BJJ

Jul 04 2016

Legends Seminar 2016

I returned to the Inosanto Academy on June 2nd for my second (the 18th annual) ‘Train with the Legends’ seminar. The occasion was also marked by Guro Dan’s 80th birthday. The seminar included–although not limited to–a curriculum of Kali, Silat, BJJ, Wing Chun, and Muay Thai Boxing (afterall, Bruce Lee’s philosophy of Jeet Kune Do is deeply rooted within all of Guro’s instruction & affiliate instructors). It was an incredible experience to be surrounded by all 4 legendary instructors (Guro Dan Inosanto, Professor Jean Jacques Machado, Sifu Francis Fong, and Ajarn Chai Sirisute, in addition to Ajarn Brian Dobbler), as well as 40+ martial artists from all over the world.

My ultimate goal is to achieve technical knowledge and skills at a level that is considered proficient for teaching Kali, Silat, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, and Muay Thai. According to Guro Dan, “Before you can teach, you must learn. Before you can learn, you must first learn how to learn.” I couldn’t agree more. Last year, I did my best to soak in everything but my brain fatigue was so intense that I forgot all of the afternoon Wing Chun sessions. After surviving last year’s 40-hr seminar, I was more mentally prepared this year. I already established rapport with multiple training partners and I was familiar with the Legends format, many of the drills and the teaching styles of each instructor. In addition, I learned how to quickly identify similarities across the arts and techniques. This allowed me to more easily absorb key differences between techniques (although I continue to struggle with knife drills…perhaps because I find it hard to bring myself to practice cutting another human being–it’s a brutal form of fighting that doesn’t fit my personality–but I need to overcome this mental block and acquire the coordination).

I don’t really have a “main art” but I have logged over 1.5 years of training in BJJ and ~25 hrs of private instruction under Coach Jack McVicker. I injured my knee in March, 1 week prior to Pan Ams and was forced to withdrawal and subsequently limit my mixed martial arts training. However, I was capable of participating in all sessions at Legends (I admit I did sit out of some Silat takedowns and some kicking MT drills). By day 4, I found myself evolving as a BJJ practitioner. I started to become more aware of how to borrow and integrate takedowns, trapping, mobility and coordination drills into my Jits game. Although I have been feeling really blue after my injury, I left this year’s Legends seminar feeling inspired by some of the greatest martial artists in the world. I cannot wait to resume my training after my knee is repaired and rehabilitated. In the meantime, I’ll be observing classes at McVicker’s Martial Arts Academy, and doing what I can with supplemental at-home online MMA training.

Oct 21 2015

My First BJJ Competition

On October 24th 2015, I competed in my first Jiu Jitsu tournament called the “Extreme Grappling Open” otherwise known as E.G.O. I am 35 and weighed in at 169 lbs so I fought in the “Masters Lightweight” division. There was only one other competitor in this bracket so we mutually agreed upon a best of three matchup. I won my first and second match, but I sustained an injury to my shoulder (type III separation). Overall, the whole experience was a lot of fun and I learned a lot.

If you are interested in watching some scrappy White Belt maneuvers, feel free to watch the videos below.

Match 1 – Mullen wins!

https://youtu.be/Gc6yh4j6qNA

Match 2 – Mullen wins 6-0)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMHgRuu_t0o&feature=youtu.be

The cool thing about BJJ is that you can fight each other for 5 minutes and then shake hands and remain extremely cordial 5 seconds after the match is over.

…and here’s the X-ray of my shoulder afterwards

Looking forward to getting over this hurdle and back on the mats!

Jun 10 2015

Legends ’15 at Inosanto Academy

For 4 consecutive days in June 2015, I completed 40 hours of mixed martial arts training at the Inosanto Academy in Marina Del Rey, California as part of the annual “Train with the Legends” seminar. The morning consisted of Kali, Eskrima, and Silat. We had about 1.5 hours for a lunch break and when we returned, we engaged in 1.5 hours of training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under the direction of world-renowned, 7th degree Red & Black Belt instructor Jean Jacques Machado. Jean Jacques had a full house of BJJ practitioners from all over the world. There was quite a wide range of skill and at the time, I had only been training for about 6 months. I learned a lot from JJM’s exceptional demonstrations, in addition to feedback from my training partners. There was an incredibly positive atmosphere in the academy throughout these sessions. JJM even jokingly named a shoulder pivot maneuver after me (ironically, I cannot pivot on my shoulder any longer due to an injury that I sustained from competition). Meeting him was definitely one of the many highlights of this trip.

May 04 2015

Megaton Diaz’s BJJ Seminar – May 2015

Dec 04 2014

Why I Jiu Jitsu

Why do I Jiu Jitsu?
(I ask myself nightly, but recently I’ve had to answer to others who question my journey).

My answer is inconsistent & usually goes something like, “I love new challenges.” But the tone of my voice usually gives away that I am just as confused by my own choices & actions. So this forces me to reflect.

I immerse myself in everything. I don’t dabble, and I don’t get things right away (most things). I’m an over-thinker & a perfectionist. These are my personality flaws (causing me daily detours, but I digress). I don’t aim for gist learning. I want to know absolutely everything about topics that pique my interest. Some people call it obsessive. Others call it futile. I call it self-discovery, reflection & revision.

I know very well that incremental improvement is hardly recognizable. It takes years before anyone begins to understand their martial art(s). But it always feels worth it to me to learn something new, no matter how long it takes. Same was true when I started clarinet, piano, trombone & guitar; tennis, website development, statistics…I’m task-oriented and driven by a love of processes, concepts, and mastery of skills. I’m too old to care about outcomes like winning, belts or trophies. But is learning all there is to this addiction? There must be more to it. Why do I do this? Another obvious response & cliche is that I want to extend my capacity to defend myself & family. True story but that ain’t ‘it’ either. At least that’s only part of the picture (more like a picture-in-picture view) as its always in the back of my mind but there are many other tools that exist for this purpose.

Why Brazilian Jiu Jitsu? What’s so special? Perhaps it’s because I want to be more physically fit. Evidently I’m burning 680 calories every 45 mins (says MyFitnessPal, but that’s a gross overestimate). Maybe that’s it though, as BJJ lets me tap into my physical strengths & knowledge. But more often than not, BJJ exposes my physical weaknesses. I have discovered an incredible lack of kinesthetic instincts, flexibility & timing is off the mark for sure.

Maybe I am attracted to BJJ because of some kind of psychological phenomenon. After all, I am a trained educational sport & exercise psychologist (hence I should be able to figure this out). Mental toughness hasn’t always been my strong suit, but I have learned to overcome anxiety, fatigue and pain. Even when facing strong opponents, I never, ever give up while maintaining laser-like focus. But in BJJ I do feel anxious, pain & fatigue. I feel these things over and over again with Jiu Jitsu. This is new and I know very little. Indeed, I must overcome these feelings at every roll…again and again. There goes self-verification theory. Glutton for punishment maybe?

Could it be just a social learning/modeling effect? I was in a lot of fights growing up (in nearly every school I attended). This explanation seems far-fetched as I haven’t thought about these meaningless interactions in years and they didn’t cause me any serious mental scarring. Then again, maybe the observation is key, as I have I seen more than my share, including wrestling matches. Hell I even played with Muscle Men, WWF Thumb Wrestlers, and owned a Hulk Hogan blowup punching bag w/weights–although I hated televised WWF). I also watched my dad wrestle with a Green Beret who served in Nam. Maybe Im seeking some kind of decade-old cathartic release after sparring & losing badly to my roommate (former state champion wrestler). Anything is possible right?

I don’t know that I’ll ever figure this one out, so Im just going to roll with it.

Training in BJJ makes me a better person.

BJJ teaches me my limits & scaffolds a steel wall of self-discipline to build upon. I was pretty grounded there already so that’s saying something about the power & transfer effect of BJJ.
BJJ teaches me patience under stress. And damnit, have I got a lot to learn there.
BJJ teaches me to match others’ energy rather than burning out or shutting off.
BJJ teaches me creative thinking.
BJJ brings me inner peace and a quiet mind and begs me to maintain this beyond the mat.
BJJ forces me to train harder and better for next time.
BJJ asks nothing of me but to respect my training partner & enjoy the process.
BJJ instills the value of lifelong learning. For these reasons I Jiu Jitsu.

Tapping out of this, is out of the question.