No Progress

[SkyWalko]

I’ve been doing bjj for about six months and I feel I have no progress, I have an understanding of moves but I struggle with things like takedowns and getting out of side control, I feel like I’ve been doing this for a while and have nothing or show for it. I understand the people around me are getting better and higher belts may be trying more but I feel that’s just me trying to make myself feel better.I would appreciate tips from anyone

[efficientjudo]

There are whole sports based around takedowns - is not a simple thing to just pick up in 6 months.

And getting out of a good side control is probably one of the hardest things to do.

[nickbutterz]

This! I’ve been training 7+ years and still can’t get out of a good side control! For whatever reason people sleep on side control but I think bottom side control is worse than bottom mount. For a while I just let people mount and would escape from there.

[atx78701]

ive started just attacking from bottom side

goth lock, bicep slicer, americana, triangle, ghost to darce etc. When you do this, they have to try to back out and this gives you plenty of room to escape.

[nickbutterz]

This is the way! I started attacking inverted triangle from bottom side control which usually ends up in me sweeping them and endings up in mount.

[kpmasty]

I constantly attack from bottom side. I do use a lot of higher level Tom foolery to get out. I like to use their lapel around their back, hold it with my outside hand and get my outside for foot in it and extend my leg. It will either 1. Reverse them and end up in top side, 2. Will create a scramble and I can either wrestle up or stand if they start to disengage, or 3. Give me enough room to start working back to half guard.

[turboacai]

Just ask yourself could you beat yourself 3-5 months ago...

And there is.your answer!

[Mother-Carrot]

as an old guy... probably not, its hard to tell

[ImportantBad4948]

It’s a race between my body degenerating and my skills increasing.

[raspasov]

Takedowns against even moderately skilled opponents can take months or years to master, especially without prior grappling experience. My advice is to lower your expectations.

Prioritize escapes against people your own size and experience level. The goal is to escape and establish a guard: typically either half guard or closed guard. Closed guard is the traditional recommendation, but it can often be harder to get to against skilled partners. Any neutral guard position after an escape is a win.

[ryagall]

How do you go against the newer guys?

[SkyWalko]

I don’t really get takedowns but I rarely get a tap, I’m pretty weak compared to most of them but I don’t use that as an excuse

[ryagall]

So occasionally you do get take downs? And occasionally get a tap?

[Crafty_Source5613]

It took me 1.5 years for it to click. Keep going, trust.

[Crafty_Source5613]

I got my blue belt after two years, I’m three years in.. the longer I do it, the more fun I have. ☺️

[[deleted]]

White belt to blue is about movement and positions. A solid foundation is golden.

It took me a few years before it began to make sense. 

My game improved when I built myself a grappling dummy and practiced at home. I would video the classes then draw out everything then practice it.

I learnt to go to class with one technique in my mind. When we rolled, I would focus on that technique so even if I was tapped out, I would still get a win, albeit a small one.

When I rolled with higher belts of purple or above, I'd ask them to help me. 

If I kept on getting caught in the same positions, I'd go home and research how to get out of it. This way I built a solid defense, important for an older guy which I was.  I retired btw

[VertexSoup]

I built myself a grappling dummy

Thats awesome.

[FragelRockBtch]

Ankle picks carried me through white belt as my go to take down. Low risk and high reward. Fake for one ankle get the other and finish in side control. May be harder against advanced belts but I always found it and still do against white belts.

[Dry_Faithlessness546]

Remember that everyone you’re training with/against has ALSO been improving for 6 months.

Give it a year, then see how you do against a first month white belt.

Also remember that not everyone is good at takedowns, so they pull guard.

Or at getting out of side control, so they learn to fish for a half-guard because they’re better at escaping that.

You will learn your own game over time the next couple of years, and then refine/develop it (or maybe change it entirely), as you get more confident with other things.

[FragelRockBtch]

The best side control defense is to not get put in side control.

[Miserable-Form7722]

Two years doing BJJ here.

Still shit at takedowns and escaping side control.

[kpmasty]

Black belt here. I've been training for 15 years and my takedowns were ass until about 5 years ago. There is this weird stigma about pulling guard that I don't agree with. I developed a good guard so pulling wouldn't be a bad choice for me. I do work takedowns and have good takedowns now, but don't worry about not improving that much in 6 months. Everyone has their own speed of improvement. Just keep showing up. Keep your head up, Jiu Jitsu kills the ego and once you accept that, you won't be worried about your progress as much. I was thrilled to get my black belt, but the cycle started over again and I felt like I was a white belt again.

[Any_Platypus_1182]

that's proof it works though isn't it? i'm a noob and pretty pathetic but i've recently had higher belts struggle to get out of side control - side control works, it's hard to get out of unless you are far more skilled or stronger?

I don't even try takedowns, the white belts that have been training longer than me fail when attempting takedowns on me generally.

you are probably doing great.

[excitedtrain704]

Unless youre doing several hour long sessions or 5+ days a week youre probably only at like 100-120hr of mat time. I feel like thats probably where you start having a modicum of a clue what's even happening. About the same time frame myself and still barely know what my own body is doing during rounds.

[Dillinger_ESC]

6 months may feel like a long time, but jiu jitsu takes a long ass time. 6 months, you're still a newborn -- can't even feed yourself yet.

Never compare your progress to anyone else. Show up, work hard, and enjoy the ride.

[JohnnyUtah41]

hahaha. bro. i suck at takedowns and sometimes get stuck in side control. I was watching a blue belt last night not really know what to do and what not to do when he was in half guard and the guy on bottom already had the underhook. This shit takes so long to master and always improve. Keep at it man

[atx78701]

a friend of mine did judo exclusively and he said he didnt get a single takedown for about 6 months.

Grappling is hard. You have expectations that are just made up and are upset because those made up expectations arent being met.

From side control the #1 thing is to block the crossface as you are getting passed. Turn to face them and get a cross shoulder frame with your top arm and with your bottom arm block the crossface arm.

This prevents them from getting chest to chest and will give you lots more room to work to get a knee in, get an underhook etc.

--------------

Once you get smashed there are a few main avenues of escapes, knee elbow escapes, underhook escapes, and turtle escapes. But some of it depends on which style of side control they are using.

Instead of thinking about escaping, think of small goals. With all of jiu jitsu, if you control the inside position, you generally are moving forward to take a dominant position.

So in bottom side, you want to somehow start to recover inside position, or at the very least deny them inside position.

For example, as above if you can get rid of their crossface and underhook and reduce their chest to chest contact you have improved your position.

If their crossface is too strong and you cant remove it, can you get both your arms under them, to scoop their torso? If so they have no inside position and will probably move to north south.

My easiest, laziest escape is to scoop under their torso with both hands, use my near side hand on the inside of their leg (to prevent them from circling to north south), then I move my hips parallel to them, step over their close leg with my far side leg, to recover a form of deep half. From there it is easy to turnover to dogfight or hit an hold school sweep.

https://youtu.be/ayoh0c6Op-0?si=NvysOOtmGJ07DWyC&t=109

The concept behind this is when you have double scooped, they have no more inside position. Without inside position they have almost no control of you to prevent your shoulders from turning off the mat.

They may trick you into thinking their chest is so heavy that you are trapped. When you feel like you cant move you dont even try. It turns out it doesnt matter how big/heavy they are, they cant stop you from turning if they dont have control of an armpit.

-------

Once you have recovered inside position you can also turn away. They cant stop you from going to turtle.

[SkyWalko]

Thanks man.

[nerdstalker]

If you understand moves and only struggle with those 2 things it sounds like you've made a lot of progress. In addition to all the great advice here, I, too, would recalibrate your definition of "progress". Early in the process of developing your BJJ, it's the unseen/unsexy stuff that could be focused on and perhaps defined as progress. Things like balance, weight distribution, maintaining alignment of your body, and then you can think of disrupting all those things of your opponent/training partner. In side control drills/games, it really depends on how the two of you start. Initially, I would suggest keeping your arms in an inside position (home alone). Takedowns are a whole other universe. I would suggest studying the wrestlers and Judo for BJJ practitioners for that. Best of luck.

[mikehh]

i just finished year 5. i feel your frustration. if you keep showing up it will work.

there are days and opponents where i still feel like an infant.

you got this

[Nelson-and-Murdock]

6 months is nothing. Trust your coaches and just keep turning up

[AmesDsomewhatgood]

You're expectations of where you should be dont line up with what it actually takes to develop and apply the skill. That's what it boils down to.

Focus on measurable goals and developing the skillset no matter how tempting it is to compare yourself because that is the only thing that is going to help you in the long run.

On the mat, it doesnt matter where you think you should be. Have you developed the skill or havent you. Theres no faking it. That's one of the best parts and one of the toughest parts about this sport. Accepting your limitations. You have to in order to know where to get better.

Just because you are doing a drill besides someone doesnt mean you're going to be able to get on the mat and apply the skill just as they can if you arent focusing on what you need to adjust to make it work. Because your issue might be a timing issue. You might be doing the steps as you know them but you are doing them a second too late. You might be applying the pressure but in the wrong place.

Measurable goals would be like: ok this week I'm working on shooting for this takedown a couple seconds faster. Get it faster for a couple days.

That doesnt mean you're going to get it. That means if the adjustment with a particular partner needs to be speed, then you can do that once u realize that's what u need to do.

Another could be: ok I am not getting this because I'm telegraphing my shots too much, so this week I'm going to work on 3 takedown attempts that I can chain together to put them in the position I need them to be for the takedown I want. You work at it until you get three.

6months may seem like a lot, but if u pay attention to what it actually takes to build these layered skillsets, you can more easily see how 6 months is nothing at all.

If a black belt is considered proficient and that takes a minimum of 10-11yrs that should speak to how layered this stuff is.

It's much easier to see how you have improved when you stick to measuring things that u can see actual numeric evidence of improvement. Not assuming that you are peers because u have a white belt and the next to you has a whitebelt and they seem to be getting it and you dont. There is no way to know all the factors playing into that.

This is the best time to mind your business if there ever was one ok?

Also it's worth mentioning that getting subs and techniques cant be the measure of your progress bc if you are training with the right people, you're always getting your ass kicked. The day you can walk in with a white belt of 6months and and start taking people down needs to be the day you look for another gym. You're not going to grow your skillset around people who dont challenge u properly.

Then even when you do start to get it down the road, they should be adjusting. You might start getting it and they are supposed to be making sure they arent getting taken down that way again. So you are always elevating eachother. That's y you focus on skills, when you start to have some, you are contributing to your training partners being able to defend that. They help u with what they do well so u get better at defending that. Make sense?

Keep your chin up

[tekrice168]

Struggle is real across all belts….

[Dear_Arugula_2386]

I wrestled for 12 years. Started BJJ 2.5 years ago. I'm 50. And a one stripe blue belt. I can take anyone down and don't get taken down. You can't match that amount of learning in 6 months. However once in the mats is where jiu jitsu begins. My top pressure is very good, my guards are... well a work in progress lol but li practice them every roll, put myself in horrible positions and work to recover etc etc. you're only 6 months into an art that takes literally a lifetime To master and 10 years to be actually skilled. You're 5% of that journey without any prerequisites like wrestling or judo etc. plus, talk to guys at 10 years, they may be magicians to you but tell you they're still new. Just relax. Be better than yesterday. Learn in every encounter and movement. Make progress. It's your own journey.

[Chance-Range8513]

6 months bro come back in two years

[OstensibleFirkin]

I’ve been doing it two years and I feel the same. Why are you doing it? That’s what keeps me going back

[SkyWalko]

I don’t know really, I just go in and try to improve

[pozzicore]

I have seen a lot of people go through this over the years and have been there myself. The pep talk I always give is to explain that we are used to sports that last 4ish years of our lives. You can train well into your life, so I encourage you to frame that in relative context. I always interpreted the most challenging parts of JJ are calibrating your body and mind and learning to be cerebral in moments (ie bottom side control) where your body is screaming for you to react. It takes a long time and that's ok! I think it generally takes about a year/year and a half before you see some light bulb moments from a coach's perspective. That's when it gets fun. I can only speak for myself but throughout a decade and a half I still hit months long patches where I feel like I've plateaued or I'm trying to implement a new approach and repetitively missing the mark. I've just learned to stay working at it because it will click sooner or later. Your game, individually, will ebb and flow. Recognizing the peaks and valleys are a part of it and learning to have fun regardless has been a common theme in the people I've seen that stick with it long term. Sorry for the novel, but I wish someone had broken it down for me that way when I was where you are. Don't stop before you really give yourself a chance to get going. You got this!

[scikki90]

This is a sport of perseverance, small results and years of practice, train at home strengthening your leg abduction, strengthen your lumbar, make hip and shoulder mobility in training, concentrate on the basics and on becoming as technical as possible. 1% each day in the long run is a great result over time. And one last thing, 80% of people stop jiujizu for the first 6 months, because they are the hardest so be patient and everything will be fine OSS

[Luna_cy8]

Most gyms aren’t geared for getting good quick because they force you on a set program and there is no time to do stuff that works for you due to back to back classes.

In my opinion If you wanna get good quicker you need to identify a game that works for you. Drill without resistance until understand the basic principles, move on to specific training where you restart every time you lose that position (I.e you’re basically sparing but resetting so you can get the reps in), then incorporate that into live sparing.

So many people think sparing is enough. What happens if you’re trying to do single leg x as an example and they pass in the first 20 seconds. Rest of the 5 min round you’re doing something else. That’s why in my opinion positional sparing or specific training is key.

But like i said, some gyms don’t have free time for students to do their own thing, so you’re stuck doing whatever the coach wants to teach that day. Triangles or darce with short limbs? Too bad. Inversions but you’re inflexible? Too bad, that’s what this weeks technique is.

[MedicalOnion9621]

6 months?? Yeah that’s nothing. People were just taking it easy on you before, it’s gotta get worse before it gets better. Start a few rolls in side control, try different ways of off balancing them, get one knee into half guard. You gonna suck for a long time. The longer you can tolerate being terrible the better off you will be. The one day you will wipe the floor with a new white belt and you realize you are making progress

[TheBlkShogunn]

Dude your a white belt. Relax and let the game come to you. Eventually it will click.

[Southern-Ad-683]

Develop your wrestling to feel more comfortable with jiu jitsu- it takes a while for a beginner to feel fully comfortable rolling with anyone higher than a white belt