bjj.ac

The three pillars

Every post belongs to one of these. They're hard to copy because they require showing up — not scraping.

Latest writing

• The Desk-Worker Late Starter

  First No-Gi Class, and I Think I'm in Love

  Back from the knee layoff at Gracie Barra North Austin. First no-gi class, first arm drag to the back, and the discovery that my fingers finally get a rest.

• The Desk-Worker Late Starter

  The Nunchucks I Never Mention at the Gym

  I bought them for my son. He got bored, I didn't. Three years on it's the quiet reason my grip doesn't quit — and I still never bring it up at the gym.

• The Desk-Worker Late Starter

  I Cancelled My Gym Membership Again

  Cancelled again, because of injuries again. On the recurring-pause reality of starting BJJ later in life — and the small mercy of a knee that still holds weight.

• The Desk-Worker Late Starter

  A Pop in My Knee, a Rubber Guard I Set Up Wrong

  Pulling a super-heavyweight into rubber guard, I felt a pop on the outside of my left knee — the scariest thing that's happened to me in sport, and a technique lesson.

• Curriculum & Culture Decoder

  The Techniques You Invent When Everyone Outweighs You

  I train almost only with heavy and super-heavyweights, and it's pushing me toward moves I don't see taught. The open question: what happens against my own size?

• The Desk-Worker Late Starter

  First Day Back: 300 Pounds, a Knee to the Jaw, and a Mouth Guard

  My first roll back from the broken tooth was with a 300-pound bear. First thing he does is knee me in the jaw — and this time the guard does its job.