On rolling.

I had to practically drag myself off the couch from my nap to get to class last night. I’ve been feeling really tired lately, and taking afternoon naps have been my guilty pleasure.

I finally made it to the gym and met up with B, who’s become my evening training partner. She’s an experienced Japanese Jiu Jitsu practitioner, but only slightly more advanced than I when it comes to BJJ. We’re similar in body size, so we’re ideal partners. That, and I like her, cause she’s not afraid to use some force and make me work during class.

This week’s classes focus on headlock escapes, and the entire class went fairly smoothly. We practiced and drilled until the movements became second nature. I’m finally able to string together similarities in previous escapes we’ve learned and put it all together. My mind’s still going a mile a minute trying to work-in all the little details of every step to the escape, but I realize the real test comes when it’s time to roll.

Rolling.

I’m coming to realize that while I’m in class, I can consciously think about what I’m supposed to do, and where to move. The minute I’m on the mat rolling around, my brain seems to blank out. This particularly happens when I think too much. It’s like, information overload – and next thing you know, they’ve passed my guard and I’ve lost my advantageous position. If I don’t consciously choose my moves a few steps in advance, I lose whatever mental game I had prepared ahead of time.

Rolling with R makes me even more frustrated since I know he takes it easy on me. He purposefully makes mistakes to give me opportunities to attack, to move, to gain positions I’ve been working on. I feel the way I roll with him is similar to the way an anaconda plays with its food before eating. (Bear with my analogy here, I seriously don’t even know if snakes ‘play’ with their food.) I’m always hesitant because I know in some way or another, he’s testing what I’ve learned and I’m awaiting the inevitable.. being eaten…tapping out to another submission. So, instead of attacking, I naturally move to defensive positions and wait.

We’re training on Friday again. I’ve got a week’s worth of classes to up my game. No more rolling over trying to defend myself… I’m going to try to go for the kill.