The Grind: Vol 1 with Justin Rader

[slickcmrick]

On this weeks episode of Open Mat Radio, we have Justin Rader. In "The Grind: Vol 1" we discuss his arduous path from the wrestling mats and dojos of Oklahoma City to the podiums of the IBJJF. Justin candidly reveals how he overcame mental blocks and other challenges to become one of today's best American grapplers. We also get his unique perspective on the Point vs Sub Only rule sets, a great Lloyd Irvin Jr. story and much more. In Vol. 2 we cover his intense schedule where he balances his graduate level studies with teaching and competing at a world class level and many other topics. Stay tuned to OpenMatRadio.com for more details.

http://www.openmatradio.com/2012/12/16/episode-50-justin-rader-vol-1

 

[cbtrn]

I met Justin at the Ultimate Absolute and he is a great person and a great grappler to boot. Humble, and really nice. Thank you for posting this.

 

[Murdoch]

I met Justin at the Ultimate Absolute and he is a great person and a great grappler to boot. Humble, and really nice. Thank you for posting this.

We were there as well. I'm glad we were too. Justin had some epic fights that day. We discuss a Ult Absolute 2 a little in the interview. For sure his fight with Celsinho is testament to his will as a fighter. Pure tenacity. If you're interested in that Ult Absolute check out our pre and post interviews with Rob the promoter on our page. They'll be in the archive.

 

[Ice 9 Cobra]

One of my favorite grappler's, I can't wait to listen!

 

[Drew Foster]

One of my favorite grappler's, I can't wait to listen!

Just finished it. It's a great podcast. Can't wait for part 2! I really dig his thoughts on rule sets.

 

[Ice 9 Cobra]

I have only listened to forty minutes of it so far, but loving it. He seems extremely prepared for the interview, knowing what he wants to make sure to accentuate.

Also, since I am an idiot whats the easiest way to put this on my android? The download link didn't initiate an actual download on my phone, otherwise I'm stuck finishing it when I get back.

 

[Murdoch]

I'm posting from my phone,which is dying, so I have to keep this short. I think the Stitcher app works best. The iTunes podcast app is clunky in my iPhone and I'm not a huge fan. We have two players on our page. The main player and a different side player. Both of those should work for you. You can also use our RSS feed.

PS Rader is the man! Very professional and FYI we don't discuss questions before hand.

 

[Ice 9 Cobra]

I didn't think to just use the website mobile, I'm an idiot.

And yeah, I didn't mean that it was rehearsed just that he isn't confusing his thoughts and at the start mentioned several items he planned on taking about. Very professional

 

[Murdoch]

I didn't think to just use the website mobile, I'm an idiot.

And yeah, I didn't mean that it was rehearsed just that he isn't confusing his thoughts and at the start mentioned several items he planned on taking about. Very professional

I would look into Stitcher too. It's a free app that works really well.

And to be clear I didn't think you were saying we were rehearsed at all. I just want to let everyone know that we don't give the questions to anyone ahead of time. We put a lot of work into preparing for interviews. We try to catch as many candid and honest moments as possible.

Rader is an awesome person. Always very professional and candid. Anyone that has met him knows this. I guarantee that one day he'll become one of the best coaches in the world. In part two we talk a bit about his coaching plans. How he will put his masters degree and certifications to good use. We could have gone on for another two hours and still had more to talk about!

Do you like these longer format interviews? We base a lot of what we do off our listener survey. We'll update and release a new one in the New Year.

 

[cbtrn]

We were there as well. I'm glad we were too. Justin had some epic fights that day. We discuss a Ult Absolute 2 a little in the interview. For sure his fight with Celsinho is testament to his will as a fighter. Pure tenacity. If you're interested in that Ult Absolute check out our pre and post interviews with Rob the promoter on our page. They'll be in the archive.

Yeah, I was taking photos for Gracie Mag. I was sitting right next to Lovato Jr and Justin so I got to hear their awesome teacher-student directions. Lovato was amazing at giving him instructions and Justin following everything to a t. At one point, Justin was about to do a move and Lovato literally went " I know what you are thinking Rader, and I like it! Wait a couple more seconds and do it!" Justin went on to win that match. Honestly. I think Justin deserved to win that tournament.

 

[cbtrn]

And yeah, I love these long format interviews. Jiu Jitsu is a beautiful and nuanced art. I love it when eloquent practitioners put forth their philosophy about it.

I have become friends with Rader on FB and we both have similar roots. I was a gymnast all my life, 5-time national champion and captain of my team. Never did wrestling like Justin but ended up falling in love with Jiu Jitsu. I am now a purple belt under Alexandre Soca here n Long Island, NY.

You guys should do an interview with my teacher, Master Alexandre "Soca" Freitas. He is a 4th degree black belt under Carlos Gracie Jr. Former Abu Dhabi Champion and simply an amazing individual. He has some amazing stories growing up in Rio with his friends Renzo (who gave him the Soca nickname), Ryan Gracie, Nino Schembri, Draculino, Roleta. Being the person that Carlos Gracie Jr. frequently used to pick to fight people who issued challenges at Gracie Barra, usually a lot bigger than him. Also at 40 years old, he teaches practically all the classes at the academy, trains every day and rolls with everyone.

Thank you for sharing your awesome podcast with the BJJ community! Great Job!

 

[Uchi Mata]

I prefer the longer format. The more the better.

 

[Ice 9 Cobra]

I like the long format, but would love if you would give chapters to the podcast. Just something like a guide at what minute the conversation turns to a certain subject, just in case I want to reference the podcast again

 

[Murdoch]

I like the long format, but would love if you would give chapters to the podcast. Just something like a guide at what minute the conversation turns to a certain subject, just in case I want to reference the podcast again

It's something we can look into.We got away from our "Quotes and Notes" banners because they took so long to make. Our downloads didn't change with or without those banners.

I think people would be surprised how much time we put into getting quality content out each week. Between setting up interviews, research and production it takes time. I'm not complaining as I love doing the show. We also aren't doing it for money. We've discussed taking sponsors, and we may in the future, but for now we want to just focus on content. So when life gets in the way we cut back on things but always try to put out a show. I think the only time we've missed shows is when we're out covering events.

With the Dean interview part of the reason we split it was so people could focus on each part. Going back to the survey we did, most people wanted to keep the show under an hour. We try to mix that up though.

Our goal was 26 shows for the year. Rader's was episode 50.

Out of curiosity do you guys follow our Expert's Corner vids on youtube, the Grapplers Closet style guide or any of the other content on our site?

 

[gdjiujitsu]

Great interview guys! I really enjoyed him talking about his mindset. I don't think that too many people in the world will be able to pull off what Lovato and Rader (Coach and student) did at the Black Belt/Adult division during the 2010 Worlds No-Gi.

 

[Murdoch]

Great interview guys! I really enjoyed him talking about his mindset. I don't think that too many people in the world will be able to pull off what Lovato and Rader (Coach and student) did at the Black Belt/Adult division during the 2010 Worlds No-Gi.

We dissect his mindset more in Volume 2. Especially in the context of having to compete against the same guys all the time like, Cobrinha, Mendes, Hall etc.

In the end of the interview I ask a few questions to you guys and ladies. Anyone have a "Lightbulb" moment with their coach? Something that they said that just made your game or mindset change?

 

[Murdoch]

And yeah, I love these long format interviews. Jiu Jitsu is a beautiful and nuanced art. I love it when eloquent practitioners put forth their philosophy about it.

I have become friends with Rader on FB and we both have similar roots. I was a gymnast all my life, 5-time national champion and captain of my team. Never did wrestling like Justin but ended up falling in love with Jiu Jitsu. I am now a purple belt under Alexandre Soca here n Long Island, NY.

You guys should do an interview with my teacher, Master Alexandre "Soca" Freitas. He is a 4th degree black belt under Carlos Gracie Jr. Former Abu Dhabi Champion and simply an amazing individual. He has some amazing stories growing up in Rio with his friends Renzo (who gave him the Soca nickname), Ryan Gracie, Nino Schembri, Draculino, Roleta. Being the person that Carlos Gracie Jr. frequently used to pick to fight people who issued challenges at Gracie Barra, usually a lot bigger than him. Also at 40 years old, he teaches practically all the classes at the academy, trains every day and rolls with everyone.

Thank you for sharing your awesome podcast with the BJJ community! Great Job!

Shoot me an email sometime at [email protected] and we can set it up. Would love to have soca on.

 

[Aesopian]

Good interview. It was nice to learn more about Justin after seeing him crushing it in competition.

 

[Murdoch]

Good interview. It was nice to learn more about Justin after seeing him crushing it in competition.

Thanks for the support. It means a lot coming from you. It's good to hear you're re-launching your site. If you want to be on OMR to discuss it I'm sure we could work something out in the future.

Justin is a beast for sure. Off the mat he's really personable and truly cares about the sport/martial art and his students. It's amazing to me that he ever had a confidence issue early on. Watching him up close at Ultimate Absolute 2 he was fearless. He attacked, Hall, Braga and Celsinho with no fear in his eyes. Many people think he won that tournament. I'm glad he shared some of the stories on HOW he got past those confidence issues. We go into more detail in Volume 2. Specifically how he deals with fighting the same guys at the top even after losing to them.

 

[slickcmrick]

How many of you had the opportunity to wrestle while you were in school? Looking back, I wish I would've wrestled in HS...