After a frustrating training day for myself, as well as one of my students, I thought it'd be great to talk about plateaus. We talk about how to deal with them in your training, as well as how to deal with them mentally, and when it's time to take a break. We also talk about how to introduce more fun into your training, and how live games can help make your training more fun! 

I spent the weekend in Dallas and Austin, coaching two athletes at the ADCC Open, and then visiting 10th Planet Austin and B-Team. 

NOTE: Slight background noise in the first couple minutes will clear up. Keith also has an incredibly affordable and great Patreon, linked below.  - This week we're looking at a few key details for improving RNCs that don't rely on the straitjacket system, namely from Keith Krikorian and Ethan Crelinsten. Some of the matches referenced in the episode are linked below: FREE VIDEOS: - Ethan Crelinsten vs Fabricio Andrey - Ethan shows a 'go-to' arm switching RNC finish - Ethan showing his...

We're back! It's been a long time. Life has been wild this past year, and things are starting to get easier--I didn't want to upload until things could be consistent. Thanks for being patient, and for the kind messages! In this episode I talk about my love/hate relationship with deep half guard, and why I'm currently staying away from it as a primary guard. I also talk a little bit about the instructional that I'll be filming this July. I think it'll be unique, something new to the table, and...

We're back! On this episode we're talking about Rafa Mendes, his protege Cole Abate, and Rafa's contributions to the NoGi world. Below are some links from some of the techniques and rolling moments discussed in the episode. Thanks for bearing with me. I've had a summer filled with a lot of loss and illness; life goes on, and I'll continue to strive to make the best of life! I appreciate everyone's support so much! Shouts to Less Impressed More Involved's BJJ's Rafa Mendes video this...

In the aftermath of Tye Ruotolo vs Garry Tonon, I expect to see Tye being a strong favorite to make the 88kg finals at ADCC, and I see Garry Tonon going into ADCC potentially looking better than ever at 77kg. People not looking at Tye as one of the best pound-for-pound guys on the planet are insane, and people writing Garry off after this loss are also insane. 

We cover a lot in today's episode--heel hooks for recreational players, as well as a super simple tip to get heel hooked less often, as well as ideas on how to start breaking down rolling footage and competition footage for study. To close out, the basics of 'inside position' are discussed, and how this can be learned through studying tape. Links: The Andrew Wiltse heel hook video and 'Ballerina Foot' heel hook defense video by Craig Jones talked about, as well as a link to The Goldtown MMA...

Thanks for being patient with me, everyone! Today's episode is all about the mount.  BTW, thanks to BMac/10th Planet Decatur for sponsoring the podcast! Here's a link to BMac's Jedi Archive, updated weekly with content. The promo code JEDIDOLLAR will get you one month of access for $1, and it's $29 per month after that: https://bmac.mykajabi.com/a/18466/3rnpEzsV The mount is criminally slept on until the upper levels of the game. Some huge tips to improve your mount are staying relaxed,...

ADCC has an incredibly unusual ruleset and point system. To help everyone get more familiar with these rules before the West Coast Trials this weekend on Flograppling (https://www.flograppling.com/events/7379684-2022-adcc-west-coast-trial) I wanted to talk about some of the unique aspects of this tournament. I've been watching ADCC live since 2009, and despite becoming very familiar with the rules over the years, there are even a couple new things I didn't know until recording this. For some...

Wanted to post some quick thoughts after last night's WNO event. 

Sorry for the brief hiatus! Out of town the past 2 weekends competing and coaching, as well as doing podcasts for BJJ Mental Models and The Grappling Discourse. This episode is a bit of a departure--I wanted to talk about a new interest that has developed for me within our sport, as well as the differences between the 3 hats that have to be worn by most upper belts and teachers in the art (instructor, coach, and mentor). I also would love to know if any of you have any new interests in the...

When we have bad training sessions, they usually fall into 2 categories. In this episode, we break down these major categories and some approaches to handling these experiences. This is important not only to improve, but more importantly to keep us optimistic and from circling the drain with negative thoughts and feelings about this very demanding sport.  Also, I was on my friend Mat Skaff's podcast yesterday talking about ADCC History, some of the best matches there, ADCC 2022, and some...

People have been asking for a Darce episode, so finally...here goes. I briefly cover a couple of the most common misconceptions that lead to sub-par (or even failed) darces, as well as a couple of simple drills that you can do with a training partner to land more of these techniques. Me explaining some benefits of the marce angle finish:  https://youtu.be/Hc4b0YgOCUYMe showing the rolling darce to land in the marce angle: https://youtu.be/X8RMfkHra54 One of the drills I referenced can be...

Today's episode is inspired by Ethan Crelinsten (B-Team athlete/instructor and John Danaher black belt). I had the opportunity to train with Ethan and get some rolls in during March of 2021. The thing that stood out the most was Ethan would fully lock up subs on everyone, and then let go and move to another submission or offensive transition. There are 3 critical skills for getting great at submissions, and here we are focused on #2. 1. Moving from static positions into submissions. 2....

"I wasn't a good student, and even now I never say I am better than anybody, but I know I love jiu-jitsu more than anybody." - Marcelo Garcia. 2010. Flashback to May of 2007. The legendary Marcelo Garcia is a 2x ADCC champion, and more importantly is The People's Champ. He's on a quest to get double gold medals at his 3rd ADCC. 3rd time's the charm--he's submitted all 7 of 7 opponents in regulation on his way to the Absolute Finals, and he's the smallest man by 24 lbs / 11kgs to get this...

In part 2 of our deep dive into the guillotine position, we cover 5 practical tips that you can use to hit more guillotines. Regardless of what style guillotine you prefer (high-wrist, high-elbow, arm-in, etc), you should be able to implement all 5 of these concepts to submit more people with the guillotine, as well as use it as a robust position to help you advance to other great movements, techniques, and positions.  There is another Google Doc here as well as an Instagram and Reddit post...

This week we dive deep into the world of guillotine chokes. On part 1 of this series, we'll examine each of the main styles of guillotine. We'll also take a look at the progression of each guillotine style's popularity within the art, the history behind the main styles of guillotine, and some of the best athletes to watch for each style. To view the matches and rolling footage discussed during the podcast, visit the Google Doc below, the link in my Instagram bio below, or the Reddit post...

This week I make the case for verbal tapping (even when it might seem unnecessary) as well as the culture around tapping in BJJ, and how I think instructors could do a better job of teaching the skill of tapping to new students. I'm tired from a long road trip, so this episode is shorter than usual. The next episode will be a longer one focused on the pros and cons of various guillotine grips and finishes (low vs high wrist; arm-in vs arm-out, etc.) Everyone have fun training, and stay safe! 

Training while traveling is one of the best experiences we can have during our BJJ journeys. Here are some tips on logistics and etiquette when training on the road, as well as some things to keep in mind for your the growth of your game and skills. 

These days there are more and more questions about what moves are fair game and what moves are jerk moves. Let's go over some different categories of moves, and get an idea of what's fair game, what's rude, and what doesn't fly. This episode was recorded a while back, but it seemed appropriate to drop after some recent questions I've been seeing on this topic. 

One of the simplest and most rewarding ways to improve your game is to avoid taking rounds off. There's nothing wrong with taking rest rounds if you're truly exhausted, or nursing and injury, but there are lots of reasons to avoid it if at all possible. Finishing every round is a great way to diagnose your own game's strengths and weaknesses, boost confidence for rolling anywhere, help strengthen the mat culture at your own school, and give you a better sense of your rate of improvement. We...

It's become very common on the BJJ scene to hear the terms 'high percentage' and 'low percentage'. Sometimes people end up misunderstanding these terms, and they use the term 'low percentage' to describe movements that are actually just niche, less common, or more specialized. Just because a technique isn't common doesn't mean that it's low percentage, and it doesn't mean it's not worth our time! 

For many, the north south choke is one of the most frustrating movements to learn in the art. We talk a bit about some common issues surrounding the NS choke, why it fails for many people, so helpful troubleshoots, and some famous match examples of the technique being used.  Some great live-use match examples are:  Marcelo Garcia vs Pablo Popovitch (ADCC 2007) - https://youtu.be/JozmB8JZAFI Marcelo Garcia vs Francisco Mendes (Worlds 2010) - https://youtu.be/bMUduVl7_Xs Josh Hinger vs...

It's easier than ever in the current climate to feel overwhelmed with the amount of instructional material out there. If you're feeling overloaded with instructional content, or feeling like you aren't able to keep up with the community or your training partners--you aren't as behind as you might think! Here are some ideas to try and relax, and to understand that you'll progress at your own pace.