Most Grapplers Never Learn This Essential Skill

On the marathon of training.

Photo by Jeremy Lapak on Unsplash

The hardest part about submission grappling is that improving at it is a never-ending process.

There is always someone better than you, always a technique that you’re not quite good enough at, and always something new that you “need” to learn.

But the truth is that most people embrace this challenge quite well. Most of us understand the never-ending journey of BJJ. We like it. We see it as a metaphor for life and personal development. We enjoy constantly climbing the mountain even though we may never quite reach the top.

Most develop the skill of resilience and becoming a fighter of some kind through BJJ.

We learn to transcend challenges, put ourselves out there, and challenge our own limiting beliefs. Jiu-Jitsu makes us tougher, smarter, stronger, less anxious, and more ambitious.

But there’s one skill that I think most people are ignoring when it comes to improving at BJJ.

It’s something that I didn’t learn myself until I was well into black belt…