Demian Maia Guard Pass Study, Parts 1-3

COMBATE! PNW Grapplers Get Ready! Q3 Edition

The second half of the jiu-jitsu/grappling competition season is right around the corner. Here is a running list of the events in July, August, and September for competitors in the PNW.

July 2016

• The Revolution XXXI - July 16 & 17 - Pacific Lutheran University, Tacoma, Washington
• Sub League Championship - July 30 - Portland Community College, Portland, Oregon

August 2016

• IBJJF Seattle International Open - August 6 - Everett Community College, Everett, Washington

September 2016

• Portland Sunday Open - September 4 - Renzo Gracie Academy Portland
• Oregon Open Jiu-Jitsu Championship - September 24 - Salem Armory Auditorium, Salem, Oregon

Jiu-Jitsu Conditioning: What I Do

I've decided to focus on conditioning during the summer months and leave strength training to the fall and winter. Right now, I'm training jiu-jitsu three days a week, Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, and doing conditioning work before and after training on Tuesday and Thursday, with full conditioning sessions on Saturday and Sunday.

So what does this mean? My before training conditioning/warmup consists of what I've been doing for a decade now: my matwork series. I try to get in three reps (3:30 min each for a total of 10 minutes work) before class. If I've got time left, I love to do neural charge jumps to rev up my nerve system after what is usually eight hours of sitting at a desk.

My after training conditioning on Tuesdays and Thursdays is a complex of squats and deadlifts, eight sets of five reps each as shown in this great video from TFW founder Martin Rooney.

After that, I'm working on this pull-up series from Russian trainer Pavel Tsatsouline. Note that I do this routine Tuesdays and Thursdays rather than every day. I'll be doing the 65443 routine on Tuesday evening. In between each set of pullups, I do 20 hipscapes down the mat. It works out to five sets or 100 total hipscapes.

On Saturday and Sunday, I do a Martin Rooney-inspired, DB complex with active rest.

Saturday

1/4 mile at 3.7 mph
5 sets: 5 reps upright row, 5 reps bench press
5 sets: 5 reps overhead press, 5 reps Kroc row
one mile at 3.8 mph
3 sets: 5 reps upright row, 5 reps bench press
3 sets: 5 reps overhead press, 5 reps Kroc row
1/2 mile at 3.9 mph
3 sets: 5 reps upright row, 5 reps bench press
3 sets: 5 reps overhead press, 5 reps Kroc row
1/2 mile at 4.0 mph

Sunday

1/4 mile at 3.7 mph
8 sets: 5 reps squat, 5 reps deadlift
one mile at 3.8 mph
4 sets: 5 reps squat, 5 reps deadlift
1/2 mile at 3.9 mph
4 sets: 5 reps squat, 5 reps deadlift
1/2 mile at 4.0 mph

I'm looking to switch this up a little in a few weeks, replacing the squat and deadlift with glute bridges and heavy KB swings, respectively, for a little variation. But this is the basic template for now through mid-July or so.

The Only Resistance Exercise You Need for Jiu-Jitsu*

*At least from the bottom.

The most fundamental movement in jiu-jitsu for the person on the bottom is the movement to lift the hips up from the mat. Whether bridging to turn a mounted position into top side guard or hipscaping to replace the guard, going from hips down to hips up is as universal a movement as there is in jiu-jitsu, at least from the bottom.

Triangles, technical lifts, hip bump sweeps, back2bellyscapes ... you name it, getting your ass off the ground is a pivotal part of it.

So for folks who like to supplement their jiu-jitsu training with weightlifting, but also want something practical, try out the hip bridge and see how you are moving off your back in a few months. Single leg variations are great for "step on the hip" muscle endurance from the guard, and having strong, tight glutes, quads, and abs is not exactly the worst way to go through life, either. ;)

P.S. Bret Contreras has done some great quantitative work on resistance training. If you lift weights and want to know what actually works to make strong people stronger, check out his "Inside the Muscles" series.