In my quest to be the best grappler I can be, I began studying Judo to supplement my BJJ. Insodoing, I bought and read Jigoro Kano’s “Kodokan Judo,” and Neil Ohlenkamp’s “Judo Unleashed.” I also enlisted a new BJJ student, Neil Coker (a Judo Black Belt, and national level judoka) to begin coaching me.
What has [...]
On September 26th, 2009, members of Small Axe Jiu Jitsu converged on Northern Detroit to compete in the Michigan Open. We had a competitor that weighed in less than 70 lbs and a couple who cleared the 200 lbs mark with ease. The end result of the day was Small Axe taking home 3 first [...]
HIP CONTROL
It is inevitable that in BJJ you will be told, “Control the hips,” or “It’s all about the hips,” or something along those lines. The advice is sound! What do they mean? This essay is going to try to demonstrate a way to direct your attention to controlling your opponent’s hips. We will [...]
SHARP AND READY
The Big Tree will not fear the dull axe, nor will it fear the axe that has been tucked away in cabinet. Rather, the axe must be sharp and ready. To be such in jiu-jitsu, one must have four things. First, one must have a mastery of the fundamental positions. Next, one must [...]
MENTAL REVELATIONS OF THE PROGRESSING GRAPPLER
One of the most exciting parts of teaching Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is the experience of witnessing students progress in skill and develop in mental acuity. Part of the progression entails improved physical abilities, but the beauty of BJJ is that, because of its intellectual components, one’s physical limitations can [...]
February 28th, 2009, Professor Caique ventured to Indiana to give a seminar. After a grueling training session, several of the Small Axe Jiu Jitsu participants were awarded promotions.
Ari Bolden, of www.submissions101.comrecently asked me to comment on my perspective of the relationship between MMA and BJJ. He asked me if MMA will make BJJ obsolete? He also wanted me to address differences between MMA grappling and BJJ. This post will try to address these issues as well as set an argument for the [...]
Why BJJ? This is a common question the answer to which depends on the desires of the person asking it. For the purpose of this post the question is being asked by someone interested in devoting his/her time to an effective martial art that has both sport and self-defense (combat) application. It will also be [...]
I have thought alot about the belts and what they mean when it comes to BJJ. There are many different metaphors and analogies that can be utilized to help one understand that progressing through the ranks is difficult and takes significant time, but to keep perspective on why, I like to use the analogy of [...]
