Next on the agenda following our adult curriculum outline, we have 2 Spider Guard Weeks! Spider guard attacks and spider guard passing. Spider guard is one of the toughest positions to play and one of the toughest positions to defend. So, a lot of what we will be doing is a significantly high amount of drilling and live/situation drilling. A key point on attacking with the spider guard is grips and control! Don’t give up on the guard so easily. Even if your opponent passes your legs but you still have a foot or shin in the bicep, don’t give up so easily. Key point for passing, clearing the foot off the biceps before attempting to pass. To many times have I seen competitors try to pass the spider guard while their opponent has their foot in their bicep to only end up being put back into guard. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the spider guard, please do not hesitate to ask.

Coming up…

Side Mount Techniques and Side Mount Escapes!!!

Here are your team points as of the 2012 NAGA Arizona! If you have any questions about the point structure and ore and discrepancies in any of the results or calculations, please comment below or contact us on our contact page. Of course you can always ask at the gym.

JPJJ Team Power Ranking! Kids! NAGA!

JPJJ Team Power Ranking! Adults! NAGA!

Why train or learn take downs? What you should be asking yourself is “why not train or learn take downs?” Granted 90% of most Jiu-Jitsu/Grappling/Wrestling matches take place on the ground, 100% of them start standing! That right there should be more than reason enough to train and sharpen your take down game. There are many other reasons which I’ll list in a bit, but the one reason that should resonate more so than others with every Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu or Submission Wrestling practitioners, should be the fact that you always start standing! It’s the absolute first thing you can do for points and it’s part of Jiu-Jitsu as a whole. It’s a piece of the puzzle that everyone misses! It’s one of the most integral parts of Jiu-Jitsu that many ignore. Many don’t seem realize or understand that one good throw or take down can mean the difference between wining and loosing a match! Don’t miss one of the most overlooked and important opportunities in a competition!

Have you ever had that student or have you had that training partner that feels they don’t need to train take downs? Or they feel their take down game is good enough? I have! I’ve known my fair share of individuals who ignore that aspect of the game. What that tells me is this… that they suck at it, they think their shit don’t stink, they have the best take down defense (which they most likely don’t), they have an ego the size of king kong, they are the most narrow minded in your academy, and do not like to learn, think they have nothing to learn (Mr. Know-It-All! Heck! I don’t know it all! I’m I’m happy to say I don’t! Just means there’s more cool shit out there I can learn!), they lack the desire to be as complete of a practitioner as they can be, or they’re just down right lazy!

Let me give you several reason why you should learn take downs!

1. Have you ever heard the saying, “You are only as strong as your weakest link?” It’s true and the same goes for Jiu-Jitsu. Your Jiu-Jitsu game is only as strong as the  weakest part of your game. So strengthen it! Regardless of the type of game you like to play, the stand up/take down game is a part of your repertoire of moves you can not afford to neglect. If you are more of a top playing guy or gal, perfect! A good take down would put you in the perfect position for you to dominate. If you are more of a bottom playing guy or gal, perfect! Being a bottom playing individual automatically tells me that your take down game isn’t your forte or the strongest part of your game. Regardless of how much you try to work your take downs. What it will do for the bottom dwellers is it will give you a better understanding of the take down game which will in turn help you develop your defense to throws or take downs. See! It can help everyone! You always want to work on the weakest part of your game. The weakest part is typically the part you don’t like to play. Those areas are what you should be concentrating on in the gym in practice. If you like the bottom game, you should work the top game and vice versa.
2. RULE CHANGES! With the change in rules across the board, it would be a good idea to study your throws, trips, shots, and take downs! The new rules are now pushing the encouragement of going for take downs and discouraging guard pulling. Which is, in my opinion a great change. It pushes the pace of the match and forces the action versus a stalemated sumo wrestling match with no one going for take downs because they don’t know how. Just as the rules dictate the strategies in an MMA fight, the same goes for Jiu-Jitsu competition. The changes will force more people out there to work on their stand up. Don’t be left behind and not have a solid take down or take down defense game.
3. Just as I stated earlier, 100% of all matches start standing up. Because of that fact, the take down or the throw is the absolute first opportunity you will have right off the bat to get points. Those two points could mean the difference between winning and loosing the match. For those that have been to a fair share of tournaments will know that many matches end up very close. Wins by advantage and referees decision. By pass that by working your take downs! Don’t loose because your opponent has 1 or even 10 advantages! Those 2 points for the take down could have won you the match! Regardless of how many advantages he or she got. Never leave it up to someone else to dictate your win or loss! Just as in any port, never leave it to the judges or referees decision. Make your win an undeniable win! Get your points!  One of the best reasons to go for the take down is what I tell the kids at my academy. “It’s easier to maintain a lead than it is to catch up!” Get your points first and make your opponent have to work harder to make up the ground he or she has lost.

I hope this gives you insight to the importance of training your take downs and I hope this gives you some incentive to work on that part of your game. Never neglect any aspect of your Jiu-Jitsu game!

Train hard, train often, consistency is everything! Technique, Technique, Technique!!!
~JAY PAGES 

Here are your team points as of the 2012 IBJJF Phoenix Open! If you have any questions about the point structure and ore and discrepancies in any of the results or calculations, please comment below or contact us on our contact page. Of course you can always ask at the gym.

JPJJ Team Power Ranking! Adults! IBJJF Phoenix Open!

Memorial weekend BJJ seminar with BJJ Revolution Team Leader and Carlson Gracie 4th Degree Black Belt, Rodrigo Medeiros! Don’t miss the opportunity to train with Rodrigo before he goes back to Hong Kong!

RODRIGO MEDEIROS SEMINAR AND MEMORIAL DAY BAR-B-Q AT JAY PAGES BJJ AND MMA!

MAY 26, 2012 i CHANDLER, AZ
TIME:
11AM TO 1PM

COST:
50 BY MAY 19
60 TILL THE SEMINAR
75 AT THE DOOR!

RESTRICTIONS:
CASH ONLY!
BJJ REVOLUTION TEAM MEMBERS ONLY!

***All instructors are responsible for collecting the fees for your students! If you have any questions please contact Jay at 480-747-5706!***

As we always do, the week of a tournament, we concentrate on nothing but the basics. We do so, to touch base with the very foundation of our sport in order to remember what really wins the match. What really is behind the more advanced movements out there. THE BASICS!!! We are always striving to improve our games. No matter the sport, we are always in route to perfection of our selves in what ever endeavor it is we choose. People new to the sport always try to find a short cut to getting better on the mats, and whilst I would always encourage doing as much research into your chosen art or sport as possible, this should never take the place of learning and mastering the fundamentals. Of course its always cool to learn the latest and greatest techniques, but without the knowledge of how to apply a basic position you are completely missing the core of the movement and you are more likely to achieve bad form. I have seen people look competent in an advanced movement when drilling, but the ability to pull that move while rolling is always a problem. The same people are often the ones I have seen unable to perform a basic hip escape, Arm bar etc. So if you want to improve work on the ‘rice and beans’ techniques, the movements that will help your Jiujitsu, the basics. Strong fundamentals are the foundations upon which you build your game, if the foundations are weak, the game will be weak. Learning Brazilian Jiu-jitsu is a marathon, not a sprint, slow down and work on your game from the simple ABC’s, leave the flash stuff for later in your development. As a Black belt it is still the basics that underpin my game, and it is the basics that work for me. So let’s take the next two weeks to concentrate on the foundation to prepare us for battle!

Just a quick update. Our affiliate Justin Polette over in St. Louis is making a big bang back east again! Justin had a fighter make his amateur MMA debut Friday, April 20th. Anthony Kuhn from Anaconda MMA made MMA his debut in the Proving Grounds MMA : Southside Showdown. He fought at welterweight (170 lbs.) against Chris Seip from Watson MMA. Seip was 3-2, and it was a title eliminator match for the Spire welterweight belt. Anthony took the fight on short notice, and he pounded Seip into a 2nd round TKO. He ended up breaking a thumb, but he is feeling no pain. A huge congratulations to both Justin and Anthony on a job well done. Your brothers and sisters around the world from Pages Brothers BJJ and Jay Pages Jiu-JItsu & MMA are proud of you both! Keep up the great work!

Here are your team points as of the 2012 Copa Bella! If you have any questions about the point structure and ore and discrepancies in any of the results or calculations, please comment below or contact us on our contact page. Of course you can always ask at the gym.

JPJJ Team Power Ranking! Adults! Copa Bella!

Here are your team points as of the 2012 Kids Cup! If you have any questions about the point structure and ore and discrepancies in any of the results or calculations, please comment below or contact us on our contact page. Of course you can always ask at the gym.

JPJJ Team Power Ranking! Kids! Kids Cup!

This week into next week, we will be covering the Butterfly Guard and the X-Guard! Two of my favorite guards. I believe these two guard only became a favorite of mine because it was the primary game of my favorite BJJ players Marcelo Garcia. After seeing how effectively and efficiently he is able to use these two guards against many top players of different sizes, I had to learn it! So, It’s been a favorite and a go to position of mine since I was a Blue Belt. So with that said, lets make it into the gym and drill, drill, drill, and drill some more! Remember; “Techniques is like a muscle. The more reps you do the stronger your muscle gets. The same thing goes for Jiu-Jitsu! The more reps you do the stronger your technique gets!” ~Jay Pages!