Learning Curve + Experience (For Higher Ranks)

[chronic_jiujitsu]

I was just curious to hear from some of the higher ranked belts on this issue. The farther along you get into your knowledge of jiujitsu.. Do you feel that you are learning at a faster or slower pace than before? Or I guess what I mean by this is.. Did your game improve faster when you first started (white/blue belt) or are you able to learn at a more rapid rate now that you are more well versed in the art?

I could see how it may go either way. When youre new.. you know nothing, so you have the ability to learn EVERYTHING. All the basics, the principles, ect. But at the same time.. Once you have those principals down.. I could see how those might help you learn new moves as well. Once you know all the pieces needed for a choke, or once you better understand leverage/body movement. So what should I expect as I get farther into my JJ career? Is it a steady learning pace, does it quicken/slow?..

Also, for instructors of a gym.. What is your main source of new techniques seeing as though there isnt someone at your gym teaching you? Do you learn mostly from what you find online, and then just drill it with your students while youre rolling with them? Or is more of that sparring time spent "throwing yourself in deep water" and working on weak areas rather than trying to incorporate new material?

Im just curious to hear how the learning process in general works later in jiujitsu, compared to the beginning years when you are still being spoon fed everything by your instructor.

[Ryan Brick]

I've been getting better quicker and quicker lately but Im sure it peaks off. Part of that will be the amount of effort I put in to it now though compared to before.

I haven't learned that many more moves it's how I put them together that improves. Example I watched Damian Maya and Marcelo roll and he set up a guillotine from a failed crucifix attempt so I started trying that as a set u for all my chokes.

I teach at a gym my main source of new material is 10th Planet, Marcelo's site, the gracie academy and grapplers guide. and ya a lot of the time I will let people get me in say an armbar with my arm extended and then I escape from there.

[Jay Chow]

Once I adopted the mindset of learning the basics and principles to each technique, my learning retention went way up.

For example; there's no use just getting shown how to do a Triangle Choke in class, drilling it, getting it a couple of times on a blue belt and then going home thinking you know it. That won't make your Jiu Jitsu better. You have to delve deep into why it works, how you can alter it so it fits to your body, and how it works against different opponents. Putting a Triangle on someone at a similar weight to you is one thing, but when you try and do the same technique to someone a lot bigger, it's a whole different kettle of fish.