So my 1st month of BJJ has come to an end. I was hoping to go at least 20 times, but given that I have to take an international trip in a few days this isn't too bad. I'd like to do 20/month, but realistically I'll probably go 15/month since that's all the time I have. I always feel great afterwards, it's like hanging out friends even though some of them I just met.
Today's workout was interesting. Since I had a wrestling background, I had side control during one of the controlled sparring events and my purple belt 50+ lbs heavier than me couldn't break it. He said, my head control was really strong, I guess from my wrestling background. The problem is that in BJJ if you hold a position too long, you'll get deducted points so I wasn't sure what to do. He's obviously way better than me, but once I got in the side mount controlling his head I guess I still remembered how to put all my weight on his head. He couldn't move, but then I didn't really do anything either. I still panic on the bottom and end up pushing up or not keeping my arms in.
It's not really like fighting in one sense, I mean there are so many times I wondered if two people were going at it one could just punch the other guy. At GB, we always start with a self defense drill. Today's was doing two fake punches (1-2) and then taking the guy to the ground, when my partner saw my punches he said "I could totally tell you were a boxer", I guess that's a compliment.
The more I do this sport, the more I realize I have so much to learn and with my 41 year old body I have to really rely on technique instead of strength. I'm bruised everywhere, and am hurting in places that are really different from boxing. It's amazing, the other day I was controlled sparring a 50 year old brown belt who had been doing this for only 6-7 years and I could not get him off of me. He was probably 40 pounds lighter than me and obviously weaker, but the moment I thought I could shrimp away and push him off, he got his hands back on me in full mount.
He kept on saying that at some point, I'll get too tired and he'll submit me. He encouraged me to try to roll him rather than just pushing him off, or trying to choke him. He said once you roll, there are a lot more possibilities depending on where your leg is, etc. So he taught me to pull his elbows in with my hand, and then use my knees to roll him to one side, and if he fights it, then go to the other side, etc. I was really amazed.
I can't say I like BJJ as much as boxing just yet, but for sure compared to boxing I feel a lot better after a workout. A boxing workout is brutal, especially after sparring. Now, I haven't sparred very hard yet so I may change my mind but I still don't think it'll be brutal, I'll be tired and of course feeling weak, but I really enjoy BJJ as a sport. That doesn't mean I'll compete, but just the sparring itself may satisfy me since I'm just looking for focused exercise. I may change my mind. From a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the best, and 1 being the worst, I thought boxing was a 10 and BJJ was a 5, but it's probably an 8 now and might be a 10 soon. I'm really starting to enjoy it now that I have some skills to spar a bit, and know what techniques to use. For sure, as a wrestler/bigger torso guy/shorter limbed, I prefer to be on top, esp. side mount, but the learning has been much more fun that I had thought.
Today's workout was interesting. Since I had a wrestling background, I had side control during one of the controlled sparring events and my purple belt 50+ lbs heavier than me couldn't break it. He said, my head control was really strong, I guess from my wrestling background. The problem is that in BJJ if you hold a position too long, you'll get deducted points so I wasn't sure what to do. He's obviously way better than me, but once I got in the side mount controlling his head I guess I still remembered how to put all my weight on his head. He couldn't move, but then I didn't really do anything either. I still panic on the bottom and end up pushing up or not keeping my arms in.
It's not really like fighting in one sense, I mean there are so many times I wondered if two people were going at it one could just punch the other guy. At GB, we always start with a self defense drill. Today's was doing two fake punches (1-2) and then taking the guy to the ground, when my partner saw my punches he said "I could totally tell you were a boxer", I guess that's a compliment.
The more I do this sport, the more I realize I have so much to learn and with my 41 year old body I have to really rely on technique instead of strength. I'm bruised everywhere, and am hurting in places that are really different from boxing. It's amazing, the other day I was controlled sparring a 50 year old brown belt who had been doing this for only 6-7 years and I could not get him off of me. He was probably 40 pounds lighter than me and obviously weaker, but the moment I thought I could shrimp away and push him off, he got his hands back on me in full mount.
He kept on saying that at some point, I'll get too tired and he'll submit me. He encouraged me to try to roll him rather than just pushing him off, or trying to choke him. He said once you roll, there are a lot more possibilities depending on where your leg is, etc. So he taught me to pull his elbows in with my hand, and then use my knees to roll him to one side, and if he fights it, then go to the other side, etc. I was really amazed.
I can't say I like BJJ as much as boxing just yet, but for sure compared to boxing I feel a lot better after a workout. A boxing workout is brutal, especially after sparring. Now, I haven't sparred very hard yet so I may change my mind but I still don't think it'll be brutal, I'll be tired and of course feeling weak, but I really enjoy BJJ as a sport. That doesn't mean I'll compete, but just the sparring itself may satisfy me since I'm just looking for focused exercise. I may change my mind. From a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the best, and 1 being the worst, I thought boxing was a 10 and BJJ was a 5, but it's probably an 8 now and might be a 10 soon. I'm really starting to enjoy it now that I have some skills to spar a bit, and know what techniques to use. For sure, as a wrestler/bigger torso guy/shorter limbed, I prefer to be on top, esp. side mount, but the learning has been much more fun that I had thought.
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