First tournament coming up

[Gfreak]

Hey, I've got my first tournament coming up in september (battle of H-town)

And i had a couple of questions.

First, Is there anything i can do differently, or things that are "specially" designed for tournament training? I"ve already begun going to class a little bit more. I was going 'bout 2-3 times a week. Now it's usually about 6 times. about half and half between gi and nogi.

second, What kind of competition should i be expecting compared to the regular guys that i roll with at my gym? Should i expect them all to be prodigies?

and finally, I'm almost worried about hurting someone. If i very quickly go for an americana or arm bar or something. If i have, let's say an armbar, in good form and he's stuck in it. Do i do the move like i want to break his arm? by pulling hard and quickly on it? Because all i've done is training in the gym with partners, and we're always real careful in submissions when we go 100%.

Thanks a bunch,
Gfreak

 

[Uchi Mata]

I'm guessing from your description that this is a grappling tourney, and not MMA...well, good for you, competition makes you better.

Don't try to break people's arms. That said, go as fast as you have to to get a sub. What you want to do is if you have a sub locked in, and you don't have to go fast to finish, then make him tap. If he doesn't tap, and you know you have it tight, slowly tighten it more. It's up to you if you want to break it or not if he won't tap. If your opponent gets caught, it's his responsibility to tap, and you would be justified IMO to break his arm. Chokes, the worst you'll do is put someone out for a minute, so just crank those.

As for competition level, they will not all be prodigies but will probably be better than your average gym partners. That's because usually only people who take their BJJ (or Judo, or whatever) pretty seriously take the time and effort to compete, so tournaments do self select for the better fighters from each gym. But if you're competing, you probably are either good or working really hard to be, and in either case you want a high level of competition to make you better.

Training-wise, just make sure you don't roll live the week or two before-hand. Drilling is okay, but don't go full speed. Nothing sucks more than training really hard for a tournament and getting hurt right before the competition. Happend to me at 2005 Judo collegiate nationals, my senior year, and I still regret not being able to fight in that tournament.

Mostly though, go out and fight hard. The speed will be faster than in your gym most likely, and it will take some time to adjust. However, competing will probably change your whole outlook on BJJ. Just remember that while competition is about being bigger, stronger, faster, and better than the other guy and being able to dominate your opponents, the gym is about developing technique and being able to work safely with anyone. I always found it hard to switch between the two mindsets, but you have to because otherwise either all your gym mates will hate you or you'll suck at competing.

Good Luck, and don't get discouraged if/when you lose. Loss is part of it.

 

[jjspecialist]

Training-wise, just make sure you don't roll live the week or two before-hand.

No live rolling for a week or two before doesn't sound like a good idea to me. Maybe not 100% rolling, but I personally continue rolling pretty close to a competition.

Of course this is just my opinion

 

[raines513]

I just had my first competition and its alot of fun... I lost my first gi match because I was so nervous but after that I was so relaxed and I won 3 no-gi matches for first place. If I was you I would train gi only because no-gi will be easy if you train gi only. I was training 6x a week 2hrs a day for 2 months 6months of total BJJ training, If you put in the hard work like it sounds like you are you should do just fine.

 

[Gfreak]

Ok, thanks a bunch!

and yea, this is a grappling tournament.

I've been training for a bout 7 months now, though I took a couple of months off because of baseball seasons, going in about 3 times a week. I got 2 stripes on my white belt not that long ago, and then when i heard about the tournament i started coming in more.

A lot of times after class, i stay late and roll with a few blue belts that I know, and then as often as i can I catch Jason (one of the instructors, brown belt) to roll as well. So i hope rolling a lot with some higher guys helps a bit for the tourny.

 

[ijustwannasurf]

It depends on personal preference, but I like to train hard up to the day before the tournament.
Pick a couple moves that work for you, and stick with those.
Have a good time, win or lose. You'll learn something either way.

 

[sleeps anywhere]

I competed for the first time a few weeks ago. Here's what I learned:

1. Know what your strengths are and play to them.
2. Don't try anything new. Trust your training.
3. Stay focused. You're likely to go against someone who is like you. Whatever concerns you have, your opponent is likely to share them.

Hope this helps.

 

[Jagcorps_esq]

The most important difference I've found, when competing, is that instead of doing whatever it is you normally do on a Saturday or Sunday...you go to a competition.

Seriously, if you aren't competing in the Pan Ams or Worlds, worry much less about preparation and worry more about experiencing the tournament. Video it and analyze that tape. Remember where you go stuck and spend time working on that weakness, so it's not a weakness anymore.

But in terms of getting ready, just make sure you have a plan. It doesn't need to be complex, just a go to move or two from each position that you might find yourself in.

 

[jmorrell]

Pull your instructor aside and ask him or her to help you come up with a gameplan for your matches. Also ask what your coach would like to see from you from a more general perspective (ie, always get the takedown, focusing on guard passing, a specific sweep or submissions). Hopefully this is the first tournament of many so set achievable goals that are geared towards the long-term, not just winning one local competition.

 

[seiken88]

One thing that surprised me at my first competition was that the intensity was much high then anything I had experienced in training. A good advice I got from my instructor was to always try to get the takedown because not only you you get the points, but it also give you at mental edge.

 

[Gfreak]

I understand what you're saying jagcorps, but...well i'm a very competitive person by nature. And it's honestly extremely hard for me to get into a tournament and know that i didn't prepare the best i could to win the thing. That said...i'm honestly not expecting to take first.

And i already talked to one of the instructors (3rd highest rank, senior instructor's son) And he said i should probably work on top game, so we went on to practice a few takedowns. And i just let the senior instructor know yesterday that i want to be competing.

 

[StrongCrappler]

Hey buddy, I recently had my first tournament experience after about 30 classes of BJJ. My advice to you is to train Judo throws or takedowns a lot. Get real comfortable with your stand up, or guard pulling. I wasn't comfortable at all with my standup in the tournament and it destroyed my confidence.

Good luck and have fun

 

[Gfreak]

Yep, i plan i doing that. Honestly i'm more "comfortable" with the standup even though i'm better on the ground heh.

But yea, i'll be working on that a lot with my instructor.