How Good Can I Get After 3 Months of BJJ?

Posted on December 8, 2014 by myackulic

So you’ve grown tired of your chicken-elbow biceps and little chicken legs and are looking for a new challenge. BJJ has the potential to transform you into a Greek God but you’re unsure how long it will take for you to move from complete embarrassment to fairly decent. Well, as with any martial art or any sport, getting really good takes time, but you’ll be surprised how much you can learn in a short space of time.

In terms of progressing up the pecking order in winning competitive matches and moving up the belt rack, there wont be much visible progress. However, in terms of the impact 3 months of training can have on your physical fitness, technique, understanding and overall endurance you can come on leaps and bounds.

The early stages of anyones BJJ career focusing on grasping a good understanding of basic guards, escapes and techniques. Enough to defend yourself on the street but not enough to challenge a more advanced grade in a throw down rolling session in class. By the end of three months you’ll be thinking Kanye is a time traveller from the future and wrote harder, better, faster, stronger specifically about your BJJ career.

The start of your training will focus on how to defend and escape when in a grapple, as well as enough painful arm bars and gag inducing chokes to keep any attacker away and leave you feeling pumped and confident in many situations. No doubt you will also experience how good getting your arse handed to you in a roll feels, you’ll have the rolling buzz and a new found motivation to improve and get fitter. You can establish a basis on which to build, and rapid progression and improvement is not unheard of. To someone untrained in BJJ you’ll be able to comprehensively out do them, so by all means take the opportunity to embarrass your friends when they are being a little too cocky.

It’s important to remember that where BJJ may look a little rough around the edges, it’s an art that takes decades to perfect. The IBJJF state that a student should spend 2 years at white belt level, so as mentioned, in three months your wont be changing your belt. The three months will inspire you though, giving a target to aim for and igniting a desire that you did not know you had within you. You could say that BJJ is more than just a sport, is a lifestyle choice, and a choice that you will not regret making.

In summary, you’re not going to be as huge as Arnie or a ninja like Bruce Lee in just three months of training. You will notice improvements in overall fitness, strength and desire to succeed. The most appropriate word do describe what three months can give is transformation, both physical and mental. Just think what another 3 months will bring…

Come down to Arashi Do Edmonton and try out one of our great Brazilian programs like Fundamental BJJ, Women’s Only BJJ or Children’s BJJ for ages 4-7 and 8-14.

All those and you get a 30 DAY FREE TRIAL!

Building Self-Confidence Through Brazilian Jiu Jitsu

Posted on January 27, 2014 by myackulic

Self confidence can come through a number of different channels, one of which is discovering you are actually born with it. The truth is though, everybody is actually born with a plethora of positive traits, in their purest forms, one of which is self confidence indeed. The only thing which would deter anyone from displaying that self confidence is if it was stifled by the interactions they have with the environment around them, particularly other people they come into contact with.

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) is one of the best ways through which to restore any dormant self confidence, in anyone who has lost it, since everybody simply has a deep reserve of self confidence in them, amongst other positive traits that could have been stifled along with that self confidence.

In fact, building self-confidence through BJJ is one of the best ways through which to tap into that natural reserve of positive attributes which simply need reawakening, which is why a lot of budding combative artists choose to take up Jiu Jitsu for a number of reasons, one of which is indeed rediscovering their dormant self confidence.

In all likelihood, there was a recent or past incident which prompts the budding martial artist to have the kind of introspection that has them saying enough is enough, but they naturally do no know which is indeed the best method through which to regain or build the kind of self confidence that would have a positive influence on the overall or immediate quality of their lives.

But what is it exactly which makes Brazilian Jiu Jitsu one of the best self confidence builders?

It’s quite simple really — or at least in concept but it can prove to be very effective in practice as well.

BJJ is one of the most effective means through which one can defend themselves or hold they own very well in combat, as is discovered by those who take up Jiu Jitsu as their combative art of choice.

The participant need not necessarily be the very best mixed martial artist in their circle of competitors and compatriots — all they really need is the basic fundamentals which make them competitive enough to defend themselves successfully or at least compete at a reasonable level.

This breeds a kind of power which can be tapped into at anytime when the need arises, and in this way building self-confidence through BJJ proves to be one of the most effective ways to do so.

Although it has been mentioned that one need not necessarily be the very best mixed martial artists to successfully build their self confidence through BJJ, the very nature of practicing BJJ will require them to apply themselves in such a way that they become competitive and effective enough to acquire a set of skills that instills self confidence, in that they will naturally believe in their new-found abilities and lose the fear.

The self confidence spills over into different areas of the livelihood, subsequently, since the new-found ability to overcome nervous situations breeds even more confidence in other areas of one’s life.

Come down to Arashi Do North Edmonton and try out one of our great Brazilian programs like Fundamental BJJ, Women’s Only BJJ or Children’s BJJ for ages 4-7 and 8-14.

All those and you get a 30 DAY FREE TRIAL!

Fighting Tips, Part 2

Posted on January 17, 2014 by myackulic

When it comes to applying technique, there are two sets of BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU fighters: pattern fighters and adaptive fighters. A fighter who has a pattern will usually learn techniques, use them well, and transition with them well. Some BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU fighters are great at this, but an adaptive fighter is one who may not just know the patterns but can adjust and adapt to the situation at hand.

I understand it is always great to have a coach for support and technical guidance. But I think being an independent, adaptive BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU fighter is of utmost importance and it is truly what leads you to understanding your game. Your coach is just there to help you along but should not always hold your hand.

Let’s look at it like birds. When a bird leaves its nest it has to spread its wings and fly on its own; it will be hard for another bird to simply carry it. You want to fly on your own. When it is your time to spread your wings, you should spread them your way. And when you are in mid-flight you may need to adjust your speed, distance, and height. If you are hurt or have a broken wing, you may have to adjust your path to survive. If your game is intelligent and you are a calm fighter, you will find the right movement. If your positions are not working and you run out of movements, you have to use what you do know to create something useful to advance your game.

You can also take a look at Russian wrestler Buvasaer Saitiev. He is a not a big, quick, or particularly strong athlete. He is a just an exceptionally technical athlete. He has competed in four Olympics and is a nine time World Champion (including three Olympic gold medals). I think this says something for his longevity and the type of athlete he is. He is a cerebral wrestler. He uses his mind and understanding of his technique to adapt and win. He is certainly tough in many ways, but what makes him so special is his wrestling skill coupled with his adaptive tendencies. He is present in his matches; when something difficult or complex happens against him, he reacts quickly and creates countering methods on the spot that turn into his offense.

When you tap someone during sparring, do not brag about the tap or tell your friends who you tapped. Often, this person wasn’t going 150% against you anyway because sparring in the gym is not a competition, so bragging that you ‘beat’ a guy who was going easy on you makes you look foolish and puts you in line to get a rude awakening later on. And don’t keep score every time you roll, people will get annoyed at this type of behavior—just have fun.

Come down to Arashi Do and try out one of our great Brazilian programs like Fundamental BJJ, Women’s Only BJJ or Children’s BJJ for ages 4-7 and 8-14. All those and you get a 30 DAY FREE TRIAL! What are you waiting for?

Call or text us at 780-220-5425 or email us at myackulic@ArashiDo.com

Top Ten Reasons to Join Arashi Do BJJ (Part 1)

Posted on March 6, 2013 by myackulic

Ok, you might not need any reasons to begin training in BJJ, but I’m going to give you 10 Great reasons for those living in Edmonton to do BJJ at Arashi Do Martial Arts.

1. Simple and safe Self Defence for all ages and sizes – We have a heavy focus on Self Defence for all our students. Not interested in Self Defence but more in Sport? Did you know the whole reason for for sport competitions was the idea of testing the effectiveness of one’s ability to Defend themselves? 90% of the Self Defence we cover at the White Belt Level is Sport Applicable.

2. Build real, unshakeable confidence in yourself – Children and Adults alike have benefited from the Valuable Life Skills we teach in Class. Our Instructors will help you achieve you personal goals using Martial Arts as a method of reaching them. Confidence is easily built by stepping outside your comfort zone and exceeding what you believed was possible and our Instructors are great at getting you there.

3. We have Edmonton’s Longest running BJJ Program – Professor Mike started grappling in 1997 and begin teaching Grappling in 2000 and BJJ in 2002, making this BJJ program not only the longest, but making him the Instructor with the most hours of Instructing on the mats. Add in the variety of Children’s Classes, Intermediate Level Classes, Self Defence Classes and Women’s Only Classes and you have Edmonton’s Most Experienced BJJ Instructor.

4.A variety of classes for the hobbyist or competitor – We offer classes for those interested in Self Defence and those interested in Sport. Either way, we make sure that ever class has you sweating, smiling and learning. Every class will have other students with the same or similar goals to partner up with.

5. Learn how to deal with confrontations verbally and physically – In our BJJ classes we teach you not only the physical skills to apply in Self Defence situations but the verbal skills to either defuse the situations or buy some time and set up your defence. Training your verbal skills also forces you to be more aware of your surroundings, something incredibly important for Self Defence.

Stay tuned for part 2 with five more great reasons.

Women’s BJJ in Edmonton

Posted on March 3, 2013 by myackulic

Today was the first Women’s only class at Arashi Do Martial Arts North and we had a fantastic turnout with 16 ladies coming out to learn simple Self Defence techinques that work on people twice there size.

In fact, on of the lighter students flipped the instructor (who is 200lbs) over her head with ease, and to the surprise of some of the new students, when he was standing over her.

Women everywhere are starting to see the benefits of training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Arashi Do North Edmonton is the only school on the North side offering the program. We offer women an opportunity to learn how to defend themselves using the “Gentle Art” that is Jiu Jitsu.

Women's Only BJJ in Edmonton

Come down to Arashi Do North on Sundays, 12:30-1:30pm to try out a class. Nervous, don’t be. We have several women that are brand new, but you are more than welcome to bring a friend to two :).