Back in May I did a podcast with the Clint Cronin Show. I had a great time on the show. We covered a lot of topics from Parenting and Jiu Jitsu, nootropics, to robotic genitalia.

At some point you will encounter fear. If you get involved in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Fear in BJJ will be a frequent visitor. Maybe it sets in when you are going into a BJJ tournament; Maybe fear locks you up when it’s time for live rolling. In any case, you are not alone. We all feel this emotion at some point. Let’s take a moment to establish the basics on overcoming fear.

This week we talk about proper breathing technique for BJJ (Brazilian Jiu Jitsu). It’s definitely an issue that does not usually get its own lesson… but it should.

Several months ago, I had the honor of tearing my Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL). It is an essential tendon that is in the center of all of our knees. The ACL helps with all daily movement. I was training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu one night. He caught me in a rough straight ankle lock. My knee made a popping noise. I felt intense pain in my knee. I yelped and I tapped immediately. It wasn’t immediately clear to me the severity of the injury. But over the next several practices it became clear that my knee had suffered an intense injury and match by match I was losing confidence in the joint.

A friend in class asked me to touch on this subject so here it is. Technique vs Strength and when to use each.

At the heart of a promotion is a person who is acting above their recognized level. This is true in most things and very true for a purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Promotions do not usually come if you have one foot in blue belt and the other in purple.

This week we dive into ‘How to Balance Parenting and Jiu Jitsu’. The name of the article could also be something like ‘Zeroing out all the other tasks in your life so you can focus on Family and Jiu Jitsu’.

Once you hit a certain age there will always be something competing for your Jiu Jitsu time. For some of us, instead of parenting, you may have obstacles like competing hobbies, work or socializing. There can often be distractions that take us away from important tasks.

Steve Maxwell is the modern day American guru on fitness, an NCAA div 1 wrestler, Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt (Under Relson Gracie) and one of the original investors in the UFC. His accolades go on and on. In this interview Steve chats candidly about a series of topics ranging from self discipline, outer and inner self, forgetting the past and the collective.

The Tatami Estilo 5.0 gi was released in April 2015. It is a pearl weave competition level gi. The Estilo was designed for the high-level competitors. They are easy to order over the internet and worn by many. In this article, we are going to put the Tatami Estilo 5.0 under the microscope and test its worthiness.

There is something special about the Jiu Jitsu fighter that treats their gi with respect. This type of athlete comes to their school with the gi folded up and the belt wrapped around. I think this level of preparation shows that this fighter is thinking about Jiu Jitsu on and off the mat. Most importantly, this is a show of respect for the art, the school and oneself. This show of discipline made me think of some other things we should be doing as a community.