This Day

By Kalidasa

Look to this day:
For it is Life, the very Life of Life
Within its brief span
Lie all the verities and realities of our existence:
The Bliss of Growth,
The Glory of Action,
The Splendor of Beauty.

For Yesterday is but a dream
And Tomorrow is but a vision.
But Today well lived makes
Every Yesterday a dream of Happiness
And every Tomorrow a vision of Hope.
Look well, therefore
To this day.

You may not be able to make it to practice, or do what you want, everyday. But you can make every day count towards your ultimate goal, whatever that may be.

On Adaptation

“You will adapt to Jiu-Jitsu, and Jiu-Jitsu will adapt to you.”

- Unknown

I have heard this quote spoken in gyms and academies across the country, but I have been unable to find the source. It is so prevalent that I think it must be from the first generation of Jiu-Jiteiros. Or it was stolen from another art. The beauty of this thought is that it can apply to nearly any activity.

There is a physiological adaptation to everything that we do. The human body has been designed by something -- whether it is evolution, God, or something else is irrelevant to this discussion -- to be a compensation machine. When you sit at your desk and type away at your computer, your body is learning ways to do it better. When you stand at a prep table and dice vegetables, your body is learning to do it better. When you play video games for hours at a time, you body is learning to do it better. Your body will round your spine to rely on solid, bony structures instead of pliable muscle. Or your body will adjust to standing eight hours a day, and your knife hand will become faster. Or your body will learn where all the buttons are so you’re not constantly looking at the controller.

What are the physiological changes that occur when you grapple? You will begin to lose body fat. You will begin to develop lean muscle mass. Your heart and your lungs will become physically larger. Your resting heart rate will decrease. Your bones will increase in density. You will become more flexible. But the mental and emotional adaptations that you will undergo are even greater. Confidence will be built in knowing that you are capable of physically subduing another human being. Mental strength will be developed through determination to drill and compete. Compassion will be established in helping others learn. And self-acceptance will be found in creating a style for yourself.

In his famous interview with Pierre Barton, Bruce Lee said that “all types of knowledge ultimately mean self knowledge.” Taken a step further, all types of expression ultimately are self expression. In Jiu-Jitsu, as in other sports, a style or game is developed based on one’s strengths and weaknesses. One’s style is typically composed of moves that resonate with the individual. It could be something discovered by accident: the first move that worked when sparring; or deliberately chosen to solve a problem: dealing with a taller or stronger opponent.

Regardless of how it comes about, the moment when your style becomes a reflection of you is beautiful and reaffirming. We are all different. Humans come in all sorts of different sizes, shapes, and lever lengths. Because of these differences we have a tendency to place value or pass judgment on ourselves and others based on size or shape. I have found grappling and Jiu-Jitsu to be a panacea for this sort of thinking.

Everybody and every body type has the potential to be great at Jiu-Jitsu. I am tall, lanky, and underweight for my height. But I can get ankle and knee picks from just about anywhere. I have hit Triangles on men more than twice my bodyweight. My skinny arms can fit into nearly any crevice, and have Rear Naked Choked everybody at my gym except for Professor. It sounds silly to say out loud, but Jiu-Jitsu has taught me how to express myself, love myself and love my body. And for that reason I will always love Jiu-Jitsu.

Gabi the Goliath, and Men vs. Women

Many of you are aware that the ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championships took place earlier this month, on October 19th and 20th. It is the most prestigious no-gi submission competition in the world. You may not know that Gabi Garcia, 8x World Champion and 2x ADCC Champion was invited to compete in the Men’s Absolute or Open Weight Category. Obviously, Gabi turned the offer down, but the news of the ADCC’s proposal and Gabi’s decision have spread almost as quickly as the bootleg videos of the competition itself.

I first saw the news on BJJ Heroes' Facebook page. They posted the same article from Tatame that I linked to above, and declared that allowing Gabi to compete against men would be a freak show and unprofessional. BJJ Heroes followed that up with an article asking several black belts, both male and female, their opinion about the possibility of women grappling with men. The overwhelming consensus was: no; men should fight men; women should fight women. Although I found the article to be self-serving, I agree. At such a high level of technique, skill, and athleticism, competing against one’s own gender is better than contending against the other.

Many respondents to BJJ Heroes’ post pointed out that at the children’s level and even at lower level adult competition (white, blue, and even purple belt) girls compete against boys. As far as girls versus boys, girls physically mature faster than boys due to biological imperative. Things become more difficult when both sexes hit puberty. In girls, hard lines become soft curves. In boys, testosterone levels reach a height that is beyond girls’ levels. Muscle mass is quickly developed. Strength and Conditioning research suggests that on average, women have ⅔ the strength levels of men in their lower bodies, and ½ the strength of a man’s upper body.

However, this does not preclude women from competing against men. It happens at local grappling tournaments and is a routine occurrence in gyms and academies across the country. Yet, it must be stated that these fights are occurring at a significantly lower level of skill than that displayed at ADCC.

Nearly every participant at ADCC is a high-level black belt, or the equivalent, in their chosen grappling discipline. Moreover, many of them are world champions or medalists. They have Strength and Conditioning coaches. They have nutritionists. They are the closest thing to professional athletes that exists in the world of submission grappling. And as technique begins to equalize amongst competitors, physical components, such as size, strength, speed, power, and endurance become more important.

The IBJJF World Jiu-Jitsu Championships have been contested annually since 1996. In addition to nine weight classes, the Mundials have featured an Open Weight tournament every year. Of the 18 Absolute Champions, four have been from weight classes not classified as Heavyweight or higher. Amaury Bitteti and Ronaldo “Jacaré” Souza, both Medium-Heavyweights (194 lbs. or 88 kg.), have each won the event twice.

Even the most technical grapplers are at a disadvantage going against larger opponents who are almost as technical. Rafa Mendes and Rubens “Cobrinha” Charles, Featherweights (154 lbs. or 70 kg), and two of the greatest guard players of all-time, have lost to Rodolfo Vieira, a Heavyweight (207 lbs, or 94 kg). Even Marcelo Garcia, the King of the Giant Killers has failed to win Open Weight gold at the Mundials or ADCC. Looking at the past results of these two events I’m reminded of a favored quote from one of my earlier instructors, “in jiu-jitsu, as in life size does not matter; but, it helps.”

While I think it was a fantastic gesture from the ADCC to Gabi, and a legitimization of her skills to the doubters, I believe she made the right decision. Will we ever see Gabi or any other woman compete against men in a major event? I don’t know. I do know that I would love to see her in an Exhibition Super Fight against selected opponents. But I don’t think that having her compete against the best grapplers in the world in a tournament format is going to have the kind of result that any competitor wants: to stand atop the podium as champion.

Why I Started a Blog

I started this blog for several reasons. Primarily, it’s something I’ve wanted to do for a while now. I even put it on my To-Do list for this year. With luck, writing about grappling will help me understand it better. I hope it helps me improve my writing, too. But, like anyone else, the main reason is ego.

I have something to say about grappling. I hope you’ll be kind enough to read it. This blog will be more than YouTube techniques and witty, social commentary--though that will certainly be included as well. I plan on discussing the concepts and principles at play in grappling disciplines like Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Judo, Wrestling, and SAMBO. There will even be a few history lessons: examinations of the people, times, and cultures that produced and promulgated these fantastic arts that we all love and study.

Like I tell everyone who trains and learns with me: “Constructive criticism is always welcome.”

Let’s have some fun.

First Post

First posting. Phew! Glad that's over. It was stressful trying to figure out what to say.