My ears dont fit in these headphones

So I walk into my child's school. That's when the stares start. I greet a new person or meet a new client, that's when the stares start. It always goes right to my ears. Why you ask? Because they are grossly malformed. Cauliflower ear or wrestler's ear is what it's called. "It makes you look tough." Ahhh, no it makes me look like a fighter, a tough guy, a warrior. Nope it makes you look like you have a deformation. When a person with no arms walks by you know that you can't help but look and notice. Is having cauliflower ear the same as having no arms? Of course not. However people stare.
 So now I'm at the gym. Listening to my ipod and trying to work these dumb buds into my malformed ears and wondering "why don't they have earphones for people with cauliflower ears?" I guess it would be a niche market. But still I ask a guy "you done with this station? His reply "yea",but he's looking at my ears. Is it a big deal? No not at all, but sometimes I wonder what people are thinking? Do they look in disgust?Wonderment?Jealousy? or are they just wondering how I find an earphone to fit those weird looking ears. I wonder what they feel like?

The empowerment principle

Well if you don't know yet I'm kind of an innovator. Yeah, I know you hear that a lot but in this case it's true. In 1990 I started watching this skinny brazilian guy whooping bigger peoples butts and thought"man this is really gonna catch on". If I would have understood then what I know now I would be a rich man. Fast forward 10 years.
 So now I am asked to coach the United States Naval Academy "jiu jitsu team". I use this term lightly because until 2010 it was really just a rag tag group of Midshipmen that used BJJ to get their sports credit. In the USNA you must play some sort of sport. Anything from squash to football, they even have rugby,fencing and of course all the big sports. So as a Midshipmen you of course must balance academics with athleticism as well as military procedure and conduct. When I walked in for the first time to the most honored military institution in the world (sorry West Point) I was taken aback by the overwhelming amount of people on the mats. Again "this is really gonna catch on" flashed through my mind. Why you ask? Because there were men and WOMEN, that's the key. I was one of the first coaches in all of  the military to teach both men and women on an equal level. This is a huge deal. Can you name one sport in any college,university or the military establishment that compete men versus women equally? I'm not talking tennis here I'm talking about realistic grappling with submissions and endurance. I viewed everyone on the mat as equals no matter their gender they were students and the future of my country.
 Fast forward 2 years...now women are filling combat positions equally...like I said I'm an innovator.

What is the best way to get back in the gym?

Wow, as a person who basically grew up grappling I began to lift weights when I went into the Navy. While serving in the Persian Gulf and Mediterranean Sea I found weightlifting to be both relaxing and a huge stress reliever. As I aged I used weight lifting as an escape and a maintenance program for both my body and mind. I regularly went to the gym although I didn't really mingle or socialize I enjoyed the scenery and the atmosphere that was associated with fitness. I saw the GTL's come up, the hard bodies, and the meatheads. I saw the weight-loss fanatics, the cardio animals and the time passers. All of these people made my day at the gym enjoyable between sets and exercises. I loved the feeling of the pump and the effect it had on me.
 Then one day I went to an academy (I am a BJJ/MMA instructor) of a world renowned competitor and asked him about his workout schedule. His response startled me. "I don't go to the gym or use supplements. I just do jiu jitsu." This completely changed my whole thought process. I had been following and implementing this person's style and game plan so thoroughly that I actually almost felt brain washed. I said to him "you never go to the gym?" His response "nope never". So guess how crazy I am? I stopped going to the gym.

 Fast forward two years. I am the heaviest I have ever been. I'm not fat by any standards but I am getting a little pooch and my arms are shrinking. So being the hard head I am I decided to get back in the gym. Let me tell you what it was like. I was physically stronger than I had been before. Cardio wise I am great (I ride my bike to work) and talent wise I don't want to toot my own horn but I have great form and understand the physiology of weightlifting. So where is the down side you ask? My body feels like I got hit by a truck, then backed over and groin stomped. Then they picked me up and threw me into a cactus field. My question is how do you get back into the routine through the pain? I'm talking real pain.It is really good to work hard and achieve a goal but man, the pain.

I walked into a Ravens tailgate party wearing a Patriots jersey

Well Im sure you can guess what happened. the ensuing violence Tarantino could not have envisioned. There was a lot of hair pulling and groin punching followed by many,many punches to the mid section. Accordingly I parried and threw a hilarious combination of head butts, foot stomps and eye pokes. As I retaliated I also unleashed a tirade of undo profane slurs at all around and then relieved myself upon the homeowners silken draperies. As the altercation peaked the faintest hint of vomit and st paulies girl began to fill the room and then a massive explosion of tears and nose blowing. As I limped away pulling behind me a torn patriots jersey and a fat lip "i whimpered....i was only kidding mom."

GO RAVENS!!

Old school BJJ vs "the inverter". Who wins in the long run?

As I have studied BJJ and practiced it for many years I have noticed a very interesting trend. It's like the stock market mentality, it is subtle but noticeable if your really look for the patterns. BJJ has an ebb and flow of practical application. The new person to BJJ begins as they should with the basics or as they are called in most academies "fundamentals". Just go into any studio and you will notice the beginners classes are full of people interested in the basic movements and generally just getting into shape and having fun. This usually lasts about 1 year. That's right I said 1 year. This is where my observation comes in. Like the stock market once you win or gain money from a basic investment you will see the inexperienced trader immediately expand their portfolio. Looking to capitalize on their new found skill they blindly invest in hunches,feelings and rumor. BJJ is exactly the same. The white belt that has athleticism and cardio easily runs through other white belts and even catches some blues and maybe a purple belt every now and then. BOOM!!! They are hooked. Now they take that new knowledge and begin to experiment, first with the same white belts they could easily beat before. Then they try to move up the ranks diving head first into uncharted territory. Some would say this is a natural progression and evolution of jiu jitsu, however i disagree. The knowledge is beautiful and experimenting with new guards,submissions and escapes is rewarding but jumping in too quick can lead to disaster. With the ever evolving ground game always attracting new and interesting movements the average student will get lost in all of the "new" philosophies and methods. I have seen white belts with some skill trying and using moves that make some black belts scratch their head. With the internet and YouTube you can now access information at a much greater rate and this has transformed BJJ in my opinion in a very bad way. There is no substitute for live training however BJJ isnt like other martial arts. Time in is the essential detail that seperates our community from others. Every martial artist has the right to try and learn techniques that they seem fit, but by blindly venturing into techniques not yey proven has muddied the waters for the essence that is jiu jitsu. Like a day trader sinking his whole portfolio on the "new up and coming stock" without research or collateral he loses it all in one day. Your jiu jitsu should be the same. Take your time, learn the basics and be patient. Save the inverting for a fun day in the academy. I dont think you want to invert on concrete.

catch wrestling is painful!!!

Welcome to the new physics,philosophy and reality of Jiu Jitsu

"Dont try to bend the spoon that would be impossible, instead try to understand that there is no spoon."

Welcome to the New Revolution in Jiu Jitsu. As a person who follows JJ you will find a very small yet increasingly growing idea beginning too surface in the US. American Jiu Jitsu. It started with a few brave souls making a little noise. Jake Shields, Josh Barnett, Randy Couture, and others began to bring America into the JJ frame of thought. While we all know the story of how JJ was created we seldom here all the details.
First thing to remember is that without Carlos and Helio Gracie Im pretty sure that we all would still be training TKD. We should all be thankful that the Gracie family made BJJ into the artform and self defense system that it is today. With hardwork, a huge family and perserverance the Gracies transformed modern fighting philosophy. With the idea of close quarter combat and realistic fighting scenarios Carlos and Helio revolutionized the stagnated martial art idealogy. As their home country watched these two free thinking men changed a long standing idea and turned all so called "masters" on their head. However one very important note was lost in the grandeur of "the worlds best martial art."
With every great idea comes a burden. Do you hold onto your idea and steadfastly defend it and keep it hidden.? Do you keep control and moderate who and what can use it? Or do you let it go free and see where it goes? Well the Gracies sort of did them all. With a tight grasp Helio and Carlos created a system to evaluate and maintain their high standards all the while keeping the idea of the purity and homegrown pride.
But their was a problem. this is where the history books only make a small note of in my opinion the MOST important aspect of JJ. Without this historically significant piece of information the beloved Gracie clan and all their hard work would be lost. THE GRACIES NEEDED AMERICA. Thats right read it again. Rorion Gracie didnt go to Sweden. He didnt travel to Madagascar, he came to the greatest country in the world. The U.S.of A. Of course many will argue "they always said that they came to America to show the power of Gracie JJ." What needs to be added into the chronicles of JJ folklore is the IMPORTANCE of the USA in the evolution of JJ.
Why would anyone bring up a seemingly minute portion of the history of JJ? Well as I watch,compete and train with people from all walks of life all I hear is Brazilian. I myself am guilty of using "BJJ" on my business. However I make sure to tell everyone the importance of the USA in making JJ and MMA a worlwide phenomenon. We should all remember the sacrifice of Helio and Carlos and all the family members that gave us the sport we all love. But never forget to listen to the wind.....its whispering "listen....the revolution is coming."