Prepare for War: Enter the Mihas Prequel

He walked with a particular expression, a confident smile like he had just bench pressed the world.  That been there done that, you should join me next time kind of swagger.  His presence in any situation sets the sociological tone.  A world champion Mike Mihas who exudes an advantageous charisma of the perfect friend and dependable comrade in war.  Whatever the case may be, he rarely accepts no for an answer.  (Thankfully he no longer dates)  Almost a year has gone by since “Enter the Mihas: the PACS story”.  Before the next chapter, we must first add a prequel that culturally explains the dynamic in our combative niche throughout many shared relationships and experiences. 

Mike Mihas convinced me to become a Jiu Jitsu bum after I had already retired!  That’s right, I had quit such extremes.  The day to day fatigue, sleeping in cars, showering wherever you had access to water; this is the lifestyle of a professional grappler who doesn’t have access to professional level gyms.  This is how we won living in a region devoid of combative knowledge.  I had lived this way for a very long time, but after 10 years needed a better reason to continue. 

Here’s how it all started. 

In 2003 I was eating at a Taco Bell in Clarion PA with my girlfriend at the time, casually discussing today’s road trip to Cook’s Forest.   To be clear, my head was still swimming from a recent tournament I had won.  The extreme training had been paying off, my opponents were respectively destroyed.   I love the taste of war and peace.  The very nature of their difference satisfies both aspects of a dynamic Yin and Yang.  At this time I did not yet understand the nature of war.  We exist within our own peace, a daily acceptable norm; and yet mostly if we are to experience war, it is often an instinctual choice for the chosen few.  So this girlfriend was giving me a connective look, as my mind experiences a peripheral matrix of feedback.  There were foreign men eating two booths away, and they were speaking a language I didn’t quite understand.  One of them slowly said “Vale Tudo” which is the Brazilian Portuguese word for “No Rules” in reference to early MMA fighting.  I turned and asked the men if they were speaking Portuguese.  I was hoping they were Brazilians who did Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.  One of the men corrected me, and said they were Greek and followed the sport of MMA.  The man who said Vale Tudo also informed me that he trained a lot, and sometimes trained with Jimmy (James Terlecki) and that I should come by some time and train.  This man was Mike Mihas, King of Pancrase.   However, I misjudged him.  He didn’t look like a fighter, and I was used to men talking the talk and not walking the walk.  Talk is cheap. 

(I recently asked Mike Mihas about his memory of this meeting.  He had not started working in the area, but was on the road for a meeting in New York when we met.  After the meeting, he was going to compete in a North American Grappling Association tournament. ) This amazes me because this chance encounter was the start of something that wouldn’t begin for almost 10 more years. 

Eight months later my steady love interest was staying at an unofficial Sorority house in Clarion, PA near the college, and I used this questionable relationship to get more training in.  Throughout the week I wrestled with division 1 college wrestlers at the University, and afterwards would privately train one of the coaches for future MMA fights (He ended up being undefeated).  After training, I would return to the college brothel where I was staying; excuse me, an educational Coven where I would take a much needed shower.  I would then head to the town south of Clarion to train with a brutish MMA team called “Team Nowhere”.  They all had the most incredible nick names such as “Short Fuse” and “Time Bomb”.  The first thing I noticed about these fighters is that they would spar at 100% wearing the tiny 4 ounce gloves at the end of class.  Seriously, who does that?  I was kind of impressed at how badass they were, despite their overall lack of technique.  One of the members I took to very quickly.  His name was Garrett (Time Bomb), a 240 pound MMA fighter who had the ability to pick you up from almost any position.  Most grapplers require specific positioning in order to lift someone; it didn’t matter to Time Bomb if you were far away or not, or if the grip wasn’t ideal.  You were a paper weight, and could be slammed from shoulder level if required.  Training with them was great, and they often let me to teach various Jiu Jitsu Techniques.   On the days “Team Nowhere” didn’t have class I would drive to New Castle, PA and train with Mike Demko’s Wrecking Crew for two to three hours.  Every Sunday I would meet at Wrecking Crew for a semi private training session with Tony Arvelo and Allen Seabolt where we would grapple for four hours with no breaks.  During this period of time, it wasn’t hard to average 10-14 hours of training a week. 

Unfortunately, sometimes drama attempted to ruin the perfect evening after returning from training on the nights when I stayed in Clarion.  There was a local underground fraternity in the area called KDR, and they were surprisingly popular.  They were also well known for raping the 18 year olds after they would take their much anticipated first drink of alcohol at a college party.  Some used date rape drugs, and yet their popularity never waned.  These Frat brothers enjoyed pulling pranks on people, and in these moments the Dove of peace never graced me with its presence.  I associated them with full bore rage; predators are no friend of mine.  One wrong move on their part and it was going to be ON.  It wasn’t long before they made a mistake.  It had been a tiring week, and I had been fighting people in training for 5 hours one particular day.  This was all the MMA Sparing, Division 1 wrestling, and fast paced Jiu Jitsu any normal athlete could handle.  I wasn’t really interested in any more action.  Then I heard a scream from the hallway.  Several of the frat boys were storming into the house wearing Gorilla masks and their underwear, and I interrupted them just as they started to enter the bathroom where my girlfriend was taking a shower.  Several of the frats never hit the ground before they landed at the other end of the hallway.  They were unable to move before their friends landed right on top of them.  I piled the bodies up high, but not before someone decided to charge.  They were lifted high into the air by their neck and throw back onto the pile.  The walls were their therapy, knocking sense into them faster than a scared strait program.  Such a strange expression on a Gorilla mask face.  It had to be a “?”, because what the F just happened?  I was ready to fight a horde within the house, but knew that taking the fight to the backyard wouldn’t end well.  However, my cell phone had phone numbers of some of the scariest MMA fighters around.  Whatever happened tonight would be interesting.  The frats ran out of the house before a threatening phone call buzzed the house.  The president of the fraternity immediately called the girls to find out who was throwing their members around, because that person is dead.  After they told him who it was, it was at that point the president officially gave me permission to throw their members around any time I wanted to.  This story would have been more entertaining if I had called in “Time Bomb” and “Short Fuse”. 

Nine years later, things were slowing down for the most part.  I was now training at Next Level in Austintown, and was really starting to vibe with my fellow training partner Mike Mihas.  People talked about him like a Legend, but I tend to ignore such feedback.  Before we connected, I didn’t associate a face with the name.  When we trained together for the first time a week later, it was a unique experience.   Mike would systematically attempt to funnel people into danger; forced steps forward, no steps back.  After several months of training together, we started a deep discussion about winning future matches and championships.  I was admittedly burned out from competition, having competed in countless matches for a reason that is now elusive.  Mike asked me to do one more, just one more tournament with him and that would be it.  Combative baby steps, a more easily accepted compromise.  Mike setup a time for me to train at another gym.  It was time to prepare for war by creating an endless skirmish.  In case you didn’t know, Mike Mihas is a World Champion in Pancration; another rare distinction is that he has won many advanced divisions in the tri-state area and fought in early MMA matches.  I was already attending day and evening classes at Next Level in Austintown, Ohio.  Would there be enough time to make it to all of the classes?  Mike recommended that I attend every class. 

“Alright”

Mike invited me to come to Clarion so I could visit the local gyms where he had been training recently. What?  Pure nostalgia, how could I say no?  The plan was to visit Team Nowhere and a new gym called Clarion MMA.  Going back to how Mike doesn’t accept no, he sort of works around the problem or excuse and gives you a solution that may or may not actually sound good.  That’s the problem with the training we do, it makes for lightning fast problem solving. 

Over the next two weeks time I attended four morning classes (8-10 hours) and six evening classes at Next Level in Austintown (12 hours), four morning classes at Clarion MMA (8 hours), and one class at Team Nowhere (2 hours).  Mike was leading the charge.  Wherever we went, the instructor at the gym would try to get us to grapple each other.  Apparently they wanted a break from both of us.  Mike would refuse, “haha no we are good, we train together all the time”. 

This amount of training is exhausting, and each gym is hours away from the next.  When you train this much you end up developing incredible amounts of comfort and timing, but little energy to actually finish people.  After a rest period, you absolutely finish people.  Now we had completed the training agreement, an obligation fulfilled.  I followed in the footsteps of a World Champion, with a little less Greek swagger.  The unknown man who spoke of Vale Tudo I bumped into at Taco Bell in 2003 was now sharing mat time and the adventure of a lifetime; living the lifestyle of a Jiu Jitsu bum.  Many months later, Mike called in a “favor”.  Sort of like dealing with the (Greek) Mafia, Mike influenced me to compete with him at the PACS tournament.  That’s when we shifted to war, and began our original story: “Enter the Mihas”                 

An Arid walk to the Oasis

 April marks another philosophical year in my quest for Jiu Jitsu Zen.  I first experienced Jiu Jitsu around June 1^st 2002 in the Army, started a Jiu Jitsu club at a college in late September, and entered my first competition as an Intermediate in late May of 2003.  This has been the journey of a lifetime, and the most significant characterization of my adult experience.  I truly believe that I would be dead or crippled if it wasn’t for this hard and technical training; it was a lifesaver beyond an identity.  There are certain things you cannot prevent, because injury and aging does happen at a variable pace.  If I could change one thing, I would have been more careful in training and competition in order to prevent some of the horrific injuries.  That also would have meant saying no or changing training partners.   At the time it would have been rude and there were less training options; it would have been impossible to know which situation was truly better. 

There were certain things that I needed to learn, but looking back all the information was surrounded and obscured by fluff techniques.  Fluff techniques were someone else’s good ideas, fun little things to do that sometimes helped.  However, they were dependent on certain variables or details in order to be successful.  Remove or change a small aspect of the position and you were finished.  I recognized early on after trying many of the moves that were in books or on youtube that nobody was releasing moves that they hadn’t already mastered.  Using similar thinking such as the Gracie gift pass, (a guard pass that allows people in the know to easily choke you) book and video instructors were giving out moves AFTER they had discovered the counters.  They understood something so well, that they released something they knew they could defeat.  They used fancy or creative moves as selling points, but long after they had discovered simple counters for these moves or positions.  The fluff techniques were still used as selling points, which led to technical commonality at many gyms and in competitions around the country.  Jiu Jitsu practitioners became known for certain moves, but as the years went by the creators of the moves often stopped using them. 

I was able to replicate many of these moves, and realized how limited they were.  The moves I learned in the Army needed to be discarded.  They were remnants of the Gracie Combatives program.  We learned the Gracie gift pass for example.  The people I competed against at this time used very boring Jiu Jitsu strait out of the books.  The really good competitors used dangerous leg locks that few knew how to counter, or maybe they won positionally with wrestling.  Around this time I discovered that there is no counter for the unknown, as long as you can pull it off.  The limiting factor was going to be me. 

I decided to draw pictures of people in Jiu Jitsu positions, and would bring several Jiu Jitsu books for inspiration to a coffee shop.  These conceptual jam sessions would last for 4-5 hours.  I would attempt to think about what the positions in the books felt like, and would play out the action sequence in my head.  I would think about changes in my body position that would frustrate and complicate the opponent’s goal.  I would look over the body positions I had drawn, and conceptualize various shapes and movement to include lowering or raising body position.  The drawing and notes would take up several pages on lined paper.  Most were tested in my mind, and of course later they were tested on a mat.  Unfortunately, my Jiu Jitsu club only had a concrete floor.  Despite the lack of equipment or training partners, the frequent brainstorming led to the development of my entire Jiu Jitsu game; there was naturally a graveyard of discarded techniques along the way. 

We didn't have access to much back then.  Whatever move you made up was the move you were hoping to use in the next competition.  The best in the Tri-state area were working hard, hoping to defeat you in the next tournament.  This made things very interesting.  When I started visiting other gyms, it became apparent that most instructors and practitioners were on the same page.  Nobody had come in and handed them Jiu Jitsu, they were simply trying to figure it out with the information that was available.  They weren't quite innovating that much, so many of their movements were predictable.  Remember, the limited game was already released.  90% of people only practiced what had already been released, and much of it had characteristic holes.  The wrestlers were still winning.  The cultures of Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Florida were adding a distinct flavor to the gyms and competitions I experienced.  Pancration and traditional Sombo added leg lock inspiration.  Royce Gracie had people going for arm bars.  Everything was complete, except for the game.  The best was yet to come.    

GI or no GI? Redefining an old question

I am often asked which is better, training Jiu Jitsu with or without the Gi or Kimono?  This is an excellent question, but I also hate the answers most present to this question.  People tried to answer it ten years ago, and then they revisit it again and again with perpetual black and white statements and emotionally charged opinions. We will explore the logic behind several popular answers, and then I will give you a simple interpretation of application. 

The Jiu Jitsu GI seems to be best used as a friction device.  This is obvious.  I’ve had access to successful people in Jiu Jitsu, lots of them, and have seen how they perform differently with or without it.  People often obsess about which was the core of their training, and then their other obsession is who is better at GI and no GI Jiu Jitsu.  Which has a higher vertical leap, Cows or Llamas?  Both are classified as Ungulates and often observed ruminating, meaning they have four separate stomach chambers, and by geographical climate have different shaped feet despite their shared classification.  Still not enough information to answer the question?  Don’t even mention world class competition.  Few will ever be able to relate to that level of understanding and performance.  Who is usually asking the question on GI or no GI training?  A world champion?  Not at all, often a beginner who is looking for a training path.  That was one of my first questions.  I wanted to choose the best one and stick with it.  If you don’t think the answer has changed in all of these years…  You just might be wrong. 

Your average no GI school follows the typical Jiu Jitsu format, with a variable level of instruction.  Depending on how many hours it has been since they last showered, will affect how much oil is on their skin.  When it combines with sweat, it is even more slippery.  There may or may not be air conditioning.  Some schools are well air conditioned, and students dry off quickly.  It is sometimes very slippery, and sometimes not at all.  They are used to fewer moves compared to a GI Jiu Jitsu practitioner because the GI allows there to be finishes when there aren’t any true openings for chokes or arm locks.  You could argue that training methods, degree of technical knowledge or instruction, cognitive potential and reserve, and realm of submissions are all factors.  If we were to be critical of only no GI practitioners and say that they are less technical because they use less moves, then maybe they would consider replacing what would have been GI submissions and sweeps with leg lock mastery, additional repetitions of naked arm chokes, wrestling techniques, and judo techniques.  Maybe at this point they will have enough moves to be technical.  Will the GI make their escapes better?  Sure.  But do they know how to defend against judo and wrestling techniques?  Or do they know how to escape and reverse all versions of leg locks, or defend against someone who has more naked arm choke finishes than they have escaped?    

Delegating Instruction

A common practice as you gain proficiency in something is to share what you have learned with someone less experienced than you are.  A person gaining ground in math often helps their classmates understand and apply some of the steps they are missing.  In the Army they call the practice of having the slightly experienced train the novice “train the trainer”.  The concept is to improve efficiency by further breaking down the information, increasing the instructor’s potential for mastery.  The materials were derived from a dry skill level 1 task training book, and unfortunately left nothing to the imagination.  I specifically remember resenting the Army Sergeants for putting a cadet in charge of soldier training, often a college student who had attached themselves to the unit to receive more money for school.  It bothered the soldiers that the cadets did not have the experience to round out the information.  Our cadets presented the information confidently, without knowing if the information was accurate or outdated.  The concept made sense, but I knew there had to be a better way. 

We wanted an expert, but did we really want an expert?  A common frustration for advanced practitioners of any skill or craft is breaking down and teaching the early conceptual building blocks to someone with no prior knowledge of the subject.  It’s not mentally stimulating, nor is it at the pace they are used to when training their specialty.  It feels slow, and tries the patience.  Some can’t even do it.  The benefit is solidifying the understanding of the early foundation of subject knowledge.   That’s what we are told anyway, and it appears to be true.  If an expert focuses exclusively on the early basics, will they evolve to become a well rounded expert?  Or will this philosophy effectively limit advanced progress?  To educate your students beyond the basic level you must have the experience to do so.  If you always keep it simple, your applied knowledge will lack depth.    

An expert who cannot define the basic fundamental pieces to a novice is not an effective instructor.  Due to natural aptitudes it’s possible for an instructor to perform certain tasks quite well and have an even more limited knowledge base compared to another instructor who isn’t quite the natural.  Despite their skill or ability level, they will not be able to bring their students above a certain level of proficiency. 

Suppose you had a mid level student that only knew certain moves, and the single initial application in which they were instructed.  If they are able to replicate those exact movements with technical success, then forcing them to teach until they can articulate the subject would benefit the new student, the mid level student, and indirectly the main instructor.  Our main instructor now has the time and focus to understand and break down more advanced concepts and accept higher knowledge and more complete knowledge of the subject matter.  This is true for any “live” application, or growing science.  A science or study that cannot change falls outside of this model.  An instructor allowed to grow can take themselves to a greater human potential, and when the time is right they may use their advanced education to advance their mid level students.  As our knowledge grows to new heights and blossoms into a personalized flower of expression, we may begin to break the rules of the early lessons because we have the understanding to do so.  The initial setups and reasoning may no longer be used, and be replaced with completely different applications.  This creative process lends itself to building true mastery and effectiveness of any applied skill or function.  To leave a novice in an advanced setting is like dropping a minnow into the ocean.  To leave an advanced student in the beginner’s class is like dropping a shark into a pond.  Put them in the right place, and they will thrive.    

Passing the Gambit

It's true, during conflict we often frame our current and future decisions based on the past and present actions of our antagonist.  In our first experiences in conflict we begin a sequential sensory process, taking a myriad of mental notations.  In competitive combat sports our actions are often described as feeling out an opponent, actively paying attention to opponents actions and reactions in response to our combat presentation.  We are slowly buying what they are selling, and basing future decisions on what is perceived.

The most dangerous game was said to have been played with a man.  The ability to reason separates man from beast, as written by Richard Connell in "The Most Dangerous Game".  A man was invited to a mysterious island by a legendary hunter and was offered a chance to experience the hunt of  lifetime.  The famous hunter described what would be the ultimate quarry, one that could reason.  He described man as the most dangerous game (noun).  The  game animal, perfectly unpredictable; paired with an uncanny ability to reason.  Richard Connell described it best.

I will admit, it is advantageous to pay attention to reactions, to remember the past movements in the current time.  After so many minutes, over a given acceptable period of time it is hard to think we would see anything different from our opponent.  Are they building or working towards something, or is this the same show replaying over again?

Our combative logic suggests the longer we wait to accomplish a goal, the harder it becomes.  The anticipation is the distraction.  The build up is the incumbrance.  The tension is self induced.  Statistics for college drop outs  are often stated as reason to avoid dropping out in the first place.  A growing static methodology can be hard to break away.  Once someone accepts that they are out of school and have broken the commitment, it is easier to maintain the broken commitment and move on; a quasi relationship went awry.  My father told me that most will not go back.  I went back three times, and it wasn't easy.  I assume it was the Army's version of expanding an education, and challenging a flexible determination.    Because this characteristic behavioral theme of predictable behavior based on current behavior revolves around our opponent creating norms and shaping a predictable current reality, this lends itself to predictable odds and may be considered enough to be a high percentage focal point of both your attack and defense.  What they do changes how you act and react.  What if the reverse process was used to create the ultimate strategy?

My friend and training partner Kevin recently decided that watching past performances of his opponents may lead to false expectations and unpredictable performances.  If you plan for past presentations, a new presentation may deliver problems previously unaccounted for.  This is primarily a mental defeat, as being forced to change for a learning curve you didn't ask for is hard for anyone to accept.  A counterpoint to this statement is that we may misread what we are seeing, and making all the wrong assumptions.  Human error is a factor: we see what we think we see and often miss the rest.

The sport of Mixed Martial Arts is certainly full of strategies, and each theory comes at a price.  An elaborate strategy might be just the right medicine, or a jumbled mess that cannot be implemented in the game that is played.  Some more caveman like strategies are described with brutal simplicity; a fighter hoping to keep it standing or to take the fight to the ground.  I always thought it would be fun to only attempt takedowns, and act afraid and unsure of incoming strikes.  Later in the fight as the pace starts to slow, you would start using more dynamic footwork and setting up calculated striking combinations.  This is the opposite of the more common strategy of starting with striking, and then adding grappling if your opponent gets the better of you in the exchanges.  In this situation, your behavior is predictable.  One of the most effective strategies I've come across has been successfully implemented during my worst performances.  You delivered less, you showed all the wrong things, and finished with what you sold as a pawn.

A bad presentation sells what you don't have.  A good presentation delivers solid feedback.  In the same way you read an opponent, you give them something inaccurate to read; a rather thick book.  Now they have to sort through what is fiction and what is the future.  An exaggerated movement, a lack of follow through, overtly showcasing a lack of experience.  Faking weakness in your strongest areas.  This is the epitome of playing offensive possum.  The longer the act, the better the sell, however the ability to implement this game depends on the mental flexibility of the player.  I've successfully used it to win two recent competitions and almost five total divisions with zero contest preparation through a time of challenging life experiences.  This wouldn't be called success, but rather fool's mate.  It is however an example of how even at your lowest point, the correct strategy purposefully implemented can be used to get you through to the next stage.  How will you game when you play the most dangerous game?    

Enter the Mihas: The 8/4/12 PACS story

During ancient times, I'm not exactly sure if warriors made it a point to prepare their bodies and minds for battle, or if they were supremely confident in the consistency of their daily routine.  Did they train and improve their physical condition on a daily basis?  Or maybe combat was a minor part of their lives, and depending on the gift of notice, they would then prepare over any grace of time given.  It certainly depended on culture; we may even consider it their fighting culture.  The original Olympians of Greece often participated in Pancration, a gladiator art of primitive mixed martial arts techniques; the scribes of history notated that warriors from many different cities participated in these events.  Everyone was athletic, and warriors came from many backgrounds and eventually disciplines.  As can be assumed through their famous history, the Spartans prepared for battle every single day and lived to fight.  Those who lived in Athens focused on the culture of people; only fully preparing for war when they were forced to.

Throughout the last eleven years, I've been living in the middle of both cultures.  Just when life was becoming a little more complicated, a little more distracting, the daily preparation of combat was beginning to take a back burner to more grey cultural projects.  Enter the Mihas. 

Haven't been able to been able to make it to the gym more than once this month, out of town, exhausted, working 7 days a week.  All my excuses were ignored, delays not accepted; the King of Pancrase, Mike Mihas was calling.  Sigh.  "Yes, I will do this tournament with you." I was secretly smiling.  It was going to be a good time no matter what happens, and we were going to be absolutely game. 

There is something about not being prepared that would make anyone nervous.  The only comfort was knowing that preparation for combat had been part of my daily routine for the last 11 years.  When you cannot rely on obvious physical or athletic attributes, you have to create ever better strategies.  This theory was cemented in my mind after breaking the preparation rules so to speak at the last tournament with Mr. Michael Mihas.  I had been up all night after breaking up with a hell cat, and had conceded to simply coaching my friend Mike during his matches the following day instead of competing.  Despite everything, Mike convinced me to step up and compete.  That day I successfully faced over seven people and won two divisions.  Hopefully this method of winning wasn't fool's mate. 

The morning of today’s tournament, I've had horrible food poisoning, and it's pretty bad.  One of those "Naked" drinks had to of been contaminated.  Weren't they bought by Coke?  The ingredients must be cheaper now.  Sent a few texts, and almost canceled on Mike Mihas again.  He didn't accept my hint at canceling.  After weighting in, it was apparent that I had lost seven pounds since 6am.  That gallon of water in my hand looks like a spinning top.  Oh well, we were here at PACS.   Pennsylvania Combat Sports Submissions Open, a smaller submission only tournament held at the PACS gym.  Today their venue included a modest grouping of competitors from Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.  I enjoy reading the room as we enter.  Heavily tattooed guys always seem to bring their creatively dressed girlfriends; these guys like MMA but for now focus on Jiu Jitsu.  A few Ex wrestlers who put their wrestling work ethic into lifting weights as they decided it was easier to not wrestle in college.  A few smaller guys who enjoy the leverage aspects of Jiu Jitsu, and a few massive super heavy weights that are confident in beating almost anyone there.  There will be a few traditional Brazilian Jiu Jitsu practitioners, and they will not know how to do any stand up grappling techniques.  Finally in attendance, a few professional and amateur Mixed Martial Arts fighters, each looking for a different experience.

I signed up for the no GI advanced division, Purple belt division, and was ready for the absolute or no weight class division.  Unfortunately, the room was heating up, and every time I stood up quickly the room would go black and my body would drift towards the fall.  Standing up felt slightly better than sitting down, and grappling felt better than standing up; either way I need to keep moving.  The entire event was in a fog, as the room heated up to well over 100 degrees with humidity that was wet like steam.  The walls are dripping. 

Mike's advanced division match was first, and he leg locked his long time friend and nemesis with a frustrating heel hook.  Why do you guys like those submissions?  This ended up being his only match in this division.  I was up next, facing a taller opponent with an MMA influenced style, I believe he is a professional fighter.  I kept it standing for roughly six or seven minutes, slowly warming up with this first opponent.  He seemed to be comfortable using the Muay Thai head and neck clinch to move people around, but this has always been a strong part of my game, so we spend much of the time pummeling from the Thai plum.  We started chatting during the match, and I made the mistake of complimenting him on his clinch game.  It strengthened his attack, and so I knew it was time to take him down.  He kept angling his body to the side and giving side body lock access.  I don't remember much of the match, except locking in a one arm rear naked choke during a scramble and finishing my new friend. 

Our friend and training partner from the gym Stephen was there for his first competition experience.  I was thinking the no gi aspect and submission only format might make for a slightly frustrating experience.  He did well against his opponents, but in the specific position of closed guard with an opponent completely focused on stopping any submission attempts it was certainly going to be a long and grueling match.  Most submissions are actually designed upon the idea that somebody will be passing your guard, you need a completely different game to deal with a stale mating opponent.  Nobody to include myself had that part of their game within the first two years of training.  We then talked Stephen into the absolute division, which ended up being an even longer match.  He logged twenty five minutes of tournament experience, not bad experience at all.   

There was some down time at this point, and the promoter was already working on setting up the no gi absolute division.  To make sure the division was substantial; they opened it up to everyone.  They attempted to have me compete against Mike Mihas, but we spent significant time convincing them to avoid that.  If we were forced to compete, I was trying to convince Mike that he should go on because I might get sick again at any time.  Mike was attempting to convince me to keep going and win the division.  Thankfully, the promoter agreed to our alternative match.  A large man who we had been watching earlier was pacing around near our ring; I could tell he was gearing up to compete in the absolute.  He had very broad shoulders and long arms, roughly 5' 9", and wore a sleeveless shirt to show off the goods.  I had glanced over at his grappling matches.  He had ripped his 250 pound opponents off their feet and violently choked their neck to almost the point of injury.  His explosive guillotine attack was impressive and worth avoiding.  He appeared to have a wrestling background.  The promoter agreed to match us up next.  I walked over to him, and mentioned that we were up next.  I was pacing around in anticipation, in a moment of clarity (or poor judgment) was very excited to have an all out war with a challenging opponent. 

As we locked up, he shoved my arms down and away.  You must avoid getting an arm broken when going against such a large opponent.  He was operating in short explosive bursts, and as described after the match, he felt three times stronger than he looked.  Steroids.  I've trained with and competed against people on Steroids for years.  This guy was easily stronger than any of them, and stronger than several other opponents in the past that had weighed almost three hundred and fifty pounds.  Grappling and trying to control this guy was like holding on to a spooked draft horse.  Every time we locked up, I was taking damage like an MMA fight.  I quickly decided that he had wrestled in high school, but gave it up during his first two years of college where he transitioned to becoming an unnatural body builder.  I gauged that he would snap me down and threaten the guillotine if I made a mistake during a lower body takedown, and that he would attempt to push me up against the ropes and finish with an ankle pick if given the opportunity. 

I quickly realized his neck was not conditioned, he wasn't able to keep up with Thai Plum neck pummeling, and kept the center line of his body unguarded.  Some have speculated that I had just worn him down, but this came far later.  I was able to drive my opponent backwards due to a type of off balancing movement used to remove yourself from a pin against a MMA style cage.  I feathered this technique driving into his "dead zone" methodically which allowed me to frustrate and fatigue a very linear opponent.  Several times he would shove me away, and my back would touch the far ropes.  (Almost as exciting as WWE)  I was able to take him down twice, and from pinning/side control situations he was posting and pushing with his arms, attempting to bench press me away.  It was working quite well for him, and the pushing on the head and neck was close to causing serious damage.  I naturally adjusted the angles, but had to focus body pressure in two unique areas to prevent what only a heavy weight or super heavy weight can do.  Either side hip, either side shoulder, at different types prevent class specific types of movement.  For when he almost popped up, the pressure was recircled back into him to reflatten.  During a scramble, I took the neck in a one armed rear naked choke.  It was fairly close, but he used his power to release the grip and successfully reverse our position.  I had told Mike that if it didn't end in a choke, it would end in a battle for the omoplata.  I locked the shoulder to prevent upward movement, but decided on the arm.  I locked it out aggressively and early, not to break it but to make it impossible to stalemate the submission.  It worked, and I staggered back to my friends in victory. 

Mike was up next, and before we knew what happened he had already triangle choked his opponent.  Kody Tuttle mentioned that Mihas hadn't wasted any energy in doing so.  Next, Kody had a long and technical match with a very game training partner from his gym Ground Zero.  Wow that was long and dynamic.  The highlight of the match was when Kody had him in a full arm bar, and his opponent was wiggling out of it in a truly precarious and hard to watch situation.  It went back and forth many times, but Kody ended up finishing his opponent.  At this time, I was offered a "By" because I finished such a large opponent, or some other reason.  I was attempting to stay conscious at this point, but at the same time paying attention to what was going on.  They wanted me to face Mike Mihas again, and the the winner would face Kody.  I told them I would give up my chance at second place for an earlier match with Kody.  It kind of been a long running joke, but Kody had written a unique description of one of my matches on youtube awhile back.  He changed it after a few months, and all was forgiven.  It was always the idea though that he would have to compete against me one of these days, and we were going to try and make that happen.  I wasn't energetic, but was game.  Due to my slower movement today, I was concerned about not reacting to leg locks quickly enough and head position in regards to guillotine chokes.  We had a pretty good match, but it was slow and involved a fair amount of close contact and pressure.  I went for an armbar after a kimura was threatened, and a few chokes were threatened and considered.  I do wish I hadn't let the last one go.  In the last stanza, there was a bit of separation between us, most likely due to a half guard situation.  I was placed in an inverted heel hook, and his legs were fully figure four'ed around the target leg.  I turned a few degrees, and couldn't turn any more.  Submitted by that risk oriented submission, and pay back for using similar submissions years ago. 

After a break, Kody and Mike finished the bracket for first and second place.  After a long and grueling match, Mike's arm was twisted into submission by most likely a kimura or kimura variation by Kody.  1-1 for the day, but with an even more extensive personal record against each other. 

I had one more match, the three stripe purple belt that I faced at the beginning of the day.  Putting on a GI after those hot matches in a steamy 100+ degree room was not something I was ready for.  Foolishly and with impatient bravado, I shuffle walked huffing and puffing towards my fresh opponent.  I hit a clean judo throw right off the bat, and almost transitioned into side control to mount.  A few scrambles later, and I was a balled up mess on the ground with my opponent hunting for something to finish me with.  This reminded me of prior heat exhaustion in the Army.  I was tempted by quiting due to exhaustion.  Lots of ideas and realities flashed through my mind, and finally decided to fight to my death.  From the turtle position, I hit roughly four sacrifice throws/rolls that were successful, but my opponent and I kept getting tangled in the ropes and restarted at the center of the mat without an improved position.  (Crap, I want side control)  Minutes later, I secured a triangle choke for the finish, and was so glad to be done.  We closed the tournament, and posed for the last pictures.  I would like to thank all my new and longtime friends for a great experience, Michael Mihas for making this happen, and for the people of PACS that were so kind and generous.      

  

Winning the Inner Competition

There is an inner competition inside of us all.  Everyone is fighting something inside, at different times, during our entire lives.  We try to resist the things that corrupt our success, and chase what may lead to the championships and greater victories in life.  Something greater than ourselves is what we are fighting for, and most of our battles are fought from the inside. 

What happens in a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Kickboxing, or Mixed Martial Arts school is not unlike a sociological experiment.  Most of the people may be there for a different reason, but several different people are there for a similar reason.  We can break that down in the simplest of ways, but perhaps we can break it down in a different way.  We are preparing for a contest within our lives.  In a future self defense situation, we are preparing ourselves to win.  Those who wish to compete in tournaments or fights, are preparing for the measuring stick of combat as the true test of where they are in relation to everyone else.  Who is better prepared?  Is the question to be answered.  If weight loss or general fitness is our goal, then maybe we are competing against something that has been defeating us for quite some time. 

There is quite a bit of fear that must be dealt with during the inner competition, and this controls our decisions and exposure to outer competitions.  For some, it is easy to be thrown into a situation and just react.  For others, the idea of the unknown is frightening.  For another person, a situation or event hanging over their head builds a generous amount of anxiety over time to the point they are no longer interested in that experience.  Maybe we are afraid of public perceptions? Where otherwise we probably would of gladly engaged in a competitive activity.  These are all fears that must be managed in a healthy way well before engaging in a real world competition.  These fears are stifling and often counterproductive.  How free would you be if you were able to let these fears go?

During every kickboxing class, the more advanced students are allowed to participate in the free movement stage of combat: free sparring at various percentages of force.  During every Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Judo, and submission wrestling class the students are allowed to free roll and grapple from either the standing or ground position.  These are all micro competitions in a controlled environment.  We are attempting to win usually, unless we are performing a situational drill, and our opponent is who we are competing against for the most part.  There is a level of comfort here.  You are performing in a familiar environment, against people you probably know quite well, and under a predictable timeline of class.  Some students would identify themselves as a non competitor, that they have no interest in competition.  What they are referring to are kickboxing, MMA fighting, or grappling competitions. 

The above outlined competitions are in unfamiliar areas, often requiring GPS usage or a good map to find.  You walk into the building, and are surrounded by strangers as everyone rushes around like bees in a bee hive.  It’s often quite loud, and you are being directed to different areas by signs and helpful event employees.  You enter the main room, and are surrounded by competitors warming up and preparing for war.  You wait around patiently for hours, often experiencing some adrenal fatigue as the other competitors lock up in a pace not often see at your familiar gym.  Your match start time is determined by how long it takes to get through the other weight classes before yours, and how quickly people are finished.  Just thinking about it gets your heart pumping.  When your name is finally called, you are rushed over to the ring and told to wait.  The referee points to the center and tells you to shake hands.  Your facial muscles tense, you take a few deep breaths, and you go after your opponent.  Or maybe they go after you, and before you know it are being smashed as your opponent, (a stranger you just shook hands with for the first time) as they gain points and advantages against you.  There is a huge roaring crowd watching your match, the question is… what are you thinking about?  Let’s back up for a second.  This is a competition just like at your gym.  It’s a different environment.  What bothers you most? Is it the environment, the people watching? Are you afraid somebody might see you lose?  This is a negative self fulfilling prophecy, one that probably has been stifling your progress and was born in the familiar gym long before this foreign tournament.  A fights a fight, but what are you fighting?  Fear is something that needs to be managed before it is attributed to and scapegoated as other things.  If you want to be free, if you want to grow, you need to let that go. 

Let’s go back even further.  In any gym I’ve ever been in, there were members that I had never directly trained with, and may never train with.  I invite them but they decline.  Or maybe they trained with me before, but avoid it in the future.  Assuming you were not a dangerous, reckless training partner, what are they avoiding?  Maybe there is a difference of experience, maybe they are not comfortable competing unless they know they can win.  It’s satisfying for them to win, but a hollow victory.  They are micro managing their competitions in a controlled environment in a counterproductive way.  These people have lost the inner competition within themselves.  Their growth will be stifled; their longevity in the sport is in question.  Those that cannot win against ego, their days are numbered in these competitive sports.  They have not mastered inner game, nor won the inner competition; they are displaced within the concept of external competitions and matches.  This cannot be the world of a champion, and maybe they are ok with that.  It is comfortable, and safe within the box.  Just don’t expect to go anywhere.  This doesn’t have to be your story, and you can write new chapters in your life or even change the character. 

One of the great beauties in life is how adaptive people are, and our ability to change if we want to.  We can heal and adjust, work hander and change for the better.  We can exercise our mind, body, and soul.  We are not limited by any insecurity, limiting statement, or environment; unless of course we choose this for ourselves.  Make the choice, and work towards becoming your best self.  Master your presentation in life and live to face challenges, and let them define you.  Live as a champion.    

The cage can't keep them out

The curious case of Benjamin Button, the curious case of an amateur fighter named Mike*.  (not Mihas)  During a trip to Florida visiting my mother, I received a call and job offer from a company back home.  I gladly accepted, and they scheduled a one month orientation for when I get back home.  Throughout this orientation I was sitting next to a young man wearing Tapout and other similar MMA clothing brands, with a punk style hat cocked to the side.  During every opportune time Mike would inform everyone that he was a MMA fighter, and would attempt to discuss the sport like a kid quoting the television.  I’m used to people lying about actually fighting in MMA events, so for the most part ignored the dialog.  He described himself as “the most technical wrestler”, because he supposedly would switch between so many different wrestling style takedowns that nobody could stop him.  Interesting self description I thought.  He was shaking and sweating bullets before the drug test.  I messed with him about it, as he hovered over the water fountain.

Throughout our many similar conversations, he asked if he could attend a training session with me and several friends.  Although Mike did well, he was like training with a crazy chimpanzee due to his wild and sporadic movements.  Around this time, Mike told me that he had just signed for a fight with “King Of The Cage”, and asked if I would train him for this event.  I accepted. 

Mike claimed to be a professional fighter, but his 50/50 record was not considered Professional once verified online.  He had lost three of his fights by getting caught in triangle chokes, and then dynamically slamming his opponent before submitting to them.  He had originally told me that he was 7-3, and now it was looking like 2-3 Amateur.  Mike didn’t have a car or a license, so I would pick him up at his friend’s house and drive him to a training location.  I called in favors at Army Armories, the YMCA, and group exercise facilities to get some mat time.  It began to feel like spoon feeding.  Our every day training session consisted of jiu jitsu transitions and guard passes for MMA, wrestling for MMA, and striking angles feeding into takedowns for MMA.  He really only used one wrestling setup, one type of takedown, and one wrestler’s ride technique.  Not sure what he meant anymore about being the most technical wrestler.  He followed instructions like a robot, a quality I didn’t mind at this level of the game.  We were getting somewhere.  After two months, we were finally getting to where we needed to be; the pressure was on.

His game plan was to strike, step to an off angle, use a short combination, threaten the takedown, hit another combination in front of the cage, and re-enter the takedown.  Ride or pass, pound and finish.  Rather simple and well practiced.  Good for an aggressive wrestler, and he was executing it well despite a very basic array of weapons; he was a natural.  Have to keep this one calm, he’s likely to blow up and lose it.  I used several different methods to help him control his mental frame despite the environment. 

Now we are in the Green Room at the King Of The Cage event, surrounded by several well known fighters and MMA school owners from Ohio.  I’m keeping Mike calm.  His friends rush over and scream in his ear, “you need to destroy this guy’s face or else they won’t let you fight again”, “think about your record”, “you need to fight to the death, punch this guy in the face!” I was very pissed, and suspected they ruined what we had worked for all this time.  Never mind.  Just before we enter the cage, Mike’s brother yells some muffled instruction about touching gloves.  Not sure what he said exactly.  The referee steps between the two fighters, and just as he steps back they meet to touch gloves.  Right off the touching of the gloves, Mike hits his opponent with his other hand. Hard.  The injured fighter staggers back, and Mike swarms him for the Technical Knock Out.  The crowd erupts with boos, Mike has climbed up the cage and is show boating for the crowd.  I’m embarrassed, and tell myself this would be my last interaction with this young fighter.  As we walk back to the Green room, several members of the audience invite Mike to fight them as the entire audience boos him out of the cage.  They exchange words, and it looks like another fight is about to happen.  Mike motions several different profane things to the crowd like an explicit pro wrestler.  I pick up Mike and carry him away like a toddler throwing a tantrum, right back up the strange narrow catwalk where this apparently all started.  He is lucky I didn’t drop him for the vultures.  The event promoter came back to the Green room (furious) and told Mike if he has one more outburst with the crowd, that he will be banned from fighting in Ohio.  Well there was one more outburst with the crowd.    

A few minutes later I walked back out into the arena and start talking to a good friend of mine who is an undefeated professional fighter. He looks at me and shakes his head, “man that was so cheap, what was that kid thinking?” 

I really don’t have any idea.            

Considering your first MMA fight?

The fastest growing sport of our time, Mixed Martial Arts, has broken countless rules in regards to acceptance and culture; and has inspired many young people to be a part of something new and exciting.  Not only has this growth and new interest inspired many up and coming athletes to give mixed martial arts a try, but it has also fueled many “secondary” sports as people fine tune various skill sets.  Mixed Martial Arts may be a purist rebellion, technical menagerie, and the bane of any single discipline instructor; with this diverse and almost rogue pugilistic affect, becomes an intoxicating experience many fantasize about.    

When does somebody decide to stop what they are doing in life, and decide to start preparing for a planned fight inside a cage or ring?  What is your true motivation?  Is this a patient goal, or do you just want to get in there and fight someone?  Who are you really fighting?

This article is for people who think about fighting, but probably will never experience it more than a few times.  My goal is to give you a perspective that will lessen the chances of you getting hurt.  Competition of any type is for the specific few, and the fight sometimes is separated from the act of competing due to its specific emotional nature.  I’ve been working with and training mixed martial arts fighters for as long as I’ve been training in grappling sports; specifically about 10-11 years.  In the earlier year, various types of striking arts were my only background.  At first grappling advice was something I had no experience to share, and towards the end became one of the only things I could share. (for the most part)

It’s easier to understand people if you group them together briefly, but you must look deeper if you really want to know them.  I never got a thrill out of working with people who were doing something beyond the norm.  When working dignitary protection contracts, I never bothered my clients by asking them questions that would make them uncomfortable or distract from the business at hand.  When meeting a fighter who has an event coming up, I avoid saying anything distracting or emotionally charged.  It really doesn’t do anything for either one of us. 

Again, let’s group together a few motivations to fight, and then we will look a little bit deeper.  Not all of these things are true for everyone, but we are following a pattern.  Throughout the years, I’ve met a lot of people who seem lost and misdirected in life, and often had rough childhoods.  MMA often calls to them, and they will fight a few times with only a short period of time spent training.  Nobody ever took the time to invest in them, so they don’t know enough to invest their time into training.  They take this to the fight, and are squaring off against themselves and maybe even an abusive parent as they touch gloves that first time.

I meet a lot of wrestlers, and they often did very well at the level they competed at.  They are older now, and miss the acceptance and praise from when they stepped off the wrestling mats after their hand was raised.  They were champions back then.  Some of these athletes were “naturals”; they were successful while working maybe not as hard as the next guy.  The naturals are often flakey training partners, but their ability to move people is something to see.  They are also often fighting a emotional figure head, hoping to defeat them, every time they fight or train.  These fighters often train in a rough manner, injuring training partners.  Their conditioning is suspect, they tire before long.  They will rarely show up to fight training, and will have wins and losses in the cage before they quit. 

Another wrestler has been evaluating life and missing the days of competing, just like the one above.  This wrestler is considered a dedicated work horse, and spends as much time as possible training.  They usually took wrestling to college, because they wanted to compete at that level.  They are likely to practice MMA a lot longer, and those that I know are champions in their own right.  They have fewer issues, and just want to use their wrestling and continue competition.

I have yet to meet a pure Brazilian Jiu Jitsu practitioner, Boxer, Judoka, or kick boxer that bridged their skill set to mixed martial arts.  They obviously exist, but that is rare in this location.  The majority are the last two examples.  So our most common fighters are lower level wrestler/emotional, less skilled brawler/emotional, Higher level wrestler/work horse, or several combinations depending on why they want to fight in the first place.  

Nothing is worse that reading tips and advice about Mixed Martial Arts from an MMA fan.  The MMA fight fan writers are some of the most ignorant people around the sport in my opinion.  They often write articles about when you should fight, and how you should plan out your early career.  The bottom line is you need to be able to fight well enough and understand defense so that you don’t take acute or excessive damage at any one time during the fight.  At many amateur mixed martial arts events, most of the fights even within the first round.  It’s not that either fighter was that much better than the other, but rather that neither fighter was able to stop the other from finishing them.  Sloppy punches landed, football tackles worked, and loose submissions were not defended.  If you put a professional in there, they would not get punched, taken down, or submitted.  You must learn to bridge the gap.  

Learn what it takes to wrestle with a high school level wrestler, to compete against a blue belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, and to block punches and kicks the right way before knocking around a heavy bag.  In the rhythm of combat, you will likely operate in many different areas of technique, and constantly filter and funnel your opponent back to where you are most comfortable at any given time.  People often ask how long this will take.  That’s a poor question.  Put your time in to the point where you can exist in many different areas of combat and be successful.  Rush it and you may hear your sinus crack like a potato chip, or detach a retina.

You have no business mixing the styles until you can do the above.  From there, you have many different strategies of training, and the types of preparation discussed in my grappling competition article.  Being able to defend yourself against the onslaught while remaining offense against your opponent is probably the greatest issue that most amateur fighters will face in their first mixed martial arts experiences.  Conditioning, proper technique, and fight strategy will depend on your dedication to training, and strongest skill sets.                

Entering the Competition Fray

 have a motivated friend named Tony who just so happens to also train at Next Level Martial Arts, and he asked me to write an article about preparing for your first tournament.  He has been training for under one year, but makes it to every training session plus a few on the side.  I asked if he would like a side bar for those considering their first Mixed Martial Arts event.  He liked that idea too, so that will be next. 

How long have you been training?  Do you feel confident in what you know?  If I pulled you out of bed at 3 o’clock in the morning, would you be able to perform?  A tournament is a long day, a rushed pace, and often stressful experience.  It can also give a rush that will shape your future in this sport and maybe how you live your life.  It did that for me.  Is this a personal gut check, a bucket list entry, or are you a future champion?     

After my initial Army experience and exposure to jiu jitsu, I bought two books: “Submission Grappling”, by Royler Gracie, and “Jiu Jitsu Unleashed”, by Eddie Bravo.  Not sure why these were my first two technique books, but possibly I wanted to avoid pages heavy with clothing based attacks.  Whatever were the bare bones techniques, that’s what I wanted to learn.  The first part of Royler’s book talked about his three Abu Dhabi championship wins, and how he retired soon after; this man sounded unbeatable.  As soon as I opened Eddie Bravo’s first book, it was shocking to see that his introduction was the retelling of his Abu Dhabi competition win over Royler Gracie.  Something doesn’t sound right.  Their style was so different, I began to learn both.  Important to note: eleven years later I only use two moves from these books.  They were more of a cultural education. 

After reading both introductions, and before learning how to do a single jiu jitsu technique properly, I decided that I wanted to become an Abu Dhabi world champion.  The next day I ordered a stretchy GI from Amazon.com.  Puzzle mats were purchased for my efficiency apartment.  Had to become a world champion after all, and I suspect it’s going to be hot over in Abu Dhabi and need to work on getting invited.  Eight months later I called Wrecking Crew Jiu Jitsu the day of the Kumite Classic to ask them if they were competing.  Mike Demko’s mother answered the phone, and confirmed they were down at the event.  Three days later I was on the training mat with Lamar Holmes as he practiced solo takedown entries.  Two weeks later, I was asking training partners if they were going to compete at the Naga Ohio event.  Two weeks after that, I was competing at Naga Ohio in the Intermediate division (2-1/2 years of experience bracket).  Didn’t sleep a minute, and after weigh-ins it appeared my bathroom scale was wrong; I weighed in at 206 and was supposed to compete at 199.9.  I spent the next 45 minutes cutting weight.  I ran 3-4 miles wearing 4-5 layers of clothing around the track behind the event, and made weight within the hour.  First match I was balled up by a wrestler, and lost by guillotine choke.  Second match, won by mounted arm bar.  Third place Intermediate division in the spring of 2003.  By 2011, I ended up with well over 300 Advanced Division matches, and around 30 matches using the traditional jiu jitsu GI uniform in four weight classes and absolute divisions. 

So are you interested in competing in a grappling tournament?  Determine how many years you have been training, and how often you attend class.  The amount of years you have been training will determine what experience bracket you fit in.  Do you show up to class on days when you are tired? Sore from exercise? Or suspect you may not perform well against your training partners?  Do you avoid people who are better than you, or those that often beat you?  This is important in determining how fear shapes your jiu jitsu expression and performance.  If you haven’t conquered your ego yet, competition will be very disappointing and your future gym attendance may be in question.  You need to take care of these issues well before you step onto the competition mat. 

How you train is at least part of how you will compete and perform.  Most Brazilian Jiu Jitsu schools start grappling matches from their knees.  In a competition match, nobody is EVER fully on their knees for more than a few seconds, and never to advance position.  Can you see how this would be counterproductive in contest preparation?  In many no gi schools with a high school level wrestling or general mixed martial arts influence, students often advance position in an explosive almost spastic way.  They flop into good positions, and are drawn into bad positions.  Where they improve in takedowns they suffer in actually understanding the dynamics of combat.  They do operate at a speed that the average jiu jitsu player is not used to, which leads to separate problems.  Judo players entering into their first ground grappling tournaments are often surprised that their opponent is unwilling to engage, or bent over at the waist looking for a sloppy grip on the wrist, and finally someone who actively sits on the group and scoots towards their standing opponent.  Rather strange behavior really, because few people are truly well rounded.  It’s natural to draw people into our comfort zone.

A sand bagger is a common term thrown around the lower experience brackets.  This term describes a more experienced grappler who enters the lower skill bracket hoping for an easy win and a first place medal.  These guys love to tell all of their friends that they won the entire tournament, and were extremely afraid of losing to begin with.  Maybe they even expected to lose in the expert or advanced divisions.  No amount of complaining will save you from them, you just need to win.  I was so sick of hearing about it years ago, that I moved up to Advanced after a few years because I had let go of the outcome.  This isn’t recommended, as most people are focused on the outcome and defeat is rough to taste.  The competitor that isn’t afraid to lose and is just focusing on doing their best is dangerous, and often what is described as a gamer.  They keep coming, with a private smile because they are probably having fun. 

So again, how do you train?  Do you take long water breaks, looking over the sea of training partners at your gym looking to see who is tired or looking technically sharp?  Maybe you wait until everyone has gone through several training rounds, fully hydrate, and then invite a fatigued training partner to roll.  Maybe the energetic or technically sharp training partner invites you to roll afterwards, but you decline.  Or the opposite could be true.  You may pre hydrate, and then attempt to train with everyone in the room; exercising or continuing to train through the breaks and staying late in order to get more mat time in.  Decide where you stand, and guess who is more likely to perform well?  Do you exercise when you are not at your gym?  Eat a healthy diet?  What physical condition are you in?  Take the sum of everything you have, divide that by hours of sleep under stress, and your mind set going in.  You will make more thinking errors and recall things poorly under stress.  Who cares?  The human standing across from you exists under the same conditions, and like you they had a chance to put the time in and work on healing insecurity and technique.  Step up or step back and build your game, and over time improve the most important attribute; inner game.    

      

Reactions:Core Expression

One of my career goals is to work with people who suffer with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. One of my personal goals it to evolve my personal understanding of human combat, so that I can share it with the right people for their greater good. Alright, let’s go.

New research is starting to show that learning how our brain stores memories may help those suffering with PTSD cope with and understand their memories. Believe or it or not, some experts are now saying that we cannot trust our memories, as they are deceptively jaded. As clear and detailed as these memories feel, psychologists find they are surprisingly inaccurate. Some now believe the medium, or the way the memory was stored actually effects what the memory is. There is an exercise that you do with teens and children, which could be called the memory train. One person is verbally told a story, and then they are instructed to whisper as much of the story as they remember to the next person in the room. We then ask the last person who heard the story to recite it to the entire group. The story often changes or is schematically shortened, with some different elements accentuated or focused upon. Those suffering from PTSD also replay a story of what had happened to them at the particular time. It continues to be rehashed in a unique form of anxiety, and different elements of the memory are often exaggerated. Unfortunately, the reactive elements of the memory eventually expand and snowball to create a stronger physical reaction over time.

So in every situational learning experience, with different environments and stimuli, our memories could all be entirely different or even recalled in a completely different way. Where do our memories come from? We have a reptilian reactive or instinctual brain, grey matter for processing, and then other areas not fully understand that may also store certain types of memory. What is a memory? Stored feedback from a learning experience? How does our brain decide what details to remember, what gives us a better percentage of accurate memories, and what determines if we have a thinking error?  In previous blog posts we have discussed different learning styles, and choosing what medium we use to funnel information in an instructional environment, and what could happen if we were forced to learn in one of our weaker learning styles.

Let’s break into one of these theories. For better or for worse, different stimuli attached to an experience will change the memory or perceived experience from which we learn. We respond when it is thematically appropriate with our variable subject matter or experiences with a specific reaction or behavior. Let’s also remember that different memories may be stored in different areas, accessed at different times, for different reasons, at different speeds. A processing memory of a learned behavior we now replicate may be slower to output in comparison to jumping out of the way of a moving car. Why is the car dangerous? Did you think about why it was dangerous before you moved out of the way? A math problem you know how to solve, however simple, will take far longer.

There are many different areas of the brain, but for this example we will be simply using two theoretical areas of the brain identified by brain waves. Grey area for processing (women have more than men), and the “Reptilian” brain. Which do you use during your craft? That is the question. The answer is that you use both, and we may also assume that both are developed in different ways because they are not the same. Are memories stored or simply expressed within the primitive Reptilian processing area of our brain? Are processes stored or expressed within the grey matter of the brain? Are the memories and expressions conducted through various areas the brain like electricity, almost with a variable resistance that can be measured like the current through an electrical wire? Whether these areas of the brain are the source of a given response, or simply an electrical bridge used to facilitate output is an interesting question.

I would like to think we can train these areas to improve different types of reactions during combat. Creatively adding different stimuli may in fact produce different results, but probably indirectly to where we are starting in the process for the sake of discussion. “Lie detection” is a skill developed by increasing various types of sensitivity, as the biofeedback is subtle, and the reactions and interpretation must be fast and instinctual. If you attempt to mentally process offensive feedback during combat, you will be late far too often to be effective. A light flow of various signals would help us develop that type of sensitivity. When someone is pressing us up against a wall or cage, they must change and shift the weight used to keep you isolated, and the adjustment is to avoid stagnation and redirection. You must feel their weight and position without visual feedback in order to determine if they are going to strike your upper or lower body, grab your legs, or isolate your upper body.

Anything learned is almost a memory or ghost of your experience, and you express this memory physically or otherwise when you perform or recall the information or action. There are many different types of exercise, so we may theorize that certain mental exercises and modifications of training may allow us to develop our mental physical connection. We are talking about improving the areas of reaction timing, gross reactions, and processing of information at an accelerated pace. Our goal is to use this training and self education will help us in our specific craft. The end result will be an improved combat rhythm that effectively out competes our adversary. I learned long ago that it is not a Strong B reaction verses a strong A action. It doesn’t work at the highest level; you are a wall against a wave. If one gives, there will be no acceleration, and as previous discussed perpetual redirection = acceleration.

A sensory learning stage involves visual and touch training, where you are providing and receiving auditory feedback while scanning and interpreting your environment. This is excellent, but often teachers remove or do not include several of these pieces, limiting their subject. When we create experiences we must remove distractions, and increase the perceptive qualities in order to fully engage our client. It takes your subject through a vivid experience at an accelerated rate, where they are able to take in nearly everything available at the given time. I’ve used this training method on dates, and over 90% of the time you end up blowing them away. This is a rich experience, stimulating the grey matter and processing components of the brain, it’s an adventure. The only encumbrance is personally imposed limitations and black and white thinking patterns, which are selectively preventable. (Don’t place eggs in a basket full of holes, find a new basket) This is the learning stage that we should stay in until we are able to move on towards a more sensory movement and reactionary stage. It’s simply ideal, like a private lesson with an expert who truly has the ability to bring something to you at every level.

In the sensory stage, you should have already answered all of the old questions, and during this type of training or skill development there will be very few new questions. You are simply increasing the sensitivity and timing of movements within a given position or conceptual situation. This is developing your reptilian instinctual response. Smooth is fast, fast independently is not smooth, and improved timing allows for a planned (instinctive reactive/or cognitively processed) response. We all have great potential, and taking the next step in our ability level often involves shifting our approach. As you develop your full potential, everything will fall into place.

Prevention of Injuries

Something very important in sports is preserving the body to extend the years of peak performance. This is something many struggle with through their early athletic years, where we make bad decisions that last a lifetime. Maybe we lifted too much weight, or had a bad training partner. I never intended to get hurt, or experience the injuries that turned my stomach on television. Through the years, I ended up injuring my neck and back, developing early arthritis, cracked several teeth, cracked my sinus cavity, broke my sub clavicle bone, broke 5 bones in my hands, tore my left wrist, tore an elbow tendon twice, tore my MCL 5 times, popped my knee twice, popped my elbow, broke my nose, broke two toes, and fractured several bones in my feet.  Nerve damage, numbness down to the finger tips.  Lot's of experiences.  

The list goes on. The good news is that all of these injuries were preventable. Also, most of these injuries were in the first six years of my fighting career. I was young and resilient, and was willing to train with anyone who wanted to train with me. An early lesson learned was that a joint or bone can be broken or torn well before you even consider tapping out in submission. I was training with MMA fighters, Catch as Catch Can Wrestlers, and general Shooto styled grapplers. They were submission minded, but they never efficiently achieved positions, nor used control positions to attack submissions. They would not successfully achieve a fight ending movement without a quick submission, or a limb being removed from the fight. Looking back, it was quite dangerous. I learned a lot that can be applied to situations now, but I learned very little during the often 6-8 months away from training rehabilitating from near crippling injuries. Combine that with the knowledge and learning accelerator technology that we have been discussing, it becomes apparent that really none of it was necessary. Only now do I know the guiding technology, and how to train properly.

A situation can be designed for each student’s personal gain and improvement, building the familiarity with specific dangers. It is ideal that we have an instructor to guide us through this process, but in the end it is up to us to think before doing, and to make good decisions over time. You don’t have to train with just anyone, but you must also not be afraid to take progressive steps forward. Never say no to a better opponent in training, but always avoid those who will do anything to win.

Reactions: Core Expression

One of my career goals is to work with people who suffer with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. One of my personal goals it to evolve my personal understanding of human combat, so that I can share it with the right people for their greater good. Alright, let’s go. 

New research is starting to show that learning how our brain stores memories may help those suffering with PTSD cope with and understand their memories. Believe or it or not, some experts are now saying that we cannot trust our memories, as they are deceptively jaded. As clear and detailed as these memories feel, psychologists find they are surprisingly inaccurate. Some now believe the medium, or the way the memory was stored actually effects what the memory is. There is an exercise that you do with teens and children, which could be called the memory train. One person is verbally told a story, and then they are instructed to whisper as much of the story as they remember to the next person in the room. We then ask the last person who heard the story to recite it to the entire group. The story often changes or is schematically shortened, with some different elements accentuated or focused upon. Those suffering from PTSD also replay a story of what had happened to them at the particular time. It continues to be rehashed in a unique form of anxiety, and different elements of the memory are often exaggerated. Unfortunately, the reactive elements of the memory eventually expand and snowball to create a stronger physical reaction over time. 

So in every situational learning experience, with different environments and stimuli, our memories could all be entirely different or even recalled in a completely different way. Where do our memories come from? We have a reptilian reactive or instinctual brain, grey matter for processing, and then other areas not fully understand that may also store certain types of memory. What is a memory? Stored feedback from a learning experience? How does our brain decide what details to remember, what gives us a better percentage of accurate memories, and what determines if we have a thinking error?  In previous blog posts we have discussed different learning styles, and choosing what medium we use to funnel information in an instructional environment, and what could happen if we were forced to learn in one of our weaker learning styles. 

Let’s break into one of these theories. For better or for worse, different stimuli attached to an experience will change the memory or perceived experience from which we learn. We respond when it is thematically appropriate with our variable subject matter or experiences with a specific reaction or behavior. Let’s also remember that different memories may be stored in different areas, accessed at different times, for different reasons, at different speeds. A processing memory of a learned behavior we now replicate may be slower to output in comparison to jumping out of the way of a moving car. Why is the car dangerous? Did you think about why it was dangerous before you moved out of the way? A math problem you know how to solve, however simple, will take far longer. 

There are many different areas of the brain, but for this example we will be simply using two theoretical areas of the brain identified by brain waves. Grey area for processing (women have more than men), and the “Reptilian” brain. Which do you use during your craft? That is the question. The answer is that you use both, and we may also assume that both are developed in different ways because they are not the same. Are memories stored or simply expressed within the primitive Reptilian processing area of our brain? Are processes stored or expressed within the grey matter of the brain? Are the memories and expressions conducted through various areas the brain like electricity, almost with a variable resistance that can be measured like the current through an electrical wire? Whether these areas of the brain are the source of a given response, or simply an electrical bridge used to facilitate output is an interesting question. 

I would like to think we can train these areas to improve different types of reactions during combat. Creatively adding different stimuli may in fact produce different results, but probably indirectly to where we are starting in the process for the sake of discussion. “Lie detection” is a skill developed by increasing various types of sensitivity, as the biofeedback is subtle, and the reactions and interpretation must be fast and instinctual. If you attempt to mentally process offensive feedback during combat, you will be late far too often to be effective. A light flow of various signals would help us develop that type of sensitivity. When someone is pressing us up against a wall or cage, they must change and shift the weight used to keep you isolated, and the adjustment is to avoid stagnation and redirection. You must feel their weight and position without visual feedback in order to determine if they are going to strike your upper or lower body, grab your legs, or isolate your upper body. 

Anything learned is almost a memory or ghost of your experience, and you express this memory physically or otherwise when you perform or recall the information or action. There are many different types of exercise, so we may theorize that certain mental exercises and modifications of training may allow us to develop our mental physical connection. We are talking about improving the areas of reaction timing, gross reactions, and processing of information at an accelerated pace. Our goal is to use this training and self education will help us in our specific craft. The end result will be an improved combat rhythm that effectively out competes our adversary. I learned long ago that it is not a Strong B reaction verses a strong A action. It doesn’t work at the highest level; you are a wall against a wave. If one gives, there will be no acceleration, and as previous discussed perpetual redirection = acceleration. 

A sensory learning stage involves visual and touch training, where you are providing and receiving auditory feedback while scanning and interpreting your environment. This is excellent, but often teachers remove or do not include several of these pieces, limiting their subject. When we create experiences we must remove distractions, and increase the perceptive qualities in order to fully engage our client. It takes your subject through a vivid experience at an accelerated rate, where they are able to take in nearly everything available at the given time. I’ve used this training method on dates, and over 90% of the time you end up blowing them away. This is a rich experience, stimulating the grey matter and processing components of the brain, it’s an adventure. The only encumbrance is personally imposed limitations and black and white thinking patterns, which are selectively preventable. (Don’t place eggs in a basket full of holes, find a new basket) This is the learning stage that we should stay in until we are able to move on towards a more sensory movement and reactionary stage. It’s simply ideal, like a private lesson with an expert who truly has the ability to bring something to you at every level.

In the sensory stage, you should have already answered all of the old questions, and during this type of training or skill development there will be very few new questions. You are simply increasing the sensitivity and timing of movements within a given position or conceptual situation. This is developing your reptilian instinctual response. Smooth is fast, fast independently is not smooth, and improved timing allows for a planned (instinctive reactive/or cognitively processed) response. We all have great potential, and taking the next step in our ability level often involves shifting our approach. As you develop your full potential, everything will fall into place.