Got destroyed in first bjj class, how do I improve

"first bjj class"
 
You are not an outlier. You're actually at the most fun point in your journey. You're suppose to suck and make mistakes. There are no expectations placed upon you. You can only get better.

Remember, BJJ is hard but not impossible. The most challenging accomplishments are the most satisfying.
Consistency is really the key. I've heard countless Black Belts say that the secret to getting good is showing up to class.
Focus on executing the technique as smoothly as possible and with good timing.
Forget the Stripes and Belts. They're just decorations.


Get Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Blue Belt Requirements: Fundamentals for All by Roy Dean. It will help A LOT!!!
 
I'm still trying to figure out how not to get destroyed on my 453 day.
 
Keep showing up. Focus and train hard when you do.

Within a year, someone else will turn up for their first class and you'll strangle the shit out of them and suddenly realise how much you've learned. Or one of your friends will get cocky and challenge you while drunk... And you'll strangle the shit out of them.
 
My school is also doing 3-4 techniques a class, it's almost impossible to get enough knowledge about the basics and how to handle yourself in sparring.

Internet and your teamates are a great ressource to solve your problems.

My first reaction was, asking my ''submitter'' how to escape the sub he just did to me, within a month I had a huge database of escapes in my mind, I didn't manage to do them properly in the beginning but at least I was trying something logic to counter them.


When you start, the main problem is that you don't know what to do in when you're in a position.

So if you're always stuck under side control, you need to know how to get a good position and how to escape it, if you have 1 or 2 good escapes and you know how to put your arms and legs to not get into deeper trouble, you'll be working on something solid at least. Like I said, it won't work at first but you're gonna be working on something that will work someday.

You'll have to do the same thing under mount, halfguard and when someone takes your back

After that you will need to learn how to not get your guard passed easily, guard retention is the first step to stay out of trouble.

In my case the classes weren't covering those things fast enough so I learned them on the internet.

For the attacking part (sweeping, guard passing, submissions) I pretty much did the stuff we learned in class and it was more than enough for me.
 
Just keep showing up. Eventually, something "sticks"
 
chirpsman said:
Thanks for the cool response bro I was expecting angry replies. I suppose I'm not used to being so bad at a sport that I get completely dominated the first time but I guess that's just bjj.
I'll stick with it and take a beating twice a week and see how I improve
Click to expand...

First months of bjj are tough as you are just feed with too much info and feel helpless when rolling. if you can live with that and train regularly you will start to understand what to do, be a bit more competitive and then you will be in for a long long time.
But first 2/3 months are tough, lot of people give up in first six months
 
Your first day at anything is probably going to be bad. You don't start first grade learning calculus but overtime you can work your way up. just have fun and tap often no point in getting hurt. over time you will get better. I wish I started at 17 I started at 43.
 
chirpsman said:
Most of you won't care but I'm 17 years old and have been kickboxing since i was about 14/15 years old. I went to my first no gi bjj class yesterday as I am eager to transition into mma and It was horrible. Everyone went 100% on me and I must have tapped like 20 times while we were rolling. Is this normal for a beginner or am I just shit? I was recently watching a Joe rogan podcast where he said the only way to improve was by rolling with people less experienced than you, if that's the case and I am the least experienced in the gym will it be hard for me to improve?
I understand it may sound like a stupid question but each class we learn new techniques and I feel that I will never get to learn the basics, is youtube a good source to learn from? I am hoping to transition to gi training after I get the hang of it with no gi.
No hate please I am a grappling noob and I know sherdoggers love giving sarcastic responses to feed their egos.
Thanks in advance
Click to expand...
i was in the same situation, also started kickboxing at 15 then went into mma at 16/17. Point is its normal to get absolutely destroyed for a while after u began lol so dont worry about that. But even after u have been doing it for a while u are gonna have days when nothing works out for ya and u just feel like shit when rolling, so dont get discouraged. Just kep turning up to training u are inevitabely gonna improve. Good Luck with it!
 
Grappling isn't going to get any easier - don't give up.
 
yes. you are shit... and so is everyone else when they start. how do you get better? keep showing up. the formula is easy. the hard part is having the discipline and nuts to go through the initial few months/year of ass whopping.
ps... its worth it. dont quit.
 
I sucked hard in No Gi when I first started, for 4 full months I was literally pwned by my gym mates every single roll, all of them trained for more than 2 years and I was the only new guy. After 4 months a couple of new guys came in, and I will never forget how in a minute I was able to close an Ezekiel, a Kimura and an Americana like it was nothing, even if they were going 100% and they were stronger than me. That moment made me realize that I was actually improving, it was very motivating.
 
chirpsman said:
Most of you won't care but I'm 17 years old and have been kickboxing since i was about 14/15 years old. I went to my first no gi bjj class yesterday as I am eager to transition into mma and It was horrible. Everyone went 100% on me and I must have tapped like 20 times while we were rolling. Is this normal for a beginner or am I just shit? I was recently watching a Joe rogan podcast where he said the only way to improve was by rolling with people less experienced than you, if that's the case and I am the least experienced in the gym will it be hard for me to improve?
I understand it may sound like a stupid question but each class we learn new techniques and I feel that I will never get to learn the basics, is youtube a good source to learn from? I am hoping to transition to gi training after I get the hang of it with no gi.
No hate please I am a grappling noob and I know sherdoggers love giving sarcastic responses to feed their egos.
Thanks in advance
Click to expand...
Erm how to get bettrr from your first class of bjj?
Take a 2nd class
Then a 3rd
Etc etc
 
I know it will be hard if it's not built into the class, but if you can find someone who will do positional sparring with you (using the positions you used during the technique portion of the class), it will help a lot.
 
Start by going back no matter how much it embarrassed you. You will already be making improvements before class has begun.
 
Short answer: You train.

Long answer: You train for a long time.

Serious answer: I remember having the same experience in Judo (after 3 years of Karate and other arts beforehand). Destroyed every time. Felt like trying to throw a brick wall. DOMS and pain all over my body every morning after training. I hated it. But I FORCED myself to come back, again and again and AGAIN! And finally, after like 6 months, suddenly I realized it wasn't as painful anymore. It was still HARD as FUCK but not impossible. I was improving. I learned a lot. And I actually started ENJOYING IT. Amazing feeling.

I wish you to experience the same. Good luck!
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Forum statistics

Threads
1,237,014
Messages
55,461,153
Members
174,787
Latest member
Santos FC 1912

Share this page

Back
Top