6309 SW Capitol Highway, Portland OR, 97239
503 432 7450
There are always new techniques and new methods of teaching cropping up in the martial arts. BJJ is no different. Things change. It’s healthy for things to change. The art evolves, just as we evolve as students.
So too we should evolve as teachers. Students are always being pushed to refine what they know and learn new things. Teachers should have the same goal, to improve so that they can pass knowledge more efficiently to the students.
One snag, for both the teacher and the student, is to imagine at some point that they’ve figured it out, that they have achieved the perfect technique or the perfect teaching method. There is always room for improvement.
So which teaching method is the best for BJJ? The method that constantly seeks to evolve. Keep learning, keep rolling, keep visiting other gyms, keep watching videos. Keep going.
SW Portland Martial Arts Blog
What’s the Best Method for Teaching BJJ?
October 29th, 2024All the Equipment
October 28th, 2024
There are so many fitness toys out there… medicine balls, kettle bells, barbells, rowing machines, jump ropes. Why? Why not simply do push ups, pull ups, and outdoor obstacle courses?
It’s an excellent question. Given our mission to support the everyday activities of life, what are we doing with these pieces of equipment that don’t appear in daily life? Shouldn’t we be deadlifting garden rocks, sled pushing garbage cans, and doing farmer’s carries with toddlers? Maybe.
Turns out the purpose of idealized equipment is so we can have durable equipment that allows us to overload our capacity. We want to be able to move more weight in the gym than we’ll ever have to lift in our daily lives – thus making our bodies resistant to injury.
Plus, barbells and medicine balls store a heck of a lot easier than bags of garden waste.
Get the Position, then Break the Structure
October 21st, 2024
So you want to do a throw or a takedown? Easy. First, get in a good position, then break your partner’s structure.
Okay, so it’s not really that easy, but it can be helpful to have a general sense of how to do something. It can also be helpful to know how not to do something. For instance, if you try to take someone down with you are in a neutral position (you have no advantage) and they are in a strong stance, you had better hope that they are much smaller and much slower than you.
So what’s an example of a good position? The back. If you can maneuver yourself behind your partner, you are in a better position than they are. Their arms are facing the wrong way to attack you. Your arms can work to control them. Still, just because you have a good position doesn’t mean you automatically win. If your partner still has a strong stance, it’s not time to throw them yet.
Instead, it’s time to compromise their structure. One way to do that is to push forward on them. If they do nothing, they will fall over. If they resist exactly the right amount and keep a good stance, be patient – don’t attempt a takedown. However, if they push back too strongly (which many inexperienced players do), then it’s time to take them to the ground.
Today in kids class we practiced just that – getting behind our partners, pushing on them, provoking a reaction, and then using a foot sweep to seal the deal.
Tomorrow we might teach the same thing to adults. Why not? The concepts and the techniques are exactly the same.
Why So Much?
October 20th, 2024
I had a student ask me today if she thought it was better to be amazing at one thing or kinda good at lots of things.
I answered “kinda good at lots of things.” I suspect my attitude is reflected in the way we run the gym. I like lots of different movement arts. I love guest teachers from arts I’ve never tried. I am a generalist.
Even so, I understand the great satisfaction that comes with getting really good at a one skill. I don’t think there’s a right answer to the question of choosing to be a specialist or a generalist, but I do think it is a question worth asking and exploring.
What do you think?
Teen BJJ
October 14th, 2024
Why do the teenagers get their own Jiu-jitsu class? Why not put them in the kids class or the adult class?
It’s not easy being a teenager. You aren’t a kid anymore but you’re definitely not an adult either. Therefore, it can be awkward and weird to train with the kids because you’re so much bigger and it can be equally weird an awkward to train with the adults because they’re bigger than you (sometimes).
The solution is not a one size (pun intended) fits all. Some of the teenagers stick around in the kids class. Some go straight to adult class. Some take the teenagers class. We encourage students to find the class where they are comfortably uncomfortable – that is, they feel like they are being pushed in their training but not so hard that they feel overwhelmed.
Thus, behold! Our Sunday Noon-1pm teens BJJ class. All students, of all skill levels, ages 13-19 welcome.