It is a honor to bring back BJJ black belt Andre "Tim" Monteiro. Andre is known for having a vast knowledge of the game, a killer half guard, and a overall nice guy.

We talk about:

• His team A-Force BJJ
• Traveling
• Mistakes people make when they learn a lot from youtube
• Tips on teaching a seminar
• Running a school and traveling
• Keeping an open mind to learning jiu-jitsu
• Leaving your BJJ school
• Off the mat training
• Changes in his game over the last few years
• Why he is getting more submissions in compeititon
• The goals he has set for himself and his business

Links:

• A-Force BJJ website
• Andre on Facebook
• Andre on Instagram

Quote of the week: "It's always better to attack than to defend," Coram had told her when they talked about fencing late at night. "Always. Ye don't win with defense--ye only hold the other feller off, or wear him down. Attack and have done with it!" ― Tamora Pierce, Alanna: The First Adventure

Article of the week: Saying "I do" to the Right BJJ School

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The Life lesson this week was about making the most of a disappointing tournament.

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This week we have an interview with Karel "Silver Fox" Pravec. Karel is a 3rd degree Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt under Renzo Gracie.

We talk about:

• Dealing with younger and stronger opponents
• Training BJJ in the water
• Getting better timing on the mat
• Getting your opponent to stay in your terms and play in your game
• Avoiding injuries
• The role of strength in BJJ
• Why some wrestlers do well in BJJ and others struggle around the purple belt rank
• How to have a speed advantage on the mat
• Getting past slumps on the mat

Links:

• Silver Fox BJJ website
• Karel on Facebook
• Silver Fox Academy on Facebook

Quote of the week: "Personally I'm always ready to learn, although I do not always like being taught." Winston Churchill

Article of the week: 5 sweet sour reasons to keep training

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Recorded after the official end of episode 209.

This week we have an interview with one of Europe's top competitors Espen Mathiesen. In this interview Espen shares many training tips he has developed training in Norway.

We talk about:

• What is like competing against black belts
• Why it is important to have a passion for jiu-jitsu
• The state of jiu-jitsu in Norway
• His training schedules
• Dealing with injuries and avoiding injuries
• Why resistance is vital to his training
• Sparing less and active drilling more
• Advice for blue belts do develop a game plan
• Why it is important for him to be flexible
• The advantages of training with a small team
• The importance of visualizing your performance

Links:

• Espen on Facebook
• Espen on Youtube
• Espen on Instagram

Quote of the week: "The young man knows the rules, but the old man knows the exceptions." Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

Article of the week: New Study Proves BJJ's Effectiveness Against Stress

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This is the second time we share a off the mat story this one is about Byron's dog with 3 legs.

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This week we interview BJJ purple belt Crystal Venessa "Little Monster" Demopoulos.

We talk about:

• How she found the world of martial arts
• Her competitive pole dancing career
• What BJJ and pole dancing have in common
• Getting past the hurtles at the beginning of training
• Winning worlds at white and blue belt
• Why she likes to compeat
• What she does to relax before a competition
• Her experience at worlds as a white belt
• Why she has been training like a pro since day one of BJJ
• Her goal of being a 115 lbs Champion in the UFC
• Her struggles with school and why she likes to read now
• Advice for new BJJ players to stick to the basics
• The difference in game plan for BJJ and MMA

Links:

• Ronin Training Center
• Punch Gunk
• Crystal on Instagram

Quote of the week: "Do the difficult things while they are easy and do the great things while they are small. A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step." Lao Tzu

Article of the week: Expanding your Jiu-Jitsu in a logical manner

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Is Brazilian Jiu-JItsu an art? This week on The BjjBrick Podcast we discuss if BJJ is an art. How can you add an element of art to your game? Is your game a paint by numbers style of jiu-jitsu or are you a ninja turtle level of artist?

[caption id="attachment_4924" align="aligncenter" width="584"] And a happy little choke here[/caption]

Quote of the week: "The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls" Pablo Picasso

Article of the week: Can a Coach roll too much with the Students??

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Chelsah' is a brown belt under Rob Ables at Marcelo Garcia of Dallas. She shares some amazing stories in this interview. She also enjoys competing as much as she can and balancing her busy schedule.

We talk about:

• Her starting MMA before BJJ
• Being held up at gun point...... Twice
• Getting discipline from martial arts
• How Jiu-Jitsu changed her life
• Working four jobs and training to compete
• Some of her favorite techniques
• Learning to do wrist locks
• Helping other students
• Her future in martial arts
• How she keeps the women's class fun and effective
• Advice for running a class for women
• The growth of women in BJJ

Links:

• Marcelo Garcia Dallas
• BJJ Tees
• Chelsah' on Facebook
• Chelsah' on Instagram

Quote of the week: "Obstacles are things a person sees when he takes his eyes off his goal." E. Joseph Cossman

Article of the week: Defend the Primary Threat

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Weston is 18 years old, he has lost 100lbs and it is fair to say BJJ has changed his life. He has been training for around three years in Jasper Alabama.

We talk about:

• Starting BJJ at 280 lbs and getting down to 180 lbs
• Trading video games for BJJ
• Getting into a flow state while rolling
• Tips for learning BJJ
• Advice for someone starting jiu-jitsu for weight loss
• Talking to your training partners while you roll
• Tips for rolling with higher level people
• Teaching BJJ as a lower belt
• Making changes to your diet
• Performing better with a improved diet
• How BJJ could benefit kids in school

Quote of the week: "There is still no cure for the common birthday." John Glenn

Article of the week: I think I suck at BJJ

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This week we have Mike Bidwell from BJJ after 40. We cover a huge range of topics in this show.

We talk about:

• Mike's start to martial arts
• His early days of BJJ and MMA
• The value of competing
• Spending 13 years as a brown belt
• Moving schools as a brown belt
• Getting out of shape as a brown belt
• Setting small goals to get to the next level
• Talking with an instructor about your next belt
• As a vegan what he likes to eat before training
• Why he loves the triangle choke
• Tips for having a good triangle choke
• Goals for the BJJ after 40 practitioners
• Starting BJJ while in your 40's
• Drilling take downs instead of doing them at full resistance
• Dealing with injuries
• Chasing a criminal that was messing with his car
• Advice for BJJ players older than 40
• The differences between a black belt and a brown belt
• What it means to be yourself on the mat
• The term "Flow Mike Bidwell"
• Working with Nic Gregoriades
• The Cryangle choke and how he came up with the name
• Why the cryangle choke works best against the flexible opponent
• Creating the body that you want to do BJJ with
• Looking for the lessons when you get tapped out

Links:

• BJJ After 40
• The Head Hunter Instructional video

Quote of the week: "No greater thing is created suddenly, any more than a bunch of grapes or a fig. If you tell me that you desire a fig, I answer you that there must be time. Let it first blossom, then bear fruit, then ripen." Epictetus

Article of the week: What you need to know when transitioning from the gi

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We can learn lessons from anywhere and find ways to bring these lessons to BJJ. An easy cross over is MMA. This episode we will be applying MMA ideas to BJJ and BJJ ideas to MMA.

BJJ learn from MMA

• Athleticism maters
• Top game is fun (and less tiring)
• Position before submission or winning
• Getting stuck can be game over
• Have more than one coach (guard passing coach, takedown coach)

MMA learn from BJJ

• Cleaner guard passes
• Try a gi class to roll with the best grapplers in the area
• Training not to win but to learn
• Escapes with a gi
• Long term focus

Quote of the week: "Never pick a fight with an ugly person, they've got nothing to lose." Robin Williams

Article of the week: 3 Michael Langhi's success rules

Mat Tales 24 Bitter Pill to Swallow

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Catch us next week for another episode of The BjjBrick Podcast

The BjjBrick Podcast is in iTunes, Stitcher radio, and Google Play Music for Andriod