The great thing about competing in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is that you can start competing within a few months since starting Jiu Jitsu for the first time.
This obviously depends on a few things. It’d be unwise to compete if you attend one class per week and still don’t know you shouldn’t choke people when inside their closed guard. Please don’t be this person.
But if you have started Jiu Jitsu and have been training 5 times per week, have a couple of stripes under your belt and have a game plan which includes a take down, a submission and how to escape if you find yourself stuck inside someones guard, side control or mount. (I pray you don’t get caught in someone’s mount like I did at my last competition).
I considered myself a master at escaping mount but stupid me didn’t consider the whopping FOUR points I gave to my opponent. My poor husband/black belt/professor watching on must of been horrified. Anyway as the famous quote by Carlos Gracie Sr says “There is no losing in Jiu Jitsu, you either win or you learn.” Well let me tell you, I certainly learnt my lesson that day.
I knew I would love competing as I’ve always been a competitive person. I think you either love it or you hate it. I know multi gold medalists who hate competing. That’s not me. I can win/ lose, draw and still love it every time. I guess it’s just my nature.
Anyway if you have ended up in this blog it’s most likely because you are interested in competing. And to that I say, Go for it!!
Find out how capable you are. Challenge yourself, make new friends, release new hormones in your body, win medals for your gym, feel proud and most importantly push yourself out of your comfort zone.
I believe it’s a wonderful thing for our human minds to kick goals. So set that goal and then kick it. Your brain will release dopamine and you science says you will actually make yourself a better person for it.
Seven suggestions I would make before signing up to your first comp:
- Check with your professor that he/she agrees that you are ready. It is important to have their support behind you. If you have the desire to compete they should support you anyway, but who knows, if you have just started last week maybe it’s not the best idea.
- Create your profile on Smoothcomp
- Register for comp
- Train hard
- Make a game plan. This should include your takedown, your submission and some ideas of what to do if you get pinned. CRUCIAL POINT** Make sure on the day of their comp you are dynamic and able to pivot on the run. If your opponent does something whack and isn’t according to your plan then for gods sake adjust!!! I still facepalm when I think of my friend who was so deep into her game plan that she literally just gave her back in the first second to her competitor instead of ‘pivoting on the run’ and realising hey that’s not going to work this time around. Stay alert and read your opponent. I knew for my first ever fight where I won by submission in the first minute exactly where I was going to grab the girl on her lapel. As soon as I saw her I studied her uniform and realised it was big and the lapels would be easy to grab and choke her with. Be alert and visualise what you want to do.
- Eat well, sleep well, stay hydrated.
- Try and be bang on weight. If you have to weight cut do it with a proper nutritionist. I would recommend Lauren Marques as she specialises in BJJ athletes and she has got champions to drop dramatic amounts of weight and still had them feeling good come game day.
Congratulations for being brave and putting yourself out there. Hopefully you get that gold medal! It’s a priceless feeling. But even if you don’t you will learn an incredible amount about yourself and it will also make you a braver and more confident person in all aspects of your life.
