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bigcatgrapplingco

@bigcatgrapplingco

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Jiujitsu x Grappling
Movement | Mindset | Lifestyle

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Hi! Poppin by with a lil tip I’ve been giving my students 😜

Frames are essential for creating and maintaining space but staying in a force-to-force battle is not my jam baby I’d rather not be bench pressing somebody…

redirecting them or myself gets to come after, to create openings, regardless what bottom position I find myself in.

It’s like… frames begin to open the door but I still gotta step out of it.

Go play!

Thank you my lovely @mrshannahcastellanos by @bigcatgrapplingco

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17 hours ago

The ones heavily propping up how safe they are seem a little sus to me but that’s just me 🤔🤷🏾‍♀️

SELF AGENCY 4 EVA - isn’t that the point? Haaaa by @bigcatgrapplingco

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16 days ago

Talking about it won’t do it justice because no mental gymnastics is going to have you getting IN YOUR BODY enough to discover your body’s wisdom.

This is the essence of somatic processing.

For something like jiujitsu that requires you to throw your whole body into it, of course emotionally charged sensations are going to come up.

Re-Mind yourself.

For coaching enquiries book a call through @iam.mightylight by @bigcatgrapplingco

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a month ago

I posted these reflections on my @iam.mightylight stories the other day and swore I’d make a post about it.

My favourite part is seeing people make connections and breakthroughs in real time through being present in their bodies - that’s the biggest win for me.

In the context of creating an environment for tangible progress, coaching jiujitsu needs to go beyond showing and memorising moves and then sparring. It’s far more nuanced than that. by @bigcatgrapplingco

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a month ago

It IS that deep. Tell me how “pushing through” is working for you and your body?

Where people get tripped up isn’t in the training plan or camp - it’s how they talk to themselves when things start going “wrong”, when they’re behind on points, when their opponents aren’t responding according to plan, when their bodies don’t feel 20 anymore.

Then consciousness gets diverted from the training plan, the narratives play in the background noise by an inner critic that only gets louder when they step on the mat.

But it doesn’t have to be that way.

Let’s chat by @bigcatgrapplingco

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2 months ago

Let me get all up in your face to let you in on one of the most powerful relational frameworks, Art of REPAIR created by @drhazelgrace , in the context of conflict on the mat and gym!

I highly recommend for everyone to attend a course/training on this by Dr Hazel Grace, but especially if you lead in any capacity in martial arts gyms. When a leader knows how to effectively navigate conflict it sets the tone for everyone else.

Conflict is inevitable when you’re doing something like jiujitsu, but how you handle it defines your gym culture and contributes to your training environment.

🥋R- Resource & regulate yourself before speaking
🥋E- Empathy, feel for yourself and the other
🥋P- Permission, ask for it before you talk yo 💩
🥋A- Acknowledge what happened (stick to facts)
🥋I- Impact, how did that affect you?
🥋R- Restore the relationship! Or at least be cool

HOT TIP!
🚨ONE person speaks at a time while the other LISTENS - this won’t work if we’re talking over each other

Save this for the next time things get spicy on the mats. You’ll actually build a stronger relationship with your training partners this way. by @bigcatgrapplingco

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5 months ago

Your nervous system is constantly adapting whether you’re conscious of it or not. It’s always responding to your environment, and the mat is a great place to expand your capacity to handle stress, physical or otherwise, more effectively and intelligently.

You don’t have to stay with the built-in reactive responses that keep you tense, avoidant, or compliant - live problem solving on the mat switches ON when you let your body teach you and work WITH it with a deepened relationship.

This mindset and practice keeps you consistently improving on the mats, and doing this for a long time 🙌🏾

Thoughts?

Another clip from my chat with @emilyspajamaparty! Check it out 😎 by @bigcatgrapplingco

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3 months ago

Dragging my own a$$ on this one with my own past examples of stories I’ve told myself for the sake of telling you you’re not alone.

I don’t often get people commenting on posts like these but when I share I get people coming out of the woodwork pulling me aside in the locker rooms or non-gym gatherings to talk about the internal stuff that goes on for them.

Stories are formed by beliefs that are tied to events that have long passed but still feel like they’re happening in present tense.

The cool thing about regularly stepping on the mats is the opportunity to REWIRE your nervous system and REWRITE that story. Again and again.

Not every coach recognizes this, many will let you buy into your own BS story you’ve already outgrown - but coming from a lineage of coaches who will call things out like it is, I think it’s important to interrupt that story when I see it.

And I think it’s even more important to develop the practice of noticing when I’m moving from an expired story, and consciously making the effort to rewrite a new one.

What are some stories you’ve outgrown and what’s the rewritten version? by @bigcatgrapplingco

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6 months ago

The crossover of somatic literacy with JIUJITSU!

This was such a fun podcast with @emilyspajamaparty talking about jiujitsu and the multiple layers that somatic work I’ve assimilated into the gentle art has supported me, and is the groundwork for the way I personally choose to coach.

I’m putting the link up! Check out the whole episode and let me know what you think 😘

PS: I love yapping all things body related, somatic work, nervous system, movement nerding - come ask me to chat on your podcast 😜 by @bigcatgrapplingco

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3 months ago

Probably one of the biggest shifts in training I’ve been coached into by @ericthegentleman, telling me how the Penn State wrestling team trains and what their coach instills in them. (I’ll probably never be on their level but that approach interested me from a bottom-up approach to training my nervous system to handle more stress.)

I was going through it on the mats feeling like I plateaued, coming off an injury that I was afraid of getting hurt again, and found myself avoiding challenge.

He called me out and I was embarrassed about it, but I realised I didn’t want to stay there and end up hating something I really loved.

This shift, along with leading my body back again and again to feeling open, expansive, and creative, was like tapping into an alternate reality where I know in my bones I’m getting better regardless the outcome.

And I encourage this state of being for my students too because what keeps people on the mats aren’t medals in competition or how many people weren’t able to tap them or how many they tap - it’s love.

PS: I support people with the subconscious identities around “not f*cking up” through @iam.mightylight . Drop me a message or book a call with me.

@victorymmasd by @bigcatgrapplingco

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6 months ago

Applicable at any level, with any skill, and really any activity. An inside-out approach that has you tuning inwards to create outer results.

Awareness creates choice.

@gmbfitness @victorymmasd by @bigcatgrapplingco

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6 months ago

I don’t know who still thinks loading the knees is bad and that bending them past your toes will make them explode, but if that’s you and you do jiujitsu please leave that belief behind or you will fall behind.

Here’s a safe way to explore bending and loading your knees.

I prefer doing this barefoot or with my socks on for maximum contact with the ground and I get to pay attention to feet activities- am I grounding with my toes? Do my ankles feel stable?

I’m more focused on QUALITY & CONTROL over quantity and reps.

Snacky dosage: 2-3 sets of 1-2min of exploration before a training session or on a recovery day. Try it consistently a few times a week for at least a month and notice what happens.

Lmk how it goes! by @bigcatgrapplingco

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5 months ago