Bulletproof For BJJ Podcast
This is the official podcast of the Bulletproof For BJJ movement. Hosted by JT & Joey. Each episode the founders break down problems that Jiu-jitsu people experience, giving guidance and tips to improve your training for BJJ. With the goal of helping every body on the Brazilian jiu-jitsu path reduce their chance of injury, improve their strength and mobility to become more resilient.
Bulletproof For BJJ Podcast
How to Deal with the Downside of BJJ with Raelene
What if you could navigate the complexities of jiu-jitsu and come out stronger and more connected than ever? Join us on the Bulletproof for BJJ Podcast as we chat with Raelene, a stalwart of our small program. Raelene opens up about her journey from her first tentative steps onto the mat to becoming an essential part of our community and app. Discover the motivations that fueled her commitment, the unwavering support system that kept her going, and the camaraderie that makes Bulletproof for BJJ feel like a second home. Raelene also shares her experiences managing our online community, offering insights into how she helps subscribers enhance their techniques and forge meaningful connections.
Switching jiu-jitsu gyms can feel like navigating a minefield, particularly when balancing the need for mastering fundamentals with the desire for advanced techniques. We unpack the pressures from higher-level practitioners and how they can dampen training enthusiasm. In this episode, we delve into the unique challenges faced by women in jiu-jitsu, especially in smaller gyms, and the efforts to build a supportive environment for female practitioners. The conversation draws poignant parallels between leaving a gym and experiencing a breakup, underscoring the critical importance of finding a training space that aligns with one’s personal values and goals.
Finally, we tackle the mental and emotional aspects of the jiu-jitsu journey. From adapting to different training systems to dealing with gym politics and ego, we lay it all on the table. We share personal experiences about the significance of fundamentals, the benefits of taking time off for a mental reset, and the evolving landscape of content creation in jiu-jitsu. Embracing vulnerability and maintaining a beginner's mindset are highlighted as vital for personal growth. By openly sharing our journeys, we aim to inspire others and build a more supportive, growth-oriented community.
Get Stronger & More Flexible for BJJ with the Bulletproof For BJJ App- Start your 7 Day FREE Trial: https://bulletproofforbjj.com/register
Stay Hydrated with Sodii the tastiest electrolytes in the Game! Get 15% OFF: BULLETPROOF15 https://sodii.com.au/bulletproof
Parry Athletic - Best training gear in the game... Get 20% OFF Discount Code: BULLETPROOF20 https://parryathletics.com/collections/new-arrivals
A good martial artist does not become tense but ready. Essentially, at this point the fight is over.
Speaker 2:So you pretty much flow with the goal.
Speaker 1:Who is worthy to be trusted with the secret to limitless power. I'm ready.
Speaker 3:Hey, what's up guys? Welcome to the Bulletproof for BJJ podcast. It's Joey, and today we've got Raylene in the house. Raylene, welcome.
Speaker 2:Thank you.
Speaker 3:JT's not here. He's left for the US and so he flew over there on the weekend. He's going to be hanging out there for a few weeks leading up to me arriving and then us hanging out at the CJI and ADCC. So that's going to be fucking sick. So we don't have any of our regular podcasts scheduled. However, we thought that today would be an excellent opportunity to bring on the queen of the bulletproof for BJJ small program, raylene. Now let me give a little intro to you, ray, and then you know, maybe you can flesh out the gaps. Ray is for those of you that follow us and have been following us for some time. If you, if you follow, follow us on social media, you'll know Ray. She trains with me in my small group. We train three times a week. So all the little stories you see of us doing stuff, she's the super strong female in the group. She's the only female in the group.
Speaker 2:Thanks.
Speaker 3:But she's stronger than most of the dudes. Let's be honest. She's one of my most dedicated students, absolutely hands down. We've been training together now for fuck. It's longer than two. It's like three, three years maybe.
Speaker 2:Shit, yeah, it goes, it goes just after first, like for covid lockdown.
Speaker 3:I think yeah so mid-covid yeah yeah, 2021 or something yeah, wow, okay, um, so that side of things. But ray ray is also an integral part of our app and she is the how do we say it? You run the community. We have our group. It's hosted through facebook groups and it's where people who are subscribed to our app can connect with us and it's where they can ask questions and get feedback on their technique and that kind of thing, and you head up that side of things. You make sure people are getting looked after, giving good information and wherever you need to you reference. You know you come to j and I, jt and I, that kind of thing. Um, so I mean, fair to say, in three years I feel like you've really woven yourself into the fabric of this thing yeah, I, it feels like a natural progression.
Speaker 2:I was just like I feel like it's that thing of like surrounding yourself with the right people, like spending time with you, spending time at the gym, jt, and then naturally it just felt like I wanted to be a part of it. So it's not yeah, I don't know how, how best to describe that other than it was just a natural progression into being part of Bulletproof.
Speaker 3:It's very cool, Do you think? I remember when you first came along, you came to an open mat upstairs, right?
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, that's what it was, yeah, yeah yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3:And at that time were you thinking that you wanted to get involved, like was Bulletproof the brand even something that you were like, oh, like, I want to be around? Or was it just like, oh, there's a gym. Those guys seem to know what they're doing. I'm going to go like, get stronger, learn some shit.
Speaker 2:I think so. When I started jujitsu in 2020, I think a friend of mine who was doing jujitsu at the time told me about bulletproof for BJJ. So back then it was just a website. Um, I remember signing up, maybe during lockdown, because I just had time and I had kettlebells at home, so I just did stuff at home. Then you guys started working out. I think you had your small group happening and Sammy, who I used to train with um, was like featured in those stories and so I asked him about like oh, like, how are you guys like tell me more about this group? Um, and then I think there was an open mat or something. At the end of 2020 I came in, I introduced myself to you and then I think I mentioned I'd love to train in your small group and I think it then happened like end of Jan maybe. But yeah, I didn't like I had done the Bulletproof program but didn't really see myself like. I actually thought that I was only going to be coming for like six months.
Speaker 3:Oh, wow. And then I was like, oh, that'll be enough, because that'll set me up for, like, actually doing the program properly yeah, yeah, actually like so, thinking that you would do that face-to-face stuff and then that would set you up to go and follow the app, or yeah, yeah our wannabe app at that time. Yeah, wow, okay. And so now, yeah, right, like fuck, you've been training. Like why, why have you stuck around for so long? That's my first question.
Speaker 2:That's a bloody good question. Yeah, I don't know. I think it's like I just enjoy being around you guys, like I just and also like Jungle Botany, I think, has a very like it just feels good to be here. So I think that all of that just makes me want to come back Like I just don't think I would have the same discipline if I was just doing this by myself.
Speaker 1:Yeah, right Like 100%.
Speaker 2:I would need, like, I would need you guys to help me carry on like, keep going, which might be surprising. I think a lot of people think that I, like I would have the motivation to like keep going, which might be surprising. I think a lot of people think that I, like I would have the motivation to like keep going by myself, but no I think no I don't think so, not to the same degree anyway yeah, yeah, I would.
Speaker 3:I would agree that, like, I think a lot of people in our community would look at you and really kind of like idolize your approach to training, like you're very consistent with it. You are, you know, like you perform highly at it, right. Like your lifts are strong, your movement is good, like your flexibility, like it's all there, right, all the in terms of the capacities, yeah, and you're very consistent with it. And I think that a lot of people are like fuck, I would love to have that. She must be super into it.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:Would you describe yourself as being pretty into it, more so compared to regular folks in the jiu-jitsu realm?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean yeah, maybe. Like I don't see as many people doing the same amount of strength training. Like I'd say I probably do more strength training than I do jiu-jitsu at the moment. Like I I come to the gym three times a week, but I only do jiu-jitsu two to three times a week. Three times, it's like that's yeah, not very often. So I think I forgot the question now no, no, that's a.
Speaker 3:You kind of answered that in terms of like, yeah, are you kind of into the strength training and I think your point about you on average do more strength training or more stuff in the gym than you do jiu-jitsu, kind of tells that story.
Speaker 2:Yep.
Speaker 3:Same for myself these days, right? Do you think it's fair to say that, like you train in the gym because it supports your jiu-jitsu and all that and keeps you kind of robust and helps reduce the chances of injuries and all those things, but you also just like being in the gym.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I actually think. Well, I mean originally, when I started training with you, it was because I was really so into jiu-jitsu that I just wanted to be, I wanted to do everything that would. You know, you're a white belt and you're like I just want to do everything that will keep me doing jiu-jitsu, and at the time I was really into also like just exercising in general. So I think now it feels like it's flipped slightly, like I think I spend more time in the gym. I've seen the most games sorry gains through working out at the gym versus like jiu-jitsu, but also I think they're very, very, very different things as well. Right, like I think jiu-jitsu takes a lot of time. I suppose gaining strength and building muscle also takes time, but it feels like I've progressed more doing strength versus jiu-jitsu.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, I get that I think that's an important kind of point to mention as well, that I would imagine a lot of people who follow our programs have this same thing, where what brings them to the program is I want to support my jiu-jitsu as best as I can, but then after a little while, once you start to have some wins and you find consistency in it and enjoyment, then you start to want to do it. Just because you want to do it.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:And you like the process of getting strong and it feels good to be learning new ways of moving the body and that kind of thing, and so then you kind of become like a bit of a gym person, and that is its own rewarding process.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:And then it's, I mean, you know whatever. Then it's almost it's not about, like it doesn't always have to be about. Well, how is this going to benefit my jiu-jitsu?
Speaker 2:It's just another thing that you love to do, like yeah, yeah, I think there was a time where I felt like, um, I should be doing more jiu-jitsu, like if I'm doing, if I'm training at the gym three times a week here and I'm only doing jiu-jitsu twice a week, that's not fair. My jiu-jitsu I should be spending more time. But that was like an expectation from like I don't know how often other people train and then realizing, actually, I think it's okay for me to have to dedicate more of my time doing strength training and mobility training versus jiu-jitsu. It's it's totally fine and it's just a natural way of like how it's just happened. Yeah.
Speaker 1:Today's episode was brought to you by Parry Athletics. They are our preferred apparel sponsor. They've been sponsoring the show for some time now and they do the best gear in the game. They do the best training shorts for the gym or on the mats, and they always have awesome designs for all of their custom rash guards. Now, if you would like to get yourself some Parryletics gear, we can get you 20% off when you use the code BULLETPROOF20. That's right, folks, you get 20% off when you use the code BULLETPROOF20. Get some.
Speaker 3:You, so you're a blue belt now. You started Jiu-Jitsu at the beginning of COVID, right Like. You signed up and then gyms shut down and you didn't.
Speaker 2:Yeah, right, yeah.
Speaker 3:And so I mean that's already a turbulent start, right, Like most people don't have that where it was like signed up and then now the gym's shut for whatever period of time. Yeah, but you've had fair to say, like you had a like some turbulence in your short jiu-jitsu life and in the form of as I said, you've encountered some political dramas, yep, and then you've also encountered the injury side. Yeah, now most people who are listening will be able to like vibe with that, at least with the injury side of it.
Speaker 3:Maybe you haven't had the the um political stuff, but I think most people, even if they haven't encountered that personally, they know it's there the political side is is such a big part of jiu-jitsu culture, can you give me like, like, give me the rundown on on what that political drama was for you and how that played out?
Speaker 2:yeah, um, so I think maybe beginning of last year, um, so I was at a previous, a different gym. Um, I've been at legacy for about a year now, but prior to that, um, I had been in the same gym where I got my blue belt and so forth. Um, and I think I mean I can only speak from my experience and definitely not from for anyone else but there were changes in my own jiu-jitsu and my idea of jiu-jitsu and it just wasn't what that school could cater for. So I think it felt like, you know, the idea of fundamentals was very different at that school compared to, say, where I train now, and I think I want it more.
Speaker 3:I'm just going to push that a little bit closer, all right.
Speaker 2:Thank you, yeah, yeah, I want it more from going to jujitsu. I wanted to learn De La Riva sweeps, like just basic things like that right. That I thought was fun. I was doing jujitsu for fun and I think at the, at my previous school, it just wasn't something that was I don't know what the word is to describe it but people just didn't do that. And I think, um, people at a higher level were also saying't don't do that stuff, just focus on these fundamentals. And the fundamentals is like. You know, I see value in that now, um, but back then I was like I got my blue belt, I want to do some cool shit, but there were a lot of people who were saying, no, don't do that.
Speaker 3:So I think there were a lot of changes like that where I was saying no, don't do that because you don't need to worry about that yet, or that's not. That shit doesn't work like. Do what do you do you know? Do you remember where that was coming from?
Speaker 2:both actually, like I think I had you know they were purple belt saying like that stuff doesn't work, like just just do the old tripod sweep, which works right. But like I'm like man delaheva looks cool, like I just want to, I want to try that, like why can't we learn that stuff? And it's like no, we don't, we don't do that stuff here.
Speaker 3:You're blue belt it's so funny about that because delaheva is like it's the most basic, yeah I'm just shit at it let me, let me be clear, but but yeah, like short legs, but um, am I right?
Speaker 2:same. Yeah, I've just realized. I've only just realized recently that it's like that's not for me.
Speaker 3:Yeah, um fuck, maybe they had a point, yeah yeah, right, like I, I understand.
Speaker 2:I understand it now in hindsight, but like back then, like beginning of last year, I was like like why, why should I be? Why is it being shut down? Something that I think is like I just want to do for fun yeah, but I was told no, don't do that.
Speaker 2:Um, so there's a lot of that and I think so I wanted more from it. Um, also being a woman in jujitsu and doing the sport. Our school was so small we didn't have that many women in the gym, I think. Maybe, just like there was a handful Like I could probably count it with the number of fingers I have in my hands and it was hard, I think at the time we wanted to try and like get more women to stay. So every time there was a white belt, a female white belt, we'd try and, like, you know, make it as supportive as possible. So we had WhatsApp groups and stuff like that. We try and, like, you know, make it as supportive as possible. So we had whatsapp groups and stuff like that and try and like, you know, if you're going to come to class, let me know, I'll come, I'll come with you and we'll partner around and stuff like that. And it wasn't something that was a priority for the school. So I think that was part of that as well was a little bit disappointing and the way that that was handled and yeah, so I mean I don't think there was like a specific thing that really happened.
Speaker 2:I think there was just multiple things that kind of happened all around the same time and then I decided to leave, which was quite yeah, I don't know how to like, how to describe it without being so political, but like it was just not a pleasant feeling when, when I left, and at the time it felt like it's weird. It's weird, I think, if anyone, if anyone's been through this where you've just you've had to leave your gym because something just doesn't sit right, it just never feels great and it's just kind of like that thing of I've been there for three years, I got my blue belt, I have all these friends I enjoy training there, and then having to remove yourself away from that because you disagree with something that the school does or someone, it's really hard. So I think at the time it was a very difficult move. So I think I spent like four weeks just not being anywhere and just kind of like visiting friends, going to open mats and stuff, and then settled on drawing Legacy, which I'm still training at.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, I think, like I'm sure plenty of folks listening will have either had the experience of changing gyms or have considered changing gyms but never done it and it's really. It's kind of like breaking up with someone. Like it's a really awkward conversation that you generally don't want to have. Like most people are waiting until something boils over so that it's an easy out but that's crazy, right?
Speaker 2:because it's like if, if you're a hobbyist and you're like, oh, I'm just gonna try this new sport and see how it goes, and you know you want to leave, and you're like you're being told that I can't believe you're leaving, like how could you leave? You just got that belt yeah, I, I gave you that belt. No one actually said that to me, but it's just more like the implication. You shouldn't have to feel bad. You pay to be there. You can take your money and go somewhere else. It's fine.
Speaker 3:That's right. Yeah, it's kind of absurd in that way and also not Like it's also really nice that we have that sense of belonging and commitment to a place, yeah, but yeah, it's definitely absurd when it gets to that point where you're like this is not the place for me, why am I still coming here? Yeah, and I know that feeling of when you're like day-to-day showing up to training. It's actually putting you in a bad headspace and you're like fuck, like this is a stressful thing, Um, which is so far from what jujitsu like for most of us. Right, when it starts out, where you're like this thing's super fun and I love it and I just want to be there.
Speaker 2:Yeah, which isn't like I know you guys talked about ago of like politics and like how how people start to like bring their ego into everything and then it just becomes like um, what's the word? Um, just not nice anymore, it's just not nice to be around anymore, and I think that's what kind of happened is just like people started becoming like if I said, hey, I want to learn this and the you know, a normal feedback would be maybe you don't need to learn that yet, versus now, fuck that, don't learn delahiva. Like that's not for you, like that's not till you're a brown belt or whatever, like that's. Like it's like extreme of a risk, like where response would go, and I feel like as soon as that comes into jiu-jitsu, which is just a sport, then it doesn't become nice anymore and you don't want to be a part of that.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and I mean arguably like that's. You know, that way of responding to one of your people right is kind of never okay.
Speaker 1:Like that's pretty rough.
Speaker 3:Yep, so like to that point you. So you left that gym. What was it like then, going to a new place?
Speaker 2:It was hard.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it was hard, I mean. So I knew Jess Ng, who I've known her from Jungle, so she used to come and train here, I think in the mornings.
Speaker 3:Good friend of the show, very good friend of the show. Shout out to Jess Ng. She's a member of the Eat to Win Nation.
Speaker 2:She is Always eating to win. So I knew her. I think I knew one other person maybe just from, like visiting open mats. I also knew that they had a very big women's community. I just saw a lot more women on the mats so it felt like a no-brainer. So when I went I knew that there were like fundamentals classes, advanced classes, no-gi, advanced and so forth.
Speaker 2:But I was always going to the advanced classes because Jess was there and I kind of turned my nose up to the fundamentals classes because I felt like I don't need to go back and do fundies.
Speaker 2:I I have a solid knowledge of fundies. I'm good to just go into advanced because they're doing cool shit like ace guard sweeps and, um, single leg x stuff that I never learned. So I wanted to go to those classes but it was hard because there's so many high level players on the mats all the time that I was just getting bashed constantly and I didn't realize this then, but I do now that it was actually very, very difficult and mentally challenging showing up to class, getting bashed and going home and then feeling like, wow, that person got me in the bow and arrow choke. Like five times tonight and last Wednesday it was the same like what, what's going on, um. So yeah, I felt like the the learning curve was like this um and um, yeah, like I mean being injured and taking time off and stuff like that kind of helped, just like leveled it out. Otherwise I would have just kept going back to the same classes and just feeling like shit all the time.
Speaker 3:So you felt like copying an injury, actually like forced a bit of time off, which helped you reset a little bit. Yeah, how funny. Yeah, it makes sense. Yeah, injuries can come at the right time like that.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:So do you think that that was like I'm gathering right? The first gym that you were at had quite an old school fundamental jiu-jitsu approach, right, which is correct me if I'm wrong but based around like a lot of the original kind of Gracie self-defense stuff you could say which a lot of gy original kind of Gracie self-defense stuff you could say, which a lot of gyms around the world do follow quite closely.
Speaker 3:But then if you go to a gym that doesn't follow that style of jiu-jitsu, often their fundamentals are different things. They're not self-defense things, but they're just sport jiu-jitsu fundamentals. Yeah, and so they're kind of two different programs in a way, aren't they?
Speaker 2:yeah, sorry, I actually that that's a good way to describe it. I think and I don't think it's necessarily like I wouldn't say legacy is a hundred percent of sports school, but a lot of people would describe that as sports jiu-jitsu, which is more like techniques that you would normally find in like a comp yeah I don't know.
Speaker 2:If you really wanted to like label it, then yeah, that's kind of the way that you would label it. Um, whereas the previous school I came from was more like you had a syllabus white to blue belt and blue to purple, and then I think you followed the I don't know um brown and black belt. It's like the helio gracie, um book of self-defense or something like that.
Speaker 3:Oh, cool yeah.
Speaker 2:So it was very, very different. So you know that old school we weren't learning like X guard, above lie sleeps and stuff like that. And then coming into this place was like having to like I still remember having to memorize the pattern of single leg X to X guard and being like what is this? Like it's so weird, um, and yeah, so I think that was like the learning curve was huge because I felt like you know, you look around the class and everyone's doing the technique and you're there going. I'm a blue belt, I feel like I should know this stuff but I don't. So I think that was also part of the mental challenge of like I don't know what I do. I know what I should know. Like if I've been doing jiu-jitsu for three years and I've got my blue belt and I come to a new school, is the expectation that I should know this stuff and it felt like I should have known that stuff.
Speaker 3:Right yeah, yeah, felt like I should have known that stuff. Right yeah, yeah, it's a tricky one. I can speak to that like we put a lot of expectation on on our, on our own ability and what sort of ability each belt should, should have, right yeah and so you yeah, you do like and and sometimes that's a really good force in in making you better you're like fuck, I should be better at that, I should be more familiar with it. Okay, I gotta go learn it.
Speaker 3:But then sometimes too, it's you're probably also being a bit like, it's being a bit unreasonable yeah, because like, say, at blue belt, right, if you, if you look at it's like you're actually super early on in the journey so you might have one or two things that you're, you know, half decent at, but like to expect that you'd have an understanding, even an overview of, like all of these different sort of guards and whatever styles of passing and shit.
Speaker 3:Of course not yeah, yeah but does, does go to show and I think it's you know, to make the point for listeners like there's a different experience at different gyms and not it's not necessarily about comparing what's better, what's more effective, it's like the system of training and the culture. You want to find the one that's right for you. Yeah, and I think that that's super important because when you hit that point of feeling like I'm so committed to this place, but it's, it's stressing me out and I don't feel like I'm getting what I need here. If you just, if you're just making that decision without any kind of like, if you don't actually have like a rationale for making the decision to move, you probably won't move. Yeah, whereas if you're like, hang on a second, this is just one place, this is like a little microcosm in this universe of jiu-jitsu and I can go and experience all of these different other microcosms. Oh well, let me see what it's like there and there and start to get an idea.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah. I think we definitely forget that there's a lot of, there's just a lot in jiu-jitsu in general, but also, like in Sydney, for example, there's so many gyms and everyone does it slightly differently. So I think finding the right combination of like community and like what are they teaching in the classes and is it stuff that you're interested in and you can actually find value in, then that's probably where you want to go.
Speaker 3:So talk to me about you know you've been. Of course I'm there Like we train every week, right, and we talk about content creation. Obviously I'm a. We talk about content creation.
Speaker 3:Obviously I'm a whore for content creation, um, being who I am in the bulletproof for bjj business, um, and I think that I've slowly turned you and deltch into content whores as well well, since you got us tripods for christmas, that's right, so now it's just everything's beautiful you've got the golden handcuffs and so yeah, and so you know, and it's really cool, I, I like my, my thinking was that you know you were filming more and more stuff and starting to have a bit of a you know, put a bit more effort into like telling your story on social media, um, and I was like, oh, tripod will be perfect and it totally fucking was like pushed you into the next level, which I think is so cool. Yeah, um, but you've started to like establish a bit of a voice around, like what it's like to be vulnerable and and early in the journey, and you're speaking to people on socials and it's vibing right.
Speaker 3:I can like I can see that it's really connecting with people and it does make me. I reflect on it a lot and I'm and what I always sort of think back is like it makes me realize it's quite hard for me to like I like wear a bit of a voice for jiu-jitsu people, right, but I'm so far down the line, I've been doing it for so long, I'm a little bit divorced from what it's actually like to be really early on in that journey and so it's cool. I'm like, fuck, that's so cool, like that's.
Speaker 3:The irony of at least how it used to be was that people didn't feel like they had any authority to talk about things until they were like an expert. So I know for myself, I didn't talk about any jiu-jitsu stuff until I was like a brown and black belt. But the reality is, by the time you're there, you're no longer back there, so you don't actually know how to talk to them, right. So it actually makes more sense that you have people at all different levels and at different layers of the thing talking to, to people that are more closely like linked to that stage of the journey. Does that make sense?
Speaker 2:Yeah, but like it's still surprising that, like, even at Black Belt, you still wouldn't like. Don't you remember when you were a white belt or blue belt, and just not?
Speaker 3:I mean, I totally do, I totally do, but I think there's so much to talk about and you end up having a bit of a bias about what you're interested in, and so I probably, if I'm, if I'm thinking, I probably end up speaking to people that are a bit more experienced. Yeah, you know like fucking talking shit about white belts and stuff, am I right? People like, yeah, fuck those white belts, you know, when, in reality, like majority of people that are listening to this, probably white belts. I love you guys, I do, but no, I think it's just that thing right. I remember my one of my my best good friends at the time, who was a really good surfer, taking me out for a surf and he's like, come on, man, I'll show you how to do it. And the surf was like fucking double overhead, like super big waves.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:And he just like paddled out. And I was like, bro, like I can't, like I think I attempted to paddle out and I just got hammered and I'm like fighting for my life. And he's like, what happened, man? And I'm like, dude, the fucking waves were too big. And he's like, oh, you just paddled out, though it's good. And I'm like, oh, you just paddled out, though it's good. And I'm like, bro, I'm a beginner.
Speaker 2:And he's like, oh yeah, fuck.
Speaker 1:That's right, oops, in any case.
Speaker 3:I really like that. You found a bit of a voice around that. What do you like?
Speaker 1:Ladies and gentlemen, do you suffer from sore and swollen knuckles after a hard class of jiu-jitsu? I have the answer for you the Finger Teen, custom designed by our friend, the Grip Physio. Now these wraps are specific for your fingers. Wrap them around, work them through and reduce the swelling so you can recover faster and be back on the mats in no time. You can get 20% off when you use the code BULLETPROOF20 at checkout.
Speaker 3:Go to thegripphysiocom what are the sort of? What are some of the cornerstones?
Speaker 2:like, what do you, you know, I I see like some of the stuff you talk about pushes back on people's like, maybe expectations of themselves, and like cutting themselves a bit of slack yeah talk to me about that um, it's, it's funny, like how you like how you just described it, which is like there's, you don't have, there's this idea that you can't speak to these things unless you have your black belt or whatever. And I think, at a time where I don't know if it was like in the last six months when you gave me the tripod, but it felt like, um, it just started from just wanting to be honest and just be myself and and there were times where I'd try and record something and I'm like who's going to want to see this and who's going to actually care? And I'm like actually fuck it, just post it. It's for myself and just being myself. And I think it started from that. And then I started getting responses from people where it was like, oh yeah, like I feel exactly the same way, or like, oh, thanks for sharing this. Like I had the same thoughts last week and I was really struggling and this was great.
Speaker 2:There's something there in that white belt mentality of like feeling like you don't know anything and it's you know. I'm sure a lot of people listening right now or who do jujitsu in general would feel this way. There's this vast world of knowledge that you would just never know every single thing, and I'm sure you would feel the same way of knowledge that you would just never know every single thing, and I'm sure you would feel the same way and I think I can't. I've just lost my train of thought, but essentially, sorry. There's planes flying everywhere, there's people coming in, and now I'm just so distracted.
Speaker 2:First podcast as well um, you're doing really good for your first podcast, thank you, I'm very cold as well, so you can't see that I'm shaking, but anyway, you'll put your jacket on. No, I'm good, I'm good, I'm good, I'm going to keep going through. Don't show weakness on the show.
Speaker 3:No, no, I'm strong.
Speaker 2:Yeah, no, so that I was asking about that vulnerability piece and you're like like it's just that thing of like me, me showing up, you know, a year ago to those advanced classes and we're drilling x guard and I'm sitting there going I've never fucking done x guard before. I have no idea what's going on and you're paired up with a black belt and you just feel like fuck. Just just pretend that you know what's going on, because you got this blue belt I I think I should know, know what's going on because you got this blue bell, I, I think I should know what, what's going on, because all the other blue belts are doing it.
Speaker 2:Um, it's that expectation of like I should know better and I, if I don't know, I don't want to talk about it. So I think maybe there's something there about that white belt experience of like, um, you know, I've had, I've got friends who are white belts who then reach out to me and say you know, I was feeling, I was feeling like I didn't want to come, I don't like, why am I doing jujitsu? I suck? Um, you know, I got smashed or whatever. And those feelings I think people just don't really talk about them. Maybe, or if they do, it's it's always I don't know.
Speaker 3:I think the context of it is always different, but I feel like it's like when the coach says, does anyone have any questions, and you don't ask and you're like I'm good, I'm all over it what do we just do again? Start looking off to the side trying to watch what someone else yeah, um, so yeah, I feel like there's, there's something there that maybe people just don't talk about as openly anymore.
Speaker 2:I don't know if it's just like an expectation thing, like if you've got three stripes or four stripes on your white belt and you're like you know you've been doing it for three years or something, you don't want to show that you're vulnerable, because that's not the mentality of a blue belt, maybe.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, I think a lot of that stuff it's probably equal parts, like our own kind of insecurities.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:And then also maybe some cultural norms.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:You know, but yeah, it's always there. And then there's those people that you see, the people often that do just ask whatever questions on their mind and are kind of unabashed in being like oh actually, I don't get that. Can you show me that again? And there's usually like a collective sigh of relief when that person asks, because everyone's like that's what I was thinking.
Speaker 2:Or you just wait for after class, like that's what I usually do.
Speaker 3:You know, I think that's a very it's a super progressive sort of approach to jiu-jitsu, because I would think that, you know, gordon Ryan talks about it right with he's obviously JT's favourite grappler. Talks about it right with um he's obviously jt's favorite grappler um, he talks about in terms of, like these old school black belts, like these, you know, whatever top guys, they have a game that they established like many years ago and then they've just kept doing the same thing. And he's like, and I'm smashing all those guys because I'm constantly working on improving and changing my game, yeah and um, you know, whatever, like all the feelings about gordon aside um, his approach obviously works, but I think there's also, like it's a very clear distinction between, like I am constantly addressing weaknesses and shining a light on the things that I'm not good at so that I can get good at those things, versus the. I've climbed to the top of this ladder and now I'm just going to fucking do whatever I need to do to stay here.
Speaker 3:It's kind of two different mindsets. One's really like a beginner's mindset, right.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:And you see that I think I see that now in jiu-jitsu it's more of a cultural norm for people to be extremely honest about what they are good and not good at. And when you see those grapplers who work on the stuff they're not good at and they get tapped out and they get beaten because of it, because they're like no, I'm not doing my egg answer, I'm working on this shit that I kind of suck at, you're like, wow, there's a real like, there's a real honesty to that. They're the ones that you see progressing at a hyper-fast rate. And that's when you're like fuck, so-and-so was like not much of an issue, like a few months ago, and now they're totally a fucking problem on the mat, yeah, you know. So I think being able to like to your point about being honest with yourself about that is extremely powerful in your development as a grappler. I know it's something I never did.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:You know, and I'm starting to do more of it now, but it's totally an ego battle.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think as soon as you start to realize that you've got some weaknesses and you need to do something about it, I think then it becomes more enjoyable. Like um I was I think I mentioned to you that um like I was off for like two months or something like that from jujitsu and I came back and I decided to just do fundamentals classes instead of going back to advanced where all my friends were um and at first I was like I don't know what to expect. I feel like I'm taking a step back, but actually it was. It just showed me that I probably needed it when I first started, um, you know, I like I mentioned earlier that like I turned my nose up to it because I was like, oh, I got my blue bar, I don't need to go to fundies anymore, I know how to escape from mountain, so forth.
Speaker 2:But going back to doing those classes, I actually enjoy jiu-jitsu more now, and it's not just I. I joke about it. Sometimes I say, oh it, oh, it's because it's easier. It's not that it's easier. I think I know a man escape, but being able to just keep working on it and then perfecting it or just making it better is enjoyable, because I'm not the nail 80% of the time anymore. It's more like I'm the hammer 60-40 or 70-30. And it feels like a good, sustainable Put some smash on some drugs.
Speaker 2:But it's not even just that, it's just more like I know stuff, I know enough, but then there's always more to learn about the thing that you already know about, and then that becomes enjoyable. So now jiu-jitsu is more enjoyable versus oh, I got to go to class tonight and I'm going to get smashed again and it's fun, but actually it's really not.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it makes sense. Do you find you get thirsty at training? I do. I do all the time. I'm a sweaty human and I need to hydrate. Now the biggest problem is, by the time you're thirsty, it's a little bit late. You need to hydrate and that's why we got Sodi. Sodi is sponsoring the show. We've got all the colors of the rainbow. Great flavors here. We've got salty citrus, salty pineapple, salty berry and my favorite, salty grapefruit. And they will be releasing two new mystery flavors soon.
