Advice for a newb

[camcochran]

I am a wrestler who hopes to start all around grappling in the spring. Any words of advice besides the obvious don't give your back up and things of that nature? I have some basic knowledge of 10th planet jj and can beat all my friends submission wise but am humble enough to know not to screw with the real deal.

[cade]

You are already a step ahead of most of us.. The problem I see with most wrestlers at first is they tend to rely on athleticism and explosiveness.. They do not work their technique but choose to muscle through things. Don't get me wrong athleticism and muscle is great. But it is better when combined with technique.

[James Fazzolari]

Make a real effort to improve your bjj fundamentals. Don't worry too much about integrating 10th Planet stuff right away, you need the basics first. Awesome tech comes later.

[Enrique "Kiko"]

You are already a step ahead of most of us.. The problem I see with most wrestlers at first is they tend to rely on athleticism and explosiveness.. They do not work their technique but choose to muscle through things. Don't get me wrong athleticism and muscle is great. But it is better when combined with technique.

+1

Learn how to get comfy on your back asap. Most wrestlers who I've rolled with who are new to jiu jitsu freak the hell out after they get the initial top position and then get swept. When I mean freak the hell out, I mean hard crossfacing, elbows being semi-thrown or dug into my ribs from the bottom lol, and somtimes they'll simply try to bench press me off them, which leads to very, very easy arm bars from the mount. So go right to where you're probably the least comfy, which is in 1/2 guard and full guard and learn the basics from there. I am just a lowly white belt, but I sincerely think that's great advice for wrestlers transitioning into the jiu jitsu game. Enjoy the process of learning brother. High level wrestling + high level jiu jitsu = monster on the mat!

[The kza]

practice, practice, practice

[Tim Bruhn]

Still a newb myself, but having the right attitude is the biggest thing IMO. Others are so much more willing to roll with you and teach you things if you are humble and not afraid to ask questions, get shown things etc.

Better guys are so much more willing to let you get to dominant positions as part of the learning process if they know they aren't going to be 'monstered' and then kinda taken advantage of after they have 'assisted' you get there in the first place.

Enjoy the journey.

[AJ Camacho]

All the wrestlers I've worked with have a tendency of tripoding too high to establish shoulder pressure. This gives a guard player a million ways to get back to guard. Learn how to drive and pin shoulder pressure via a low tripod that blocks the hips from turning back in.

Many wrestlers, after having half guard pulled on them a million times, will then resort to a cradle as a counter to the half guard. Learn to pass on the opposite side of the cradle and don't even try tapping a dude out with the cradle. See Sonnen versus Stann as an example of the cradle pass.

[Harry Evans]

This post is how you get better. Most wrestlers are brought up in a very competitive, testosterone-filled environment that makes a lot of them very closed-minded. They like to use athleticism and power to smash their opponents, and often do moves that obviously won't work just to try to break the other guy's will. What they don't do is analyze what parts of wrestling break down with the addition of submissions, or ask better grapplers how to improve. By acknowledging that the people here can help you, and showing a willingness to break old habits that work in a pure wrestling competition, you are opening up your game to great improvements.

For specifics, here's a few things that I find very common among wrestlers making the transition:

1) Stop using so much power! BJJ is about technique. There's a reason that aging black belts can still whoop on younger competitors. Watch JJM roll, or better yet, watch the gym match between BJ Penn and Leo Viera, where they roll at 30%. Exploding through a motion will sometimes make a move work, but then you don't learn what minor part you were doing wrong. If you get the technique down perfectly, it should be effortless.

2) Easy on the crossfaces. Partially because you will piss off your opponents, but more because you will get armbarred and have your back taken all the damn time. This is why everyone say wrestlers give their back. The crossface that works in BJJ is very different to the one in wrestling. BJJ requires T-rex arms.

3) Here's the biggest one, IMO. A girl started training with my gym recently, who is a MONSTER wrestler. Here technique is getting strong WAY quicker than I expected, but in terms of wrestling, she is already probably the best in the gym. She's like 130 lbs, and I have watched her drop large men who compete like they are nothing. So what is she working on? Obviously her passing and her subs, but mostly, her guard! She is expanding her spider, butterfly, and half-guard, and focusing on sweeps. So now, even if you manage to sweep her (good luck), you are constantly defending the sweep, and if she can even get one leg out from under her, she's back into a single or something. The point is, don't show how tough you are by using your wrestling. Your teammates are there to get you better, not to judge how good you already are. Work on the areas where you feel most uncomfortable, so that when they get strong, you also have your wrestling to fall back on.

[Eric "Tiger Blood" Safier]

I'm still learning myself . And I can tell you muscle will only get you so far first hand. It's all about technique and drilling the fundamentals.
And stay humble.

[Dylan Ehrnreiter]

I've had really good wrestlers stop by to roll, and I've guillotined every last one of them. One kid was a 3-4 time state champ and he still got caught. (granted, they had NO jits) You might adjust your shots to avoid being choked when you go for takedowns.

If you manage to get to side control, resist the urge to hook the far leg to control them. That = inverted triangle.

Good luck!