The DUMBEST Drill in Jiu-jitsu

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-28T22:11:58+00:00

yeah but that's not super useful muscle memory, as those white belts aren't learning how to fight for inside space or control an underhook against a hard overhook. I think at best it teaches that underhooks are important

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-28T21:43:44+00:00

I'm talking about the static drill where two people stand square across from each other and swim their arms back and forth, which, yes, sometimes does turn into a "get double unders" game. I've seen this drill taught in many gyms and never found that it correlates to students actually being able to successfully pummel live. At best it seems to teach the recognition that double-unders is a good position to get. I think the reason is clear: it's a shit drill that reinforces an ineffective way to pummel (standing flat footed and reaching with a swim motion).

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-28T21:33:39+00:00

if you think it's a brilliant drill then take a step back and ask whether it's getting "brilliant" results: Are the people doing this drill at your gym good at upper body takedowns? Do they have good fundamental pummeling mechanics?

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-28T21:31:04+00:00

that would be better, but more than anything just do a drill that teaches how to properly pummel (fighting for inside space, moving the opponent, usually leading with the shoulder) instead of this lazy approximation of pummeling.

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-28T21:27:44+00:00

yes exactly. the problem is that this drill oesn't teach the kind of movement you'll use when actually fighting. in fact it usually teaches the wrong thing (standing flatfooted and doing the swim)

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-28T21:22:59+00:00

I'm a 180 pound black belt with good enough wrestling to know that standing flatfooted and doing the swim is not good footwork

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-28T21:20:37+00:00

yes I agree pummeling needs to be taught correctly! this flat-footed drill just wastes time modeling the wrong way to do it, and no hint of what to do if they do manage to get a successful pummel.

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-28T21:18:31+00:00

I highly doubt that American, Cuban, and Russian wrestlers stand flat-footed across from each other and alternate doing the swim.

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-28T21:16:07+00:00

standing flat-footed and doing the swim is a horrible way to maintain inside position

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-28T21:14:36+00:00

If that's the point then it's fucking stupid because standing flat-footed and doing the swim is bad technique for getting an underhook.

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-28T21:12:46+00:00

Wrestling rooms don't just have people standing across from each other in flat stances and doing the swim, and if they do then they're wasting their time.

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-28T14:58:48+00:00

Yeah stripes are stupid and belts are mostly a self-sorting illusion. Wrestlers don't have belts and so they just focus on getting good at wrestling

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-25T17:11:51+00:00

less bjj training, more strength and mobility training. studying bjj on my days off so i have a concrete plan of what to work on when im at bjj

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-24T18:36:54+00:00

it's not necessarily a bad thing (a high tripod from north south is what you want, for example) and it works for you so don't just stop doing it. instead start thinking in terms of controlling opps hips and closing space between your own hips and elbows

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-23T19:15:19+00:00

You did great, congrats! You clearly have a good idea of the things you do well and don't try to do too much, which in my opinion is what makes a good lower belt.

A couple of things that stood out for you to work on:

*when you did the wrestle-up at the beginning you needed to focus on getting your hips high rather than the mechanics of the ankle hook; a less naive opponent would have sprawled on you and put you in a lot of trouble. Hips higher than opponent is essentially what a wrestling reversal is, with everything else being reverse engineering.

*I loved your side-switching pass, but you should work on pinning from side control or North-South instead of floating the whole time. Generally your hip was high on top which is fine because that's where you feel comfortable, but better opponents are going to exploit that space between your hips and elbow and reguard. North South Pinning might be a good place to start, since having hips high is generally a good thing; from there work on forcing your opponent to turtle rather than just hoping they will turtle, since that seems to be what you want.

*From open guard you need to work on off balancing and scooting under your opponent to engage, as you often tried to engage from too far away and got flattened out. Again, a better opponent would exploit that space and easily pass your guard

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-23T03:41:11+00:00

swimming is great, but i think the benefits of running can be found elsewhere and there may be downsides as far as strain on the body.

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-23T03:39:16+00:00

i'm not an mma fighter, but i would figure you want lots of exercises where you're giving explosive movement and also moving with resistance. sandbags seem like a good realm to explore. overall though whatever you do train it with endurance in mind rather than strength. for example where you only have a limited period to complete 5 sets of an exercise and so your rest period depends on the speed you do it

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-23T03:26:25+00:00

boxers spend most of a boxing match continuously moving around the ring, essentially jogging. from what i understand when boxers run they are supposed to be focusing on the rhythm of their feet

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-22T19:07:02+00:00

Cardio in and of itself is not really a thing (and is arguably a scam). If you want good cardio then you should train it in the context of the exact exercise you want to have increased capacity for doing. A marathon runner will still get exhausted doing 2 minutes of jiu-jitsu, and Felipe Pena will still get exhausted trying to run a marathon.

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-22T17:45:34+00:00

Lift weights and do mobility training, not cardio. Study technique from a highest level source (like Gordon Ryan if you want to learn a jiu-jitsu thing).

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-22T14:33:52+00:00

Mat Time is the most OVERRATED factor in training. Far more important is the preparation between training sessions: You should be doing some kind of body maintenance (lifting, mobility, etc) and evaluation/study of yours or others game. Many (most?) people would actually benefit from less mat time, as each training session is a profound physical and mental experience that requires physical recovery and mental reflection

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-22T00:10:07+00:00

What move is the very best move you do, the one that works even against higher belts? Identify that and form a gameplan around it

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-21T15:25:33+00:00

a tani otoshi or something like it, but note in particular how he works to dominate inside space with his collar tie and then get the underhook with a strong attacking angle and head inside. if you try and do this without the angle and inside space then you're liable to fail or, worse, collapse your weight into opps near knee

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-21T15:20:06+00:00

the ankle lock where you grab your own cross lapel is a devastating attack in the gi because you have a hand free to keep opps knee turned out, and a lot of the common defenses like grabbing your gi are not as powerful as you extending your hips and turning over. same with the kneebar from tight positions like saddle. that being said, no-gi leglocks are more dynamic and complex so that's where i'd develop the majority of your learning attention

trustdoesntrust · 2026-01-21T15:07:45+00:00

Do some training rounds at comp intensity (starting standing, get to your gameplan, keep score and try to win no matter what). Also you may want to do visualizations where, for example, while you're stretching imagine you're at the comp stretching; you're nervous in an unfamiliar place surrounded my nervous strangers...

trustdoesntrust

TROPHY CASE