Cachorrao (Ricardo Almeida) On Teaching Jiu-Jitsu

Through his facebook (ah, the new millenium) Cachorrao,Ricardo Almeida, a former UFC fighter, mixed martial artist, & Renzo Gracie BJJ Black Belt had disparaging words for teachers who don't roll with their students.

You can read the original post on Graciemag, and below is the message:

Instructors who don’t train with their students are a fraud.
A lot of the time it’s because they’re scared of getting subbed in front of the group.
The day I get scared of getting subbed I’ll stop teaching.
And I hate tapping out!
It’s not because I’ll think I’m worse if I lose a match or sparring session.
It’s because I’m a perfectionist, and I’m really bothered by technical blunders.
Being a black belt has nothing to do with invincibility; it has to do with the art of improving on what we do and persevering in the midst of adversity.
Have a great week—in and out of the academy.
---



I've had the fortune of virtually all of my Judo coaches always having been hands on teachers. Both in mat work and in throwing. I've visited clubs where age, weight, or ego has perhaps led to a decline in how often instructors do Judo with their students. Realistically, in Judo, after years in the sport, I understand perhaps not doing standing randori with younger players as the injuries do take a toll (as my knees will attest). But mat work and such should continue to be a part of training through exchange and live rolling.

That being said, I've heard and seen in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu instructors (who are fraudulent belts) that don't roll with students, or that only roll with higher belts. I understand that a spastic white belt can injure a black belt who perhaps makes much of his true income on private lessons. Yet, I am torn in discerning how often an instructor "should" (for who am I to say) be hands on.

Perhaps, as a lighter weight player, my ego has been sufficiently smashed early on that survival and perhaps just winning by dominating positionally and transitioning is enough for me some days.
As a pluma or pena peso weight class, this is a life long understanding.
   - Happy Trainingz!

***AND....b/c I'm continually working on my diet as a tool to aid my training, recovery, and stamina in training: a post also from Graciemag highlighting what Vitor Belfort eats in the mornings to aid the cutting of weight (and it looks delicious!)