always rolling with higher belts

[FStep]

so i'm about 6 months into bjj thing is the only days i can make class everyone there has 2 to 7 years experience so obviously no matter who i roll with all i can do is defend myself from bad positions or just delay the inevitable subs and therefore i never really get to work my offensive game at all ... now i'm sure i'm improving but will this hurt my game in the long run since i never get to practice any offense when i roll and i hardly ever get any good position to even attempt subs, should i look into a different school with more beginners or what?

 

[tequilaman]

NO way dude. I have the opposite problem, and therefore my BJJ is suffering. You always, no matter what your level, want to be practicing with people better than you, even if you get your ass kicked.

At my current school, I am one of a few Blues, and there are only 3 purples. I am a 3 stripe because I got my blue 3 years ago.

So, 90% of the people I spar with are below me in technique, and therefore I am always beating them (I know, it is a tough problem to have).

But unfortunately, my BJJ is not improving because of this. If you are at a school where everyone is better than you, feel blessed.

Patience my son. YOu will improve over time, and there will be new white belts for you to beat up on.

 

[DMcKayBJJ]

There is another thread just like this, very recent, like in the past week or so, with lots of comments that you'd be interested in seeing.
My opinion: stick with the big dogs. They'll show you what's up. You'll learn FAR FAR FAR less by hanging with people who are less experienced than you.

 

[krait]

so i'm about 6 months into bjj thing is the only days i can make class everyone there has 2 to 7 years experience so obviously no matter who i roll with all i can do is defend myself from bad positions or just delay the inevitable subs and therefore i never really get to work my offensive game at all ... now i'm sure i'm improving but will this hurt my game in the long run since i never get to practice any offense when i roll and i hardly ever get any good position to even attempt subs, should i look into a different school with more beginners or what?

As someone that is also relatively new to rolling with people that have much more experience , my attitude is no. I look at it like this. Before you start trying to go offensive on someone you should be compentent at defense. My defense has gotten better and now I'm able to reverse my position more often to get myself into a more dominant position to try for a sub. If you can't get defend yourself long enough or reverse a bad positon to get into a good one to do a sub. Practicing the sub doesn't really do you a whole lot of good.

Least thats how I look at it when I get tooled everyday.

 

[Headache]

You can only be as good as the people you train with. You are very lucky and will probably advance quicker than most.

 

[Aesopian]

Stay where you are. It sounds like a great school. Maybe just ask someone to do some extra sparring with you where they go light so you can try some offense. Just explain the situation.

 

[Senterian]

Like everyone else has said...

Remember you learn more from your losses than from your wins, and hell if someone does something to you, you havent seen before then ask them how they did it... 99% of guys are glad to show you exactly what they did...

 

[Gsoares2***]

Your lucky..
Your kind of being a pussy man, I know its frustrating that you cant do much yet but thats just it is.
You have to look at jiujitsu as a big picture and your still just sketching it out.

The harder it is on you in the begining the better player it will make you in the end.
Give it 6 more months and wait for some other new guys to come..

 

[Soulfly]

I wish I rolled with higher belts all the time.

I just started at the club I'm at now so they're always putting me with another group of beginners. I was supposed to take the advanced days but I have college on thoes nights. I've only rolled with a blackbelt once (which was a blast) and one orange and one yellow.

To make up for the lack of high belts, they're stacking me with people much heavier than I am.

 

[skinnyhb]

i think it depends. if you roll with some guy who is way better than you and he is just going balls out trying to tap you left and right, it sucks. however, if you go with someone good, who explains stuff to you and doesn't just stomp all over you and then move on, then it can be a very good thing.

 

[El Tiburon]

I love rolling with higher belts. At first I dreaded rolling with them but now I actually see it as a learning experience. After 4+ months everybody knows the keylock, guillotine, armbar, RNC, triangle. One thing is for certain that I would have never have learned moves like the Cow's foot, the Gi-suff while rolling with the wite belts. Then after I have rolled with the Purples or the high Blues I usually have my way with the white belts. It does wonders for my confidence. Not only that by spending time on the defensive against the higher belts, I find myself more calm when I am in trouble.

It all plays out and evens out in the long run. Just think those guys who have purple, green and brown belts all got thier asses handed to them . Now it's just our turn.

 

[LCDforMe]

I was talking to one of the purple belts in my gym the other day (one of the fighters), and I was talking about how I was getting destroyed and he said that "You should only be depressed when you come here and nobody can beat you". I think it's good to train with better people. It has been helping me improve, that's for sure.

 

[VTJas81]

if you read Renzo and Royler's Theory and Technique and one of Royce's book they recomend rolling with white belts sometimes so you can try new moves out. No way you are able to pull new moves on the higher belts. You'll just get frustrated and probably won't use it again. From my experience I think rolling with newbies is very beneficial. You might be losing a lot by rolling with only higher ups.

 

[Waxwingslain]

I got mashed by higher belts last night. It's winter and too cold for all the slackers.

Training with higher belts is great but once in a while it's good to play with a noob.

VTJas - good post!

 

[Reveen]

I love rolling with higher belts. At first I dreaded rolling with them but now I actually see it as a learning experience. After 4+ months everybody knows the keylock, guillotine, armbar, RNC, triangle. One thing is for certain that I would have never have learned moves like the Cow's foot, the Gi-suff while rolling with the wite belts. Then after I have rolled with the Purples or the high Blues I usually have my way with the white belts. It does wonders for my confidence. Not only that by spending time on the defensive against the higher belts, I find myself more calm when I am in trouble.

It all plays out and evens out in the long run. Just think those guys who have purple, green and brown belts all got thier asses handed to them . Now it's just our turn.

What's a "Cow's foot"?

 

[FStep]

i agree i've learned a ton of new tricks from the higher belts and i am harder to sub now, etc but here's where i see problems ... when i roll with higher belts if i even attempt a triangle or armbar or something from the guard they just pass instantly so i've found myself going for those moves less and less now

what i feel that has led to is now when i do get to roll with new guys they can't tap me and i can tap them easy but i tend to do it only with some basic chokes, kimuras, etc basically moves that don't really put you in danger if they fail ... my leg locks got a lot better because i tend to go for them more and more with higher belts when i can't pass their guard but i still really hesitate to attempt a lot of moves even with the new guys since i never really get to practice them

 

[Ybot]

The way I see it, it's nice to roll with someone of your own level sometimes. Rolling with higher belts is good for you, but as someone else said you don't get many chances to try new techniques. My suggestion isn't to quit the school, but perhaps find a willing partner to help you drill your offensive techniques like a mad man. Drill, drill, drill... it may be the only place you get to use those techniques until the next noob starts training the same class.

 

[knoxpk]

You are at the right spot. You may not realize it but you ARE getting better especially at defense.
One night I was training with one of the co-instrucotrs( A Brown Belt from brazil) and class was over. the head instructor(who was also his ride) was like "Hurry up I have an appointment.
Well thankfully his pride was too much for him to say class dismissed lets go.
It was just he and I and it took like 15 minutes for him to finally nab me in a sub.
I know he was going for it because he was in a hurry and while I had no chance to sub him I had opprtunities to pass guard and such. Finally I was so tired from defending his multiple sub attempts he caught me in the most basic of holds, the guillotine...LOL....
The same will happen to you. You will be rolling and then you will realize you arent getting subbed as often, then all of a sudden you will be able to attempt a guard pass or a sub yourself. you may not land it but you have the CHANCE to land it.
Thats a big deal, consider yourself lucky!

 

[El Tiburon]

What's a "Cow's foot"?

It is kind of like an armbar that is applied to the wrong arm. Instead of hyperextending the elbow it bends the wrist back using the mat.

The best time to apply it is when you have someone in turthe position. They try to stand with thier palms flat on the mat (To try to leveredge you off) and you secure it by abandoning back controll and securing either arm.

 

[LuNoTiCK]

When you roll with people who aren't as good as you, you get to try out new moves and learn that way. Don't go out there trying to kill them everytime. When you roll with higher belts you learn as much.

Also, someone here said Defense is more important than Offense. I disagree. I think Offense is far more important. The point of Jiu Jitsu is to submit the other opponent, not to not get subbed.