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Finding the Right Coach for You: 4 Profiles I’ve Encountered
Finding the right coach for you: 4 profiles I’ve encountered
By: Emily KwokI recently was given the impetus to learn how to swim better.
My goal wasn’t to win any medals or to compete in an ironman race, it was simply to feel more confident and comfortable in deep and open water.
I had taken enough […]
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Take the Opportunity to Build Your Community
Take the Opportunity to Build Your Community
By: Val Worthington
My partners (Emily Kwok and Hannette Staack) and I run a business called Groundswell Grappling Concepts. In 2009, we started hosting grappling camps for women, because back then, there were few opportunities for women to train together. Those ladies who were committed to improving our jiu-jitsu had […]
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Adulting and BJJ: 8 Ways to Impact Your Training When You Have Limited Time
Adulting and BJJ. 8 ways to impact your training when you have limited time.
By: Emily KwokFor most practitioners of BJJ there comes a time in life when shit gets real. After many years of putting your BJJ before everything in your life other than making some sort of paycheck to cover the most basic expenses […]
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Pura Vida. Pura Vida Jiu Jitsu.
Pura Vida. Pura Vida Jiu Jitsu.
(Pure Life. Pure Life Jiu Jitsu)
By: Emily KwokI recently came back from a glorious vacation in Costa Rica with my family. For a week we lived on the edge of where the jungle meets the ocean; where the guttural sounds of howler monkeys in the trees and the chirps and […]
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12 Rules For White Belt Life
12 RULES FOR WHITE BELT LIFE
An Antidote For BJJ Chaos
By: Joe Hannan
Most grapplers with some experience likely have their own set of rules for survival as a white belt. These are mine, codified on the receiving end of the shoulder of justice and other less-than-desirable positions. May they serve you well.1. Admit You Know Nothing. Anyone looking […]
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What to Expect When You’re Expecting to Compete
What To Expect When You’re Expecting to Compete
By: Joe HannanCompetition is a an experience every grappler should have. It crystallizes the form and function of BJJ as a martial art more than any number of rolls or lessons ever could. Perhaps just as important, if not more so, is preparation for competition.
I write this from […]
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Redefining a Good Roll
Redefining a Good Roll
By: Joe HannanI am a spaz — an uncoordinated tangled jumble of lanky limbs that don’t listen to my brain. They have a knack for finding soft, vulnerable places on my training partners, even though my brain does all it can to prevent it. It’s pretty easy to pick me out of […]
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Dear White Belt, I Promise You, We All Suck…
Dear white belt, I promise you, we all suck…
By: Emily KwokIt’s not uncommon after I finish teaching a class to see a short queue of students waiting to ask a question or express their frustration.
Last week a student stopped me to tell me that they didn’t think they were cut out for BJJ. They felt […]
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Getting Comfortable With Discomfort
Getting Comfortable with Discomfort
By: Joe HannanIt’s enough to make some panic: the first time a much larger partner has you in mount, their chest driving into your face. You cock your head to the side and gasp for air like you’re doing your 12th lap in an olympic pool. You can’t maintain your cool. You […]
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You Are How You Train
You are how you train
By: Emily KwokIt’s very common for even the best of us to get locked up when it comes to personal expression. This is true of life in general, but the mats give us the rare opportunity to see where we are literally challenged and liberated.
At the beginning of our BJJ career, […]
