From Gi to No-Gi

[Bubble Boy]

Train both absolutley.

But the original poster was saying he wanted to do a little bit of gi training before he went to no-gi and he implied only doing it for a month or two. My thought, and the reason I recommended putting in at least a year of gi, was because just doing a couple months was pointless. Might as well skip it all together.

Historical note. When the old judo guys used to go around challenging various local wrestlers and fighters, did you know that they almost always asked the guy who excepted to put on the gi top? It put even the toughest wrestler at a distinct disadvantage for that single match, and usually the judoka would win. Pretty crafty eh?

 

[Soulfly]

I like no gi becuase the techniques work for with gi's also. I also like gi grappling because it refines my game and makes me more aware. But they are both equally good in a street fight.

(while on that note) Does anyone have problems doing NO GI stuff with GI's on?

 

[Mark Limbaga]

IF you have spent much tie with gi, no gi is a different ballgme but you will adjust soon

 

[EPT]

I plan on working on gi for a few months untill I get used to that.. then I wanted to switch to no gi. I was just wondering if any of u think that if I did this i would end up have trouble getting used to no gi.

Shouldn't be too much of a problem, the principles you learn in gi training will still help you with no gi

 

[Hamit Aktas]

You'll be fine. And I highly recommend doing gi training aswell as no gi. Don't listen to people some people here who say "I don't think gi is good for your no gi game" or "using a gi gives you bad habits". That's the biggest bullcrap I've heard all day. There is a reason why almost every fighter trains gi. Everyone in BTT does it. Even Wanderlei and the rest of chute boxe does it. You won't have problems transitioning to no gi. Though I'd recommend doing gi and taking one day a week to do no gi. I did BJJ Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Then I'd do submission wrestling on Saturday.

 

[VampireMonk]

oh yeah I put a guy to sleep using his own clothing
as a weapon against him, WOW, your my hero! I know babe, I know!
speaking of weapons, what are those weapons of mass distractions on your chest?
what these? *shakes her double-Ds side to side* you want my milk shakes baby?
since you know how to put a man to sleep using his own clothes, I bet you know
how to bed a woman really skillfully! Oh yeah baby, I sure do. They all say I'm
the best puny dick they ever had! Oh baby gimme your puny dick! Oh yeah just hold on
it's comming. I love your small cock it can fit anywhere! I know baby I know!!

 

[FutureBxer]

I'm sure a lot of ADCC competitors disagree with your statement.

1. most of the ADCC competitors have been grappling for so damn long, they have had the time to develop both a sick gi game and no gi game. what do you expect when most of you're life has been about grappling.

2. No gi is relatively new, so you're not gonna see many top jiu jitsu guys at this time who have only trained no-gi.

Imagine if those same competitors spent their entire grappling experience training/specializing no gi and developing no-gi techniques and how good they would be now.



saying gi will make u more technical, get you use to everything, etc - if a guy trains boxing for 2 years and then goes to kickboxing - he's gonna be much better at kickboxing then a guy with zero kickboxing or boxing experience... cuz boxing is still a standup/striking art.

but another guy of equal talent trains kickboxing for 2 years - I'd bet my money he's gonna be better at kickboxing then the boxer was... because he specializes in kickboxing. The gap wont nearly be as big as the guy with zero experience but there will be a difference.

ofcourse jiu jitsu with a gi will help you in no-gi much more then somebody who hasnt trained because it's still grappling.

Not saying Gi and no-gi are incompatible, im saying if you're gonna fight no gi - train no gi. IMO it will you get you farther in no-gi then doing gi for a while then switching over.

 

[Q mystic]

1. most of the ADCC competitors have been grappling for so damn long, they have had the time to develop both a sick gi game and no gi game. what do you expect when most of you're life has been about grappling.

2. No gi is relatively new, so you're not gonna see many top jiu jitsu guys at this time who have only trained no-gi.

Imagine if those same competitors spent their entire grappling experience training/specializing no gi and developing no-gi techniques and how good they would be now.



saying gi will make u more technical, get you use to everything, etc - if a guy trains boxing for 2 years and then goes to kickboxing - he's gonna be much better at kickboxing then a guy with zero kickboxing or boxing experience... cuz boxing is still a standup/striking art.

but another guy of equal talent trains kickboxing for 2 years - I'd bet my money he's gonna be better at kickboxing then the boxer was... because he specializes in kickboxing. The gap wont nearly be as big as the guy with zero experience but there will be a difference.

ofcourse jiu jitsu with a gi will help you in no-gi much more then somebody who hasnt trained because it's still grappling.

Not saying Gi and no-gi are incompatible, im saying if you're gonna fight no gi - train no gi. IMO it will you get you farther in no-gi then doing gi for a while then switching over.

Think of the gi as a technical training tool. an example- more decent attempts for an armbar in a 10 min match using gi as opposed to no gi. Due to the friction the gi gives there will be much better technical training during a typical match. the more technical you can be while you are training at max is invaluable.

Not to mention that after 12 years of no-gi mma training the vast majority of sub specialists are from gi based styles. And the top throwers in mma are judoka, or they are at least close to lifetime no-gi wrestlers.

 

[Jimmy Cerra]

FutureBoxer, training the same thing all the time can be mentally draining. I like to switch up my training so I don't go crazy!

 

[FutureBxer]

Think of the gi as a technical training tool. an example- more decent attempts for an armbar in a 10 min match using gi as opposed to no gi. Due to the friction the gi gives there will be much better technical training during a typical match. the more technical you can be while you are training at max is invaluable.

Not to mention that after 12 years of no-gi mma training the vast majority of sub specialists are from gi based styles. And the top throwers in mma are judoka, or they are at least close to lifetime no-gi wrestlers.

right, get used to that armbar with the gi and rely on the grip/friction the gi gives you, so that when you do it w/ no gi - it's a lot harder for you to pull off the armbar because his arm is so slippery you're not used to pulling it off. Im not trying to flame you or anything, its just that i still dont see a reason why the gi helps, only hurts.


do you realize the top MMA sub specialists train the majority of the time w/o gi now? some may not even train with it at all seeing as how abu dhabi is huge and most top guys train for it w/o gi.


not to mention the real application of grappling in a street fight - if you get attacked, you aint gonna be using that Gi shit in a real fight unless the guy is wearing a big ass thick jacket or something.

 

[Jimmy Cerra]

right, get used to that armbar with the gi and rely on the grip/friction the gi gives you, so that when you do it w/ no gi - it's a lot harder for you to pull off the armbar because his arm is so slippery you're not used to pulling it off. Im not trying to flame you or anything, its just that i still dont see a reason why the gi helps, only hurts.

Conversely gi grappling makes it a lot harder to escape submission holds and makes it more costly when you make mistakes. Therefore, you become a more technical grappler with better positional control. Sure gis make it easier to do subs; however, there is more to grappling that just submissions. Also, I learned to to a few submissions using a gi, and I was able to apply them to no-gi grappling just fine. :icon_twis

not to mention the real application of grappling in a street fight - if you get attacked, you aint gonna be using that Gi shit in a real fight unless the guy is wearing a big ass thick jacket or something.

Well more than likely he will be wearing a coat and blue jeans in my climate; and it applies in at least a half of the Earth any particular day of the year too. Therefore gi grappling will apply somewhat. Of course, if you are training in Hawai'i then I guess gi grappling has less use cases.

You also don't need a thick jacket for gi grappling to work; gis are just really thick so they don't tear after a hundred practices or so. In a street fight, you don't really care if your clothing tears. A friend of mine was fighting another friend, and he used a gi choke with the dude's tee shirt. Afterward my other friend had a nice thin red great circle around his neck. In a street fight, I imagine you would end up cutting into their throat. That'll probably pursuade your enemy to stop attacking and defend...

 

[EPT]

not to mention the real application of grappling in a street fight - if you get attacked, you aint gonna be using that Gi shit in a real fight unless the guy is wearing a big ass thick jacket or something.

Why wouldn't you use it? It would be pretty rare that you have a streetfight with someone wearing a gi, but the same techniques are going to work if they're wearing jeans and a reasonably strong top.

 

[Soid]

1. most of the ADCC competitors have been grappling for so damn long, they have had the time to develop both a sick gi game and no gi game. what do you expect when most of you're life has been about grappling.

2. No gi is relatively new, so you're not gonna see many top jiu jitsu guys at this time who have only trained no-gi.

Imagine if those same competitors spent their entire grappling experience training/specializing no gi and developing no-gi techniques and how good they would be now.



saying gi will make u more technical, get you use to everything, etc - if a guy trains boxing for 2 years and then goes to kickboxing - he's gonna be much better at kickboxing then a guy with zero kickboxing or boxing experience... cuz boxing is still a standup/striking art.

but another guy of equal talent trains kickboxing for 2 years - I'd bet my money he's gonna be better at kickboxing then the boxer was... because he specializes in kickboxing. The gap wont nearly be as big as the guy with zero experience but there will be a difference.

ofcourse jiu jitsu with a gi will help you in no-gi much more then somebody who hasnt trained because it's still grappling.

Not saying Gi and no-gi are incompatible, im saying if you're gonna fight no gi - train no gi. IMO it will you get you farther in no-gi then doing gi for a while then switching over.

Well, from my observations, I am simply stating that the majority of ADCC fighters or atleast champions train religiously with the gi, and maybe nogi for 6 weeks hard.

Roger Gracie trains religously with the gi, so does Marcelo Garcia, Jacare, Royler Gracie, etc. Of course you can always tell all of them that if they trained nogi only they'd be much better. But at the same time I'm sure they'd disagree. But then again, they are champions of the sport.. and we are... posters on sherdog.. ?

 

[VampireMonk]

thanx for ignoring my post, I hope it put a smile on your face or made you say, wtf?

 

[Bama Zulu]

I like the gi. I haven't started no gi yet but I'm not feeling too bad about it. I enjoy training in the gi and I would like to compete in gi only matches for about a year until I even think about going no-gi.

Besides, no-gi/mma isn't the world.

 

[Jimmy Cerra]

I like the gi. I haven't started no gi yet but I'm not feeling too bad about it. I enjoy training in the gi and I would like to compete in gi only matches for about a year until I even think about going no-gi.

Besides, no-gi/mma isn't the world.

I would still do both. I guess that without a gi you gete quicker when applying submissions and better at guard work. This is because the other person can sometimes slip through and you can't grab their clothing as well. I think the two styles complement each other and help you get better at different aspects of grappling.

I feel you should always train different skill sets at the same time rather than concentrating at one thing or another. Like grappling with a gi and without a gi. Like training moves with your dominate side and your weak side. Even though it is a lot to learn, I feel like it becomes easier to see the big picture and integrate the best of both approaches into my game.

 

[VampireMonk]

to be a real grappler, one should know how to do both.

one should have a few gi moves in their arsenal as well.

 

[Gsoares2***]

not to mention the real application of grappling in a street fight - if you get attacked, you aint gonna be using that Gi shit in a real fight unless the guy is wearing a big ass thick jacket or something.

yeah most of the guys i run into the street are naked... or wearing a pair of fight shorts and no shirt.

Any callered shirt = Gi top
Any pair of pants or long shorts = gi pants.

 

[TapDammit]

I plan on working on gi for a few months untill I get used to that.. then I wanted to switch to no gi. I was just wondering if any of u think that if I did this i would end up have trouble getting used to no gi.

I did the same thing. personally i dont think that the gi is very practitcal, other than comps. So i just do no gi now and i love it

 

[Q mystic]

yeah most of the guys i run into the street are naked... or wearing a pair of fight shorts and no shirt.

Any callered shirt = Gi top
Any pair of pants or long shorts = gi pants.

Even a simple t-shirt is fine.