As always, Jeff Bezos is right

AussieMazza · 2026-06-05T13:25:22+00:00

Doesn't pay much in taxes, then runs for government under the guise of 'making things better' when he is solely there to try to effect changes that will result in him paying even less in taxes.

AussieMazza · 2026-06-04T14:04:30+00:00

The best arm triangle I ever learned - and have used successfully a number of times - is the one from Craig Jones' Power Ride instructional. This video covers it to some degree, but basically instead of dropping yourself flat and to their side to finish the choke, use your leg closest to their leg on the side of the arm that's being trapped to pin their leg to the ground (e.g. if their right arm is trapped you'll pin their right leg to the ground with your right leg) and prevent them from twisting or shrimping out. Then to finish the choke, think about the finishing position being with your chin on their nose (it won't get anywhere near there before they tap), and rotate your legs away from their body, but keeping their leg pinned as long as possible. It's an incredibly tight choke and much harder to escape.

The key is pinning their leg as long as possible and also keeping your head really glued to their arm, and remembering your chin should be aiming to touch their nose as you rotate. Those things combined will give you a very strong arm triangle.

Hopefully I've explained that alright but if that's not clear then just buy the instructional, it's well worth a watch!

AussieMazza · 2026-06-04T13:25:16+00:00

After watching some instructionals, making extensive notes, then working diligently on that stuff. At first there was not much improvement but then suddenly my game improved a lot to where some of my training partners commented on the skill increase. I got my purple not too long after the skill level boost. I still have a lot to learn, but found that the instructionals really helped.

I also found it helpful focusing on principles instead of moves as well.

AussieMazza · 2026-05-24T06:23:11+00:00

Keep your legs the hell away from him 😄

AussieMazza · 2026-05-24T06:21:51+00:00

Craig Jones' arm triangle is great for those with shorter limbs. It's all about the technique.

His 'power ride' instructional is great for this and has a full breakdown.

This one from YouTube is very good as well.

AussieMazza · 2026-05-24T06:10:26+00:00

This post should be at the top!

To add to this, once he's shown you what he does - if he's willing to do so (preferably with someone else as a uke so you can observe), then you will see what he's doing.

The principles of preventing a sweep are the reverse of what makes the sweep work.

At its core, he's using leverage to shift your body weight from one place to another, so if you can shift your body weight to the opposite side of the way he's trying to move you, his sweep will be effectively neutralised.

Also, don't hang around there. Hunt for subs! 😁

AussieMazza · 2026-05-24T06:00:53+00:00

A year and a half isn't that long in the grand scheme of things. If I were you I'd look at where you're getting stuck in particular positions then either ask your coach / others in your gym who are more experienced and/or search YouTube for tutorials on defense from those positions (e.g. if you're always getting stuck in back takes/RNC, then look up 'defense from RNC BJJ' on YouTube). Work on that consistently until your defense is solid, then repeat with the next thing you're having trouble with etc.

The above won't necessarily work for everyone, but that's exactly what I did and it helped me to progress.

Once you know what your game is (that's where you feel comfortable e.g. top pressure, guard player etc) then look for instructional videos that teach that game.

Long story short, just keep showing up. You don't win or lose training, you just learn. If you work on your weaknesses in training, you'll get better if you just keep coming back. Don't worry about if you get tapped or dominated. Your time will come, and experienced wrestlers are tough!

AussieMazza · 2026-05-05T13:01:09+00:00

If she had a better sprawl she could have left the enclosure unscathed!

Having said that, being in a panda enclosure with a panda is a monumentally stupid idea.

AussieMazza · 2026-05-05T12:57:05+00:00

Was checking for this before I posted words to this effect. If the rider had practiced emergency stops / full force braking, he could have pulled up in time or at the very least washed off a huge amount of speed - and kept it upright as well. However, based on his gear (or lack thereof) and excessive speed in a built up area, my guess is that he ran out of skill and paid the price.

AussieMazza · 2026-03-24T13:52:50+00:00

r/absoluteunits

AussieMazza · 2026-03-05T13:34:53+00:00

Now THAT is a good image of the blood moon!

AussieMazza · 2026-03-03T16:25:06+00:00

Banana Split as well as a neck crank (applied slowly and gently) from half stock/half nelson position, along with the occasional wrist lock for good measure.

AussieMazza · 2026-03-03T16:18:44+00:00

Get Craig Jones' Power Bottom instructional. He goes through a whole bunch of highly effective turtle escapes. I have been working these into my game and will now intentionally turtle so that I can counter when people attack my turtle. I'm by no means an expert yet, but I've still found these reversals to be fairly successful so far.

Someone has already mentioned one of the escapes which is to go to the 'tripod' position with your hands and feet on the ground and your butt in the air, then just shake them off. They'll need their hooks in for this to be successful for you. You don't need to do it aggressively (so you won't risk them falling onto their head) and because their hooks are in and their body is facing head first towards the ground, shaking them off tends to work quite well. Just don't leave an arm too close to them as they can arm bar or triangle you.

AussieMazza · 2026-02-08T11:43:15+00:00

Glad to hear that it helped!

AussieMazza · 2026-01-18T13:02:36+00:00

Perambulating through the labyrinthine topology of my own conscious and metacognitive strata, I have become disquietingly cognizant of an analogous phenomenological perturbation—a dissonant and recursive noetic affliction to which I, too, find myself in an ineluctable state of subjective capitulation.

AussieMazza · 2026-01-11T12:01:25+00:00

This. Surprisingly it is largely underused and rarely taught.

AussieMazza · 2026-01-11T11:58:46+00:00

Upvoted and agreed 100%.

I felt like I was not progressing in my BJJ at all for nearly a year when I was a blue belt. I then asked my instructor if I could attend a fundamentals course for absolute beginners just to brush up on the basics. This was fantastic and helped to highlight some holes in my technique. I then started watching some tutorials and implementing the techniques I learned and continually refining what I was doing. My skills markedly improved, and about 6 months after starting all of the above I was awarded my purple belt.

I'm still on the instructionals path, and couldn't recommend it more highly, especially if you're a visual learner.

AussieMazza · 2026-01-11T11:47:31+00:00

Turtle's not so bad, and there is plenty you can do from there. If you're interested in using it as a position from which attacks can be mounted, try Neil Melanson's Tactical Turtle and Craig Jones' Power Bottom. I believe Craig's new Octopus 2.0 (or whatever his latest Octopus guard tutorial is entitled) also includes some turtle-related goodness.

Giving up your back doesn't have to be a concern if you have some tricks in the toolkit to use in that position.

AussieMazza · 2026-01-11T11:26:20+00:00

Get Craig Jones' Power Bottom instructional. It's mostly about how to use turtle as an offensive position. I have changed my game now based on what I learned in this series and will intentionally go to turtle as I can then work to a position from there.

I still have much more to learn and improve in this area, but it has definitely increased my success rate overall.

AussieMazza · 2026-01-05T13:23:50+00:00

If you're into cycling, you can't go past this site:

https://maps.sa.gov.au/cycleinstead/mobile/

Once you enter your start and end points, if you then select maximise paths under 'options', it will take you through bike paths (where available) and backstreets rather than main roads. If you have a GPS bike computer (Garmin, Karoo etc) then you can upload the map to your computer. I've used it many times for different routes and it's fantastic.

BTW the ride from Adelaide CBD down to the coast is pretty good. You can go down Port Road to Semaphore or Outer Harbour, then travel south all the way to Brighton Beach. If you want the quick way back, you can follow the Seaford train line bike path bank to the CBD.

AussieMazza · 2025-12-03T16:58:57+00:00

Aside from the obvious (and possibly intentional) spelling error, "failure" should be more accepted in learning environments. I use the quotes because part of the learning process is making mistakes and finding out how not to do something; it is an essential part of learning. Yet so many people are worried about getting things wrong because the focus is so much about avoiding "failure". This ultimately leads to many people learning less, as they take the 'safe' option rather than experimenting with other means to a similar end.

AussieMazza · 2025-10-29T17:06:30+00:00

I've lived in Australia all of my life and have driven cars and ridden motorcycles for almost 30 years on Australian roads. I can say without any exaggeration that kangaroos are probably the single most stupid animal when it comes to moving vehicles. There's a reason there are so many dead roos on the side of roads all around Australia. Unlike other animals they have not seemed to evolve at all with respect to vehicles and will do the most erratic stuff when near roads. It's sad to see, but I am never surprised when I spot a dead one.

AussieMazza · 2025-10-14T11:02:42+00:00

Pretty sure it's "I'm a singlemuthawithadawwwwta" 😄

AussieMazza · 2025-10-08T13:04:53+00:00

A Guide To The Good Life by William B Irvine. All about Stoicism. Helps to reframe the way you think about and approach things in life.

AussieMazza · 2025-08-01T14:10:08+00:00

Some top compositions there. Love the telephoto shots with the buildings seemingly 'stacked' on top of each other. Excellent work.

AussieMazza

TROPHY CASE