Article written by our Children's Instructor

    I have a combined 24 years of military and law enforcement experience.  Over those years I have been introduced to countless self-defense “systems”; each proclaiming to be the answer to unarmed self-defense.  Wrongful assumptions of most of these styles were that you would remain on your feet throughout the entire encounter and you would be skilled enough to overwhelm your opponent.  Feedback from real life confrontations reveals that, in most cases, neither is true.  I have read and heard varying percentages regarding the odds of the fight going to the ground, with the range being 65-85%.   In my personal experience, a majority of my physical encounters have concluded on the ground.  I failed to keep a detailed account; therefore I do not have hard numbers to share.

    I have also trained in a variety of martial arts since the age of 18.  Most of these were strictly striking arts, with little to no grappling skills incorporated in the curriculum.  Given the aforementioned odds, these are not very practical outside of scripted sparring.

    I have trained in Gracie/Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu for approximately 10 months and have found it to be the most rewarding and realistic martial art I have come across.  I attended a week long Gracie Survival Tactics Instructor Certification Course in July of this year and was astonished at how much useful information and technique I learned in that short period of time.  The course was taught by Rener Gracie, grandson of Grand Master Helio Gracie.  I spent years in other martial arts and learned a fraction of the skills learned here.  The difference is the teaching methodology and the genuine passion and willingness of the Gracies to share the knowledge.  The amazing part is that this has seemed to trickle down and become contagious with all the BJJ instructors I have come across.   

    I was asked to start a kids program (Jiu-Jitsu Junior) at Lancaster Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in February and agreed to do so with some hesitation.  What a great decision!  I am amazed at how fast and how much the kids learn and retain.  It is like the feeling experienced by a proud parent when their child accomplishes and succeeds; only 15 times over.  The progress that some of the students have made is astounding.  The most satisfying aspect of the training is when they realize they don’t have to be the biggest and strongest to be victorious.  That is the beauty and foundation of BJJ, as proven by Rorion Gracie and his brother Royce with the advent of the UFC in 1993.  BJJ gives a child a realistic chance in a bully scenario and the techniques focus on controlling their opponent first, minimizing the chance of injury to both.  After all, the main objective is to end the confrontation with the least amount of damage, if possible.  The sense of accomplishment and boost in confidence and self-esteem in these children is overwhelming. 

    What an awesome honor to teach!

                                                                       Terry Arment

                                                                        Lancaster Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

 

The Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Advantage

    Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is very unique compared to many other martial arts because you learn how to use your whole body against your opponent while using minimal striking and strength.  One of the philosophies behind Jiu Jitsu, as I will break down into my own words, is that if the fight were to stay standing and one person is much larger and stronger than the other person, then the more larger person has an advantage.  I have seen plenty of  fights.  Some of them in a cage with skilled opponents and others on the “streets”.  I have never seen a fight where one opponent didn’t get hit.  It’s going to happen!  If the person whom you are fighting is of equal height, weight, and skill as you, then there is a 50/50 chance that you will win.  The problem is that you will rarely getattacked by somebody your equal size, weight, and skill level.  Possible, but unlikely.  In that case, chances are the larger opponent is going to win.  I could be wrong but the fights that I have witnessed, in the cage or on the streets, the larger opponent always has the clear advantage.

  This is where a BJJ practioner sees that he has the advantage.  Instead of standing with the person where the larger opponent out matches him and he is the under dog, he knows that if he takes him to the ground, uses his body against his movements, then he has the advantage and makes his opponent the under dog.  If his opponent tries to hit him when his back is on the ground he no longer has the power of his hips to throw the punch.  It is only a matter of time before his arms and body tire out and his punching becomes useless.  It is at that point that the BJJ skilled person will start executing submission after submission until something is broken or his opponent is unconscious.

That is the probable scenerio if the fight goes to the ground.  The question you have to ask yourself is, “what if the fight doesn’t go to the ground”.  Hmmm.  This is a question that many BJJ academys forget to ask themselves.  Any Jiu Jitsu practioner that has been rolling for at least 6 months would do pretty good on the ground with just about any average person that walks in the door.  Stand them up and that is another story.  It seems like alot of people have gotten away from the self defense aspect of this art.  To me, it is the most important.
  This is why you have to keep in mind every aspect of a fight.  It is very important to train for any scenerio that could possibly happen.  It would be a shame if you could do all these beautiful sweeps, fancy submissions, and flashy holds but you can’t even defend yourself against a simple school yard headlock or protect yourself from a basic  jab!
  In conclusion, it is extremely important to prepare for the worst.  If you are taking Brazilian Jiu Jitsu for the cardio workout or the competition aspect, then that is fine.  There is nothing wrong with that.  If you are taking it because you want to learn how to defend yourself, then make sure you practice all the elements that make up a fight.

February 6, 2011 – 10:21 pm Categories: Uncategorized | Post a commentTagged Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Gracie jiu-jitsu, martial arts, UFC, Ephrata, Lancaster, bjj, street fight, self defense, sambo, attack, striking, ephrata pa., workout, competition, rape defense,streets, cage fighting, jiu jitsu self defense | 

Saturday Class

Don't miss Saturday morning class.  We will be going over the Sao Paulo pass made popular by Wilson Reis in recent tournaments.  This pass seems to go against all the fundamentals of the basic guard pass in jiu jitsu.  On the other hand it is very affective.  There are several key components to master in order to make this possible.  The most important is drilling.  Come train with us and get ready for some drilling. Our Saturday class starts at 8:30 and ends around 10:00.  See you on the mats!

Rosendo Diaz Seminar

Saturday we had a great turnout for the seminar! Congratulations to Gabby, Jasmine, and Ben for receiving their yellow belts.  Congratulations to Mike P. for receiving his blue belt. Two hours of pure technic.  Rosendo Diaz, 3G affiliation head instructor, went over everything from opening the guard to x guard sweeps.  Stay tuned for some great video and pictures!