A lot of people are talking about the match between Andre Galvao and Buchecha in the 2013 Pan Ams.  It was great, but I enjoyed the ending to the match between Clark Gracie (“Mr. Uma Plata”) and Marcelo “Lapela” Mafra.  The end of the match starts around the 12:00 mark, where Clark is down by 2 points.

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I was teaching a class the other night and was about to start rolling with one of my students.  Before we started he said, “Submit me as much as you can.  No mercy.”

I remembered the last time we rolled.  I attacked him non stop for 6 minutes and I didn’t land a lot of submissions.  He did what I had told him many times before: keep your hands near your neck, elbows close to your body, and move your hips.

So this time I decided to change strategies.  Instead of attacking him non stop, I let him work a little.  That way his arms would come away from his body and his hands would come away from his neck.  That way he left me big gaps for me to attack, and I was able to submit him multiple times.

You may have heard of the the definition of insanity: doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.  Here is a brief list of some of the strategies that I use to change my style:

• Wait until my partner starts to move for me to move.  If they are just sitting there watching you, there is less of a chance of landing your technique.  Wait until they are busy with their own move and bam!
• Changing speeds.  I may move at a medium pace for the first part of a match and when I see an opportunity I will go full speed to land the technique.  This works great for guard passing.
• Machine gun attacks.  Move quickly from one technique to another and confuse them!
• Set traps.  I will go to the mount slowly and with a little pressure on their stomach from side control to see if they will push on my knee.  That will give me a kimura.

That’s all you get for now!

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What is the best outcome for you escaping a submission? You may know a lot of armbar escapes from the guard, for example, but which one is the best?

Obviously the main goal when someone tries to submit you is to escape, but what’s next?  Here’s something to consider: a list of the outcomes, listed from the worst to the best outcome.

• You escape one sub and you’re immediately in another (you got out of uma plata but they put you in triangle).
• You end up in a bad position (you got out of the triangle but you ended up in the mount bottom).
• You end up in a neutral position (you escape a guillotine and you come back onto your knees).
• You end up a good position (you got out of the armbar and end up in side control top).
• You attack with your own submission (you get out of an uma plata and put them in a kneebar).

It is now always possible to go for a submission when someone attacks you with a submission, but it’s a great goal to have.  Make your game dangerous from everywhere!

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What to do if someone leans back when you try to butterfly sweep them.

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Here are some things to drill to prevent your butterfly guard from falling apart.

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When you try to execute the basic butterfly sweep, one of the several ways they can try to stop the sweep is to lean the opposite direction.  Here is a simple counter to that, plus one interesting variation on the switch.

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Butterfly guard is one of the most versatile guards in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.  I did this basic sweep wrong for years until the legendary Rigan Machado fixed it.

Make sure you get the details!

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Being a beginner in Jiu-Jitsu is exciting, but can be tough.  You get tapped a lot, and often you won’t have success with the new techniques you are learning.  So what are you supposed to do?

Your #1 job is to drill technique.  It isn’t the sexiest part of Jiu-Jitsu, but it’s the foundation of success.

You have to rep and drill technique so often that you get to the point that you don’t have to think about how to execute.   If you have to think about how to do something, there is a delay, and usually your window for opportunity for execution is small.

When you achieve “mushin,” or “no mind” in Japanese, then you don’t have to focus on how to do your technique and you can focus on timing.  Most people get bored and think that they know the technique, and they don’t rep and drill enough.

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From left to right: Jocelyn Chang, Cindy Omatsu, Leka Vieira, and Kris Shaw.

Kris Shaw is the Founder and Editor of BJJ Legends Magazine.  She has competed a lot and her titles include:

• Pan Americans 2007 Silver Brown/Black
• Pan Americans 2002 Gold Purple/Brown/Black
• 3rd American International Championships 2001 Silver
• Pan Americans 2001 Bronze
• Campeonato Internacional Master & Senior de Jiu-Jitsu 2000 Gold
• Campeonato Internacional Master & Senior de Jiu-Jitsu 2000 Gold
• Absolute
• Campeonato Brasileiro 2000 Bronze
• 7th Annual International Championships 1999 Silver
• California State Championship 1999 Silver
• American International Championship 1998 Silver

How long have you been training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu?

I started in Feb 1997. I’d never done anything physical before. Anything. In high school I was the volleyball team manager so I could get out of my P.E. credits. I was a Unix System Administrator, working in a cubicle, when a fellow nerd walked in with a black eye. Computer types don’t get black eyes. He was doing “Reality Combat.” Fast forward 12 months and I’d landed a job in Manhattan Beach and found out that that reality combat I’d been doing was Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

When did you get your black belt and from whom?

Rigan Machado gave me my blue and purple belt. Leka Vieira gave me my brown and black belt (5/2005). I started at Rigan’s in the Fall of 1998. Leka visited in 2000. She took over the women’s class. Luka Dias had taught for a while and Chris Haueter too.

Leka invited me to join the women’s class. I told her, “No thank you, I needed to train, not have a tea party.” The next time I was at the academy she did the men’s class, got paired up with me and kicked my ass. I joined the women’s class. We took 8 girls to the Pan Ams, when they were still called that, in 2001 and 12 girls in 2002.

As a woman, I’m sure you’ve had to deal with some issues that a lot of men have not had to deal with. What is it like, as a woman, training Jiu-Jitsu?

Being a woman in Jiu-Jitsu has been pretty much pretty awesome. But getting my foot in the dojo door was a trick.

I showed up at Rorion’s school and told I could do Rape Safe in the little room. I had my gi, a Century Judo A5, with me and I wanted to go upstairs. I was told NO. But I’d been training ~reality combat~ for over a year!

I called Rickson. His wife answered. I told her I needed an address so I could attend class. She said, “You’re a woman, no women.” And hung up on me. So I called back and said I wanted my son to train? She said, “Same woman.” And hung up on me again.

I’d met Richard Bustillo at a Filipino Martial Arts seminar. He told me that I should look him up if I was ever in the LA area. Without a place to train BJJ I called him and started JKD classes twice a week. One night after class, two guys in gis started rolling. I asked to roll with the smaller of the two. After, the bigger one asked me to join his American Team and with that, I joined the Machados and started my long road to black belt. Those two guys were John Machado and Fabino.

What advice do you have for women grapplers?

Take your time when finding a Jiu-Jitsu home. Visit lots of schools. Talk with lots of people. Train around. It’s your money so invest it wisely. You shouldn’t feel pressured to stay. If you’re going to do  Jiu-Jitsu, never miss a class. NEVER. Of course, you will miss classes. You’ll miss classes when your work sends you out of town, or when you get the flu, but don’t miss class because you left work late etc, etc, etc. You do this for a year and you will thank me so much. You’ve started a great habit that will be with you for the rest of your life.

What would you say to men who grapple with women?

I can only speak for me. One, I don’t give a fig about my hair. About the only time I’ll slow the game down because of my hair is when you are standing on my ponytail and I physically can’t move. You don’t have to say sorry when you grab a bunch. When you hear me go ‘oooohhfffff’ it’s because you’re heavy not because I’m weak. Keep rolling. Yes, you have to apologize for an elbow to the nose or a knee to the head but I’ll apologize when I do it too. And, for goodness sake, finish me. Don’t almost get it and let it go out of respect. I know I’m in a bad way but maybe, probably not, but maybe I’m working a funky new escape.

You are the editor of BJJ Legends Magazine. Who are some of the most interesting Jiu-Jitsu practitioners you have interacted with?

Cobrinha he’s my most interesting interview. His place is beautiful, he’s a pastry chef and I love his Jiu-Jitsu.

Robert Drysdale he’s so real. During his interview, he talked about how hard it was to be everything for everybody. About owning a BJJ gym in Las Vegas and the characters you see walk in.

Tinguinha he’s my coach, I’ve been with him since 2004. The more I learn about him the more respect I have for him.

Royce was one of our first interviews. We rented out a LA Boxing for his photo shoot. A UFC fan leaving the dentist next door saw him through the window. Walked in and asked, “Are you REALLY Royce Gracie because the dentist just gave me a whole bunch of pain killers.”

Hillary Williams, she’s in medical school. When we were on our way to the Pans she told me that her medical schoolmates saw her Facebook profile and where like what gives? Why do you have 5000 friends?

Chris Haueter, the BJJ history he’s personally seen, his energy, and his stories.

Mafu Kobus is my spiritual compass. Spiritual might be too heavy, I look to Mafu when I want to go deep.

Sharon Schleif my BJJ BFF.

Then there are the crazy wonderful people who help me to make the magazine like Monta Wiley and Matthew Corley. These guys give and give and never ask for anything in return.

What are your plans for the future with Jiu-Jitsu?

I’m currently looking for a Jiu-Jitsu retirement. I want to be that 80 year old that still gets out on the court and lobs tennis balls but doesn’t run after them anymore. Can you play Jiu-Jitsu like that? The handful of old timers I’ve questioned have said yes, you just need to pick your partners carefully. I’m still at the King-Kong stage where in my mind I can wrestle anybody but I pay for it the next day.

Thank you Ryan, thanks to Kaizen for the hospitality you guys have always shown me and thank you Couch2Cage.com.

Thank you so much Kris!  You have done a lot for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and it’s an honor to have this time with you.

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In most BJJ classes you work technique, then start rolling.  For some people, the first submission landed sets the tone for the rest of the rolling.  Meaning, some people fall apart if they get submitted early in their first match!

There is a college wrestler who I have trained with who is a really tough wrestler.  For some reason, sometimes he drops his head when he approaches people.  If I snap his head down and get a guillotine or standing anaconda in the first minute of the match, he’s done.  The rest of the time it is so much easier to get a takedown or submission.    Once his confidence is shaken, he’s done.

Losing quickly begins a cycle of negative self talk or negative feelings.  Those thoughts or feelings will repeat until you spiral down into a state of being slightly depressed.  So what do you do?

The best way to counter negative self talk and the downward spiral is positive self talk, or just let it go.  Wipe your mental slate clean.  You get caught, and you think “Damnit!  Why didn’t I stop that?”  Do not let the second thought be a negative one.  Tell yourself, “Get back in there.  You can do better.”

A good rule is when you have one negative thought, counteract it with 3 positive thoughts.  You may not be able to control your first thought- it’s your natural reaction to a situation.  But you have more control of all your thoughts after that.

You may have noticed that many of the things you learn in Jiu-Jitsu are things you can apply to your life.  Sometimes the answer to your problem in Jiu-Jitsu is not technical, it’s mental or emotional.

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