They Call me Babalu

Combat Jiu Jitsu... What do you think??

2012-06-01T12:33:00.002-05:00

Rolled Up Episode 32: Draculino – Where the old school meets the new school

2012-04-25T12:11:00.001-05:00

Rolled Up Episode 32: Draculino – Where the old school meets the new school

Budo Videos was in the house!! Check it out!

Justgipants.com!!!

2012-04-10T12:42:00.002-05:00

Kron Gracie Speaks!

2012-02-13T12:16:00.001-06:00

The Rise of “Toquinho”

2012-01-09T10:29:00.002-06:00

The Rise of Toquinho from stuart cooper Films on Vimeo.

Roger Gracie Interview

2011-12-01T09:31:00.000-06:00

Great interview by one the greatest BJJ players in the world.

Chael Sonnen... What a great interview!!!!

2011-11-17T10:13:00.001-06:00

Training in the Gi CAN and WILL make your BJJ better for MMA/NOGI

2011-11-10T10:03:00.001-06:00

I ran across this write up this morning that I had to share with you guys. I don't know how many guys I come across saying stuff like "You don't wear Pajamas to the cage" or "take that thing off and there is no way you can submit me". I hear it all the time, but the truth of the matter is BJJ in the Gi makes your Nogi game much tighter and precise. Which in turn can translate to MMA. I found this write up at mixedmartialarts.com posted by a professional MMA fighter whose name on there is The Sultan. Here is the post and below it is my reply to it.

I know this topic touches on the age old debate of gi vs no gi for MMA training, but bear with me for a moment.

What I have found in my years of doing BJJ in the gi is that there are certain ways you can train in the gi to help reach your goal.....whether that goal is ultimately competition jiu jitsu, gi or nogi and MMA.

Here is my take on the subject.

If your ultimate goal is to fight MMA, you can still train in the gi and still learn effective grappling concepts that translate to MMA. However, the manner in which you train in the gi is the key. When I roll in the gi, I use a no gi style (for the most part) while rollilng. What that means is that instead of relying on gripping sleeves and pants, I grip wrists, ankles and legs.....I go for wrist control, overhooks, underhooks and I spend a lot of time working on sweeps that use this idea of training "no gi style"......

The immediate question one would ask is WHY would you train in the gi, but use a no gi style instead of just training no gi?

IMO, the gi eliminates the slip factor when you start to sweat....It limits the explosive, "hercules" style of powering out of submissions and bad positions. The reason this is important is because it forces you to technically escape these positions using perfect technique BECAUSE you cannot just power out of a move. The coefficient of friction of the gi does not lend itself well to this. Therefore, it's much harder to perform some of these same manuevers in the gi, than it would be in no gi.

Ultimately, this leads to an extremely elevated awareness of submissions.

Here's a specific example of what I'm referring to. Let's say, for instance, a person has your back with the hooks in and is looking for submissions. The amount of submissions available to your opponent is basically multiplied by 2, 3 or even a factor of 4. For all of the standard chokes you have...IE....RNC or even armbars, you have numerous other gi chokes as well. Defending from this position is harder because you have so many more submissions to worry about in addition to the fact that you cannot just explosively bridge or twist right out of back control......You need to defend numerous submissions while calculating and executing your standard escapes.

From an offensive standpoint, the same coefficient of friction factor plays in your application of submissions as well. Trying to get a standard RNC with the gi is difficult because while you are sliding in to position, the person can grab your sleeves, etc.....Also, the gi makes it difficult to just slide in there for a choke easily because of the high coefficient of friction.

What does all this mean? It means that if you spend a lot of time training in the gi, while observing some basic concepts of no gi training, (Again, gripping the body instead of the sleeves, for example), your application of your jiu-jitsu when it comes to no gi training and even MMA training will be sharper and much more technically sound, IMO.

My professor also incorporates the idea of striking when he discusses and teaches certain positions. For instance, when we are covering mount escapes, he incorporates the opponents ability to strike from this position and to how to defend it while escaping the position.

Personally, when I train no gi and MMA, I never miss a beat....I don't feel "lost" and my jiu jitsu still works just fine.....In fact, I feel loads of improvement when I go back to no gi or MMA training. I feel smoother, my control feels much tighter and i don't experience any regression in my game. The place where I really notice a difference is in my ability to regain guard or escape bad positions....I'm so used to getting stuck in certain positions or working really hard to get out of these positions because of all my gi training and the difficulty involved with that.

I purposely pay attention to this while rolling no gi or MMA to see if I'm missing or losing stuff when I go from gi to no gi or MMA.....in short, for me, the answer is not only do I not lose any portions of my game, I feel a significant IMPROVEMENT in my no gi game as well as my MMA game.

Anyone have any thoughts on the subject?

I think you hit the nail right on the head here! I've always felt that training in the gi has made my no gi game much tighter and cleaner. Wearing the Gi makes you really focus more on your technique. Whether it be passing, sweeping, or submitting because of the friction it causes and the grips available to your opponent everything has to be precise especially at a higher level. Your good technique will easily translate to Nogi in these departments with the use of different grips.

And another one

2011-10-27T14:40:00.000-05:00

Another Nick Diaz Interview

2011-10-27T11:08:00.002-05:00

This one is long and a little different type of interview that I have ever seen from him.

Nick Diaz Interview

2011-10-27T10:44:00.000-05:00

With the UFC 137 coming up this weekend and the main event now featuring BJ Penn vs. Nick Diaz I came across a pretty good Nick Diaz interview. I really like this fight, two true warriors of the sport are going to go head to head its a very tough pick. Who do you think will win.

Roger Huerta Documentary

2011-10-25T09:46:00.000-05:00

Check out this video. I have always liked Roger, he seems like a down to earth guy and some of the things he stands for or doesn't stand for makes me a fan. Check out the video at the link below.

http://fcfighter.com/post/documentary-roger-huerta-in-thailand-%e2%80%93-talks-upcoming-showdown-with-war-machine-re-lives-street-fight-incident

From the Mind of Babalu- Trials, Tribulations, and Victory!

2011-10-04T11:48:00.000-05:00

Today I am posting my first blog in a while. After being injured and not being able to train full speed, not being able to workout the way I need to as well as taking a hit to my confidence because I felt out of sync, I can finally take a deep breath and relax a bit. As most of you know the Gracie Barra Compnet Tournament was this past weekend. This is where you get all the Gracie Barra schools from the southern region together and hold a tournament. In my eyes the tournament was a huge success drawing about 400 competitors with some exciting matches, and some great displays of Jiu Jitsu from all. As the tournament approached I did the best I could to prepare my mind and my body for competition. I was in great shape before my rib injury from the ESP-XC workouts that I was doing and all the mat time that I had I was feeling awesome. The injury took alot of that away. I could no longer do the ESP-XC workouts and I couldn't do the things I wanted to do on the mat. This really messed with my confidence! I was easily losing positions, getting swept, and couldn't move enough to win scrambles. This was the case up until about 2 weeks ago.

I want to thank Dr. Lance Campbell for giving me this anti-inflammatory cream. This stuff was amazing and is what actually got me back on the mat sooner than later. Two weeks ago I still wasn't registered for the tournament, and as I started to feel better and better each day something crazy happened! My BJJ started coming back around! I made the decision to register for the tournament on the last day of registrations, thinking what the hell I might as well do it. I was pretty close to weight (with my gi on) so that wouldn't be a problem. It was official I was competing again and the nerves started kicking in. For those of you who say you don't get nervous, you're lying! I've competed in sports all my life, from the time I was 4 until now that is almost 30 years of competition and I still get nervous. I think its a natural thing to be nervous at least a little bit. I was nervous, but very calm.

The day came and I left with a gold medal. The finals match was a tough and ugly match. The action was very limited, I pulled guard, attempted some subs from there with no luck. During the match even the ref was bored LOL, he told us to pick up the pace! I just kind of waited to see what he was going to do, I saw an opportunity and landed a basic scissor sweep to score. I was in the half guard the rest of match trying to pass and try to keep him from going to deep half. As the time ran out my leg finally slid out of his half guard, it didn't matter it was over. I was still completely relaxed and still had a pretty full gas tank which made me very happy!

I want to thank my instructor and mentor Professor Draculino for coaching me through the match and giving me the knowledge to be very successful on the mat! All my teammates, you are only as good as your training partners and I'm privileged to say I train with the best dudes that anyone could train with! I also want to send out a thanks to the guys over at ESP-XC MMA Fitness doing their workouts as you saw from my workout blogs got me in the best shape I have been in probably 12 years. My weight the morning of the tournament was 209lbs. I was still eating and drinking everyday, even the day of the tournament when you weigh in before your first match. If you guys want to get in shape, lose some unwanted pounds, and perform at your best check these guys out, I highly recommend their program. My body feels stronger, cardio is great and my body is leaner than I have been in YEARS and their program played a huge part in that. I will definitely continue to use their program for my training needs. I also want to send thanks to USP Labs Direct for making some of the best supplements money can buy. As you saw from my product reviews I loved Jack3d and Prime. I appreciate the kindness this company has shown to me as well as your great products! I look forward to working with you guys more in the future!

Product Review- USP Labs Jack3d

2011-09-14T13:42:00.003-05:00

Ever wake up in the morning for that early morning workout or run and just can't get motivated? You know the mats or weights are calling you, but all you want to do is crawl back into bed? I have had many of mornings like this, shoot I've had many of evenings like this. I just can't get going sometimes. I have tried sugar free energy drinks (honestly used to drink them all the time) and many other Preworkout drinks, which some have worked and some didn't. Some of those preworkout drinks tasted so terrible that I had to hold my nose just to be able to choke it down. If you are like me and need that pick me up, I have found the be all end all to preworkout drinks.

JACK3D!!!

This stuff to me is pure gold! I am what you would call a connoisseur of energy of drinks. I have tried pretty much every one of them that is out on the market, I can't help it I'm a junkie when it comes to this stuff. Jack3d for me is leaps and bounds over all the rest. I am on my second batch of this supplement and everyday that I train I make sure I have it in my system before my workout begins. For me it helps me just keep going. When ever I think man I'm tired or I can't go anymore there is always that proverbial 2nd wind that I catch. I am able to blast through very tough workouts in the weight room and train jiu jitsu at a very intense level.

It started with the Lemon Lime flavor, which honestly doesn't taste bad at all and now the Tropical Fruit Punch which taste great. This potent powder mixes very easily in a regular water bottle or shaker cup with just a couple of shakes. Please make sure you follow the directions on this stuff. If you taken this kind of supplement before like me your tolerance for caffeine should be pretty high, but Jack3d is potent. I started by using one small scoop (which is provided in the canister) and felt great then. Now I still only use 1 and a half scoops because it still works just fine for me. So don't jump in head first thinking "I take this kind of stuff all the time so I can handle 2 scoops" on your first serving, just follow those directions and you will have some of the best workouts that you ever had.

Dustin Denes on Winning

2011-09-07T09:35:00.000-05:00

This guy is great! He is as tough as they come on the mats, but not only that he puts out some great videos. For me I don't know if he is serious half the time but some of the stuff he talks about is very motivational. Check it out!

Training Blog- 08/22 ESP-XC

2011-08-22T09:52:00.000-05:00

Well last week was not a good week for me. The week started fine, but I finished with a popped rib. This is my third one this year! I don't know how or why I have been targeted for this rib popping but I'm done with this injury! This first 2 ribs this year I was out 2 and 1 weeks respectively. What can I say I have a high tolerance for pain, but this one was more painful than the last 2 it actually took my breath away! So I don't know how long I will be out. Since you use your core muscles for almost everything in BJJ, I'm gonna play it by ear. Same with the ESP-XC workouts. I can't do the Core stuff, I can't move too fast right now, so pretty much all exercises have been shelved for the time being! This happens to me everytime I am working towards something. I get to the point where I'm feeling great, training great in all aspects and boom I get injured. I'm sick of it. This weekend I was really down in the dumps... I haven't touched a beer in a while, but this weekend I made an exception. I watched some football, drank some cold beers and ate some bad food to make me feel better LOL! I know its just another bump in the road that I will have to overcome, I just need some time to recover fully again. Once I've healed I will jump back on to that horse again, but until then there will not be a training blog!

Product Review- USP Labs Prime

2011-08-17T11:33:00.002-05:00

For those of you that know me, know that I'm far from a body builder. I workout and train BJJ, but a body builder is something that I will never be mistaken for. With that being said I wanted to try something in conjunction with all the workouts that I have been doing from my training blog. As most of you know all supplements work differently for everybody. If you are like me and love taking supplements properly to help you achieve your goals, then you are already aware that USPLabs puts out great products, but of course there really isn't that LEGAL magical pill out there that will help you get stronger, gain muscle mass, and stay lean. Or is there??? I just finished taking PRIME from USP Labs, and let me tell you this supplement is as close to magic as they come. When I first started taking them with in the first 2 or 3 weeks I noticed something different within my workouts. Workouts that used to leave me on the brink of death, I somehow began to run through them and want more. Weights that I would struggle getting the last 2 reps out of, I would finish the set easily and add more weight or reps to the next set. When I first started using these pills I weighed 211 lbs, after one bottle of Prime I am at 216 right now. Now you would think that my diet is horrible, but I will tell you that my diet is clean about 90% of time. It would be impossible for me to gain weight without gaining fat, right? Here is the kicker to the whole thing, I gained this weight all while getting leaner! I look leaner, my clothes fit more baggy, people have been asking me if I am losing weight, but really I'm not my numbers on the scale have increased, but my fat has not.

For you BJJ guys out there let me tell you how this helped me out on the mat. Along with a proper diet and workout, Prime has given me on the mat:

1. Muscular Endurance beyond belief
2. Fantastic Recovery ability, in between sets, in between rolls with little rest, and very importantly in between those mad scrambles that you tend to have during the course of a rolling session.
3. Strength, now regardless what you may think, you use strength in BJJ. You have to have strong grips, you have to be able to explode in certain occasions, if you are competing against some one with a similar skill level and weight as you, the person with the better strength and conditioning more than likely will come out victorious.

So if you are like me and really want to excel on the mat, you put in extra work in the gym, and eat right. This product maybe for you. Combined with proper diet and workout regimen this may help you get to where you want to be. I think this product is great for anyone not cutting weight, because of the size gains, but leaning up, gaining that needed extra strength and endurance, and recovery I give it a 10! In the past 3 months I feel like my BJJ training has grown in leaps and bounds, not just from this pill, but putting in the work on and off the mats as well. If you want to learn more about this product and all the other fine products USPLabs offers check them out here USPLABS Direct Product Page Now that I am out of the product I need to get some on order very soon!

Training Blog- 08/16 ESP-XC

2011-08-17T10:40:00.000-05:00

Week 2 of the power phase has ended. Everything is still going strong. I have 2 more weeks in the current program and when that is done I plan on continuing down this same path. Maybe I do the power phase again or start over and do the strength phase again just to keep the workouts going. My time is very limited so I will have to see what and when I can do this again. The power phase is definitely not for the weak of heart. Its a good test for your physical conditioning. Tonight I will train BJJ for the first time since Thursday, our gym has moved locations so as an employee of the gym I was in the mix this weekend helping getting the new spot all set up. With this I had trouble getting all the workouts done in the correct order last week but I still got them done. So hopefully tonight I will hit the upper body workout and go from there.

Hahahaha check this "friendly" Muay Thai sparring match!

2011-08-10T08:56:00.000-05:00

Training Blog- 08/8 ESP-XC

2011-08-09T13:43:00.000-05:00

Still going strong... I finished up week one of the Power phase over the weekend with the cardio combo workout. Last night was the beginning of week 2 and it started with the upper body workout. Yesterday I trained in the MMA class and did some live training in the BJJ class. I hadn't done an MMA class in probably about 2 years, since then I have been just sticking with BJJ. I was surprised with the amount of the endurance I had while training in the MMA class, since it was something that I had been away from for a while. I went through rounds of takedowns off the cage, rounds of getting back up while being up against the cage on my butt, a few rounds of side control drills, and a couple rounds of no gi rolling. It was kind of a accident that I did train because it was a small class and some of the bigger guys were going to be too tired to finish it so the instructor requested that I train with them to keep from dying. So I did. After that I did 3 rounds of Gi BJJ and my wind felt great. After I left the academy I had to hit the garage for my upper body workout. I did get very tired during this workout. My heart rate was elevated throughout, but I was able to push through and finish every exercise including the finale which is 100 weighted punches. The weighted punches were Left and right punch equals one rep. By the end of the workout I was drenched with sweat!!!!
Tonight I will train just BJJ and take a day off from the ESP-XC workout. Today I am a little worn down and sore, I guess its from the MMA training since I haven't done it in a while. Regardless my body just doesn't recover like used to and today was hell getting out of bed. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better morning.

Training Blog- 08/03 ESP-XC

2011-08-04T10:05:00.001-05:00

Second workout of the power phase was completed last night. It was an upperbody workout what had some full body exercises thrown in there. There was db snatch, chest clap push ups, db deadlift to pull and jump, and many more. It was a great workout, another one that had my heart rate pounding. I felt great afterwards, didn't get that same "I'm gonna die" feeling that I had the night after legs, but I definitely felt tired afterwards. This phase has you working out 4 days a week, so tonight I will be taking off and training BJJ.

Training Blog- 08/1 ESP-XC

2011-08-02T10:11:00.000-05:00

Well I have completed the first two phases! This past weekend I finished the final workouts and Monday I started the last phase which is the Power phase. People from the gym who haven't seen me in a while always give me same reaction "damn man you are losing weight!" I don't think I'm losing weight per say numbers wise but I feel like I am losing fat and leaning up quite a bit.

As for the first power workout last night, it was legs! All I can really say is "WHOA!!" No exaggeration here whatsoever, I really thought I was going to die! My heart was racing, my legs were like jello, and in the Texas heat in my garage I thought I was training in Hell! The torture that I went through was a variation of many different plyometric type exercises that included but not limited to Jumping Romanian Deadlifts, split squat leaps, prisoner squat jumps, and many more. It was a great workout!! Nothing against the other two phases because I did like some of workouts there as well, but this was the type of stuff that I expected. I totally get the fact that the other 2 phases were used to help you build up to this power phase, it makes total sense. This phase I completely look forward to and at the same time will dread almost dying on a nightly basis. I think this blog has just gotten a little better! Stay Tuned

From the Mind of Babalu #8- Eating

2011-07-29T12:12:00.001-05:00

Guys I know my site hasn't had much updates besides the training blogs. I plan on changing that from here on out. I could give you all the excuses in the world as to why I've been slacking but that will just take up more time than its worth. So I am kicking things off here with another great installment of "From the Mind of Babalu" Today's topic is my opinion of food, what we eat and what some people eat when trying to lose weight. These are MY OPINIONS I'm not saying that they are the be all end all, its how I feel about food and what will help people maybe understand some things that they are doing wrong. This all stems from a conversation that I was having with a few of the parents yesterday at the Academy. So here it goes, if you had something to add please do so.
To lose weight, you have to eat food! The end.... ok well really its not that easy, I am firm believer in calories in and calories burned. I'm not a body builder or trying to look one so I'm really not concerned with macro nutrients such as Proteins and Carbs so much, yes they are important but for someone who is beginning to try to lose a little extra weight it just adds alot of confusion in my opinion. So the most important thing is getting food in your system. I've discussed before that maintaining and losing weight have a lot of determining factors such as the calories that you consume and the calories that you burn each day in your day to day activities which boil down to the calories that you need to maintain your weight and lose weight. I have done the math for you in a previous post so I don't want to do that again ( I think) So if we take out the science of dieting and focus on eating and the kinds of foods you should eat this will help all beginning dieters take a step in the right direction.
First and foremost it is MY OPINION that everyone should have something for breakfast. That something shouldn't include doughnuts (my love), kolaches (my second love), etc... Eggs is a great staple for breakfast!!!! Not just egg whites but even the ENTIRE EGG!!! I am not discounting people who just eat egg whites, because that used to be me, but I feel like the entire egg has some great nutrients and good fats for your body.... regardless what you may think GOOD FATS are GOOD for YOU! Now of course you just don't want eat just eggs in the morning, I mean really how boring is that. Everyone knows regular bacon is not great for you, even come to find out turkey bacon is just as bad. So what kind of meat can you add to this so breakfast isn't boring??? What about Canadian Bacon, in the past year I have discovered that I really like this stuff, its very lean with some good proteins for you or even your everyday slice of ham is another way to satisfy your meat cravings in the morning. Throw in a couple slices of WHOLE WHEAT Toast and you have a very complete breakfast. Not a toast person, what about a whole wheat english muffin. Whole wheat is the key here and if your eating bread and want to lose weight this is the route you take... I didn't make the rules I just follow them! If you don't like the bread part throw in some fruit instead, most fruits are good source of carbs for you so it would complete the breakfast just as toast would. Other breakfast options may include:

Whole Grain Oatmeal- the old fashioned kind that come in the big container from Quaker Oats.
Cereal like Special K, Wheaties, whole grain Cheerios etc... not Coco Puffs or Trix
If you are on the go, Subway has some great options for breakfast take a look at their menu

Another important item in your diet should be snacks. You should eat something in between each meals that leave you satisfied and helps defeat those nasty cravings that we all give into. Here are some snacks that I eat on daily basis, maybe you have different taste but these are just my options.

Fruit- Bananas, apples, oranges, watermelon, strawberries, blueberries, I don't discriminate I eat all kinds of fruit. Yes some have more sugar than others but who cares, its better than eating that snickers or my favorites Hostess cupcakes and chocolate frosted doughnuts!
Tuna Fish, if you can get over the smell of this its a good snack just leave out the Mayo. I will take a can of Albacore all white tuna add mustard, alittle dill relish and eat it on a whole wheat sandwich thin or regular whole wheat bread. If you haven't seen the whole wheat sandwich thins check them out, they are good for snacking or even regular sandwiches for lunch.
Peanut Butter, if you have a sweet tooth this will hit that craving. You can add it to an apple or just eat a Peanut butter sandwich or on just toast. Depending on the Peanut butter don't go crazy, I use an all natural PB called Smart Balance check it out.
Lastly I eat alot of mixed nuts. Just a handful here and there and you are satisfied. Very easy and simple.

For Lunches and Dinners just eat in moderation. Everyone knows what is good for them and what is not good for them. Chicken Breast, Turkey Breast, Lean Beefs are all a staple of my diet. Even ground turkey is a wonderful item to have in your freezer. I eat in my spaghetti and can't tell a difference, but if you are having spaghetti use whole wheat pasta. They have all kinds of whole wheat pasta from spaghetti noodle to elbow macaroni. Veggies are good for you so eat them... it took me about 29 years to begin to enjoy veggies, but I eat them now with every meal not smothered in cheese either. If you are a meat and potato kind of person, get a sweet potato instead of a regular potato. You can do all kinds of things with Turkey and Lean beef you should be good to go, as well as a grilled chicken breast is simple and quick. If you want to cheat, then cheat but do it in moderation and not every single day. Then you just defeat the purpose, but there is no sense in craving something and not eating it. That craving will be there with you forever until you breakdown and eat whatever it is you are craving and by that time you may eat WAY too much of it. Just remember portion control, cheating in moderation, and you will be golden.

Those of you that know me, know that I am no Nutritionist, Dietician, or doctor. You also know that I love food and if I want it I will usually eat it, but I follow my own rules as well. Keep in mind that this isn't the only way to lose weight and be healthy. There are many other ways to do this, but this is MY WAY of doing it and it has worked for me. I have followed low carbs diets, paleo diets, diets that I had a menu to follow, and they all worked, but always left me with terrible cravings. So I usually eat what I want, to an extent and just work extra hard on the mat and in the gym to keep my weight under control. I have breakdowns like yesterday and eat everything chocolate in sight but those days are few and far between. Hope this helps you guys!

Training Blog- 7/29 ESP-XC

2011-07-29T10:29:00.002-05:00

Friday is here, tonight I hit core/balance workout. Tomorrow is another legs day and Sunday will be cardio and then finally I move to the next phase! Like I said in the last post I feel like the workouts are paying off... I feel great on the mat, my endurance has been great, strength wise I still feel great. What does really make a difference is a clean diet. My diet has been somewhat clean, as you all know throughout this process I have had my ups and downs diet wise. I have tried to clean it up after my vacation and have done really good in that department. I still allow myself one cheat day during the week and 2 cheat meals throughout the weekend. My cheat days usually aren't terrible, but yesterday was an exception. My sweet tooth showed its ugly face and I really felt sluggish training. Well I guess I can't say sluggish it was more like just an off night. Technique training was fine, but during live and situational training I made some stupid mental goofs that left me pissed off. So the lesson I learned through this is diet is really important for me. I can't eat this sweet junk and think that my body will perform for me the way I need to. I love sweets just as much as the next person but from now on I will not use it to fuel my body.

I look forward to starting the power phase of this workout. This workout program is nearing the finish line but in no way is going to be the end for me. With the way my schedule is set up, I may not be able to workout 5-6 times a week but I will with a doubt continue to use this program in some capacity once its finished. I feel the hardwork paying off and see the results in the mirror (well at least I do) So far the workout is doing what its supposed to do in my eyes. And just to think about 4 years ago I was a 270 lbs 28% bodyfat former athlete who was fat, miserable and making excuses for my fatness. Now being about 213 lbs and 13-14% my journey is not done. I still have a ways to go, I won't win any bodybuilding contests but I am much happier now then I was then with myself.

Training Blog- 7/23 ESP-XC

2011-07-26T11:16:00.002-05:00

So I've made a decision... I'm not going to flood this page with posts every single day... There is not enough hours in the day and plus, I do not want bore you guys. So I'm gonna do maybe 2 posts a week on this subject and give you same information that I have been giving you.

Saturday morning I rolled 3 ten min rounds! They were all fun and Poppa Rotzee got some of the action on video. The past few times on the mat I really feel the fruits all of the hard work I've been putting in with the ESP-XC workouts. I feel stronger rolling, I am able to go long rounds with out muscle fatigue. They are starting to pay off. Saturday evening I had to hit 2 workouts in one day because of a busy Friday so I did upper body and Core/ Balance. The strength and muscle endurance is starting to show here as well. I'm really rolling through these workouts. Feeling great doing them, making sure my form and posture are on point all the time. Honestly I was a decently strong dude before the workouts, but this is something a little different. I'm not getting to that exhausted muscle state, but still feel like I'm getting a great workout. What it tells me is that these work outs are well... working out for me! Last night 07/25 I did the lower body portion of the Strength phase. As a matter of fact I started week 4 last night! One more week and I move on to the Power phase. I haven't looked at the videos of this yet, but just by looking a the listed exercises and knowing some of them I can tell it will be a challenge. Tonight is a bjj night and another workout but I don't know yet which one. Later next week I will upload blog, until then see ya!