The Strenuous Life Podcast with Stephan Kesting

In a self defense situation you have to have a high level of environmental awareness to keep track of multiple attackers, improvised weapons, escape routes, etc. Today I'm joined by classical Japanese Jujutsu practitioner Alex Kask to talk about how this important aspect can be incorporated into your training. We also talk about gun grappling, multiple-opponent MMA, 'dirty' fighting techniques like eye gouging and biting, and more! In other relevant news, check out the brand new Grapplearts instructional called The Self Defense Guard at https://www.grapplearts.com/selfdefenseguard. In this organised and detailed course BJJ black belt Ellliott Bayev and I will show you how to correctly use the BJJ closed guard to stay safe in a situation where someone is trying to punch your teeth down your throat!

If you're doing any kind of martial art - be it BJJ, MMA, Kickboxing, Taekwondo or whatever - then your game needs to evolve every decade to accommodate the changes in your body. I got this from the legendary Dan Inosanto who started training at age 11 and is still practising martial arts in his 80's.

A little trip down memory lane today. In my twenties I did an 82 day, 1600 mile solo canoe trip across the Canadian north. This is an account of the last 3 days of that journey, traveling along the dangerous shore of Hudson Bay. The written form of this account is available here: https://www.grapplearts.com/belugas-bears-and-an-offshore-tide-on-hudson-bay/# and the Blood, Sweat and Sparta piece I refer to early in this episode is available here: https://www.grapplearts.com/blood-sweat-and-sparta/ And finally, download my new BJJ app guys because it has seven and a half hours of free black belt instruction in it!!! iOS and Android links here: https://www.grapplearts.com/grapplearts-bjj-master-app/

Sparring for the first time is always a shock, but especially for traditional martial artists who may have spent years perfecting their techniques in the air or against a compliant partner just to watch it all fall apart against real resistance. No sparring, no miracles folks! A lot of listeners know that http://www.grapplearts.com is my main site, but did you know that I also have a second, self defense oriented site? Check it out at http://www.selfdefensetutorials.com for more self defense tips, training videos, etc!

I really enjoyed this conversation with Rokas Leonavicius, the European Aikido instructor who became famous on Youtube trying to make his aikido functional against resisting opponents. Find out about his journey into Aikido, BJJ, Aikido and Boxing in this fascinating episode. 02:05 - Rokas's background in Aikido 04:21 - Wrestling in Eastern Europe 05:43 - What attracted him to Aikido? 14:20 - How long should you train before Aikido is applicable? 20:20 - Testing Aikido on Youtube 23:55 - The Aikido vs MMA video 26:23 - Functionalizing Aikido 38:18 - How did Aikido take off? 40:59 - Real life consequences of the Aikido vs MMA video 48:43 - Elements of Aikido that carry over into other arts 61:53 - Where can we find Rokas? Check out Rokas's Youtube channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCazByhbmztoIg6ZKeI25PGw and his website at http://rokasleo.com

Can you still train if you have an injured knee? Well, it depends... Here are some solutions, tips and tricks for dealing with a bum knee in a BJJ or grappling setting.

In this episode John Hacklemann discusses the Conor McGregor bus attack, training Chuck Liddell, differences between MMA and self defense, the single most important thing you can do to stay safe on the street, sparring vs drilling, and more. This is an incredibly informative episode, especially if you're interested in self defense and/or MMA! Follow John on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/user/ThePitOnlineDojo and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ThePitMaster

I was recently dragged through the waves, under the water and then lifted up into the air while trying to figure out the sport of kiteboarding, and figured out that there is one hell of a learning curve in that sport! But many sports and activities worth doing have that same initial hump - a difficult learning curve that makes most people drop out. Ultimately if it were easy to do then everyone would do it, so the key to doing uncommon things is to grit your teeth and break on through to the other side of those initial difficulties! Download my free app for learning BJJ as fast as possible at http://www.grapplearts.com/roadmap Good luck with your training, in whichever sport, art or endeavour you have chosen! Stephan

I talk with personal trainer and BJJ black belt Ben Zhuang going DEEP into the supplements, exercises, and conditioning protocols, and recovery procedures to help with Brazilian jiu-jitsu and other grappling arts. Follow Ben and see the exercises he's referring to on Instagram @coachbz Follow Stephan on Instagram @stephan_kesting

There are many reasons to train BJJ - fitness, camaraderie, having fun, taking on a challenge, spiritual development, learning to deal with challenges, wanting to compete - but at its core, Brazilian jiu-jitsu is a martial art and not a martial sport. Martial arts means self defense. Self defense is a huge and diverse topic, but a big part of it means being able defend yourself against an attacker choking them into a unconsciousness if need be. In this episode of The Strenuous Life Podcast I talk about good vs bad jiu-jitsu schools for self defense, the legacy of Gracies, the necessity of learning basic striking, clinching, takedowns, and strike defense on the ground, and more. I hope you enjoy it. If you're interested in BJJ and no-gi grappling then check out my site http://www.grapplearts.com And if self defense is important to you then also check out my other site http://www.selfdefensetutorials.com Cheers Stephan