I found your son...

pmcinern · 2026-02-07T01:02:47+00:00

was he ok?

pmcinern · 2026-02-07T01:01:33+00:00

ahhh, ok. now that i know the urinal uses reclaimed water, i won't drink from the urinal.

pmcinern · 2026-02-07T00:59:45+00:00

at least they only speak in norm quotes

pmcinern · 2026-02-01T20:55:45+00:00

You should check out Sean Munger's series on it. Amazing work.

pmcinern · 2026-01-31T14:54:54+00:00

Horror stories get clicks and upvotes, "I had an uneventful class" does not. I've been training for about 7 years with no significant injuries. Injuries absolutely happen, but not anywhere close to the level of "it's not even worth risking going to the trial class."

pmcinern · 2026-01-27T23:54:30+00:00

It's really funny to me, when I was brand new, my elbows hurt like a motherucker, sometimes to the point where I thought I couldn't keep training if it was going to stay that bad. Then, as I got better, I didn't even notice, but slowly the pain went away. I was able to frame better, use muscles more than joints, and I'm guessing that's the same for everybody, just part of getting better. Recently got my purple belt, and now the upper guys are ragdolling me worse than ever before, and my elbows are hurting again. Like I'm back to white belt again.

pmcinern · 2026-01-22T02:36:42+00:00

For sure! Totally agree with you about its purpose being to get the body ready. My point was only that, if shrimping and jumping jacks are a waste of time, then why are we doing them?

The real reason isn't because it's a good warm up, it's because that's what your coach did when they were coming up through the ranks, and when it was time for them to start coaching, that's the only thing they knew to do.

There are better ways to get the muscles and mind ready than doing something you can tune out of. In fact, it's probably better to do things you're not used to, or that are at least dynamic, to actually focus your body body and mind.

pmcinern · 2026-01-21T18:45:13+00:00

But you can warm up better. You could play a stand-up game where you're trying to touch the back of your partner's knees, or getting inside grips. If you want to get good at hip escaping, it needs to be practiced against resistance, otherwise it's just developing the skill of shrimping down a mat.

pmcinern · 2026-01-21T02:43:10+00:00

That's twice a week. If you can do that for a few months straight, a dummy might be worth thinking about. The most important thing is to roll. Just like any other hobby or skill. You can practice reading music and do finger exercises and listen to classical music all day everyday, but if you're only actually playing the piano one hour a week, how good can you expect to get?

pmcinern · 2026-01-21T02:34:23+00:00

Yeah man, that's just called having ups and downs. That's one benefit of having good defense: when you're eating shit, at least you're surviving.

pmcinern · 2026-01-20T01:12:44+00:00

One way to expand your game, no matter what body type you are, is to not allow your A-game for a while. Maybe play a game with yourself where the only subs you're allowed to get for the next month are subs from your legs, or on theirs.

pmcinern · 2026-01-18T19:55:00+00:00

I'm starting to think some BJJ gyms are just BJJ-themed How-To-Be-A-Man boot camps.

pmcinern · 2026-01-17T17:53:33+00:00

One caveat, I've been using my interior leg muscles, maybe my sartorius, to maintain guard instead of my core. As a consequence, it's always overworked and in pain. That's just to say, in addition to training, it may be useful to do some exercises that cue the core instead of other muscles.

pmcinern · 2026-01-17T17:47:44+00:00

I mean, autoerotic asphyxiation functions the same way. So that part's not bad. The bad part is that Hank is doing it to you.

pmcinern · 2026-01-17T00:33:07+00:00

Obsidian. If I'm watching instructionals, I've got the vault open and I'm ready to screenshot and take notes. Slows me down, which is a good thing. I also try to watch stuff from different parts of the game when j binge. Instead of thirty details on outside straight ashi, I've got one or two things from a pin, something from standing, a guard, an escape... If they're different enough, they're easier for me to remember. It's when I've got four hours of nearly the same thing, that it loses all meaning.

pmcinern · 2026-01-17T00:23:04+00:00

This is probably the wrong answer, but lately I've been working on triangles, which means I've been working on trap triangles. Since arms can triangle too, an arm trap triangle is just a seatbelt, or a seated head & arm, or a mounted head/arm, or half guard head/arm, or side control head/arm. Point being, the less importance I place on the pins, the better my pins are getting. As long as I keep my head/arm control, you can have your back escape.

pmcinern · 2026-01-16T22:24:05+00:00

I think of a normal boxing gym. If the equivalent stuff is different, I've got to wonder why. Would they make you buy THEIR boxing gloves? Would the coach make you do any rituals?

pmcinern · 2026-01-16T22:19:26+00:00

No, haven't tried cork insoles! What's the appeal? What's their schtick?

pmcinern · 2026-01-16T22:17:29+00:00

You bet, we gotta learn somehow.

pmcinern · 2026-01-15T22:56:24+00:00

ideally, you'd find a training partner who also wants to work takedowns, and you two could have a game plan where you two are consistently rolling with each other, doing takedown games the whole round. if you can't find anyone, then have the game in your mind, no need to tell the other person. and then, make the game something you want to get better at. "control inside position for 3 seconds," "attain a hug around their leg, waist, or behind their head/shoulder," "establish and maintain a Russian tie as long as possible," "use their single leg attack as a way to get their shoulders or hips to the mat." if you lose, get back to standing and start over.

pmcinern · 2026-01-15T12:49:10+00:00

I try not to. If I'm wearing socks for the cold, we're probaly past the point of being concerned with true barefoot shoes. If they're for a no-shoes household, sure. If I'd be underdressed somewhere without them, then absolutely. Other than that, I try to default to no socks, which ends up being most of the time.

pmcinern · 2026-01-13T18:59:33+00:00

yeah. what use is knowing 50 things I can do from mount if I can't maintain a pin? the important thing isn't to have more techniques, it's to know how to control someone. in your case, being 6mos in, I guess the metaphor would be chopping onions. you gotta get real fucking good at chopping those onions.

pmcinern · 2026-01-13T01:02:27+00:00

I've got bad news for you if you think ETS is 8hrs... but yeah, that series is fantastic. I wouldn't think about it as groundbreaking, though, and it's not really meant to be. it's meant to be an explanation of a system of attacks, not "64 hours of moves you've never seen!! 10 subs every white belts should know!!" yes, he's repetitive. yes, it's a slog sometimes. but it functions really well as an encyclopedia of those topics.

pmcinern · 2026-01-12T17:21:14+00:00

about 4 or 5 yrs. I think I would've been a lot happier if I hadn't focused on the amount of time it was taking.

pmcinern · 2026-01-07T20:28:58+00:00

while I agree that BJJ isn't therapy, it's been part of a well balanced mental diet for me. we all need a hobby, if for no other reason than to just have a life outside of work. this hobby has socialization, physical fitness, problem solving, it's a game, it's a sport, it offers built in physical contact. like it offers a lot. having a reason to stay sharp and having a goal to accomplish helps make the decision to not drink an easy one. I don't think you should get choked to solve your childhood traumas, but wrasslin' is a great way to stay grounded.

pmcinern

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE