Thursday, August 03, 2006

Blue Belt Envy

So, of late I have been experiencing what I will call blue belt envy. Its not so much the belt they have that I envy but the skills that come with putting in the work to earn the belt. I was sparring the other night with a blue belt and just wasting so much energy constantly trying to defend he incessant attacks. I really can't wait to get to the point where I can relax a little while sparring so I'm not wasted after 10 minutes. Most of the blue belts in class can roll without breaking a sweat against any white belts. Its actually pretty amazing to watch.

Monday, July 31, 2006

The Guard

I just finished reading The Guard and its another great book from Ed Beneville. I reviewed his other book Passing The Guard a month or so ago and really enjoyed it so I picked up his follow up book The Guard. I have the review below, but in short its another great book from Ed.

-Review-



The Guard is certainly worth the money and is a great study of the guard position. The authors are thorough and systematic in their coverage of the guard.

The book uses an interesting method of graphical symbols to indicate what limb moved or had previously moved from picture to picture. They also list alternative approaches within a technique. The level of detail is tremendous and this book should be read with pen and paper at some point so you can decide which techniques fit well into your style. The section on "flowing attack" offers combinations and this section alone is almost worth the price of the book.

Unlike many BJJ books the written instructions are clear and there are only a minor number of typographical/editing errors. I was very impressed with the outlines and explanations throughout the book. The text really enhances the images and helps to make sure you are getting all the details correctly. I would recommend anyone beginner to expert pick up The Guard as it covers in great detail every aspect of the guard.

Rickson & Royler Gracie Demo Video

This is an exhibition video of Rickson & Royler Gracie rolling.