Training BJJ This Way Helps Me Avoid Injuries & Win More Competitions 

I’m 51 years old and roll the same way minimum strength little aggression maximum technique efficiency which allows me to roll calm and very little risk of injuries 👍🏻 CHEWY another great video Aloha brother

Starting my first class today. Thanks for all the help. 18 months ago I was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. The effects of the chemo have left me a shell of what I once was. I can’t wait to get some strength back

Man I’m the new 45 year old white belt who, up until this video, roles as if it’s a death match, I’m dead tired after every class and it’s been bugging me how I’m going to ever sustain this. Thanks for the wonderful and open advice, you’re a perfect example of a talented yet humble martial artist who has nothing to prove 🙏

Being a 22 year old you have to keep in mind that you have the whole rest of your life go hard,it's about sustainability

As a newbie (37 year old mom of 4), I feel like I've adapted this style of rolling. I've been told to "be explosive" and that I'm rolling "too nice." I feel like I am moving in a more slow motion, more controlled way than some of the other white belts I roll with. While they are flailing around, heavily breathing, and seem to almost be in a panic, I'm just slowly and methodically moving into better positions. Applying pressure, trying to isolate an arm or something and they leave their neck open and I abandon the arm and go for the neck or vice versa. I rarely try to muscle an arm free. I'm just hoping that I can turn my aggression on when needed later.

As always, sage advise Professor Chewy. Thank you

This is my favorite style of rolling when I'm training. Shows me what I need to work on and then I look for what else I can do in the situation or move to another dominant position to practice. Thanks for all the lessons along the way.

This is the way. I’m 220lbs but I train as if I weigh 110lbs so I’m more focused on technique and conserving energy. Be prepared to put your ego at the door as you take this route - and then watch your game shoot up over the next few weeks.

I’m 41 (old!) and been training 2 years. I definitely learn more rolling for technique instead of over-aggression. There are times when coach yells, “Don’t accept it!” Then I know to turn it up some.

It is super intelligent. I'm 46 and decided I'm going to start rolling next week and I was thinking this would be my strategy trying to overpower somebody seem to be wasteful. So moving to your next tool and getting in that habit seem more efficient great videos professor!

Great question! And answer!

This is the way chewy thank you.

Great points!

A lot of times I feel like I am fighting too soft, especially when my partner is going really hard. What helps me the most is to start the roll with being the one who engages first, so I can control the pace of the fight. 👍🏾

Absolutely true, Chewy. I try to train this way myself (37 year old brown belt), though there are a few guys at the gym that I'll typically go harder with (other browns and blacks). But one thing that has helped me is not to think of my training session as a workout. Rather, I try to remind myself that I'm training technique in class and I'll get my workout in with kettlebells a different day. Yes, training does end up being a good workout, but if I don't think of it that way I find it's easier to relax, go a little lighter, and not feel beat up the next day.

I heard one of my coaches say at one point something to the effect of "there's a world to explore between "flow rolling" and grinding for the win during training." The only thing I'd add, is that I think you need to train both ways. I'm 2 years younger than you, and I wrestled in college. While I think I'm lucky genetically and extraordinarily healthy, I think a large part of my health comes from going really hard a lot--but this started from my wrestling. In jiujitsu, I don't go hard every day, but I do pick days to go hard. This skill was literally comes from when I was wrestling in college. I don't care what anyone says, its not a good idea to train "live matches" for two hours every day. My college coach had this concept of "sparing" while on our feet and "50/50" on top/bottom. It was really hard for a lot of the first year freshman to grasp and was really frustrating for the upper classmen, but the idea is very similar to what you're talking about in this video. However, there are times to go around and bang heads in the room. Both things are important ESPECIALLY if you want to do well in competition. This is true in wrestling, and its also true in jiujitsu. Training to be mean, and training for a competition is a legitimate thing, but so is training your technique and focusing on "finesse" like you say. I think there is room for both things to be true here, and I'd suggest if the coach is asking you to turn it up, then maybe you should take him into consideration and turn it up. You don't got to do it every day, but I really like it when one of my coaches sees my potential and pushes me. They don't do it every day, so when the opportunity is there I enjoy it. I'd recommend the same to Jacob as well. Everyone has their style, and most people aren't going to be as intense as me, but just like how I like to turn it down to focus on techniques and positions that I'm weak at (or maybe hone in on my strengths even), its also important to turn it up a day or two out of the week. If you only train a couple of days, then maybe have two or three rolls where you go light and one or two rolls where you go harder--and pick your partners accordingly.

I got the soft comment the same day you posted this video. I have been improving technique and feel really good when training with my fellow white belts who are aggressive. I’m sweeping them and maintaining my guard. It used to be a tug of war until someone gassed, then submission. Now i watch them trying to muscle as I flow and roll around them.

This was literally the question I was thinking of asking for a while. Thanks Chewy, this seems on point to me. One of my coaches seems to want me to "go hard" but that just didn't seem right to me.

I kind of relate to the guy who asked this question because I’m similar to him when I roll. I’m one of those nice people on the mats. I roll without aggression. I focus on applying techniques. To be able to train until old age, I really have to be smart with the way I train. However when I go to comps, I’m more determined and it feels like I have my warrior mode activated.

Yea I’m 20 years old and I’m muscling through everything but I’ve made it a point through this next month to tone down my aggression and try getting some technique bc I’ve been doing this for 6 months but I’m not really technical the way I want to be. I’ve been told ‘be a gohan not a trunks’ so that’s the goal

I think most gyms have a comp class for this reason right? To turn it up and test yourself but i think regular rolls make sense to go a bit more technical.

Diggin that knot sir OSS 🤙🏽🤙🏽🤙🏽

Thank you!

51 yrs old, overweight, started training 2 yrs ago.. When I do get to roll, we tend to go max effort the whole time. But because of unforeseen family commitments , I now only get to roll once or twice per week. So my progress is definitely at a slower pace now, but I’m in it for the long haul anyway, and thankfully I get enough time in between classes to rest my always aching post-roll muscles.. Getting old hurts! 😄

Very relatable 👀

Hey I watch alot of your videos find them really good, I have a question though I've been doing Bjj for less than a year still a white belt, I find my technique struggling to find its feet so I focus more on defense, pressure play and use my strength as I come from a gym background. Is this wrong?

33 Years, just started, a few months now but I want to learn and get that fine technique down. I am also a light weight so I really need to conserve my energy and just learn to breathe and relax.

50 year old white belt (with a black belt in Judo… everyone wants to crush the judo guy…) A big lesson for me as a older guy was to know that I can help dictate the intensity of the roll. Every class I roll with guys that are half my age and way stronger… I’ve had to learn how to corral strength with craftiness (or at least try to…) if you can do that, rolling turns way more into a technical chess match.

Perfect 👍🏼 explanation per usual - 55 next month new purple belt - try to do exactly what you’re saying…

I experience the same thing exactly, I swear!

This may seem like a weird question, but I struggle with knowing when to crunch to finish submissions versus when to extend your hips to finish (white belt issues). Is there anyway to understand the concept better?

I usually have both worlds in one training. I roll light and technical with higher belts or more experienced white belts, but against most new guys, it's usually life and death. They see my blue belt, not my grey hair. Sometimes I like gym wars over technical rolls, sometimes I like both. Being 47 "gym war" usually just means to survive...

I can't not see Icy Mike's impersonation of Chewy. Sound advice too, thanks for the video.

Hey chewy new to the channel, new to jiujitsu im a 1 stripe white belt. I think I’m double jointed. Arm bars have to be very deep to make me feel or even tap, Kimuras put pressure on my shoulders but don’t hurt like other people my arm can almost get bent backwards before I’ll tap. My training partner yesterday thought he was going to snap my arm before I finally decided to tap I never felt pain in the slightest until I decided to tap. Same with ankle locks they don’t hurt at all, and I rarely tap to them only to avoid it injury if I know I can’t get out. Do you have any type of video talking about pros and cons of being “Double jointed” in jiujitsu? I searched but couldn’t find one on RU-vid. I hear people talk about sudden injury’s, and I know that my flexibility could be a bad thing considering I can’t feel all the time when real damage is about to happen, or atleast I know it’s very possible from the stories others at my gym have told me from their own experiences. Thanks.

I'm a new white belt, and I just came back from training. I rolled with 3 different guys today and the last one, which was a younger guy, was explosive from the very first second. I tried to keep up and ended up over exhausted and had a sudden energy drop...I actually had to leave the mat and starting Hyperventilating for a few seconds. Some guys came up to me saying that my situation was normal and that they all puked or passed out at one point. I don't know what to think of those comments I received, but looking forward, I think it's important to put my ego aside and just train at my own pace... and if I roll with someone that has more energy left than me, well I'm just gonna let him win and not have it bother me.

Yo I’m a white belt and I got this comment from my instructor a couple weeks ago and it made me think about how nice I should be. I try my best to not hurt my partners so when I have something I go slow but I lose positions a lot because of me being “nice”. I recently started upping the ante a little bit and started being more aggressive and I see improvements in my game but I can’t help but think am I letting my partner work ? Are they able to get their work in or are they getting annoyed with me.

It's called experience and intelligence. I've had one particularly close, close encounter in Jiu-Jitsu that Ill never forget with a mindless animal. It's too disturbing to even mention. Stay safe. Play it safe.

I've found I prefer rolling about 75%. I'm just not a really aggressive person unless you seriously provoke me. In that case run as fast as possible in the other direction. I have no desire to compete so I don't worry about rolling hard. I can roll longer at a lesser intensity and get more out of it.

As a former Japanese Jiujitsu green belt (from a legit dojo with full contact striking and street survival techniques aka eye gouging /groin strikes , elbows and knees )I have found that sometimes I place too much emphasis on trying to do things in a controlled or calculated way that I maybe don’t move quickly enough or accept positions too easily, at the same time I’m guilty of fighting chokes if I can still breathe and trying to use arm bar attempts to get back up to a crouch or standing back up. I suppose I’m just learning the balance of too much or not enough aggression,Hope this helps other BJJ white belts like me.

Being a big guy I always struggle to find that balance.... I think what works for me is i let the smaller guys try to do something / get me in bad positions that I have to work out of. I usually start a roll on my back and they are in side control. I just have to remember that I just can't throw a guy my size in a competition 😜

45 yrs old here. I go the same way . People who I don't get to train with much agree i have become more technical. Roll easy enough there are women who actually like to roll with me because of it.

What’s up brother. So back in 2014 when I was teaching a karate class a student and I were doing a movement. I accidentally hit him in the mouth. We had to go to the ER it was one of those situations to where I our timing was off. But now when I roll I don’t roll hard because I don’t want a situation like that to happen again how do I get over that?

52yo blue belt... i roll very chill, and smart.. probably lil too chill, but i train 5 days a week.

I'm 50, roll hard as F, and get hurt all the time :). My neck, back, wrists, and fingers agree with you.

Im the same. I dont want to accidently hurt somebody. Plus im not very good so that could happen very easily

Jacob's brighter than his coach

💯

A lot of retired boxers/MMA fighters are advocating light sparring. It's the same with BJJ.

"If you're pulling this face (make best straining constipated face), you're doing it wrong, abandon technique & try something else. There's a place for hanging onto a technique for dear life, but you'll never know when, unless you practice getting it as smoothly & efficiently as possible"

I’m the only white belt at 38 and it feels like I’m just getting folded 🤷🏻‍♂️ It’s been 4 month I lost 45lbs 235lbs now my stamina is up, I don’t get easily submitted but the instructor says I need to be more aggressive.

I’m the same guy !!!!!!!!100%

I’m 40 years old and I’m exactly the same way ! I find it nonsensical to try to kill your training partner every day !

What if your goal isn't to win? Then does it even matter how soft you are?

Update your software without damaging your hardware 😉

grrr...."old" lol. I can really see the benefit of putting big focus on technique and using the aggression only some of the time.

This is also apparently how Russian national wrestling team trains

I roll a little harder with athletic dudes in their 20s. They can take it physically and wont get offended. Be a little more technical and flow with the older crowd. Best of both worlds lol

So to go on the OPPOSITE side of this question, how DO you turn the aggression up?

90% of white belts quit within 3 months. Why? Injuries.

White belt death matches suck!! 🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️