In this episode, legendary Jiu-Jitsu instructor Stephan Kesting joins us to discuss the concept of perseverance. It's both a critical mental model for success in martial arts, and also the title of his new Amazon best-selling book, Perseverance: Life and Death in the Subarctic. Stephan shares his remarkable journey following a health crisis that led to kidney failure and transplant in 2015, his 1000-mile solo canoe trip through the Canadian North, and how these journeys translated to learnings applicable to Jiu-Jitsu.Follow Stephan on Instagram:https://instagram.com/stephan_kestingBuy Stephan's new book, Perseverance:https://essentialwilderness.com/book/Mental models discussed in this episode: Survivorship Biashttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/survivorship-bias/ Resulting Fallacyhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/resulting/ Keep Your Identity Smallhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/keep-your-identity-small/ 10-Minute Rulehttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/10-minute-rule/ Consistencyhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/consistency/ Stress and Recoveryhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/stress-and-recovery/ Prioritize Longevityhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/prioritize-longevity/ Return on Investmenthttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/return-on-investment/ Ulysses Contractshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/ulysses-contracts/ 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/

In this episode of State of the Meta, Drew Foster delves into Marcelo Garcia's impressive return to competitive grappling after over a decade, marked by his victory over Masakazu Imanari via a north-south choke.Resources discussed in this episode: Marcelo vs Imanari:https://youtu.be/jPQdaNkx3psMarcelo talks NS choke:https://youtu.be/ABYCnFADfl0Marcelo shows NS choke:https://youtu.be/VkI7wuhN2PsNeed more Drew Foster?Follow Drew Foster on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/drewdarceListen to Drew on The Neon Belly Podcast:https://theneonbelly.buzzsprout.com/Check out Drew's contributions on Reddit:https://www.reddit.com/user/Darce_Knight/Get Drew's instructionals:http://darcedynamics.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/

In this week's mini-episode, we explain effortful retrieval!  It's a concept from cognitive psychology proposing we can improve our ability to recall information — a critical skill during live rolling — by creating a recall practice that forces our brains to work.For more information on effortful retrieval, check out:BJJMM Ep. 287: Automatic Grappling, feat. Cal McDonaldhttps://bjj.plus/287Effortful Retrieval — BJJ Mental Models databasehttps://www.bjjmentalmodels.com/effortful-retrieval/Get our Intro to Mechanics audio course, normally $79, FREE:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/freeintroDon'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/

This week we're joined again by Rob Biernacki!  Rob shares advice for getting the most out of BJJ gym drop-ins, seminars, and camps.  Topics include the importance of prior communication before attending, safety and etiquette during training, addressing issues with aggressive partners, the mindset needed to ensure a positive experience, and Island Top Team's visiting student program.Contact Rob regarding his visiting student program on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/islandtopteamLearn from Rob online at BJJ Concepts:https://bjjconcepts.net/Mental models discussed in this episode: Compatible Intenthttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/compatible-intent/ Normalizationhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/normalization/ Psychological Safetyhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/psychological-safety/ 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/

In the second episode of Automatic Grappling, Cal McDonald delves into the eight primary skill categories required to succeed at Jiu-Jitsu, and the relevant games that develop those skills.  Those eight games are: Frames and Levers: Focus on guard passing and retention.  Leverage your opponent’s frames to break through. Iron Statue: Maintaining rigid alignment as a top player and sweeping low opponents. Surfing and Get-Up Game: Sweeping a standing opponent and developing balance while being off-balanced.  Emphasizing guard comfort and defending sweeps. Top Control: Tying top control into back control and escapes.  Mastering weight distribution and maintaining control. Back Control: Mastering the mechanics of controlling and escaping from the back. Turtle / Front Headlock: Operating from turtle, focusing on leveraging front headlocks, and mastering escape routes. Standup: Critical for transitioning from standing to groundwork and maintaining dominance. Engagement Phase: Mastering the initial "first contact" stage of a position where grips have not solidified and the position has not been fully established. This episode sets the stage for these eight primary skill categories and explains the first two games.  The next episode will cover the remaining six.Email Cal:cal.mcdonald@hotmail.comGet Cal's instructional, BJJ Foundations:https://www.grapplearts.com/bjj-foundations/Resources discussed in this episode:RVV BJJ — YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/c/RVVBJJMental models discussed in this episode: Core Mechanicshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/core-mechanics Overwhelming Forcehttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/overwhelming-force Concepts Over Techniqueshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/concepts-over-techniques Force Vectorshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/force-vectors Predictable Responseshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/predictable-responses Limb Coilinghttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/limb-coiling Labelinghttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/labeling Dominant Angleshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/dominant-angles Transfer of Learninghttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/transfer-of-learning Theory of Alignmenthttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/theory-of-alignment Kuzushihttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/kuzushi Momentumhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/momentum Dilemmahttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/dilemma 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/

In this week's mini-episode, we explain interleaving!  It's a concept proposing we learn faster by cycling through several topics rather than focusing on a single one at a time.  For example, instead of training AAA BBB CCC, we would train ABC ABC ABC.Get our Intro to Mechanics audio course, normally $79, FREE:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/freeintroDon'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/

In this episode of State of the Meta, Drew Foster ranks the major classes of leglocks based on current competition performance and discusses the differences between arm-out and arm-in guillotine chokes.Resources discussed in this episode:Chris Wojcik Ankle Lock Instructional:https://bit.ly/wojlockShotgun Ankle Lock:https://youtu.be/mdPukcG7aikJeremy Skinner Aoki Lock:https://youtu.be/N9dnzaleHdkZ-Lock Jeremy Rob Degle Class:https://youtu.be/CYI64FDj8_UZ-Lock Injury:https://youtu.be/5t1ZnBUTgL0?t=113Need more Drew Foster?Follow Drew Foster on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/drewdarceListen to Drew on The Neon Belly Podcast:https://theneonbelly.buzzsprout.com/Check out Drew's contributions on Reddit:https://www.reddit.com/user/Darce_Knight/Get Drew's instructionals:http://darcedynamics.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/

This week we're joined again by Mike Mahaffey!  Best known as the "Old Bastard BJJ" guy, Mike joins us to discuss economy of motion in Jiu-Jitsu.  We define economy of motion as: All else being equal, prefer the option that requires less movement.  We unpack why this mental model is important, and how more athletic grapplers can violate this concept in favor of a movement-based game.Follow Mike on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/oldbastardbjjCheck out upcoming BJJMM camps and events:https://bjjmentalmodels.com/eventsMental models discussed in this episode: Economy of Motionhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/economy-of-motion/ Path of Least Resistancehttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/path-of-least-resistance/ Static vs. Dynamic Controlhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/static-vs-dynamic-control/ Waypointshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/waypoints/ Position Over Submissionhttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/position-over-submission/ Shifting Platformshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/shifting-platforms/ Investing in Losshttps://bjjmentalmodels.com/investing-in-loss/ 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/