A Mountain of Excuses and a mountain of answers

What makes a champ different than a chump? All people can study techniques and strategies, but I find that those who stands out in the crowd have certain traits, and never-say-die attitude is always one of them.
On certain stages of the development of our game, we will face certain walls that we have to go through. In the beginning of our game, it can be as simple as doing the shrimping properly, keeping the mount, or keeping the guard. While on the later stages of the game, it can be a bit more complex, like working on the finishes or setups to make submissions more effective.
In each and every of these walls, some gone through the wall, but some will quit with a mountain of excuses, such as:

“I'm fat”
“I’m too small”
"I'll get injured"
"I'm not strong enough"
“I’m a woman, I can’t fight men.”
“I haven’t been exercising for awhile”

And the mountain of excuses just keep piling up.

Now, why in the world I say that these are excuses? While some will definitely affect the effectiveness of your game, in a true BJJ spirit of a counter to every move, there got to be a solution to these problems. Let me give you counters for every one of these excuses:

“I’m too fat”
Vincent Majid, our very own heavyweight and bronze medalist in World Sambo, is not exactly thin, but look at his credentials.


while IFL’s Champ and a BJJ Black belt Roy Nelson is not a bodybuilding material. He even smothered Kimbo with his beer gut.


“I’m too small”
Helio Gracie was only 62kg on his prime, defeating opponents twice his size, or even better, look at this video of Jeff Glover fighting in the absolute division.



"I'm not strong enough"
BJJ is developed in such a way that people can overcome stronger and bigger opponents. Therefore, do the technique right, and you should be able to overcome stronger opponent with technique and strategy.

“I’m a woman, I can’t fight men.”
Meet Carmen Janke in red gi.


I’ve NEVER defeated this woman all my life. My best result was a draw after 40 minute match - that is after my instructor, Rob Williams, ushered us out of the gym as he needs to work. Note that at that time, she was the lightest fighter on the gym, and she’s submitting bigger and stronger male on the gym.

Still don't believe me that this is doable? Look at this vid:


“I haven’t been exercising for awhile”
Well, this one is so simple...... get your ass down to the mat and start rolling. You'll get your cardio, strength, and conditioning at the same time.

.... And the mountain of answers for quitting is getting even higher. So, remember to never give up, as winners never quit, and quitters never win, and I bet all wants to be a winner and will not quit whenever they come across any barrier, no matter how big they are.