Interviews

I loved this talk with Kirik Jenness who is mayor for life of the underground forum at http://mixedmartialarts.com, the author of The Fighter's Notebook, the official records keeper for mixed martial arts, and has "done every job in MMA except for being a ring girl."

Simon Yeo is a 15th degree Bujinkan Ninjutsu black belt and a Roger Gracie BJJ black belt. In this episode we talk about Simon's journey into martial arts. The history of ninjutsu. How he discovered BJJ and how he combined it with his ninjutsu. Meeting and travelling Japan with Royce Gracie is his Pride days, hanging out with Eric Clapton, touring with INXS, teaching Bear Grylls on his boat and much more. Find out more about Simon at www.yeodojo.net

Dan was bitten by the MMA bug after watching UFC 4; soon he was training with Dan Severn and learning all he could about wrestling, jiu-jitsu, fighting and MMA. Many miles and multiple black belts later he's on the podcast. In this conversation we focus on the fighting aspects of jiu-jitsu, 'friendly' sparring sessions gone bad, catch wrestling, Systema (yes, systema), training with hundreds of MMA fighters, doing MMA color commentary, and the lessons learned from decades of living the fighter's lifestyle! Dan's website is https://thecombatsystem.com and he currently teaches at http://charlestonfitmma.com

Master Luiz Palhares joins the show and talks about BJJ in Brazil in the 1970's and 80's, Training under Rolls and Rickson Gracie, Vale Tudo in the 90's and why he is a firm believer of training in the gi. He also talks about teaching Navy SEALS

Mike Palladino joins the show and discusses how Pro Wrestling led him to BJJ, learning from Vlad Koulikov and Formiga, online learning, why you shouldn't worry about rank, and competition mindset. He also talks about self defense and sport grappling.

Arlans Siqueira is a BJJ black belt and the first person to teach BJJ in the UK. In the episode we talk about how Arlans got into BJJ. Coming to the UK when there was no jiu jitsu and teaching it for the first time, the growth of UK BJJ, using BJJ whilst working as a doorman for 12 years and much more. Find out more about Arlans at: www.arlanssiqueirabjj.com/

A conversation with Kung Fu stylist (and BJJ brown belt) Randy Brown that included the history of Chinese martial arts and what made them less effective over time, what traditional martial arts look like when you start training them with resistance, and much more. I think you'll like this one! Find out more about Randy Brown at http://randybrownmantisboxing.com/

Really enjoyed this chat with Coast Guard Rescue Swimmer Donald Lipscomb. We went into detail about rescuing people from capsized ships, the selection process with a 90% attrition rate, and the training required to jump from a helicopter into stormy seas with nothing more than a pair of fins to push yourself through the water. We also talk about how jiu-jitsu and wrestling helped give him the mental and physical toughness he needs to do an incredibly gruelling job. If you get the chance, please share this episode with one other person you think would enjoy it!

Anthony Ferraro is a NJ State Greco Champion, An accomplished high school wrestler and a Judo brown belt. He has accomplished all this despite being blind. He is the focus of the film "A Shot in the Dark" and shares his inspirational story

Ben Whybrow is a musculoskeletal, sports & music physiotherapist. Squad physio for Comberton Judo Club and a judo black belt. In this episode we discuss injury prevention, recovery and answer listeners questions. For more info visit: http://thejudophysio.com

After a brief hiatus, Kurt is back! We catch up with him and talk about his upcoming Asian tour, his new drum room, rock stars fighting with fans, options for going bald, Kurt's mustache and his naked arrest story. Kurt also gets triggered by toothpaste.

Loved this interview with Reilly Bodycomb. Reilly is a Russian sambo and leglock expert who has competed in a TON of different rulesets including BJJ, no gi submission grappling, MMA, Sambo, and wrestling. He shared stories about competing all over the world, and shared some major insights about how the rules you compete under totally influence the development of a sport. My favourite part was when we were riffing about creating the 'perfect' grappling rule set. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. If you enjoyed it then please share this podcast episode with at least one friend or training partner - that's how this podcast grows and I really appreciate it!! Find out more about Reilly Bodycomb and his upcoming ankle lock instructional at https://www.rdojo.com Cheers! Stephan

This is a fun episode: instead of me doing the interviewing the tables get turned and I get grilled by Cody from the Codyjitsu podcast. We covered tons of stuff including my martial arts background, how I got my black belt, my favourite moves and techniques, specific strategies to train around injuries, the role of competition in training, and much more. Follow Cody on Instagram: @AmericanGrapplingAcademy Follow me on Instagram: @Stephan_Kesting And if you've actually read down this far then why not go and give The Strenuous Life Podcast a rating or review on whatever platform you listen to it on. That kind of stuff is super appreciated, and it's really helping!

Robert Drysdale has been traveling all over Brazil and Japan gathering historical data for the documentary film "Closed Guard". Some of what he's found may make you question what you thought you knew about BJJ's history!

How to deal with the super-frustrating but ultimately inevitable physical setbacks, limitations and injuries when you're doing a contact sport. Hint: it will ALWAYS be two steps forward, one step back; the trick is how you deal with it to stay motivated and not get discouraged. I speak from the heart AND from experience here! Please remember to subscribe to the podcast on the platform of your choice so that you don't miss any of the future content that I'm coming out with!

I really enjoyed talking to Lieutenant Kevin Dillon (ret) who served for 25 years as a police officer, SWAT team member, and detective commander before moving on to become a full time trainer for police departments. In this episode we talk about his closest calls on the street, how police departments train their officers to fight, degrees of force and escalation in combatives, how to talk somebody down, strategies and tactics that anyone can employ to keep themselves safe, and much more. Regardless of whether you're a LEO (law enforcement officer) or a civilian I think you'll find this useful! You can find out more about Kevin at PoliceCombat.com

Fresh off winning the EBI Featherweight championship, Jonathan Calestine joins the show to recap the event and talk about his rise in the sport. He also talks about the struggles of being a full time grappler and managing injuries.

Chewy (aka Nick Albin) is well known for the BJJ advice he gives on his prolific Youtube Chewjitsu channel, so I was thrilled to have him on the podcast. It's a great chat and we cover a ton of material, including how he got his nickname, his journey from wrestling to MMA to jiu-jitsu, gi vs no gi training, preventing injuries in training, why he decided to leave tech and go full time in jiu-jitsu, getting his black belt on the same day that his mother died, how jiu-jitsu saves lives, his youtube channel, crazy gyms and insane coaches and more. Find out more about Chewy's school at http://derbycitymartialarts.com/web/ and check out his Youtube channel at https://www.youtube.com/chewjitsu

Matt Kaplan joins the show for a hilarious and entertaining episode! Topics include pro wrestling death matches, pro wrestling moves in MMA, leg locks, punk rock and rolling drunk. He also talks about training with Garry Tonon and Eddie Cummings.

David Aguzzi is back to talk about the growth of Grappling Industries, the BJJ ban in Montreal and training referees. He also gives a deep breakdown of what it costs to run a tournament and why entries cost what they do for competitors.

Justin "Master Chim" Garcia makes his second appearance on the show for a deep discussion of self defense, dealing with armed attackers from a grappling standpoint and building muscle memory. He also talks about the direction of competitive grappling.

Ben Kovacs is the founder of The Guardian Gym, a martial arts school that allows disadvantaged kids and adults train for free or for a rate that they can afford. He talks about how the project started and the impact it has had on the community.

Should you pull guard in BJJ competition or fight doggedly for the takedown. You'll get some answers to this perennial question in my conversation about pulling guard with BJJ black belt Rob Biernacki.

Loved talking to jiu-jitsu pioneer Carlos Machado about all things BJJ. His love for the art and experience in the sport comes through at every second. I hope you get as much out of this interview as I did! Some of the highlights include 01:07 - Carlos on growing up in Jiu-Jitsu family 05:52 - BJJ comes into the mainstream 08:41 - Training with Rolls Gracie 11:07 - Style of the Machado game 13:03 - The continuing evolution of Jiu Jitsu 17:54 - Who are the most athletic Jiu Jitsu practitioners? 20:44 - Who has the deepest BJJ technical knowledge? 27:41 - What he thinks about the introduction of new techniques into Jiu-Jitsu 30:46 - Submission only competition formats ` 33:32 - Carlos's reflections on competing in Abu Dhabi Find out more about Carlos Machado at carlosmachado.net