Originally Posted by
Slick Rick
Second what you all have said.
Tori, here's my POV on the matter.
Jiu Jitsu will become a way of life for you beyond the belts. I mean even if ther weren't belts, you'd still train because there's no other sort of physical fitness like this on the planet. Physically fit while learning to defend yourself- this is a way of life.
I have gotten burned out before so I would tone my training down to two days that week. As a matter of fact, I feel 2 days is a minimum number of days you need to sustain your current level of technique(you will still progress, however). Any less and you tend to say, "Oh shoot I forgot about that option." Any more than 2 days in a week, you're progressing at a faster rate than those in sustain mode.
I came up with some numbers a while back that I have used as a rule of thumb:
1000 5 minute matches ~ blue belt
3000 5 minute matches ~ purple
5000 5 minute matches ~ brown
8000-> whenever is black belt level
Again a rule of thumb based on my own calcs, but if you run the numbers at 2 days a week and 5 matches a day, that brings you to about 2 years to reach a blue belt. That seems about right to me.
So in your plateau periods, think about the bigger picture and keep a log of all the matches you've had, all the times you've tapped, why you've tapped, what body types gave you trouble, why they gave you trouble, keep a log of techniques you've drilled, take note why you like the techniques that are your go to techniques, etc. Learn about yourself along the way and have fun playing with the numbers. Then if you get bored, go choke someone out.