Pans 2012

I don't even know where to begin on this post but I will start by saying that I had the worst performance I have ever had competing!!! I'm not one to make excuses and I won't but my performance 2 weeks ago has got me motivated to train harder and smarter from now on.First and foremost you are what you eat and your body is the only one you got so take care of it and fuel it right!! With that said lets talk about my performance.
My first and only match was against a tough guy by the name of Nathan Mendelson!! I've always seen him around at all the local tournaments but never had the chance to compete against him until 2 weeks ago. He's a very legit competitor and my hat goes off to him for shutting me down and smashing me. You live and learn from your mistakes and experiances good or bad!! On to the next one!!!
With the image of me doing so poorly and burned into my brain I started working harder on my grey ares in bjj or my weak areas and tried adding some new stuff. I've been going nuts knowing I did not live up to my potential or come close to even doing good!! All in all I am now headed to New York to redeem myself for how I did!!! As you read this you may think I'm too hard on myself or that I dwell to much on this loss but to me this is my life and I'm a very competitive person who hates to lose or do bad in anything. With that I am leaving on the 18th and compete on the 21st and I'm very pumped and stoked to be going to NY!!! I am headed out there with a bunch of my team mates and friends from Cobrinha bjj Alliance Los Angeles. I can't wait to go and compete and enjoy all that NY offers!!!!!!!!!!

Kenny Johnson Seminar

I want to start this off by saying thanks to Mike Velez from Jiu-Jitsu Magazine for having me! It was an honor!!!
For those of you who don't know who Kenny is here is a brief bio and background on him.
Kenny Johnson wrestled at the University of Iowa under the legendary coach Dan Gable, and is training for his 6th Olympic Games. Kenny is a premiere wrestling coach in MMA working with BJ Penn, Anderson Silva, Jose Aldo, Paul Daley, Lyoto Machida, Antonio Nogueira and martial arts legend Dan Inosanto. Kenny Johnson is 1 of only 35 coaches in the world to be certified at a USA Wrestling NECP Gold Level. He is also a Purple belt in brazilian jiujitsu and is a World, Pan Am, and National Champion in the Gi and No-Gi. Kenny is also a monthly contributer to www.jiujitsujiujitsumag.com

Okay back to the seminar.The seminar was focused on wrestling for bjj and the timing of the seminar couldn't be better with the Pan Jiujitsu tournament coming up next weekend. Kenny started off the seminar by explaining the importance of stance and gave his theory on defensive/offensive wrestling. He then went on to talk about how hand placement, footwork, posture and distance between one another is the difference between basic level wrestlers and champions. He went on to show the proper way of gripping re gripping and how to grip to set up takedowns. Kenny showed how to properly snap people down and use the snap down to get the front headlock and set up takedowns from the single to outside single. Once everyone understood he proceeded on to showing how to finish takedowns and talked about the importance of not staying on your knees when getting in deep on shots. One thing I really liked about this seminar is how open minded Kenny was. He stressed the importance of being able to know when to explode and when not to. He is also very good at breaking down what he is teaching to you so that no matter what your skill level is you will understand what he is teaching to you. He is also a very care free funny type of person and had every one who attended laughing numerous times!!! I don't want to give away all his secrets and everything he taught today because it is better for any one who is interested in improving or just learning wrestling to get into contact with Kenny and taking privates or just attending one of his seminars like I did. Believe me when I say it will improve your stand up game for mma,bjj or just to get better at wrestling a hundred fold!!! Kenny runs Bolt Wrestling Club and just released a new DVD called White bolt!!! For more info on Kenny Johnson go to www.boltwrestling.com. Once again I'd like to thank Mike Velez and Jiu-Jitsu Magazine for having me!!!!!!!

AZ International BJJ OPen 2012

This past weekend had the pleasure of competeing against the best lightweight mma fighter and newly crowned UFC lightweight champ Benson Henderson!!! Benson just fought Frankie Edgar the weekend before in Japan so I wasn't sure if he was going to actually show up to compete or not but being the true warrior and champ that he is, he showed up and we had a good match that went in his favor. I lost by 2 points due to an akle pick he took me down with at the beginning of the match.I wish I wouldve done better but what can you do? Ben is a class act and I'm sure I will have the chance to compete against him again sometime. I'd write about the match and my mistakes and bitch and moan about losing but whats the point when you can watch it for yourself. My hats off to Benson!!! Truely a beast and theres a reason why hes the UFC champ!!! Thanks to everyone for their support next time I will do better!!! Thanks to DR. james Jung, Autumn Simpson of Maluco Clothing and the best gi company in the biz SHOYOROLL!!!!!!

Reverse De La Riva Tech

Above is a technique I've been using a lot lately in my game. It is very important to pay attention to the details I explain as I show how to execute the sweep. Hand positioning and foot placement is key when doing this sweep and being able to feel your opponents weight and balance is crucial too. There is a 2nd part to the sweep I didn't show yet but will in upcoming weeks! I hope you enjoy and find this video useful for your jiujitsu game.

p.s. this video was shot on a phone so the quality wasn't as good as I would like ENJOY!!!!!

If you would like more videos like this please throw some change in the donation link to the side!!!!!!

Mendes Bros Seminar

This past weekend of mine was spent learning and picking the brain of two of the greatest bjj players in the sport!!! The Mendes brothers Rafael and Guilherme.

Two sum it up it was amazing!!! The 2 day seminar consisted of both gi and no gi techniques based off of the brothers games. The first day was gi and emphasized on passing.I don't want to give away their secrets but the devil is in the details and they broke each and every pass and transition down to a tee. We wen't over around three to four passes and transitions to the back. After drilling both brothers rolled with almost every one at the seminar and there was well over fifty people in the room.

Day 2 was all no-gi and focused heavily on the reverse de la riva guard and their philosophy on hand position, grips and foot placement when on the bottom. Once done with that position they went over how to properly control an opponent from side control. Again they broke down the position and every variable that could happen when on top. After all the amazing techniques and drilling they showed the brothers answered every ones questions and then proceeded to roll with each and every one who attended the seminar.

My final thoughts is that if your ever given a chance to roll, train or do a seminar with these two don't pass on it!!! It is well worth what ever the cost and both Rafael and Guilherme were very helpful with the instruction on how to apply everything they showed. All in all my brain is blown away but I now have great new tools for my bjj arsenal!!!!

Why one should learn Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

The benefits of taking one to one and a half hours of your daily life two to three times a per week to learn the gentle art of jiujitsu are numerous but here are the ones that stand out the most.

1.Self Defense

Brazilian jiujitsu was created for the smaller man in mind.The techniques used and taught in Brazilian Jiujitsu are about leverage and timing.The effectiveness of Brazilian jiujitsu has been proven time and time again and was brought to main stream society's attention with Royce Gracie in the UFC or Ultimate Fighting Championship. With all the stories of bullying on television today why wouldn't you want to enroll your child,little brother or sister in a safe place where they can learn to defend themselves and gain the confidence they need to push through todays society. Lets face the facts we don't live in a safe place or time now a days and because of this women are also taking notice of the effectiveness of the art. Many schools teach courses that help women prevent attack or rape if it should occur.With jiujitsu being about technique over strength women are able to neutralize the bigger stronger attacker and thus be able to fend for themselves should anything happen.

2.Health/Weightloss

We live in a society where its popular to be healthy and thin. Due to this many people are going and signing up at health clubs around the world and trying to get in shape.Many health clubs are overcrowded and people get lost once they get there due to not knowing how to work out or properly or use the equipment.

For me Jiujitsu academies solved this problem. The friendly atmosphere is very welcoming and family oriented.In the beginning of every class you are put through a series of warm up exercises that are designed to teach your body how to move.These same movements or drills are also challenging and thus strengthen your overall body and core. It is not uncommon for somebody to lose a little amount of weight to dramatic amounts of weight after doing jiujitsu for a certain amount of time(results vary from individual to individual).Jiujitsu also provides you with a greater sense of being and confidence that one couldn't get by going and lifting weights or running on a treadmill.The confidence you gain from jiujitsu is second to none. By this you gain a greater sense of being and self knowledge of ones body and what you are capable of,thus providing you with better mental clarity and health.

3.Friendships

For many and myself jiujitsu is a great way to make new connections and good friends. No where else have I personally met so many down to earth people with such good vibes.From day one almost every person I have ever met in the jiujitsu community has been welcoming with open arms. Through jiujitsu I've made more friends and met more people from all over the world and of all walks of life! From your average kid looking to learn self defense to your television house hold name, the brother hood and camaraderie in jiujitsu is second to none.

These are the reasons for one to learn Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in my opinion. Although there many more,these three stick out the most to myself. I encourage anyone who practices the art and sport to bring a friend a family member or loved one to give it a try and see firsthand the benefits it has to offer.

NABJJF NO-GI 2011

This past weekend I competed in the nabjjf no-gi 2011 tournament!

I did the adult advanced middleweight division. Before I go on about my matches and myself I want to talk about a kid I get to coach by the name of Victor Ledezma!!!

He did the teens advanced division and had three matches,winning all three by submission!!! I'm very proud that I am able to give this young gun some insight and pointers and help coach him along his journey as a competitor!!!

Okay back to myself I had two matches in the tournament.

The first match I was able to pull half guard and sweep right away,I passed and managed to secure the back.I slipped off his back and from there it was just a stalemate.I won 8-0

The second was a little bit more action.The guy pulled guard went for a kimura and I went for a step over armbar and the guy rolled up.From there he attempted a toehold from the position we were in and popped my foot a little.I didn't want to tap so I proceeded to continue with the match.Instead of writing about the match I will post it under this so that you guys could just watch it and see for yourselves so I don't mess up the details of it.I ended up winning 15-4. All in all I wasn't that pleased with my performance but managed to win my weight division and take home the gold. I want to thank Shoyoroll for the rad rashguard and t-shirts they have supplied me with and Jiujitsuprogear for the dope shorts I wore and all the support over the years.