In this podcast I go over the foundational elements of a good BJJ training program – Breathwork, Isometrics and Leverage Based Training (a.k.a. Steel Mace Training). By understanding how these 3 things fit together to form a holistic approach to improving on the mats you can make more productive use of your training time and see better results when you roll.

You can stream or download it from the link below or you can find it on Itunes, Podbean, Google Podcasts, Spotify and all other major podcasting platforms.

Click Here to Download the MP3 File

While this approach to training is certainly different than what you will usually see in BJJ specific programs, I don’t believe that it is anything new. When you look at traditional physical training methods for warriors and grapplers, you find these same elements. 

For example, Yoga – which is the best known of the traditional training methods – uses a lot of Isometrics and Breathwork, especially if you look at the original practices from India.

Another example is the Steel Mace, which is based on the Gada. The Gada is an ancient training tool used by grapplers for thousands of years and is a Leverage Based Training Tool. 

By combining these 3 things you get a better way to improve your BJJ specific strength and endurance. You can still use our modern understanding of Functional Training and human physiology, you just look at them through a slightly different viewpoint (click here to see a video demo of a workout that uses these concepts).

There is a reason that ancient training systems had an emphasis on these 3 things, which is because the people who developed them knew that they were what would really make the difference in battle and grappling. By looking back to these traditional methods and applying our modern understanding of them I believe that we can evolve our training programs to the next level of specificity for our amazing sport.

Until next time…

Train Strong,

James Wilson

In this episode of the BJJ Strength Training Podcast I explain why Glute Bridges are the most important exercise you aren’t doing, which creates a big hole most people’s BJJ specific workouts. I also share 5 tips to help you “learn how to learn” so you can improve your learning curve on the mats.

You can stream or download it from the link below or you can find it on Itunes, Podbean, Google Podcasts, Spotify and all other major podcasting platforms.

Click Here to Download the MP3 File

In the podcast I mention the Ramping Isometric Glute Bridge, which is one of my favorite ways to increase the strength in this important BJJ specific movement. You can find a video demo of how to do this exercise – along with some other great Glute Bridge variations – by clicking here.

I hope you enjoy this episode and I’ll be in touch next week with another tip to help your BJJ training. Until next time…

Train Strong,

James Wilson

Over the last few weeks I’ve been talking about three things that you should be using as part of your BJJ specific workouts – Isometrics, the Steel Mace and CO2 Tolerance Training. These things will help improve the weak link in most people’s grappling game while also creating the least amount of wear and tear on the body.

I know that these things are also new to a lot of people and so this week I’m going to share a workout with you. In it you’ll see how I would put these elements together into a workout, giving you an example to follow and hopefully a “template” to get some ideas of your own.

You’ll find the workout and the video going over it below:

Isometrics

• Push Up Hold: 30-90 sec.
• Belt Row: 30 sec. @ 50%/ 20 sec. @ 80%/ 10 sec. @ 100%
• Lunge Hold: 30-90 sec.
• Belt Deadlift: 30 sec. @ 50%/ 20 sec. @ 80%/ 10 sec. @ 100%
• Belt Bridge: 30 sec. @ 50%/ 20 sec. @ 80%/ 10 sec. @ 100%

Mace Work

• Barbarian Squat: 2 X 5-10 reps (switch hands on top on the 2nd set)
• Spear Stab: 2 X 5-10 on both sides
• 3 Way Press: 2 X 3-5 on both sides

Breathwork/ CO2 Tolerance Workout

• Warm Up: 3-5 Moderate Breath Holds (10-20 paces)
• Workout: 5 Strong Breath Holds + “Flicker Breaths” 

Let me know if you have any questions or want to run an idea about your own workouts by me, I’m always happy to help. Until next time…

Train Strong,

James Wilson

BJJ Strength Training Systems

p.s. I’ll be back next week with another podcast, this time covering Breathwork for BJJ. I tried to post it this week but ran into some technical difficulties and had to abort mission. I’ll get it posted next week, I know you’ll get some good stuff from that you can apply to your training and daily routine.

In‌ ‌this‌ ‌episode‌ ‌of‌ ‌the‌ ‌BJJ‌ ‌Strength‌ ‌Training‌ ‌Podcast‌ ‌I‌ ‌go over Steel Mace Training and why it is such a valuable tool for your BJJ training program.‌ ‌You‌ ‌can‌ ‌stream‌ ‌or‌ ‌download‌ ‌it‌ ‌from‌ ‌the‌ ‌link‌ ‌below‌ ‌or‌ ‌you‌ ‌can‌ ‌find‌ ‌it‌ ‌on‌ ‌‌Itunes‌,‌‌ ‌‌Podbean‌,‌‌ ‌‌Google‌ ‌Podcasts‌,‌‌ ‌‌Spotify‌‌ ‌‌and‌ ‌all‌ ‌other‌ ‌major‌ ‌podcasting‌ ‌platforms.‌ ‌

Click‌ ‌Here‌ ‌to‌ ‌Download the MP3 File

The Steel Mace is another example of an old training tool regaining popularity in the modern fitness culture. It has a history that can be traced back thousands of years and is a traditional training tool of warriors and wrestlers.

The Steel Mace is a great training tool for grapplers because it fills in a gap in their strength training, which is usually focused on Compression based exercises (Squats, Deadlifts, Presses, ect.). Grappling requires a lot more Leverage Based Strength than other sports, which means you need Leverage Based Strength tools like the Steel Mace if you want to see the bast transfer from the gym to the mats.

Until next time…

Train Strong,

James Wilson

BJJ Strength Training Systems

In this episode of the BJJ Strength Training Podcast I cover one of the most popular topics when it comes to training for BJJ – Cardio Training. You can stream or download it from the link below or you can find it on Itunes, Podbean, Google Podcasts, Spotify and all other major podcasting platforms.

Click Here to Download the MP3 File

When it comes to Cardio Training for BJJ, there are two things you need to worry about:

1. Running out of gas.
2. Getting breathless.

These are not the same things and must be trained for differently.

A big mistake people make is knowing that they have a problem with their cardio but not being more specific with what they need to improve, which results in them using methods that aren’t suited for the job.

In this case, that means doing a lot of hard cardio training (intervals, Crossfit) to try and trigger/ train that breathless feeling. The problem is that this is an inefficient way to train for this problem and takes a lot out of you physically.

The best way to train to better deal with getting breathless is to improve your CO2 tolerance. CO2 triggers the breathless feeling and so the better our tolerance is the harder we can worry before becoming breathless and the better we can deal with it when it happens.

In order to train to improve your CO2 tolerance is to expose yourself to higher CO2 levels, which requires holding your breath to let the levels rise. Breath holds may not be as dramatic as a hard interval workout but they create the internal environment you want to improve a big part of your cardio fitness on the mats.

If you can’t train BJJ 3+ times a week then you may also benefit from an extra interval type workout depending on the other demands life has on you and your recovery. I like the Breathing Gear Interval Workout on an Airdyne type bike because this trains you to drive your effort with your breathing rather than the other way around. 

Remember that the best approach is to figure out how little you can do off the mats to see good results on the mats so you can focus your time and energy on training BJJ, not to find out how much you can do before you break. Follow the advice in this podcast and you’ll avoid the Cardio Training trap a lot of people fall into.

Until next time…

Train Strong,

James Wilson

BJJ Strength Training Systems