John Danaher is arguably one of the best Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu coaches in the world. He’s known for his incredible insights in BJJ and martial arts in general. He has a philosophy degree, which adds a feather to his cap to me. Danaher’s teaching method is something that martial arts coaches and academics alike should study.Continue reading “A Way With Words: John Danaher and the Transmission of Knowledge”
Tag Archives: Martial Arts
How Do You Find Motivation?
I’ve had several students at my college come to me lately asking what I do for motivation. I admit I am not a motivational expert. I don’t have any witty or sensational quips to offer them. Instead, I take a different tactic, one that involves a brief history lesson. When we begin to doubt ourContinue reading “How Do You Find Motivation?”
A Judoka walks into a Wrestling room…
In my last post, I discussed several elements and techniques that translated from Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu into Wrestling. I would be remiss if I didn’t also discuss some of the similarities between Wrestling and Judo. These two arts share similar rule-sets and have arguably borrowed from each other through the last century. The parallels between themContinue reading “A Judoka walks into a Wrestling room…”
A Jiu-Jiteiro walks into a Wrestling room…
While helping coach wrestling at my local high school for five seasons, I also trained Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in the off-season. It was a whirlwind of techniques and rule-sets, with each system using various leverage points. There were similarities and differences between the systems, but I tried to focus on what united them. They were bothContinue reading “A Jiu-Jiteiro walks into a Wrestling room…”
How does Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu fair against multiple attackers?
A question on Quora made me think critically about Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and how it may fair in a fight against multiple attackers. I think one of the common misconceptions of BJJ is that it is seen as a sport or grappling-only art in recent years. While that is true in many cases, BJJ is oftenContinue reading “How does Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu fair against multiple attackers?”
Poetry in Motion: A Philosophy of Jiu-Jitsu
(Photo by Richard Bustos on Unsplash) Is there a philosophy of Jiu-Jitsu? It makes a great metaphor for life, but there are also great analogies to explain the learning process of this beautiful art. Let’s address the question with a little help from Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu phenom and MMA fighter Ryan Hall. In a recent video,Continue reading “Poetry in Motion: A Philosophy of Jiu-Jitsu”
Readings: Thinking, Fast and Slow (and What That Means for Martial Artists).
Daniel Kahneman is a Nobel Prize winner in Economic Sciences (decision making) and a former professor of psychology at Princeton University. His 2011 book, “Thinking, Fast and Slow,” is still a popular book for people trying to figure out how our cognitive selves operate. Though he is intelligent and highly educated, he can take theContinue reading “Readings: Thinking, Fast and Slow (and What That Means for Martial Artists).”
Looking Back. Looking Forward.
It’s safe to say we have all had an interesting, if not rough year. It would be easy to say that the year was a complete bust for most of us. With COVID shutdowns, election-year drama, and unexpected surgeries (in my case), who knew if we would survive. If there is one thing we canContinue reading “Looking Back. Looking Forward.”
CYA: Justifying Your Use of Force
In a 2009 Black Belt magazine, Reality-Based Personal Protection pioneer Sgt. Jim Wagner quoted an adage, “There are two fights you must win. The first is for your life, and the second is for your liberty.” In several firearm classes, I’ve heard the phrase, “If you pull the gun, it will change your life. YouContinue reading “CYA: Justifying Your Use of Force”
Bruce Lee Broke Out of Plato’s Cave
When we first begin our martial arts journey, we start from a void, a vacuum where we know nothing. This idea holds for almost any kind of learning. As we expose ourselves to more knowledge and experiences, we slowly fill that void. But as we grow, part of learning must also come through our ownContinue reading “Bruce Lee Broke Out of Plato’s Cave”
Joshua Clements Writes 