knee down, Braulio steps his left leg back and around a quarter turn.

Taking his weight towards his right hip, Braulio drops his left knee toward the mat and turns his right leg into a pigeon stretch position.

KEY POINTS

Make sure your legs are shin-to-shin on step 5. This creates a trap of your opponent’s leg as the bottom portion of your leg is to the outside, while just below your knee is to the inside of his leg.

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With his left hand still on the knee he pushes Victor’s leg away, so that he cannot turn back into Braulio.

To finish, Braulio’s right arm goes under Victor’s head, his right hand grips the shoulder and his left hand grips Victors right elbow for side control. 8834

Long legs help.

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09

Next, Braulio brings his body forward and down so he is side mounted against Victor.

On step 6 you need to generate enough momentum with the stepping back of the leg similar to that of dropping your hip hard to the mat; however, for this move you want to make sure your hips don’t touch otherwise you will create a scramble between the two of you.

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STEP AROUND PASS TO INVERTED TRIANGLE

Your opponent may know the previous pass, have a hold of the leg for the counter, but Braulio shows how you can use that to your favor by going immediately for the sub.

01

Beginning from step 4 of the first move, instead of circling his leg outside, Braulio steps over Victor’s right leg with his right foot and places it next to Victor’s hip.

02

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Braulio steps back and around a half turn until he is facing the opposite direction.

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03

He pinches his right leg against Victor’s chest and falls backward towards his left hip.

Definitely want to try this one.

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04

Now, Braulio brings his right ankle into the groove behind his left knee.

05

Curling his left leg back, Braulio locks on the triangle.

06

In order to make the triangle tighter, Braulio pulls Victor’s arm at the elbow toward himself, squeezes with his legs and gets the finish.

KEY POINTS

On step 1 you can also step on the leg near the hip to better control your opponent; however, he can also unbalance you if he can generate enough power to move.

Another option to finish the choke is to grab your free ankle and pull it down toward your hip.

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That doesn’t look comfortable.

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JJMTECHNIQUE:::::::::::

STEP AROUND PASS TO ARMBAR

Progressing more with the sequence, Braulio demonstrates a counter when your opponent attempts to slow you down by locking up your arm to stop your pass.

01

Beginning again from step 4 of the first move, Victor is wise to the control of Braulio’s control over his right knee so he brings Braulio’s wrist across and exchanges his right hand grip of the gi to his left.

02

To counter this, Braulio immediately grips Victor’s left gi cuff.

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03

With a secure grip, Braulio straightens his right arm, pushing forward with it while pulling with his left hand. As he is doing this, he steps over Victor’s right leg with his right foot and puts it next to Victor’s hip.

You can see it coming.

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JJMTECHNIQUE:::::::::::

04

Braulio steps his left leg out and around a quarter turn.

05 06

Without planting his left foot on the mat, Braulio brings his knee toward the middle of Victor’s upper body and places his shin against it so his leg is against Victor’s arm.

Pinching his legs together, Braulio pulls Victor’s arm up to him. 8888

07

He now raises his hips and finishes with an armbar.

REVERSE

KEY POINTS

Performing step 3 produces a counter balance against your opponent that forces his body down, but raises his arm up.

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Pop it, don’t lock it.

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JJMTECHNIQUE::::::::::: REVERSE

FOOTLOCK FROM DLR/ OPEN GUARD

When you’re attempting a knee slice pass, very often your opponent will switch to lasso guard to stop your forward progress. Victor has just the remedy for that.

01

Victor’s right hand grips Braulio’s collar, his left grips near the ankle cuff and he attempts to pass the DLR/open guard with a right-legged knee slice.

02

Braulio recognizes this and counters by whipping his left leg clockwise up and around Victor’s right arm in an attempt to establish lasso guard.

03

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Immediately, Victor releases his grip of Braulio’s collar and slides his right forearm down the leg till he reaches Braulio’s heel.

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REVERSE

Can you tell that these captions are being written on the last night of our deadline?

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04

Next, Victor grabs his left bicep with his right hand.

05

He then brings his left hand on top of Braulio’s shin forming the same type of hold as a rear naked choke.

06

With a secure lock on the foot, Victor slightly turns his hips toward Braulio to create an angle that applies more stress on the foot.

08

Finally, Victor lifts the heel upward with a slight adjustment of posture to get the tap.

KEY POINTS

On step 3, when your forearm reaches your opponent’s heel, you want to put pressure by bringing your forearm upward toward your stomach creating a clamp between the two.

This footlock is the combination of a straight ankle lock on the heel with torque of a toe hold because the toes are supinating inward.

You can tell by the brilliance.

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PASS OFF OF FOOTLOCK ATTEMPT

Let’s say you go for the footlock, but aren’t able to lock it on completely; Victor shows you how you can turn it into a guard pass.

REVERSE

01

Beginning from step 5 of the previous move, Victor attempts to submit Braulio with the footlock.

02

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To avoid being tapped, Braulio reacts by attempting to turn his body. Victor reacts by grabbing the gi near the ankle cuff with his left hand.

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03

With a secure grip, Victor pushes Braulio’s leg down to the mat.

Both these guys make these look way too easy.

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JJMTECHNIQUE:::::::::::

04

With his grip still near Braulio’s ankle cuff, Victor swings his left leg a quarter turn backwards, going to his right side toward Braulio’s back.

06

05

As he is circling around, with his right arm Victor immediately reaches around Braulio’s back, grips the right shoulder and simultaneously drops to his knees to establish side mount.

Releasing his grip from the pant leg, Victor brings his left arm across Braulio’s body, grips underneath Braulio’s right side elbow with his left hand and lifts it toward himself; establishing side control.

KEY POINTS

Step 6 is important because if not done, your opponent can turtle or worse scramble to either regain guard or a better position against you. Pulling up the arm negates this. For you competitors, don’t let the 3 pass points get away from you.

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Scoop the arm.

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JJMTECHNIQUE:::::::::::

FOOTLOCK COUNTER TO INVERSION

Victor explained that you may go for the knee slice pass, but instead of attempting to go to lasso guard, your opponent counters by inverting to get underneath for a sweep or back take. Here’s how you shut it down.

01

As in step 1 of the first move, Victor attempts to perform a knee slice pass through Braulio’s DLR/ open guard.

02 04

Braulio counters this by changing his guard to inverse De la Riva and trying to spin through Victor’s legs.

03

While Braulio is spinning underneath Victor there is a moment when his left foot is not connected for Victor to capitalize.

With his right arm, Victor wraps it around Braulio’s left Achilles heel tightly so it is snug in the bend of his elbow.

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I’ve got your berimbolo right here.

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06

Victor knows this and actually lets Braulio grab his leg; however, he turns his hips to his left and sits back at an angle to pin Braulio’s left arm and right leg.

REVERSE

05

Still spinning, Braulio grabs Victor’s left leg with his right arm in an attempt to pull himself through the space for an escape or counter.

07

Now that Braulio can no longer spin, Victor pinches his knees together for even more control.

08

Utilizing a strong Gable grip, Victor pushes his chest out, stretches his back out and gets the tap.

KEY POINTS

During step 6 you must fall at an angle so you are on what Victor calls the corner of your butt. If you don’t, and you fall straight back instead, your opponent can still elevate you for a sweep or possibly establish some version of back control.

“And that’s for the noogies when I was 5!”

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SPECIALFEATURE:::::::::::

2014 IBJJF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS CHAMPIONS REFLECT words: DEB BLYTH

T

| photos: MIKE CALIMBAS & KENNY JEWEL

HE 2014 WORLDS HAVE COME AND GONE, AND BY NOW, EVERYONE KNOWS HOW IT ALL SHOOK OUT. Alliance picked up their 9th team win overall and 7th consecutive team victory.

The two double gold black belt winners, once again, were Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida and Bia Mesquita. History was made as Buchecha fought hard for a first-time-ever, consecutive 3rd Worlds Open class title. There were many other breathtaking moments as the world’s best jiu-jitsu athletes took to the mats and amazed us with their beautifully timed moves, fluid sequences and perfect techniques.

This set the bar at an impossible high and showed us all what it looks like to be a “phenom” in the sport.

Here’s what they had to say:

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What a Worlds it was.

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Were you there?

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PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

MARCUS BUCHECHA ALMEIDA, CHECKMAT

PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

Buchecha came into the 2014 Worlds feeling the heat: win the absolute and make history by clinching the title 3 years in a row. However, being the consummate professional that he is, he mentally shook it off and decided to have some fun. In total he had 9 fights and 6 submissions. In his ultra heavy division he had 4 matches and finished them all, taking gold. He had 5 fights in the open class; his final against Rodolfo Vieira was one of the most exciting of the tournament; it ended 2-0, making Buchecha a 6x double gold black belt world champion and securing his place in the history books as the first jiu-jitsu black belt to ever clinch 3 open class titles in a row.

HOW DOES IT FEEL TO MAKE JIU-JITSU HISTORY? Before the tournament everyone was talking to me about that saying, “You’re going to make history!” It was too much pressure. So, I thought, ”I can’t put that on my shoulders.

I’m going to try to go to the tournament with the same mentality as I did in 2012 and 2013.” I thought to myself, “I’m doing this because I like it and I want to do it.” So I tried to go there and give my best and have fun too, because in my opinion if you go out there with the wrong reasons, it could be a big mistake. So, that was exactly what I did. I had my head on straight and everything went as planned. I gave my best and fought for the right reasons.

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I fight because jiu-jitsu is my life and I can’t see myself doing anything else. After I realized I made history, I also realized what a big deal it really was. I never thought I would get this far in jiu-jitsu and now I have 6 world titles as a black belt.

There are no words to describe how I feel. I am so grateful.

DO YOU FEEL PRESSURE TO CONTINUE TO WIN YEAR AFTER YEAR? I feel a lot of pressure. I feel more with Rodolfo. Every time I know if we fight against each other it could end up being in the finals because we’re always on different sides of the bracket.

And if that’s what happens, then with him, it’s not just one more match to qualify; it’s going to be

the most important fight of my career at the moment. Rodolfo is the best out there. He fights real jiu-jitsu. There’s no stalling, no talking; I know it’s going to be a real match. And he’s beat me, too, so I can’t ever predict the end result, but one thing I know, it’s going to be a real jiu-jitsu match. I respect him so much for that.

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT ROGER GRACIE COMING BACK TO COMPETITION? Well…Roger says he’s coming back, but it’s not 100%...it’s a year away. Anything can happen in a year. Who knows if he will come back, who knows if I will be here. But if we are all here, it’s going to be really fun and very interesting. Every fight I

have today is a good fight, but it’s exciting to think of Roger coming back because he is the biggest of our time. It’s going to be a great experience for everybody who’s competing and watching.

PHOTO: MIKE CALIMBAS

Can’t wait to see Roger back in a gi.

7/1/14 3:04 PM

PHOTO: MIKE CALIMBAS

PHOTO: MIKE CALIMBAS

PHOTO: MIKE CALIMBAS

He does it again.

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WHERE DO YOU COMPETE THE MOST THESE DAYS? In IBJJF I only fight at the Worlds because it’s the biggest event of the year, but these days I only fight where I’m paid money because I need to pay my bills. Something needs to change in the jiu-jitsu world. We train, we teach…jiu-jitsu is our life. It’s professional – we’re professionals - and we need to get paid, so I compete wherever I can make money.

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR JIU-JITSU GAME? I’m a defender of the old school. For me, it’s more important to know the basics, and then I put a lot of speed on my moves. I train a lot, and I try to be ready for any situation. I don’t understand what they call the evolution of jiu-jitsu. I don’t know why people are looking for shortcuts to get a submission, but it’s part of the game, so I have to learn the movements. I have to learn how to defend; that’s the only reason I train in it. I think the 50/50 is the worst position in jiu-jitsu. You get to a tournament to watch 10 black belt finals and 5 of them are 10 minutes of 50/50. I can’t even watch. The IBJJF says they changed the rules, but it didn’t solve the problem. They need to figure it out and stop with the stalling. It’s up to the referee’s.

Everyone wants to see a good fight.

I’m a spectator just like everyone else. Imagine if the whole world saw horrible matches like that in the Olympics. I wouldn’t watch it. As a competitor, when I go to the 50/50 it’s to submit. If I can’t get it, I get out and come up. I don’t expect to win a fight like that. These days people are too scared to fight. They aren’t fighting to win, they’re fighting not to lose. Terere and Leo Vieira were two of the best of all time and not only because of the titles, but because of the jiu-jitsu. They fought real jiu-jitsu, which is what I also try to do.

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PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

PHOTO: MIKE CALIMBAS

BIA MESQUITA, GRACIE HUMAITA One year ago, Bia tore her hamstring and had to have major surgery, but she’s back at 100%! At the 2014 Worlds she finished her 5 lightweight and open class matches by submission. On Sunday she had 2 finals and won them both, making her a 3-times (divisional) black belt world champion and a first time open class winner.

WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT COMPETING AT THE WORLDS? You never know what’s gonna happen! Sometimes you make them tap and sometimes they make you tap. Everyone wants the title so bad. They’re hungry for the gold. It’s all about who wants it more and how hard you work to get there. I felt those titles were mine and nobody was going to take them from me.

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DESCRIBE YOUR TRAINING ROUTINE. I always do physical training, pilates, Bulgarian bag and fitness to get my body physically ready. I do no less than 4 hours jiu-jitsu training a day; doing drills, techniques, rolls and specific training. It’s an important combination along with getting good rest.

IN WHAT POSITION DO YOU FEEL MOST COMFORTABLE? Closed guard. I feel confident

because I have a million movements that I do really well from there. It’s my game. The other is getting the back. I drill and do a lot of specific training for this, so I’m very confident with it and can get a lot of submissions from there.

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR JIUJITSU GAME? I’m old school! Jiu-jitsu for me is as normal and natural as walking. I started at 5 years old, so it’s 18 years of BJJ

lifestyle in July. My jiu-jitsu is simple and traditional with modern elements. You have to be efficient and effective.

This is what traditional BJJ is all about, but you cannot be asleep in time. You have to be updated with the new and crazy movements and learn how to do them, so you know how to defend. But no matter how different it goes, I always make it as simple as I can in the “old school” ways.

That’s a lot of daily jiu-jitsu. Jealous?

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BRUNO MALFACINE, ALLIANCE Bruno had 3 rooster matches at the Worlds. He faced João Myiao in the finals, which he says was his toughest match. “Everyone trains a lot for this competition and the one who makes the least mistakes will win,” he says, “João is a great competitor and I was expecting a tough match.”

PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

HOW DOES IT FEEL TO WIN THE WORLDS MULTIPLE TIMES? This was my 6th world title at black belt. It’s just amazing, no words can describe how happy I am to see my hard work pay off.

It was well worth it.

DESCRIBE YOUR WORLDS TRAINING ROUTINE. I start my preparation at Alliance Orlando, where I am the head instructor and continued it at Alliance Los Angeles with Cobrinha at the Worlds Camp. I train 6 days a week, 6 or 7 hours a day. I work out 3x’s per week. I drill a lot of months prior to the tournament, but when the event is near I prefer to grapple more and do some specific training because by then I’ve already been thinking about the strategy I’m going to use in the competition.

position, especially for us small guys. I have better control of the back verses the mount because of my weight, besides that, I score 4 points and I have more chances to finish. In that sequence I love the bow and arrow choke; it’s my favorite position and the one I use most to finish my fights.

DESCRIBE YOUR JIUJITSU GAME. My jiu-jitsu is traditional with a little bit of the modern. I feel comfortable in any situation and I try to do everything; that way I’ll always surprise my opponent. I really like X guard and butterfly guard. I have to follow the evolution of the sport, so I always make sure I study, learn and understand every position. There are a lot of new styles I think are really interesting and cool, but once you use those styles to be offensive, I’m against it.

WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE “GO-TO” MOVES? The back attack. It’s a good

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Meow.

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GUILHERME MENDES, ART OF JIU-JITSU/ATOS Gui had 4 light feather matches at the Worlds. His final against Paulo Miyao was controversial from the first takedown attempt/guard pull to the dueling foot locks at the end. Gui pulled off the win by 1 advantage point, however, he says that for him, the toughest part of the Worlds was the relentless training leading up to it with his brother, Rafael.

“Having my brother on the mat is priceless because I know I’ll never face an opponent as good as him. It makes me feel very confident for the tournament.”

HOW DOES IT FEEL TO DEFEND AND WIN THE WORLDS MULTIPLE TIMES? I’ve won 8 times, 4 as a black belt. It feels amazing.

I’m a natural competitor, it’s in my blood and I love it. I used to fight to prove to the public that I was good. Today, I fight to prove to myself that I can do much more than I ever thought I could. I also fight for my students, to inspire them and show them that winning tournaments is not as hard as following the schedule of training when you’re tired.

DESCRIBE YOUR FINAL MATCH WITH PAULO MIYAO. I knew what he was going to do because he never changes his game plan. I tried a takedown and he pulled guard at the same time. One referee gave me the points, but the other two didn’t agree so they removed them. I scored 1 advantage trying to pass and then we ended up in the 50/50 game attacking foot locks. We’re both really flexible and used that position just to score advantages since we were locked in there. I won by 1 advantage. It was a tough fight.

WHAT DID YOU THINK ABOUT THE AUDIENCE’S REACTION TO YOUR WIN? The Alliance team was cheering for Paulo because Atos was almost beating them in points for the team trophy. I thought it was very disrespectful when they did that and as a leader, Fabio Gurgel should tell them to stop; hating is embarrassing, but I don’t care because I know how hard I worked for that moment and how much effort I’ve been putting in since I was 12 years old. I also think that Paulo should not cry on the mat. It’s also disrespectful because it puts people on your side. I have lost before and I always hold it and wait to cry afterwards when people cannot see. We are not fighting in the juvenile division, we are men and we are an example to a lot of kids who are there watching us.

PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

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Emotional match.

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RAFAEL MENDES, ART OF JIU-JITSU/ATOS Rafael had 5 feather matches at the Worlds. He picked up his 4th Worlds win as a black belt. He says his toughest match this year was the final against Cobrinha, whom he’s faced 13 times and beaten 9.

“My final against him at the Worlds was not the hardest match I’ve had against him, but it was harder than the other fights that day,” he says, “His understanding of techniques and competition timing is higher than the other opponents.”

WHAT’S YOUR STRATEGY AGAINST COBRINHA? I try to keep the game as tight as possible because I feel it’s his weakness. I fight to win.

I prepare myself to be the champion and when I get there, I’ll do what is needed to achieve it, that’s my mindset for competition. A lot of times we’re able to get the submission, we just need the opponent to make a mistake or have a technical gap in their game.

Against Cobrinha I only was able to find the gap one time, at the 2012 Pan Ams where I submitted him with an armbar.

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE EVOLUTION OF JIU-JITSU? I like the way it’s going. It doesn’t stop evolving and new talents are always bringing something new to the sport; for us this is the magic of the sport. A lot of people complain about stalling, but these are the people who never compete because competitors know how hard it is to get the submission in a tournament like the Worlds

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where you are fighting the best in the world.

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON STALLING? Stalling can happen from every position. I see people stalling from standing, from spider guard, from half guard, closed guard…we just need to understand that it’s a part of the game. You can’t watch the UFC and expect to have a K.O in every single match. It just doesn’t happen. Also, people talk a lot about techniques that would work on the street, and every time I see this I ask myself, “Do people fight on the street?” I do not think it happens and should never happen. The best self-defense is to give everything you have to avoid violence, you never know if the other person has a gun or knife. If it’s a situation of life or death you can use the techniques you learn to get out of the situation. Any jiu-jitsu technique will help you, if you are able to do the berimbolo in the academy, you probably can do a double leg, kimura or sit up sweep on the street.

PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

PHOTO: MIKE CALIMBAS

PHOTO: MIKE CALIMBAS

We’re going to see these match-ups again soon I’m sure.

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PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

LUCAS LEPRI, ALLIANCE Lucas had 5 intense matches at the Worlds in the light division.

He worked hard to defend his title against JT Torres in the final, making him a very happy two-time world champion.

PHOTO: MIKE CALIMBAS

HOW DID IT FEEL TO WIN THE WORLDS A SECOND TIME? It felt like it did when I won my first World title! Every title has a different taste to it, but this one is priceless. Without a doubt, winning a World Championship is the best feeling ever. It’s when you see that everything you did, everything you sacrificed, paid off.

PHOTO: MIKE CALIMBAS

PHOTO: MIKE CALIMBAS

Tune in next month for a complete article on Lucas.

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WHAT ARE YOUR MAIN “GO-TO” MOVES? The knee cut is one of my favorite positions because I’ve been doing it since I began jiu-jitsu. I used to watch Fernando Margarida compete and he used to pass with the knee cut as well. I also like to use X-guard, it’s one of my favorite positions that I use every tournament.

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR JIU-JITSU GAME? I describe it as nniversal; everybody can do it. It’s very efficient and accurate. My style is a combination of both traditional and modern jiu-jitsu. I feel comfortable in any position. This is what I like most; I can work with whatever my opponent gives me.

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BRAULIO ESTIMA, GRACIE BARRA The medium heavy legend closed out his division with his equally talented teammate, Romulo Barral. Braulio was thrilled to win his 4th World title. The multi-time world champion acknowledged that all 6 of his matches were tough, but his time on the mats with Bernardo Faria was especially difficult. “I got smashed,” he laughs.

WHAT ARE YOUR 2 FAVORITE MOVES YOU RELY ON A LOT TO WIN? Any kind of triangles and arm triangles from everywhere!

HOW DO YOU APPLY YOUR JIU-JITSU GAME TO EACH SITUATION? I’ve always tried to think outside the box. I try to understand the concept of every situation and the techniques I’ve learned and have this as a reference instead of the technique itself. Technique is a way developed by someone to apply a certain concept. So, when you understand the concept, you can develop your own technique and make things up on the spot. Jiu-jitsu becomes much more simpler and flexible.

WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO COME BACK TO JIU-JITSU COMPETITIONS AGAIN? It’s my passion. When you’re a natural competitor it’s very hard to stay home watching from the couch. I feel much better out there.

I guess I was the oldest person to win the Worlds at the adult class (laughs). I’m up to breaking that record again next year!

DESCRIBE YOUR JIU-JITSU GAME. My jiu-jitsu is very dynamic, adaptable, audacious (risky) and controlled. I mix the basics of old school with the modern and I make Braulio Estima jiu-jitsu!

PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

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That guy looks familiar.

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FELIPE PENA, GRACIE BARRA Felipe shocked the jiu-jitsu world with his huge win in the heavy weight final against Andre Galvao to become a first-time black belt world champion.

DESCRIBE YOUR WORLDS EXPERIENCE. I finished all my fights, except for Galvao. That was my toughest match. He’s really good and really experienced.

It was a great war. I trained so hard all these years and went through so many tough times in my life just for that one day.

I want to feel it again and be an open weight champ. I will work hard for that.

PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

PHOTO: KENNY JEWEL

WHEN DID YOU RECEIVE YOUR BLACK BELT? I got my black belt in December 2012. This was my first Worlds win at black belt and it could not be better. I knew I had a good chance to win. I worked really hard and was prepared.

WHERE DO YOU TRAIN? I train at Gracie Barra Belo Horizonte, Brazil and in my gym with my students. I started training at Draculino’s school.

When I got my blue belt, he moved to the U.S. and Marcelo Uirapuru and Sergio Benini took over. When I got my purple belt I went to Romulo Barral’s school for a week to fight in the Pan Ams and right away we became friends. He’s my idol. I won the Pan Ams and he invited me to stay with him until the Worlds. I always go to his school to train and learn from him whenever I can.

I’d be excited too!

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ANGELICA GALVAO, ATOS Angelica Galvao came into the 2014 Worlds a brown belt. She had a total of 4 matches in her light weight division, and won them all to become a world champion, but her journey did not end there. Once on the podium, her beloved husband, Andre Galvao, promoted her to black belt, an experience she will never forget and a new chapter in life she looks forward to exploring.

TELL ME ABOUT YOUR JOURNEY THROUGH JIU-JITSU. Many people don’t know that I started jiu-jitsu in 2003, met Andre in 2004, got pregnant in 2005 and stopped everything for 5 years. I was a mom and housewife. I quit BJJ, donated all my gis, and got rid of my belt and medals. I was just lifting everyday. I’m really happy to be where I am today. I feel very blessed.

WHAT ARE YOUR 2 FAVORITE TECHNIQUES? I’m very comfortable on bottom; spider and closed guard are definitely my favorites because the options of attacking are numerous.

DID YOU EXPECT TO RECEIVE YOUR BLACK BELT AT THE WORLDS? From what I know of my husband, I knew the day was coming, but he never said anything. Before the tournament I pictured myself winning, having my arm raised and stepping on the podium.

Sometimes I would also picture

myself having Andre promote me, just to motivate me. I didn’t expect it, but the feeling was awesome.

WHAT’S IT LIKE FOR YOU AND ANDRE TO WORK TOGETHER, TRAIN TOGETHER AND LIVE TOGETHER? (Laughs) It isn’t always easy!

When we have a hard day of training we’re careful not to let it affect us at home. But it’s totally worth it. Our 10 years together I’ve learned how to be an athlete, how to diet, cut weight and be disciplined.

He is hard on me. I have no privileges in training because I’m his wife. I feel that when I do good he never sees, but when I do something wrong, then he sees it for sure! I always look up to Andre. The passion he puts on the mat is amazing, he has a brave heart. He is a businessman, a leader, a man of God, a competitor, a dad and a husband doing everything with excellence. We walk together... the same path. If one of us doesn’t agree, we don’t do it.

That is how we do it.

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PHOTO: MIKE CALIMBAS

IMBAS PHOTO: MIKE CAL

WRAP IT UP!

As we wrap up the 2014 Worlds, it’s easy to see that jiu-jitsu is in a state of flux…from the athletes, to the promoters, to the spectators; there is debate and differing opinions about old school ways vs. new school styles and working the advantages and/or stalling. The IBJJF is trying to get a handle on the latter by applying new rules and regulations during competition. However, before we all bust a blood vessel debating over which we think is better, it’s important to remember that the one universal characteristic that every jiu-jitsu player has, from the white belt to the black; what we all agree upon unilaterally, is our love for this sport. And getting to witness greatness on the mats at the Worlds, in all its forms and fashions, allows all of us, for just a moment, to experience what it feels like to be the best in the world.

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Congratulations to all the competitors that had the heart to step on the mats no matter what color belt they were wearing - Oss!

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BIG TIME CLOSED GUARD ATTACKS With Stephen Hall words & photos: MIKE VELEZ

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NYONE WHO’S BEEN TO A MAJOR COMPETITION IN THE LAST 10 YEARS WILL INSTANTLY RECOGNIZE STEPHEN “PESADELO” HALL. He’s the tall, hulking ultra heavy weight who’s never seen without a smile. Stephen Hall calls Dallas, Texas home where he runs his Alliance affiliate school, Pesadelo BJJ, out of the DFW Gun Club next to Love Field. Stephen would be the first to admit that jiu-jitsu has saved his life. He discovered jiu-jitsu while battling cancer and going through radiation and chemotherapy treatments. Despite that, he managed to train twice a day, every day for years and earned his black belt within four years of starting. On the mats he’s proven his rank with too many wins to count at major tournaments across the country, including multiple Pan Ams championships. Off the mat he’s always a positive influence on our sport with kind words and encouragement. On a recent trip to Dallas, I had the privilege of spending some time with Stephen, to get to know him, to learn from him, and to understand what makes him such a unique individual. Included is an interview I did with him and some great techniques you’re going to be able to use the next time you put your gi on.

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Looks like he could be a mean guy.

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GETTING TO KNOW STEPHEN JJM: FIRST OFF, I HAVE TO ASK ABOUT YOUR NICKNAME, PESADELO, HOW DID YOU GET IT AND WHAT DOES IT MEAN? SH: When I was still a fairly new white belt, Vitor “Shaolin” Ribeiro conducted a seminar at our school. He was showing spider guard to triangles. He walked over, told me that I was going to be so good and was calling me that.

When I found out the English translation meant “nightmare” it built my confidence up immensely; so much so that I got it embroidered on all my gi’s, but it ended up turning into more of a running joke throughout the gym. Basically, I was considered a nightmare by the other guys because of lack of technique and experience. I brought it upon myself because as you know, white belts do some silly things, but this actually drove me to prove that I could be great at jiu-jitsu.

JJM: HOW DID YOU GET INTO JIU-JITSU? SH: I was diagnosed with cancer and during my treatment a woman literally told me, “If you don’t find something to stand up for then you’ll lay down and never get up.”

Hearing that made me look for something to keep me active and give me some purpose. In 2004, jiu-jitsu wasn’t the plan because honestly I wanted to fight. I had done taekwondo for 20 years and met Pete Spratt, who was in the UFC at the time. Pete offered to help me with my stand up, but told me I would need to go somewhere But that’s only until you meet him.

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to learn my ground game. Allen Mohler’s school was literally down the street and around the corner from my house, so I went to check it out. He was real nice and asked me what I knew about jiu-jitsu. When I told him I knew nothing he offered me a free class, but I told him it was okay and I wanted to go ahead and sign up.

He looked at me puzzled and offered me the free class again to try it out, but I responded the same and bought two gi’s that day.

JJM: WHAT KIND OF TREATMENT WERE YOU GOING THROUGH AND WHAT WAS YOUR PHYSICAL STATE AT THE TIME? SH: I had finished up radiation and was finishing up chemotherapy when I first started jiu-jitsu. I’m 6’5” and walk around between 230 to 240 lbs, but at that time, I was 163 lbs. My energy level sucked!

I had no cardio, strength or anything even though I had been, what I thought, was a fairly decent athlete as I played basketball and ran track in college. What made jiu-jitsu appeal to me was that I was told it was based on a weaker person not being reliant on strength to overcome the odds.

JJM: HAS YOUR CANCER PASSED AND GONE INTO FULL REMISSION? SH: It’s gone as of now, but I have just under 8 months to go before I can be considered totally cancer free.

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JJM: WHAT ROLE HAS JIU-JITSU HAD IN YOUR RECOVERY? SH: Jiu-jitsu literally and figuratively saved my life. My attitude was that I didn’t know if I was going to die or it get more serious than what it was because I was only in stage 1.

Unfortunately, cancer has really ravaged my family. I can’t count on my fingers and toes how many people I’ve lost in my family to this disease. Losing my cousin when he was 33 to cancer, seeing him struggle with it since we were kids and realizing that everything I ate, drank or did before the next class affected how I felt, put it into even more perspective for me to change a number of things. Growing up, a lot of people would tell me I was fairly intelligent and frankly, I even thought so to the point that I would be able to find loopholes around obstacles so that I could get out of something or even have perseverance. I always took the easy way out.

With jiu-jitsu it doesn’t matter who your instructor is, where

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they’re from or the school you train at. When you step on that mat it’s just you and that person.

You either put in the work and if you can impose your will you can win. If you didn’t put in the work it will show; there’s no way to cheat it. Either you are a blue, purple, brown, black belt or you’re not; the mat will always show you. You can say what you like, but people can always see it. This also helped me deal with my day job and other daily challenges. I was a very defeated person in a lot of ways and it gave me a lot of courage, taught me perseverance and how to be calm in bad situations.

JJM: HOW LONG DID IT TAKE YOU TO GET YOUR BLACK BELT AND WHAT WAS YOUR TRAINING SCHEDULE LIKE SINCE YOU WERE DEALING WITH ALL OF THIS? SH: It took me roughly 4 years. Until I was a brown belt I was training twice, sometimes three times a day - everyday. I have a very flexible job schedule

that afforded me to train in the afternoons and evenings. I had also signed my daughter up at the same time and while she was in her class, I would drill off to the side and then go to my evening class. Next day I’d wake up and go train in the morning in Marcus Hicks’ class. I credit Marcus for keeping me in jiujitsu during the times I wanted to quit. He’s played a huge part in the development of my mind set, how I approach things and the way my game is. Tournamentwise, I’d compete twice a month, sometimes every weekend. It’s cliché, but when people always ask an instructor how to get better and they respond, “With mat time and competing a lot,” I bought into it very early on.

JJM: HOW MANY COMPETITIONS DO YOU THINK YOU’VE ENTERED? SH: Hmmmmm…… Man, I don’t even know. You figure at least 25 times a year for quite a few years, but I’d say even more than that because if I found a competition, I was there.

JJM: WHAT’S BEEN YOUR BIGGEST WIN IN A COMPETITION? SH: To be honest this is cliché, but it has to be when I had my first student medal at Pan Ams and Worlds. Those are a lot bigger than what I’ve done. For me individually, it’d be either at brown belt when I got bronze in the Mundials because of the things I was dealing with outside of the mat and issues with the referee or when less than a month after receiving my black belt I won my division at the Rio International Open in Brazil.

JJM: WHEN DID YOU START TEACHING? SH: At the academy I started helping out when I was a purple belt, but as far as having my own school, it’s been 5 years.

JJM: WHAT ARE THE CORE BELIEFS YOU TRY TO INSTILL IN YOUR STUDENTS? SH: Your job is to get the person off the mat (meaning submit them). You should be

Stephen won gold at this year’s Pan Ams.

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ready for a war and however long you have to fight for, but if you can get them off in the first 10 seconds the better.

The longer someone is in a match with you, the more of a threat they are. That, and to just persevere no matter what.

There’s a lot of other people in life who wish they could have trained that day, there’s a lot of others who wish that they could just walk. A lot of people make a lot of excuses and don’t realize how blessed and privileged they are. I don’t have a lot of tolerance for pity excuses and believe that no matter how hard something is, the end goal isn’t impossible.

JJM: YOU COMPETE, WORK A DAY JOB AND RUN YOUR SCHOOL; HOW DO YOU MANAGE THIS ALL DURING THE HOURS OF THE DAY? SH: Time management and figuring out what’s most important to you. There’s always time, but you have to make it. A lot of people may pick a school that doesn’t really fit

with their schedule, but that’s just as important as picking an instructor you mesh with.

You have to find somewhere that will work best with your schedule and accommodate your wants. It can be daunting at times, but when you prioritize you’ll find things that you thought you wanted really weren’t what you wanted at all.

That’s another thing jiu-jitsu did for me.

JJM: YOU HAVE A PATCH ON YOUR GI WITH A LITTLE GIRL ON IT. CAN YOU TELL ME ABOUT HER? SH: Her name is Aubri and she came in with her mother for a little while, but then I didn’t see her for a good amount of time.

Initially, I thought it was just a matter of loss of interest, but later her mother confided in me that Aubri had a rare form of cancer that unfortunately didn’t allow her to do a lot of things because she was having a lot of treatments. I can’t say that I’ve met another person as strong as her and she was only

Stephen plans on winning gold at the Worlds someday soon.

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4 when she passed last year on June 29th. I’d like to say she was one of my best students, but in reality I was her student as she taught me a lot about life. She was full of life, always running around, smiling, showed a lot of love for jiu-jitsu, was never down, always upbeat and tried to make you smile even though she was fully aware of what was going on. I looked at her and thought how could she feel this way and be this way when dealing with this? I was trying to help her, but she was really helping me. She was amazing!

You can’t really sit down and make an excuse about anything when you see kids or people dealing with such things.

Hopefully a cure will be found.

So, I wear this to honor her and keep her close to me. For more information and to donate to the fight against cancer please go to ANGELSOFAUBRI.COM. Thank you!

ANYTHING ELSE YOU WISH TO SHARE WITH OUR READERS? SH: I’d just like to close with thanking my sponsors Gameness (GAMENESS.COM), ATS Labs

(SOLUTIONSFORATHLETES.COM)

for supplements and a special thanks to Aubri for keeping me focused on what’s important in life, Master Jacare for giving us the jiu-jitsu the team and I have with Alliance, and finally to Marcus Hicks. Without him I would have quit at blue belt and missed out on meeting a lot of great people and experiencing so many great things. Anything positive you see within me is because of him.

JJM: KIDS ARE PRETTY AMAZING, I’M SORRY TO HEAR THAT AND FOR YOUR LOSS. IS THERE AUGUST 2014

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JJMTECHNIQUE:::::::::::

Going Big!

One of the core tenants of jiu-jitsu is its ability to level the playing field for the smaller, weaker combatants. We’ve used that as a theme for plenty of articles in our three years and every time we do, we’re bombarded with letters from big guys asking for something for them. With that in mind we asked Stephen to go over techniques that would be well-suited for the big guy to use. He shared with us the fact that these techniques can be used by anyone big or small, against anyone no matter their relative size. When special considerations are made for your size, or your opponent, we’ll be sure to make note. The adjustments that Stephen makes in these techniques are great, I really hope you try to incorporate them into your jiu-jitsu.

TRIANGLE CHOKE

Triangles against big guys, or maybe for guys with shorter legs, or for those who are not really comfortable with triangles, then this is the technique for you. Stephen puts a few different details on how he performs a triangle choke that will help put the odds in your favor.

01

However you start off, whether it’s in a closed guard or open, you want to stuff one of your opponent’s arms down then shoot your legs through so that one leg is over a shoulder, and one leg under his arm.

02

Once your legs are through, bring them together and tightly close. You want to be tight onto your opponent so they’re forced to carry your weight. There should be no space between his chest and your crotch, nor between his back and your calves/feet.

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03

With your legs tight bring your hips up and pass your opponent’s trapped arm across your body. Once the arm is across, drop your hips and pull him down into you to help trap that arm.

No matter how you perform a triangle the arm across is always important.

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04

At this point some people might make the mistake of attempting to finish by pulling down on the back of the head. Instead, push down on your own knee that’s over the shoulder with your left hand and grab your own left shin with your right hand. Keeping your arms straight to create a frame.

05

Keep those grips secure, release your right leg and bring your right foot to his left hip. At this point it’s very common to push off on that hip to change your angle and lock the triangle. The problem this creates is that it gives your opponent an opportunity to stack you, or break free from the triangle.

06

With your grips secure on your own left leg and your right leg on his hips, “shoulder walk” back so your opponent’s posture is completely broken downward and your left leg is at a 90º angle at the knee.

KEY POINTS

This process works very well on larger opponents because of the shoulder walk. It breaks your opponent down and limits his ability to impose his weight on you.

07

Now it’s very easy to bring your right leg over your left ankle and lock down the triangle no matter how big they are, or how short or long your legs are.

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08

With the triangle locked and his posture broken, all you’ll need to do is squeeze your legs inward for the tap. The option to pull down the back of the head is there in case you must.

If you imagine a triangle, the easiest way to make it smaller is to bring two of the corners in, that’s the theory in squeezing the legs together.

Building the frame in Step 4 is very important.

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JJMTECHNIQUE:::::::::::

TERMINATOR CHOKE

This is a modified collar choke from the closed guard that works very well on larger opponents.

01

Starting from the closed guard Stephen always likes to bring his hips off the mat when he’s got someone in his closed guard. That way he can engage his entire body for whatever movements he’s going to use.

02

With his hands inside of his opponent’s collar Stephen pulls his knees into his chest to bring his opponent into him. At this same time he reaches his right hand into his opponent’s right side collar, four fingers in deep enough so that his hand is near the back center of his opponent’s collar.

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03

With the grip in place, deep on the collar, Stephen brings his elbow to his opponent’s chest; this brings him in tight and isn’t requiring Stephen to use all the energy he would if he were “curling” his opponent into him.

“Your gi, give it to me!”

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JJMTECHNIQUE:::::::::::

04

05

06

07

Stephen uses his left hand and will play with his opponent’s left side collar, not to choke, but to get his opponent to defend with his left hand. Once the opportunity presents itself, Stephen grabs the left arm at the wrist, or elbow, and drags the arm across to his left side.

Now Stephen wants to hip out to his right to turn his opponent’s arm across his body. He opens his guard, places his right foot on his opponent’s left hip, hips out, and brings his left side to the mat.

With the opponent’s arm across, Stephen brings the triceps to his right bicep to trap the captured arm, but still holding it in place with his left hand.

As soon as the turn is complete he locks his feet back up.

Now, all that’s left to do is finish. Stephen brings his left hand around the back of his opponent’s head and raises his right elbow away to tighten the choke.

KEY POINTS

At step 4, instead of playing with the collar to bait your opponent’s arm, you might find that bigger guys will often post their hand on your chest to push away. This makes it even easier. If they do this, just grab the wrist or cuff and pull the arm across to put it into position.

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“Shhhhhhh, go to sleep.”

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FLOWER SWEEP

This sweep has many names, some call it the pendulum sweep, Stephen calls it the flower. Stephen used this sweep at this year’s Pan Ams where he brought home gold. When done correctly this sweep can be effective on anyone, no matter their relative size.

01

Starting from your closed guard Stephen passes on the temptation to grab his opponent’s wrists or cuffs, everyone is expecting this.

Instead, Stephen reaches up higher and grabs his opponent’s sleeve up above the elbow. This way he has control of his entire upper arm, and is effectively controlling the shoulder as well.

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With the grip, Stephen wants to feel connected to his opponent, he doesn’t want it to be loose.

WWW.JIUJITSUMAG.COM

03

With your right hand reach and grab your opponent’s left pant leg around mid calf/shin so you can create a little pocket with your four fingers. This gives you a much better grip that will be very difficult for him to break.

Don’t break the rules by putting your fingers in the cuff of his pants.

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04

Now you have control of his right arm and left leg.

Next, open your guard and bring your left foot down to the mat with your knee bent so your opponent can’t post out with his right leg. With your left leg make sure you maintain a connection to your opponent’s side, don’t swing it or pull it away, keep connected.

06

05

Pressure your left knee to your right, into your opponent, so that he responds by pushing back. As soon as you feel him push back, drag your right leg up across his left side while at the same time pulling his left leg up off the mat.

07

Your opponent is broken down, continue bringing your right leg up so it’s all the way up under his armpit and your right hand is near your head (with his leg along for the ride). Now, punch your right hand up towards the ceiling, not over, just straight up.

Since you still have a firm hold of his right arm, doing all these things at once will bring you on top of your opponent and into mount with the successful execution of this sweep.

08

Once you’re up on the mount, quickly go for an attack, maybe feed a hand into the collar. This gives your opponent something else to focus on rather than being able to concentrate on an escape.

KEY POINTS

When you open your guard up, if you don’t keep contact with your opponent with your right leg he’ll sense this opening and shift his weight to that side, quickly negating what you’re about to attempt.

In step 4 don’t open your legs wide.

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AUGUST 2014

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MODIFIED CROSS CHOKE FROM WRECKING BALL CONTROL

This choke uses a control that Stephen learned from Marcus “Wrecking Ball” Hicks. It’s essentially a whizzer that, along with some key details, makes this choke well suited for big guys to use against other big guys.

01

Starting from closed guard bring your hips off the mat so that your entire body is engaged, bring your hands to the center, under your opponent’s arms.

02

Bring your knees to your chest to collapse your opponent into you while circling your arms outward. As you do this, loop your left arm over hooking his right arm shooting deep so your arm is in his armpit. Use your left hand to push his left arm away from you. As you’re doing this, hip out to your left a little.

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This is the side bar quote thingy. Text can go here.

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03

Now, grab his left lapel with your left hand as deep as you can. Make sure that your left arm is above your opponent’s right elbow and “pinch” his arm into you with your arm and lean your body in toward him.

05

04

It’s tempting to go for a choke at this point, but if you go for it too soon he’ll easily defend with his left arm. Instead, cup the back his head and pull it into your right shoulder.

With control of his head, circle your hand and arm around the back of his head so that the outside edge of your right hand is on the right side of his head.

07

Now, finish the choke by pushing your right fist into the right side of his neck and pulling on the left side collar.

06

Push his head away with your right arm so it gives you space to get your right hand into the collar, fingers in, so your pointing finger knuckle is just below his ear.

KEY POINTS

Don’t pull with 100% strength in your arms on the finish, engage your hips as well.

This choke hits both sides of his neck, so if you don’t have it at first stick with it, it will eventually set in.

The hips make the difference.

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AUGUST 2014

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SHOULDER LOCK FROM WRECKING BALL CONTROL

01

Just like before, from closed guard bring your hips off the mat so your entire body is engaged, bring your hands to the center, under your opponent’s arms.

02

Bring your knees to your chest to collapse your opponent into you while circling your arms outward. As you do this, loop your left arm underneath his right arm shooting deep so your arm is in his armpit. Use your right hand to push his left arm away from you. As you’re doing this hip out to your left a little.

03

At this point, your opponent’s escape will be to turn away from you and pull his arm through. Feed into this escape by turning your body so you’re almost entirely on your right shoulder.

Doing this now requires him to carry your weight when he pulls his arm.

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You could also bait with this one and let him think he’s getting away.

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04

At this point say you screwed up and your opponent was able to bring his left arm in while you’re transitioning from the back of his head to the collar, like in the technique before. Now, post your left foot on the mat, with your knee bent to the outside of his right leg and bring your right foot onto his left hip.

KEY POINTS

If, at the finish, you lose something, either your foot off his hip, or a grip, anything, you can quickly bring your left leg over his back and switch to an omoplata. When going for the omoplata use your left arm to turn his captured elbow out as shown.

05

Turn your body to the right to turn him away from you, bring your left foot onto his right hip and pressure your knee onto his body pushing him toward the mat. This will get the tap with the shoulder lock being applied to his right shoulder. Your right foot on his left hip helps to give you the necessary leverage to pressure down.

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This is a dangerous sequence.

7/1/14 1:41 PM

ONE ARM ARMBAR

Big guys like to rely on their size and strength more often than the little guys do, so this sometimes means they’ll put themselves in precarious positions a little more often. One such position is when in an open or half-guard a big guy posts his hand off to the side maybe to get the underhook when working a pass. Here’s an armbar that Stephen likes to use from the closed guard that’s very effective for big guys to use, or to use against.

01

From the closed guard, the opponent opens the guard, stands up and goes for the underhook to work a knee slice, or other pass. Once Stephen gets an indication that this is what’s going to happen, he grabs his opponent’s arm with a cross grip by the cuff and strips the grip loose.

02

Quickly, Stephen gives him what he wants and drags his opponent’s right arm to Stephen’s left side armpit, while using his arm to pinch his opponent’s to maintain the hold.

03

Once the arm is there, Stephen performs what is the most important step of this technique. With his left hand he grabs his opponent’s elbow with his thumb on the inside crook of the elbow and four fingers on the outside. He then turns the elbow out (pronation).

KEY POINTS

Turning out the arm is VERY important, if you don’t do this you won’t get the armbar and he’ll be in a much better position to pass.

04

Stephen brings his right foot to his opponent’s right leg, engages his hips and brings his left leg up and over his opponent’s back, to his right side and hips out to finish the armbar.

The arm is anchored in place by Stephen’s armpit, the pronation of the arm, and the grasp of the elbow.

And that’s a wrap!

Stephen Hall.indd 15

If your opponent thinks he can escape by walking to his left, that’s okay because you can just follow with him.

AUGUST 2014

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GEARLAB:::::::::::::::::::::::

TOOLS OF THE TRADE Essential Gear for Jiu-Jitsu words & photos: JJM STAFF

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HEN YOU WALK INTO A JIU-JITSU DOJO FOR THE FIRST TIME AND ARE THINKING ABOUT GIVING IT A SHOT, YOU LOOK AROUND AND SEE EVERYONE WEARING THAT KARATE LOOKING THING CALLED A GI AND FIGURE THAT’S ALL YOU NEED. But after training awhile, you realize it’s a lot more than just a gi, or kimono, as it’s often referred to. So here’s a rundown of all the tools you’ll need or at least want to have in your jiu-jitsu journey.

GI

By definition jiu-jitsu happens in a gi, and even though this list is in no particular order, the gi tops it. It’s the essential uniform of jiu-jitsu and the tool that you will become most intimate with.

Available in a variety of colors, although white, blue, and black are most common.

WHAT YOU WANT IN A GI… Proper fit full range of motion, not too tight or too loose Durability, stick with brands with a solid reputation Reinforced stitching Taped cuff for comfort durability Lighter weight if you’ll be using it in competition or hot climate

BELT

The belt doesn’t keep your pants up, but it does show the world your level of accomplishment. Belts are earned from your instructor; you usually don’t have a choice on brand or size, as your instructor figures that out. However, almost every major gi company offers their own belt should you not be fond of your instructor’s belt choice.

WHAT YOU WANT IN A BELT… Proper fit not too long, not too short, when tied each end should drape about 10 inches from the knot Durable, yet soft, cotton. Belts should only fall apart from lots and lots of time on the mats

RASH GUARD

Some schools mandate that you wear a rash guard underneath your gi, while others don’t. Rash guards offer a level or protection against the spread of skin disease, reduce instances of gi and mat burn and help wick away sweat.

WHAT YOU WANT IN A RASH GUARD… Flat seams for comfort Wicking material that will help transfer away sweat A snug, yet unrestrictive fit Anti-odor and anti-microbial technology • Elastic cuffs and waistband

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That sweet gi is from www.vandalkimonos.com

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GRAPPLING SHORTS

Many of us like to roll without the gi. At that point it’s no longer jiu-jitsu, but instead no-gi grappling.

Sure, we can argue this point, but we’re not going to do that here. Grappling shorts and a rash guard are proper attire at any no-gi tournament or 10th Planet schools.

WHAT YOU WANT IN FIGHT SHORTS… Redundant closure, usually a draw string and Velcro High side slits for full range of motion Breathable and stretchable material

GEAR BAG

MOUTH GUARD

A few years ago, a quick scan of the medal podiums at any major event showed a mouth guard was hard to find. Today it seems more jiu-jitsu athletes are placing a great importance on the ability to chew. Thankfully mouth guards are becoming more and more popular.

Not only will a good mouth guard help prevent a busted lip or broken tooth, but can sometimes help you defend certain chokes or positions. Mouth guards range in price from a few dollars for a boil and bite type to a few hundred for a custom fitted appliance.

WHAT YOU WANT IN A MOUTH GUARD… Proper fit, whether it’s a boil and bite, or if custom, it needs to fit you properly One that won’t make you gag One that allows you to breath as easy as possible Avoid those that require being bitten down on all the time. It should stay firmly in place.

SPATS

Spats aren’t as common here in the states as they are over in the UK and in Japan. Some spats have a compression aspect to them that can help with muscle performance while most simply offer protection to the skin from germs, bacteria, and mat burn. Spats can be worn under gi pants, under fight shorts, or if you’re so inclined by themselves in no-gi training or competition.

WHAT YOU WANT IN SPATS… Flat seams for comfort Wicking material that will help transfer away sweat A snug, yet unrestrictive fit Anti-odor and anti-microbial technology Elastic cuffs and waistband

I’d rock them.

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Gear bag, gi bag, kit bag, whatever you decide to call it, we’re talking about the bag that you transport all this stuff back and forth to the academy in. You can pick up a sports duffle from any sporting good store, but jiu-jitsu brand companies make bags designed specifically for the needs of the grappler.

WHAT YOU WANT IN A GEAR BAG… Enough room for all your gear, including a towel if you shower at school Separate compartments to stay organized and to keep your sweaty and clean stuff separate Durable construction, including heavyduty zippers that won’t break Bags that double as either a backpack or duffle are very convenient

MEDICAL TAPE

This is probably the most common thing that you or someone else at your academy is asking to borrow. Tape can be used to assist improving your grips by wrapping portions of your fingers in certain patterns. Not all tapes are created equal as some actually perform very poorly when it comes to application, as they lean towards one ideal instead of being well balanced.

WHAT YOU WANT IN TAPE… Fabric reinforced The cheap stuff usually doesn’t stick very well Go with ½” width that way you can split in half for particular patterns AUGUST 2014

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GEARLAB::::::::::::::::::::::

HEADGEAR

Head over to any academy during training and it’s probably safe to say you might see one or two people training with headgear on. Much more common in wrestling circles, headgear helps to prevent cauliflower ear. We recommend picking up headgear before you need it. That way, when you’re at class or sparring, and you feel like you might have done some damage to your ear(s), i.e. it hurts or is starting to hurt, you can put them on without missing a round. Continue to train with the headgear on until your ear(s) are free of pain. This will help prevent or minimize cauliflower ear, unless that’s the look you’re trying to achieve. If you definitely want to cut out the risk of cauliflower ear wear headgear with every roll.

WHAT YOU WANT IN HEADGEAR… Hard protection will help more than soft if healing an already damaged ear, however may be illegal at some competitions A proper fit, adjustability 4 or 5 straps are best, 3 straps move too easily Chin cups help to prevent being choked by the strap

WIPES

WATER

As you’ve learned by now, or will be learning soon, after a long training session you’re going to be covered by other people’s sweat, maybe a little saliva and at the very worst some blood.

Non-grapplers would say that’s pretty gross, but we know it’s just part of the game. Regardless how you feel about it, keeping good hygiene is imperative to making sure you can get in as much mat time as possible. To help minimize the risk of catching something, along with just feeling a little bit cleaner when you can’t immediately hit the showers, we strongly recommend some sort of wipes in your kit bag. At the very least baby wipes, and if you can spring for it, something more stringent like these body wipes by Defense Soap. After rolling, the sooner you can remove any germs or bacteria from your skin the better.

Given this is a list about gear, we’ll give you some advice on choosing a good water bottle, but what’s most important is what’s in it – clean water. Being properly hydrated before, during and after a tough training session is of the utmost importance. The American Council on Fitness says that you should drink 7 to 10 ounces of water every 10 to 20 minutes during exercise, and 8 ounces no more than 30 minutes after working out. Staying hydrated during training helps fight muscle fatigue, keeps your brain functioning properly, helps regulate body temperature, and allows you to keep going. So stay hydrated. For more information on hydration, check out Issue 1.

WHAT YOU WANT IN WIPES… Any wipe is better than no wipe Those with anti-bacterial and antifungal properties are best Avoid those containing alcohol as this dries the skin

WHAT YOU WANT IN A WATER BOTTLE… Holds at least 20 oz.

Is BPA-Free Has measurement markings so you can keep track of your intake Dishwasher safe

JIU-JITSU MAGAZINE

What better tool to get all this great useful information from this article, jiu-jitsu news, technique and more!

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EXTRAS Knee Pads Whether you have bad knees or train at an academy that practices takedowns often, you may want to invest in a decent pair of these. There are knee pads specifically designed for heavy impact for the heavier grappler or smooth shooting sleeve types that provide a combination of lightweight material with just enough cushion for the speedy takedown artist.

Micro Fiber Towel Wipes (especially those with anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties) are still recommended to clear away all those post rolling germs, but adding this type of towel or something like a Shamwow will rid your body of a ton of sweat immediately, as well as rid it of a lot more germs prior to using the wipes.

Kinesio Tape It is believed to reduce muscle fatigue, increase range of motion, increase better quality of muscle contraction, improve joint alignment and a list of other positive qualities. You can find out more information in Issue 15.

Sandals It’s a good idea to have a pair of sandals to get you from your street clothes to the mats. Walking around the gym barefoot is just as bad as walking on the mats with your shoes on, especially if you have to use the restroom.

Definitely don’t forget Jiu-Jitsu Magazine!

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GEARLAB::::::::::::::::::::::: Rockin’ Green

ATHLETIC WEAR DETERGENT WWW.ROCKINGREENSOAP.COM words & photos: MIKE VELEZ

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HERE’S ALWAYS THAT ONE GUY…YOU KNOW WHO I’M TALKING ABOUT. Every school has one. When you get paired up with him you roll your eyes, grimace, and think to yourself, “Please! No north/south!” He’s a nice guy, but man does his gi stink. Hopefully this isn’t you, but it could be. If we don’t take proper care of our gi’s, the bacteria and other junk we roll around with and excrete from our pores (and the pores of all your training partners) can have a tendency to linger. The laundry soap you grew up on that might have gotten dad’s boxers clean might not be cutting it on your filthy, sweaty gi that’s 5 times its own weight from all the sweat you’ve collected from a couple hours of rolling. This is the dilemma that Rockin’ Green’s Athletic Wear Detergent aims to solve.

WHAT IT IS

Rockin’ Green is a company that produces a complete line of biodegradable, phosphate free laundry detergents. The company started in 2009, the owner’s original intent was to produce eco friendly cleaning products that she could use for her family’s needs. Well, the family got into jiu-jitsu, and she quickly recognized that your average off-the-shelf laundry soap in the big orange jug wasn’t cutting it. The Athletic Wear Detergent is the solution for all athletes, especially us jiujitsu freaks. The detergent itself is 100% phosphate free (those are bad for the environment), and uses sodium carbonate, sodium percarbonate, biodegradable surfactants, plant derived enzymes, and tea tree oil, among other ingredients, to get the job done. The product claims to rinse clean, have a natural scent, keep your gi bright no matter what color it is, and most importantly, keep your gi funk free. The detergent is made in the USA and sold in a recyclable sealable zip lock tight bag. It carries 25 ounces of product inside and says it’s able to do 50 loads. A bag will set you back $15.95 on their website, but if you look for their ad in this issue you’ll get a discount when using the code.

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PUTTING IT TO WORK

I’m not a savage, so I wash my gi’s after every roll. Usually in cold water and I spare my family the agony of washing my gi with any of their stuff.

The package says to add 1 to 2 tablespoons of detergent to your laundry. From using the product for about a month I’d say if you’re washing just one gi and a rash guard, 1 tablespoon is plenty (perfect plug for this month’s Grub, if you haven’t read it do so now and you’ll know how many tablespoons are in this package of detergent.) In fact, from my experience I was able to wash two gi’s with just a little more than a tablespoon, let’s call it a slightly heaping tablespoon with good results.

SMELL GOOD?

Speaking of results, here are my observations while using an entire bag of Rockin’ Green Athletic Wear Detergent. One tablespoon easily cleans about a gi and a half. So if you have two gi’s, go with a heaping tablespoon, three gi’s go with two scoops. It does indeed rinse easily. When the laundry was done my gi’s didn’t feel like they still had any detergent in them, they felt clean. After

drying one gi that had some funk to it, it smelled as fresh as a year old gi could smell.

In terms of looks, my blue gi’s kept their bright look and a new white gi that I had worked into the mix was still bright white after about 8 trips to the academy. My laboratory consists of my jiu-jitsu academy and my laundry room. I have a top loading, old-fashioned washing machine (ditched the HE washer, it sucked). I do have a water softener, so as long as it’s working like it should, my water is pretty soft. Once dry my gi’s smell good, they smell like nothing, just like they should. Rockin’ Green doesn’t use any fragrances; just what all the natural ingredients smell like, the most distinguishable odor is the tea tree oil.

Rashguards can really stink, more so than gi’s some times.

It has to do with the material.

This detergent is said to be safe on micro fibers and wicking materials like those used in rashguards. From my experience this appears to be true. One rash guard that I’ve had for years has always had a little bit of a smell to it. After putting it in the mix with the Rockin’ Green the funk was reduced after a few washes.

VERDICT

You can go your entire life washing your gi’s with the detergent you get at the grocery store. But all it takes is one training partner to get an odd kind of funk on your gi and it’s all over. Your gi’s going to smell like them until it’s ripped to shreds. Then nobody will know it was him, they’ll think it was you that brought in the funk. I’ve nipped that in the bud with Rockin’ Green Athletic Wear Detergent. Yes, it’s much more expensive per load that the stuff I normally buy at Costco. However, it’s competitively priced with other specialty detergents that you might find at the sporting goods store. I’d say pick up a bag, it’s good to keep in stock.

Avoid the funk all together and use it in your laundry each time, after you roll. Or, keep it handy for those special occasions when “you-knowwho” shows up for class.

VERDICT If you roll you should have a bag of this stuff in your laundry room. Even if you don’t use it every time keep it handy for smelly emergencies.

PERFORMANCE: VALUE: OVERALL:

Who knew there was that much to say about detergent?

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GEARLAB::::::::::::::::::::::: KETTLE-JITSU

REVOLUTION

WWW.KJREVOLUTION.COM

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words: TRAVIS GUESNON

RECENTLY GOT MY HANDS ON A COPY OF JOEY ALVARADO’S KETTLE-JITSU REVOLUTION. Joey is currently a brown belt, competes regularly in jiu-jitsu tournaments, has over thirty years of martial arts experience, has three black belts in other martial arts, is a former professional MMA fighter and trains at and owns SoCal Martial Arts in Los Angeles, CA. Kettle-Jitsu is a two-disc DVD set for an eight week fitness conditioning program incorporating the use of kettlebells and your own body weight. This combination works great because you don’t need a gym or a ton of equipment to get a great workout in regardless of your location. There are a variety of movements within the program. Jiu-Jitsu Magazine first did an article on Joey and Kettle-Jitsu back in our second issue.

NEW DVD SET

Both discs are separated into three sections. The first is a short introduction with ten points that are like suggestions and tips for the viewer that should be recognized prior to handling kettlebells. This segment should be viewed, especially by beginners. The next section includes just over seventeen minutes of warm-up in a separate chapter that is suggested for each time prior to beginning the actual workouts.

These warm-ups are provided as an advisement to prepare your body for the load to come, loosen you up, break a sweat, and activate joint mobility. Both DVD’s actually have the exact same intro and warm-ups so there’s no need to re-watch it if you’ve memorized the material the first time.

WORKOUTS

The major section is, of course, the workouts; with the first disc containing weeks one through four and the second disc having the remainder of weeks up to the eighth. Each week is broken down into five chapters where the viewer has the option to play them all (recommended) or choose a preferred section.

Unfortunately, all the chapters for every week have the same titles except for the second listed title. With that in mind, you

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really don’t know what changed as far as exercises, reps, etc.

While I recommend you watch the complete workout in it’s entirety your first time around, if you want to find something specific to re-watch later to better your form or understand a concept, you’re going to have to search for it by actually viewing it in its entirety rather than seeing the title and going straight to it. However, if your form is good and you remember the movement of the exercise, you can look it up in the exercise handbook that comes in the case. The pamphlet includes all the workout routines for each of the eight weeks.

This is a simple, but very useful tool that other manufacturers should look into incorporating in their DVD sets, especially fitness based. It’s small, can be taken with you on the go and provides the curriculum even if you don’t have the opportunity to watch the DVD for whatever reason. Think of it as a workout log, but the plan is written for you.

Joey puts together flows from movement to movement, chaining them together really well as you see the transitions from exercise to exercise in the Kettlebell Warm-up Break Down sections. This is also evident with the body weight

portion of the routines and it’s nicely done. Adding other exercises into the mix (sprawls for example), while performing the suggested exercise, will make the routines a little tougher, but not overwhelming for viewers.

These are options and options are always good. I especially liked the Scorpion Drills, which if utilized during warm-up, are a great movement for jiu-jitsu mobility. If replayed footage bothers you, then you won’t like when this is done three times in a row during the circuits. It can be a little annoying, but should also be looked at as a useful tool. This is done so you can coincide your workout with the DVD, which is a benefit to staying on track.

One thing I wasn’t too fond of was the fact that there’s not too much explanation on how to actually perform the exercises properly. There’s a large difference between swinging a kettlebell and actually knowing how to swing it correctly.

While fitness may not be rocket science, there’s a lot that can be broken down to completely change the feel of an exercise if corrected by someone with more knowledge. It’s the same when my instructor, his instructor or I show the same move during class; you can clearly see a difference of experience and understanding

of physical function as you move up the ladder. At certain points through the DVDs this can be seen when Joey performs a movement differently than the other cast. So, do the exercises the way Joey does them. The production value of the DVD is good overall. The audio is good as well. There are a few minor cut-outs, and at one point, music plays extremely loud to the point you can’t hear Joey, but other than that I could hear everything just fine.

Fitness DVDs are a tricky business, especially with YouTube around. The DVD has some good content; it’s a combination of Joey’s previous DVD sets with the addition of more moves. The two-disk set is available for $49.99 plus shipping and handling.

Overall, I’d say this is a decent fitness program for a beginner to moderate user, and can compliment your jiu-jitsu training routine.

VERDICT Following these program will help with your conditioning and movement.

Production quality is good, content is good.

PERFORMANCE: VALUE: OVERALL:

Who knew there was that much to say about a 2-disk DVD set?

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MINDGAMES::::::::::::::::

STUDENT DIRECTED LEARNING words: MATT CORLEY illustrations: MISTER BONES FB/MISTER

T

HERE COMES A POINT IN YOUR EDUCATION WHEN YOU HAVE TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOURSELF AND WORK WITHOUT THE OVERARCHING GUIDANCE OF SOMEONE OR SOMETHING ELSE. In my own professional life that happened 14 years ago when I graduated from school.

I no longer had a professor and a curriculum. It was up to me to decide what I needed to learn, and in many cases, I had to teach it to myself. This same phenomenon

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will probably occur to you at some point in your education as a student of jiu jitsu.

The easiest example of student directed learning is someone running his or her own school.

He or she is responsible for not only teaching students, but also in building and refining their own skills. As Robson Moura is fond of saying, “Jiu-jitsu has no end.”

An instructor who isn’t continually learning, honing and expanding his/her game is not only stagnating their own growth, but also doing a

disservice to their students.

Others may have started much earlier. It may be because I came to jiu-jitsu later in life or because of my background, but in any case, I never placed the responsibility of my education solely in the hands of my instructor. Within the first year of training I was reading, watching and studying as much as I could outside of class. By using external sources and working with my instructor, I’ve been able to develop my own “game” that is suited to me and my attributes.

We hear that book is pretty good.

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AS AN INSTRUCTOR THE CO-LEARNER

This may be the most difficult part of encouraging student directed learning within your school. There will come a time when you have to acknowledge that you don’t know everything. It’s also critical that you have an open mind. Renzo Gracie has said, “I love rolling with everybody, even white belts. They can all teach me something.” Can you say, “Okay, that’s not something I’m an expert at…let’s work on it together.” Have you ever drilled something new with your students?

There are coaches and teachers in all sports and schools who will be intimidated by this approach and there will be others who embrace learning from (and with) their students. These are the teachers who will be most successful as they build their own knowledge and encourage active learning in their students.

THE GUIDE

At this point I’m going to assume that you’ve decided that there is value in having your students take ownership for some of their education as a jiu-jiteiro. As they branch out to other sources of information it is crucial that you’re involved as they explore other avenues of education. Encourage your students to reach out to you for advice and guidance.

If you’re able to recommend to your students a specific DVD, book or instructor,

you will help them navigate through the quagmire of substandard instruction that is available. At an individual level you’re in a position to tell your student a specific example of what he/she needs to work on and to lead them to a quality resource.

Social media, such as Facebook, is an ideal place to guide your students. Many schools have private team pages and these are great places to share videos, which

you’ve already vetted, with your students.

In my own school we regularly share videos from on iRoll.TV, BJJ Scout, BJJ Library, Marcelo Garcia and the Mendes Brothers.

I’m particularly fond of videos that show techniques we’ve recently learned. Having another instructional perspective and having the ability to re-watch them are invaluable.

THE ROLE OF THE STUDENT

The customized approach to learning can be the most rewarding and effective method of educating yourself. However, before you subscribe to MGinAction and glue yourself to a computer monitor, here are a few tips for your journey.

STUDENTTEACHER CONTRACT

You are still a student under your instructor. Read that twice. You still need to go to class and work on the techniques that are being taught to everyone else. There is no substitute for live instruction and there is always a take-away that can be applied to your own game. Last but not least, your instructor is a vital resource for you and one that you should take full advantage of.

Know your role.

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MINDGAMES:::::::::::::::

KNOW HOW YOU LEARN

It is critical that you have an idea of what works best for YOU when you’re learning something new.

Please take a few minutes to look over my previously published articles on teaching and learning to get an idea of your own style.

No matter your method, you will need to have time to drill and work on these techniques. That’s non-negotiable. Even theory-heavy instruction, such as Ryan Hall’s work, will require mat time to assimilate what you’ve been taught.

THE PARETO PRINCIPLE

For some people it is fun to watch jiujitsu matches and instructionals, and for others not so much. If you’re watching them for entertainment, watch what you want. If you’re trying to learn something don’t get caught up in the technique of the moment. Enter the Pareto Principle, aka the 80-20 rule. To paraphrase Vilfredo Pareto, the 80-20 rule states that 80% of your sales come from 20% of your products. To take this a step further, 80% of your sweeps, subs and passes come from 20% of your techniques.

effective for you and that are viable while rolling. For more insight into the Pareto Principle, please go to The Jiu-Jitsu Laboratory. David wrote an excellent piece on this concept as it applies to jiu-jitsu.

If you look at the numerous articles breaking down IBJJF stats and the games of specific high-level jiu-jitsu athletes, you’ll see that a relatively small number of techniques are used. It really is about the small details and refining your moves.

Do you need to know a dozen different inverted guard sweeps? Probably not.

Instead, focus on techniques that are

HAVE A PLAN

I have been this guy. Please don’t be this guy.

I spent a lot of time watching whatever was new and pretty and shiny. I learned a lot of techniques, but they were rarely what I needed.

I became the dreaded “technique collector.”

While it’s good to have exposure to a broad number of moves, it really is much more efficient to find out what you need to work on and focus on that specifically. Again, your instructor is an excellent resource. Find out from him/her what you need to work on, do a little research and commit to doing it. Have some patience. The last thing you want to do is switch between several different instructionals; pick one and stick with it for a few months.

PUTTING IT INTO PRACTICE

Throughout the article you’ve been given suggestions on how best to encourage your students to take control of some of their education.

If you’re a student you’ve got the basics to get started yourself. The last piece of advice I have is that even though a student is taking more responsibility for his or her development, is it essential for everyone to have the support of peers, instructors and students. Now go out there, find something that will help you and work on it every chance you have for the next few months!

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What’s your plan?

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STRENGTH&CONDITION

STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING BAND TRAINING FOR JIU-JITSU

I

words: NAVEED SHAN

| photos: KIRANA RIVERA

MAGINE AN INEXPENSIVE AND VERSATILE EXERCISE TOOL THAT COULD BE BENEFICIAL FOR EVERYONE. It can be scaled down for those just beginning a strength training program to those who are advanced and in need of an additional challenge to their current program. A piece of equipment that can be taken anywhere when traveling and allow for a type of resistance that is different from what a free weight can provide.

The resistance band offers just that; a simple and effective tool that can be included in anyone’s current exercise regimen. From football to MMA, bands are included in strength and conditioning programming for virtually all sports due to their effectiveness and versatility.

Jiu-jitsu should be no exception and bands should be utilized for several reasons.

OMNI-RESISTANT As with many other sports, jiu-jitsu has quite a bit of lateral and rotational movement. You won’t always move your arms as you would a bench press or cable row; you won’t always squat and lunge with your knees and feet pointed directly in front you. Band Training allows us to train in various loads and planes which are not possible with free weight exercises. Pulling and pressing bands at different angles and loads has great carry over to the sport of jiu-jitsu.

As you perform an exercise with a barbell, the load becomes easier to move in certain

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positions. This is apparent when you perform a squat; it is much easier to move a weight at the top of the movement compared to the bottom half. Bands allow for a different type of load known as “accommodating resistance.” This type of tension increases as you extend through a movement from a flexed (or shortened) position.

Bands also teach stabilization and stiffness through major compound movements, such as squats and deadlifts. If you aren’t stiff and stable, you would be unable to complete the exercise through the entire range of motion.

Band Buying

From my experience Rogue Fitness and Elite Fitness offer some great quality bands that offer a strong value. The tension will vary based on the width of the band so one band may not be enough. A mini band (1/4-1/2” width) is ideal for warm ups and upper body movements which have between 15-30lbs of tension. An average band (1/2-1 1/8”width) has 50-65lbs of tension can be used for the lower body movements as well as compound upper body movements. The strong bands (1 ¾-4” width) are used primarily for lower body movements and joint distraction have a tension between 100-200lbs. Depending on your level of strength, these bands will be the perfect addition to your toolbox.

Go buy some bands today!

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Band Together!

Competitive jiu-jitsu can be highly stressful on the body, so when including strength exercises it would be a wise decision to include some exercises that are low impact and not as taxing on the body; resistance bands offer just that. Below are some of my favorite band exercises for jiu-jitsu athletes. Whether you are an experienced lifter or new to strength training, these will undoubtedly add some challenge to your current routine.

X BAND SQUAT This is similar to a traditional squat with a slight variation and increased difficulty. Stand over the band and cross it over, forming an “X” in front of you.

Hold the bands in front of your shoulders. Your feet should be shoulder width apart with your toes pointed straight or with a slight external rotation. Begin the squat by breaking at the hips and knees while maintaining an upright torso. Squat as low as you are physically capable, while maintaining a neutral spinal position. The inward tension on your feet from the bands will allow greater glute activation and make the movement more challenging.

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IDEAL REPETITION AND SET SCHEME: 4-5 sets of 7-10 repetitions

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IDEAL REPETITION AND SET SCHEME: 3-4sets of 15-20 repetitions

Naveed looks braced.

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PALOFF PRESS The Paloff press is an uncommon exercise that is very effective in training the abdominal and oblique muscle groups. Known as an “antirotation” exercise, the tension from the band is producing a tension that is pulling laterally and your abdominal muscles have to stabilize in order to hold the band in front of you.

This is particularly important for jiu-jitsu athletes as low back pain can be common and a strong and stable “core” is necessary. Begin by standing with a shoulder width stance, 1-2 feet away from the band attachment. Grasp the band with both hands and hold it firmly at the center of your body, aligned with your sternum. Brace your abdominal muscles and squeeze your glutes, while maintaining a neutral spinal position. In a quarter squat position, extend your arms directly in front of you without letting them sway towards the band attachment. Repeat on the other side.

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STRENGTH&CONDITION

BAND PUSH UPS Push ups are a challenging exercise that strengthen the anterior chain, including the abdominals, pectorals, and anterior deltoids. As with other calisthenics, most people quickly adapt to the stimulus provided by bodyweight pushups; so it is necessary to find more challenging ways to perform them in order to see continued progress. Bands are an additional challenge to the exercise by creating more tension at the top position of the push up. Begin by lying face down on the floor with your heels together and hands beneath your shoulders. The band should be placed across your shoulder blades and the end of the bands under each hand. Squeeze your glutes and abdomen to maintain a neutral spinal position, not letting your pelvis sag down. Press away from the ground by extending your arms until they are completely locked out. Reverse the movement slowly until your chest lightly touches the ground while still maintaining full body tension.

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IDEAL REPETITION AND SET SCHEME: 3-4 sets of 8-12 repetitions

BAND DEADLIFTS Deadlift variations are paramount in any strength program for athletes. Strong hip extensors are essential in that they allow you to stabilize your lower back and move powerfully on the mat in various guard positions. Begin by standing with your feet in a hip width position with the band directly underneath the arches of your feet. Hold each end of the band at your side and hinge your hips back, while maintaining a neutral spinal position. Continue to hinge back with a slight bend at the knee; once you can no longer hinge without rounding your back, reverse the direction by standing back up.

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SIDEVIEW

IDEAL REPETITION AND SET SCHEME: 4-5 sets of 5-7 repetitions

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It’s easy to get inventive and come up with your own band exercises

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STRENGTH&CONDITION

BAND RESISTED PULL UPS Jiu-jitsu competitors typically exhibit high rates of relative strength, meaning they are strong for their size and can perform most body weight exercises with ease. In order to continue seeing benefits from these types of exercises, we must find ways to make them more challenging. One way to do this is by using a band to increase the load of a pull up. Begin by attaching the band above your hips or around your neck.

Grasp the pull up bar with a grip slightly wider than shoulder width apart. Pull yourself toward the bar by depressing your shoulder blades and pulling your elbows towards your sides.

Once you’ve reached a full contraction at the top, reverse the movement by slowly lowering yourself back down until your arms are fully extended.

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IDEAL REPETITION AND SET SCHEME: 4-5 sets of 5-7 repetitions

LATERAL LUNGE WITH BAND As mentioned previously, you won’t always move in a sagittal plane on the mat. Your knees and hips will not be aligned perfectly as they are in the squat or deadlift; therefore it is important to train movements in the frontal plane. Begin by standing parallel to the band, grasping it hand-over-hand in a shoulder width stance. Hold the band in front of your sternum at the center of your body. Step away from the band with one foot while the other leg stays in place. Flex at the knee and hip, performing a squat over the far foot, while the other foot stays in place extending that knee. Squat as deep as you comfortably can, while maintaining an upright posture and a neutral spinal position. Extend the knee and hip, reversing the direction to the original starting position.

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IDEAL REPETITION AND SET SCHEME: 3-4 sets of 12-15 repetitions

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MORE TOOLS IN YOUR BOX Similar to a barbell or kettlebell, bands are just one tool in your toolbox; they should not be the only piece of equipment you use. Bands are a great addition to your current exercise program; they can offer you a challenge to your current exercises as well as assist in making other movements less difficult. Give them a try and you won’t be disappointed.

Go get strong.

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SPOTLIGHT::::::::::::::::::::

TALES FROM THE WORLDS

SAY WHAT? I DON’T WANT TO TAKE A BREAK! words: DEB BLYTHE

B

| photos: KENNY JEWEL AND MIKE CALIMBAS

RAZILIAN JIU-JITSU MAY BE PURE PERFECTION FOR YOUR MIND AND SOUL, BUT SOMETIMES THE SPORT CAN BREAK YOUR BODY DOWN…LITERALLY. Jiu-jitsu is a physical contact sport. We all know the hazards we face…the hyperextended elbows, the torn ACL’s, MCL’s, LCL’s, labrums and rotator cuffs, the broken fingers and toes, the sprained ribs, the dislocated shoulders, the pinched nerves in your back and neck…I could go

on and on – very few people who practice jiu-jitsu on a regular basis escape some sort of injury, from the minor to the major, but we are all so addicted to the sport, we put it out of our minds and keep rolling. We power through the injuries that hurt, but don’t completely sideline us…we even go so far as to stick an injured hand through our belt and spar with one arm. But sometimes we are plagued with such severe injuries, they stop us dead in our tracks. We can no longer ignore

the situation or fight it off. Though we don’t want to hear those dreaded words, “You need to take a break and stop training for a while,” we know in our hearts that in order to find our way back to 100% health again, we must heed those words, honor our bodies and take time to recover. The following are the stories of some famous black belts who’ve had to face down their toughest opponents yet - their own health conditions - and make peace with their demons.

THE ODDS ARE IN HIS FAVOR

The jiu-jitsu community was very sad and disheartened to discover that legendary black belt Caio Terra was out of the Worlds. Even on the jiu-jitsu betting sites, he was projected to win at overwhelmingly high odds. However, Caio is dealing with an illness called Labyrinthitis, which is an inner ear disturbance that causes Vertigo and other balance issues. At 28 years old, Caio hasn’t missed competing in the Worlds for 11 years, however, he was unable to compete at the 2014 event. He says about his condition, “There’s medicine I can take, but I don’t take it because it makes me drowsy all day and I don’t feel much better after taking it. Everyone reacts differently, and it doesn’t work for me. The doctors tell me the main thing I can do to get better is rest and be hydrated.”

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Not really something a multitime world champion who eats, sleeps and breathes jiu-jitsu wants to hear.

Seeing Caio at the Worlds, it was clear he felt better than he did at the Pan Ams, where he looked drained and ill. “I’m a lot better than I was at the Pan Ams,” he says, “They originally thought it was a tumor. I’m glad it wasn’t. I was stressed that I could have died. Now I know it’s not that, so I’m calmer. The difference between now and then, is that back then I was training a lot harder. Then I got really sick, so I stopped training for 45 days. Then I started training lightly. I thought I was getting better. I started to train harder for the next 3 weeks, but I knew something was wrong. I kept pushing anyway and then I got bad again. I had to go to the

hospital, but it was not as bad as it was before.”

Caio says he feels better when he’s not training, but he hopes that’s not a permanent solution to this issue. And since the doctors don’t know what is wrong with him or why it’s happening, he just has to be patient and let time take its course. “When I start training hard, I end up with Vertigo and

I have to stop immediately,” he says. Although it’s very frustrating to not have a “get well date” or any kind of idea how long this disorder will last, he has accepted his current fate.

“I want to be back soon, but I have no idea when. I went to the Worlds for the first time in 11 years as a spectator. It wasn’t easy, but for now, I don’t have a choice in the matter.”

We hope to see Caio back on the mats in competitoin real soon!

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Ms. Undefeated In 2008, Gracie Barra’s Ana Laura Cordeiro was a brown belt at the Worlds. She won her division and then closed the open class bracket with her teammate, Kyra Gracie. Over the next year, she started having serious back pain. She continued to train and teach classes. A year later, she won the 2009 Pan Ams. After that, the pain became so unbearable, she quit jiu-jitsu. At that time, her record was 66-0. Yep. You read that right: 66 wins and zero losses.

For 5 years Ana Laura suffered with debilitating back pain. She went to Brazil to consult with doctors and get some answers.

The news was not good. “My back injury is very common in people over 60 years old,”

Yup, undefeated.

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she says, “It’s uncommon for a 20 year old girl to have that type of problem. I have S1, L5 degenerated discs.” After much consideration, Ana Laura decided to have surgery and on June 4, 2013, she had a fusion lumbar procedure. The goal? To be able to do some physical activities, and maybe… possibly…train in jiu-jitsu again. She stayed in the ICU for 1 day and spent 12 more in a regular room. She started physical therapy right after surgery and was only allowed to do easy walking for 6 months.

In December of 2013, Ana Laura stepped back on the mats, making her dreams came true.

She says, “Sincerely, it was one of the happiest days of my life!”

Her first tournament was the

Las Vegas Open, on May, 3, 2014. “What an unforgettable day,” she says, “The fight was a good challenge and gave me the certainty that everything I’ve done so far was worth it. A lot of people don’t know this, but my biggest victory…more than any World title…was when I signed up and saw my name in the athlete’s list again. I couldn’t believe it.”

Her next stop was the 2014 Worlds. Ana Laura had 2 fights and won them both, her final was against legendary black belt Hannette Staack. “You know you can’t commit any mistakes because it can cost you the gold medal,” she says, “Hanette is an incredible athlete; a 7x world champion. She was really smart and didn’t allow me to play my

game.” Ana Laura nabbed gold, bringing her winning record to 68-0.

As one can imagine, Ana Laura’s training routine has changed significantly. “It’s not that intense compared to other athletes,” the 5x World Champion says, “I’ve learned that the quality of your training is more important than the quantity. These days I just maintain my techniques and keep them sharp.” Her message to others going through a hard time is simple: “Fight for your ideals,” she says, “Life is about overcoming challenges daily.

Believe in yourself. No one can do it for you!”

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SPOTLIGHT:::::::::::::::::::

A SCARY DAY Alan “Finfou” Nascimento had everyone freaked out at the 2014 Worlds. The 32-year-old CheckMat black belt out of Sweden was on a roll, when his day started falling apart. In the quarter final against Jaime Canuto from GF Team, Finfou was trying to defend against a takedown and posted his hand on the mat. Both competitors fell over his arm and they had to stop the match while he rolled around, writhing in pain.

He took the time he needed to recover, and the fight continued, with Finfou ultimately taking the victory. But his downward spiral did not stop there. In the semi-final against Gracie Barra’s Otavio Sousa, he was being swept and he landed on the mats

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in a very strange way. He hit the back of his neck and head on the mat and blacked out.

He says, “All I remember is my coach, Leo Vieira talking to me and keeping me calm. When I realized that I couldn’t move my legs and arms, I was very scared!”

Finfou lay there for a long time before the medics came and took him to the hospital, where he stayed for 5 days. They did a variety of tests on him, including scans of his brain and spine. Finfou says, “Thank God there was no fracture or damage to either. I just had some nerve damage because of how I hit my head. It shut down my leg and arm functions. But I’m taking medicine, doing

physical therapy and other treatments to recover.”

Now back home in Sweden, Finfou says, “I’m feeling fine.

I’m still limited with some movements, but the most important thing is that I have already accepted the fact that I have an injury and I now have to be professional, respect my body and recover the right way if I wanna be able to be back on the mat. Right now I just wanna focus on being 100% again. I praticed jiu-jitsu for 19 years of my life and I’ve always been a competitor. It’s been really hard to deal with the fact that I may be out of it, but I have to think about my family that I have to take care of. My

girlfriend and my sons need me to be healthy and to be able to live a normal life with them.”

Finfou, whose first contact with jiu-jitsu was in 1996 with Fernado Terere (Terere was his coach for 9 years) has won 2 World Championships, 3 European Championhips, 2 European No-Gi Championships, and 2 Brazilian Nationals Championships.

Finfou had this to say, “To all the people who have been praying for me, sending me good vibes, writing me messages and supporting me, I really wanna thank you all from the bottom of my heart. I’m sorry for making you worry about me.”

Get well soon both of you!

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TAP OR SNAP Tammi Musumeci is a firecracker. She is feisty and fiery.

To say she does not give up is an understatement. And now, at 19 years of age, after her ferocious, first-ever, Worlds black belt fight against Michelle Nicolini in the feather final, she is being hailed as a warrior, a competitor with a huge heart, even a superhero to some…and to others, she’s simply foolish. What am I talking about? “The heinously dislocated elbow seen ‘round the world,” of course! The most interesting part of this is that Tammi didn’t even realize it was happening…

Tammi describes the match this way, “Michelle Nicolini has always been someone I looked up to. She’s always been my favorite female fighter…I was just so psyched to be in the finals. This ‘psyched’ feeling pushed me to do my best and landed me up in points 6-4 with 40 seconds left in the match.

At this time, the only thought I had in my mind was, ‘Hold on, it’s almost over!’ Then the ref gave me a stalling call and I got scared, so I began to get up and work. I didn’t realize that I left my arm open for Michelle to secure an omaplata with her amazing spider guard game. In the match, I recognized I was in the omaplata, but just stayed there because the seconds were ticking down and I didn’t feel any pain. I didn’t feel or realize that I was in the armlock. I then remember putting my arm down to post it thinking it was fine, but it just collapsed. I felt no pain at all. I just remember trying everything I could to

fight back, even trying to use my arm that didn’t work. I also remember at the end coming up into her guard. It is very hard for me to remember those 40 seconds because it happened so fast. I have since viewed the fight film multiple times so I now can see what exactly happened in those 40 seconds. I can’t believe that I didn’t feel anything and was shocked to see my facial expression didn’t even change throughout the incident.”

We might not have seen Tammi change her facial expression, but looking around the crowd you could see the audience cringing and writhing in their seats, shocked at the position of her arm wrapped around her back in such an awkward, unnatural way. Tammi says she dislocated her elbow in the fight. Her shoulder was 100% fine. “The night of the incident, my elbow was put back into place at the Emergency Room,” she says, “The recovery process for my elbow includes: elbow in brace for 2 weeks and about 2-4 weeks physical therapy. The doctors expect a 100% full recovery for which I am thankful. I was lucky, my doctor saw my fight and knew exactly how the injury happened. He said I will be able to return to competing with no limitations.”

Tammi says she believes in tapping 100%. “I feel that there is no situation where you should not tap,” she says, “I tap all the time. I have never had an injury in all the 13 years I have been doing jiu-jitsu because I tap.

Tapping is part of jiu-jitsu and if

you don’t tap, then you are asking for trouble.

The only reason I didn’t in my fight was because I honestly didn’t feel the pain of my elbow dislocating.

Competing in a black belt Worlds final match is probably one of the most exciting things I have ever done in my life. During the match I was so focused and hyped up that I didn’t feel it. I didn’t even realize my elbow was dislocated until I went to post my arm on the mat.”

Tammi did not expect to receive so much love from the jiu-jitsu community after her match.

“I know I always have heart and never give up, but I never expected it to grab the attention of so many people and for that, I am blessed. Through my whole life I have been an introvert. In school, I was always quiet, never socialized or had many friends.

I would just stay focused on my goals and work hard. It’s the same with jiu-jitsu. I never gained recognition for any of my achievements because I was never the type to brag or show

off. I appreciate that people respect me for being hard working, because that is what I have always been. I never take the easy way out and do my best no matter what the situation. I would like to thank the whole jiu-jitsu community for their outpouring of support for me during my injury. It really meant a lot to me seeing that people really cared about me enough to take the time to write me and show their support.”

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rom all of us at Jiu-Jitsu Magazine, we are inspired by your stories and we wish each of you an eternity of good health and happiness in your successful jiu-jitsu careers.

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STEVE BREMNER LANG MAY YER LUM REEK!

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VER IN SCOTLAND, “LANG MAY YER LUM REEK!” means, “May you live long and stay well.” It seems like 33-year-old Steve Bremner of Rothes, Scotland took that old saying to heart. In just about 15 months, he has managed to drop 114 pounds off his 6’ 3” frame. That’s a lot of stones, about 8 to be exact. Steve drastically changed his diet and began training jiu-jitsu; the results speak for themselves.

Thanks to jiu-jitsu, it looks like Steve will be able to live long while staying well – that’s pure dead brilliant!

HOW DID YOU DISCOVER JIU-JITSU? I knew about BJJ from watching old UFC VHS tapes, but it wasn’t until about 3 or 4 years ago I started training.

I wanted to appreciate the ground game that the fighters displayed, I always hated it when they went to the ground, so instead of criticizing them, I decided to understand the tactical advantage to doing so. I was hooked after my first lesson.

WHAT MOTIVATES YOU TO TRAIN? Fun, pure and simple. The people I train with are awesome, the flow state you get into when rolling is awesome, you just switch off and let it happen. It’s therapy!

HOW OFTEN DO YOU TRAIN? I train twice a week these days.

WHAT ELSE DO YOU DO FOR PHYSICAL FITNESS? Running, mountain biking, hill walking, swimming, lifting sessions and some bodyweight exercises.

HAVE YOU CHANGED YOUR DIET AND HOW? I went all out. Lots of people gave me advice on “low fat” or “healthier” alternatives to my

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favorite meals. I knew that if I was going to do it I had to go hardcore. I tend to eat lots of grilled chicken, steamed veggies, fish, eggs, fresh juices, and that’s about it. Everything fresh, nothing artificial, no sugar and low carb where I can.

WHAT’S BEEN THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE SO FAR? Keeping focused. There are days when I don’t want to get up at 6am and run, there are days when I can’t stomach another grilled chicken breast, but my stubborn nature keeps pushing me. All in all, it hasn’t been too bad.

WHAT’S THE BEST THING ABOUT THE LIFE CHANGE?

Several things, firstly is the obvious health benefits. I couldn’t walk 50 meters before without getting crippling back pain. I can play with my 2-yearold son without feeling tired. I actually enjoy training so much more now that I have great stamina, better flexibility, and a better range of movement.

One of the coolest things though, is the amount of people who contact me asking me for advice, telling me that my story and journey has inspired them. It’s incredible! I made the website (operationbeastmode. co.uk) and the accompanying Facebook page so that I had accountability. My thinking was that if I told people I was attempting to get fit then I couldn’t let them down. While

it’s served that purpose, it’s given some people hope, given them the spark they needed to start their own journey, and that for me is amazing!

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE SOMEONE LOOKING TO MAKE THE SAME TYPE OF CHANGE? You have to commit, don’t kid yourself. Many times I wanted to lose weight, but I wasn’t strong-willed enough to do it; so find a focus, find a reason to do it and always keep it in mind.

For me is was my son; I don’t want him to be embarrassed by his fat Dad, so I decided to become a badass Dad instead.

I’m still working on it, but I know I’ll get there.

STATS AGE: 33 HEIGHT: 6’ 3” STARTING WEIGHT: 170kg (374lbs) (February 2013) CURRENT WEIGHT: 118kg (260lbs) (Aiming for 100kg) BELT RANK: Blue 1 Stripe HOME TOWN: Rothes, Scotland HOME SCHOOL: Focus Gold Team (www. focusontheground.co.uk) INSTRUCTOR: Matt Holland / Mariusz Linke

If we’re ever in Scotland we know we’ve got a place to stay, or at least roll.

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