5 THINGS YOU MUST KNOW BEFORE GETTING ON TO THE MAT

1. Control your breath

BJJ is one of the most intense sports and sometimes it’s too intense that you forget to breathe. It’s very common for beginners because they use up all the energy since beginners know fewer techniques than higher belts obviously. If your breathing is smooth and even, it more likely than not that your movements will be the same. Moreover, breath control can help you deal with the ego since you’ll be concentrating on the flow of inhalations and exhalations instead, which will make you more calm than those who breathe loudly.

2. Do not panic

As my coach always says during rolling and sparring (when we fight and try to use the techniques that we’ve learned throughout the class) BJJ isn’t all about using your strength against your opponent, it’s actually very similar to the chess game. Everybody plays different game and you just need to solve the problem. There is always a solution in each every move.

3. Gripping is the must!

Especially in Gi, if you can’t make the grip right then you will never even pass the guard. You will need to use strength from your hands by gripping the sleeves, collars, belt, and so on. If your grip is loose then the opponent can break your grip easily.

4.Being on top (mount position)

It’s more likely that you will get higher chance to submit your opponent if you are on the top position cause you will be able to use your body weight to control or block your opponent on the bottom. And there are bunches of submissions where you can finish from the top position.

5. Keep your elbows tight

This always happens to me when I started panicking and usually when I’m on the bottom position. The reason why it is a highly recommend for you to keep your elbows tight when you are on the bottom because the person on the top will start attacking your arms either get to armbar, armlock, kimura, arm triangle and so on. So if you keep your elbows tight enough, your opponent will get tired of attacking your arms.

#Vacation