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The Old Grappler
The Old Grappler
Grappling with Life and Jiu-Jitsu: Tony's Voyage to the Black Belt
Ever wondered what it takes to earn a black belt in Jiu-Jitsu? Come along on a captivating journey with Tony, a dedicated martial artist who shares the trials and triumphs of his path to mastery. From the intense competition circuit to the lessons learned from grappling with opponents, we'll hear about Tony's commitment to the sport and his personal growth along the way. His insights into the contrasting approaches between Gi and No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu, and the advantages of training in both, will leave you with a newfound appreciation for the sport.
Not limited to Jiu-Jitsu, Tony's passion extends to the realm of photography. Discover how the white belt mentality of starting fresh and embracing the basics translates seamlessly from martial arts to the creative field. Tony's approach to photography mirrors his journey in Jiu-Jitsu, highlighting the art of documentation and underscoring the necessity of challenging oneself for growth. Don't miss out on the joy he shares about earning his black belt and the importance he places on giving back to the community.
Whether you're a martial arts enthusiast or someone seeking inspiration from a compelling personal journey, this episode promises a powerful blend of Jiu-Jitsu stories, life lessons, and strategies for personal growth. From discussing memorable moments in Jiu-Jitsu to exploring the importance of maintaining a balanced training schedule, we dive headfirst into Tony's world. So, tune in as we navigate the challenging yet rewarding path of Jiu-Jitsu, photography, and the pursuit of mastery.
See, it was meant to be, because at the time, I wasn't 40 yet I was fucking in 40 now.
Speaker 1:So I feel like I hit that club now. So I'm glad it happened that way. Whenever I go out and compete, it's just I'm here to test myself. Forget the win Great, if I don't, I gotta get better. The only drop word subscribe, comment. Drop a comment, do what you gotta do. I don't know how this works, but, yeah, check it out, man, try to get me in a room. Yeah, everybody wanna talk why I was coming with the tunes, ain't? No, i'ma take it far right Something I already know. Yeah, never needed your applause. Nah, they been saying it's a fluke. Mm. This is not a false alarm. Nah, it's not.
Speaker 2:He was bigger than me. What was your black belt Brown Another brown. He meddled at Master of Worlds this past weekend. Where's?
Speaker 1:he at.
Speaker 2:On the podium Saber Jujitsu, the big guy, yeah, the big black guy, no, no, no, no. That guy like there was no emotion though Just I'm like hey, you wanna roll, and just feels awkward. Though when you ask somebody like that and then like, no matter what I did, it was just the same. Look just grabbing, like fucking, pulling me in. The facial expression never changed, smash me, Nothing, nothing dude, and what afterwards?
Speaker 1:Same I'm like Not a good match or nothing.
Speaker 2:No, I asked him like. So I was in his guard right and instead of locking right, he planted his feet over my legs onto the mat and I fucking couldn't get out.
Speaker 1:So he kind of like, did a reverse grapevine.
Speaker 2:Yes, From the bottom, yeah, so he came over. I asked him like really what? I couldn't figure it out right Like I was trying to move forward, yeah, and he's like, just like afterwards after the role, I asked him about that particular position and he's like just put your hands on my hips and sprawl. I was going to say.
Speaker 1:I don't know if I'm thinking about the hips, but I was imagine something was sprawling.
Speaker 2:Simple as fucking thing, but in the moment.
Speaker 1:That's the shit, huh.
Speaker 2:When you're like wow, in the moment I'm like, and then it's just like honestly, that's what fucking.
Speaker 1:I love this shit. I just figured out like you're in the moment. You're like what the fuck Like, and then you're like Right.
Speaker 2:And it was just like I want to move forward, go forward, go forward, go forward. And it's just like when they have you in lockdown, right, the smart way to get out of that is to slide down. Yeah, right, but you don't think of that, right? It took me how many times before like someone finally was like hey, jose, you're going about it the wrong way you need to go.
Speaker 1:Well, you're going the natural, human way to think. It's like I'm fucking strong, I'm just going to keep putting pressure because the dude's on the bottom and so you're like what the fuck, and it never works, it never works. The frustration. That's what you got to wait on. When I feel, when I'm rolling, I feel somebody fresh, as I got you, like on the top or bottom, Like that's when I know.
Speaker 2:I'm like I mean, I had a good point, like I had a good moment with the bigger guy, the one that I told you placed over at the National Worlds. We were rolling and I passed this car, I got to side control and I isolated his arm, but then I got nervous not nervous, but like started to freeze, like panic, because no, like I was just waiting for him to do something, so I had, I was inside control, so you were like I had his opposite arm isolated, yeah, and then I didn't do anything, right, like I was just waiting and waiting, waiting so that I could counter whatever he was about to do, right. And then afterwards he was like I asked him like what, what did you notice? What can I work on? You know the same questions, right, and he is like, well, you did pretty good, like you had good pressure.
Speaker 2:Yeah, he is always a little worried. When you got to side control and you got my arm isolated and I was always worried about you sweeping me, so I wasn't worried about that. You should have just went for it, I think you got.
Speaker 1:I just fucking I might hurt it. I read it was like what's it called? Like paralysis by analysis? That's what you got, because you were overnight and I like you shit like the sweep or what if? How did I get here and you just froze?
Speaker 2:Well, like I had. I just I got the arm isolated, but he had swept me before. So I was like okay the sweep's coming Like, but I didn't when he swept me. I wasn't in that position, right.
Speaker 1:So yeah, that's what I let it. I let it, yeah, I let it get to me, cause I was like then it would be a reversal, but I want to be able to sweep you from side control, yeah, and see, like, but maybe you were passing and that's how you got swept, or half guard I was in half guard when I got swept and he made it fucking like I felt like.
Speaker 2:I felt like it was a hot knife through butter. How easy.
Speaker 1:I went over.
Speaker 2:Oh my fuck, fuck. Yeah, dude, oh shit. Hey everybody, we're back with the old grappler. Today's guest is Tony. Introduce yourself where you train and I'll say it. He's a new black belt, just recently promoted, so the golf clap.
Speaker 1:Well, you know my name's Tony. I was raised here in Los Angeles, pretty much stayed here, man, but pretty much, you know, I stayed low key. After high school I did high school here, didn't really do any like combat sports, just some soccer like my junior high and high school days. But then I joined the service and that's where I kind of like, but it's always been in the back of my mind, kind of like Jiu Jitsu and martial arts. And Jiu Jitsu came about like UFC, of course, like every old grappler, right, right, everybody that has that Seeing hoist, yeah.
Speaker 1:And then, you know, when the military, they did like combatives and kind of got into there a little bit of training. And then just when I was searching for gyms, when I got to Kentucky, found a gym there and trained for about, I said, about seven, eight months straight and then got deployed, did about 10 month tour, came back and then I was queuing to get out and then during that time I was so hooked I was like I got to go back and so started training and came back. Shit, sorry, five all at one time, right, dude, like hey, bro, you sent me up right here.
Speaker 2:Hey, what was the shooting across? The next thing over the night. So what was the place called that you first went to start Jiu-Jitsu, I think pretty sure it was called Clarksville MMA.
Speaker 1:It was in Clarksville, tennessee, but I can't remember but what it was. It was like an MMA gym, right. So they did like Muay Thai, boxing, of course, jiu-jitsu, and then they had like an MMA team and stuff. So I went in there and the only reason I signed up there is because they had the sweetest deal. I think it was like 300 bucks and then unlimited classes for six months and all the classes, just so. I'm like at that time like fuck, I want to, maybe I want to, you know, get my feet when become a fighter, right. So then I went in there and then started taking Muay Thai classes and then kickboxing and Jiu-Jitsu Did that like I was hooked. And then I did a few Muay Thai classes. I was going consistent, but then, you know, got kicked a couple of times, punched, and then I was like I don't know, this is for me, man. So then I kind of stuck more toward Jiu-Jitsu.
Speaker 1:I was still doing both. And then at that time I remember specifically, the owner came by and kind of was watching everybody and then he said, hey, you want to come train with the team because this guy's going to have a fight whatever, like an amateur fight. So I was like sure, and it was just an eye-opener man, because you know like you see it happening. But when you're training and then you're doing like you know some half guard or you know, you see a fist coming your way, like, oh shit, you know, shit got real. So I did one or two, like two classes. I'm like I'm cool, like that's when I'm like I'd rather stick to Jiu-Jitsu. So then I just focused everything on that. So and then did that and then then struck there was a my first instructor, israel Gomes he's still, he's a fourth or fifth degree black belt now. He was Brazilian and what happened was the owner went at the time he was in San Diego and you know could deal whatever, move them to Tennessee and you know, so he was full-time coach Muay Thai and Jiu-Jitsu, oh nice. So then that's where I got on my beginnings from there.
Speaker 1:And how long were you over there? That was towards the end of my like contract. So I was, that was 2009. I want to say like January, february, 2009. And me and my boy went a good friend of mine, my brother, and then we started training consistently. I got hugged. He goes kind of in and out, but I was hooked Monday through Thursday. Then I did one tournament over there. It was on Naga. I did my first tournament there and then I got orders. We had already came down on orders to deploy that August. So I just went through it all through there, you know. And then when I deployed, obviously you know I was down the range. But what was cool is that? What we did over there is, and we do, like you know, friday night fights. We would call them. Well, I'll just grapple and do the, the, the.
Speaker 2:I just interviewed Joey and he talked about drunk Jiu-Jitsu. Yeah, I guess that's where it came, out came back.
Speaker 1:But yeah, man, that's so. We, you know, I don't know, we just grapple and go at it, you know, and then I was there for him. At that time you were just a white belt. Yeah, I just started, but I was hooked and I was. I was so hooked that like I'm cash shows Check.
Speaker 2:I'd like to say thank you to our sponsor, cash shows, pull service and repair. Phone number 209-675-5418. I am cash shows, pull service and repair. The old grappler just awarded my blue belt. I've been coaching wrestling for about 14 years now. When I get in there, it is like everything just goes away, like you're in there coaching on the map for Jiu-Jitsu. It's a way of therapy, the old grappler.
Speaker 1:All I can think about is come back and train, like I'm thinking, how much am I not learning while I'm deployed? Right, you know what I mean? Right, I'm not like I'm in operations and all that stuff, but like in the back of my mind I'm like, dude, I'm missing out on on mat time and I didn't know what. I was just hooked, right, I didn't know what. Like mat time, like, oh, you know you just mat time, mat time. I was just thinking I need to get back on the mats, and so the first thing I did, I landed. When I got back, it was April of 2011. And then, so then I came back, and then I just went straight back, man, straight back to the same place, yeah, straight up, like, say, you know, of course, met the family, my wife, kids and, you know, my two daughters at the time, maybe two days in, I'm going back to the gym and I went back in man, because I only knew I had like four months, three months. Then I was getting down and coming back home.
Speaker 2:So I was trying to get all the time I could on the mats.
Speaker 1:So I was just just going consistently and just training there Nice.
Speaker 2:Nice and that. So when you finish your deal with the, with the military, and you got out, then you move back to California.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I came back to Las Vegas, so I was 27 at the time, 28. And then so I remember getting out, coming back home and it was pretty rough. Man, like you know you go from being in country. You know I was in Afghanistan and you know you go from being there constantly. You know, looking over to me, yeah, she's going down, you know, and boom, you're here and you're being told, you know everything is structured. And then, fuck, okay, I came back in April so made you like two and a half months later I was, I was here, do whatever I want to do. No structure, it's different, it's different man, and it's just like damn. And so I came back home. You know enjoy seeing everybody, you know see the family. And then I started hitting. At the time I didn't know, just started hitting in man like thinking a lot of stuff right, like why did I get out? Yeah.
Speaker 2:You should have stayed in. I had that.
Speaker 1:Then I'm talking about Jiu Jitsu was like I don't know, we had here in Las Vegas, you know. So then I was just kind of just doing my thing.
Speaker 2:This was you said 2009? 11. 11.
Speaker 1:Yeah, first went to the gym was like 2009, 2000, I think it was 2010. And then not everything back. So then came back 2011. And then came here, got here like the summer of 2011. I took it off right Unemployed, started going to school, but it's just a lot of missing man. And then Jiu Jitsu was missing. It was. It was some rough days. And then I remember 2012,. I was like I need to find a gym, january, like February, and at the time I was looking and start. At the time we didn't have you know. I remember going back to computer man and in the Google search and I seen some gyms in Merced and I was talking to my wife at the time Like dude, I think I'm just going to commute.
Speaker 2:At that time was Scott's night, I don't know.
Speaker 1:I don't know what. We had Jiu Jitsu, so that's where I'm going to get to is. I'm just thinking. I'm like fuck, how am I going to make this work? I think it was February, march 2012. Sorry, I'm like okay, start looking up these gyms in Merced, right?
Speaker 1:I'm like I'll go out there and one night I forget it was in the evening I'm driving down 7th Street and the community center had just opened up. You know it was turning you a few years. And then I remember seeing on the on 7th Street where they have the sign announcement the digital sign yeah, and I said Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Scott Savage.
Speaker 2:And I'm like fuck, you know, like fuck, I don't got to go to Merced, yeah.
Speaker 1:So I'm like the fuck, you know, I don't know, is this real? And I said come to the community center. So I went the next day and I was like hey man, you guys do Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in there. Yeah, this guy's offers it and Scott Savage is his info. This is how you work. You pay here and you will let him know you signed up. He's like cool, here's his phone number.
Speaker 1:So I seen his phone number, hit him up, reached out to him and he's like yeah man, we're over here, you know, by the junior high and right, right At the time I was talking to my brother Rita, and I'm like, hey, dude, we got to go check it out. You know, show them videos of under God, val and shit. That was pretty intense. So I call Scott and kind of told him like hey, who I am and I'm, you know, done your jits from the past, you know probably about a year under my belt. And then he said, yeah, come on by. So I go by there and fuck.
Speaker 1:I'm like, and at the time when my other gym, I never rolled with my black belt, so he had, like I think there was like two purple belts by the time I left when I went there. So a lot of white belts and blue belts, but, like I said, we only focus on MMA. So you know, some of these fighters I don't know right, there was just cross training, you know. So they weren't really keeping track of belt systems. And I just remember coming here and meeting Scott and Joe, bunch of other people there and it's all right, get in. And bro goes God, I was like, well, man, I'm going to roll with the black belt. And he put it on me, man, and I stayed here ever since. Never look back, man. You know why go somewhere when you have some good jits here, right, right.
Speaker 2:So so you talked about competing when you were still in the Midwest. Yeah, yeah, kentucky, tennessee. So For Camoya, how did that go?
Speaker 1:To be honest it was, it was a Nogi and, oh yeah, you said Naga, right yeah, and I can't remember, man, I just remember going and I remember telling my wife to record a match and she recorded it and I can't remember whether I won or lost. It's been so long. But I remember competing because I was hungry and but then I remembered right after that, at the time in my gym there were two days of Nogi and two days of ghee and I hated the ghee when I first started, fucking hated it. You're not going to want to slap hands afterwards, right? I hated the ghee man and my instructor. So I would.
Speaker 1:I've had the ghee and I would talk to this guy named Dean man. He's the one that put me on half guard and everything. He put me on some work out there, man, and he kind of took me under his wings fucking solid dude, and he's like hey, like you need to train the gears, I don't like the ghee. So now you got to do both. This is, you know, this is the OG, come from Brazil, and I'm like all right. So what ended up happening at the time is I had done the Naga, it was no ghee, and then I came back and then the instructor, the professor, there he was, I'm going to, I'm going to put my own tournament on, so he's okay. So you know, he's like we're going to train this, but he's going to be in the ghee, and so it was like one fucking mandatory.
Speaker 1:Everybody came with it through Thursdays. I was like fuck. So then I was telling the dude, Dean, I'm like dude, I don't want this, Like dude, just try it, Just come every day. So I was so hooked on jujitsu that I was like I'll go. And then I just got hooked, man, and never looked back ever since and I stayed with the ghee and looked like him a Scotts only ghee traditional. So it worked out. But now I do. I do you know, kind of do I run like a no ghee class. I think one day is enough for me. I still am so loyal to the ghee that that's the OG man.
Speaker 2:So you still want to hey at the beginning. Four days a week, you'll get your fucking life to ghee.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I guess I love hate. And then there's only for me, you know, train so right, and I think that's the looking back. That's like the big thing. Wrestlers have my careers, like my journey, that all the wrestlers I met they hate the ghee, constrain extra materials where he can't. You know, just some moves.
Speaker 2:So, like me, as the wrestler right, like I don't think, for me I don't think it's a matter of that, it's the top or the ghee itself. I think it's the grips Right, like being controlled by them, grabbing the ghee Right. And if it wasn't for that, like yeah, you think, like wrestling wise, we're in a wrestling room, we have sweats on, yeah Right, so that makes sense, so it's kind of the other than grabbing the material right, like in wrestling, we're not grabbing a hold of the sweat. Does anything really right? It's all manipulation, yeah Right, but with jujitsu you could grab it if it's there.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think that's the, that's why I fell in love with it. You know how to control, right, somebody that's faster, stronger or like. You know the wrestlers like how do I slow them down? All right, well, right, when you think you're going to, you know pull out of that leg and come out like you pull on something like whoa, yeah, fuck's that. And you look back and they got a hold of your lapel or some pant leg or sleeve and then you got to fix that problem.
Speaker 1:It's not no more of like get out. You know run away not run away, but escape really quick and can face the problem's still there. How we're going to address it. We need to address that. So you know. But I trained the gi predominantly my whole journey until recently when we started doing the nogi classes this once a week, you know. So it's. I think it's a good balance Doing it now more I feel like they go hand in hand. I think now I favor more of like the hand fighting from the nogi and, you know, only use like grips when I need to do a setup, because I feel like sometimes the problem we have when we use this to the gi, we focus too much on that grip and we don't realize how much energy and focus we're burning.
Speaker 1:Just because if you let go and just kind of like put a frame or grab the wrist or just kind of like hold versus just gripping and holding, you're going to conserve so much energy. So I'm learning that through, like nogi. It's finding that balance, it's the happy meeting. And the happy meeting because I'm telling you, I've been there where, like, you're holding on with your life when you don't need to. You just need to create a frame, right, right.
Speaker 1:But we're so used to that, like holding on to that sleeve, that collar or something, when some like to say when someone's on top of you on half guard and you're holding a collar for no reason, when you could just be framing up Right, right, and then no, we don't, yeah, no, tension, just kind of holding relaxed, but now with that grip, we're creating tension and we're still creating that frame and we're getting more exhausted. So I'm learning through, like no ghee more than hand fighting, which I like more. So now I always, when I teach, I always remind like this is applicable in the ghee as well. Mm-hmm, you know, so don't just yeah, it's here.
Speaker 1:Just cuz I'm telling you, grab the wrist doesn't mean you can't grab the wrist, and when you're doing ghee, and sometimes you forget that we just want to grab a sleeve, right. So, and then what I've noticed too, when, I you know, train out when People freak out when you grab a wrist in the ghee versus grabbing the sleeve because we're so used to people grabbing a sleep sleeve.
Speaker 1:Yeah so when somebody grabs my wrist when I were like, wrestlers will come in and no ghee guys. I freak out like what? Like it's a different, it's just a different. Yeah manipulation, like you say like shit, I'm not used to that, right, right, so kind of freaks you out. And I noticed too now that I implement that people kind of like, oh, kind of throw them off a little bit, mm-hmm, and then kind of capitalize on that. So I think, I think they both need each other.
Speaker 2:You know, looking back now, like I Mean, you seen, yeah, you know, I was Predominantly no ghee, yeah, yeah now, like when I went to the Saber Jiu-Jitsu in Concord, look like I don't have a problem wearing the ghee now.
Speaker 2:Yeah right, like. I Think it complements the no ghee part. Yeah, you know you, you learn different ways of being able to get to those situations. Yeah, you know your setups. Yeah, in no ghee. Like you don't have the ghee to grab, yeah, right, but you, you still don't have to grab it, right, yeah and we can use the same thing that you're doing with no ghee.
Speaker 2:Yeah, ghee, right, yeah, so like Now, it's like. Alright, I don't have a problem wearing the ghee, like there's every once in a while. Yeah, I don't put it on, but yeah, now like I think I trained more ghee than I do. No, ghee.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's good and, like I said, um, it's just, it creates that extra problem that sometimes you're like when we could have been out right, like if you look, like, if you're wearing, if you were wearing the ghee, you'd find that escape, like I didn't have a ghee. That's what happened. But instead of, like the way I see it, instead of Running away from the ghee, like you said, now you put it on, yeah, and solve that problem. And then Sometimes we want the, we don't want change or not. When I used to change, yeah, and that that's a thing.
Speaker 2:You know that well, yeah, like, okay, being the wrestler, right, yeah, like, be on my back, yeah, that's, that's very dead. That was like we ain't doing that right. And now, now, I'll just sit on my like I'll start, yeah, and I'll let them push me. Yeah, right, like, if we're doing open rounds at our gym, like we do them on Friday nights, I'll just let them push me out, I'll accept, whether they're half guard or side control, and then work from there. Yeah, right, good, I mean, everything is a benefit, right, yeah, like I look at it as if I start it. It's a shitty position and but if I can get myself out, yeah, you know, and most of those guys, they're all coming along. We have another blue belt in in the Class mm-hmm and, and he's fast, he's like 150 pounds, he's doing, I think, a role. Yeah, yeah, and he's fast, and it's like fuck for me to slow him down. Yeah, it is hard, but the moment that I can, yeah, then I'm like all right, pressure.
Speaker 1:Yeah, right, so, so. So, with that, right like, I'm gonna go back, like you said, with the wrestling. That's the biggest thing my wrestler comes in. For me, honestly, when I roll with the wrestler I Don't look for Submissions, mainly because you know you could grapple, right, but but, but most wrestlers go through the life like Fucking, controlling another human body, and just control. They're not used to submissions. So when we go in there, when you go wrestling jiu-jitsu guy, you know the jiu-jitsu guy is gonna come out on some, some missions. Right, yeah, it could be from the bottom. We, I couldn't get you to sweep, so I'll hit a gun bar from there, right, right. But for me, whenever I I don't know why I've always, every time I roll the wrestler, I take that challenge and For me the submission is putting them on the back. So if I sweep, yeah, wrestler, that, that from that's my goal with the wrestler.
Speaker 1:Yeah, like I'm not, I Mean eventually, yeah, I'm gonna capitalize right, like the submissions there's there, but my hunt is for that sweet and and I want that sweet because if I put you on your back, I got you to do something you didn't want to give me right, kind of like a submission.
Speaker 1:You don't want to give it up, right, and you're gonna defend without my. But if you don't know some of the counters to that, yeah, it's gonna take a while for you to build. So for me, as soon as I'm gonna attack what they know best, that balance and that good balance and posture and everything, and so it's finding around and I feel like that having that mentality has helped me through my, my sweeps, through my journey, how to come out on angles and come around and you know, rolling with you. I mean, I mean we've rolled and, yeah, come on top, and I don't go, you know not, but I got to find around your base, right, your balance and and so for me, I always take it like if I put a wrestler on the back, that's a submission, that's a pin for me. So I'll take that as a pin and I'm right, yeah, and I'll stand there. From there, we work right and they just panic, and it also helps me control the person when I very pass somebody's carter sweep.
Speaker 2:Stay calm and relax right, so yeah that's because that's a pretty rest of the back.
Speaker 1:I'm gonna freak the fuck out, yeah, and they're gonna, they're not gonna accept this right, and so for me, that's what I always take, like when I was your wrestler, like that's my goal, Mm-hmm. So. Yeah, I mean, you sweat me a few times and sometimes I won't, but then we got a free right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, like when you and I roll, I like the, the fact that it's chess, yeah, right, like, okay, in the back of my mind, I'm like he did this to me last time. Yeah, that's, I roll, and then you know all, all have an answer to that this time. But then you're like, okay, well, you did that. Yeah, I'm doing this. Yeah, and it's just like back and forth, and maybe it works, maybe it doesn't, but it's just Okay. He got me here. Mm-hmm. Okay, I didn't give it to him there. Yeah, it's, you know it so.
Speaker 1:So that's that's the mentality I like to approach and that's a good way, like Whenever I teach or something, always try to pass them until it's like, don't go home and be like, well, I got tapped or I got passed or I got swept, and instead figure out like how did that happen? You know what's the answer. When I get there again, right, and there's not just one way, there's several ways, right, yeah, so like when you roll, I could be that you know, I start on the bottom and I don't sweep you, but you didn't pass. And when I go home, I'm thinking how come I couldn't sweep them and I started, not, like you said, analyzing okay, I didn't cut the angle, I got to cut this angle here or isolate this for an openness base here, and then we'll go on, I'll apply it, and then it worked and like shit. And then you're like motherfucker, yeah exactly you know and that's how you grow.
Speaker 1:That's that girl. If I'm not the right away, like I Don't Address that, and instead of go home and be like, ah man, I I suck or whatever, I'm thinking like dude, how, how, yeah, how come I couldn't sweep this dude or how come I couldn't pass, and I just go and I start thinking of the grips are I should have grabbed here, I should have pulled here, man, I should have went under her cure, you know, to the single leg and open that when it comes back. You know, roll over this way. So, as all this is over analyzing, and then you try it and if you didn't work, you're like that and work, then you go back and try again, right, yeah. But I feel like sometimes a lot of people through that, why blue Two stages?
Speaker 1:They, it gets too frustrated and we would like too much and that, like we were talking earlier on that human brute strength, right, that we have, you know, and Just want to go forward, forward, forward and stop and it's okay list. Instead of running through the wall like step, you know, ten feet back and see what's around the wall. Well, huh, tall the wall is. It could be that the watch three feet on, you're like man this whole time. I can?
Speaker 2:you were so focused over.
Speaker 1:And driving through that. While that, right, you're in step back, you know, take this, whether, oh, dude, I'm just gonna jump over, or maybe if I walk, you know, 15 feet extra way, this way the wall drops another three feet. And that's what I needed. And so sometimes we just keep that mentality and we don't stop, and then I feel a lot of people just Not give up, but I guess too much work, because it feel like it's going straight versus strength, right, and not stop to think about the technique and how to approach the problem, right. So they're thinking more like I don't understand, whatever is they're doing, because you could be a wrestler, you could be a weightlifter and I don't know understand. You know I lift this and I squat this, and how come, how come I can't?
Speaker 2:you know 17?.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, and you know it's 17 years old, I can't. Can't get around his legs or her legs or whatever may be. And and instead of Trying to think what that go forward forward like, hey, let's Next time they pull open guard or half guard, sit back a little bit. Yeah, like you talked about earlier about the lockdown, like we're so used to judging forward, now, if you set up with a good posture and open your base, you know I'm gonna tack the legs, come lower on the body, yeah, and you're gonna open up that, that lockdown.
Speaker 2:It's crazy cuz, like one of I remember being over at coffee crew yeah, right, and we're rolling. And one guys had me in lockdown and I was doing, yeah, I gotta move forward, yeah, I get past it, and and that him and I have rolled a few times hard attack, right, mike. Yeah, and he's like Jose, you, you need to start attacking the legs. Yeah, he's a, I have you in lockdown, but that doesn't mean you can't. You're so focused on attacking the upper body, yeah, that you're leaving half of your techniques Away. You know they're. They're over there in the bag. You're not pulling them out. Why?
Speaker 1:yeah.
Speaker 2:I'm like well, I Don't know, God damn it.
Speaker 2:You know like I'm stubborn, yeah, but now, after that, like After that, I'm like, alright, I just put myself in a lot of shitty situations so that I could work from there, right, like, and I I don't look at anything as If I'm rolling, I get tapped. It is what it is like, that I'm just trying to Figure out how I can get better. Yeah, I told one of the guys in the gym is he's like fuck, I got to get a win today. Yeah, I'm like, dude, you need you can't judge your progress on On wins and losses, and especially, you can't judge your progress on whether you got a tap or not. Yeah, you got to look at did I have the right position? Did I put myself in good situation to to do Something else where you got a tap or you didn't? Yeah, you know, like a Lot of what I'm trying right now is just to stay a Like work myself off of my back, right, and put myself in decent position.
Speaker 2:Yeah, can't do. Do I get taps? Yeah, I'm not really looking for them though. Yeah, like I, I'll get to position. And then I'm like okay, how, how can I make this position better? Yeah, yeah, right, like, how can I secure this better? Like coach has been telling me to take the back, put the hooks in. Yeah, and I'm so. Like, not that I'm against this. Like I just have this Block right. Like I have short legs, yeah, right, if I put my hooks in it, I'm not gonna.
Speaker 2:I don't know, I just process it different right like as a wrestler, I would never put legs in right, like, but for jujitsu I Need to Implement that into what I'm doing. Right, there's plenty of times where the situation is there, yeah, and I like no, right, but yeah, I mean, if we're in a tournament it's four points right, yeah, that's why?
Speaker 1:yeah, I think I was gonna say that that's why it's been.
Speaker 2:We're big on that, so like Like a couple weeks ago I took someone's back and I put the hooks in. I'm like all right, they did like I'm starting to get rid of the blockage, right, yeah, I mean it's like being on my back at the beginning. There was that mental block where, coming from the wrestling, like don't be on your back, yeah, right, I don't remember At the beginning I get, other than when I rolled with Alex and Santino, yeah, like I wouldn't go to my back. Yeah, I could, I would do everything possible not not to go to my back, right. And then I Remember like Alex put me on my back. Alex, yeah, big guy, right. Yeah, santino, to sweat me, put me on my back. I'm like fuck.
Speaker 1:Hey, like yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah right, you go through that panic stage, especially at the beginning. Now, fuck Laying on my back. All right guys, come on. All right, I got to work out again. Yeah, yeah, like I Don't know.
Speaker 1:I think it's. I think it's a right mentality, man. And so when I started, when I started, um, you know, always been a big guy, right, and so Naturally, you know you want to be on top, I think just everybody right. And then, but then you know, I started going and now we just naturally go to my back and I figured, like you know when, in my mind, I don't, you know I might still be wrong, but in my mind I'm thinking, like most people, when they're gonna want to roll with me, they're gonna expect me to be on top. Mm-hmm, right, like big guy, strong, yeah, he's gonna use that. So they're gonna expect that. So I'm like, why don't I just start from the bottom when they want to expect it, you know, no matter how big or small or tall or skinny or whatever, right away. So I just started going on my back and then I started realizing, like man, there's a lot of work here. So I figured I think most of my like I've always been on my back and I did.
Speaker 1:One thing I noticed is like when I would come on top, my pressure wasn't as heavy Because, you know, I wasn't used to, like you said, you sacrifice one or the other, right, if you're gonna be Predominating top game, when you get to your fucking back again, you're gonna freak out, yeah, so you're gonna your your sacrificing now your scapes thing, comfortable, like you said. You know Like we're big on, you know, being comfortable where you're uncomfortable, right, yes, and so that that's the big thing. I always tell the kids class and all that, like, get comfortable, you're uncomfortable. You know, I mean it, that's it. And once you're there over and over and over, you're gonna learn how to relax and learn to like yeah embrace it, love it right.
Speaker 1:And so I feel like, because I did that like my top game, I wouldn't use all of my weight. Sometimes I feel bad, like, ah man, I'm a big guy, but you know, you know, professor Scott would tell me, no, I got to put more pressure, there's this and that, and it just came naturally, though to be honest with you, so I wouldn't change anything. I went back and to give advice what you're like, and if you're a bigger guy, I tell you to start off your back Because naturally, you're going to know how to use your weight, you're going to know how to use your pressure In the beginning. So it took me years to get comfortable on my back and it's still taking years. It's taking a long time, and now I could say I stay pretty calm.
Speaker 1:Sometimes, if I start freaking out, I just chill. Like you said, you know what you do for me, and if you don't, you fucking reset. Right, yeah, you tap and reset. They get you on something. But what I was trying to get to it took me more longer to get comfortable there than to you know, learn how to apply that right pressure and distribute that.
Speaker 2:So because naturally right.
Speaker 1:So, in a sense of like, if I were to start it in other words, I would think I would my pressure game would have came good, I would have been good. But when I got deeper into the belt system, right, I would have been exposed, Right, Like I'm being on my back. And even now I feel that, you know, when I go with bigger guys, my size, when that sweep comes it's relying bridge strength trying to bench, press you up. Yeah, Because you're not there long enough. So for me it's like every time I'll always recommend off the back, Like just to get comfortable, where you're uncomfortable, right. So that's a good thing You're doing that now, Because if you do it, the longer you do it, the more comfortable it's going to be, the more relaxed you're going to be and it's just going to be better. And your pressure games I mean, you're already a wrestler, yeah, Fuck, you need to work on that for you know what I mean.
Speaker 2:Right, that's what I would tell you.
Speaker 1:Like dude, I could tell you right now, if you give me a guy, let's just say did you know Arthur Jr in high school wrestling right, and it gets out like most people you know go to school, gets a job, whatever it's for life, and then 10, 12 years later you know, like most, they have that fiend in your right to compete and to grapple, and so they go to the jujitsu gym and what's going to happen is these guys are going to let you wrestle the ad Shit.
Speaker 2:I didn't get that memo, dude. 10, 12 years yeah, you took longer On average, right.
Speaker 1:But you were still wrestling, though. Right, you found an avenue through your coaching, but most people don't, and so it takes time, and you know some take longer, and you know what I'm trying to say. Is is like when they come in and I always ask you know, are you wrestling in high school? You know, right away, I feel that they didn't forget. They didn't forget their base. Yeah, I mean, the stamina is not there.
Speaker 2:The condition is not there Like riding a bike.
Speaker 1:Right, right, Like now, you probably gain, you know, some weight. You know, because life, everything, normal stuff Outside of that, that pressure, the pressure, the balance and the. Let's see the other one. The base is still there. Yeah, I mean, they're going to gas out two, three minutes in, but the first two minutes, a minute and a half of each first round for the first three, four rounds, they're going to be hell Right If you're going to know. So it's like what I would, that's what I'm going back like. What do you need to learn from pressure? It'll come to you because you already know how to do it, you already have it. Start off your back, where you're uncomfortable, and get used to that and build yourself through that. And that would my little advice. If somebody wanted to take it, you don't have to, but hey, you know it worked for me.
Speaker 1:You know so, and I still suck, but I feel like I'm pretty comfortable there now.
Speaker 2:You know what I mean, the other day we were talking earlier about rolling at Saber I rolled with the it was a Husky guy, right, and I've been under a few people, right, and maybe they weren't trying to apply the pressure, whatever.
Speaker 2:Dude, I've never, ever wanted to tap to pressure. I've never had that feeling like right, dude, he put so much pressure on me Like I seriously like I caught myself looking at the clock to see how much time was left in the round. There was still two minutes and he was on top and I was like I don't know if I could fucking last two minutes underneath and I don't remember what exactly I did to get out of the situation. I mean he was still on top, but I know like I fucking started hip escaping, getting trying to get that shit out of the out of, get myself out, man. But that was the first time and I felt pretty good pressure from people, right. But that that day I was like holy shit, yeah, there's a different level to this man. But like I didn't realize that those guys were prepping to go to master worlds, right, so they were just getting the rounds in, they were and they were.
Speaker 1:I'm glad to bring the subject up because I want to touch on that too.
Speaker 2:So they're guys, right, they had a class before the, before the open mat, right? So all the guys that were going to go compete at master worlds and uh, jujutsu con, and uh, you know, we're in there, like getting ready, and he was the first one I rolled with, right, yeah, I had good position a couple of times, like well, in my eyes I look at him as little wins. Right, yeah, you got to take all the little victories. But when he got on top and he put that pressure, I was like holy shit, this is, this is not good. Like it didn't feel good. Yeah, like for a week my ribs were sore. Just, I'm like, oh god damn. I told coach, I told Jesse, yeah, holy shit, that was some fucking pressure. And I mean, I look at it, that day I was like that totally sucked. And then I look at it.
Speaker 1:So follow a whole grappler. Hit the link, subscribe like a comment, drop a comment. Do what you got to do. I don't know how this works.
Speaker 2:After the week, the next weekend right, I see him. Like they posted about him, he was on the middle stand. I'm like fuck yeah, Dude that's why I looked at the victories.
Speaker 1:Like hey, yeah, okay, I'll take that.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:I mean the pressure sucks. I've tapped to a man and I've tapped serious pressure and, dude, at the time I think I just got my brown belt and I was going with Carlos, you know, the head instructor from Gilroy's saw a dude man and got on top man and man, that pressure, and so it sucked, fuck. It sucked right and I remember like fuck. And you know talking to him and he was like, don't worry, man, other black belts, you know, black belts tap out to this. I was like whew, but I still felt good, right, like I got pressure, that's something to that. Like fuck. So, but what I took from that, like we were talking about earlier, is I won't tap to pressure. And so you know I was trying everything the OPA, like traditional stuff, we go over, right, which all that works.
Speaker 1:And one thing I didn't do is put my frames on the stomach, like so right, when they're on top, you kind of like do like an L frame, like a shape, and then you come and just like oh fuck, and I think, but had I not been there, I know what, like you said, taught about that. And so you know, roll them again and it sucked ass, but I was survived, right, I didn't do shit. You got a top mount, tap me, whatever your choke or something. But it wasn't a pressure man, I was like I ain't fucking tapping, but you have to go through those. You have to go through those fucking tough like fuck, how the fuck. And then and then, but instead of me I sucked and I was like how the fuck? I kind of sit back and you know like, you know, just I was dead in the zone, bro it just I tapped the pressure, right.
Speaker 2:I was like I was pretty fucking close I was like I just died inside, you know.
Speaker 1:But then, like you said, you reflect back and like okay, how the fuck I don't want that pressure. And so I. So you do in Googling, thinking and do it. And then from dude, now I got one of the my go-tos right as soon as you go, I don't care how big, how small, I'm going to frame that way and then work from there. Yeah, because you know, doesn't matter how big you are, you're going to put pressure and put pressure, and so I defend the same way now because of that. So you got to take those and like and go through them.
Speaker 2:Man. Yeah, like we talk about our gym strike right. Yeah, they're, we're new. Yeah, and I'm one of the bigger guys, yeah Right. I have my nephew in there now and he's, he's about my size, he's just a little bit taller. And then we have another guy, but he he's probably 220 maybe, yeah Right, other than that there's no one big, yeah Right. So when we went to that gym there was that brown belt he was big Right. And then there was a blue belt he he was. He was a good sized man, yeah Right. And I'm like there's no fucking way I'm letting that guy get on, yeah, on top of me, like there's a time to play that shit and there's a time not to. And that time there was fucking no way.
Speaker 2:That guy was big, I'm like yeah, and I and I, so I went with that brown belt and then I went with him, like, right after I was like I'm going to get the biggest guys out of the way now while I'm fresh, right, oh, but that guy, like he was just a girth, the guy like he I'm not saying like he was fat, he was just he was just thick, big, solid, yeah, right, and I was like there's no fucking way I'm getting underneath him, like I had just got my ass whooped. Yeah, I was ready to tap from pressure the round before.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm like there's no fucking way, and then there were 10 minute rounds dude.
Speaker 2:Shit Like we. We got there, we're getting dressed right and the professor was like all right, we're going to get started at 10 minute rounds.
Speaker 1:What 10 minute rounds Like this yeah, yeah, made it through it. Holy shit, you survived, dude. That's what it's about. So how do you start? How did you start that match, like with the blue belt, like you said? You're like, I'm not going to be under this guy?
Speaker 2:There's no way. So I started on my butt but then came up to my knee and then grabbed lapel, grabbed sleeve, and then you kind of took him down. It was kind of a scramble, like he had pretty good base, but somehow I don't quite remember how, but I ended up pushing him over, getting to side control and then just staying on top. Man, the reason I asked, like at the end I don't know what, like maybe I think he tapped to something, I don't even remember what, but we started again and it was like short on time and he ended up on top. But I mean, it was less than a minute.
Speaker 1:But it was the same thing, you guys. So this is.
Speaker 2:This is I was asking you that it's the fucking rounds right. So being big guys, right.
Speaker 1:Right away. I figured that out too. Like I was going through, like, and I had that, like I said, come up and I had the same mentality of you, like fuck, dude, there's no, I'm a big guy. It sucks if you're under me, I don't want to be another big guy like me, right or bigger. We all think that like there's no way. So you, you, you, you go, you clash, and then they just have your scene to like husky, thick guys.
Speaker 1:And they're just going out because nobody wants to go to the bottom right, but what I've noticed is is when I would do that as like fuck it off.
Speaker 2:I can just imagine that that was filmed. What the shit like. Like, I want to film it.
Speaker 1:I would say that it's just too, too, like fucking thick bone dudes, just fucking. No, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't.
Speaker 2:I don't wanna be another big guy like me. I don't wanna be another big guy like me.
Speaker 1:So I'm trying to get to the bottom. No, you go to your back. No, you go to your back, all right. So what I noticed is like my blue as, as I was coming up as a blue belt I I was already working on my back, but I had that mentality. I was like there's no way I want to be under this guy, right? And then my thing was that I would stay up, but it was fucking. I should have exhausting dude.
Speaker 1:And so once I noticed, whoever got taken down or got to get the other person on their back, you're winning the match. And so if I was put on my back like I'm not gonna get on my back, like if I were to do that with you and I'm like I'm gonna exert a lot of energy that I don't, I'm gonna get my ass whipped. Then I don't have the energy. So I started doing that. I'm like you know what? I'm gonna sit, I don't care, I'm up on half gone, I'm gonna fuck Cause. I'd rather reserve that energy to create my sweep, or create that opening for that reversal to work from there, versus we're going for a solid three minutes, just locked.
Speaker 1:just to do is just locked and then when I get three minutes in, like you, put me on my back, I'm gonna suck even more because I don't have the wind.
Speaker 2:Now just a lot of energy, a lot of energy strength, everything.
Speaker 1:So that's the way I started approaching it. So now, whether you're big or not, like I'm gonna go on my back and then if I don't sweep you, you're better than me. If you pass my guy, you're better. If I sweep you, you're going to be in worse position than me because I feel like I'm already. I already got a edge over your mindset because you're like I know what kind of you're thinking. You're thinking like I'm going to be on top. So when I give this, okay I'm there. But then when I get you on your back, like what the fuck I was?
Speaker 1:on top Right, when I didn't want to be on the bottom. And now I'm on the bottom and you're gonna you're just gonna panic.
Speaker 2:And that's where I started like, okay, panic, it's almost like the guys at our gym, like I'll sit to my butt and like I know that I have the top game right Like that's where I want to be, but I don't want them like, so I'll sit to my butt, but they play the distance game.
Speaker 2:Like they don't want me to come up, but the moment that they stay away I'll stand up. And then they're like fuck yeah, oh, I didn't want that. So I'll sit back down and then, but they'll still, they'll keep their distance. And like we went to a seminar a few weeks ago and they were showing some Della heave stuff yeah, I'm too fat for that Like I tried.
Speaker 1:Hey, some of us can't do stuff, but you know what I mean.
Speaker 2:I don't get me wrong.
Speaker 1:Can't bear a bolo on you. You know what I mean.
Speaker 2:Hey, I was. They gave me a variation, it was called the baby bolo and I was able to do that one.
Speaker 1:That's all right, that's his baby bolo.
Speaker 2:But like some of that stuff, like I couldn't invert, I couldn't do some of that stuff and I'm like fuck, but I want to, like what I was telling the guys the other night. I'm like I want no one will sit there yeah Right, they'll always want to stand up, they'll always want to keep their distance, but I want to learn how to engage from there. Like I'm not that fast, right, I'm not going to butt, scoot and catch them yeah Right, but I would like for them to engage in that situation, like step through or try to knee cut something yeah Right. And I want to learn how to do that too. But I have to go to the open mats and I haven't been going to the open mats to do that. Right, and we're getting better, like our school, the guys that are coming consistently, they're getting better.
Speaker 2:But I don't get to try some of that stuff that unless we're doing like live situation, then I get to Right, and I'm not great at it. Yeah, I get better by putting yourself in those situations, right. So I want that and, like I talked to the guys the other day, I'm like I want you guys like to step in or me stand up and me step into you and work from there. So maybe instead of just starting with space like, okay, this is where we're going to start, yeah, go.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I'm like hey, get in my half-guarder. Hey, let me close my garter. Yeah, figure it out. You could ask for that too.
Speaker 2:Right, yeah, I didn't think of that. Like I was thinking like trying to process, how can we get to those situations? But we could start in those situations like have both of us on our buttons and legs entangled, or when it comes up, you know, get to it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's a tough one, man, because when they don't engage, that's what makes it harder, right? Sometimes I always sell my button.
Speaker 2:They don't, and I just start scooting towards them and then they got ahead of me Like I don't understand that part, like I don't want to keep the distance right. I'm like that wrestler. Yeah, yeah, like go forward. Right.
Speaker 1:And when somebody sits, but on me, like, I'm going to go straight in, like you said, because I don't want to give you the opportunity to wrestle up, right, like you already sat down, I don't want you to come back up Because I don't want to get taken down. I don't know how good you take downs or singles or whatever. So as soon as you sit, I'm going to close that distance, right, because, like for the most part, right, like everybody says, when you're in the bottom, you want to create distance, yeah, and when you're on top, you want to close that distance. So, as soon as you're on your butt, I'm going to close some of that distance, right, because if I give you that distance, like you said, you're going to come up. Now we're doing stand up, right. So I don't want that, especially being a wrestler, I'm like I'm not going to give you that opportunity, right. So just getting to engage in that, you know, and start situational, that's what I would advise. Yeah, or you can keep going to the open mats, yeah, because honestly, like you were talking earlier, like that's the beautiful thing about coffee crew man, that like people think because you have a small gym, or you go to a gym or you don't have a world class. You know, black belt championship you can't get good and that's farthest from the truth. Right, because there are. Now that coffee crew is, you know, getting bigger, like we've been they've been doing for years and you know I go on and off. I've been going to coffee crew through, like my blue all the way through brown. I just got my black belt, so I haven't had an opportunity.
Speaker 1:But you know, I want to go here soon and that's where I got through, because of them, of that what they created. Right, I feel like you know the opportunity. Why can't you? You're getting better. You're like you say you get to try out these moves and figure out shit. You fucked up and you need to work on and what you need to keep. Right, it doesn't work. So, you know, shout out to them because man, like that, that mindset of like oh, I need this, like you go there and then you'll meet.
Speaker 1:Like you said, you know, practitioners are training up for a tournament in the world's, a local tournament, so they're going to be going hard, man, and so maybe you're not a competitor, you know whatever it is, but you go there, you're going to be going for competitors and you're going to be.
Speaker 1:So you are competing in a sense, you're giving them that you know push that they need and they're going to give it back to you.
Speaker 1:So you get to feel that intensity a little bit. And so that's why, like man, like whenever I get an opportunity, like I try to get out there, man, and push myself and honestly, I think that's what's helped me, like stay constantly improving my game and getting better and figure things out, is going out there and get my ass wailed, you know, because there's some motherfuckers, dude, I'll tell you what man and I'll tell you what. Like there's some motherfuckers, there's some motherfuckers that, like we put too much I know, as we put too much, we give our belts too much power, yeah, right. Like we put like fuck, you know, like fucking blue belt, you know, past my guard or you know whatever white belt got this. But the way I look at it now is we give too much power to this, this belt and I forget where I seen this quote, but I think it was from my grace I said, like the black belt only covers two inches of my ass, right.
Speaker 2:The rest is covered by you, right by me, that's what it's meaning.
Speaker 1:So once I read that, I'm like it makes fucking sense.
Speaker 1:Dude, like this belt is just two inches, the rest is covered by me, and so I live by that man.
Speaker 1:And so, and you know, like you don't know what these other killers are, you know training, you know it could be a blue belt but he could have been a collegiate wrestler. You know, fucking know that. You know dude's 26 fucking stud and we're not putting that in consider. We're just thinking he's a blue belt and you just see what you were in a brown belt, purple or black belt and you're thinking that, instead of thinking like fuck, how did this dude counter this, damn, that dude was just too strong or too flexible or whatever and thinks how to control that and fix those problems that we hadn't seen before in your local small gym, right? So having the opportunity to go train like that is going to open your eyes and see this and instead of, like you said, if we stay cooped up here, you're going to learn a lot but you're not going to see what's out there, because there's one thing seeing it on YouTube and another thing experiencing it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, once you experience like shit, okay, right, if I'm seeing something on YouTube like, oh dude, why don't you just grab the fucking leg there when it's doing this? And you come up to this, right, but then they do it like shit.
Speaker 2:Well, you know, it's hard. It's like like I watch a lot of videos, right, but most of the time those in those videos they're not trying to resist it, yeah.
Speaker 1:It's another thing.
Speaker 2:So you're seeing something and you want like I'll take some of that stuff and I'll try to implement it in the open mat. You know roles, yeah, and I'm like, okay, that didn't work. Well, why didn't it work? On the video it looked like this. And then, like at the beginning I was watching all these videos, yeah, and it never dawned to me, like dawned on me, that there's none of those like they're instructional videos, like positioning yeah Right, you have to work your ass off to get those positions. They're not going to give it to you, but in those videos, everything's given. Yeah Right.
Speaker 1:And I'm like, and even when you're doing technique is given to you, yes, right, like when you, when you go over technique your professor goes over technique and then you go with your partner and you're like, you know, do it three, four times to switch, and then you know, hit the arm bar or you hit that triangle is like oh cool, but then you try to hit it. That's why I vary, like I think the open mats and just the sparring and the open mats are great because we have that live action. Now we get to put it to. You know, you've seen it, you drilled it. Now we're going to put it and right. And that's why I love this martial art, because it's one of the one of only few combat martial arts or even live combat that you could apply. You try to learn a technique, drill a technique and then apply it live without really suffering like big injury, damage or something Right, right Versus, like if you try to drill that you do this pad work or you know whatever, and then you're going to try it live Like somebody's going to fucking get knocked out right or right Like, or like they just say you know, I was in combat, you're going to try, you're going to train and then you're going to drill your life, fire exercises, all that stuff but it's a whole different deal when bullets can fly your way. Now, right. So now it's for all the marbles, yeah, right.
Speaker 1:And I feel like with this martial art, what I love about it and I'm hooked is that we could do that and then we could go try it live and then come back with data and be like this is why it didn't work Process, and then we could do analyze that live data, that live sparring we did and you're going 100% right, 95 to 100%, and I get to process from real life data that we did how to cut the angle and how to get the arm better or an angle better right, hit the moves here, the hips, versus when I'm just drilling technique and you're not giving resistance, where, like, I'm gonna think I'm a good and then you know you have somebody, don't have to be that big, somebody's gonna give you enough resistance. You're not gonna get that right because we need to practice it. So I think that's the. That's why I love this, because you could do it here, drill it, technique it and you and your life school right, but then you go to an open mat and then you're gonna come back and then, like you said, process it, yeah, analyze that data that you like went live, man, like shit, it didn't work, why I did everything there.
Speaker 1:And then you start thinking like I didn't move my hips too much this way, or I didn't get the underhook deeper, whatever, maybe whatever you're working on, but then you get to okay, next time I'll do this. Put myself here right versus other sports. You can't really do that right, combat sports, because you're gonna knocked out. You get fucking something right, yeah, and so you know, as a way I might look at it. So it.
Speaker 2:It's crazy, like at the last open mat somebody went Kamora, yeah, from Half Guard mm-hmm right and I countered I brought it in.
Speaker 1:I know I was gonna say once you learn that counters with that right.
Speaker 2:I brought it in and I had it locked. Yeah, that script right. And like I think of myself as fairly strong, yeah right, I will say you what dude, this guy, you're pretty fucking strong dude, just to stay on that.
Speaker 1:Remember the first time I roll with you I was like Jesus, fucking Christ, you. What does this guy do? And they just like a power lives, like fuck dude, it was fucking. You're strong as shit. I'm like goddamn dude, okay. So so you're strong.
Speaker 2:We got out of the way so so I have that reverse, yeah, and I have it across his belly. Yeah, dude, that motherfucker out muscle me. He brought that shit, unlock the S script and come ordered me and I was like holy shit again, like I felt that break and I was like what the fuck like?
Speaker 1:where's my whole coke? It didn't happen, bro. Yeah, but you need that, cuz sometimes. I'm gonna point out what you said we were lying on that strength, right, and so you're relying on your strength and but we don't know how I'm fucking that strong that motherfucker is you know, and that guy was fucking probably 80 pounds lighter than me, that's I'm saying like so for me.
Speaker 1:I put a pick of his technique and then use the strength once of technique as a right, instead of, like you, focusing.
Speaker 1:I know what you're talking about. The way I like to do it is once I gave, once I gave a grip or escrit or lock, instead of, like you said, come in with strength. I just clamped here and I torqued my body, mm-hmm, because now you're not going. Now I'm new with you in my whole body right now and now, when you're using your strength, you're gonna have to move my body, body instead of like doing this right cuz. So again you have to go through and be like what the fuck? And you come back and you fuck, analyze that data. You put it okay, maybe start using that. Now I'm gonna keep the elbow tight to my rib cage, clamp and start turning, cuz I've been there and I was like man, this motherfucker too strong and sometimes I'll release. And then I started just figuring out why don't, why don't I use my body, you know, to finish, yeah, and then torque and most of the time they'll release, and once you're released, and yeah, you get to the next movie.
Speaker 2:It's funny, like in that whole situation I always tell my kids that I coach like you're yeah, you're strong, but you're eventually you're gonna run into someone that's stronger than you, right, it hasn't happened too often with me, right, like someone out muscle me? Yeah, I, and maybe at the beginning I was really trying to use muscle because didn't know any better. Yeah, now I'm like I don't feel like I try to use it when you need muscle, like yeah, I'm not trying.
Speaker 2:Yeah right, but that situation like that dude just fucking, I felt that script go. I was like holy shit, he's fucking strong. Yeah right, like, and that thing popped in my head, like you always tell the kids the muscle because someone's gonna be stronger than you, and that was, and that's true, man.
Speaker 1:They say it all the time right somebody, somebody faster, stronger yeah smarter, whatever made in you. That's it. But what I always tell, like, you say that, but it's work, right, so it might be this, but are they, are they're gonna out work you? Mm-hmm, that's for me, it's all about work. Yeah, that guy, I work me.
Speaker 2:I got muscle. Do you know, muscle me out, work me. He put it to me. I was just when we need those.
Speaker 1:I go when, when I don't go to coffee group for a few months and go back, I I need to go back and my ass kick and I'll get my ass kick. Man and I need, we need that humbling. Yeah, you know we need that. You're like fuck, we're too comfortable yeah, too comfortable yeah, whatever school you're at, you know everybody's technique.
Speaker 1:You know they know your technique. You know you're strong or you're bigger, and so we are comfortable right. And so the way I like to always get on my car is go to those open mats, to those coffee crews for them. Okay, I'm gonna get my ass up today. That that's about like, yeah, it's already accepted, I don't get me wrong, I go and give it up.
Speaker 1:But right, it's a different. My cardio is a different right. Seven three in the fucking morning and I'm nice and fucking. Yeah, I'm fucking that that are used to rolling that morning or consistently there right, just putting a fucking mad time. Like you know, they're fucking savages, they are, and you just go on and I get worked. Come back, learn from that, excuse me, yeah, and then grow from that, right? Yeah, for sure, but again, you have to get out of that comfort zone, man yeah, a little bubble like we're the, the winners, but we're really learning, right, you like you?
Speaker 1:oh, yeah, so it's. You know, I always, I always preach it, I always. You know, we always pass along. At our gym, at our dojo is like open mat, open man, open, man's gonna be here. You know it's gonna be a little far if it's not far, you know, it's fucking down the street in Gilroy, you know, and yeah, and I always fucking send him that way, I'm gonna fuck her go because you're gonna see some shit there yeah, I mean it was great that I went to the one, yeah, that one, right like I mean it was for a good cause, it was to the Maui relief thing.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but like for me, I'm like, okay, those guys, there's some big guys here. Yeah, that's what I need, right, like I need a role with those guys and I like, okay, you first okay, we got you next yeah, but yeah it's fucking it's, it's fucking hard man.
Speaker 2:But it's good, yeah, oh yeah, like there's, there's nothing that's that easy about it. Like I look at that, like going to the open mat and being able to roll with those big guys, like because I don't get that often that yeah, in our gym, like I get to roll my nephew and he's fucking 20 years younger yeah, he's, he's, he's big, but he's fucking agile yeah, I rolled them, so they do man.
Speaker 2:So it's like he could. If he doesn't burn himself out and like, get winded, I could. I just wrestle him. Yeah right, I'll follow, I'll follow, I'll pull him, I'll keep him down, yeah, and, but it's like it, he's doing all this movement and I'm not doing a whole bunch. Yeah, right, so he gets tired and I'm able to yeah, well, over there, you don't have that, right, like those guys.
Speaker 1:They, they want well again it's that, like we were talking earlier, that competition, because they've never rolled, and you know it's like, fuck, it's right, the stakes are high. Man, you know, you're like, yeah, like what, you're like like with, like with your nephews, not just because your nephew was just somebody constantly train, you, kind of know his pressure already. Yes, you felt it. You're like, okay, it's fucking, you know, because you felt something right. So whenever I go to an open man, I see a big guy, I'm like, fuck man, I don't know how this fucking guy's pressure is gonna be sorry, like shitty, right, right, like I mean sorry, but like it's gonna be a sorry ass time for me, it's gonna be shitty. And so that's the like. The stakes are high now because I've never felt, I haven't felt that pressure, yeah, yeah. So you're like fuck, this person is a top, fuck, he's a big boy like me. Is he gonna? You know?
Speaker 2:it's crazy, like I have that mentality, like I said that with the blue belt, right, but when I rolled with that brown belt, like I didn't feel like okay, you have to get on top right away. Yeah, it was different and he was just as big, right, like he wasn't, as I don't think he, size-wise, he wasn't as as beefy as the blue belt, right, I try to say it in a nice way, right?
Speaker 2:I like beefy dude, call me beefy now, but like I didn't have, like I didn't think, yeah, okay, there's no way I'm not go, like I can't go to. Yeah, be underneath him like I was okay like it was almost like I was gonna accept that situation right? I think so too.
Speaker 1:I think sometimes we undermine ourselves. Well, again, I'm going back to that belt. We give it a little power, not only when we're wearing it, but when we see it on someone else and something like fuck, there's no way I went up, sweet, this fucking brown belt, but you never try it. Like you're already going to tell me you're trying, but the fact that you already told yourself you're not.
Speaker 1:Yeah, already there yeah, what subconscious is there? And you're not thinking. You're just like. You know I'm guilty of two man. I go in there and you know, yeah, damn it like. And so when then they get it, like, it's like you said, you kind of just accept that kind of mm-hmm. And but also to what I've noticed like as you go to the ranks people like, as you go on the belts, you roll different man. You know. Like you know, when I go with a white, blue belt, okay, fuck, they're gonna give me hell right, like I'm like fuck, like it's just different, like they're gonna fucking want to latch on and go.
Speaker 1:So just, whether the fucking storm, it's like the like you said all grapple mentality, man, that shit comes with it, cuz like just whether the storm now you know eventually you're gonna catch him on a mistake and you capitalize and you go right from there and then when you go with the upper belts, is more like that calmness, like you say, like fuck, this guy's too calm right now. Why is it too calm?
Speaker 2:you know, like you know I mean I think that's funny because the brown belt like when I got to that side control and I isolated the arm, he was just like cool being there, yeah, like he'd been there before, and then all of a sudden they like clicked him ahead, like fuck, he's too calm. Yeah, right now. That like psychological warfare, like shit like fuck yeah calm, like when you would have finished.
Speaker 1:I'm probably wouldn't been somebody lower, you would have hit it right away. Yeah, I'd have finished that move. But because you're now, you're analyzing it like shit. Why is he calm? Why is he panicking? Was the reversal from here? Is he gonna catch me and I reverse something? Or what, if? Does he have my collar, especially like a lot of things. When you're rolling with the gear that I like about to mm-hmm, it's like we set up like I mean, you're going to war, I like to analyze, cuz I've been like so like you're flanking, you're setting up traps, you're doing something right, and so when I'm in a bad position and they isolate my arm, like in that instant, what I like to do is I like to like start looking at lapel, because then it's thinking you know what the fuck's going. When was he gonna do with that lapel? Yeah, now I'm playing psychological warfare with you so you can stop your progress right of like you got, you had my debt to write, but the fact that I'm like loosening the lapel or I start grabbing this.
Speaker 1:You're like the fuck, what like? Why is this upper belt like? What trick does he have to sleep? And then next thing you know you come back and now I'm like fuck, and then I'll be able to slip off and I go, so that. But that comes through that like, like they say, investable to get to whatever.
Speaker 2:It's just psychological fucking war for playing the job that's all it is.
Speaker 1:Do you learn the tricks of the trade? And you know I'm doing it like fall is he's got me. Well, let's start grabbing the sleeve. We're pulling the pant like the leg, whatever it may be, mm-hmm, that's throwing your mind from finishing that move right. And so just little tricks like that it's key to, for you probably could have been doing that. You didn't even notice and you're like you're like fuck, that was that lapel loose over there, shit. And then that three seconds, that's how you need man. You're like, fuck, now he's out. Yeah, shit, I had it. But but again it goes back to like it's important to go to these open, mass, different gyps, cross train.
Speaker 1:If, to be honest with you, you're not cross training, you're wrong bro and I mean that I'm not falling behind no, right, exactly, and I don't mean that in a place of like always, always, you know we win, thank you, how could I say this? We were fortunate enough that our professor you know, let's just do that, yeah, and go out there encourages and he puts it out there because you know that's what you need. You come back and then and you also, would you go out there and learn, you bring it back to your dojo and that move you're doing, or you're trying to finish to move that you, they got you, or you finish over there and let's just say you hit up this one sweep all the time. You're gonna start playing on your team and then they're gonna learn a counter and they're gonna beat the counter and you're gonna start teaching that to them. And now you develop a new kind of way of a different angle, a different something, right?
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's what's important, I think for me it's always able to cross train and go these open mats and you know, to find new bodies, man, and try to learn that. That technique you've been working, hitting on everybody at your gym. But when you go there, there's something missing, right? How do you clean that up? Polish it up, right? Yeah? And so for me it's, it's big man, I guess. I guess, like I said, we're pretty, it's pretty cool man. Then our professor, you know Scott Savage, the owner, we all have that mentality and then, yeah, and I think that goes right to us, because now we're passing that on to for for a younger, you know right, yes, upper belt, a lower belt coming up, you know white belts, blue was like a I we encourage and go out there and cross train and then, and like you guys, man, we always Monday come back recap.
Speaker 2:I think that that's one thing that, like from the beginning, that Craig, when he came in, he's like listen, if you can cross train, go do it. I encourage you. Yeah, you know, and I I guess because it's always been open like that yeah, I've never experienced the, the old-school mentality where you can't go. Yeah, you know, like we go to open mat sometimes and there's guys there but they won't jump in the picture because they're speaking out they're not allowed to be cross training right?
Speaker 1:I don't want to get caught the side check right, yeah, it's still it's still crazy that I mean fucking 2023, right like you got to get with the program.
Speaker 2:It's still that mentality and some dojos it is and it's, it's.
Speaker 1:You know, I've heard it, you know recently, and it's like what? The fuck like this is still going on like dude.
Speaker 2:I okay, I've been doing jujitsu. Next month will be two years, nice right, and I would say, like less than a year ago, mate gear tops. Yeah, I heard that right.
Speaker 1:That's not that I mean, it's not fine, like I said, but too. So you're new, right, like newer, and so for me to still here to come from that kind of like we never experienced it but you heard of it was before you heard of it more like now, this team, you would see it too on the videos and the YouTube it you get the old ones, like if it was a highlights of some guy training, it was only with this team, right, or whatever. And now you're starting to see more videos of just cross training that people are putting up and they went to this open matter, went here or checked out this gym and I train here and you know, so I think that's that's the way to do it, man, and I'm, you know, honestly, that's that's I credit for staying on top of my game. And you know, learning from that is having that, yeah, that availability in that avenue to go to go train like that. And so for me, I guess I always encourage and I always pass it down, man, because and like I said, we one thing we like to do I know a few guys do to our other small gens, but we always recap, man, like professor Scott asked, like who went out to a coffee crew and like I did, or sometimes it's just fucking white belt and he'll come back and he has a big smile on his face like how was it, dude? It was fucking. And one thing I always tell him to like when somebody new comes in, I'll be like go, go check it out, because that's the real culture.
Speaker 1:I feel like coffee crew embodies that, like that culture of that jujitsu community. Like that everybody's chill, yeah, get each other better. It's embracing, like it's just I don't know how to describe it man it just they embody it and it's cool, man. So I always tell it something to go, you gotta experience it, you gotta experience that. And just to see all those black belts out there, there are times and you know, coming up to the ranks, shit, you see one black belt, you're like fuck, there's a black one on the mats. Now we go and you see like three or five, yeah, you know six, you're like hell, it like it's kind of normal. You're like. And then when you see like two, you're like hmm, there was me.
Speaker 2:Now you get back and it wasn't enough.
Speaker 1:So whereas before you're like fuck, we had two, not just you know one, now it's like, man, there was only two black belts. So it's kind of like that's good to be on that right that that we came that far along. You know, I mean, yeah, and so you know I'm big on that man. I always I'm a big, big supporter and you know, always I always fucking that's the roots man. You came from there. You know, like Scott at the time was teaching on San Jose, so a couple times that's the way my Kiko and all those guys and my brother Eredo, you know I was a fucking animal on the mats. He's been out there and he kind of trained out there with them. So we kind of just stayed connected, man, and yeah, that's why, honestly, that's like I dig my roots doing people like it's through that man, honestly, having that avenue coffee cruise, yeah, fuck killer bro. Yeah, it's, it's amazing it's.
Speaker 1:I would say that that is a major benefit yeah, just having it in this community being the Central Valley, that is just, you know, now an hour away, an hour or two hours tops, yeah, and and that's far as they go. And you know, just to have that, get up on a Sunday morning, get wrecked, chop and call it good. Yeah, back and it's a good Sunday.
Speaker 2:So so earlier in your Jiu-Jitsu career you talked about competing, yeah the.
Speaker 1:Kentucky back over there.
Speaker 2:Yeah, when you, when you came over here and started training with Scott, did you still?
Speaker 1:compete. Straight up man. I was hungry so I came to Scott's and then got there. I want to say, like February and March, straight up man. Two months in man. April, those have been mainly staying at the Claudio Franca tournaments. Obviously that's our lineage, he's a big supporter, so we'd always compete in those tournaments. And so it was American Cup and US Open Fucking religiously man so competing out there. I was like three months in here. Man Took second and then I said fuck it, we're going back to US Open. So I went back, took second again, man, and honestly I don't think I've ever touched fucking first place in a podium, dude.
Speaker 1:And really yeah went out there and you know what that mentality like we're talking about, like having that bigger guy. I remember going as a blue belt competed. We were in Santa Cruz I think it was the All Stars and I was going against a dude. He's a fucking big dude man and it's like fuck, he's fucking huge.
Speaker 1:You know I was big too at the time bigger than I am now, and it's like fuck. And so I'm like you know what, fuck it. And so I pull half guard and fucking pass my guard didn't submit, but it was fucking, it sucked, but I just fucking embraced him Like dude. I'm not going to sit here and stay five minutes with this dude and get you know, I don't know, fucking fucking three minutes in I got two tires, takes me down, fucking toast. So then you know, mainly staying half guard, pass, came back to half guard and fucking suck for me. But hey, I, you know, fucking pull half guard and I've been competing all the way through my purple belt and then, obviously, when I was a brown belt, covid hit and then I signed up a couple of times with them and have the opportunity to do it and then, fuck, now I got to step up to two.
Speaker 2:Now you got to test the water. It's kind of like I wanted to.
Speaker 1:Yeah Black Kind of like I wanted to kind of that was my goal, right, each ring and that brown belt, like COVID and whatever. Last year signed up a couple of times but didn't work out and nobody in my division, so kind of got left out. Like fuck that brown belt. I want to, kind of just want to get one in, you know, but now fuck it, we're here, now Go get my ass whipped, then that's it, man. So yeah, I've been staying active man and now I mainly kind of coach, like I said, I coach the beginners, kids, and mainly lean on them. You know like bringing up our squad, like for as young competitors as these kids and you know adults that are competing, and kind of helping them out with that, which I kind of like that too. You know that role of helping them out and kind of giving them some advice. You know it's giving back. Yeah, exactly, so I'm getting a little bit more reward from that.
Speaker 1:I think for me it's never been going on the podium and getting first. Maybe it's bad that I think that way, but I think for me it's just testing myself. Like I think for me always, honestly, and the only reason I've always said this, is that the first thing I do is get a new belt as I test myself and go to coffee crew to fucking see where I'm at Right, because sometimes we have self-dial I was like, fuck, am I really a blue belt? Mm-hmm, I'm not too early, or am I good? Fuck, am I really so like, get that shit out of your fucking head and go test yourself. Yeah, go open up, and I always compete. I was like, oh shit, I'm right where I'm supposed to be.
Speaker 2:Right, it's funny because I was watching or I was looking through some posts, yeah, and there's a guy like I'm pretty sure he goes to coffee crew. Yeah, the post was from the strength training guy, the victory high performance, matt Like his gym post it and I think the guy goes to coffee crew. Well, fuck, he won at Master Worlds. Like he was on top of the podium and I was like, holy fuck, if that's the guy like I've rolled with him. Yeah, like I do pretty well with that guy. Like again, these guys, I'm like cool, that's pretty, pretty good to see.
Speaker 1:It is man and I think I want to see where I read it. I think I was. I read it on Reddit, right, and one of the forums. You get to forums really quick. Touch on that and this dude put us on there. We're talking about how he just got his black belt, whatever is an old post I came across and he kind of just goes through his journey and in there he it's funny, you said that he tapped on it. Which resonated with me was he said you know, like just because everybody that compete doesn't mean they're the best, Right, Right, there's people, he's, he's the world travel dude. He pointed kind of went to Brazil and traveled and cross-train, and what he's trying to say is like there's some savages out there that just cross-train, yeah, and just because you, got on the podium.
Speaker 1:You don't know who didn't sign up Right, and so, like that's a pride experience that you're having like shit. And so when I see somebody go up there, these fucking savages that we cross-train, you know that, we know that consistently train and compete and I'm like, fuck, I hold my own right, like I've competed. I've trained with guys that one master's gold and purple and brown, and so I go with them. I'm like, okay, like I held my own, I'm right where I'm supposed to be. I have these guys a world champion. I'm doing better than than when I thought where I was Right. And that's why I say it's important to go test yourself. But reading that and what you're saying makes sense man, you were the best that day. It doesn't Exactly Because I looked to compete it Right.
Speaker 1:There's some savages that does not for them, right, or whatever their views are, but I'm always up to believe that you need to. You need to compete at least a handful of times in your journey. It doesn't have to be in every belt, but just taste that. Test yourself and put yourself on the spotlight, right, yeah, and I think for me, I think for me. I think I was talking to Jesse in one time and he's like, oh, something came up. And I it's, because I think for me war was the ultimate price. Like this, like you know, like I need to fucking win there.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:Like literally Right. And so when I do combat roles and I think what one thing that I took from that? That I don't take shit too serious, like if you beat me, like they don't bother me yeah, it kind of sucks. It bothers me because I couldn't figure out the puzzle at the time, but you know, I'm okay with it. Yes, yeah, yeah, I would want to win, but I'm alive, I'm breathing.
Speaker 2:You know, I get to go home, you get to go to the ground and I'm like you know what I mean, and so for me I think that's a good thing.
Speaker 1:But I think, competition wise, it kind of hindered me because I never I never had that like kill mode, so like it's win or lose, or for me it's always a great like, yeah, I want to win and if I lose I'll stay in the grade because I learned right, because everybody says that. But I think that mindset for me, for me it's like I think I'm in a combat, you know, and the tutors, like I said, and I think that's helped me and how to just chill out a little bit, like, hey, don't take it too serious, not serious, it's not the end of the world, man, if you got tapped today, it's not the end of the fucking world, right? You know what I mean. It could be fucking worse, right? So it's.
Speaker 1:I think for me that's why it's always been a test whenever I go out and compete is just, I'm here to test myself If I get the win, if I don't, I got to get better and I can do it again. Yeah, and you do it again and you come back better, man, yeah, you know what I mean, I'm gonna take on that shit.
Speaker 2:So what's something outside of jujitsu, like hobby wise, or just something that you keep yourself entertained with?
Speaker 1:Shit, it's a lot. Man Like I briefly picked up photography. Yeah, I'm gonna double that shit a little bit.
Speaker 2:You know what's crazy is? I told Jesse you took a picture. You took senior pictures for my niece.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and she told me. Then she was like hey, well, she didn't tell me her mom did. And she was like, oh, because she was talking to my wife and she was like my son. Somebody, jujitsu, came up and she's oh, my son does it too. He's like your son does it too. We had just done open mat. They came to strike yeah, it was that Sunday in Coffee Crew, and so, yeah, we were just there, like, yeah, my son was there, and she was like your son was there. She's like yeah, what's? I forget your nephew's name, evan yeah.
Speaker 1:Evan. It's Evan. Oh, I'm like, yeah, I roll with this, a tough guy, you know. I kind of just told him he's like, yeah, that's. And I'm like, oh, that's Joe's nephew, and that's how it came. It's like, oh shit, and it's crazy man. So, yeah, I got to take some pictures and stuff and yeah that was pretty cool.
Speaker 2:When I seen you had posted a couple of the pictures, I was like fuck, I didn't know it was to fucking do portraits. Yeah, so You're getting into.
Speaker 1:So, like I said, I wanted to document, like, yeah, just document my life, right. And I looked in. I'm like all we have, you know, photos on the phone, right. So I started and but, to be honest with you, like I, when I was down range, we had a point and shoot camera and take pictures. I wish I would have taken more. I have some pictures and stuff, but I wanted more and just didn't know how the process worked. It was just take pictures, file them, save them, excuse me. But now that I look back I was like, fuck, I wish I would have more, right. So I was like I'm going to document my life. I bought a very fucking expensive camera I don't know how to fucking use and just, and then I just started getting into it, dude. And so I did it. It's.
Speaker 2:So and your, your camera is film, right, you don't do digital.
Speaker 1:No, so I initially wanted to do film.
Speaker 2:Oh I want to.
Speaker 1:I want to fucking learn film and fucking roll and get.
Speaker 2:I could just see you in a dark room with a red light.
Speaker 1:Yeah, dude.
Speaker 1:So, then I started. I went on Reddit, man, and everybody's like dude, fuck that, go fucking digital, buy a Fujifilm, cause you know film at the time was so expensive but now it's more expensive. So I bought me. I went and bought me a camera, got a fucking I still use it to learn. And then I was like, man, they're right. So then they're like, and everybody started leading and I started asking questions like hey, trying to get into this, like buy fucking Fujifilm and this, this, and that You'll get this and you get to learn. And you know it's free Well, not free, but you know, take pictures of as many pictures as you want and learn the process. So I went with that man and, fuck, I just got hooked.
Speaker 1:And I think, cause I remember growing up I've always had a taste for documentaries and then listening to podcasts and just I don't know, just fucking people on treatment, you know, documentation, stuff. And so then I just started taking pictures and fucking started documenting shit when I would go like we would travel places, like we could take pictures of where we're at and just kind of just develop from there, man. And so now it's still kind of learning and I approach it as like jujitsu, like white belt man. You fuck kind of put on tight your belt. First thing you got alone is fucking exposure triangle. I don't know what the fuck that was. What's I hit up just here? What's your shutter speed? Like? What the fuck is that? I'm like dude. Come on, you've been doing all this fucking podcasting and shit. He's like dude, I don't know dude.
Speaker 2:I just look it over and record it.
Speaker 1:And so, like I dove into it like that, and so I think that's another good thing of jujitsu is, if you stay long with it, enough, you're going to start approaching anything you want to learn in life, the interest you, a hobby, anything you're going to start approaching in that white belt mentality of like learning, making mistakes and going through that and everything we do, like you guys are doing on podcasting I could. I went back to your first episode. There's a little bit of that. Second, third and the other was telling me too, and to now the reason is you've grown right. Like the communication is better, it's more flow, because again, you're learning through your mistakes. You're like, fuck shit on this, and so you get better right.
Speaker 1:So everything we do, if we approach it with that white belt mentality, we're going to learn, we're going to grow, we're going to know that mistakes are going to have to be made, and so I started approaching it that way, and so it's like shit, what is this? And again goes back to that 10,000 hours right, and you start putting that man time right. That's the goal. You're not going to get 10,000 hours. If you are, you're a fucking animal, but the goal is to hit 10,000 hours, right. And same thing with anything that you want to learn and interest you or any kind of new fucking shit you want to venture in. So I started applying that same methodology of like learning, researching, looking up stuff, understanding, asking questions, go on forums and like, hey, why is this happening, why is this? And then again getting that community you know meaning through people in jiu jitsu I met a lot of photographers that I asked them.
Speaker 2:It's crazy, yeah, like there's a handful of people that are talking to you. It's a same community.
Speaker 1:Right, like I think when you first join a like jiu jitsu, people have a misconception of like it's just fucking tough dudes trying to be alphas, right, trying to fucking beat each other up. So the mentality. And then chicks even say that like I don't want to go on a step in there, but it's further from the truth. That's why I said earlier, I always tell everybody go check out on a coffee crew, because the vibes are different. That's the real culture. Everybody's kicked back welcoming after you. They beat your ass, they're fucking telling you how to fix your shit, right, they're nice about it. And so A lot of these communities were intimidating or intimidated because they're like this person's not going to want to help me or whatever. Right? So when I came in, I had the same because I was like wait a minute, I could just ask them. And I would just ask, yeah, dude, check this out. And you're like shit. So you start networking. Same thing you get to write. You start as a white belt, you might be a wrestler, but I might ask you like hey, dude, I couldn't fucking sweep you. What was your base? Like I've been doing this and so we're networking and so if you approach anything with that white belt mentality. You're going to see it and stay with it longer, instead of like, fuck, this sucks, this is shitty, and then you quit. Right, but we have to go through that white belt stage to make that growth right. Then you get to that blue belt. Okay, fuck, I kind of know a little bit of this.
Speaker 1:I love tools, and so that's where I start taking photography as and I'm just interested in looking pictures and people. Man, I feel like we're going to leave at one point. I want to know that I took a picture of. Yeah, I don't know, maybe someone is going to be important for somebody down the line later. You know what I mean. So to me, that's the big thing. For me, too, is like I have them something to give. You know the little piece of them. So that's another way why I'm interested in it. I'm leaning heavy on that. I'm a photography man.
Speaker 2:So do you offer to take pictures?
Speaker 1:for people Like I stay pretty low key in everything I do, man, it's the thing about me. Like even Jiu Jitsu, like I, low key, stay in photography is the same thing Like I'll do it. People ask and people would like say I like your work, but I'm not like putting it out there to offer it. You know what I mean. I guess I'm still not comfortable because, like you said right, Like we said earlier, we have we're the biggest critiques, we self doubt on ourselves, and so when I look at a photo someone's like nah, this could have you know, but if somebody else is like shit, that's a fucking amazing photo.
Speaker 2:And you're like dude, like seriously. When I seen the pictures that you posted of my niece, I was like fuck, I didn't know Tony was going to do this.
Speaker 1:Like this, shit's pretty fucking good, oh, thanks man, you know like I said like, but I stay low key man. Maybe it's my personality, you know, like, pretty reserved, and if you, if you ever see one open mat, I'm going to be the dude that's sitting with the smile. Just come ask me raw, raw, you know right. Same thing with the when I have that camera on me and kind of just staying and smile and boom, right, cause you don't look that intimidating when you smile. So I always tell people smile man, always. I always tell my kids fucking smile.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Always man.
Speaker 2:That's it.
Speaker 1:That's the first impression and the last impression when you leave on somebody. That's true how you come in. If you come in serious, looking at somebody's straight face and you leave them like man, a fucking person was an asshole or whatever. You come with a smile, you get that you know what I mean.
Speaker 1:But you smile, you tap me, I'm going to smile, man. Yeah, and in the same way too, after I wrote, I'm going to smile. I think it's for the world, but the smile always try to do everything with a smile, man Cause, as cliche as it sounds, but if you smile you're going to feel better. I don't know what it is and I read that somewhere and I'm like that's fucking true. Maybe that's why I've been doing that. I don't even know and it's the truth. Man, Just fucking smile and laugh and it changes everything. Yeah, to be honest.
Speaker 2:Besides getting your black belt recently yeah Right, cause I know that's going to be an answer to this next question but what's the most memorable moment that you've had from Jiu Jitsu?
Speaker 1:Most memorable moment. That's a tough one, man, I don't know, like I don't know, like that's a tough question. It's pretty easy, but tough, like I'm trying to go back.
Speaker 2:It's easy to say your black belt right.
Speaker 1:That's just recent, but it's recent and but even then, like I feel like I'm leaving something out there. You know that you can't come to my mind really quick, but honestly, my most memorable moment I want to say moment, but moments is it's just, you know, seeing, honestly, seeing my brother compete and what bass and then seeing him go through that and be a part of it.
Speaker 1:And you know, and then the team, you know, and obviously, like you said, it's going to lead to the next question, you know, but just it's just your black belt. I think for me, when I got my black belt, it's I tell people like, even though you kind of you kind of know, right, you know, you're like you know, kind of know I'm tapping that door, that door, I'm turning the knob as you progress in your jiu-jitsu, and I feel like you kind of know, like that, in every belt At least, you do it consistently, you're going to know like. You're going to know, like, if you're consistent grappler when you're like you're going to as you go in your blue belt, you're going to know you're knocking at the door and you're going to turn the like I'm getting into my next one, right, but even if you prepare for a speech, like it's just it's hard and I think for me the most memorable thing is the people that were there. Like that meant the most for me, you know, and so it shows that's what made us special.
Speaker 1:That was memorable. You know, seeing, you know all the, the, the, some of the kids there that you know I coach and you know my fellow, you know training partners and you know my professors and just seeing the parents there of these kids and you know families, it's it meant a lot Like that. Was that hit, you know? And I remember saying one thing when I was there. I was like I'm not going to cry here, but I'm not going to tell if I cry when I get home or not, and I'm still not telling you if I did or not.
Speaker 1:You still won't know if I cried.
Speaker 2:That says it all already, bro.
Speaker 1:I didn't cry, I didn't cry, I didn't cry, I didn't cry, I didn't cry, I'm not still saying if I did or not, but honestly, like this whole journey has been memorable man. I would say is that like? It's a tough one because I'm never like I said, I'm never in first place, but I've had memorable moments and I think I think, overall, my journey, man, yeah, just the process, you know, yeah, I hope that answered it.
Speaker 2:I know, at the end of the day, this is your story, man, like this. I'm just here as an avenue for you to get it out there Right on, man, you know what I mean. Like, whatever.
Speaker 1:I mean, who would want? To listen to my story. I don't fucking know, but whatever.
Speaker 1:Oh, you're going to see. You'll see, you know, but, like I said, for me it's just, it's just giving back. You know, and I've always had that mentality of like, when even I was in man you know, I was in NCO like I might tell my soldiers, coming up, like I want you to one day outrank me motherfucker, like that, if I did that, if you, if I did that, I know that there's something right as a leader. And so I apply that like kind of style and my my, my jujitsu journey. You know, when I meet somebody, I'm coaching somebody to gym, I try to give them the same things Like I try, and I want you to get first place, like I want you, because you getting that, that means a lot to you, that's going to mean a lot to me. I can provide that for you and help in any way. All right, mind to it. Oh, we're good now. Yeah.
Speaker 2:So so yeah, like I think the way you get hurt is by thinking you're going to get hurt.
Speaker 1:That's a good point.
Speaker 2:If you're just training, like shit happens. I get that. Sometimes it happens, right Like me pulling my groin.
Speaker 1:Yeah, there's something.
Speaker 2:I don't wish that shit on nobody right. It just happened, yeah Right, the one day I fucking woke up and that leg was dead.
Speaker 1:Like I couldn't fucking walk Like I was.
Speaker 2:I literally felt like I needed a cane to walk and I'm like, fuck, what are we going to do? Right, and it was a Sunday. It was a coffee crew day, right, we went to Monterey and I'm like there's no.
Speaker 1:I didn't even roll that day oh that's right, I didn't roll that day.
Speaker 2:I fucking sat my ass in the back and watched everybody else, right. But I mean, if you go into something thinking that something bad is going to happen, guess what's going to happen? Something bad, yeah, right. And I tried to give her that point of view and she's like well, I was all. Well, we're going to compete, you should come watch. She'll all go watch.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's what I always say to like the parents, or I mean so just come watch, yeah, so you can see the feeling for it. And, to be honest with you, I would recommend that all the time now, because I remember going my first tournament. It's overwhelming, man, if you never competed and you walk in and you hear the crowd and the people and you're like fuck. So it's like now go check it out. First, feel the atmosphere Right, check it out, and then you're like, okay, I kind of know what to expect now.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I guess, looking at it from that point of view, like I'm always in a gym, right, I'm always with the wrestling team.
Speaker 1:See, that's like beautiful thing about wrestlers, you guys are competing.
Speaker 2:We don't have like huge crowds, right, but like if you go to a tournament and there's 20 teams, right, you're going to go to a tournament. There's going to be a decent amount of people there and there's always people around the mats, right.
Speaker 2:So you just get into a chair like this we have two chairs in a corner with coach and go on to the next one, right? So you came used to it. So when I went to compete it wasn't that big of a deal. I see it now like in that part of it, but I still, you know.
Speaker 1:You got to remember. Like, for instance, you know that training partner and for most people that are walking in from the street to the gym to go train, they never did anything outside of that. Right, probably right. I would say something if you play football you kind of get used to it, but even then you kind of hide, you're hitting in the helmet, right, kind of they don't know, they just don't remember. But, like, for the most part man, you never. Most people haven't done something that big and it could be a local tournament and it still could be overwhelming, right, yeah, you go in there, there's six mats laid out and you just hear the us coaches just screaming with fucking lungs and you're like shit. And then there's just two dudes or two chicks just entrenched going at it and then you're like I got to warm up and then I got to go in the bullpen and do this Fuck.
Speaker 2:You know yeah.
Speaker 1:And so for me, you know, I kind of step back and look at that. Okay, hey, go check it out first. Yeah, so you know, there's going to be a tournament this weekend, so-and-so, you know, bring the kid, you know, go look it out, make a day out of it if he can, if the plan's. For me, you know, and for the most part they go, and some parents are like, yeah, I want to, they want to do it.
Speaker 2:Sure, all right, well, get signed up and get you ready for the next one and get you to go.
Speaker 1:man and shit. We got a big tournament coming up here on this Saturday. We're prepping all our kids to go out there and compete. You know, really, yeah, we got Santa Cruz for the BJJ Tour, uh-huh, so we got quite a few going out there. So we're prepping them for that. We'll be out there.
Speaker 2:Nice, I didn't even know there was a tournament this weekend. It's like there's a tournament every other weekend.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's true, man. But you know, now it's just, you know, training and passing that on to these kids that I thought they were going to do, and then we're encouraging these eight-year-old, nine-year-olds to go out there and test their medal. You know, yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but no, I get it. I signed up for the GJC World League. They have one in November coming up.
Speaker 1:Nice.
Speaker 2:So I'm going to test the waters at Bluebelt. That's it, man.
Speaker 1:That's the only way See how it goes. See it's wristlocked. Hold on, work on your wristlocks, yeah.
Speaker 2:Hey, I've pulled a couple of those out. Not that long ago, nice, we'll see it's hit and miss. On the age group, yeah, you know, like there's not a lot of older guys.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's where it gets tough right and, like we talked about it right now, the people coming in you got that hunger right, all of us and you wrestle. You're like get back in and you try to say shit. You know Other people. It could be that they, you know, wrestled or the doodle when they were kids or high school or something in college and they're looking for that form and they weigh years and years and years Working for that void that's been there for trying to fill it, yep Shoot.
Speaker 2:So what kind of advice would you have for the newcomer, the older person like me? You know the old guy.
Speaker 1:I guess I would be like to a center don't take it too serious. Come in with an open mind and come in, no matter what your background is. Come in knowing that you're going to get your ass whipped and you know, I always tell that to the newcomers your background and don't take it serious. But I was like I remember, like I think I said this last week like don't take it too serious in the sense of like put a lot of emotions on that Right. Like you said, those wins we're looking for earlier Somebody was talking about I want to get my wins today at the gym.
Speaker 1:You focus too much on that. And I think I said something like be thankful for those mistakes. If you got caught passing your guard or somebody, you got some mistake you got to fix. And if you get by and you know, keep going. You don't know those mistakes but you want to eventually find out what that mistake is, because somebody's going to hit you with that.
Speaker 1:So you just got to go out there and don't take it too serious, man, and honestly, give Jiu Jitsu a chance, give it a try. Don't go in there judgmental or thinking like, oh, there's a bunch of alpha people that just want to wreck each other and you know, come out on top. What's your as soon as you walk in that gym, no matter your age, size, gender, right, Whatever you want to put in there, nobody's going to come in, man, we're going to walk them, you in? Yeah, Fucking, what's your name? You trained before? No, no, All right, come on in man, this is what we do, and don't take it too serious and keep coming back. And it's hard. Consistency, Consistency, right, and it's going to be hard, so just stay with it and know your limits, right? I would be another one, Like, obviously, like, if you're, like you said, an older guy, like you or easy there, buddy Easy, but I'm all there too, right?
Speaker 1:So like, once you hit, life hits you. You have a wife, you have kids, family, whatever work. And would I always tell somebody, as what I learned coming through the ranks and the journey is don't try to put everything and cram it on one day or in one week or one ride. You're not going to get to black belt in one year. Excuse me, I think a lot of people come in that way. Right, like, dude, I'm still a white belt and I'm fucking with you. This fucking sucks, like because it's fucking hard.
Speaker 1:And so what I always tell people is like, just make it a schedule, a reasonable thing that you can do, I can do once a week, and that consistently will pay off, like you said, right. But I feel like sometimes when people come, they find a problem that they're like, oh, I don't need to solve this, and they want to solve it within that month, and that month they're trying to solve it in your ass with it and they're like, okay, I'm out. Yeah, right, or you put in coming too much and you're not balancing that schedule and so you're going two to three, four times a week and you burn yourself out. So just be patient, don't take it too serious and ask questions, right. Yeah, you'll be surprised. What you'll learn from somebody, right and I think that's the biggest thing right now in any kind of gym is like oh, they're just out there to make a name for themselves and want to beat me up or whatever it is. We're going to put these excuses right now to walk in and learn something you said a goal that's unattainable, exactly.
Speaker 1:The only goal should be like I need to go to fucking Monday's class and survive. I'm going to fucking. That's my goal Survive.
Speaker 2:But whatever day of the week you fucking pick to go.
Speaker 1:That's the goal for the day Survive. And then you fucking go to the next okay, fucking bad. Next Monday, I'm fucking back at it again. Fucking, go to the day of survival, motherfucker, a blue belt. Then you should have goals Like, okay, I'm going to have to hit a fucking sweet, but I would say, as a white belt, survive for six to eight months. So you know kind of by answering the question. So just patience, Don't take it too serious, right? Yeah, like we talked about earlier, after that match you're going to go home and come back, so cool.
Speaker 2:Cool, good, that's it. Anything, peace out. Anything that you want to throw out there that we didn't cover, I'm good with it. Man, if anybody wants to get a hold of you, you have social media, I think, go by Scott Savage.
Speaker 1:We're off of. I'm joking, no, but anyway come on.
Speaker 1:We're on Mercy Springs. Come by, guys. We're next to the movie theaters, come check it out. Obviously, man, that's a big shout out to Scott Savage, jiu-jitsu. We got a lot of talent here in this town, man, we've been in, we're coming in. Like you said, you guys just started off. So you guys, we already went through that in Scott, you know. So you guys are going through that. So it's kind of neat to see other gyms and see they're going through the, through the digital growth and stuff. So come by, check out Scott Savage, you know Jiu-Jitsu or by the movie theaters. If you haven't checked us out yet, or if you train, come by, man, hit us up. You know cross train, talk to us. But I'm on Instagram. What's your Instagram? I don't like to give my like. I said I'm pretty low key, but it's just visual underscore elements. Man, I don't know why you would follow me, but just tag me on there.
Speaker 2:Oh, that's what for.
Speaker 1:Just tag me on there, man. But yeah, man, that's like I said, I'm not pretty low key, cool, but thanks again for having me dude.
Speaker 2:Yeah, for sure, and let's be honest to everybody, you were the first one, but Jesse fucked it up.
Speaker 1:Yeah, we'll be in real life guys. Honestly, I feel like this one was the first guest, so yeah, honestly, it was meant to be because at the time I wasn't 40 yet I was fucking in 40 now. So I feel like I hit that club now. So I'm glad it happened that way.
Speaker 2:Shit, yeah, awesome. Thank you, brother, wow yeah.