Observations from a Two-Year Black Belt

I got my black two years ago, and I’m making it a tradition to write about what I’ve learned each year as a black belt. I’m amazed at how much I learned and improved over the last year, but I am even more surprised a...
Nelson Puentes
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Reflections on Polaris 3

Polaris 3 took place this weekend, and while I watched it live, I don’t think I would have been able to miss it even if I had wanted to. My Facebook and Twitter feeds were blowing up with all kinds of post about the ...
Nelson Puentes
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What It Means to be a Brown Belt and How to Make Progress Towards Black

In part one of this series, I gave my best advice for newbie white belts and anxious new blue belts. Part two was for blue belts looking to level up to purple and purples figuring out how to keep progressing. Now I f...
Matt Kirtley
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6 Tips for Taking Notes in Jiu-Jitsu

My confession: I have a terrible memory. I carry around a notebook with me at all times. I have a notebook at work and one I keep in my purse. I am constantly writing down tasks I need to complete and errands I need ...
Ayanthi Gunawardana
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Polaris Pro 3: The Battle for Professional Jiu-Jitsu

The notion of pay-per-view jiu-jitsu is relatively new. Copa Podio and Metamoris were early adopters of the live stream model, and their efforts helped to inspire organizations like Polaris, Budo Videos, IBJJF, Flo G...
Marshal Carper
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Refereeing Observations: Battle Cries and Verbal Taps

I have been refereeing on and off since I was a purple belt. I probably average about one tournament per year. My wife Hillary and I met at a tournament when she was refereeing, but that's a story for another time (b...
Nelson Puentes
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Getting Through the Blue and Purple Belt Growing Pains

Photo credit to Mike Calimbas. At the end of “Advice for Newbie White Belts and Anxious Blue Belts” I promised a follow-up for higher belts. Here's my advice for you blues and purples who want to keep making progress...
Matt Kirtley
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A Year of Firsts: My First Ambulance Ride

A Year of Firsts: My First Ambulance Ride
Last year, on Friday March 13, 2015, I had my very first major injury. I originally wanted to write a small Facebook post to acknowledge the milestone and the people who helped me get through it all, but thinking bac...
Hillary Witt
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Plug into the Jiu-Jitsu Network

When I went to college, I was told the connections that I would make there would last me a lifetime. I never really made any connections in college, though. I was commuting the whole time and was always rushing off ...
Nelson Puentes
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Nerd Alert

Nerd Alert
My childhood leisure time was a montage of Earthbound, Super Mario RPG, Final Fantasy 7, Ultima Online, Halo (16 dudes crammed in a basement playing capture the flag), Pokemon Blue, Pokemon cards, late night Dungeon...
Marshal Carper
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4 Tips for Learning Portuguese

Sometimes, the Brazilian part of BJJ can become a barrier. The language barrier, more than once over the years, left me hearing Portuguese and wishing I spoke the language. I get confused for a Brazilian pretty ofte...
Nelson Puentes
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Advice for Newbie White Belts and Anxious Blue Belts

Advice for White Belts You took the plunge and started jiu-jitsu! Everything is new and wonderful and strange and confusing. Looking back on it, my time as a white belt was probably the most fun. That’s when you’re e...
Matt Kirtley
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