

BJJ Mental Models
Steve Kwan
Your guide to a conceptual and intelligent Jiu-Jitsu approach. BJJ black belt Steve Kwan and a slate of expert guests explain the concepts, strategies, and tactics behind the gentle art of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Aug 14, 2023 • 59min
Ep. 245: Overcoming Obstacles, feat. Shama Ko
This week we're joined by Shama Ko! Shama is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt under Penny Thomas and is best known for her role as Program Director at Girls in Gis. In this episode, Shama shares advice on the obstacles we encounter in our Jiu-Jitsu journey, and the power of community in overcoming them.Follow Shama on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/shamasko/Visit the Girls in Gis website:https://www.girls-in-gis.com/Follow Girls in Gis on social:https://www.instagram.com/girlsingis/https://twitter.com/_girls_in_gis_https://www.facebook.com/GirlsinGis/Subscribe to Girls in Gis on YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/user/GirlsinGisListen to the Girls in Gis Podcast:https://www.girls-in-gis.com/girls-in-gis-podcast/Mental models discussed in this episode:Path of Least Resistancehttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/path-of-least-resistance/Keep Your Identity Smallhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/keep-your-identity-small/Permission Paradoxhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/permission-paradox/Consistencyhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/consistency/Don't forget to check out BJJ Mental Models Premium!If you love the podcast, you'll definitely love our premium membership offerings. The podcast is truly just the tip of the iceberg – the next steps on your journey are joining our community, downloading our strategy courseware, and working with us to optimize your game. We do all this through memberships that come in at a fraction of the cost of a single private.Sign up here for a free trial:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/Need more BJJ Mental Models?Get tips, tricks, and breakthrough insights from our newsletter:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/newsletter/Get nitty-gritty details on our mental models from the full database:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/database/Follow us on social:https://facebook.com/bjjmentalmodels/https://instagram.com/bjjmentalmodels/Music by Enterprize:https://enterprize.bandcamp.com/Get Jake O'Driscoll's triple threat ankle lock course, FREE:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/jake

9 snips
Aug 7, 2023 • 56min
Ep. 244: Lean Learning, feat. Shanti Abelha
This week we're joined by Shanti Abelha! Shanti is a multi-time black belt world champion, management consultant, and head coach at Hive BJJ in Copenhagen. In this episode, Shanti draws upon her business management experience to introduce lean methodologies and explain how they can transfer to skill development in BJJ.Follow Shanti on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/shantibjj/Train with Shanti at Hive BJJ:https://hivebjj.com/Resources discussed in this episode:Toyota Kata, feat. Mike Rother — YouTubehttps://youtu.be/ARbMvYQaRGgMental models discussed in this episode:Shuharihttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/shuhari/Investing in Losshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/investing-in-loss/Habits Over Resultshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/habits-over-results/Scientific Methodhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/scientific-method/Kaizenhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/kaizen/Don't forget to check out BJJ Mental Models Premium!If you love the podcast, you'll definitely love our premium membership offerings. The podcast is truly just the tip of the iceberg – the next steps on your journey are joining our community, downloading our strategy courseware, and working with us to optimize your game. We do all this through memberships that come in at a fraction of the cost of a single private.Sign up here for a free trial:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/Need more BJJ Mental Models?Get tips, tricks, and breakthrough insights from our newsletter:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/newsletter/Get nitty-gritty details on our mental models from the full database:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/database/Follow us on social:https://facebook.com/bjjmentalmodels/https://instagram.com/bjjmentalmodels/Music by Enterprize:https://enterprize.bandcamp.com/Get Jake O'Driscoll's triple threat ankle lock course, FREE:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/jake

Jul 31, 2023 • 1h 4min
Ep. 243: Overcoming Trauma Through Jiu-Jitsu, feat. David Figueroa-Martinez
This week we're joined by David Figueroa-Martinez! David is a black belt, instructor, and writer training out of Gracie La Mesa in California. In this episode, David discusses how Jiu-Jitsu, while not a replacement for therapy, can still be a powerful tool for assisting in trauma recovery.Follow David on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/dfm.2099/David's website:https://dfm2099.me/Dawnbreakers BJJ:https://www.dawnbreakersbjj.com/Mental models discussed in this episode:Mindfulnesshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/mindfulness/Emotional Contagionhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/emotional-contagion/Consistencyhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/consistency/Incremental Learninghttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/incremental-learning/Don't forget to check out BJJ Mental Models Premium!If you love the podcast, you'll definitely love our premium membership offerings. The podcast is truly just the tip of the iceberg – the next steps on your journey are joining our community, downloading our strategy courseware, and working with us to optimize your game. We do all this through memberships that come in at a fraction of the cost of a single private.Sign up here for a free trial:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/Need more BJJ Mental Models?Get tips, tricks, and breakthrough insights from our newsletter:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/newsletter/Get nitty-gritty details on our mental models from the full database:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/database/Follow us on social:https://facebook.com/bjjmentalmodels/https://instagram.com/bjjmentalmodels/Music by Enterprize:https://enterprize.bandcamp.com/Get Jake O'Driscoll's triple threat ankle lock course, FREE:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/jake

Jul 24, 2023 • 58min
Ep. 242: Position Series: The Lockdown, feat. Brandon Mccaghren
This week we're joined again by Brandon Mccaghren! In this episode, Brandon breaks down the concepts behind an essential 10th Planet guard: the lockdown.Follow Brandon on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/brandonmc.ninja/Subscribe to Brandon's YouTube channel:https://www.youtube.com/@brandonmcninjaGet Brandon's lockdown instructional at BMAC academy:https://bmac.mykajabi.com/Mental models discussed in this episode:Prevention Over Curehttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/prevention-over-cure/Myopiahttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/myopia/Shuharihttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/shuhari/Center of Gravityhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/center-of-gravity/Do What Workshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/do-what-works/Concepts Over Techniqueshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/concepts-over-techniques/First Principleshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/first-principles/Controlling the Distancehttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/controlling-the-distance/Kuzushihttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/kuzushi/Don't forget to check out BJJ Mental Models Premium!If you love the podcast, you'll definitely love our premium membership offerings. The podcast is truly just the tip of the iceberg – the next steps on your journey are joining our community, downloading our strategy courseware, and working with us to optimize your game. We do all this through memberships that come in at a fraction of the cost of a single private.Sign up here for a free trial:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/Need more BJJ Mental Models?Get tips, tricks, and breakthrough insights from our newsletter:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/newsletter/Get nitty-gritty details on our mental models from the full database:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/database/Follow us on social:https://facebook.com/bjjmentalmodels/https://instagram.com/bjjmentalmodels/Music by Enterprize:https://enterprize.bandcamp.com/Get Jake O'Driscoll's triple threat ankle lock course, FREE:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/jake

18 snips
Jul 17, 2023 • 55min
Ep. 241: The Confident Mind, feat. Nate Zinsser
This week we're joined by Dr. Nate Zinsser! Nate shares the confidence-building guidance from his essential book, The Confident Mind.Get Nate's book, The Confident Mind:https://www.natezinsser.com/bookNate's website:https://www.natezinsser.com/Mental models discussed in this episode:Growth Mindsethttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/growth-mindset/Mental Gatekeepinghttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/mental-gatekeeping/Self-Competitionhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/self-competition/Habits Over Resultshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/habits-over-results/Keep Your Identity Smallhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/keep-your-identity-small/Resulting Fallacyhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/resulting/Flowhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/flow/Mindfulnesshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/mindfulness/Law of Contrasthttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/law-of-contrast/Kaizenhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/kaizen/Technique Visualizationhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/technique-visualization/Reflecting "As If"https://bjjmentalmodels.com/reflecting-as-if/Permission Paradoxhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/permission-paradox/Feedback Loophttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/feedback-loop/Plus, Minus, Equalshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/plus-minus-equals/Don't forget to check out BJJ Mental Models Premium!If you love the podcast, you'll definitely love our premium membership offerings. The podcast is truly just the tip of the iceberg – the next steps on your journey are joining our community, downloading our strategy courseware, and working with us to optimize your game. We do all this through memberships that come in at a fraction of the cost of a single private.Sign up here for a free trial:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/Need more BJJ Mental Models?Get tips, tricks, and breakthrough insights from our newsletter:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/newsletter/Get nitty-gritty details on our mental models from the full database:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/database/Follow us on social:https://facebook.com/bjjmentalmodels/https://instagram.com/bjjmentalmodels/Music by Enterprize:https://eGet Jake O'Driscoll's triple threat ankle lock course, FREE:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/jake

Jul 10, 2023 • 1h 1min
Ep. 240: Position Series: Sideways Open Guard, feat. Priit Mihkelson
This week we're joined by Priit Mihkelson! In this episode, Priit explains recent developments in what he calls "sideways open guard:" a supine guard where your body is tilted to the side. It's an emerging position being used by competitors such as Lachlan Giles.Follow Priit on social:https://www.instagram.com/priit_mihkelson/https://www.facebook.com/priit.mihkelson/Sideways Open Guard — BJJ Fanatics:https://bit.ly/46HGUFiDefensive BJJ:https://www.defensivebjj.com/Resources referenced in this episode:Jon Thomas Instagram reels:https://bit.ly/3JK95cPhttps://bit.ly/3D1tVkqAndré Galvão vs. Braulio Estima, ADCC 2013https://youtu.be/Gui5wWJA4gIMental models discussed in this episode:Seated vs. Supine Guardshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/seated-vs-supine-guards/Limb Coilinghttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/limb-coiling/Funnelinghttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/funneling/Predictable Responseshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/predictable-responses/Dictate the Pacehttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/dictate-the-pace/Controlling the Distancehttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/controlling-the-distance/Committed Techniqueshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/committed-techniques/Elbow-Knee Connectionhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/elbow-knee-connection/Dominant Angleshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/dominant-angles/Don't forget to check out BJJ Mental Models Premium!If you love the podcast, you'll definitely love our premium membership offerings. The podcast is truly just the tip of the iceberg – the next steps on your journey are joining our community, downloading our strategy courseware, and working with us to optimize your game. We do all this through memberships that come in at a fraction of the cost of a single private.Sign up here for a free trial:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/Need more BJJ Mental Models?Get tips, tricks, and breakthrough insights from our newsletter:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/newsletter/Get nitty-gritty details on our mental models from the full database:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/database/Follow us on social:https://facebook.com/bjjmentalmodels/https://instagraGet Jake O'Driscoll's triple threat ankle lock course, FREE:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/jake

Jul 3, 2023 • 1h 1min
Ep. 239: BJJ Careers for Regular People, feat. Greg Sirico
This week we're joined by Greg Sirico! Greg is a Marcelo Garcia black belt and is the head instructor at Odyssey BJJ in Atlanta, Georgia. In this episode, Greg explains how regular folks who aren't BJJ celebrities or world champions can build successful and thriving Jiu-Jitsu careers.Follow Greg on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/gregsirico/Follow Odyssey BJJ on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/odysseyjiujitsu/Odyssey BJJ website:https://odysseybjj.com/Mental models discussed in this episode:Double Down on Strengthshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/double-down-on-strengths/ Respect People, Not Positionshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/respect-people-not-positions/Solid Foundation, Flexible Perimeterhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/solid-foundation-flexible-perimeter/Don't forget to check out BJJ Mental Models Premium!If you love the podcast, you'll definitely love our premium membership offerings. The podcast is truly just the tip of the iceberg – the next steps on your journey are joining our community, downloading our strategy courseware, and working with us to optimize your game. We do all this through memberships that come in at a fraction of the cost of a single private.Sign up here for a free trial:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/Need more BJJ Mental Models?Get tips, tricks, and breakthrough insights from our newsletter:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/newsletter/Get nitty-gritty details on our mental models from the full database:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/database/Follow us on social:https://facebook.com/bjjmentalmodels/https://instagram.com/bjjmentalmodels/Music by Enterprize:https://enterprize.bandcamp.com/Get Jake O'Driscoll's triple threat ankle lock course, FREE:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/jake

Jun 26, 2023 • 1h 14min
Ep. 238: Performance Nutrition for Regular People, feat. Steph Gaudreau
This week we're joined by Steph Gaudreau! Steph is a popular strength coach, performance nutritionist, and Jiu-Jitsu athlete. In this episode, Steph shares her playbook on performance nutrition for "regular people:" those of us who train for fun and not as a profession.Follow Steph on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/steph_gaudreau/Steph's website:https://www.stephgaudreau.com/Listen to Steph on the Fuel Your Strength Podcast:https://www.stephgaudreau.com/fuel-your-strength-podcast/Resources discussed in this episode:Atomic Habits, by James Clear:https://jamesclear.com/atomic-habitsMental models discussed in this episode:Feedback Loophttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/feedback-loop/Scientific Methodhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/scientific-method/Certainty Biashttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/certainty-bias/Don't forget to check out BJJ Mental Models Premium!If you love the podcast, you'll definitely love our premium membership offerings. The podcast is truly just the tip of the iceberg – the next steps on your journey are joining our community, downloading our strategy courseware, and working with us to optimize your game. We do all this through memberships that come in at a fraction of the cost of a single private.Sign up here for a free trial:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/Need more BJJ Mental Models?Get tips, tricks, and breakthrough insights from our newsletter:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/newsletter/Get nitty-gritty details on our mental models from the full database:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/database/Follow us on social:https://facebook.com/bjjmentalmodels/https://instagram.com/bjjmentalmodels/Music by Enterprize:https://enterprize.bandcamp.com/Get Jake O'Driscoll's triple threat ankle lock course, FREE:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/jake

Jun 19, 2023 • 56min
Ep. 237: Losing Yourself, feat. Mandy Schneider
This week we're joined by Mandy Schneider! Mandy is an up-and-coming young competitive Jiu-Jitsu athlete training out of Dallas, Texas. Despite her young age, she's no stranger to adversity: Mandy has been very vocal about her personal experiences with the dark side of Jiu-Jitsu, including her battles with predatory instructors and mental health.Recently, Mandy shared that she "lost sight of herself for awhile" due to the pressures from full-time competition and her personal life. In this episode, Mandy shares her experience and explains how she came back and regained her passion for the sport.Follow Mandy on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/mandynschneider/Resources discussed in this episode:The Champion's Mind, by James Afremowhttps://amzn.to/46bvvO4Mindset, by Carol Dweckhttps://amzn.to/3qQk7a7Mental models discussed in this episode:Self-Competitionhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/self-competition/Mental Gatekeepinghttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/mental-gatekeeping/Psychological Safetyhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/psychological-safety/Law of Contrasthttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/law-of-contrast/Mindfulnesshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/mindfulness/Resulting Fallacyhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/resulting/Compartmentalizationhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/compartmentalization/Growth Mindsethttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/growth-mindset/ Don't forget to check out BJJ Mental Models Premium!If you love the podcast, you'll definitely love our premium membership offerings. The podcast is truly just the tip of the iceberg – the next steps on your journey are joining our community, downloading our strategy courseware, and working with us to optimize your game. We do all this through memberships that come in at a fraction of the cost of a single private.Sign up here for a free trial:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/Need more BJJ Mental Models?Get tips, tricks, and breakthrough insights from our newsletter:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/newsletter/Get nitty-gritty details on our mental models from the full database:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/database/Follow us on social:https://facebook.com/bjjmentalmodels/https://instagram.com/bjjmentalmodels/Music by Enterprize:https://enterprize.bandcamp.com/Get Jake O'Driscoll's triple threat ankle lock course, FREE:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/jake

Jun 12, 2023 • 1h 5min
Ep. 236: Empathy, feat. Valerie Worthington
This week we're joined again by Valerie "Valhalla" Worthington! In addition to being a black belt and OG in women's BJJ, Valerie holds a PhD in Educational Psychology and teaches coaching at Saybrook University. In this episode, Valerie explains the importance of empathetic thinking for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu coaches and students alike.Follow Valerie on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/worthingtonvalerie/Email Valerie:worthingtonvalerie500@gmail.comResources discussed in this episode:Training Wheels, by Valerie Worthington:https://amzn.to/43O2cPsThe Platinum Rule, by Tony Alessandra:https://amzn.to/3CEgUgBCody Rhodes on "seeing race:"https://bit.ly/45Xc1wwMental models discussed in this episode:Survivorship Biashttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/survivorship-bias/The Golden Rulehttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/golden-rule/Curse of Knowledgehttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/curse-of-knowledge/Self-Competitionhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/self-competition/Don't forget to check out BJJ Mental Models Premium!If you love the podcast, you'll definitely love our premium membership offerings. The podcast is truly just the tip of the iceberg – the next steps on your journey are joining our community, downloading our strategy courseware, and working with us to optimize your game. We do all this through memberships that come in at a fraction of the cost of a single private.Sign up here for a free trial:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/Need more BJJ Mental Models?Get tips, tricks, and breakthrough insights from our newsletter:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/newsletter/Get nitty-gritty details on our mental models from the full database:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/database/Follow us on social:https://facebook.com/bjjmentalmodels/https://instagram.com/bjjmentalmodels/Music by Enterprize:https://enterprize.bandcamp.com/Get Jake O'Driscoll's triple threat ankle lock course, FREE:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/jake