This is the first semi finalist winning entry in the Gamenss Never Quit Moment sponsorship contest. BJJ Weekly will be publishing 3-4 of these stories about fellow BJJ enthusiasts who overcame adversity to continue their training. Each published author will win a gi from Gameness, and the grand prize winner, selected with help from readers, will become a sponsored Gameness fighter.

When I say I posture I mean the body language and presence of your opponent, and his affect on your game.  In other words you’re about to spar with a tatted up, 4% body fat,  mean looking dude and your body and mind are going into overdrive.

When people talk about mental toughness, they’re usually talking about the ability to overcome physical pain and psychological pressure, and how to deal with these demands more effectively. Two fighter’s who make the finals in a competition may both be exhausted, and when there is a close match or overtime, it’s not always skill or condition that determines the outcome. It’s usually the fighter who has the most “heart” who goes on to win.

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu’s history, though short, has been incredibly rich and has supplied tremendous material for researchers. From the early feuds with “Luta Livre Esportiva”, through the problems amongst the Gracie family, the break ups in the biggest teams (Carlson Gracie Team, Alliance, BTT, Gracie Barra, etc) and the tragic deaths and stories of such fighters as Ryan Gracie, Marcelo Behring, Rufino Gomes and others, not mentioning the heated rivalries between teams and competitors (“Pé de Pano” vs. “Terere”, “Macaco” vs. Ryan Gracie, Wallid Ismail vs. Edson Carvalho), the list is absolutely endless.

In this BJJ Power Play, Jason Scully shares his method for maintaining posture while standing, even if your opponent manages to grip your lapel.

If you read a lot of BJJ related blogs, I’m sure you’ve heard about Christian Gruagart, a danish BJJ instructor who is currently doing an around the world trip and blogging about his experiences. He talks about the places he’s visting (Transnistria? come on Christian, did you just make that country up?) the people he’s meeting, and the food he’s eating.

In this follow up from last week's technique, Luigi Mondelli shows us how he reacts when his opponent posts the outside leg, stopping the sweep and presenting a danger of passing the guard. This is a very common reaction to the start of the sweep.

Luigi Mondelli continues his sweep series set up from a cross arm grip with feet on hips. In this variation, Luigi addresses what happens if you lose one of the sleeve grips, which can sometimes happen. He shows how to switch grips and instead of going with the traditional sweep, turn the movement to an Omoplata sweep.

In this episode of Rolling Reflections we get a chance to listen as Robson tells us what's going on during a recent flow roll with one of his black belts, Andre Luis Monroy Ushirobira, at RMNU in Tampa, Florida.

Luigi Mondelli shares his final variation on the cross grip sweep series. This variation is for when your opponent manages to strip the grip on his inside sleeve, after you have set up for the sweep. Luigi changes the game and switches to a triangle, showing us how he modifies the position for a big guy with heavy legs. Great details on the setup and position.