Let’s face it, we were all new at Brazilian Jiu Jitsu at some point and everyone was a white belt when they started. However, most people will slowly but surely improve as each year passes, until they become an expert. That is unless you quit before then.
Perhaps one of the reasons why BJJ white belts quit so much is due to the frustrations they go through. Here, a typical white belt will get submitted and beaten up constantly during sparring. Obviously, this can be demotivating, to say the least.
However, even with the rank of white belt, some are much better than others. The reason for this is that some people train better than others and are quick learners as a result. Put another way, you may struggle at BJJ, but even still there are certain mistakes that you can try and cut out.
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Using gimmicky moves
In Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, certain techniques and moves are timeless. For instance, the rear naked choke is something that has been around forever and works on all ranks. Sadly, not all submissions are as effective against good people. For instance, doing a baseball choke from bottom side control may work in a beginner’s class due to the element of surprise, but against a seasoned practitioner, it’s less likely to work.
The issue with gimmicky moves is that they may work on fellow beginners and give you a false sense of confidence. Then, when you try these moves on better people you get a nasty wake up call. In other words, it’s better to focus on the basics. Instead of trying submissions from bad positions, learn to escape from the bottom and go from there. At some point, this will pay dividends but it doesn’t ensure instant gratification.
Gimmicky moves don’t just involve submissions either. Sometimes it can mean inverting for the sake of it, or trying a cartwheel pass because it looks fancy. Ideally, you should focus on a basic game that is universally successful. Of course, as a beginner short cuts are always tempting.
Picking easy rolls
Another issue which white belts can fall into is picking easy rolls. Sometimes, you’re tired and want a simple role so you pick the easiest person in the class, or even worse – you sit out to rest. Of course, if you’re brand new and out of shape then resting may be sensible. Having said this, there comes a time when you’ll need to up your stamina, and resting can damage progress in this area.
Anyway, some people roll with an ego which can be common with BJJ beginners. This means picking the smallest guy in the gym to roll with, or a physically weaker woman, or a much older practitioner. Whilst your ego may feel satisfied beating easier opponents, your long-term progress will suffer.
There’s a lot to be said about training with tough opponents as they will improve your mentality and you can learn from them. However, if you never go out of your comfort zone then it says a lot about you. Your long-term development may be hampered by this approach and it isn’t what martial arts are about. So, as long as you’re not rolling with someone threatening to injure you, you should always embrace hard rolls which will eventually pay off.
Defending instead of escaping
On the other end of the spectrum, some white belts go too deep into defending and become obsessed with it. This is often the result of training with people who are far better than you. Basically, it is true that a white belt should focus on defense and survival as they’ll often be on the receiving end of getting tapped out multiple times.
However, this can also create bad habits. For instance, instead of risking a submission to escape mount, you may just completely defend and become counter-active. This is useless for both self defense and competition BJJ. Of course, there’s a lot to be said for defending and it’s an important skill.
Still, there’s a big difference between defending and escapes. At some point, you’ll need to focus on your escapes and even if this risks getting submitted then it’s a process that you’ll need to go through for your own progress. Like many examples found in this article, it ultimately boils down to ego and fear of getting submitted. Just remember why you started BJJ training and that it probably wasn’t to defend and barely move.
Watching too many instructional videos
Make no doubt about it, BJJ videos can really improve your game and take you to higher levels. The issue is that as a beginner, watching too many instructional videos can actually be counter productive.
Often for white belts, learning videos can be very exciting and if they have clickbait titles, you may think they will drastically improve your game. This is possible but requires time and patience. Put another way, there’s no point watching a 5 minute clip and trying to pull it off in sparring as it probably won’t work.
So, watching BJJ videos isn’t particularly a bad thing. The point is to watch them correctly and to make sure you don’t watch too many different videos at once. Remember, the human brain can’t process too many things at once. This may lead to you wasting time and it may even damage your progress.
Imagine trying a new technique that you have no understanding of how it works but still trying to make it work. Logically, this makes no sense but if you try to force a move that you haven’t gone through much then it may not make much sense.
Not taking advice
Another issue that newcomers can have is not taking advise, especially from higher belts. Sometimes, your technique will be corrected and you can learn valuable lessons. Arguably, this advise is more important than lessons, as they act as a mini private lesson.
However, if you choose to ignore advice then it may harm you. This may be due to your ego, or whether you just don’t listen. Regardless, this will hinder your progress. Interestingly, there are always two sides of the coin.
Sometimes, you will find cocky white belts who genuinely believe they’re special and will freely dish out advice that isn’t accurate or helpful. Again, this is down to ego and some people enjoy being an authority figure, even if they’re not qualified to give out advice.
In brief, it’s fine to take advice from senior people in your gym but if it’s a fellow white belt who is worse than you, then the advice may not be coming from a genuine or helpful place. As a rule though, it’s good to be open minded though in BJJ and be willing to take constructive criticism.
Becoming too predictable
Speaking of being open minded, sometimes people become too predictable in BJJ. This advice isn’t just applicable for white belts either. For example, as a white belt, you may develop a good triangle choke. This is something that may be part of your game forever. However, it’s also good to develop other attacks and ideas too.
In other words, you’re still very new at BJJ and it’s best to branch out and learn as much as you possibly can. The alternative is that you only use one move and eventually, everyone will become wise to your attacks. The same goes for playing guard, passing guard, and escapes.
In BJJ, variety is the spice of life for beginners and you can focus on developing a solid game later on. For your first couple of years though, you should be trying to learn as much as possible and explore all sorts of other moves and techniques.
Remember, it may feel good to win in the short-term but in the long-run it’s best to try and be as best as you can. As a white belt, you’re basically investing in your future self so if you avoid these mistakes then you will be on the right track towards success.
