The regular Sunday women's open mat is on hiatus for the remainder of the summer. We will be having a special multi-academy women's open mat with the Girlzilians group on Saturday, July 13 at 11:00. Take advantage of the opportunity to roll with and learn from women of all belt levels from different schools across Michigan and Ohio. Beginners are welcome and all are invited to stay for the regular Saturday class afterward, free of charge.
General open mat will continue as regularly scheduled, every Sunday 4-6 pm.
Hey new Magic BJJ students!
Just a note about the new practice we started last night in our all-levels adult class of lining up all the new white belts and partnering them up with higher ranks for rolling. I want to take a minute to address why we are doing this, and what the benefits are for you (the newer student) and the rest of the Academy.
First of all, please note that this is NOT done for punishment or demeaning purposes. In fact, it is being implemented for the OPPOSITE of those things - it is done to help you learn the best Jiu-Jitsu you possibly can learn in as safe a manner as you can learn it.
When a new student rolls with a higher rank (especially blue belts and above), the student has the opportunity to learn Jiu-Jitsu, see and feel correct Jiu-Jitsu in action, and get valuable teaching and feedback from the higher rank. The white belt has the opportunity to ask questions, to get needed technical corrections, and learn how to be a good rolling partner from someone who already knows how.
When two new white belts roll, there is no one there to "lead the way", and technical mistakes can be amplified. Neither student understands the proper pace of rolling in training (rolling in training is NOT a fight, it is a time to practice technique and try new things), and often injury can occur to one or both partners when the pace is pushed and neither partner is experienced. Injured people cannot train, and cannot get better at Jiu-Jitsu while they recover. This is not really a white belt's fault - new people don't know what to do, and therefore new students often spend the majority of a roll trying to "win" rather than trying to implement the techniques they have been learning and trying new things. This is a stage EVERYONE goes through (Matt and I have definitely been through it ourselves), and we are trying to help you shortcut that stage by partnering you with higher ranks.
Also, new students won't recall the "wild west" of Jiu-Jitsu in Mid-Michigan. Back when Matt and I started training (late 2006), the closest black belts were in Detroit or Grand Rapids. The highest rank in Lansing was a purple belt, and there were only two of those that I remember. I didn't roll with a black belt until well into my blue belt ranks. At Magic we have THREE black belts. I would have given my eye teeth to have three local black belt instructors when I was a white belt. So instead of being nervous or afraid when a higher rank, including a black belt, picks you to roll, remember that this is a great opportunity to feel and learn some Jiu-Jitsu that we didn't have when we were coming up through the ranks!
As for rolling with other new white belts, you will have that opportunity to do positional sparring in both Tuesday and Wednesday fundamental classes, under the watchful eyes of experienced coaches who will help you train safely and get the techniques right. And if you really want to have a go at it, get a few months of training under your belt and talk to us coaches about signing up for one of the many awesome tournaments Magic BJJ goes to every year!
I hope this clears things up. Let's continue to train hard, have fun, and be safe.
See you all on the mats!
Mike
No women's open mat today (6/16) or next Sunday (6/23). General open mat will proceed as regularly scheduled, 4-6 pm.
Attention all Magic BJJ students and parents of students:
Due to the Kristian Woodmansee seminar tomorrow, 6/15/19, from 1-3PM, there will be NO other regularly scheduled classes. This includes kids' karate and kids' jiu jitsu. This is to make room for all our out of town guests who will be attending the seminar, and who will likely start to arrive just after noon.
On another note, I will be arriving at the academy at around 11:30AM tomorrow to do some cleaning in order to have the place looking great for our guests. If anyone is available to come help take care of our training space, it would be greatly appreciated.
See you all there tomorrow!
Mike
Don’t forget - tonight at 6:15pm is our new Wednesday Fundamental Jiu-Jitsu class! I’m super honored to be helping our students build a strong foundation of proven concepts and techniques ❤️👊🏼❤️
See you on the mats!
Mike