Article on Whether Spider Guard Translates to No Gi

Well, I sure try to make it work.

There’s an article over at grapplearts.com about whether or not spider guard is a viable open guard option in no gi. In my personal experience, I find it’s trickier, but still a possibility. There’s a strong emphasis on wrist control, staying on point with your feet on the biceps, and keeping your fingers crossed that no one has gotten too sweaty yet.

Check it out, and let me know what you think.

Clip from No Gi Worlds

So WordPress won’t let me put the video clip directly into the post, but this guy totally stole my game for my next no gi tournament match…

No Gi Match

But seriously, something like that I could see at white, maybe blue, but purple belt? Really?!

What to Wear for No Gi Class

Someone recently asked me what she should wear to no-gi class, and it’s a good question for someone that just starts out: while gi class basically makes your clothing choices for you, barring a t-shirt and whatever you wear underneath, no gi clothing has a little more choice and diversity. This can be good once you get into a groove and find what you are comfortable with, but for those just starting out it can be a little daunting.

Personally, I tend to wear a rashguard and capri length compression pants. I know some girls who prefer full leg leggings, or spats as they are sometimes called, and others who prefer more of a traditional short. Some women worry about exposing their midriff and wear a tank- top like leotard under their no-gi clothing, which is fine too. I don’t, mainly because I have a pretty short torso and my rashguards end pretty long, so flashing a little belly is not often too much of a concern. My biggest piece of advice would be to avoid wearing a cotton t-shirt. The fabric will become soggy, stretch and eventually get in the way while rolling. At least that’s been my personal experience.

I even took a picture of my typical no gi getup…Please pardon the facial expression; I’m terrible at selfies and consider myself one of the least photogenic people in the world. And the hair- it was after class….I’m just going to stop now.

 

Overall though I would say find a combination that works best for you and feels the most comfortable and covers everything you want covered. Maybe you would rather have a tank top, or a full length sleeve rashguard rather than short sleeve, board shorts rather than compression pants…I could go on and on. One note though, if you decide to eventually compete in an IBJJF no gi competition, at least 10% of your rashguard has to have the color of your rank- not that anyone just starting out would immediately begin to think of competing in those tournaments, but hey, the earlier you know the better.

Oh, and for those that are down with the spats, Meerkatsu has some pretty sweet octopus ones over at his store you may want to check out. There are also some pretty awesome Pony Club Grappling Gear ones, particularly “The Jessica“. Because unicorns are pretty awesome.

Those are my two cents- what does everyone else wear? Let me know and have a great day everyone!

 

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday, 2.8.12

Well, at least while I lose at a tournament, I look good doing it (I would be the one on the bottom, in case you aren’t sure):

Tournament Outcome

Everyone did really well at NAGA this weekend.

I am being super critical of my own performance, so I am excluding myself from “everyone”. I only fought no-gi for various reasons, and when I did, I didn’t feel like I did my best. Not that I didn’t try, but overall I was not very happy with my performance. Which, since I don’t train that much no gi isn’t terribly surprising, but ::shrug::. I just need to take this as a learning experience and move on.

But, everyone else on the team did great, and I am proud of them! Hooray!

I Wish….

I wish I was better at no-gi. I wish I knew all the fancy tricks and chokes that make no gi seem like a different animal from gi.

But I don’t.

Our motto for no-gi is the idea that it is really “gi without the grips” and that is certainly true- it’s just I have trained pretty much exclusively with the gi this whole time and now some habits are just hard to break.

Thankfully I have stopped hesitating at the realization that I have no cloth to grip at the sleeves, but the mount is still an awkward place to be, which is silly since that is one of the best places to be in jiu jitsu, period. The awkwardness comes from the natural reaction to start looking for a lapel choke…But then realizing there is no lapel to choke with.

Oops.

This will eventually smooth itself out with more training, but I still can’t help but feel a little awkward and hesitant at times in no gi.

 

Nothin’ Beats a Good Guard Break

So I watched jiu jitsu class night, so I could be up to speed by Friday and the second class involved a different way of opening the closed guard that was taught during the Saulo Ribeiro seminar on the 15th.

Frankly, as much as the stand up guard break is my go-to move, it’s not always the best course of action, for one reason or another.

The class went over a variation that I am eager to practice and try out in class. While a teammate mentioned it didn’t work so well in no-gi, I might give it a go there as well, because, well, the stand-up guard break doesn’t work so well in no-gi.

I’ll let you know how it goes!

For BJJ, Sex Sells?… Not Really

So, the big to-do this weekend was a photo posted by the bjj gear company Manto of two scantily clad women “grappling” on their facebook page.

And by grappling, I really mean “groping”. It was awkward, to say the least. Sadly, this isn’t a fluke either, because they are promoting their “Hero” rashguard in a somewhat similar fashion.

If you would like a more reasonable, succinct version of what I am about to say, please check out The Tangled Triangle  for Megan’s take on the whole thing.

While of course there is the saying “there’s no such thing as bad publicity”, well, yes, yes there is actually when considering the long term and the strength of a brand. By using sex as a marketing tool of course you’ll catch the attention of a large group of people. That much is obvious. Some will become outraged, some will look at the marketing campaign and chuckle, but those reactions translating into increased revenues is slim to none. Manto was better off showcasing BJJ greats like Braulio Estima, arms raised in triumph in his Manto gear, or Ryan Hall with an intense stare, looking like he is ready for a match while wearing a Manto rash guard. If you want to sell an image, or lifestyle, this is the lifestyle people want to focus on: the idea that “those who train hard and win, wear the top of the line stuff, and that stuff is Manto”.

What this shows me is their marketing person A) doesn’t understand the finer points of public relations and brand building and B) isn’t sure how to showcase the finer points of the product, or just plain has no faith in the product itself. This is the 21st century, we are an information age. If you do not inform us, we will seek out the information ourselves and discover the strengths and weaknesses of the product on our own before purchasing. We want reviews and comparisons, not pictures of a “lifestyle” suggesting some intangible, suggestion of cause and effect, like “wearing Manto gear will totally make you (a guy, obviously) look more like a fighter and therefore irresistible to the ladies”.

I have to admit I was a little uncomfortable with the images. Not because I am a prude, at least I don’t think I am, but because sex is never in the equation when training or when it comes to grappling. Oh, it’s like seeing a ballerina performing in the middle of a monster truck rally, is the best way I can describe it. Ballet is the last thing you think of monster trucks are doing whatever the hell they do, but there’s a ballerina, in her pretty satin shoes and snow white tutu, pirouetting through the dirt and mud and auto wreckage. There’s a certain cognitive dissonance that would occur and would probably make you feel a little uncomfortable. One of these things is certainly not like the other. And, I don’t know about you, but I tend to avoid unnecessary things that make me uncomfortable.

Those are my thoughts on the whole subject. What do you think of the mud wrestlers without the mud…er, I mean, grappling ladies?

Took the Night off

I took the night off last night (hence the title of this post) because I was feeling a little under the weather. I am thinking it was something I ate, or in fact what I did not eat – I ran out of greek yogurt, which is a part of my morning ritual of coffee, yogurt and sitting down and staring off into space for a couple of minutes while I try to collect myself.

So, I stayed home, read, relaxed. The biggest downer about this routine is that class this week is all self-defense stuff that we haven’t done in a while, and I wanted some practice in. The moves were a little more female oriented this time, such as what to do if someone grabs you by the wrist, tries to pin you against a wall, etc. They are good things to know, and most certainly practice.

So, either tonight we’ll do no gi, some randorii, or I’ll ask someone to show me what was taught last night. We’ll work something out 🙂

Grappling Tournament in Atlantic City, NJ on October 22nd

Our academy’s helping run this tournament in Atlantic City, NJ!

Our ladies should be competing, so there will be a nice range of belt levels and weights for any local (or not so local) ladies who want to compete. I’ll be putting my name in as well, if there are any purple belt girls that are thinking of competing. Hell, I’ll probably be there anyway helping out, keeping score for matches and registering people; I’ll just be bringing my gi (and most likely no-gi stuff) even if no girls register, in case one shows up last minute.

I’m just flexible and accommodating like that. 🙂

If you think you want to compete, go and sign up!