Hi Guys sorry it has been a couple weeks since my last post. I was training really hard for the Pan American Jiu-Jitsu Championship and didn’t find the time to write any articles between training, teaching and playing with my 2 kids(Yurik and Alek). Anyway I would like to thank all my students and my training partners, Kevin Albertini, Jay Moncaio, Vagner Rocha, James Brasco, Hakan, Fred Moncaio also Saulo Ribeiro, Xande Ribeiro, Jacare, Regis Lebri prepare for this tournament.
In a few days I will share with you all some of the training routine and schedule that I did for the Pan Am Championship, It basically consists of 6 days a week training with one day off (Sunday), but as I was discussing with my trainers it is something I might have to change in the future, I felt that I over trained a bit for this tournament.
Also I was happy competing at medium heavy, I didn’t have to cut down any weight and competed against guys I’ve never went against. The Medium Heavy goes up to 188.5 Lbs but I only weighted 183.5Lbs, I felt strong against my opponents but I have to muscle up a bit.
First Match against Renzo Gracie Black Belt.
Finals Against Alliance Black Belt Tarsis Humphreys
I trained with “Juan Carloz Santana” from the Institute of Human Performance (IHP) for the World Submission Wrestling Championship ADCC 2007. One of the things we worked on was to simulate my matches through cross training . Here is an example of some of the exercises we did.
This time I am going to go over one of the most effective foot lock/heel hook submissions from the guard.
This position is great because it gives you the opportunity to finish your opponent with the basic foot lock or a more advance position, “the heel hook”. Also keep in mind that this position can be very effective for MMA as well. By keeping your opponent in a closed distance it limits his ability to strike, giving you a perfect situation where the submission can be applied.
1 - Start in the closed guard controlling your opponent’s wrists.
How to Deal With Injuries While Training For Tournaments
One of the most common problems while training for tournaments is the injuries you sustain while training hard for a short period of time.You have about 2-3 months to get ready for the tournament but a shoulder, knee, or back injury could keep you on the side line for weeks sometimes.
Taking weeks of training will not only regress your progress but also will mentally make you weaker for your matches.In the back of your head you know you didn’t train like you planned and you might doubt yourself while progressing in the tournament.
What I found out over the years is that even though many times I had injuries that caused me to stay away from sparring and drilling techniques, there are training variations in other sports that can simulate my matches.
