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What Is Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu?

What's bjj? It's both a martial art and a combat sport that focuses on grappling for you to beat your enemy.

Several of the moves were modified from judo and jiu-jitsu. Picking up how to perform the actual move allows even a smaller and more frail person to defeat an assailant who is larger which is why it's also employed in self-defense classes.

Brazilian jiu-jitsu developed as recently as in the 1920’s. It only acquired world fame after Royce Gracie won the UFC tournament several times after it was established in the 90's. Due to the domination, various academies are now instructing this martial art.

One can most likely say that the popularity as a sport is second after football.  There are fights held regularly such as the European Championships, the Mundials and the Pan Am Games

If you desire to be successful in bjj, repetition is key and the sole way you can do that is via training and rolling. This means sparring against a live and resisting partner under simulated conditions while at the same time being cautious not to cause any serious injuries.

During rolling and competition, wrestlers are required to don the kimono. It looks just like what you would wear when you practice judo. The only difference is that the gi has tighter cuffs on both the jacket and pants.

Submissions in Brazilian jiu-jitsu are achieved either through chokes or joint locks. Choking as you well know involves constricting the windpipe so the enemy is unable to breathe. Apart from that, there's also what is known as strangling which shuts down the carotid. Choking is less efficient than strangles and may cause permanent damage or even death which is why the latter is used more often during competition.

As for joint locks which are probably safer, what you are doing is creating a fulcrum with the body position which will force the joint to move past its normal range of motion. This is also known as hyperextension and since there is no way out of it, the enemy has no other choice but to submit. 

Anyone can be taught jiu-jitsu. As you grow, you are promoted to the next belt class. Noobs start with the white and progress their way towards the red belt. For those who are under 15 years old, you progress your way from white to green belt.

How fast you elevate depends on the amount of time the person dedicates and how rapidly they learn. To obtain the elite class for instance, it takes at least ten years or even more.

With BJJ leaving its mark on the world scene, you won’t have a hard time discovering a gymnasium that is offering classes. The one thing you have to do now is use your time wisely since this is done in a group and you're just one of many that are learning the ropes of this sport. As a beginner, you do not have to get a uniform so just come in wearing a shirt and board shorts.  If you are trying to find a bjj blog that doesn't take it too seriously, you should check out doyoubjj.com.