QNA: Small Mans Game, Lifting Once A Week, & Coach Not Rolling

Speaker 1: Welcome to the only jiu-jitsu podcast that is answering your questions on a near fortnightly basis. It's a Q&A episode. We got questions from you guys. They've been flowing in pretty thick and fast lately, which we appreciate. If we're a bit late in getting back to yours, apologies, but don't fret, we will get to it. Speaker 2: We will. Speaker 1: Uh, if you want to leave us a question for a future episode, go to bulletproofforbjj.com, hit the podcast page, and then just big red button, record your voicemail. And also, let us know where you're from, because we love to hear that shit. Um, JT and I spend a lot of time trying to guess accents. First question today is from Gage. Speaker 2: Oh, Johnny Gage. Speaker 1: Nice. Speaker 3: Hey y'all, uh, quick question, and uh, I might ask this the wrong way, but I started jiu-jitsu a few years ago at like 160-ish pounds, 168 pounds, I think I was. And I wasn't very strong. Like I was competing at 170 because it was easy. Well, now I am 185 pounds, which I think is about a 10 kilo difference. Give or take 20 pounds. Um, and I'm a lot stronger in the weight room, and I'm a lot stronger on the mats, but now I have the issue of playing a very small man's game as my frame is filling out better. And I don't know how to turn the the gym strength into jiu-jitsu strength without feeling like I'm just strong-arming everything. And I don't feel like that's the best way to learn the technique. If I could just get y'all's input on it, that'd be great. Thanks. Speaker 1: Oh, okay. So, so Gage has gone from being what he calls a little smaller person. Speaker 2: Sure. Speaker 1: To now crossing the threshold into, I'm a little bit bigger, but my game is still based on the smaller person. Speaker 2: I don't think that's a problem. I, this is, this is, this is my take because I, okay, so, Speaker 1: I agree. Speaker 2: Many years ago, I got to roll with Bruno Malfacine. Malfa is the smallest motherfucker ever. Speaker 1: The smallest motherfucker ever. Speaker 2: The smallest guy of all time, right? He's also one of the strongest guys pound for pound. Like, he felt, like his side control, his ability to move, he felt like a 100 kilo guy. He's a, he's a 52 kilo guy, right? And he's so fast, he moves so well. Like, if you've, I think what you have, Gage, is perfect. I think to be a smaller person or a lighter frame person who's now muscled up a bit is perfect because you are, you've come from the side of where you had to be technical, and now you've got some firepower behind it. I don't think there's anything wrong if you're stronger to use that ability appropriately. I guess the way I would frame it is anything you do in life requires a degree of application, like technique, know-how. It's up to you how hard you push the lever on applying effort in that direction. And actually, when you get better at jiu-jitsu, you actually become more efficient. You realize there's sometimes when you need to turn it up, and there's plenty of times where you don't need to. So I think understanding when is the time to go hard and use this new strength of yours, that is the kind of nuance, or that's when you're, that's the understanding of jiu-jitsu you need. I think having more firepower, it's really a personal choice as to when you fucking unleash. Speaker 1: Yeah, I totally agree. Um, you know, at any, at any stage, like of jiu-jitsu, right, in the different weight categories, you should just be as strong as you can. Speaker 2: Yeah. Speaker 1: And so, you know, wherever you're at, if you're getting strong, that's great. It will be transferring to your game. You don't need to tailor your game around it in order to express that strength. That strength will be kind of permeating everything that you do. Um, so keep doing your thing, man. Um, yeah, like I, I'm, I'm thinking like, like take all these like, um, take guys like Lucas Cannard. Speaker 2: Sure. Speaker 1: One of Australia's top no-gi grapplers. Speaker 2: Yep. Speaker 1: Um, oh, and the gi, he's good too, isn't he? Speaker 2: He's great. Speaker 1: Um, you know, he's, he's stacked. He's stacked like any, like any elite level. Speaker 2: He's so strong. Speaker 1: But he just pulls guard and chases legs, right? And I mean, that's what he's been doing, you know. Speaker 2: He does more spider guard. Speaker 1: That's his game. Um, so, you know, if you were looking at that, you might be like, oh, well, he's not, you know, based on how you were sort of talking about this, Gage, he's not using his strength there, but he absolutely is. It's just hidden inside the way he entangles legs and fucking catches limbs and, you know, so, so yeah, don't, don't sweat it. Keep doing your thing. Speaker 2: Oh my God. Yeah, definitely. I, I think it's just a matter of as you, as your game develops, you'll be able to choose the moments where you use this new strength you have, and that's just, I think that's a little bit of experience, so. Speaker 1: Yeah, and the flip on that, which is being, like coming into jiu-jitsu as a big guy. Speaker 2: Stronger. Speaker 1: Like if you come into jiu-jitsu as a 110 kg, or is that like a 2, 240? Speaker 2: 240. Speaker 1: 240 pounder, um, it's going to be very hard for you to ever do anything other than play a big man's game. Speaker 2: Yeah. Speaker 1: Whereas what you're talking about, Gage, is having the ability to do both, so that's wonderful. Speaker 2: That's really cool. Happy for you. Speaker 1: Second question. Robert. Speaker 3: How's it going, guys? Uh, I have a question regarding strength training that is more centered around training in the gi. I'm currently almost two years into my jiu-jitsu journey, and my BJJ has benefited from strength training, and I agree with you guys that it definitely seems to help with performance and durability. I would like to ideally strength train at least twice a week. However, because of health issues that limit the amount of food that I'm comfortable eating, I often struggle to strength train more than once a week. Can't get enough calories in. My question for you guys is, if I can only manage one strength workout per week, what specific exercises, volumes, and rep ranges would you recommend? Noting that the primary goal is to perform in training and in competition for BJJ. Also pointing out that I am training exclusively in the gi, whether or not that factors into your recommendations. Thanks, and really keen to hear your thoughts. Speaker 1: Robert, legend. Speaker 2: Nice. I, look, I, I'd think the gi, yes, training for the gi versus no-gi, you can train for them differently, but you're only going to be doing strength training once a week. So that is your biggest constraint. The, the gi, no-gi thing doesn't matter. Can you get stronger training once a week? You can, but that is a challenge in and of itself. So, when we come to sets and rep schemes, I, I would say if your number one goal is you want to be stronger, then you're going to be doing lower volume, like you're going to be doing less reps in your sets, but you will probably be doing multiple sets. So I would be looking, if I were you, to be doing anywhere from, you know, kind of your three reps, topping out at five reps. You might be doing five sets, you might do more, you might do seven sets, depending, you know, obviously it's a very general chat here, and you'd be going whole body. So you would be squatting and deadlifting and pressing and pulling. You need to be hitting every single base in that workout. That is going to be the biggest challenge for you. So, like you say, you know, dietary issues, I don't know what the context is there, but if you're saying you can't get enough calories in, that is for me a concern. Um, you can get stronger without getting bigger. That's, that goes without saying. But what I'd say here from a recovery point of view, if you're training in the gi a lot, which it sounds like you are, you do need to make sure you're getting enough nutrients in to support that strength training. So, I think it's going to be a whole body workout. It's going to be lower volume, like less reps, more sets, more rest, heavy work, whole body. That's what I'd say for once a week. Speaker 1: Yeah, I'm not too far different in my recommendation. I would say, um, I would say an alternative view on the rep thing is that don't worry too much about them. You could do three months of low rep stuff, you could do some high, you know, like it's kind of, as long as you're getting the, as long as you're getting the hard sets in. But I'd say like if you took JT's recommendation of squat, hinge, push and pull, then you want to be doing at least eight sets of each of those every workout. 10 sets ideally, but eight sets if at a minimum. So, and that's quite a lot, right? Speaker 2: If you're doing one session. Speaker 1: Yeah, like if you're doing, let's say you're doing, um, Speaker 2: It's 90 minutes. Speaker 1: Let's say you're doing five sets of five deadlift, and five sets of five back squat, fucking chin up and bench press, then that's five sets of each. So then for your accessories, you only got to do three sets. Speaker 2: Yeah. Speaker 1: Right? That's probably going to tick the box. Scientifically, you're probably getting enough stimulus there to get stronger. Maybe you do four in your primary, so then you do four in your accessory. So, yeah, I would just gauge it around that. But I wouldn't, um, there's no single best exercise. Um, there's ones that are really good, and obviously the compound movements are going to be your, your friend here because you're trying to do as much as you can with as little as possible. So, all the classic lifts are going to be the ones for you. Um, but you know, you could do like three or six months of this and then switch it up three to six months. But as long as you're keeping that base of, you know, getting, making sure you're getting enough sets, because that's ensuring that you're getting the, the minimum effective dose to get stronger. Speaker 2: Yeah, definitely. And just make sure if you're not able to eat certain foods for whatever the reason might be, you want to be looking at creatine and potentially other supplements that are going to enable you to bounce back from jiu-jitsu and bounce back from your lifting. That's. Speaker 1: Yeah, if liquid, if liquid nutrition is a way for you to get more calories in, you know, mass gainer shakes, protein shakes, that kind of thing, if that's an option, Speaker 2: Yeah. Speaker 1: Definitely be going down that path. Speaker 2: My guy, hopefully that answers your question. If it doesn't, you can kind of follow up on this, hit us up on Instagram, we can get a bit more nuanced about it. Speaker 1: Yeah, we'd love to help. Um, third question for the day, no name attached. Speaker 2: Oh, mysterious. Speaker 3: Hey guys, it's TJ again. Just wanted to follow up on my previous. Speaker 1: Wait. No, that's the second half from TJ. TJ came in with two questions. Speaker 2: Hold up. Speaker 1: Hold up a second. Speaker 2: Hold up. What you don't know is that your rash guard is shrinking your balls. That's right. Your T levels are declining because of the plastics in your rash guard. I have a solution. The sponsor of today's show, Alchemical. They deliver natural fibers, we're talking hemp, organic cotton, bamboo, with lightweight rashies and organic materials in your gi that do not stink and they feel amazing. You've got to try it to feel the difference. Go to alchemicalfightwear.com and use the code bulletproof15 to get 15% off your next order and stay strong. Speaker 1: Dealer sure. Speaker 3: Hey guys, it's TJ, based out of Sydney, Australia. So, my instructor doesn't roll with his students during class, which I find a bit strange. I'm a bit unaccustomed to that as I've trained in gyms before where the professor might not roll every round, but he'd get a few rounds in. Um, my current instructor is under the age of 50 and is still able-bodied and does a lot of sessions, so I get that he might be just fucking tired. But yeah, what do you guys think about the professor not rolling with everyone, in fact, doing no rounds at all? Cheers, guys. Speaker 2: Okay, now there is a second part to this. So should we Speaker 1: Go on. Speaker 2: Go on the second part. Speaker 1: Go on. Speaker 2: We get the full picture. TJ, what's going on? Speaker 3: Hey guys, it's TJ again. Just wanted to follow up on my previous submission. Um, I'm coming from the perspective where I want to roll with my professor to see where I'm at, see what he does to me, see what I'm missing. Um, I'm a colored belt, so obviously not at his level, and he's got like fifth, I think he's a fifth degree black belt, so he's been training forever. Um, yeah, I want to see where I'm at, see what he does to me, see how easily he does it, and yeah, I think I'm coming from a learning perspective, not I want to destroy my professor. Cheers. Speaker 1: I mean, we all want to destroy our professor a little bit. Speaker 2: Maybe you do. I mean, you can say, oh, look, it's all about learning. Oh, smash him. Um, Speaker 1: Understood. Good question. Speaker 2: Two, two things here. There's, there's a, there's a bunch of context around this that we don't know. So, for example, if your coach has already taught three classes that day, has already trained, I, I, I think it's at least the way I'm understanding your question and the way you're shaping it, TJ, is is my coach ducking out on the rolls because he's kind of hiding insufficiencies in his jiu-jitsu, or is it because he's just freaking tired? Speaker 1: Yeah, like he's just actually looking after himself. Speaker 2: Yeah, he's just looking after his body, right? And so, I think it's pretty obvious when you see your coach roll with other students, um, that you go, wow, that's the level. Like you see the, you know, the kind of the, the matrix, oh, Morpheus, Neo's fighting Morpheus, and everyone like runs to see, like the top brown belt versus the coach. How does that play, right? That often gives you a gauge of like the kind of dynamic balance of jiu-jitsu, and you're saying you want to find out for yourself how you roll against your coach. I, I, I think it depends on the coach. If your coach is a, someone who competes or they're someone who takes pride in being competitive, then the rolling will be a big part of how they communicate skill to you. But if someone is, like you're saying, five stripes on their black belt, that's, you say they're under 50, but by how much? Like, that's a lot of freaking stripes, like. Speaker 1: Been around the block a few times. Speaker 2: Yeah, you would say so. So, maybe they also are carrying injuries and, and, and as a result, aren't feeling as competitive and don't necessarily want to be tested. I don't think that that means their jiu-jitsu is invalid or of any lesser quality, but if you're looking for a top, tough black belt, then maybe that isn't necessarily the environment. Most coaches I know will jump in with the students. That's at some point. So if you've never rolled your coach and you've been training there a while, then that might be a bit questionable. What's your take, Joe? Speaker 1: Yeah, I tend to agree. Is it, is it, is the coach just, is it a practical thing? Or are you training at different classes and, and you know for a fact that they just are not training with students or particular students? Um, yeah, look, in my mind, if it, if it kind of is, that is the case, um, then I, I, yeah, I think that's probably not great, right? Like I, I think it should at least be addressed. Like I, I, I sometimes when I'm coaching, like I never get to roll with everyone, and I'll sometimes do a session and I'll, and I'll realize, I mean, I try to as much as I can. I apologize if there's anyone I missed here, but I'll be like, oh, fuck, I haven't, I haven't rolled with JT for a bit. I didn't, you know, not, not JT, but I didn't roll with fuck that guy, you know? And sometimes I'll know because I didn't want to go to war today because he's a real, because it's a tough fucking roll. Speaker 2: He wants that. He's a dog fighter. He wants that. Speaker 1: And so, and so I'll as from my own thing, I'll be like, hey, I won't duck you next week, I promise. Make sure, make sure we get around it, you know? So I, I try to uphold a bit of that. And I, but I coach once a week, and I, so I do have empathy for coaches who are running a gym, been doing it for a long time, five stripes, been doing it for a long time. Fatigue is a factor, potentially, you know, pain is a factor. So, you know, I just throw that in so that you can be considering those things. I definitely think though, there are some coaches out there that are reluctant to put themselves on the line, particularly in this more modern age of jiu-jitsu, and they might where they feel that maybe their jiu-jitsu isn't up to scratch, and so they don't want to roll with students. And I, I, I think that is a weakness in them. Um, and I, I, I think that, you know, and while I have empathy for them, um, I do think that you, you can be up front with your students about that. You can be like, I'm, I'm prepared to lose to this student. Speaker 2: Right. Speaker 1: And I'm prepared to have the conversation that like, yeah, I'm fucking don't have the fire that I used to, but I'm still here to teach you guys and help you get better and, you know, fucking good job. Speaker 2: Yeah. Speaker 1: You know what I mean? Like you don't, you don't have to be the top dog forever. That's, that's what I'm getting at. Speaker 2: No, and that's the hardest thing about jiu-jitsu, which most people don't realize is Speaker 1: It's going to come to an end. Speaker 2: You know, you, you start to diminish, you stop being the most competitive or the most dominant person in the gym, and it just sounds from, from what I'm hearing, TJ, that you want to test. And I don't necessarily think your coach is the best person to test against. Speaker 1: Oh. Speaker 2: You need to go to other gyms and push, and you need to find other people who want to go to war, and that is probably a better gauge in my opinion. Because the hardest thing is managing that relationship with your coach that yeah, I mean, it's, you know, like any relationship, there's got to be a certain degree of respect there, and if you don't respect your coach for not rolling, then that's going to be a hard relationship to manage. Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah, I do think the onus there is on the coach to communicate with the students that, you know, with the higher, with the tougher students, so that they can understand the reason for that, right? Because otherwise, it lends itself to this kind of thing, like, Speaker 2: Ambiguity. Speaker 1: What's going on? Why are they fucking ducking the rounds, you know? Speaker 2: Sus. Speaker 1: Yeah. Um, so yeah, fair question. Um, fuck, I'd love to hear what your, what you, you know, take from this and how you kind of, are you just leaving and going to another gym? Speaker 2: Uh. Speaker 1: Or, you know, Speaker 2: Yeah, I, I think it, it's something, it's a conversation you would have with your coach on the side. Just like, hey, I'd like to roll with you. Speaker 1: It is, it is, but I can imagine if you were not feeling comfortable to have that conversation with them, it's probably because you're pretty sure that they're like not willing to expose themselves. In which case, they're not going to, they're probably not going to, you know what I mean? Speaker 2: Yeah. Speaker 1: Whereas if you've got a cunt, if you've got a coach that's like up front and open and like, you feel like you can have that chat with them, they're the coach going to tell you, hey, man, I'm not rolling with you because I fucking my body's not up for it. Speaker 2: I'm too slow. Speaker 1: Yeah, you're too fucking good for me these days. Speaker 2: Right. Speaker 1: You know? Speaker 2: Sure. Speaker 1: Whereas if it's a coach that he feels a bit kind of feeling a bit vulnerable, it's like, oh, shit, I don't want to broach this. Anyway. Speaker 2: But hey, you sound like you're in Sydney. Uh, if you just want to have a little private test, let's uh, let's have a roll. Speaker 1: Yeah, JT's available. Speaker 2: I'll beat the fuck out of you any day to let you know exactly where you're at. So, hey, get at me, bro. Much love. Speaker 1: Uh, appreciate it, guys. Great questions today. Please, if you've got one about any part of your jiu-jitsu journey, go to the website and record one for us, bulletproofforbjj.com, hit the podcast page, record that thing, and we'll catch you on an upcoming episode.