You have to look at the silver lining in things. My broken ankle has been a blessing of sorts. It gave me some much needed time for reflection.
Rich Zaydel’s Broken Ankle
What a week or so I have had….crazy how life works and how so many things can hit all at the same time. What do they say, bad things come in threes? So, in between teaching private lessons and helping at Cota’s martial arts, I roll with one of my best friends, TC, who has a couple years of mat time on me and 40 pounds. I have been doing jiu jitsu since 1993 on and off and steady since 2005. I have never had a broken bone other than a finger in my life. But, during one of our regular rolls last week with TC, I broke my ankle. It was loud like a crack of the whip.
Our cat of 13 plus years has not been home in a week. She is old, loyal and almost toothless. She has been extra lovey-dovey lately and feel she walked off into the sunset or has been eaten by a coyote which happens frequently where I live.
I have or had a boss who is a bully. I was taught to be humble through martial arts. Some people mistake that for weakness. I took some abuse because I wanted to learn so bad. But when I stood up to him because I expected him to keep his word or show me an ounce of respect, he was taken back. Bullies don’t like when they can’t intimidate you. Since then, he has been playing passive aggressive games. Admittedly I was doing horrible at the job. Part of it was the bully’s lack of support. He helped me just enough to be able to say he helped, but not enough to be effective. But, part of it was my fault. Most things I pick up pretty fast. But maybe this wasn’t for me. Maybe I found something I would never be good at and was wasting valuable time being stubborn. I had been there a year and was not generating an income. Sitting with my broken ankle, I had to admit I failed at this position.
At the end of the day, I put the blame on myself for my poor judgement. If you fail in life, it is nobody’s fault but your own. I think most of us are honest people, most of us, but I think sometimes its hard for us to be honest with ourselves and own our mistakes and learn from them. Good judgement is the result of experience and experience is the result of poor judgement.
Leg Whip Sweep! Must Know Spider Guard w/Spiral Hook Pendulum Sweep!
Must Know Penduum Sweep From Spider Guard w/Spiral Hook! This is a fun sweep. Hope you can have fun with it too. www.rocknrollbjj.com
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Spider Guard w/Spiral Hook Details For Success! – RocknRoll BJJ
Spider Guard w/Spiral Hook Details That Are A Must For Success! I love playing open guard and use the spider guard with lasso hook all the time. I wanted to share these details that helped me a lot. Thanks for watching. Be sure to stop by the RocknRoll BJJ Website!
Some friends and I have been rolling together for a long time! After good training sessions, we are blown away at how much fun brazilian jiu jitsu still is, and, how we want to do this for as long as we live! Helio Gracie did it into his nineties so its definitely possible. But, it isn’t going to be possible without some preventative maintenance.
A good warm up is very important. The warm ups at Global Jiu Jitsu Academy and RocknRoll BJJ & Fitness for example, include a sit up/core routine, snake moves and animal drills. Sometimes we do a basic stretch before class, but, usually have a very good one after class. This prevents soreness and feeling tight when you wake up the next day!
Always drink plenty of water before training, during training and after training. If your instructor will allow it, the goal is to try to hydrate every 20 minutes during heavy training. I like gatorade during training. I stay hydrated and the sugar keeps my energy levels up. Other trainers laugh at me and say that stuff is all sugar (and they are right) and all I need is water, but it works for me.
Now, there are some things what you will more than likely have to do outside of class. One of those is lifting weights. I don’t mean lifting super heavy so you end up looking like Conan the Barbarian, but just moderate weights. The goal you are shooting for is three sets of 15-20 repetitions of each exercise. This will strengthen your ligaments which will help prevent injury and it give you muscle endurance as well. Also, if you do the higher repetitions, you won’t bulk up. More muscles means it will take more blood to fuel them so you will gas out quicker. Take a look at Brock Lesnar, for example.
Also, very important, is to work out your legs and hips. If you stay around the sport long enough, you will see many training partners have some sort of knee issues. Having experienced this myself, I now work out my legs as much as any other part of my body. I recommend ball squats, lateral movement with bands, leg presses, and anything along the lines of elliptical machines, tread mills, and bicycles. And, back to stretching, if you have loose and flexible hips, that will take a lot of pressure off your knees in some positions.
Lastly, use common sense. Listen to your body! If it is sore, or you are exhausted, take the day off of training, or, however long your body tells you. Unless you are receiving a six plus figure salary for doing jiu jitsu, your body will thank you! And, after all, your goal is to do this the rest of you life.
“Don’t let what you want now get in the way of what you want more.”
RocknRoll Brazilian Jiu Jitsu & Fitness - RNR BJJ 