Core Strength for BJJ: 10-Min Routine (10-for-30 #8)

Really press your elbow in towards your knee. Your knee in towards your elbow and relax. Don't pull your head, relax your neck but lift up off the floor. Inhale middle, exhale stretch your right leg and lift up off the floor.

Inhale, exhale. Inhale, exhale. Exhale. Inhale, exhale.

Inhale, this makes your guard work much better. Exhale, inhale. Exhale, two more. Inhale, exhale.

Inhale, exhale. Grab your knees and start rolling up and down. So learning to work like this is going to make our guard retention and our guard defense so much more durable and effective. Because we learn to not just explode and do things quickly.

But being really tenacious about not letting the guy pass and really pulling our knee in and being able to work in twisted positions is super good for your jits. Plank time. Elbows down, interlace your fingers, step your feet back. Two mistakes that I see everyone doing, either hanging with the hips or arching your back and lifting your butt too high.

So this is a plank and a plank is straight. So straighten your legs, tuck your tail between your legs. So squeeze your butt, chest forward, don't place your forehead on the fists. Lift your head and breathe.

I'm going to stay here for two minutes. There is a veteran, army veteran from America. He's probably 60 years old. He had the world champion for holding plank first like two hours and 40 minutes and then three hours and then almost four hours.

And there was a Chinese policeman who challenged him and they kept battling each other on either side of the Pacific Ocean. Until a Chinese TV channel invited this American for a face-off in China on Chinese television. And with 500 million people watching, you kind of press yourself past your limits. So I think the American guy stood in plank for six and a half or seven hours and the Chinese guy eight hours and two minutes.

So we're going to stay here for two minutes and we're more than halfway through. Imagine staying here for eight more hours just because you don't think you can do it. Like that's the definition of willpower. So you have no reason to complain.

We're going to stay here for five more breaths. Straight legs, straight spine, look forward. And then knees down, hips down, chest up, stretch your belly. I'm going to stay here for one minute.

So elbows down, head up, wide chest, long belly. Three more breaths. And get back up to all fours. One last little exercise.

Lay down on your back. Legs up again. Instead of going up and down now, we're going from side to side. You don't have to go deep.

You just go until it's harder to breathe. Then you know you have to activate your twisting core muscles. Don't make this into a super hard fight. Just go from side to side and think more spine mobility than core strength.

Of course it's both, but just focus your attention on the mobility aspect. Not so much about toning your muscles. So twist your spine from side to side. If it's too hard for you, bend your knees slightly.

It makes it much easier. But again, it's not black or white. It's not on or off. It's not zero or a hundred.

You can go from 100% to 87.5% just depending on how much you bend your knees. So when you're new to yoga, everything will feel black and white and extremes. But the more you practice, the more subtle and nuanced and precise your practice will become. That will translate directly to your jiu-jitsu.

Your game will take not new levels, but you will feel like you can be much more like a surgeon. You will feel less like a spray and pray artist that just throws everything you have at your opponent at any given time. For me that's been the case. I was for sure a spray and pray when I was new.

Now I try to use the proper technique at the proper time. That saves me so much energy and saves me from so many injuries. Alright. Sit back on your butt.

Really short and effective class today. Thank you guys for today. See you in the next class. I'm off to Nogi.