Howdy. Ando here from Happy Life Martial Arts. Today I'm gonna share six
ways that Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu improved my stand-up skills from kung fu and
karate. Some of this is practical, some a little more philosophical, but either way,
spoiler alert-- if you're primarily a stand-up martial artist I'm gonna
recommend that you give BJJ a try. Before we get started, I should tell you that I
didn't want to take BJJ, but like everybody else living in the age of the
Gracie Revolution and the UFC, I knew I'd have to try it at some point. When I
finally signed up my goal was not to give up what I was already doing, my goal
wasn't even to be very good at BJJ. My goal was simply to stop doing the stupid
things that untrained people do when they hit the ground like sticking your
arms out, or rolling over, or crying. I hated the idea of losing a fight to
someone who only knew a little bit more than I did about fighting on the ground.
So when I finally signed up, my goal was just to learn the basics. I figured it
would take about six months. Wrong! Turns out 10 years later, I'm still
making stupid mistakes. But over time I figured out that the mistakes I make
aren't really ground fighting mistakes, they're flaws in my character-- my fears,
my ego. By giving me a different way to train fighting, BJJ has given me a
different way to see myself, a different way to improve myself, which is why I
think you should try it too. But before we get too philosophical, let's get back
to the practical. Here comes six ways that BJJ has helped me improve my
stand-up skills and my living skills.
All right. Number one-- confidence. Many martial artists lean away from their
strikes or they stop from following up because they're afraid of getting
countered. But when you're not afraid of being grabbed or tackled or pinned on
the ground, well that can add a lot of pop to your punches and kicks. So train
your stand up art as hard as you can, but train a little BJJ as a back-up
plan. It's a lot easier to stand your ground when you're not afraid of falling
on the ground.
Number two-- structure. Now obviously punching kicking and takedowns
all require good balance good alignment and good posture, but when you're on the
ground and you're stuck under someone's entire body weight, you really respect
how to line up your bones to try to manage that pressure and keep from
getting crushed. That deeper level of awareness of how to set up my skeleton
his only made my punches and kicks and takedowns better. I may look the same to
my partners but I sure don't feel the same. Number three-- BJJ improved my grip.
I don't just mean stronger, I mean smarter. In my first year or two
of BJJ I was holding on way too hard and for way too long. I was terrified of
letting go of a bad situation because I thought it would just make it
worse. As a result I jacked up my fingers big-time. The solution? Stop trying to
muscle my way out of every problem and start trusting my wits instead. That led
to an even bigger lesson-- learning when to hold on to an idea when it's helping
you and when to let go of an idea when it's holding you back or hurting you. If
you can figure that out, well you'll reach your goals on and off
the mats. Plus you'll save a lot of money on athletic tape. Number four-- fighting
small battles to win big wars. In BJJ when you're getting crushed or
choked, the amount of relief you can gain by moving your body even 1/2 an inch one
way or the other can be profound. Sure, small technical details make a big
difference in striking, too, but BJJ really slowed me down to make me respect the
little things even more. Now I don't mind throwing an extra jab or two to set up a
better position to throw that big punch. BJJ helped me see that as long as I'm
moving forward even half an inch at a time I have a chance at winning the war.
Number five-- timing or picking the right moment. I thought I was in good shape but
when you go to the ground you're gonna find out that good shape is not good
enough. You're gonna watch in horror as you gas out, lay out, pass out, and not be
able to fight back at all. But there's good news-- when you burn up all your
energy you're forced to figure out when to exert yourself and when to relax. When
to explode and when to just slow down take a breath and fight for something a
little smaller. BJJ is great at getting your priorities straight and learning
how to use your energy wisely. If you don't, well you end up tapping out,
breaking a leg, or puking all over yourself. Okay, last one. Number six-- contact.
Look-- I had been doing sweeps and locks and takedowns for years before I started
BJJ. I thought I was cool getting close to people.
Turns out BJJ is just closer. You might end up with someone's sweaty chest
grinding on your face for 5 or 10 minutes! But a funny thing happens along
the way. At some point that doesn't bother you so much anymore. I don't look
forward to it, don't get me wrong, but it doesn't bother me. And that's a good
thing because then when you're standing back up and someone grabs you or picks
you up, you don't freak out as much. In contrast, if all you do is point sparring,
you might train yourself into believing that being touched is
instant death. Point! Game over. But in grappling you don't fear being
touched. If anything you welcome the touch because you know that's your first
chance to start controlling the situation. Let me go a little deeper on
this one. When your main focus is striking, it's easy to feel disconnected
from your opponent. I want to stay away from them so they can't strike me and I
only want to get close enough so that I can strike them. And even when I do
connect with a strike, it's just for an instant before I pull back to the safety
and comfort of being all alone. Well, grappling is the complete opposite.
Grappling is all about connection. You have to feel okay touching other people
and you have to feel okay with people touching you. Now I know that might sound
a little weird, but get over it. Feeling comfortable touching other human beings
is a far healthier mindset than walking around trying to keep everybody away
from you all the time. Hugging someone you love is one thing,
but if you can feel comfortable hugging someone who hates you or someone who's
even trying to hurt you, then you, my friend, have a very powerful
tool in making this world a better place. Either by holding someone and
controlling them, calming them down and letting them go... or by picking them up
and dropping them on their head. Alright. I could talk about this subject all day
but that's enough for now. To be clear, I'm not telling you that you have to be
a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, but I do hope that you're open-minded enough
to try different martial arts-- not to replace what you're doing, but to enhance
what you're doing. And if that means signing up for a BJJ class, go for it.
At least for six months. if you liked this video, thanks for subscribing to the
channel and maybe sharing with a friend. Thanks for that.
Until next time, reach out. Reach out touch someone and keep fighting for a
happy life.