59 Mar/Apr 2018

W h a t T o E a t B e f o r e You Compete!

T I S E K I L Y E K I M qu i n h c e T Sick

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an c i r e ! m i A c e m o m r F s su

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M O R F T H G !

I A R E R ST THE MAST

ow To H u o Y s i va S h o wat His Guard!

R a l e D Defe R i ca r d o

Gauging e c a p Lost In nS Jiu-Jitsu Space i Break! actures A e k a T Don’t With Bone Fr e Dealing Out! prove Your Gam s n u G t u Sun’s Og Arms Might Im i How B JJ-mag-cover-AMOCK.indd 1

Mar/Apr 2018 Issue 59

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TRAIN

FOR LIFE. NEW AIR PRO - LIGHTWEIGHT, COMFORTABLE, COMPETITION READY! www.gameness.com Gameness Spread_v2.indd 2

11/7/17 11:22 PM

MARCOS TINOCO

www.facebook.com/GamenessFightwear @GamenessFightCo @Gameness_Sports Gameness Spread_v2.indd 3

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contents

I SS U E 5 9 M A RC H /A P R I L 2 018

Life

Life

skills

body

Play The Hand You’re Dealt?

Takedowns

Mikey Musumeci Berimbolo’s

Dealing with Fractures in Jiu-Jitsu

008 E d i to r i a l

040 D o’s an d don’ts

044 cover feature His Way To Gold

010 W e i g hi n g I n

056 How-To

Tuned In

Scientific Approach

062 Technique

to Core Training

De la Riva Guard Straight From

018 p ro m ot i o n s

082 E ven t Coverage

Belts and Stripes

028 W hi t e B e lt Ch ron icles Collar Grips Exposed

2018 BJJ Tour Florida

084 E ven t Coverage 2018 IBJJF European

032 H ow-To

The Source - Ricardo De la Riva!

fuel

088 Medic 092 Gains

Big Arms in Jiu-Jitsu - Why You Need Them and How To Get Them

098 success Father knows best

022 Grub

Fueling For a Tournament

Championships

Lost In Space - Jiu-Jitsu Concepts

Meet The Experts jonathan marchetto

Ricardo Castaneda

DR. paul morton

is the founder of

is a blue belt under Vitor

is a brown belt and

is the Chief Resident in

Elliott Performance

“Shaolin” Ribeiro, holds

holds a master of arts in

Orthopaedic Surgery

to owning Artechoke

& Nutrition, based in

a Master’s degree, and

Psychology. He is also

at St Luke’s University

Media, Marshal is

Aspen, Colorado. Katie’s

is currently perusing

the head instructor of

and Health Network in

the author of books

specialties include sports

his PhD in neuromotor

Gracie Barra Lakeway

Bethlehem, PA. He has

like The Cauliflower

nutrition, nutrition for the

science. Jonathan brings

in Austin, Texas. Find

experience as a physician

Chronicles and Marcelo

prevention and treatment

a scientific approach to

him on social media @

covering MMA, wrestling

Garcia’s Advanced

of disease, weight loss,

his writing.

ricardopezaobjj and his

and other sport events

Jiu-Jitsu Techniques.

and worksite wellness.

website at Jiujitology.

as well as a competitor

His latest project is

Find out morea about

com for more.

in BJJ, wrestling and

whitebeltproblems.

Katie at

Judo. Currently training

com, a free open-source

elliotperformanceand-

as a black belt under

resource devoted to

nutrition.com

David Adiv at Gracie New

M a rs ha l D. Carper

K at ie elliot ms rd

Is a brown belt under Sonny Achille. In addition

making jiu-jitsu more

Jersey. paulmortonmd@

accessible for beginners.

gmail.com.

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ON THE COVER Look for us online: @jiujitsumag

040

do’s and don’ts: tak e d ow n s

056

how to: scie n t if ic approach to Core

Mike Musumechi in action, Ricardo

44 De la Riva Photos: Ivan Trindad, Patrick Flores, Mike Velez

Look Before You Leap

Accelerate Your Core

Y E K MI IT S E K LI

m o r F s e u iq n h ion c p e T m a k h C !

Sic i d l c r e o m W u American ikey Mus

M

062 Contents 59.indd 2

technique: Ricard o D e l a riva Playing and Passing De la Riva Guard

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editorial NOT QUITE CHESS

S

EDITORIAL STA FF EDITOR & PUBLISHER.............................................. Mike Velez ASSISTANT EDITOR................................................. Jim Lawson

EARLY ON WE’RE TOLD/TAUGHT/BELIEVE THAT JIU-JITSU IS AKIN TO HUMAN CHESS. WE’VE

MANAGING EDITOR................................................Areum Kim

DEFINITELY DRAWN THAT COMPARISON IN THESE PAGES ON MANY OCCASIONS. A book I’m

CONTRIBUTING AUTHORS................................... Will Sanford,

currently reading is “Thinking in Bets” by Annie Duke. Annie has been one of the world’s top

Marshal Carper, Jeremy Reid, Arlo Gagestein, Jim

professional poker players over the last two decades and prior to that she was awarded a

Lawson, Heather Raftery, Ricardo Casteneda,

National Science Foundation Fellowship to study Cognitive Psychology at the University of

James Vafiades, Katie Elliot, Jonathan Marchetto.

Pennsylvania. In her book she contends that “Life is poker, not chess,” because chess is a game

Contributing copy editor - Amy Lindsay

of skill with “very little luck involved,” while in poker you can make the right decision, but it doesn’t always mean you’ll get the right company. As a jiu-jitsu person I always try to look at life through

ART & PHOTOGR A P H Y

the jiu-jitsu mindset, and vice versa. This got me thinking, is jiu-jitsu more like chess or poker? Do

ART DIRECTOR................................................. Dave Palacios

the right decisions more often than not produce the right outcomes? After giving it more thought

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS.............Jason Boulanger,

and throwing the idea around the office, I’ve come to the belief that jiu-jitsu starts off like poker,

John Cooper, Kenny Jewel, Patrick Flores,

but as your skillset and your equal competitor progress, it becomes more like chess. Although we

Mike Calimbas, Ivan Trindade, Ric Ricard

aren’t drawing cards in a jiu-jitsu match, “luck” comes into play with the absence of knowledge.

At the white, blue, and even purple belt levels the number of possible scenarios you might come

PRODUCTION & ADV E RT IS ING

across that you’ve not seen before is vast. Everytime we step on the mats, whether for a detailed

PRODUCTION DIRECTOR................................ Paula Fountain

lesson or a sparring match, it’s an opportunity to feed the computer of our mind more data. More

ADVERTISING SALES........................Mike Velez, Jim Lawson

data means we’ll make the “right” decision more often. In jiu-jitsu, as in chess, the odds that the

CIRCULATION MANAGER..................................Chris Reardon

correct decision leads to the correct outcome increase as the skills of each opponent increase. A

Address change & S UB S

black belt watching a white belt match will see a ton of missed opportunities by both competitors.

Those missed opportunities, or incorrect counters, equate to luck. If you’re a lower belt and you

Phone: 1.877.834.3552 ext. 221

make a wrong move but don’t get caught, you’re lucky. Make a right move but your opponent

Web: jiujitsumag.com

knows the counter, or unknowingly performs the right counter, you’re unlucky and he’s the lucky one. As our skill sets improve and we’re matched with an

ADVERTISING & SALE S INFO

opponent of equal skills we’re less likely to need the luck

AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST, CONTACT:

of our opponent not knowing the correct counter. This is

Jiu-Jitsu Magazine

where we get Worlds Finals matches that end in a 0-0

PO Box 2405

advantage draw (no luck, only skill). From a spectators’

Chino Hills, CA 91709

point of view these are usually boring to watch; however,

ph: 1.877.834.3552 ext. 221

if they’re matches with a lot of action then there’s a

fax: 909.591.1251

lot to appreciate in the level of skill exhibited by a perfect game in baseball. Long story short,

NATIONAL/INTERNAT IO NA L NEWSSTAND DISTR IB UT ION

the more you become a chess player than a

The Curtis Circulation Company

both. Sort of like watching a pitcher throwing

poker player. Whatever you consider yourself, just get out there and spend time on the mats!

Jiu-Jitsu Magazine (ISSN 2157-6173) is a publication of Recon Media Inc.

Keep Rolling,

Subscription rates are $39.99 for 6 issues (1 year), $49.99 per year Canada,

Phone: 877.834.3552; Fax: 909.517.1601 email: subs@jiujitsumag.com. and $69.99 per year for foreign airmail. All rights reserved, The entire

Mike Velez Publisher/Editor-in-Chief MikeV@jiujitsumag.com

contents are copyright 2018 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 (ISSN 2157-6173) is published bi-monthly by Recon Media Inc., 3857 Schaefer Avenue # D, Chino, CA 91710. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Jiu-Jitsu Magazine, PO Box 2405, Chino Hills, CA 91709

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TRAIN FOR LIFE

JoĂŁo Gabriel Rocha www.gameness.com Joao Gameness.indd 1

www.facebook.com/GamenessFightwear @GamenessFightCo @Gameness_Sports 11/15/16 9:40 PM

weighing in

UNDER HIS SPELL THE JIU-JITSU WORLD CAN’T STOP TALKING ABOUT GORDON RYAN, AND EVEN HE CAN’T STOP TALKING ABOUT GORDON. AS YOU MAY OR MAY NOT KNOW, GORDON HAS PROCLAIMED THAT HE’S GOING TO MURDER THE FIELD WHEN HE PUTS HIS GI ON. Yup, Gordon Ryan will be competing later this year in the gi, and his goal is to be the best. After winning just about everything in no-gi, including last year’s ADCC, he’s got his sights set on dominating in the kimono. He’s signed on with Hypnotik to sport their line up of kimonos. Who knows, maybe a Gordon Ryan signature gi is in the works? Recently, Gordon has a MRSA infection, but we’re told he’s healing up nicely, which according to Gordon, mean’s everybody’s f***’d.

Your Pro

Card

Speaking of Hypnotik, they’ve got a new program that can turn anyone into a pro! It’s called the Hypnotik Podium Payday program. Buy one of their current gi’s in the program, make it on to the podium at a qualifying event, share the photos with the world on social media, and you’ll get paid! Gold medal winners will get a $100 Hypnotik Gift Card. They’ll also monitor your performance and maybe even pick out some fresh faces to join Gordon on the Pro Team. For all the rules and details, including a list of qualifying tournaments, go to their website. hypnotik.com

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011

HERB MAN

Ancient civilizations used natural herbs to treat and cure many ailments, today Eastern medicine continues to use natural herbs with measurable and scientifically proven effects.

Lost Empire Herbs was started by three brothers, each of them looking for natural remedies to ease the stresses of weight lifting, grappling, and just plain old life. You can find a bunch of interesting articles on the benefits of herbs at their website, along with recommendations based on your specific needs. We’ve got some articles on the best herbs for grapplers, but until then check out their site and have a look. jiujitsuherbs.com

THE INTERVIEW

of all Interviews

Recently, Mr. Joe Rogan interviewed Mr. John Danaher on the JRE Podcast. It was like jiujitsu porn. If you haven’t heard it, please do it now! You can thank us next time. We don’t want to spoil it for you but the depth of knowledge that namesake of the Danaher Death Squad bestowed upon us was epic, to say the least. It was like a superhero origin story. podcasts.joerogan.net

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It’s Back!

If you’ve been a fan of the magazine for more than a few years you might remember a litte website we had called iRoll.TV. Basically, we sat around and watched YouTube videos then linked to the best ones we could find from the site. It was our first foray into seeing what video viewers were looking for. The original site never reached the potential we envisioned. That’s all changed because we’ve relaunched iRoll.TV and it’s pretty amazing! It’s packed with hundreds of high-quality technique and instructional videos that we’ve produced ourselves over the years. New videos are being added weekly along with full-length DVD content! At launch, subscribers can get access to Kristian Woodmansee’s fulllength AP De La Riva Guard DVD -a $39 value alone! Sorta like Netflix, we’ll be rotating full-length DVD content like this regularly, along with from us. You can sign up for a free 7-Day trial, after that it’s just $9.99 a month, and you can cancel at any time. Or do the 1-year option and save 20% and get a cool iRoll.TV shirt for free! iroll.tv

2/28/18 10:14 PM

weighing in ONE LESS REASON TO NOT COMPETE! You ever see that bumper sticker, “Only a Surfer Knows The Feeling”? Maybe it’s a California thing but it always made me want to try surfing growing up. What’s this feeling that I’m missing out on? In jiu-jitsu I’d say that you could easily put “Only a Competitor Knows The Feeling” on a t-shirt and probably sell a ton of them (nobody do that before we do, you’ve been warned). Not everyone gets the same bundle of feelings, it could be any combination of fear, joy, surprise, terror, anticipation, joy, etc. It’s best when you get a little of all those listed.

Experiencing the feeling of competing in an actual tournament is something you can only know by actually doing it. You will never forget your first time. If you’ve not yet entered a competition, or have already been bitten by the bug, here’s a chance to get that fix along with a 2-year subscription to your favorite magazine and this sweet looking t-shirt. For a limited time we’re throwing in a $99 prepaid entry to a Grappling Industries tournament!

If you’re not familiar with Grappling Industries, last year they put on about 40 tournaments in the United States, Canada,

and Australia. This year they’re adding the UK to the list and are on pace to host over 70 tournaments! But even if they’ve not yet been to your town, or you just missed it, these prepaid entries are good for a single use until the end of 2020! So hurry up, they won’t be around for long.

Head over to our website and sign up for a 2-year subscription and get the shirt along with the prepaid entry - valued at $99! grapplingindustries.com jiujitsumag.com/subscribe

Obscenely Comfortable GRAPPLEBAHN When it comes to jiu-jitsu gear comfort should rank very high on everyone’s wish list. These new Obsidian Shorts from FUJI are built to be comfortable, durable, and high-performance. They’re made with 4-way stretch performance fabric, have an inside drawstring, and heavy duty Velcro waistband enclosure. Along the sides they have a 3” slit so that you can get into any crazy position you want. The styling is simple and you can get them in any color you want as long as it’s black. Fujisports.com

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How do you kill time in a traffic jam? Do a little grappling, of course. Thanks to one of our readers, Matthias Joyce, who sent in these pics. They were taken one day while stuck in traffic on the Autobahn in Germany. Who knew there was traffic on the Autobahn? Thanks Matthias.

2/28/18 10:15 PM

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weighing in North of The Border

I’m sure there’s a lot of stuff going on in Canada that we don’t know about down here. Who knew there was this jiu-jitsu gear company called Strych9 Fight Co? We didn’t. Turns out they have some pretty cool threads worth taking a look at. Clean styling, plenty of respect to the pioneers of the sport, and much love to the roots of jiu-jitsu. Go check them out. strych9fightco.com

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015

We Shih Tzu Not

Check this out, it’s the brain child of Yvonne Sifuentes. Yvonne is a school teacher and jiu-jitsu practitioner. She’s set on making a children’s book that follows BonBon and Leo as they discover jiu-jitsu and build their confidence and skills so that they’re not bullied by The Ruffs. There’s much more to it than that. We’ve already made a pledge to help get this book off the ground.

The illustration work from Olga Milokhina looks great. This could really be something special. Go to the Kickstarter website and do a simple search for Shih Tzu. You’ll quickly find the project and get more details. You must hurry, there’s not a lot of time to help get this funded!

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Tough Kids

Check out this photo from reader Angela Wieczorek. Something tells us her and her family live jiu-jitsu! At the recent IBJJF Kids Pans the five siblings brought back four medals! We bet we know who will be the most motivated for next year.Congrats to the Wieczorek-Five!

2/28/18 10:48 PM

Academy directory Nine Nine Jiu-Jitsu

Valko Brazilian Jiu Jitsu

4425 Convoy St Ste 210 San Diego, CA 92111 858-987-0257 • ninenine99.com Gi and No-Gi, Kids, Adults

820 N Orleans Chicago, IL 60610 773-556-8155 • valkobjj.com BJJ, Judo, Boxing, No-Gi

Ralph Gracie Jiu jitsu Chino Hills

Helix BJJ

14151 Pipeline Ave Chino, CA 91710 909-614-1307 • ralphgraciechinohills.com Gi and No-Gi, Kids, Adults

2020 Westside Ct, Ste D Snellville, GA 30078 404-455-2589 • facebook.com/helixbjj BJJ, Martial Arts

Missoula BJJ and Muay Thai

Fight Sports Miami

2301 Palmer Street Unit 12 Missoula, MT 59801 406-686-6255 • missoulabrazilianjiujitsu.yolasite.com Gi and No-Gi, Kids, Adults, Muay Thai

2220 Northeast 2nd Ave Miami, FL 33137 786-290-6875 • miamibjjcenter.com BJJ, No-Gi, MMA, Muay Thai, Judo, Wrestling

Bakersfield BJJ

Renzo Gracie Academy

4308 Resnik Ct #203 Bakersfield, CA 93313 661-345-2906 • mattbakerbjj.com Gi and No-Gi, Kids, Adults, MMA, Kickboxing

224 W 30th St New York, NY 10001 212-279-6724• renzogracie.com BJJ, Submission Grappling, Kids Jitsu, Muay Thai

HIGHER GROUND BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU

GD JIu-JItsu Academy

19267 Colima Rd Ste I Rowland Heights, CA 91748 (626) 667-4082 • hgbjj.com Adult and Children’s Gi and No-Gi

1848 E. University Dr. #108, Tempe, AZ 85281 480-968-6303 • gdjiujitsu.com Adult Gi and No-Gi, Kids BJJ

Brooklyn Martial Arts

Team Rhino Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

289 Livingston St, 2nd & 3rd Floors Brooklyn, NY 11217 718-403-9026 • brooklynmartialarts.com BJJ, Fitness Kickboxing, Kids Martial Arts, MMA

68 E. Fairview Ave. Meridian, Idaho 83642 208-846-9119 • idahoujj.com Adult and Children’s Gracie Jiu-Jitsu

Urbana Academy 11791 Fingerboard Rd Monrovia, MD 21770 301-539-6289 • urbanaacademy.com Gracie Jiu Jitsu, Muay Thai, and Krav Maga

Fresh Brazilian Jiu Jitsu 22520 Greater Mack Saint Clair Shores, MI 48080 313-307-4638 • saintclairshoresmma.com BJJ, Capoeira, and Aikido

GET YOUR ACADEMY IN FRONT OF THOUSANDS OF POTENTIAL STUDENTS AND VISITORS EVERY MONTH! EMAIL US: FEEDBACK@JIUJITSUMAG.COM FOR DETAILS!

Triton Fight Center 2205 N Willow Ave Suite C Broken Arrow, OK 74012 918-25-CHOKE (24653) • tritonfightcenter.com BJJ, No-Gi, Muay Thai, Judo, Semper Fit

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promotions

PROMOTED AND ENGAGED School: Alliance Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada

SENDING A MULTI-LEVEL CONGRATS TO SHAUNA MATHIESON AND HER BOYFRIEND FOR NOT ONLY GETTING PROMOTED TO BLUE BELT, BUT SHAUNA’S BOYFRIEND TOOK THE OPPORTUNITY TO WIFEY SHAUNA UP AND PROPOSE TO HER ON THEIR PROMOTION DAY AS WELL. MAY ALL OF YOUR STRUGGLES IN MARRIED LIFE BE A SHARED AND HIGHLY TECHNICAL GRAPPLING SESSION TOWARDS A TRANQUIL AND BLISSFUL LIFE TOGETHER. The day also saw promotions for twelve additional blue belts, four purple, and two brown who were on hand to witness this big moment in their life, along with friends and teammates.

Eat Your Heart Out David Blaine School: Gracie Barra Location: Upland, CA Abra cadabra and **POOF**! The brown belt magician Jethro Alcuaz just received his third stripe on his magical brown belt from the hands of Professors Rafael Novias and Ana Laura Cordeiro. Dai Vernon and Harry Blackstone would be proud.

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0 19

Marcelo Students In Action

What the Buck… head?

School: Marcelo Garcia Academy Location: New York, NY Roberto Varela is living that purp life with his new promotion to purple belt.

And when this promotion comes at the hand of Marcel Garcia Professor Paul Schreiner and Marcelo Garcia himself, then you can live any life you want.

Congratulations Roberto! Well done.

School: Buckhead Jiu-Jitsu Location: Buckhead, GA Congratulations to Miguel Perez! He received his blue belt (Photo reference: miguelblue) and Evan Meehan received his purple (Photo reference: Evanpurple) from Sam Joseph (Buckhead Jiu-Jitsu)!

Blue AF (Air Force that is)

School: Abunai MMA & Jiu-Jitsu Location: Avondale, AZ A big blue belt promotion congrats goes out goes out to Kara! After successfully completing her four stripe white belt test, Kara was promoted to blue belt by Professor Eddie and coach/husband/Air Force Vet Bradley.

That same night, Bradley received two additional stripes on his purple belt. See what can happen when you “Aim High”?

Huge Academy, “Huger” Promotions School: Hayabusa Training Center | Location: St.Albert, Alberta, Canada Huge congrats to all of the students at the Hayabusa Training Center that received their promotions under their instructor Luke Harris. Great job and looking good you guys!

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FUELING FOR A TOURNAMENT WORDS: KATIE ELLIOTT , MS, RD

TOURNAMENTS ARE THE FINALE TO YOUR HOURS UPON HOURS OF TRAINING AND HARD WORK. OF COURSE, YOU WANT TO CAPITALIZE ON YOUR DEDICATION AND TIME INVESTMENT COME TOURNAMENT DAY. The difference between getting hardware and going home empty-handed comes down to slim margins and details. Nutrition is an often overlooked detail that can be a weapon or a woe on the big day. Whether nutrition will hinder or enhance performance depends on your knowledge, preparation, and finally execution. We’re hoping that the tips in this article will help you avoid disasters (think fatigue, stomach cramps, and nausea) and instead make nutrition another weapon in your arsenal (think strong energy to fuel performance).

What Are the Macronutrients Used to Fuel Exercise?

The body uses mainly fat and carbohydrate to fuel activity. If we use the analogy of a fire, fats are the big logs, slow to burn, while carbohydrates are the twigs, fast burning fuel for the flame. If your intensity is low (a mild campfire), fat is the primary fuel for exercise along with some carbohydrate. However, as intensity increases, carbohydrate utilization increases substantially (think of a large flame blazing through the underbrush). The body stores abundant reserves of fat (~80,000 calories), but limited stores of carbohydrate (~1600 to 1800 calories in the form of glycogen). Thus carbohydrate fueling matters on tournament days as intense exercise will easily tap carbohydrate stores. Protein, on the other hand, isn’t a preferred macronutrient during exercise but is responsible for rebuilding muscle fibers post-exercise.

More exactly, protein contribution during prolonged dynamic exercise is only 2 to 4%.

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023

Hydration Matters Too!

Hydration is also key to your performing at your best. Why? For jiu-jitsu fighters, losing just 2 to 3% of bodyweight through sweating and other forms of dehydration can impair exercise capacity.

In addition, it can take the body another 24 to 48 hours to completely reestablish fluid levels after a dramatic loss in body water. Thus, banking on extreme weight loss from dehydration is inadvisable for health reasons and will hinder performance. ❖❖ Looking at urine color is a great way to assess hydration status.

Tournament Nutrition Planning

What your body needs during the course of a tournament depends on what you are doing and when you are doing it. Weigh-ins, postweigh-ins, warm-up/matches, recovery between matches and post-tournament recovery all have unique fueling requirements.

Weigh-Ins If done unwisely, making weight can be stressful and hinder performance. If you are looking to take the worry out of weighins, be conservative in what you can lose on tournament day, and ensure that any true weight loss (i.e., fat not water) occurs in your off-season.

2 to 3 days prior to a weigh in, you’ll want to reduce fiber and sodium in your diet. While fibrous foods such as fruit, vegetables, and whole grains are nutrientdense and great for long-term weight loss, they sit in the gut longer, becoming a source of dead weight. Sodium causes water retention, which also increases the number on the scale.

Do not make the mistake of limiting fluids too early.

It’s best to hydrate with adequate water until 24-hours pre-competition. While sports drinks are additive to performance when an athlete is sweating, they also contain quite a bit of sodium.

Best to avoid electrolyte drinks until after weigh-in.

best to exercise prior to the weigh-in (you need to warm up anyways), rather than have no energy for the long day. Plan to consume something that is low-weight, low-fiber and high in condensed energy (mostly from carbohydrate). A good sample breakfast is 2 slices white bread with 2 tablespoons peanut butter and 2 tablespoons honey (take small sips of water throughout the morning only if you are thirsty).

At some competitions, fighters weigh in the night before or have 3-4 hours between weigh-ins and matches. In this scenario, fasting prior to making weight is more common as there is time to refuel and replenish. Just ensure you know the schedule for your weigh-in and match and plan your nutrition strategy accordingly.

You may be weighing as late as 5 to 30 minutes before your first match. In this case, you need to have a small breakfast 3 to 4 hours prior to the initial match as it’s best to have some energy in the tank as opposed to being depleted after fasting. If you need to lose the last bit of weight, it’s

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g r u b

-

f u e l i n g

f o r

a

t o u r n a m e n t

Post Weigh-In Post weigh-in, your goal should be rehydrating and topping off carbohydrate stores. The amount of time you have between weigh-ins and matches will dictate what you consume. The closer you are to a match, the smaller and simpler your intake should be (think easily digested carbohydrate such as sports drink, gels and chews). What you take in will depend on individual tolerance. If drinking and eating is out of the question, consider a carbohydrate mouth rinse (swish sports drink around in your mouth for 10 seconds and then spit it out). Experts speculate that a mouth rinse activates carbohydrate receptors in the oral cavity, which sends signals to the central nervous system to positively improve motor output. This can improve performance by as much as 2 to 3%.

❖❖ Hydrate with sports drink immediately post weigh-in.

The longer you have between weigh-ins and matches, the more complex and substantial your snack or meal can be. Again, this will depend on individual tolerance. In general, initially hydrating

Matches There are a few principles that will help you navigate this section of the day. Basically, you want to ensure that you have adequate carbohydrate stores to fuel your matches (as these are limited) and you want to stay hydrated. I advise clients to sip on sports drink throughout the day. In general, the closer you get to a match (say 1 hour or less to match time), the smaller and more easily digestible your food-based carbohydrates should be. Examples of these kinds of foods include: dried fruit, chews, bars, Fig Newtons, pretzels, crackers, or a gel if those sit well in your stomach.

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Let’s move to a slightly different, but likely scenario.

In this case, you have a little more time between matches, maybe a delayed final or Absolute (3 to 4 hours).

After the initial match, you will want to immediately ingest a snack with 1 to 1.2g carbohydrate per kg as well as 15 to 25g high quality protein that contains all of the essential amino acids.

Medium to high glycemic carbohydrates may enhance muscle glycogen synthesis and a small amount of protein will aid in muscle recovery. A few of my favorites include recovery drink plus a banana, a smoothie with milk, frozen fruit and whey protein, a turkey sandwich with 3oz

with a sports drink prior to eating will allow you to rapidly absorb fluid and carbohydrate (absorption slows down when you consume food). In addition, avoid drinking water post weigh-in. While water is a great thirst quencher, it is not an ideal hydrator when your goal is rapid fluid replacement. Also, avoid fruit juices and high-sugar beverages such as sodas to minimize the risk of diarrhea or abdominal cramping. Finally, avoid alcohol and highly caffeinated beverages as these can have diuretic effects.

❖❖ Nerves coupled with the wrong drink can have disastrous results.

turkey and a slice of Swiss cheese, or chocolate milk + a handful of almonds. In addition to this first feeding, you need to take in small amounts of carbohydrate at regular intervals (15 to 20 minutes) to enhance muscle glycogen synthesis for your next match. Ideas include a handful of pretzels, fig newtons, crackers (graham or regular) or a bar. Obviously continue to hydrate with sports drink along with consuming snacks (stop eating 30 to 45 minutes before your next match).

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What’s your favorite post-tournament meal? Post to our facebook page.

Recovery PostTournament The day’s matches are complete and, if all went well, you’ve successfully accomplished your goals.

Now you need to focus on rehydrating, rebuilding muscle tissue, and replenishing glycogen stores so that you can come back stronger posttournament. As I mentioned before, protein’s main job is to repair muscle tissue. In particular, the amino acid leucine has been shown in research to have a substantial

❖❖ We’ll call this a “recovery burrito”.

effect on muscle adaptation and building. Thus, ensuring leucine is part of your recovery meal can be beneficial (good news -leucine is in most high-quality proteins including meat, dairy and most legumes). All in all, your recovery snack or meal should include 15 to 25g high quality protein in addition to high quality carbohydrate such as whole grains (brown rice, sweet potato and quinoa for example). At this point, you can also add some fiber (think leafy greens or other vegetables) in addition to healthy fats (e.g. avocado, olive oil, fatty fish, etc.). You will want to consume this meal within 1 to 2 hours for maximum adaptation. In addition, you need to hydrate.

So long as you are eating food (which contains electrolytes to aid in absorption), water is fine.

My favorite recovery meals are

❖❖ Drinks like the ones below will help replenish electrolytes and fluids lost during matches.

a bison burger, lean grass-fed beef burger or a veggie burger on a whole grain bun with spinach, tomato and avocado along with a colorful salad and

sweet potato. I generally will add a chocolate chip cookie to the mix as well (though this is optional and feel free to include your favorite treat).

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER As you might guess, it is nearly impossible to replicate every possible tournament day situation.

Hopefully you have found these overarching principles to be helpful as you begin to put together your nutrition strategy. Here are a few final words of wisdom: practice your nutrition and include some fueling test runs in your preparation. For example, practice your low-fiber, low-sodium strategy for 2 to 3 days, eat your planned breakfast 3 to 4 hours before you weigh and then check your weight. This way you will be able to gauge what you can reasonably lose before the pressure of tournament weigh-ins.

Always remember, nothing new on tournament day. Even if you spot a flashy new product that appears to be just what you need, don’t take it for a test drive on the big day. Overall, dedicated practice along with sound strategies will ensure that nutrition is a weapon in your tournament day arsenal.

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White Belt Chronicals

USING COLLAR GRIPS FROM THE CLOSED GUARD

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WORDS AND PHOTOS: RICARDO CASTANEDA

GRIPS ARE AN ESSENTIAL, YET OFTEN OVERLOOKED, ASPECT TO JIU-JITSU. BEGINNERS TEND TO VIEW GRIPS AS A SIMPLE AFTERTHOUGHT. As an instructor, I see myriad missed opportunities as the result of improperly using grips. Grips are important for control and being meticulous about how you use your grips is equally important to attain and maintain adequate control of your partner. This particular attention takes much longer to develop in a jiu-jitsu practitioner’s tenure. If you are not using your grips from the start of a technique to its end, the technique will be sloppy and rendered ineffective. When passing the guard, for example, grips can be used to pin your opponent’s legs to the ground

to prevent a hip escape. If you let go of your partner’s legs before the guard pass is completed, the pass will likely fail.

Grips can also be used to manipulate balance and base in judo throws and sweeps, respectively. Poor grip management will allow your opponent to maintain his posture, keep his balance, and ultimately base out if necessary. Whether standing up or on the ground, passing the guard or playing guard, grips serve a monumental purpose and learning how to utilize these grips can make a substantial difference in your ability to execute your techniques.

Purpose of collar grips in Closed Guard Attack the posture, leads to chokes, sweeps and submissions.

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Four fingers in grip The traditional grip from closed guard is the four finger grip. Four fingers will enter underneath your partner’s collar and your thumb will be outside.

Ideal place for grip

The ideal grip will have your pinky just above the collar bone on the opposite side-collar (also known as cross collar). Positioning your hand so that your thumb starts underneath your partner’s ear with your wrist right at the carotid artery will be ideal. This will allow for efficiency of strangles but also, the grip will be high enough to manipulate your partner’s posture effectively.

Too Low

Placing high grips

A grip that is too low will not allow you any adequate control of your partner. A grip that is too high may establish better control and more effective strangles; however, it is much harder to attain.

The height of this grip is most optimal for manipulating posture and maximizes the effectiveness of a choke; however, this grip is much more difficult to attain. Reaching this high on the collar allows your partner more time to defend the grip. Furthermore, it can put your elbow in a bad position if you are not protecting it. For example, it can be easily hyperextended if your partner tries to break the grip by exerting force against the elbow.

Cutting the slack One great way to cut the slack of the collar grip is to use your non-dominant hand (the “leverage hand”) to tighten the slack after you have already attained a good grip. This allows your choking hand to maintain its position preventing an adequate defense from your training partner. If you worked hard to get the grip, you’ll have to work hard to maintain it too.

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Protect your Hands Jiu-jitsu fingers are a very real thing. Our fingers can experience the same amount of wear and tear as the rest of our body except, because of the comparatively smaller size of these joints and our daily use of them, finger injuries such as sprains and ruptured tendons can be much more disruptive to our daily lives than we realize. If you get a good grip, do not be afraid to let it go when your partner tries to rip your hand off their collar.

Live to fight another day and keep your finger injuries to a minimum.

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How-To

LOST IN SPACE JIU-JITSU DISTANCE CONCEPTS

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ONE OF THE MANY CHALLENGES OF LEARNING BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU IS THAT WE RARELY LEARN MATERIAL IN AN IDEAL SEQUENCE. YOUR ACADEMY LIKELY HAS SOME SORT OF CURRICULUM THAT IT FOLLOWS, BUT FEW JIU-JITSU STUDENTS CAN ATTEND EVERY CLASS, SO YOU ARE FORCED TO DROP IN AND OUT SESSIONS TO ABSORB WHATEVER YOU CAN, WHENEVER YOU CAN. You might not able to dictate the material that is taught or when you will learn it, but if you understand how space and distance work—and how they impact the difficulty of learning a technique— you can bring order to your drilling and to how you organize your jiu-jitsu knowledge in your mind.

This can also make your first brush with a new technique more productive because you can zoom out and break the material down more effectively.

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WORDS: MARSHAL CARPER

Most techniques can be assigned to four categories of space. We are mostly concerned with the first three, but we will cover all four for the sake of being thorough.

The ranges of space are: ❖❖ Tight

– Techniques launched at this range begin with almost no space between you and your opponent, such as chest to chest. ❖❖ Near – This range is the middle ground. Your opponent is close, not too close and far, but not too far. ❖❖ Far – To execute a technique at this range, you will have to close a considerable amount of distance first. ❖❖ Extremely Far – These techniques are dynamic and are often classified as “flying” attacks.

Each range has pros and cons, and many techniques have variations that fit into each range. Before we look at examples, let’s explore what range means for your learning.

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Difficulty at Any Extreme The near range is typically the easiest range from which to learn a technique, and if you look at the movements you learn as a new student, you will likely see that almost all of them fall into this category. The magic of the near range is that you have enough space to comfortably move, but everything you need for the technique to work is close enough to be easily accessible. This makes learning a technique for the first time it at the near range the easiest place to start.

of space to work with, but there is so much space that you probably have to move quickly to cover the ground between the start and end of a sequence, and the finesse of doing that smoothly and efficiently is rarely easy.

Recognizing this difficulty is about more than saying, “Gee whiz, this is hard.” When you can understand why a technique is challenging to execute, you can run through a checklist of common roadblocks and account for them. Later, when your game has become more evolved, you can look at what techniques you prefer to execute and possibly identify a weakness in your gameplan. For example, some grapplers will gravitate toward really open or really tight games because they find one extreme more problematic than the other.

That can be an opportunity to patch a hole in your style.

When you move into the other ranges, either going in tight or moving far away, executing the technique becomes more difficult. At the tight range, you have very little space to maneuver and if you are on the bottom, you are likely dealing with some degree of your opponent’s weight and pressure. At the far range, you have plenty

Example: The Triangle Choke Not all techniques have variations for each category of space—some techniques are only applicable at a specific distance—but many of the fundamental movements and attacks in jiujitsu that you can execute from the top and bottom do, such as armbars and triangles.

I first started playing with this idea because of a book I coauthored with Neil Melanson (Mastering Triangle Chokes). Since it was his idea of making your opponent “hover” over your guard to get an easy triangle, it feels fitting to start there.

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1. Near—Classic Wrist-Pin Triangle Choke For many jiujiteiros, this is a day one technique. You control both wrists and use your grips to jam your opponent’s hand into their belt. With the wrist pinned against the beltline, you can swing your leg out and over the shoulder for the triangle. In most versions of this drill, your opponent’s posture is poor, so it’s relatively easy to hop your legs up into the choke.

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2. Close—Overhook Wrist-Pin Triangle Choke The overhook is another classic jiu-jitsu position, and it’s useful precisely because it allows you to eliminate space and keep your opponent close, a valuable position especially when strikes are involved. To execute the triangle in this position, you need to wiggle into an angle for your hips and maneuver the wrist pin in close quarters. Your leg still has to come out and go over the pinned wrist to get the choke, but if your hips are pinned flat, you will probably struggle to get the angle you need, but you won’t have to go very far to get a head and arm trapped between your legs.

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3. Far—Spider Guard Triangle Choke Spider Guard may not be in vogue these days, but this entry is still pretty common in school curriculums. In this position, you have plenty of space to maneuver your legs and to adjust your hips, but for the attack to be successful, you have to close that gap and connect your hips to your opponent’s neck (essentially).

While maneuvering may be less difficult, your technicality has to include a reliable and controlled way to launch yourself from point A to point B. In the case of this entry, that launch relies on two movements: popping your hips up into the air and pulling your opponent in, which is made easier if you bait your opponent into giving you a bit of forward pressure to deal with your Spider Guard.

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As you can see in these examples, the end choke is largely the same, but your success will depend on your ability to cope with how space impacts your mechanics.

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Troubleshooting Checklist Since we are talking about the abstract concept of what space can mean for your technique, we can also run through a generalized checklist of questions to troubleshoot positions giving us problems. These lists focus on the tight and far categories of space and do not include the near category. If you are struggling to execute a technique when your opponent is “near,” your challenge is much more likely to be a straightforward matter of execution. In other words, you are probably getting a step wrong instead of knowing what to do but not doing it well.

As you work through these checklists, it’s okay if you have to experiment and think about the correct answer. When you are self-diagnosing and self-instructinging, there will be a good bit of trial and error. That can be frustrating in the short-term, but working through the process actually has a lot of educational value at well.

If you are having trouble with techniques executed from tight positions, ask yourself: ❖❖ What

is the ideal angle of my hips and/or shoulders for this technique to work? ❖❖ If I need to create or eliminate space in this position, what are

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Become a Space Invader.

my tools for doing that? much space is too much? In other words, at what point of creating space will I lose the position? ❖❖ How do I use pressure in this position to my advantage, either alleviating it if I am on the bottom or creating it if I am on top? ❖❖ How

as animated GIFs of our examples in action. From there, start deconstructing your techniques and assigning them to space categories. You might uncover some new insights hiding inside of your own game!

If you are having trouble with techniques executed from far positions, ask yourself: ❖❖ Where

is the ideal starting and ending positions for my attack?

Where am I trying to go, specifically? ❖❖ What limbs or reactions are likely to get in my way as I travel across the space? ❖❖ Where do I generate my power for movement? Where do I need to post or push in order to be effectively mobile? ❖❖ What can I do to trick my opponent into closing some of the space for me?

I hope that this brief introduction to distance and space in jiu-jitsu has already sparked some technical introspection your part. We have only scratched the surface here, but if you go to jiujitsumag. com, you can watch a video breakdown of these ideas as well

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do’s and don’ts

GETTING THE FIGHT TO THE GROUND WORDS: RICARDO CASTANEDA

GETTING THE FIGHT TO THE GROUND IS THE FIRST STEP TO JIU-JITSU PRACTICE SINCE THE GROUND IS WHERE WE CAN NEUTRALIZE OUR OPPONENT’S STRENGTH AND SIZE ADVANTAGES. TAKEDOWNS, THUS, ARE AN ESSENTIAL PART OF LEARNING JIU-JITSU. THE TRUTH IS; HOWEVER, MOST PEOPLE ARE QUITE UNCOMFORTABLE WITH TAKEDOWNS. Falling hurts, especially when you do not know how to fall properly. As odd as it may seem, learning how to fall is a skill that is acquired by falling.

As it is not the most fun skill to work on, far too many jiu-jitsu practitioners much prefer to “start on the ground.” I am not a fan of this philosophy because in an altercation, one cannot simply ask his or her attacker to “start on the ground”, so from a self-defense standpoint, takedowns and the ability to train them and implement them is important. If you are uncomfortable practicing them, it may be best to put aside some of that discomfort and in the very least, learn how to hold your own on your feet. Here are some Do’s and Don’ts of practicing takedowns.

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Do’s

Practice your takedowns diligently You must be comfortable practicing your takedowns, particularly for the purpose of self-defense. In the unfortunate event that you will ever have to defend yourself or your family, the fight will likely start on your feet. Practicing takedowns with people in your school who know what they’re doing is great training for the real world where most people, including someone who is trying to assault you, has no idea how to grapple effectively. Learn how to hold your own on your feet.

While you may never become proficient with your takedowns compared to your training partners, your ability to be comfortable standing up and getting the fight to the ground effectively can go a long way in a self-defense situation.

Pay extra attention to mat space

Cross-train in Judo and Wrestling

Training takedowns can be a lot more precarious than strict ground-work. Make sure you are keeping an eye on where the mat space ends and where other students are on the mats so you can avoid throwing someone into someone else. Accidents are much more common when the awareness is lacking because students will zero in on hitting a takedown properly.

This tunnel vision inhibits the awareness you’ll need to throw your partner in a safe place, away from concrete, furniture, or other people. Safety is more important than your throws; maintain good awareness and never sacrifice someone else’s well-being for that beautiful Uchi-Mata you’ve been working on.

Most jiu-jitsu instructors are well-versed in takedowns and are quite proficient, but getting the pure perspectives of a Judo black belt or former wrestler can help substantially as you move into the world of takedowns. If you have the time and resources, consider visiting a judo school or taking private lessons with a former wrestler. If your academy has specific programs with these classes, enroll in them if you have not already. Another discipline to cross-train in is Sambo which has its own unique brand of takedowns and grappling. These can all serve to help your jiu-jitsu but also substantially improve your take-down game.

Don’ts Tense up Never tense up. Learn how to break your fall. People don’t like to fall so our natural inclination to falling is to tense up and reach for the ground.

These are very harmful reactions. Many injuries happen as a result of people being too scared to fall. Once you’re on your way to the ground, immediately resign yourself to the fact that you will fall; there is nothing you can do to stop this fact. At this point, relax, tuck your chin, and break your fall accordingly. Your instructors should be showing you the proper way to mitigate the likelihood of injury. Practice your breakfalls diligently to help you relax when you actually do take a tumble at the hands of a training partner.

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Carelessly hurt your partners Takedowns can be intimidating. Again, people do not like to fall. Be mindful of your training partners sizes and limitations. In the world of takedowns, it is very easy to forget how much more size, strength, and leverage advantage you may have causing your smaller or weaker training partners to hit the ground with so much force that they will be crushed physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

Take care of your training partners; let them down gently and keep the flow of your sparring round going after it hits the mat. Practice is not a self-defense situation where you are looking to incapacitate your opponent with an Ippon.

Spend your entire sparring round on your feet Remember, this is a jiu-jitsu class, not a judo or wrestling class. Unless you are working specific wrestling or judo takedowns, you need to get down to the ground before you squander the entire round. It happens a lot when two training partners are working takedowns and the timer hits zero before any groundwork has been done. If you cannot get a takedown, consider pulling guard. Get the fight to the ground and practice your jiu-jitsu.

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Technique

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MIKEY MUSUMECI

GREATEST AMERICAN HERO

WORDS: JAMES LAWSON PHOTOS: PATRICK FLORES

FORGET EVERYTHING YOU MAY KNOW ABOUT WHAT IT TAKES TO BE A WORLD CLASS JIU-JITSU CHAMPION. MICHAEL “MIKEY” MUSUMECI IS HERE TO SHATTER ALL PREVIOUS NOTIONS ON THE MATTER. Since he was eleven you could say that the twenty-one-year old has had a knack for achieving success in some very unorthodox ways. He likes to get a majority of his training and sparring low-key and in his garage, not at some huge stateof-the-art academy. He doesn’t care to drill all that much. He describes eating as one of his favorite pastimes (Italian food more specifically-Penne alla vodka to be exact). And to cap it all off, he doesn’t really consider winning an IBJJF World Championship the highlight of his jiu-jitsu career. Instead, he lights up when he talks about the journey towards earning his black belt and considers the obstacles that he had to overcome in that path as more precious and valuable than the actual championship.

With all of that said, to hear him speak on those topics, you can say that as uncanny as his methods may be, he and his methods are jiu-jitsu. Jiu-jitsu is fluid with few fundamental principles. Principles like “position over submission”, “relax”, “control the hips”, etc.

However you choose to set up and execute those principles can be creative and without limits, just as long as you adhere to them, you should be okay. Mikey’s approach is similar in regards to the principle of a championship work ethic. He may not view those typical items in a way that is common, but make no mistake, he assesses everything that he does. From his movements, the way he feels, his understanding of concepts, and who he trains with. He puts all of those elements together and constantly strives to improve on what works for him. Isn’t that what the gentle art (and life for that matter) is all about?

Assessing what works for us and improving upon that.

Raw Data Powered by BJJ Heros

Lineage 1: Mitsuyo Maeda > Carlos Gracie > Carlson Gracie > Andre Pederneiras > Rafael Fofitio > Gilbert Burns > Michael Musumeci Lineage 2: Mitsuyo Maeda > Carlos Gracie > Carlson Gracie >Andre Pederneiras > Joao Roque > Jonatas Gurgel > Michael Musumeci Main Achievements: ❖❖ IBJJF World Champion (2017) Black belt ❖❖ IBJJF Pan American Champion (2016) Black belt ❖❖ IBJJF American National Champion (2016/2015) Black belt ❖❖ IBJJF World No-Gi Champion (2016) Black belt ❖❖ UAEJJF Abu Dhabi Pro Champion (2017) Black belt ❖❖ UAEJJF Abu Dhabi Grand Slam LA Champion (2016) Black belt ❖❖ IBJJF World Champion (2015 brown, 2014 purple, 2013/2012 juvenile blue) ❖❖ IBJJF Pan American Champion (2015 brown, 2014 purple, 2013/2012 juvenile blue) ❖❖ IBJJF World No-Gi Champion (2011 blue juvenile) ❖❖ IBJJF Pan American No-Gi Champion (2011 blue juvenile)

FAVORITE POSITION/TECHNIQUE: Berimbolo WEIGHT DIVISION: Peso Pluma (64kg/154lbs) TEAM/ASSOCIATION: Caio Terra Association

Considering his technical ability, many will find it as no surprise to hear when he says that he’s heavily influenced by his instructor Emyr “Shark” Bussade and other names like Bruno Malfacine, Guilherme Mendes, and Caio Terra with whom he gets to share the mats and train with. However, beyond that he feels the most strongly influenced by his sister, Tammi, an elite jiu-jitsu competitor herself of championship caliber and a full-time law student. Mikey is so influenced by his sister that he has decided to take a crack at law school as well, inspired by her knowledge, approach, and work ethic towards that goal.

Mikey trains daily and is also a full-time student. He was awarded his black belt after winning the 2015 Worlds at brown belt, by Jonatas Gurgel and Gilbert Burns.

If Mikey and Tammi’s knack for success happens to carry over into their law school education, I think it’d be safe to say that I’d want them as my legal council anyday! In this article Mikey’s going to show us some of his favorite techniques based off a Berimbolo entry.

Enjoy!

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DLR - LASSO TO BERIMBOLO

In this series Mikey will show us moves that are all setup from the De La Riva Guard.

Step 1 To establish his DLR, Mikey starts by placing both feet on Rene’s hips making sure that his knees line up with his opponent’s body and against Rene’s biceps. Mikey also grabs the cuffs of Rene’s sleeves.

Step 2 From here Mikey drops his left leg and wraps it around Rene’s right leg to establish his DLR hook while at the same time slightly pressing Rene’s hip away with his right leg.

Step 3 Once the DLR hook is in, Mikey grabs Rene’s right ankle with his left hand and lassos his right leg over Rene’s right arm and hooks his right foot against Rene’s lat while turning his knee outwards to help break down and control Rene’s posture.

Step 4 From here Mikey turns his left knee inward, further breaking down Rene’s posture.

It’s important to note that Mikey looks for Rene’s weight to slightly fall forward and his right shoulder to drop towards Mikey’s stomach.

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Mikey likes it.

Step 5 Once Rene’s weight falls forward, it makes it simple for Mikey to use the hook of his right foot to flip Rene over his body, while grabbing the back of Rene’s belt with his right hand, putting himself into position, and prepping to perform a Berimbolo sweep.

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Mikey now uses his left leg to hook Rene’s leg while Mikey’s right foot presses against Rene’s armpit.

Using his left hand, Mikey grabs the crook of Rene’s left knee to lift him up and over his body to place his left shin under Rene’s leg.

Step 8

Step 9

Mikey now takes his left hand and cups Rene’s left hip keeping Rene from falling over which will add an additional step to complete the sweep (covered in the next technique).

Now Mikey extends his left leg to slide Rene’s body down and establishes hooks and seat belt control to complete the sweep.

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DLR - TWISTER HOOK

This is a variation of the previous sweep in which your opponent’s body drops to the mat, either because your opponent is attempting to counter the Berimbolo, or you failed to effectively cup with your hand and control your opponent’s hip.

Step 1 Having already started the Berimbolo and gotten your opponent over your body (as explained in the previous technique), Rene will have brought his own hips down to the mat, recognizing Mikey’s sweep attempt. This will prohibit Mikey the space needed to finish the sweep.

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With his path cut off, Mikey switches to his twister hook control by squeezing down with his right leg and using his right foot to hook the outside of Rene’s right leg.

Mikey can now put his left foot on the mat to help him hip out and drive Rene’s right knee to the mat.

Step 4 Mikey can now stretch his legs out and establish his seat belt control to complete the sweep.

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DLR - OMOPLATA

In this particular technique Mikey can assess the level of his control during transition. Making this quick read, Mikey can evaluate and potentially change his attack from a sweep to a submission instead.

Step 1 Again, Mikey has started the Berimbolo and gotten his opponent over his body. As Rene steps over Mikey, Mikey can feel that he has real deep control with his right leg. With that, Mikey will further feed his right leg underneath Rene’s armpit.

Step 2 Mikey will now extend his right hand to clear a path and bring his left leg out from underneath Rene’s leg which will now set Mikey up in position to execute an Omoplata.

Step 3 Mikey will now release Rene’s sleeve from his right hand and grab the back of Rene’s belt to pull himself up and complete the Omoplata.

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DLR - STRAIGHT ANKLE LOCK

This is a quick and simple straight ankle lock that’s legal at all ranks from white to black.

Step 1

Starting from the DLR and lasso control with his right leg, Mikey disengages his DLR hook and places his left foot on Rene’s hip.

Step 2 Mikey releases the ankle and switches his grip to an overhook over Rene’s ankle and locks it in by grabbing his own lapel.

Step 3 With overhook control established, Mikey extends his right leg so that he can hook his foot behind Rene’s left knee and pushes Rene over with his left foot, causing Rene to fall to the ground.

Mikey now has many options to finish with an ankle lock.

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Mikey getting his hand raised for his first Black Belt World Championship.

Step 4 While maintaining the overhook, Mikey chooses to roll to his left and step his left leg over, placing his left knee to the mat, putting his body on top of Rene’s trapped leg.

Step 5 To finish the submission, Mikey will press his hips down and arch his back up.

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DLR - TOLD HOLD

Using the same setup as befoer, this is a great second option to the previous move in the event your opponent straightens his knee to eliminate any optimal angle for the straight foot lock. For brown and black.

Step 1 With the angle cut off by Rene to complete the straight foot lock, Mikey changes his attack and starts by bringing his right foot over to Rene’s right hip.

Step 2 Mikey squeezes his right knee tight against Rene’s leg and also uses his toes to climb along Rene’s body to help straighten Rene’s leg.

Step 3 Feeding his right arm underneath Rene’s right leg, Mikey uses his left hand to grab the outside of Rene’s foot while his right hand grabs his own wrist, establishing a keylock grip.

Step 4 To finish the submission, Mikey will post on his left elbow pushing Rene’s toes downward, while his right arm will create opposing force by pulling towards his chest.

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A SCIENTIFIC APPROACH TO CORE TRAINING Minimize Injury Risk and Improve Performance WORDS: JONATHAN MARCHETTO, M.A. PHOTOS: SHAWNA RODGERS

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE CORE IN JIU-JITSU SHOULD COME AS NO SURPRISE TO ANYONE WHO HAS PUT ON A GI OR RASHGUARD. WITH THE COUNTLESS NUMBER OF BUMP SWEEPS, TRIANGLE CHOKES, AND TAKEDOWNS THAT MUST BE PERFORMED IN TRAINING, THE MUSCLES THAT MAKE UP THE CORE ARE INVOLVED IN ALMOST EVERYTHING YOU DO FROM THE START OF PRACTICE TO THE END OF RANDORI. Therefore, a strong and stable core is key to not only maximizing performance but minimizing injury risk for athletes of all experience levels.

A common approach that coaches take is to prescribe an endless number of sit-up and leg raise variations in an attempt to

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strengthen the muscles we think of as our “six pack.” However, research on posture, lower back injuries, and core training has found that this approach may be suboptimal and could potentially increase injury risks. What we now know is that this approach to core training has got it all wrong; there is much more to our core than nice looking abs. Instead, the core muscles play a key role in preventing spinal injuries and provide a link to transfer force between our upper and lower body. Therefore, a science-based understanding of how to approach core training is key for all jiu-jitsu athletes, from the white belt with no stripes to the multi-time world champion.

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Flexion Not Function - A Common Misunderstanding of the Sit Up Despite the crunch and sit-up being arguably the most popular core exercises for decades, researchers in biomechanics and sports performance now caution athletes from dedicating a significant amount of time performing these movements. The traditional sit-up puts an athlete in a position known as trunk flexion, commonly referred to as “rounding” the back.

Research has shown this position produces excessive strain on the lumbar spine and may be closely linked to disc herniation and other back injuries. In fact, the compressive force on the lower back during a sit-up produces forces as

high as 3000 Newtons, or approximately 675 poundforce on the L4-L5 vertebrae.

With a growing body evidence pointing to the dangers of situps, Stuart McGill, one of the top researchers in the world on lower back injuries and rehabilitation, has advised that they be removed from most training programs entirely. McGill notes, “…situps should not be performed at all by most people. Far better ways exist to preserve the abdominal muscle challenge while imposing lower spine loads.”

Stabilize to Optimize If a sit-up or crunch isn’t the proper way to go about training the core, than what is? In order to prevent injury and improve performance, many researchers, coaches, clinicians have advised shifting the focus of core training toward trunk stability. Stability is often misunderstood as being able to balance on an unstable surface like a Bosu Ball; however, this

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definition doesn’t accurately capture what the core’s job actually is. In this context, stability refers to the ability of the trunk to withstand stress and maintain an anatomically correct posture via a combined effort of all abdominal muscles. Think of a stable core as one that can resist being pushed, pulled, and turned in a variety of directions. This

is extremely important in a sport like jiu-jitsu, where athletes are constantly exposed to sweeps, passes, takedowns, and submissions that place stress on the spine. This means that proper core training must focus on exercises that target not just on the crunch position, but the many other movements that the core can perform.

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A Better Solution for Core Training Anti-Extension: B i r d D o g

Anti-extension can be thought of as the core resisting being bent backwards or sagging inward during a plank position. While we typically think of rounding over at the spine as a dangerous position, excessive extension can also expose the spinal discs to high levels of compressive force. This position can be common for grapplers, whether they are being pushed down in Turtle Guard or flattened out in a Back Control position. Therefore, adding anti-extension training into your program will help develop a more balanced and stable core that can better withstand the stress from those positions.

The Bird Dog is an excellent exercise for targeting the muscles of the lower back, often referred to as the posterior core. It is recommended due to its ability to target spinal extensors with relatively low stress compared to other exercises. Therefore, this exercise may be a comfortable choice for those with back injuries who need to strengthen their core to help minimize future injury risk.

Beginners can perform the exercise with just their body weight, and advanced athletes can add resistance by using an exercise band that provides light resistance to the arm and leg. Start with sets of 5 to 10 repetitions per side and look to add resistance when you can comfortably perform 20+ repetitions.

lateral flexion

Bird Dog Exercise

Spinal Extension

❖❖ DOING THE BIRD DOG Start on your hands and knees (all fours) with the spine kept straight from the head to the tailbone. Straighten and lift the right arm and left leg, keeping your spine in a stable position. Slowly return your arm and leg to the starting position.

Switch sides so that you complete the exercise with your left arm and right leg.

Anti-Lateral Flexion: S i d e P l a n k Not only is the core responsible for preventing the trunk from being bent forward, it also does the important job of helping prevent our spine from being bent side to side. The quadratus lumborum, internal oblique, and external oblique play an important role in maintaining the stability of the spine via anti-lateral flexion. Grapplers who lack strength and muscular endurance in this position may expose themselves to greater risk of injury while their posture is broken and they are forced sideways during a sweep. Therefore, developing an athlete’s anti-flexion ability is key to optimizing performance and maintaining good posture in a Closed Guard and many other positions!

One of the best exercises for training anti-lateral flexion is the side plank. The side plank teaches an athlete better motor control by forcing them to maintain a neutral spine while bracing the core throughout the movement. Unlike other oblique exercises, such as the side bend, the side plank has the advantage of making it virtually impossible to lose spinal stability and a neutral position when done correctly. Beginners can start by holding the side plank for short durations, such as 10 to 20 seconds. Advanced athletes can aim for longer durations as they improve and grow stronger.

The Side Plank, an Example of Anti-Lateral Flexion Training ❖❖ DOING A SIDE PLANK Start lying on one side with your elbow under your shoulder and your forearm pointing away from you.

Straighten your legs with your top foot in front of your bottom foot. Lift your body and distributing your weight between your top foot and bottom forearm. Aim to keep a straight line from your head to your feet.

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Anti-Rotation: P a l l o f f P r e s s The last classification of stability exercises an athlete should perform is anti-rotation.

Trunk rotation can be simply thought of as twisting the torso left or right, such as during a twisting sit up or Bump Sweep. While we typically think of rotating exercises as targeting our oblique muscles, they also put significant pressure on the spinal discs.

Therefore, a safer approach is to resist rotation with an isometric contraction in the oblique muscles.

The Palloff Press is a great choice for anti-rotation training, and it can be performed with inexpensive equipment that most gyms already have. Replacing some of your twisting or Kimura sit-ups with the Palloff Press will help reduce the stress on your spine while training your core to be more stable and resilient. Beginners can use a light resistant band and aim for 10 to 15 repetitions per side. Advanced athletes can use a stronger resistance band and perform the exercise from a kneeling position.

T h e Palloff Press, an Example of Anti-Rotation Training

❖❖ DOING THE PALLOFF PRESS Attach an elastic exercise band to a wall or have a partner hold the band several feet away from you so that the resistance is comfortable. Stand perpendicular to the band and hold it at chest level in both hands. Keep your entire body as rigid as possible. Slowly press the band out in front of you and return it to the starting position.

PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS

There is no doubt that being in a situp, rotated, or bent position is a common part of jiu-jitsu and many other grappling sports. Consequently, this article isn’t a call to completely abandon any exercise or technique that puts you in those positions as they are impossible to avoid. However, whether you are a coach or an athlete, restructuring your core training to place a greater emphasis on stability may greatly improve your ability to avoid injuries and perform at a higher level. While every athlete has to practice sitting up for a Kimura or rotating for scissor sweep, a smart decision may be to balance those positions with more side planks, Bird Dogs, and Palloff Presses outside of drilling techniques. Therefore, when warming up or performing conditioning, consider replacing your extra sit ups with more core stability exercises.

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RICARDO DE LA RIVA

GETTING HOOKED

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WORDS: JIM LAWSON | PHOTO: MIKE VELEZ

It is often said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Well then, how about if an entire community universally acknowledges a particular position and names it after you? How would that rank on the flattery meter? Well, that’s exactly what happened with one Ricardo De La Riva Goded. I’m sure that the last person to ever think that something of this magnitude ever happening would be DLR himself. Chances are anyone who has practiced jiu-jitsu long enough (especially in a competitive environment) are sure to have heard of the De La Riva guard at some point. It’s that open guard with its pesky hook that can make any guard passer’s life miserable if they haven’t spent enough time learning about it. As you will come to understand, De La Riva is very humble and modest about being acknowledged as the pioneer of this type of guard and will be quick to tell you that he didn’t invent it. But what can you say about an individual who becomes so proficient at something to the point where that hook gets named after you? Well, at the very least, I think it would be nothing short of flattering.

Raw Data Powered by BJJ Heros Lineage:

Mitsuyo Maeda > Carlos Gracie > Carlson Gracie > Ricardo De La Riva

Main Achievements: ❖❖ World Bronze Medallist ❖❖ Copa Cantao Champion

FAVORITE TECHNIQUE/POSITION: De La Riva Guard.

WEIGHT DIVISION: Peso Pluma/Super Featherweight (64Kg – 141lbs).

TEAM/ASSOCIATION: Fought for Academia Carlson Gracie, but has formed his own team as a coach.

Growing up in Rio de Janeiro, Ricardo, along with his brothers, liked to spend some of their past time playing soccer on the beach. It was here in which Ricardo would eventually be lead from the sand to the mats. While playing soccer with his brothers, another group of guys came over and insisted that the brothers allow them into their game. After one of Ricardo’s older brothers tried to explain to the guys that they wanted to just keep the game amongst the brothers, the newcomers didn’t seem to take rejection too well and made it clear that if they wouldn’t let them into their soccer game, that they were prepared to escalate to an all out brawl against the brothers.

With this, the brothers begrudgingly took their call and was essentially run off the beach.

Upon returning home, the brothers explained to their father what had happened, and like most fathers, he sent his boys a message that they will never again run from a fight. Ricardo’s father, at that time, was familiar with the Gracie family and was a fan of the legendary Carlson Gracie and followed through with empowering his boys by enrolling them into Carlson Gracie’s Jiu-Jitsu Academy so that if the boys ever had to defend themselves, they would be equipped to do so. It’s great to note that Ricardo has never had to use his jiu-jitsu in a street fight.

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❖❖ A few days after we shot the photos for this article Master De la Riva headed back down to Brazil, specifically Copacabana, where he was awarded his coral belt from ninth degree black belts Robson and Reyson Gracie. Master De la Riva spent 31 years competing and teaching as a black belt.

Although Ricardo was able to attain his black belt in six years, he is not what you would consider an intimidating presence. So it would be easy to assume that he was not the biggest guy on the mat at any given moment. It was because of this reality that Ricardo was forced to adapt. He states that once he started jiu-jitsu, he took to it immediately, enjoying the art and quickly realized that he had very good flexibility and began to earn a reputation within his academy as someone who had a very hard guard to pass. Considering that this assessment was from the practitioners within the Carlson Gracie Team, that was quite the compliment. As Ricardo explains, Carlson’s academy were big guys that took pride in their takedowns and guard passing abilities. Eventually it got to the point where many of the guys from the academy

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would ask to see if they could pass his guard. It was through this constant exercise that he would have the opportunity to continuously develop his guard. It wasn’t until towards the end of being a brown belt and the beginning stages of receiving his black belt did Ricardo really begin to realize the effectiveness of “the hook” that he would use in his guard. He began to notice that everyone that was trying to pass his guard would have troubles merely keeping their balance, which would in turn create many opportunities for Ricardo to either sweep or submit his opponents. His training partners affectionately coined his guard play as “Guarda Pudim” (Pudding Guard) for his ability to continuously keep his opponents off balance.

It was through world class competition against the likes of

Royler Gracie that Ricardo was able to effectively put all of his developments of his guard to task. So well, in fact, that the Brazilian media eventually coined the way he used the guard position as what we all now commonly refer to as the “De La Riva Guard”.

he has made popular and elevated it to the highest level through practitioners such as the Mendes brothers, who he feels are the top practitioners using the DLR guard. He even acknowledges that they are better than he ever was at using the guard.

Ricardo has had the opportunity to work with some of greatest jiu-jitsu fighters to have ever competed in MMA (such as the Nogueira brothers and Anderson Silva). He credits the massive amount of work that was done in the gi as the reason that fighters he has worked with are able to excel at the highest level of the sport.

However, Ricardo mentions that the DLR guard is a very good guard for everyone of all body types and skill levels to use. He also is appreciative of the younger generation who has taken a method that

We joined Ricardo to chat with him and he was eager to show us a few techniques from his now infamous DLR guard and included a few new wrinkles to attack the DLR and some counters using the DLR. We are honored that we were able to perform what will go down in history as his last photoshoot as a black belt.

By the time that this issue hits print, Ricardo will have achieved his coral belt. Time to train.

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PASSING THE DLR GUARD FROM KNEELING

This is a good pass to use when you identify that your opponent is trying to establish a DLR Guard. This pass shuts down the DLR before it has a chance to develop.

Step 1 Starting from the kneeling position, Ricardo finds himself in the DLR. From here, he uses his right hand to control John’s hip and grips John’s lapel with his left hand. Ricardo is sure to angle his left knee outwards and keep his left elbow connected against his inner knee, creating a frame so that his opponent cannot insert his DLR hook.

Step 2 A common method to pass at this point is to bring the left knee forward and down to the ground. However, Ricardo opens his knee outward clearing John’s right right knee and trapping his foot in a butterfly position, making sure to pin John’s foot against his own body.

Step 3 Ricardo then controls the hips by keeping his left hand on John’s lapel while he drops his right elbow on the mat keeping tight against John’s hip to secure them.

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It’s like Mr. Masterlock showing you how to pick a lock.

Step 4 Ricardo now straightens his legs back to a sprawl.

Step 5 Using the lapel grip for support and maintaining heavy hips, Ricardo begins to take small steps to his left leg while rotating his torso slightly to the left with each step (like a baseball slide pass) making sure to keep the weight and connection to John’s right leg, effectively pinning it to the mat during the pass.

Step 6 Once Ricardo clears John’s hips on the initial pass, he now secures the pass by dropping his hips completely to the mat and slides back into John’s right leg, pushing it back until John is completely flattened out.

NOTE: It’s important to note that as Ricardo is passing, he is sure to use his lapel grip and pull his opponent towards his chest keeping as tight as possible.

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STANDING PASS TO SIDE CTRL

It’s very common that whenever someone attempts to pull guard, one of the guards they will attack with is a DLR guard. Ricardo shows a good way to attack the DLR from the standing position.

Step 1 Ricardo is standing inside of John’s DLR Guard with his left leg forward. From here Ricardo grabs John’s lapel with his left hand while making sure to connect his left elbow to his own left knee, creating a frame.

Step 2

Step 3

Ricardo reaches with his right hand to establish a grip on John’s sleeve opening.

Ricardo now shoots his left knee across his body aiming slightly above John’s left knee.

NOTE: It is important to place the knee slightly above John’s knee. If the angle is closer to John’s thigh, it allows him more maneuverability and a better chance to recover guard and complete a sweep.

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Ran out of space so CTRL gets a plug.

Step 4 Once Ricardo has shot his knee across, he now drops his hips down, connecting to John’s hips? and keeping the sleeve control by pulling up towards his chest, finishing the pass completing a “baseball slide” type of pass.

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DLR SWEEP 1

Over the years, the DLR guard has found a level of popularity amongst practitioners. Because of this, Ricardo has come up with some clever answers to some of the ways that people attach the DLR. Ricardo shows us a nice sweep that can be used against some common DLR counters.

Step 1 Ricardo has John in his DLR. John is already beginning to attack the DLR by establishing a lapel grip with his right hand. From here it is common that John would drive his knee forward and down to initiate a pass. But Ricardo is aware of this and places his left foot on John’s hip and pushes his hips away to prohibit John’s ability to do that.

Step 2 Ricardo uses his right hand to control John’s right sleeve to rip away the lapel grip.

Step 3 Ricardo now sits up, using his left hand as a post, Ricardo performs a “technical get up” and drives his hips forward while now using his DLR hook to scoop John’s leg out from underneath him and completing the sweep.

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DLR SWEEP 2 Step 1 Ricardo starts with his DLR hook in with a grip on John’s right ankle with his left hand and his right foot on John’s left thigh. He also has a cross control grip to John’s right sleeve with his right hand.

Step 2 Using his left foot against John’s hip and pulling on the sleeve grip to maintain pressure on John, Ricardo pulls his hips up and swings his right foot over and onto John’s right shoulder.

Step 3 Making sure that his hips are still elevated, Ricardo now plants his left foot outside of John’s hip onto the mat and immediately kicks his left leg outside of John’s body until he completely rotates briefly into a Turtle position.

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T E C H N I Q U E T H AT N E V E R R EQ U I R E S ST E N GT H

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Step 4 Once in the Turtle position, Ricardo immediately sits up and pulls John’s right leg up using the grip he had on John’s ankle.

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Lots of moving parts with this one, but if you get it, you’re good!

Step 5 Once Ricardo has the leg pulled up, he can now release his sleeve grip and rotate to his left to complete the sweep.

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DLR SWEEP AGAINST A STANDING OPPONENT

One way that opponents who are standing within a DLR guard to counter it is by swinging their rear leg forward in an attempt to smash the DLR. Ricardo shows us a nice adjustment you can make to setup a sweep.

Step 1 John is standing with his right leg forward inside of Ricardo’s DLR guard. Ricardo has his hook in, a grip established on John’s ankle with his left hand and a grip on John’s right sleeve his his right hand.

Step 2 Planting his right foot on the mat, Ricardo lifts his hips up and extends his left leg so that his left foot hooks to the outside of John’s left thigh, slightly above the knee making it difficult for John to move his left leg forward to smash Ricardo’s guard.

Step 3 Using the hook of his left foot, Ricardo uses his own leg to kick John’s leg behind him.

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They don’t name guards after just anyone.

Step 4 Once he swings John’s leg behind him, Ricardo switches the grip of his left hand to grab John’s left leg and uses his legs to triangle around John’s left leg.

Step 5 Ricardo hips out towards his left to make John lose his balance and fall. As John falls, Ricardo maintains the grip to with his left hand to John’s left leg.

Step 6 Using the the grip of his left hand, Ricardo clears John’s leg behind his head and rolls into John.

Step 7 As Ricardo rolls into John, he clears his right leg by stepping over John’s right leg to complete the sweep.

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DOUBLE UNDERHOOK PASS COUNTER

Ricardo took the time to show us a bonus move that he has used with much success. It is a counter to your opponent’s attempt to pass your guard using double underhooks.

Step 1 John has established double underhooks and is looking to pass Ricardo’s guard.

Step 2 Ricardo establishes his grips. His right hand establishes a lapel grip, while his left hand controls John’s right sleeve.

Step 3 Ricardo now kicks his right leg across the back of John’s neck and left shoulder.

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Step 4 As John continues his attempt to pass towards Ricardo’s right side, Ricardo lifts his hips up and against John’s chest.

Step 5 Once Ricardo finishes elevating his hips, he now kicks his left leg out and down. Initiating the roll into the sweep, continuing until the sweep is complete.

Step 6 Once the sweep is complete, Ricardo can now sweep his right leg across John’s chest to establish a solid position.

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BJJ TOUR WORDS: STAFF | PHOTOS: ROEL FLEUREN THE BJJ TOUR WAS BACK IN ORLANDO FOR THE FIFTH STRAIGHT TIME AND THIS YEAR’S EVENT WAS BIGGER THAN EVER! ATHLETES OF ALL AGES CHECKED IN TO THE KISSIMMEE CIVIC CENTER FOR A FULL DAY OF ACTION- PACKED GRAPPLING THIS PAST FEBRUARY. The kids divisions are always packed in Florida and this event was no different.

Gracie Barra ended up with the first place trophy in the Kids Team division followed by Alliance South Florida and American Top Team. It was a double gold for Gracie Barra who also picked up the overall points win for the Juvenile/Adult/Masters Team scoring. Fabin Rosa BJJ and Carlson Gracie Team rounded out the top three teams. The top three teams in each category took home cash prizes! The next BJJ Tour stop heads back home to San Jose, California, for the American Cup April 28th and 29th. It’s not too late to make plans. Go to thebjjjtour.com for more details.

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EVENT COVERAGE 2018 IBJJF EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP WORDS & PHOTOS: WILL SAFFORD THE 2018 COMPETITION SEASON KICKED OFF IN MID-JANUARY AT THE IBJJF EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP AS THOUSANDS OF COMPETITORS FROM AROUND THE WORLD TOOK TO THE MATS IN LISBON, PORTUGAL. NOT ONLY IS THE COMPETITION THE FIRST MAJOR OF THE YEAR, IT’S ALSO ONE OF THE LARGEST WITH OVER 70 COUNTRIES REPRESENTED AND EVERY AGE GROUP FROM JUVENILE TO MASTERS. This year was one for the books as records were set, submissions were abundant, and thrilling upsets shocked the world.

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The six-day tournament ramped up over the course of the week with lower belts and master divisions making up the bulk of the competition on Tuesday through Friday. Some of the tournament’s most dynamic action was seen during these beginning days, however, as young blood pushed to establish themselves among the world’s best and veteran competitors went for broke in honor of team and country.

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Wednesday showcased a promising next generation of purple belts and a diverse pool of champions. The top podium spot in the Men’s Adult Division included players from Sweden, France, Brazil, and the United States. Cemil Karahan was crowned the best purple belt in Portugal on Thursday after defeating Igor Tanabe, a strong and very young heavyweight out of Japan, in the Absolute Final.

to beat Ribeiro powerhouse, Victor Hugo, in the final via points to become 2018 Brown Belt Absolute Champ.

Saturday and Sunday featured the matches the viewers were waiting to see. The Black Belt Absolute Division took some unexpected twists and had the crowd erupting more than once before the final two competitors were established for Sunday’s final. The man of the hour on Saturday was Norwegian and brand new black belt Tommy Langaker. After tussling with World Champion powerhouse Erberth Santos in a scrappy and passionate second round match, Langaker tapped the much larger opponent with a triangle from guard. The crowd went absolutely insane in support of their European representative as the highly favored Santos ended his weekend early.

In the Brown Belt Division, Kaynan Duarte of Atos was crowned Absolute Champ after defeating Fabio Alano in the semis, who had previously bested Duarte in the Heavyweight Final just hours earlier. Duarte then went on

Langaker went on to face the young and explosive talent Renato Canuto in the following round, and again, shocked the crowd by locking the Brazilian’s arm half way through the match for the tap. The rookie black belt’s incredible absolute run was cut short, however, by no other than recent No-Gi Worlds weight and Absolute Champion, Lucas Barbosa.

The Atos standout was able to dismantle the complex guard of Langaker and pass to the North/South position where he finished the fight via choke, cementing his place in the Absolute Final.

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On the opposite side of the bracket was Barbosa’s teammate and lapel master Keenan Cornelius. The American was able to overcome every one of his opponents via submission and even tapped the ultra-heavyweight Victor Honorio in the semifinal with an omoplata obtained through crafty lapel work. The two Atos teammates closed out the Absolute Final on Sunday, crowning Lucas Barbosa the 2018 European Absolute Champ.

c h a m p i o n s h i p

In the Women’s Absolute Division we saw a rematch from last year’s European Championship. 2017 Double Grand Slam Winner, Tayane Porfirio, again faced multiple-time world champ, Beatriz Mesquita, after both women easily earned their places in the final. After Mesquita was hit with a controversial penalty for evading the competition space, Tayane was awarded two points and thus took home her second gold European Absolute medal.

History was also made on Sunday after Michael Langhi won his sixth gold medal at the European Championship. The Alliance veteran navigated his way through an extremely talented Lightweight Division and faced an unexpected opponent in the final, Masahiro Iwasaki. The Japanese Black Belt defeated the likes of Edwin Najmi and Renato Canuto before proving a worthy opponent for Langhi in the final. The Brazilian was only able to earn a single advantage over Iwasaki, but it was enough for the victory and gold medal.

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We always suspected that Keenan was a “Euro”.

Other gold medalists in the Men’s Division included roosterweight Hiago Gama by kneebar, light featherweight, Hiago George, by closeout, and featherweight, Marcio Andre, by points. Middleweight Isaque Bahiense closed out with his Alliance teammate Marcos Tinoco for his first European gold medal at black belt, and medium-heavy went to Horlando Monteiro after an 8-0 victory in the final.

Keenan Cornelius had a flawless weekend and again submitted all of his opponents on his way to heavyweight gold. Nelton Pontes, who runs a Gracie Barra in Portugal, put on a dominant showing in the super-heavy final, beating his opponent 18-0, earning the gold hardware and a standing ovation from his fans, students, and countrymen.

Ricardo Evangelista then took first in the ultra-heavyweight category after defeating Victor Honorio by advantages.

The 2018 female European Champions include Serena Gabrielli at roosterweight, Vanessa English at light featherweight, and Amanda Monteiro at featherweight all winning via points. Beatriz Mesquita won her third gold medal in the lightweight division with a choke from the back, and black belt newcomer, Danielle Alvarez won her first European gold via points at middleweight. Claudia do Val won the medium-heavy division by ref’s decision, Carina Curvelo took the heavyweight hold via points and Tayane Porfirio won her second super-heavyweight European title by points.

Overall, the European Championship was an exciting start to 2018 and foreshadowed a thrilling season ahead.

The next generation of upper belts are proving extremely technical, full of passion and heart, and a credible threat to established names within the sport.

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Medic

BONE FRACTURES IN JIU-JITSU WORDS: DR PAUL MORTON MD

JIU-JITSU IS A SPORT WHERE WE APPLY SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS OF STRESS TO OUR BONES THAT CAN LEAD TO INJURIES RANGING FROM BONE BRUISES TO COMPLETE FRACTURES. BONE IS A LIVING ORGAN AND OUR BODY IS CONSTANTLY ATTEMPTING TO REMODEL ITSELF AROUND DIFFERENT LOADS APPLIED DURING ACTIVITY. Exercise and heavy loads causes bone to remodel by breaking down microscopically, creating a response where new bone is generated and becoming stronger. This process is protective when playing sports, as it allows the body to prevent injury by building stronger and thicker bone.

Common Fractures in Jiu-Jitsu Often times the stress that is put onto your extremities during jiu-jitsu, such as an armbar or ankle-lock, disrupt the ligaments that surround the joint as your soft tissues are weaker than bones. Fractures that most commonly occur in jiu-jitsu would occur after direct contact. Direct contact can occur during a head collision, such as a wrestling collar tie-up, causing an orbital (eye-socket) fracture. Landing on your shoulder during a takedown can result in a clavicle (collarbone) fracture. Your clavicle works as a strut between your shoulder and the rest of your body and sudden and extreme contact on the lateral (outside) aspect of your shoulder will cause your clavicle to break under pressure. Twisting motions around your smaller bones, such as your fingers getting caught in a gi, can lead to broken fingers.

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089

Stress Fractures

Unfortunately, when the bone remodeling balance is shifted towards increased breakdown, such as during repetitive stress like running, this can lead to a stress fracture. Most often seen in military recruits or runners, stress fractures can occur in the metatarsals (foot bones) or tibia (shin bone), especially in someone who has begun a heavy training program after a long period of rest. Other ways that small injuries to bone can occur is through bone contusions (bruises) such as through repetitive kicking drills or shin checking in muay thai. There may be several months of increased stress before a break is visualized on an x-ray. Some of these injuries cannot be easily seen on an x-ray and may need an MRI to evaluate. Prevention of these injuries is best done by slowly working up your cross-training with running, or allowing enough rest between kicking drills. Once these injuries occur, rest and avoidance of the stress that caused the injury will be important to allow for healing.

❖❖ Fourth Metatarsal Stress Fracture

Not The Face!

Bone can be developed from connective tissue (called intramembranous ossification) or from cartilage (endochondral ossification).

Intramembranous ossification occurs through the direct creation of osteoblasts (cells that create new bone) and is responsible for the bones of the face. These bones are typically flat and can be injured with blunt force such as when the head hits the mat, or from a strike to the face.

These fractures can be worrisome if any of the facial nerves or muscles are injured. Fractures of the orbit (eye socket) can lead to severe problems with vision, and nasal fractures (broken nose) can lead to deformity or cause difficulty with breathing. A smaller injury to these areas may be observed with a four to six week period of rest while allowing the bones to heal. Any fracture in these areas requires evaluation by a physician to avoid long-term consequences.

Growing Bones

Endochondral ossification is responsible for the formation of the long bones of your skeleton. The process begins with the formation of cartilage in your growth plates which becomes ossified through development. Growth plates are typically located near joints in children. Common growth plate injuries include fractures near the elbow, wrist, or ankle of both teenagers and children. Falling onto an outstretched arm is a common cause of wrist fractures in children.

This can happen when resisting a takedown by reaching out and having direct contact between wrist and mat.

Learning how to properly fall or protect yourself from a takedown is the best method of preventing wrist fractures in children or adults. Fortunately, fractures near growth plates have a higher tendency to heal and recover from deformity as the child is already generating new bone. If you’re an instructor in a kid’s jiu-jitsu program, it is important to pay attention to any child or teenager that continues to complain of pain to their extremity as they may have sustained a growth plate fracture even if you can’t find an obvious deformity. Damaged growth plates can lead to stunted growth or deformity if not treated appropriately. If the fracture is displaced, then the bone may need to be realigned and casted in an emergency room, or sometimes in the operating room.

“If you’re an instructor in a kid’s jiu-jitsu program, it is important to pay attention to any child or teenager that continues to complain of pain to their extremity as they may have sustained a growth plate fracture even if you can’t find an obvious deformity.” ❖❖ Orbital Fracture

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How We Heal REPAIR OF FRACTURES

Veins arteries

yellow bone marrow

nerves

bone marrow

FIBERS AND CARTILAGE

woven bone

blood vessels

periosteum medullary cavity

Hematoma

spongy bone

articular cartilage

compact bone (cortex)

Bones heal in a similar way to their formation. Fractures treated with a cast or intramedullary rod often heal by endochondral bone formation. There are three steps that occur: inflammation, repair, and remodeling. In inflammation, the initial injury causes the bone to bleed and inflammatory cells are recruited to the area. The repair phase generates a fracture callus. This callus is initially made up of fibrous cartilage which is slowly replaced by immature bone.

During remodeling, the immature bone is remodeled in response to mechanical stress. It’s important to maintain the immobilization around the broken bone during this time to allow for your bone to heal by going through all of these stages.

Hematoma Formation

Fibrocartilaginous Callus Formation

A broken bone will need to be treated first with immobilization and then prompt evaluation. Depending on the location of the break, treatment options vary from cast or brace treatment to surgical. It may take six weeks before noticing any changes on an x-ray, and often it will be several months before a bone can be considered healed.

There are many factors that are involved with recovering from a broken bone.

Some factors that are easily controlled

Bony Callus Formation

Bone Remodeling

are diet and general health. A diet with ample vitamin D, calcium, and protein is important to the normal regulation and healing of bones. Avoid nicotine products, including smoking and nicotine patches, as these cause a long delay in healing. Certain medications such as corticosteroids and diseases such as diabetes or HIV are linked to difficulty with fracture repair. There is controversy whether nonsteroidal antiinflammatories such as naproxen or ibuprofen negatively impact bone healing.

Recovery from a broken bone varies depending on the injury location and severity. Deformity or an open wound over a fracture is an emergency and will require urgent evaluation by a physician to consider reduction, antibiotics, or possible surgery. High-energy fractures, such as those sustained after a car accident, can be permanently disabling.

Back At It After you’ve been cleared by your physician to return to jiu-jitsu following a broken bone, you will likely need to rebuild the muscles that you have lost during rest. Healing a bone can often take several months, thus during this time your muscles surrounding the affected joint become smaller, losing its strength. The ligaments surrounding the joints of the injury will require stretching as they may have become stiff after a period of immobilization. Rehabilitation will require stretching and strengthening exercises that will help rebuild your muscles, maintain your flexibility, and allow you to return to activity.

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gains

BUILDING BIGGER ARMS FOR BJJ

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WORDS: WILL SAFFORD

NOWADAYS, IT’S ALL ABOUT “FUNCTIONAL FITNESS.” WE’VE MOVED ON FROM THE DAYS OF ISOLATION EXERCISES AND THREE SETS OF TEN FOR EVERYTHING. But is there anyone out there who doesn’t want bigger arms? Athlete or not, bigger, more defined arms are the envy of most males. From high school kids to middle-aged businessmen trying to get their swagger back, bigger arms might only be second to a bulging chest on the aesthetics side of things.

Sculpted arms are a sign of virility and masculinity. From an evolutionary standpoint, they signal that you’re capable of defending yourself and what’s yours, you can carry that tree or rock to build shelter, and you can rear naked choke that lion threatening to steal your kill. Alright, muscular arms have their limits, but they’re just as useful on the jiu-jitsu mat as in the jungle or out at the bar.

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There are certainly times on the mat when we can get by with only using our legs to defend, like pushing away an oncoming opponent or regaining guard after a failed pass attempt. But most of the time, it’s our hands and arms doing the work: pushing, pulling, framing, squeezing, submitting.

Although submissions are most successful when leverage is used effectively, having more mass on your arms can help close up some of the loose space between yourself and your opponent. Plus, having stronger arms can secure the tap by applying a tighter squeeze on that guillotine, cross choke, or RNC.

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Biceps brachii Triceps brachii Brachioradialis Brachioradialis Extensor carpi radialis longis Flexor carpi ulnaris Extensor digitorum

Before You Start Before you bee line for the dumbbell rack it’s smart to understand a few things about how to grow the muscle of the arms. They respond just like all of the muscles of the body, and require stress, nutrients, and rest to make changes. So where your instinct might be to hammer away on your pipes day after day, it’s smartest to hit them with new stimulus, consume more calories than you take in to promote growth, and allow enough time to rest and recover.

Most people immediately target the biceps for bigger arms; however, the triceps actually contain more mass on the upper arm. It’s best to balance out the posterior and anterior parts of the arm to ensure the best results and to prevent muscular imbalances. Targeting only the front of

Keep sets between 30 and 50 seconds.

It was mentioned in the intro that long gone are the days of isolation exercises and the bodybuilding style of workouts for sport. However, if you have a specific goal to grow your arms, then mixing in arm-specific exercises can certainly help.

Instead of dedicating an entire session to arm training, however, the jiu-jitsu athlete will be better served using functional exercises that tax the arms like pull-ups, presses, and rows. You can then add in arm finishers at the end of a session to get a pump and reach the training volume that’s necessary for muscle growth.

If you’ve been training your arms for a while, then you’ve probably hit a wall for new muscle growth. Doing the same old training routine is like spinning your wheels without going anywhere. Beginners will see changes from just about any arm related movement, but gym vets need variety to spark new life into stagnant muscle.

If you’ve lingered in the 8 to 12 rep range, which is great for muscle growth but no longer producing the results you want, try dropping to the 3 to 6 range with heavier weight for a few weeks. You can also vary your grip and add isometrics to your routine to change it up.

ARM BUILDING TIPS

Time under tension is the key to hypertrophy AKA muscle growth. You need to keep the muscle stressed long enough to elicit growth, and the sweet spot seems to be between 30 and 50 seconds. Sets of 8 to 12 will usually hit this target, but you can always play with the tempo using heavier or lighter weights to get you there.

For example, using a concentric tempo of

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the arm will promote a shortened biceps tendon, which can lead to biceps tears and a quicker tap when your arm is extend in an armbar.

lifting the weight up for 2 seconds, holding it for 1 second at the top, then lowering for 4 seconds, and a 1 second pause at the bottom would equal 8 seconds per rep.

Multiply that by 5 reps and you’ve got a 40 second set. Play with the weight and tempo to create new muscle stimulus.

Train your arms 2-3x per week.

If you’re doing upper body exercises like presses and rows, then you’re already

working your arms. You don’t need to add an entire day for arm work; however, you can do sets of biceps and triceps exercises on any upper or lower body day. You can also add finishers of bi/tri super sets to blast them at the end of a workout. In total, try to work your arms two to three times per week for optimal growth.

Stretch between sets and after workout.

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You’re probably pretty good at stretching your hamstrings and quads after a workout, but we often forget the smaller muscles of our forearms, biceps, and triceps. These muscles get tight just like the rest of them, especially with all of the gripping done in jiu-jitsu. Use the time in between sets to stretch your arms and rest at least a full day between arm workouts to promote optimal recovery.

TRX Triceps Extension

a r m s

Keep rest periods below 120 seconds.

Growth gains are best made with rest periods between one and two minutes.

If you’re using heavier weights for lower reps, lean toward the longer part of this range, then rest for shorter when using lighter loads.

Use smart program design.

The majority of your program should consist of big movements that recruit the most muscle like deadlifts, squats, presses, and rows. Make one of these the primary move for each session then add supplemental arm training after. You can also add arm finishers to any workout, even on a “cardio” day, but stick to rule 2 for the best results.

EXERCISES

Set a suspension trainer up so the handles are around chest level. From a standing position, take an overhand grip on the handles and walk forward so the straps are in front of the anchor point. Lean your body forward keeping a tight core and bend your elbows so the handles are at the top of your head. Using the strength in your triceps, straighten your arms to push yourself away from your hands.

Keep your elbows tucked in to prevent them from flaring out during each rep.

Varied Grip DB Biceps Curls

Lying DB Triceps Extension

Grab a pair of dumbbells and hold them at your sides in a standing position. For the first grip variation, place your thumb knuckle and pointer finger against the outer endcap, then curl the weights up to your chest, keeping your shoulder blades back and down.

Grab a pair of dumbbells and lie on the ground with your knees bent. Press the dumbbells up over your chest and pull your shoulder blades back and down onto your back. Then, slowly lower the dumbbells toward the sides of your head by bending at the elbows. Once they’ve reached the bottom position, drive them back up using the strength of your triceps.

Do not allow your elbows to flare outward.

For the second variation, place your pinky against the inner endcap, then curl the weights up to your chest.

For the last grip, use a normal hand position evenly positioned in the middle of the dumbbell.

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Drag Curl Stand holding a barbell at your waist with an underhand grip.

Keeping your shoulder blades back and down, curl the bar up to your shoulders by pushing your elbows back and elevating the bar straight up your body. The bar should make contact with your body as it drags up to the top position.

Chin Up Grab a pull up bar using an underhand or supine grip with your hands shoulder width apart. Think of driving your elbows down into your pockets as you pull yourself up over the bar. Keep your head straight ahead throughout each rep and slowly lower to the starting position with good control.

Dips Grip two parallel bars shoulder width apart with straight arms and create torque by putting downward and outward pressure into the bar with your hands. This will help protect your shoulders. With a slight forward lean, lower yourself do the bottom without putting too much strain on your shoulder joints.

Drive the bars away from you using the strength of your triceps to return to the starting position. Maintain a tight, braced core throughout the entire set.

Band Curl Step on an exercise band with your feet shoulder width apart. Using a neutral grip, or hands facing each other, curl the bands up while keeping your shoulders back and down and your elbows pinched in close to your body.

Do not allow your elbows or shoulders to come forward.

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Will’s got a tank-top rash guard he’s dying to wear.

Band Push Down Set up an exercise band over a high anchor point. Grip the band with each hand, hands facing each other, and set your shoulder blades back and down.

Set your elbows close to your sides and do not allow them to move as your drive your hands downward.

Inverted Row Set a barbell across a rack around waist height. Lower yourself under the bar in a supine position to the floor with your body in a straight line, core tight and arms straight.

Set your shoulder blades back and down and use an overhand grip, shoulder width apart.

Drive your elbows down toward the ground and squeeze your shoulder blades together to pull your chest to the bar.

SAMPLE WORKOUT Workout 1 4x5 Deadlift 6 Overhead Press 6 Weighted Chin Ups x4 12 Band Curl 12 Band Push Down 12 Burpees x4

Rest Day

Workout 2

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4x5 Bench Press

4 full reps. Rest for 10 seconds.

Rest Day

6/s Lunges 6/s Renegade Row 10 Lying DB Triceps Extension x4

Then, pull yourself back to the top and hold for 3 seconds, again squeezing as hard as you can. Then do 3 full reps and rest for 10 more seconds.

Workout 3

Swings 20s work : 10s rest x8

Isometric Row (use Inverted Row-2 photo) Pull yourself to the top position of the Inverted Row and hold yourself there for 4 seconds, squeezing your biceps as hard as possible. Then go right into

Finally, repeat this again but hold at the top for 2 seconds, followed by 2 reps.

If you have more in the tank, repeat this after a 5 minute break starting with a 3 second hold and 3 reps, then working down to a 1 second hold and 1 rep.

4x5 Back Squat 6/s Single Leg Deadlift 15 V-ups x4 10 Dips 10 Varied Grip DB Biceps Curls 10 TRX Triceps Extension 10 Drag Curl X3

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success

Powered By:

FATHER KNOWS BEST

VERNON KIRK DISCOVERED JIU-JITSU WHEN HELPING HIS SON INVESTIGATE A KARATE SCHOOL. AT THE SUGGESTION OF A FRIEND, THEY CHECKED OUT JIU-JITSU INSTEAD. Since then, both father and son have been hooked on jiu-jitsu and have felt the benefits in every aspect of their lives.

AGE: 39 | HEIGHT: 5’10” STARTING WEIGHT: 285 lbs CURRENT WEIGHT: 210 lbs HOMETOWN: Washington, DC HOME GYM: Team Rubao Carioca INSTRUCTOR: Rubens Rodrigues RANK: Purple

How did you discover jiu-jitsu?

My son wanted to do karate. A friend took us to Bushido Judo School back in 2009. When the kids’ class ended, my friend and the instructor talked me into taking the adult class. I’ve been hooked ever since. I found jiu-jitsu because my friend and another student kept beating me on the ground and they took me to my jiu-jitsu instructor, Rubens Rodrigues, a sixth degree black belt.

What motivates you to train?

My biggest motivator is being better than I was yesterday. Another driving force for much of life is to set the right example for my kids. A strong work

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ethic and dedication sets the example for their current and future success.

What else do you do for physical fitness?

I lift weights two times per week, run two times per week, do Yoga once a week, plus I train jiu-jitsu as much as possible.

How have you changed your diet?

At one time I lived on junk food and Diet Mountain Dew. I suffered with horrible migraine headaches, weighed 285 pounds, and knew something had to change. Most of the junk is gone and so are sodas. Now I do a modified Paleo with cuts in gluten and dairy.

What’s been the biggest challenge so far?

My biggest challenges are balancing my career that involves travelling and being a driving force in my family’s life. When I travel I plan carefully so that I can visit local jiu-jitsu schools to get my training in as well as get different perspectives on

the art. My wife works evenings, so again, I have to carefully plan the times I train to optimize the amount of time I spend with my kids. An added bonus for me is that my son comes and trains with me which makes our relationship even closer.

What’s been the best benefit from the changes you’ve made?

The greatest benefit I have reaped from my change of lifestyle is the confidence I have in all aspects of my life. I also believe that my children watching me make these changes has set a good example of what may seem almost impossible can be possible with hard work, dedication, and the support my family offers me to persevere.

What advice would you give to someone else looking to make the same sort of change?

Just do it! It will never be perfect, but once you get going you can’t stop. Baby steps lead to strides, and strides lead to pride in one’s accomplishments.

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