On Saturday, 10/29/11, I competed in the Black Belt Absolute division at the Battle of HTown. There were 7 Black Belts total. Steve Hall (who won the event) Bruno Alves, Marcus Hicks, Igor Santos, and then 3 SMAA Black Belts..Roy Davis, Eddie Avelar, and me.
I drew a bye in the first round, and in the second round, I went against Igor Santos, head bjj instructor at Paradigm. Again, I felt as if my rhythm is a whole beat off. I know what to do in each position, but I am not pulling the trigger..I am thinking way too much. My goal for the next tournament is to work more of what I call "Cue" training.
In the regular division, it was just me and my student Roy, so we decided not to compete against each other. Roy reffed all day. The main frustration was that I had to cut weight for that division..LOL!
Thanks to Igor for the match, thanks to Elbert Hebron for the tournament! and thanks to my daughter Ember for filming :)
Anyway...the next tournament for me is November 19th. The Texas Open. Starting to get ready for that one today!
Comments and feedback always appreciated!
Here is the video of my match with Igor!
Monday, October 31, 2011
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Tournament #13 Grapplers Quest/UFC Fan Expo
This past Saturday, 10/8/11, I competed in my 13th tournament on my 50by50 journey. The UFC came back to Houston and in conjunction with the UFC Fan Expo, Grapplers Quest held a nicely run tournament.
I am behind schedule due to illness and injuries so I need to compete in as many tournaments possible to catch up. That being said, I have been training and feel I am in decent shape, not the greatest condition, but in good physical shape. I have been fighting a cold all week and taking Day Quil during the day, and Theraflu at night to help me sleep, but this is no excuse for my performance. My knee is getting a lot better and gave me absolutely no problems during the match.
In this match, you will see my get my butt kicked for 2:30 minutes by Macaco before he gets me in a crucifix choke. Macaco is a great champion, and I don't know if I am letting that get to me mentally. I know that when I roll in the school, I set a face pace, and in tournaments, I feel like I am rolling in slow motion. I know everything I should do in each position I am in, but then I just don't pull the trigger. Here is the video:
Thanks to Grapplers Quest crew for the tournament, and thanks to Macaco for the match. My goal is to give him a more competitive match next time! :)
My next tournament is the Battle of H Town October 29th!
Please feel free to leave feedback, it is appreciated.
Alvis
I am behind schedule due to illness and injuries so I need to compete in as many tournaments possible to catch up. That being said, I have been training and feel I am in decent shape, not the greatest condition, but in good physical shape. I have been fighting a cold all week and taking Day Quil during the day, and Theraflu at night to help me sleep, but this is no excuse for my performance. My knee is getting a lot better and gave me absolutely no problems during the match.
In this match, you will see my get my butt kicked for 2:30 minutes by Macaco before he gets me in a crucifix choke. Macaco is a great champion, and I don't know if I am letting that get to me mentally. I know that when I roll in the school, I set a face pace, and in tournaments, I feel like I am rolling in slow motion. I know everything I should do in each position I am in, but then I just don't pull the trigger. Here is the video:
Thanks to Grapplers Quest crew for the tournament, and thanks to Macaco for the match. My goal is to give him a more competitive match next time! :)
My next tournament is the Battle of H Town October 29th!
Please feel free to leave feedback, it is appreciated.
Alvis
Monday, September 26, 2011
Ready to get back on track!
Its time to get back on the competition mat :)
The next tournament I have set my sights on is Grappler Quest http://www.grapplersquest.com/ on October 7th and 8th as part of the UFC Expo. I will be in the Executive Black Belt Division (30 and up)...probably in cruiserweight, my weight is hovering at 183, and I don't think I want to push my body to get under 170 for this tournament.
Then on October 29th, there is the Battle of H-Town http://grandprixgrappling.com/2011/01/11/2011-battle-of-h-town/ that I want to compete in as well.
My knee is still not 100% but it is a lot better, my training has picked up in intensity and I have been drilling more. My game plan is getting tweaked on daily trying to improve my guard retention, my escapes, etc.
And now, I am hoping to find a sponsor to help me go to the No Gi Worlds. I don't really compete in No Gi, but it was motivating watching guys like Rafa Mendes, and Andre Galvao compete in the ADCC this past weekend. So if you know anyone looking to sponsor someone, please let me know!
Thanks guys!
Stay tuned! more to come!
The next tournament I have set my sights on is Grappler Quest http://www.grapplersquest.com/ on October 7th and 8th as part of the UFC Expo. I will be in the Executive Black Belt Division (30 and up)...probably in cruiserweight, my weight is hovering at 183, and I don't think I want to push my body to get under 170 for this tournament.
Then on October 29th, there is the Battle of H-Town http://grandprixgrappling.com/2011/01/11/2011-battle-of-h-town/ that I want to compete in as well.
My knee is still not 100% but it is a lot better, my training has picked up in intensity and I have been drilling more. My game plan is getting tweaked on daily trying to improve my guard retention, my escapes, etc.
And now, I am hoping to find a sponsor to help me go to the No Gi Worlds. I don't really compete in No Gi, but it was motivating watching guys like Rafa Mendes, and Andre Galvao compete in the ADCC this past weekend. So if you know anyone looking to sponsor someone, please let me know!
Thanks guys!
Stay tuned! more to come!
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Little Steps but moving forward!
It has been awhile since I have written anything. So, I wanted to catch everyone up. Everyone keeps asking me if I am still working on my 50by50 goal. The answer is YES! I am behind my projected schedule and my challenge has been compounded due to knowing that I am going to get even more behind schedule. However, it does not matter how far behind I get because I will accomplish this goal even if I have to compete in 10 tournaments in a month! LOL!
I continue to be troubled with my knee, and every time it starts feeling better, I push it and re-tweak it. Plus for the last ten days or so, I have been fighting strep throat. The medicine is wreaking havoc on my digestive system.
In June, I had the opportunity to attend a Mendes Brothers Seminar in the Houston area. This is my third different event with the Brothers and again, I learned a lot that I instantly shared with my students. Rafa took me to the side and showed me the latest variations that they were using on the techniques that they had taught me before, which I was really grateful for and I thought was really cool of the brothers.
I also attended a Carlos Machado Affiliate meeting in June and learned some really good escapes from side control that I want to drill too.
My plan was to compete at the August 13th Europa, but to be honest, right now I am up in the air. I do not want to show up and compete just to put a number in the bank. I want to compete to win the tournament. As I am a big believer in drilling techniques, I know that I have not put in the time and work on drills that I normally do before a tournament, especially drilling the new grips and variations to the Mendes Bros. techniques and the side control escapes from Carlos.
The first weekend in July had us move our school to a new bigger location :)
1903 Treble Drive, Humble, TX 77338..if you are ever in the area, please stop in and take a class!
So for right now, my plan is to continue to recover from the strep, and take care of my knee. And hopefully be ready to compete in October...but...lets not count August 13th all the way out ;)
TEAM SMAA BLACK BELTS!
I continue to be troubled with my knee, and every time it starts feeling better, I push it and re-tweak it. Plus for the last ten days or so, I have been fighting strep throat. The medicine is wreaking havoc on my digestive system.
In June, I had the opportunity to attend a Mendes Brothers Seminar in the Houston area. This is my third different event with the Brothers and again, I learned a lot that I instantly shared with my students. Rafa took me to the side and showed me the latest variations that they were using on the techniques that they had taught me before, which I was really grateful for and I thought was really cool of the brothers.
I also attended a Carlos Machado Affiliate meeting in June and learned some really good escapes from side control that I want to drill too.
My plan was to compete at the August 13th Europa, but to be honest, right now I am up in the air. I do not want to show up and compete just to put a number in the bank. I want to compete to win the tournament. As I am a big believer in drilling techniques, I know that I have not put in the time and work on drills that I normally do before a tournament, especially drilling the new grips and variations to the Mendes Bros. techniques and the side control escapes from Carlos.
The first weekend in July had us move our school to a new bigger location :)
1903 Treble Drive, Humble, TX 77338..if you are ever in the area, please stop in and take a class!
So for right now, my plan is to continue to recover from the strep, and take care of my knee. And hopefully be ready to compete in October...but...lets not count August 13th all the way out ;)
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Texas State Championships
As I have mentioned in a previous blog, being injured sucks! I have a certain stubbornness when it comes to injuries. I don't have the patience to have any injury fully heal. I don't know if it comes from my track and field days, where the mindset is, if you miss a competition you put yourself a tenth of a second behind your competitor. In the 400 meters, a tenth of a second is about a meter, so you don't want to put yourself to far behind. In high school and college, I never let my hamstrings fully heal and I still pay dearly for that.
At this years Houston International Open in February, I hurt my knee in my Gold Medal match. Since then it has given me issues with swelling and just losing the stability in it, not allowing me to stand up to pass the guard with confidence or post strongly on it. It really did not affect me at the Austin Open, but I had to baby it in training during the Mendes Brothers seminar and at my Carlos Machado affiliate meeting in March. At the Pan Ams, I re-aggravated it severely along with other injuries.
So, I decided to train lightly at the beginning of April and I sat out the Texas International Grappling Festival and just coached. My team won both the Kids/Juveniles Team Trophy and the Overall Team Trophy. I re-tweaked my knee on the morning of April 14th and decided to wait and see how it was doing to see if I was going to compete. Well, my body told me not to compete..but my ego would not listen to it.
Here is my first match. I competed in the 155-175 Brown/Black Belt Adult Division. My opponent is Tony Tipton from Genesis Jiu-Jitsu. Tony is one of the most technical BJJ competitors out there, and it was so much fun rolling with him. I had a blast. Thanks Tony!!
In my second match, in the Adult Master's Division. My opponent was Ricardo Soto from Alvarez BJJ. I felt really good during this brief match until I tried to pass his half guard, I felt my knee start moving and tried to ignore it. As we scrambled and stood up, pain just shot through my hamstring, knee and calf, and I found myself tapping to it. I apologize to Mr. Soto as it was a fun match and wished we would have finished it. Here is the video of that match:
So the plan is now to rest my body. I need to hurry and heal up :) I have already pre-registered for the Dallas International Open but I will have to see. I would like to be as close to 100% as possible. Out of all these tournaments, I have only been healthy for my super fight with Renan Chavez, and I am in a lot better shape now except for the injuries! LOL!
Time to rest and study! As always please feel free to comment!
Oh! My daughters argued with the timekeeper who said that being injured is what I get for competing at my age...keep calling me old..as you get older, I will get better :)
At this years Houston International Open in February, I hurt my knee in my Gold Medal match. Since then it has given me issues with swelling and just losing the stability in it, not allowing me to stand up to pass the guard with confidence or post strongly on it. It really did not affect me at the Austin Open, but I had to baby it in training during the Mendes Brothers seminar and at my Carlos Machado affiliate meeting in March. At the Pan Ams, I re-aggravated it severely along with other injuries.
So, I decided to train lightly at the beginning of April and I sat out the Texas International Grappling Festival and just coached. My team won both the Kids/Juveniles Team Trophy and the Overall Team Trophy. I re-tweaked my knee on the morning of April 14th and decided to wait and see how it was doing to see if I was going to compete. Well, my body told me not to compete..but my ego would not listen to it.
Here is my first match. I competed in the 155-175 Brown/Black Belt Adult Division. My opponent is Tony Tipton from Genesis Jiu-Jitsu. Tony is one of the most technical BJJ competitors out there, and it was so much fun rolling with him. I had a blast. Thanks Tony!!
In my second match, in the Adult Master's Division. My opponent was Ricardo Soto from Alvarez BJJ. I felt really good during this brief match until I tried to pass his half guard, I felt my knee start moving and tried to ignore it. As we scrambled and stood up, pain just shot through my hamstring, knee and calf, and I found myself tapping to it. I apologize to Mr. Soto as it was a fun match and wished we would have finished it. Here is the video of that match:
So the plan is now to rest my body. I need to hurry and heal up :) I have already pre-registered for the Dallas International Open but I will have to see. I would like to be as close to 100% as possible. Out of all these tournaments, I have only been healthy for my super fight with Renan Chavez, and I am in a lot better shape now except for the injuries! LOL!
Time to rest and study! As always please feel free to comment!
Oh! My daughters argued with the timekeeper who said that being injured is what I get for competing at my age...keep calling me old..as you get older, I will get better :)
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Pan Ams 2011
Frustration
I trained so hard :( I felt everything going my way and I still placed third.
I have done so many burpees, push ups, pull ups, watched my diet etc., worked on my technique like crazy and still came up short.
My weight was good until two days prior. We ate at a Vegetarian restaurant and we all gained 5 pounds! We had to watch what we ate and drank for the next couple of days but it came off no problem. I weighed in with my Gi and 179, and my Gi weighs 4.4 pounds.
I had made up my mind that I was going to be focused and not as friendly before my match and keep my concentration up. It worked. I put my ipod on and listened to a variety of music some of it actually a little mellow to keep my adrenaline from spiking too bad.
I won my first match by clock choke. That match went exactly as planned..pressure my opponent into allowing me to shoot in and get a take down or he jumps to guard. He jumped to guard, I quickly passed, got to knee on belly, mount, and took his back. I set up the choke and jumped off his back to finish. I was up 15-0, when I finished the match. My opponent's name was Diogo Canteras from Sao Paulo..a very nice guy. I unfortunately do not have any video of this match at this time.
I lost my second match by ref's decision. My opponent was Ricardo Guimaraes, representing Gracie Humaita..also a very nice guy. I had several opportunities to win this match but did not take advantage..the final score was 0-0, No advantages...so it went to a ref's decision and Ricardo deserved to win. Here is that match:
It is April 7th, 2011 as I write this Blog. I competed on March 26th. It has taken me this long to settle down enough to stay at the computer..LOL! I think about this second match and get so frustrated.
The negatives: Getting down to the wire again with my diet, I am researching ways to keep my weight better under control. I am hoping to get to where I am walking around comfortably at 170lbs and get even stronger with that weight. I came back with some injuries. My left elbow, my left hamstring, and my right knee (previous injury) and so I am taking some time off to allow those to heal.
The positives: I was in really great shape..did not fatigue in either match and felt like I could have fought 5 more matches. I felt mentally stronger as well, and worked on a pre-competition mental ritual.
My plan is to continue fine tuning my game, and use this feeling as a launching pad. I hope to compete in more IBJJF tournaments due to the fact that they have high level Black Belts in my age group, and they are run really well. I also plan to compete at the Texas State Championships April 23. That should be fun.
Feedback is always encouraged! Thanks guys!
Alvis
I trained so hard :( I felt everything going my way and I still placed third.
I have done so many burpees, push ups, pull ups, watched my diet etc., worked on my technique like crazy and still came up short.
My weight was good until two days prior. We ate at a Vegetarian restaurant and we all gained 5 pounds! We had to watch what we ate and drank for the next couple of days but it came off no problem. I weighed in with my Gi and 179, and my Gi weighs 4.4 pounds.
I had made up my mind that I was going to be focused and not as friendly before my match and keep my concentration up. It worked. I put my ipod on and listened to a variety of music some of it actually a little mellow to keep my adrenaline from spiking too bad.
I won my first match by clock choke. That match went exactly as planned..pressure my opponent into allowing me to shoot in and get a take down or he jumps to guard. He jumped to guard, I quickly passed, got to knee on belly, mount, and took his back. I set up the choke and jumped off his back to finish. I was up 15-0, when I finished the match. My opponent's name was Diogo Canteras from Sao Paulo..a very nice guy. I unfortunately do not have any video of this match at this time.
I lost my second match by ref's decision. My opponent was Ricardo Guimaraes, representing Gracie Humaita..also a very nice guy. I had several opportunities to win this match but did not take advantage..the final score was 0-0, No advantages...so it went to a ref's decision and Ricardo deserved to win. Here is that match:
It is April 7th, 2011 as I write this Blog. I competed on March 26th. It has taken me this long to settle down enough to stay at the computer..LOL! I think about this second match and get so frustrated.
The negatives: Getting down to the wire again with my diet, I am researching ways to keep my weight better under control. I am hoping to get to where I am walking around comfortably at 170lbs and get even stronger with that weight. I came back with some injuries. My left elbow, my left hamstring, and my right knee (previous injury) and so I am taking some time off to allow those to heal.
The positives: I was in really great shape..did not fatigue in either match and felt like I could have fought 5 more matches. I felt mentally stronger as well, and worked on a pre-competition mental ritual.
My plan is to continue fine tuning my game, and use this feeling as a launching pad. I hope to compete in more IBJJF tournaments due to the fact that they have high level Black Belts in my age group, and they are run really well. I also plan to compete at the Texas State Championships April 23. That should be fun.
Feedback is always encouraged! Thanks guys!
Alvis
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Rollercoaster
Atama Austin Open.
I arrived at Anderson High School for the Austin Open at about 8am. I weighed in 172lbs., so I am definitely on target as far as my weight goes for the Pan Ams.
I have been training really hard, and felt focused and ready. I was scheduled to compete at 2:30, but because of the number of competitors (640), I did not step on the mat until 6pm. Once on the mat, I felt lifeless, and out of the moment. No adrenaline rush, no real feeling or excitement. This has never happened to me before so I am a little bit lost as to why. Maybe I am being a bit too honest, but I am disappointed and embarrassed by my performance. Taking nothing away from my opponent,Elliot Row of Elite MMA, I just wish I could have given him a better match.
I escape side control everyday. I practice choke escapes everyday..I have at least 3 solid clock choke escapes that I do. I didn't even try any of them.
So while I drove up to Austin in a great mood, the drive back was somber and I just wanted to sleep to avoid thinking about my match. I am appreciative that my team stayed and supported me. I will do better the next tournament. I am doing better NOW!
Here is my match with Elliot:
My training for the Pan Ams resumes!
"He is who is not courageous enough to take risks, will accomplish nothing in life."
Muhammad Ali
I arrived at Anderson High School for the Austin Open at about 8am. I weighed in 172lbs., so I am definitely on target as far as my weight goes for the Pan Ams.
I have been training really hard, and felt focused and ready. I was scheduled to compete at 2:30, but because of the number of competitors (640), I did not step on the mat until 6pm. Once on the mat, I felt lifeless, and out of the moment. No adrenaline rush, no real feeling or excitement. This has never happened to me before so I am a little bit lost as to why. Maybe I am being a bit too honest, but I am disappointed and embarrassed by my performance. Taking nothing away from my opponent,Elliot Row of Elite MMA, I just wish I could have given him a better match.
I escape side control everyday. I practice choke escapes everyday..I have at least 3 solid clock choke escapes that I do. I didn't even try any of them.
So while I drove up to Austin in a great mood, the drive back was somber and I just wanted to sleep to avoid thinking about my match. I am appreciative that my team stayed and supported me. I will do better the next tournament. I am doing better NOW!
Here is my match with Elliot:
My training for the Pan Ams resumes!
"He is who is not courageous enough to take risks, will accomplish nothing in life."
Muhammad Ali
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