Review/Mindmap: Gracie Barra Fundamentals 2.0 App Weeks 1 thru 4
Gracie Barra has updated their Fundamentals Curriculum to the new version 2.0. This 16 week program was designed by GB black belts, Ricardo Almeida and Marcio Feitosa and the philosophy of Master Carlos Gracie Jr. The lessons are broken down into 16 weeks of training that is repeated through out the year. The techniques are a combination of self defense, sport jiu-jitsu and MMA. This program is intended to provide a solid foundation for the beginner as he moves towards obtaining his blue belt. Their release video can be found here for those interested.
In this series of articles we’ll be breaking down the full curriculum of Gracie Barra Fundamentals 2.0. The content is available from iTunes and on-demand for all mobile devices, tablets and PCs. The Fundamentals set consists of 4 apps, each covering 4 weeks of their fundamentals curriculum for a total of 16 weeks of lessons. The apps range in price from $9.99 to $14.99. If you’re using the on-demand feature the instruction is broken down by the week and is available for $2.99 each with unlimited viewing for the year. Don't forget to download the maps in PDFs for reference, link is at the bottom of the review.
Review/Mindmap: Modern Jiu-Jitsu the Turtle & Back
“Modern Jiu Jitsu, as my DVD illustrates, isn’t new jiu jitsu just a better way to do the things we have always been doing. We aren’t reinventing the wheel, we are using better application of technique to make the wheel better.” Caio Terra
In part three of our series exploring and charting Caio Terra’s Modern Jiu Jitsu series we will be focusing on his instruction regarding the Turtle and back control positions. This section is available as an App directly from ITunes for all your Apple devices. This information is also contained in the second half of the 2nd DVD in the Modern Jiu Jitsu set. If you haven’t already seen them please take a few minutes to check out our breakdowns for the Closed Guard and the Mount.
I won’t go into too much detail on the quality of instruction (excellent), the audience (white/blue belts) or production value (excellent) because those aspects of the set have been covered in our previous review. So, straight to the meat of it…
Breaking Down the Grappler's Manifesto
The Grappler’s Manifesto is a 347 page treatise on nogi grappling for MMA written by Lance Freimuth with the help of some of the biggest names in mixed martial arts. The book is intended for fighters and includes techniques from luminaries such as: Big Nog, Dave Camarillo, Jon Fitch, Forrest Griffin, Greg Jackson, Randy Couture and Neil Melanson. The book is divided into 10 sections covering the major positions from the top and the bottom. The book is also unique because it gives a sample gameplan based on the fighter’s strength: striker, wrestler, jiu-jitsu or generalist. The pictures look great, the explanations of the techniques are in sufficient detail, and you’ve find a wide range of techniques covered.
Review and Mindmap: Gracie Barra Fundamentals 2.0 Weeks 1 & 2
Gracie Barra has updated their Fundamentals Curriculum to the new version 2.0. This 16 week program was designed by GB black belts, Ricardo Almeida and Marcio Feitosa. The lessons are broken down into 16 weeks of training that is repeated through out the year. The techniques are a combination of self defense, sport jiu-jitsu and MMA. This program is intended to provide a solid foundation for the beginner as he moves towards obtaining his blue belt.
In this series of articles we’ll be breaking down the full curriculum of Gracie Barra Fundamentals 2.0. The content is available from iTunes and on-demand for all mobile devices, tablets and PCs. The Fundamentals set consists of 4 apps, each covering 4 weeks of their fundamentals curriculum for a total of 16 weeks of lessons. The apps range in price from $9.99 to $14.99 and are available from iTunes. If you’re using the on-demand feature the instruction is broken down by week and is available for $2.99 each with unlimited viewing for the year. Each article will cover 2 weeks of the curriculum. The mindmap is available to download as a PDF just below the tags section of the post.
Interactive White Belt Curriculum
The great thing about mindmaps is that they provide an easy-to-follow visual reminder of the techniques and positions covered. For most this is quicker to review and easier to assimilate than text notes. You’re also able to get a birds-eye view of how everything is connected and (hopefully) improve your understanding those intricacies.
The downside is that without the source material (DVD, book, magazine, etc) they’re usefulness is greatly limited. Don’t get me wrong, they’re cool to look at but how much are you really getting out of it? So what can be done about that?
Flowchart/Mindmap: How To Defeat Bigger, Stronger Opponents by Emily Kwok
Emily Kwok’s How to Defeat Bigger, Stronger Opponents was the first DVD series to focus specifically on what it takes for smaller jiu-jiteiros to not only survive but also to defeat opponents that are physically stronger and bigger than they are. For more on Mrs. Kwok I’d encourage you to check out her school’s website. Briefly, she is Canada’s first female BJJ black belt, a world champion (Mundials 2007), and has competed successfully at the highest levels (2nd place at American Nationals, and 3rd place at the Pan Ams). The mindmaps/flowcharts are meant to be used as a study reference and in conjunction with the DVDs, as well as personal instruction. The full set includes five DVDs but the maps are going to specific to DVD 2: Compensating for Strength, and DVD 3: Top Five Moves.