The Art of Teaching BJJ – Finding balance between Order and Chaosby Wim Deputter
The day I started truly learning Jiu Jitsu, was the day I gave my first private…
“If you want to master something, teach it.
The more you teach, the better you learn.
Teaching is a poweful tool to learning – Richard Feynman”
Once gym’s reopen, I’m going to implement this concept more in my own classes.
I was always allergic to overstructured classes. Too much order destroys creativity. (wim deputter)
You need creativity for progress and to make an activity fun to begin with.
Too much chaos however will also halt progress as it lacks direction.
If you keep walking circles in the forest, you will never reach an edge.
You need to reach an edge to be able to appreciate the forest as a whole.
Understanding the bigger picture gives you more appreciation for the smaller parts of the system.
Beginners need more order, advanced practicioners in any field need more chaos. Classes should always reflect that.
It’s my (untested) believe that this will also follow the pareto principle; more or less, beginners need 80% of your class structured and guided, 20% free exploring and experts vice versa with gradations in between.
Order needs chaos and chaos needs order. (wim deputter)
But, if I had to choose between one of the other, I would always choose chaos.
Out of chaos you still have good things randomly happen and some degree of order emerges naturally.
https://www.wimdeputter.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/The-Art-of-Teaching-Finding-Balance-between-Order-and-Chaos.jpg540523wim_deputterhttps://www.wimdeputter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/WD-BJJ-LOGO-300x295.pngwim_deputter2021-04-21 22:31:002022-03-12 09:08:46The Art of Teaching BJJ – Finding balance between Order and Chaos
Do you want to see Wim Deputter’s way to defend the triangle choke and use it to pass the guard in action and explained? Click here!
“A gambit in chess is a move where you sacrifice material in order to gain structural, positional or other advantage”
In Brazilian Jiu Jitsu we have “gambits” as well.
If your defense is well, you can bait your opponent with a submission and use his or her eagerness to your advantage.
My favorite BJJ gambit, the core of my game, and the one I have practically made my “career” on, is baiting the Triangle.
If the Footlock is the sneaky Thief, the Armlock Queen and The Choke King, we can consider baiting the Triangle “The King’s Gambit” of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu”.
Gambit’s can played if you know the position, structure and possibilities well. If you have a system to answer the different reactions the opponent might throw at you.
And all of this has to rest on a solid, systematic defense in case you make a mistake in your system.
For years I have understood the top part of the triangle better than the bottom. My Triangle Choke Defense was better than my choke itself.
I always found it easier to beat the triangle than to finish it. Something was missing on bottom, something didn’t make sense.
I have been willing to make an instructional on this topic for a long time. But to bring something out, you have to understand all aspects to it. One important ‘piece of the puzzle’ was missing on the bottom triangle.
Until today. Today I discovered something new. Something not generally known and used.
I will start filming the next installement of The Mirroring Principle “The King’s Gambit” this week.
And where there is a King there is a “Queen’s Gambit” in the future as well.
“The Thief’s Gambit” is, for now, still a work in progress 😀
Check out the link in bio for an example of “The King’s Gambit” in action.
In the mean time, here you can see an example of The King’s Gambit in action on competition and a basic intro.
https://www.wimdeputter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Dogfight-to-side-control...-or-to-the-back.jpg7201280wim_deputterhttps://www.wimdeputter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/WD-BJJ-LOGO-300x295.pngwim_deputter2020-11-24 12:26:172020-12-03 17:21:38Sweep or take the back from Dogfight (Wim Deputter / Brazilian Jiu Jitsu)
Enter ‘The Rocking Chair’ – Counter for one of the most common passes in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu
Are you a half guard player? Does your guard often get passed with the knee cut?
Do this adjustment and turn the situation to your advantage!
An analysis of one of the most common guard passes in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu: The Knee Cut Pass
The knee cut, knee slice, knee slide, cut through pass,… however you call it, it’s a guard pass every half guard player will have to learn how to deal with. It’s one of the most common passes in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu at every level.
The regular way to play deep half guard, is to fight for the underhook and reach for an undergrip on the far leg.
Once the opponent starts to cut his knee through, there is a gap behind his leg. This allows you to let the far leg go and instead weave your bottom arm behind the cutting leg. Congratulations! You just entered “The Rocking chair” 🙂 Not only did you counter the knee cut guard pass, from here you can also transition to a modified Dogfight.
From Dogfight you have a lot of options, which I will explain the next few weeks in my “The Rocking Chair”-series.
Stay tuned! 🙂
Check out part 1 Wim Deputter‘s next series: Enter “The Rocking Chair”
Wim Deputter doing specific leglock training with Steven Royakkers
“Have as much fun defending from ‘bad’ positions as you have attacking from ‘good’ positions. Panicking, spazzing and disconnecting are the opposite of what is jiu jitsu. You are on this mat to learn jiu jitsu. No matter if you are in a ‘good’ or ‘bad’ position, you can still be doing jiu jitsu.”
Who is “attacking” and who is “defending” in this photo? The ‘”fireman” position is one of the pillars in Wim Deputter’s “Mirroring Principle”
That is the first piece of advice I give beginners on my mat these days. And, if I could go back in time, it is the one piece of advice I would give to my white belt self.
Offensive Defense – Defensive Offense
There are no ‘good’ or ‘bad’ positions in jiu jitsu. Only positions you know what to do or don’t know what to do.
In some positions you can be less mistakes away from tapping than your opponent.
But if you don’t make mistakes and do the right thing at the right time, you can make every position work.
By truly believing that, you are more inclined to look up “weird” or “losing” positions.
This gives you a better chance to fight from those weird positions than people who hold dogmatic believes.
The photo below was taken at a seminar I taught at Kaiser Sports in Olzstyn, Poland last year. Take a close look at the exact armbar position of Przemysław (partner on bottom).
Wim Deputter teaching armbar defense at Kaiser Sports in Olzstyn, Poland
It’s hard to believe, but from everything that I “discovered” so far the last few years, it’s actually harder to finish the submission here, than it is to escape (given no mistakes are made).
Often when people think about escaping, they think about disconnecting and getting away from the “dangerous” position.
By doing this, you will get at best a reset to a neutral position.
“Offensive defense” means staying connected. Don’t try to get away from, but instead, spend time in the “dangerous” positions.
Figure the positions out and try to solve them, not escape or break them. Make defense seamlessy transition into offense and bypass the neutral reset. Find the logic in every position.
The more disconnected two grapplers are, the more possibilities of movement there are, the more chaos.
Explosive and strong people hold a significant advantage over weaker people in most grappling related circumstances. The more disconnected a position is, the exponentially bigger that advantage is. The more connection, the least possibilities and chaos. More connection means more predictable. The more predictable the situation, the more the methodical technical grappler can shine.
If you have a good understanding of back defense, playing “panda” is easier than it looks. Click the photo for The Mirroring Principle “Backdefense and being offensive with someone on your back”.
Offensive Defense
Offense is starting from a ‘good’ position and slowly working your way towards a ‘better’ position. Defense is starting from a ‘bad’ position and slowly working your way towards a ‘better’ position. Both offense and defense are a battle for improvement and they meet in the neutral point were neither holds an advantage.
From this perspective, there is no difference between offense and defense.
You can’t teach offense without being aware of the defense, you can’t teach defense without being aware of the offense. Stay connected and realize they are both one and the same.
https://www.wimdeputter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/WD-BJJ-LOGO-300x295.png00wim_deputterhttps://www.wimdeputter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/WD-BJJ-LOGO-300x295.pngwim_deputter2020-11-05 23:41:462020-11-05 23:47:16There are no “bad positions” in Jiu Jitsu… (Offensive Defense))
In this playlist I will go over the mechanics of a proper headstand, how you can use that headstand to become much harder to sweep, a counter to the classic scissor sweep and much more…
Let me know what you think in the comment section. Sharing is caring 😉 The Mirrorring Principle Unsweepable by Wim Deputter
https://www.wimdeputter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/WD-BJJ-LOGO-300x295.png00wim_deputterhttps://www.wimdeputter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/WD-BJJ-LOGO-300x295.pngwim_deputter2020-11-05 00:02:082020-11-05 00:28:05Did you know that sweeps don’t work? ;) (unsweepable by Wim Deputter)
Whenever I roll on training with someone I don’t know…
I like to start standing, let them get their grips and let them choose top or bottom.
Training is not always to see if I can beat someone with my A game.
It’s most often to check if I can play your game, defend myself and still come out on top.
The harder people go, the calmer I go. When they go hard (and they often do ?) they get tired in the first few minutes. I keep pushing the same pace.
When it’s someone who goes slow as well, we have a nice technical roll. You build respect and trust for later, more higher paced rolls.
If I can allow someone’s A game while rolling calm and still come out on top. I know I can do the same thing playing my A game.
I train seven days a week, never refuse a roll with anyone, never sit a round out and usually take the first roll with new students. This way you meet all kinds of people. Some aggressive, some calm, some heavy and some light.
This is the safest way to train jiu jitsu and be ready for anyone facing you. Probably the only way you can train a lifetime with minimal injuries.
Along the way you might even convince some douches to take the same approach and ultimately make rolling safer for everyone. Creating an environment where you can safely take risks. Taking risks, allowing bad positions, getting out of your comfort zone are the only way to learn.
It sets an example for beginners. If we roll hard, they will copy that. If we roll slow and technical, they will copy that.
Before a hard roll, you have to build trust and respect first.
Competition is for testing yourself against people you haven’t build trust with yet.
https://www.wimdeputter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/WD-BJJ-LOGO-300x295.png00wim_deputterhttps://www.wimdeputter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/WD-BJJ-LOGO-300x295.pngwim_deputter2020-11-04 00:43:382020-12-04 08:20:56This is how I roll – Jiu Jitsu training philosophy by Wim Deputter
Wim applying pressure to pass a training partner’s guard , photo by Morgane Gielen
The Rules of Pressure in Jiu Jitsu
Moving the body of your opponent requires energy, especially if it’s a strong person.
Instead of moving your opponent, be tight; get a grip, bring your elbows to your hips and your hips to your elbows, turn in a hip.
Make it hard for your opponent to move because of your pressure. Make your pressure so unbearable he has to move. Make it so tight every move he makes, costs him energy.
When your opponent has moved, the situation has slightly changed, adapt to the new situation by changing your grip(s) and move yourself a bit closer, maybe turn in the other hip. Keep repeating this pattern and thus climb the ladder, inch by inch closer to your goal: submitting your opponent.
