Need your advice on this.

[Cora Sek]

So last night, Cora's coach told me that he's noticing Cora doing alot of lockdown and clinching now and he continue to tell me about his own fighting style and where he wants to steer Cora to. Basically he doesn't want her to rely too much on the clinch game and the lockdown game as people can easily pass her guard. Rather, he wants her to play the open guard game more, with the Z guard, spider guard, DLR, etc etc...and just have the lockdown on stand by as a last resort. He said that with open guard, she can better control the distance. All of this coming from him maybe because he spent a week with the Mendes bro during his stay in Cali for the Pan Ams.

I'm kind of on the fence on this one as I do agree with him to a certain extent. I know eventually she will have to know all type of guard games, whether it be close or open. But at the moment, we are trying to perfect the close guard, half guard, and the lockdown game. I want this to be her foundation as we all know eventually you will have to clinch. And its better if she is ready for that game now. Once she has a good grasp of this game, then we will venture to other type of guard. We did the spider guard game already and at high level, she is not able to control the boys as she is with the clinch. THat is why I am focusing on the clinch game so much now and building her strength up.

Or maybe have her play the open guard in GI and clinch/ lockdown game in NO Gi??

what's your take on it guys...?? Thank you... Bruce

[Greg W]

And so it begins, As a wise Zog once said, listen to your coach. If you don't like it you do have a choice to find another gym that is more in line with your own beliefs.

I'm sure Zog has a meme for this, I've see it!!

[Cora Sek]

so this is a common occurance??

[Greg W]

so this is a common occurance??

unless your coach has zero ego and a very open mind, it can happen! Think about it, your coach knows a thing or two right! He sees Cora's sucess with things he has not taught her, and it is not part of his plan for her, or what he feels comfortable with. Also he sees her talent and where she could go if she went down that open gaurd game that he likes. If she kills with the open game and wins big, it could possibly be a bit of stroke to his ego. If he spends time and energy teaching her a more open game and she never practices it in live rolling, then it can be a bit of a slap in the face. As long as you are at that gym and paying, you should listen to what he says and pull every bit on knowledge from him you can, he didn't get were he is at for nothing ya know.

[HerbChao]

One gym I visited once the coach there (silver medalist in pan ames yrs ago) said he didn't always like how much the 10th planet game relies on the clinch, but other than that no other gym have I gone to have people bashed the system (well, one other exception one gym I train sometimes at the first week we met he bashed Rubber Guard but aside from that). So I can't comment on it being a common occurrence....but as coach Zog said do u have an option to maybe visit another gym once or twice a week to focus on the parts u want her to, and then the rest of the week have cora train with the current coach? Obv not a black belt, but just throwing some ideas out there...

[derrick ikwueme]

sticky situation, but as a instructor you have to realize different people will gravitate towards different things, and instead of trying to put them in a box and force your game on them. you should try to learn about the game there interested in and help them as much as possible & in return you will be learning yourself, one of my students asked about tornado guard witch i never played with so i learned it to help him with it now i like it too. Jean Jaques didn't use rubber guard but he did help Eddie develope it and never tried to force Eddie to play a game thats not natural to him.

[Cora Sek]

No we have no other option. THis gym is a great gym with a lot of cool people and coaches. We go there 5 times a week from 6-7:30 or sometimes 8pm. This is not her head coach that talk to me. Its her blue belt coach, the one that work with her the most and we have a certain bond. He's really cool and wants to help Cora as much as he can. It was something that he just brought up last night. In my opinion and feeling, I just want Cora to have a solid FOUNDATION with the clinch game/ close guard game, especially the rubber guard. If Cora keeps working on the Clinch game and the rubber guard, when she gets older, she will have a very strong advantage on people who doesn't do this type of game. She will be able to fight people who are much bigger and stronger than her. I'm building this foundation for the future, not just for now. Maybe I'm just really SOLD on this system, that I believe this is it for her. There are many kids in her BJJ class, but to be honest, none has improve the way Cora is. THe only thing that is attribute to her vast improvement from the rest of the kids is 10thplanet system. Since Nov when I injected 10thplanetJJ into her game and you all can see the improvement. She just pick this stuff up so fast, perhaps its because we drill it often. The other kids are learning the stuff at the gym, but they aren't progressing like Cora. This is why i'm so Sold into the system. Maybe when she really get this clinch game down, then we can progress into the DLR and Berimbolo as her coach recommend.

[Chris Herzog]

I disagree completely with the notion that clinching guard = getting passed, sounds more along the lines that this particular coach doesn't have a complete grasp on the concept of lockdown and other clinching guards. No offense to the blue belt coaches out there, but blue belts are still beginners and have much to learn.

That being said, like the others have mentioned Cora has a Coach. There is a reason she is training with him, she should listen to him, if she resists his teachings he will be less incline to offer advice in the future or dismiss her all together. The other option is to find a Coach better suited for the style of game play she feels comfortable with.

As a Coach, I give every student a fair shake, if someone continuously decides to disregard my advice I'll just stop offering it to them and save my energy for those that are willing to receive it.

[bobby rivers]

The guards can be used in harmony together. Practicing one does not shun the other. It does have to be practiced to be useful, however.

[Chris Herzog]

Agreed with Bobby, she will eventually have to learn a style of open guard as her opponents will start to avoid her clinching guards like the plague.