TJL #15: No plan is also a plan
Just a very shitty one
Hi friends,
Welcome back to Today Jan Learned (TJL) #15. In this newsletter I try to share something interesting every day. Yesterday I wasn’t able to publish something, sorry for that.
Just before the COVID-19 pandemic, I started training Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ). After getting completely gutted in training I wanted to know how to train more effectively and I found this great blog post from 2013 (!) called Wednesdays with Coach Tim: Understanding How to Train.
One of the key points that this blog post is trying to make is that no plan is also a plan. Don’t focus on what your opponent is doing, focus on your own plan, and steadily advance your position.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ)
Right before the pandemic hit I started picking up Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ). BJJ is a martial-art based on grappling, ground fighting, and submissions. Your goal in BJJ is to make the other person tap out. This is usually done with chokes, joint locks, and other submission techniques.
When you start sparring (also called “rolling” in BJJ) you have absolutely no freaking idea what is going on. Your body is moving in ways you’ve never imagined. You are being folded in ways you never thought possible. Then suddenly the other person explodes and after a scramble he’s suddenly on your back and applying a rear-naked choke on you. You tap out, reset, and go again.
It’s very easy to get overwhelmed in the beginning while rolling. I want to give you a tool that you can use to regain some control.
Positions are relative
Here’s what Coach Tim has to say about being overwhelmed during rolls:
Without an understanding of human movement patterns, grappling movements will initially seem counter-intuitive. This is normal! It can be overwhelming to try of think of what you should do ("Do I move first?" or "Should I wait until my partner moves and try to counter them?") in tandem with what your opponent is doing ("He grabbed my sleeve!" "She's making me fall over!").
It’s really hard to tell you how difficult BJJ is. You must experience it. It has gotten easier since I started, but BJJ is incredibly complex. There are a lot of moving parts (literally, there are a lot of moving body parts).
It is very easy to get overwhelmed by the sheer optionality of things. Where do you put your arm? Where to put my leg? Oh shit he is grabbing my collar what do I do? Oh no he is grabbing my ankle what do I do!?
The key here, Coach Tim says, is to focus on your own positioning:
Instead of trying to process what you and your opponent are doing and then coming up with your next move, just focus on your own body positioning. You should always feel like you have your balance, your spine (from the top of your head to the bottom of your pelvis) is straight and braced and you feel like you are strong and fast.
In other words, if you are consistently working on your own plan and putting yourself in better positions, then you are slowly working your opponent as well.
If you are consistently able to place yourself into optimal positioning, then you don't need to worry about your opponent! Since we are in contact during drilling and sparring, if my positioning improved, then your positioning has regressed. This simple axiom allows you to narrow your focus down in the beginning of your training and makes it easier to understand the purpose of each step in a technique.
This is a critical insight for a beginner because it allows you to focus on a very specific part of a technique or sparring session. Instead of being overwhelmed by all the things that you need to think about, you have something to latch onto.
Similarly, if you do not have a plan then you are not working your own position. What this means is that you are being along for a ride on your opponents plan. If you don’t know what you are doing you can for sure expect your opponent to slowly march you down with his plan. In other words, no plan is also a plan.
Recap
To summarise, no plan is also a plan.I If you are not working on your own plan, you’re being worked in somebody else’s plan. If you are not continuously improving your own position, your opponent is improving him. Stop focusing on the competition. Make a plan and work it!
Anyway, that’s it! Thank you so much for reading!
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