As a relatively new practitioner of BJJ (6 months in so far) I of course still have much to learn. So much to learn in fact that it can feel quite overwhelming to decide what I need to focus on and how I can best go about improving. Getting in solid mat time is a easy place to start and one that has helped me learn an insane amount already. This is a broad strokes approach to learning that leaves me feeling generally better but not very good at any particular aspect of BJJ.
I do not like this feeling and know that there must be a better way to start accelerating my knowledge and growth within the limited amount of time that I have available to train. Through my research I have come to the conclusion that I need to approach my training sessions a little differently and focus on more specific techniques to work on. Now how does one choose what techniques to focus on… I haven’t a clue but choosing some point of focus has to be better than just rolling without any specific intents. In fact I might even be so bold as to state that the simple act of choosing to focus on something will allow me to a. learn a technique that I can carry with me into the future and b. give me data on what I need to work on next.
The deliberate practice will help solve my major issues in the game overtime and can be applied to each category of Jui Jitsu such as standing, guard and guard passing. The other hurdle I feel the need to overcome is some way to drill/train/practice at home without a partner to roll with to help solidify my knowledge. This way when I get into the gym to work on some aspect of my game I will already be at the point the I can at least confidently attempt the new techniques or set of techniques.
Now that all being said I am a white belt and that leads me to feeling somewhat unequipped to make good decisions about how to work on these different aspects of training. I still believe that at least attempting to fill these holes in my training will inform me with which direction to move to continue to improve my BJJ.
I hope these ideas are helpful for anyone else new to the sport and for anyone else who has dealt with these challenges… How did you go about solving them? Did you take similar approaches to training or do something else? Please let me know! Thanks for the read!
Nick