In this next video below I share the “Rolling Formula” for how to roll (spar) for optimal long-term skill development in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
Unfortunately there are MANY misconceptions about this within the BJJ and grappling community, most of which have been passed on as reasoning by analogy conventional “wisdom” over the years.
On one extreme, you have the ethos of “you’ve got to roll hard!” and on the other you have “you should flow roll.”
Both of these notions are highly subjective, but as commonly understood each extremes can lead to significant diminishing returns over time when it comes to technical development and performance.
As an alternative, here I share the specific criteria for what we call “Advanced” rolling (which has nothing to do with your belt level), and how to to actually optimize for long-term technical skill development.
Note: this video was posted in my free FB community several years ago, and describes how we’ve been approaching “free rolling” for many years. A lot of people dismissed the advice, just as they dismissed my emphasis on live positional drilling and sparring (and how to do this properly).
Only now within the last couple years as more information and footage has become available of how current top athletes (like Gordon Ryan) and legends (like Roger Gracie) actually drill and spar in the practice room are people starting to pay attention to what we’ve been preaching for years.
Rather than fall prey to cognitive biases like status quo bias or reasoning from authority, instead I recommend that you actually pay attention and try these training modalities out for yourself so that you don’t spend years missing the boat –– and in the process accumulate unnecessary wear & tear on the body or over-rely on physical attributes!
For my full suite of instructional courses, including my brand new First Principles series, visit (now on sale):
https://bjjfanatics.com/collections/all/fighter_stephen-whittier
To your success,
Coach Stephen
Resources:
All First Principles BJJ / 40 Plus BJJ Courses
