Guys,
I got this DVD a few months back and here are my few comments on it.
- Good quality picture etc no complaints here. A well-produced instructional
- It is ONLY for beginners in jiu jitsu. You don't want to get this one if you've being learning jiu jitsu for more than a year and I cannot stress this enough. The range of techniques is very basic. You will review your fundamentals but if you want to see some new stuff to try out in class, get another DVD.
- Gradings. Roy Dean talks a lot about gradings. Personally I don't really believe in this kind of thing. It is nice to see good technique but I think it is sparring and competition performance that counts. You don't need to know hundreds of techniques in my opinion.
- Limited content. This is a two DVD set, but what you get I though was very limited compared to other double DVD sets that I got. You really only get a few techniques here shown in good detail. What you do not get here is a guard series where the blackbelt demonstrates a series of techniques that interconnect.
Overall I give this DVD a 5.5 out of 10 but I was a little disappointed. An ok DVD for beginners but if you want to develop, I recommend you look elsewhere.
Showing posts with label reviews. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reviews. Show all posts
Wednesday, 17 June 2009
Tuesday, 9 June 2009
UFC Undisputed 2009 Video Game
Got this game the day it came out in the UK. So far really enjoying it. The career mode is probably the most interesting part but havent tried the XBOX Live stuff. (i have an Xbox 360 by the way)
The controls are surprisingly good although grappling I have found considerably more difficult to master compared to the standup game. I am getting there though. They claim to have a whole range of martial arts included in the game including bjj, boxing, muay thai, judo and wrestling. Personally, the Judo throws are the most impossible to implement.
The career mode allows you to train up your fighter adding strength, speed and cardio. At the same time you have the ability to improve skills by sparring. The better you do in the sparring sessions, the better your fighters skills. So far I have found that while at the lower levels I can easily win with just a standup game, when I get to Frank Mir and Minotauro Noguera, I immediately lose by submission or ground and pound. Submissions and ground grappling is clearly a more advanced part of the game. (at least it seems to me)
Of course you really miss some of the top fighters that are outside of the UFC. Of course Fedor. It also seems strange that at the moment Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski are fighting for Affliction instead of the UFC and they are included. Would really be great to have an MMA game that includes all top fighters of today rather than just UFC.
The other thing I thought would be kind of cool for a project like this is to include some cool anomalies that come up in the sport. For example get Hong Man Choi, Zulu, Bob Sapp freaks but also super advanced grapplers like Roger Gracie, Xande Ribeiro, Jacare and Jeff Monson who are fighting in MMA anyway.
Generally great game. A bit much to learn but I guess that also makes it fun since there is a lot to master in the controls. Better than expected! at least 9 out of 10
The controls are surprisingly good although grappling I have found considerably more difficult to master compared to the standup game. I am getting there though. They claim to have a whole range of martial arts included in the game including bjj, boxing, muay thai, judo and wrestling. Personally, the Judo throws are the most impossible to implement.
The career mode allows you to train up your fighter adding strength, speed and cardio. At the same time you have the ability to improve skills by sparring. The better you do in the sparring sessions, the better your fighters skills. So far I have found that while at the lower levels I can easily win with just a standup game, when I get to Frank Mir and Minotauro Noguera, I immediately lose by submission or ground and pound. Submissions and ground grappling is clearly a more advanced part of the game. (at least it seems to me)
Of course you really miss some of the top fighters that are outside of the UFC. Of course Fedor. It also seems strange that at the moment Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski are fighting for Affliction instead of the UFC and they are included. Would really be great to have an MMA game that includes all top fighters of today rather than just UFC.
The other thing I thought would be kind of cool for a project like this is to include some cool anomalies that come up in the sport. For example get Hong Man Choi, Zulu, Bob Sapp freaks but also super advanced grapplers like Roger Gracie, Xande Ribeiro, Jacare and Jeff Monson who are fighting in MMA anyway.
Generally great game. A bit much to learn but I guess that also makes it fun since there is a lot to master in the controls. Better than expected! at least 9 out of 10
Thursday, 21 May 2009
Rigan Machado Secrets of the Half Guard Review
Rigan Machado is certainly a specialist expert on the half-guard. I have bought this 3 dvd set and was very much impressed. Before I give a full review of the DVD itself, let me write a little about Rigan himself.
Rigan Machado is a jiu jitsu legend by all accounts. He is an 8th degree black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Carlos Gracie Jr. He is a former Jiu-Jitsu world champion and is considered one of the greatest grapplers of all time with an unbeatable record of eight consecutive years of winning every belt division from ages 14 to 21. He totaled 365 wins with no losses and performed 19 matches in one day with all of them finishing in submission — a record no one has achieved since.
Firstly what I liked about the instructional set is that it clearly explained the fundamentals of the half guard. I have always been fond of the half-guard especially after watching Saulo Ribeiro's Revolution Series but this set has really shown to me how much there is to the half-guard and that this truly is one of the most fundamental positions in jiu jitsu that every player has to know well.
Rigan's demonstrations are fantastic. His explanations are very well presented and each move is very clearly explained. Importantly in my opinion, Rigan shows no only the half-guard postion on the ground but also gives a good grounding on tactics and transitions i.e. how to move from stand up grappling to the half-guard, how to work on the ground from the half guard when you are on your back and the opponent is standing. He also shows some very nice submissions here, how to finish your opponents and this is done with perfection.
For one, I have particularly enjoyed the leg locks in the series. Rigan shows immaculate transitions into leg locks and I will be sure to build these into my game as I develop my jiu jitsu further.
10 out of 10 a must buy DVD set for intermediate and above. It is not the first DVD set you want to buy but if you are looking to further develop your half-guard game, you must get this!
Rigan Machado is a jiu jitsu legend by all accounts. He is an 8th degree black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Carlos Gracie Jr. He is a former Jiu-Jitsu world champion and is considered one of the greatest grapplers of all time with an unbeatable record of eight consecutive years of winning every belt division from ages 14 to 21. He totaled 365 wins with no losses and performed 19 matches in one day with all of them finishing in submission — a record no one has achieved since.
Firstly what I liked about the instructional set is that it clearly explained the fundamentals of the half guard. I have always been fond of the half-guard especially after watching Saulo Ribeiro's Revolution Series but this set has really shown to me how much there is to the half-guard and that this truly is one of the most fundamental positions in jiu jitsu that every player has to know well.
Rigan's demonstrations are fantastic. His explanations are very well presented and each move is very clearly explained. Importantly in my opinion, Rigan shows no only the half-guard postion on the ground but also gives a good grounding on tactics and transitions i.e. how to move from stand up grappling to the half-guard, how to work on the ground from the half guard when you are on your back and the opponent is standing. He also shows some very nice submissions here, how to finish your opponents and this is done with perfection.
For one, I have particularly enjoyed the leg locks in the series. Rigan shows immaculate transitions into leg locks and I will be sure to build these into my game as I develop my jiu jitsu further.
10 out of 10 a must buy DVD set for intermediate and above. It is not the first DVD set you want to buy but if you are looking to further develop your half-guard game, you must get this!
Monday, 18 May 2009
My Book Review – Brazilian Jiu Jitsu: Theory and Technique (Renzo & Royler Gracie, with Kid Peligro & John Danaher)
First published in 2001 this book was the first Brazilian Jiu Jitsu book published in Russia in 2005 by the publisher Boevoy Sport.
Royler and Renzo Gracie are absolute masters of their art. The book itself however I found has a number of drawbacks despite the very good illustrations. (it is a hard-cover)
This book firstly I think is a first look at brazilian jiu jitsu from a perspective of a beginner. All techniques included in the book are fundemental, however the order in which they are shown is somewhat sporadic, with a huge mix between different types of positions, sport vs. self-defense techniques. All this makes the book at the very least difficult to use as I actually have to flick through the book to actually find the technique that I need.
The techniques themselves are demostrated with photographs of the two Gracies in white gi's. I think in some techniques it is difficult to actually follow the smaller details.
My favourite Gi positional move which I picked up from the book has been the lift from north-south position into the back mount which I have since then been able to succesfully incorporate into my game during sparring.
I recommend this book for white belts in their first year of training. For higher grades I would still recommend something more advanced.
8 out of 10 a great book with quality foundation material, an excellent introduction into the art of brazilian jiu jitsu.
Sunday, 5 April 2009
Saulo Ribeiro Jiu Jitsu University Book - My Review
I have bought this book a few weeks ago and I have to say firstly that it blows me away. Saulo Ribeiro and Kevin Howell together with all the other guys that have helped to make this book I think have done a tremendous job.
If you liked Saulo's Jiu Jitsu Revolution Instructional DVD series, you are going to love the book. As in the DVD collection, Saulo is brilliant, teaching the fine technical details that you really need to understand to improve your game.
Firstly it is an enjoyable read and a very nice book, beautiful illustrations! Loads of pictures that show every detail and common mistakes made.
Saulo's reveals his philosophy in this book focusing on survival, escapes and positional play. This is not your average book of submission techniques. Submissions are left for the black belts who already know every aspect and are the last chapter of the book.
The real goal is to escape submissions, survive against more experienced opponents and gain a superior position. This book really focuses on the fine details which are normally omitted by beginners and intermediate students who learn brazilian jiu jitsu and tend to concentrate too much on submissions and power.
Transitions are shown well and also common mistakes which I think are great to fine tune your jiu jitsu
Of course the other thing to mention is that the sport aspect is what is covered here. Take-downs and self-defense aspects are not and I don't believe are needed here. Saulo aims to cover the foundations of the sport at a very technical level.
10 out of 10 , this book is an invaluable gift to any brazilian jiu jitsu practitioner, no matter what level.
If you liked Saulo's Jiu Jitsu Revolution Instructional DVD series, you are going to love the book. As in the DVD collection, Saulo is brilliant, teaching the fine technical details that you really need to understand to improve your game.
Firstly it is an enjoyable read and a very nice book, beautiful illustrations! Loads of pictures that show every detail and common mistakes made.
Saulo's reveals his philosophy in this book focusing on survival, escapes and positional play. This is not your average book of submission techniques. Submissions are left for the black belts who already know every aspect and are the last chapter of the book.
The real goal is to escape submissions, survive against more experienced opponents and gain a superior position. This book really focuses on the fine details which are normally omitted by beginners and intermediate students who learn brazilian jiu jitsu and tend to concentrate too much on submissions and power.
Transitions are shown well and also common mistakes which I think are great to fine tune your jiu jitsu
Of course the other thing to mention is that the sport aspect is what is covered here. Take-downs and self-defense aspects are not and I don't believe are needed here. Saulo aims to cover the foundations of the sport at a very technical level.
10 out of 10 , this book is an invaluable gift to any brazilian jiu jitsu practitioner, no matter what level.
Wednesday, 25 March 2009
Review of Jiu Jitsu Bresilien Collection by Ze Marcello
Ze Marcello is the Head UK Brazilian Top Team (BTT) Instructor, a BJJ black belt under Sergio ''Bolao'' Souza. Having retired from competing professionally in 2002, Ze has since dedicated his time to teaching Jiu Jitsu
His list of achievements include:
1st place - Mundials world championship 97
1st place - Brazilian team tournament 96 and 97
1st place - Pan American champion 97
1st place - Rio De Janiero 96 and 97
1st place - Urban Gorillaz UK 06
2nd place - Mundials world championship 98 and 02
2nd place - Pan American champion 96
3rd place - Mundials world championship 96 and 99
3rd place - Pan American champion 98 and 00
3rd place - Brazilian team tournament 95
My opinion is as follows. The DVD set is great if you would like to see a good set of techniques in 3 main categories i.e. beginner, intermediate and advanced. The demonstrations are rather good but what is lacking is the explanations of the techniques. The DVD demonstrates superb technique visually but without any instruction on how to perform the moves correctly. Its more of a demonstration of jiu jitsu rather than an instructional DVD.
Nevertheless I think it still gives one a good set of interesting moves to then go and try out during sparring or practice. The first 2 DVDs contain roughly 35 techniques each while the 3rd only I think 21. The advanced series I found more interesting as it showed some new lapel chokes from cross-body position which I was not aware of and certainly would like to practice. The techniques shown are also unstructured and you don't really see the logic why they have decided to select these moves as sometimes I have seen is done in other instructional DVDs. (I will perhaps review at another time but in Saulo Ribeiro's Revolution box set for example you really learn a set of specific techniques very well as Saulo gives a very technical explanation of the details involved and that is something that Jiu Jitsu Bresilien lacks in my opinion)
Its also a shame that Ze Marcello does not talk a little about his jiu jitsu experience and give some advice.
Probably I would give this DVD a 7 out of 10 but if you are a beginner and would like to learn a few good submission and sweeps very well, then probably you should look elsewhere.
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