TFS#8: Maturity Is Recognizing The Window

I think you can relate to the sweaty rolls, short breaths, and full-body soreness.

...and when you tell your friends Jiu-Jitsu brings you joy, they'll give you a weird look.

But we continue to train because we get excited. And excitement brings us joy.

We involve ourselves in an activity that allows for more excitement in our lives.

We've found our positive feedback loop.

Now, let's start rolling...

Maturity is recognizing the window

When most people talk about growth in Jiu-Jitsu, they mean growth in their technical game.

But growth in Jiu-Jitsu comes in other forms.

One important form is mental maturity. I see people take their biggest step in technical growth after they take a step in this mental maturity.

And this maturity is the ability to recognize windows of opportunity.

Working on a technique

There's always one technique you're working on. Sometimes it's the technique of the week from class, while others it may be a technique you saw on YouTube and wanted to try.

One of the best ways to work on any given technique is to build a game plan to get you into a position to attempt that particular move.

Let's say you want to throw a ball through a window. This requires two conditions: 1) you can throw a ball accurately, and 2) the window is open. (The wider, the better!)

Too often people focus on the former and forget about the latter.

Throwing a ball accurately is like being proficient with a particular technique. Your game plan determines whether or not the window will be open, and if so, how wide open it will be.

Do it on your own terms

Maturity is recognizing these windows. Through experience, you realize that these windows don't open up as often as you hope they would. But you do your best to push each round in the direction that increases the chances of that window opening up.

Whenever that window opens up, you throw that ball.

If you fail and your opponent counters... that's okay. That's better than freezing up and allowing your opponent to close the window before you can even attempt to throw the ball.

Technique For The Week

Sweeps are a great way to practice situational awareness. You'll have to feel out your opponent and understand conditions before attempting a sweep.

We can check out the video: 10 Of The Easiest Sweeps In BJJ.

Drill these until you're comfortable assessing these positions. Figure out what the requirements are for a sweep and how you can get those requirements to line up. Create that window for yourself.

If you're a higher belt and these sweeps are too simple for you, I encourage you to grab a white belt and force them to drill one of these while providing them with good resistance.

Word On The Tweet

It's a new month! And I wanted to see the progress we're making as a community by asking them directly.

I appreciate the specific thoughts shared on Twitter since it gives an opportunity for others to take ideas and apply to their approach.

I would encourage you to check out people's responses on this thread and pick their brains on certain aspects of their game plan.

I really liked @ChubberGuard's response to my tweet below.

I always keep you and the rest of the community in mind when tweeting. I don't use Twitter as a place to post personal thoughts, but rather a platform to get the community in engaging dialogue to help inspire others. This is how a community grows.

My goal for social media and this newsletter is to connect ideas and help individuals in different ways.

Closing Thoughts

Showing up to class gives you more mat time and thus more repetition. That's step one.

Step two is creating opportunities for even more repetition. Taking the initiative to give yourself more practice will make your training more effective.

You should always have a game plan to execute. You don't want to roll and do whatever comes up because that's too random. It's like setting your boat to sail for the sake of sailing without any direction.

Not only are you getting more practice for the technique, but you're actively creating the situation to execute that technique. In turn, you're not just getting better at that technique but you're getting better at "opening the window."

But these windows don't stay open long. This is where flow rolling can help...but more on that another issue.