This week I got to sit down with one of the nicest people in the game! Sam Yos is a BJJ OG in the Niagara Region - along with being the owner and head instructor of Evolve MMA in St. Catharines, Sam is also a successful competitor who won gold at the 2019 Provincial Championships in the brown & black belt division! We cover a ton of topics like how drunk backyard brawls got Sam into BJJ, the early days of training before the social media explosion, Sam's competition experiences and his mentality, Sam's weight loss journey, the lessons he's learned about diet and nutrition and the importance of sustainable eating habits, his unique approach to off the mat functional training, staying healthy as an aging grappler, the challenges of being a head coach and more!

WATCH PODCAST VIDEOS & SUBSCRIBE TO THE PFED BJJ YOUTUBE CHANNEL:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcVLZKykiHAl7twBkwwrFTA

FOLLOW SAM YOS & EVOLVE MMA: https://www.instagram.com/saaammmmo/ https://www.instagram.com/evolvemma_fitnesscentre/

FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/pfedbjj/

SHOW NOTES:

3:40 intro

6:20 Dealing with Covid as a gym owner - we're not all in this together

12:09 Reflecting on the old days, drunk fight club & what motivated Sam to get started in BJJ

18:00 Starting at Niagara Falls BJJ, Sam's road thought the belts early days at Fight Club Canada

26:10 Competition experiences and Sam's mentality

35:08 The changes sam had to make to be successful in competition at high levels and the development of his off the mat fitness routine

43:29 The importance of functional strength vs max effort lifting in the gym: benefits of functional training

54:23Getting promoted to black belt, feeling lost and how your perception of BJJ changes over time

1:02:53 The challenges of being a head coach and growing as a leader

1:08:32 Sam's experience winning provincials, using that experience to help his, and the emotional year he had leading up to that win

1:20:00 Leaving his old coach, joining a new team and making tough decisions in BJJ

1:25:18 Sam's perspective on nutrition, the problem with social media's influence on dieting, struggling with weight over years and living a healthy lifestyle

This week I sat down with one of the most accomplished women in BJJ and we had an amazing and important conversation! Livia Giles is 3x IBJJF World Champion (Gi & No Gi) 🥋🥇, 2x Asian Champion 🥇, Copa Podio Winner 🥇, and ADCC Trials Winner 🤼‍♂️. Livia is a true world class athlete with an incredible resume that dates back to her childhood when she became a world class gymnast 🤸‍♂️who represented both Australia 🇦🇺 and Poland 🇵🇱 on the international stage. Livia has become an advocate fighting to end the culture of abuse in gymnastics and in this podcast talk about a number of important topics like Livia's personal experiences with abuse as a young athlete, the normalization of eating disorders in sport and in society, Livia's struggle with her body image over the years, and we also talk about disordered eating and body image issues in BJJ. We talk about Livia's BJJ journey as a women, her incredible determination to win world championships and the ADCC trials though major injuries, her mentality for competition, dealing with anxiety, her ADCC experience and more!

WATCH PODCAST VIDEOS & SUBSCRIBE TO THE PFED BJJ YOUTUBE CHANNEL:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcVLZKykiHAl7twBkwwrFTA

FOLLOW LIVIA GILES:https://www.instagram.com/livia_giles/

FOLLOW THE ABSOLUTE MMA ST. KILDA YOUTUBE CHANNEL: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVX5F9uZyzzSI9juQRp_2Hw

FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/pfedbjj/

SHOW NOTES:

3:43 The elaborate intro

6:47 How Livia is dealing with covid and the positive things that have come from a long layoff 12:43 Livia getting into gymnastics and what training was like

16:21 The culture of abuse, Livia's experience and speaking out

23:53 The normalization of eating disorders and Livia's struggle with food and body image issues

31:24 Maintaining a healthy body image in BJJ and how weight classes contribute to eating disorders in BJJ

42:03 BJJ as a woman and growth of women's community

51:32 Tips for women getting into BJJ

55:32 Early competition experiences and the evolution of Livia's self belief and skills as a competitor

1:00:46 The importance of learning from losses, enjoying the process and being adaptable

1:05:27 Livia's mentality when dealing with setbacks and the key to long term development

1:11:14 Livia's brutal weight cut and serious knee injury leading up to Brown belt worlds

1:17:43 Livia's pushing through serious knee injuries to win Copa Podio and the ADCC Trials 1:19:20 Livia's competition mentality, dealing with anxiety and performing even when you're not feeling perfect

1:23:59 Tips and tricks for dealing with negative thoughts and visions

1:26:48 Training for multiple rule sets & being successful both Gi & No Gi

1:31:13 Livia talks about her nutrition and thoughts on fuelling your body for training and competition

1:35:58 The importance of recovery in BJJ

1:41:36 Winning ADCC trials and as a couple and how Livia was able to adapt to her injuries to be successful

1:49:09 Losing at ADCC and the rollercoaster of emotions Livia and Lachlan felt at ADCC 2019

 1:53:12 Livia's initial reaction to Lachlan entering absolute, being in his corner, and her feelings on watching him win bronze

2:00:32  Livia's future plans

This week I got to sat down with the highly decorated, life long martial artist Steve Ferraro! Steve is the owner and head instructor of Ferraro Karate and Martial Arts in Guelph Ontario. A 6th Degree Karate Black Belt 🥋, Japanese Jiu Jitsu Black Belt 🥋, Steve has turned his sights to No Gi BJJ 🤼‍♂️ and over the past few years has found himself at the top of the podium at several events (2017 Grappling Industries Gold Medalist 🥇, the 2019 Para Bellum No Gi Classic silver medalist 🥈, 2019 Ascension BJJ silver medalist 🥈). Steve and I touch on many topics like his experience trying to survive as a gym owner during the pandemic, his background in Karate and growing up in the era of dojo wars, his experiences getting in to BJJ and how it differs from the Karate culture, the impact of the UFC on Karate, the evolution of BJJ and the commercialization of martial arts and more!

WATCH PODCAST VIDEOS & SUBSCRIBE TO THE PFED BJJ YOUTUBE CHANNEL:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcVLZKykiHAl7twBkwwrFTA

FOLLOW STEVE FERRARO:https://www.instagram.com/ferrarokarateandmartialarts/ https://www.ferrarokarate.ca/ FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/pfedbjj/

SHOW NOTES:

4:22 The elaborate Intro

8:05 Being a gym owner trying to survive during with Covid and emerging as leader during a brutal time  

16:36 How Steve got by mentally and Any positives to take away from zoom classes and remote learning

24:19 How Steve Got in to Karate and martial arts and the history of his style of Karate

29:46 Steve explains the Karate tournament structure

34:33 Growing up during the Dojo wars era and fighting your friends

37:27 How the image of Karate changed after the rise of the UFC and the commercialization of martial arts

45:53 Promotions and the idea of kids being give black belts

48:43 The American perception of the black belt, the evolution of BJJ and the meaning of rank in modern BJJ

57:10 Why Steve started doing NO GI BJJ and his experience learning at Para Bellum MMA and being a white belt again

1:11:43 The differences between BJJ and Karate for Steve

1:17:31 Hardest part about trying to improve at BJJ

1:20:32 Competing in BJJ vs Karate

1:24:00 Starting a No Gi Program in a Karate gym and the negative reception from many peers in the community

1:35:03 How Steve sees the pandemic playing out long term and advice for people training now

Man we landed a huge guest this week! I was lucky enough to sit down with one of the biggest names in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu right now - ADCC Bronze Medalist, 2019 breakout grappler of the year, the heel hooking giant killer himself - Lachlan Giles! Lachlan is such an incredibly humble and down to earth guy and he let me pick his brain on a ton of topics like his evolution of from BJJ hobbyist 🥋 to ADCC medalist 🥉, his life as PhD student 👨‍🎓, how he was able to develop his game living in Australia 🇦🇺 so far away from the major BJJ hubs, how he's dealt with setbacks in his career, the rollercoaster of emotions he felt during his incredible ADCC run, his mentality towards competition and training 💪, his thoughts on Gordon Ryan 👑, performance enhancing drugs in the sport 💉, how he developed his 50/50 game 🦶🔒, as well as his philosophy on teaching, training for long term development and more!

WATCH PODCAST VIDEOS & SUBSCRIBE TO THE PFED BJJ YOUTUBE CHANNEL:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcVLZKykiHAl7twBkwwrFTA

FOLLOW LACHLAN GILES: https://www.instagram.com/lachlan_giles/

BUY LACHLAN'S NEW GUARD RETENTION DVD HERE: http://lachlangiles.net/

FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/pfedbjj/

SHOW NOTES:

4:21 The Elaborate Intro

7:00 How Lachlan is Dealing with Covid in Australia

10:00 The Evolution from Hobbyist to Elite BJJ Athlete

14:36 PHD and Leaving that Behind to Pursue BJJ Full time, Using the Scientific Method in BJJ

21:00 How Lachlan Was Able to Become World Class Living So Far from the Main BJJ Countries

27:07 Little Moments When Lachlan Started to Believe in Himself

31:50 What Keeps Lachlan Going After Setbacks and His Perspective on Losing and Improvement

37:00 Preparing for ADCC – Integrating Wrestling into BJJ

42:45 ADCC Mentality Before Competition, Dealing with Anxiety

44:04 Losing to Lucas Lepri and Regrouping for Absolute

49:53 Submitting Kaynan Duarte and Emotions After Winning Bronze in Absolute

53:21 Competing Against Steroid Users and Training as a Natural Athlete

58:15 What Makes Gordon Ryan So Difficult to Deal With?

1:02:13 Lachlan’s Development of His 50/50 Heel Hook Style, Why He Prefers it Over the Saddle Position

1:11:27 Half Guard - Why Lachlan Gravitated to That Style and His Thoughts on Playing Open Guard

1:18:46 Modern BJJ and the Impact of Different Rule Sets

1:22:48 Lachlan's Philosophy on Improving vs. Winning in the Training Room

1:26:41 The Challenges of Being an Instructor and the importance of Self-Directed Learning

1:32:08 Lachlan's Approach to DVD Instructionals and How To Get the Most Out of Them

1:38:00 Upcoming Aussie Talent We Should Look Out For

This week I got to talk with one of the baddest female BJJ fighters in Canada! Vicky Hoang is a 2018 IBJJF World Champion, 2019 JJIF World Champion, 2019 IBJJF European Champion and on August 25th 2019 she was awarded her BJJ Black Belt under Jorge Britto at Toronto BJJ. We talk about Vicky's incredible self belief and commitment to being world class from day 1, quitting her job as a white belt, her journey from early tournament struggles to becoming a world champion, the physical cost she's paid for being an elite competitor, her perspective on BJJ as a female in a male dominated sport, and more!

WATCH PODCAST VIDEOS & SUBSCRIBE TO THE PFED BJJ YOUTUBE CHANNEL:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcVLZKykiHAl7twBkwwrFTA

FOLLOW VICKY HOANG: https://www.instagram.com/vicky__nini/

FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/pfedbjj/

SHOW NOTES:

3:05 Guest Intro

4:37 Getting Promoted to Black Belt, How Vicky Got Started in BJJ & Quitting Her Job as a White Belt

9:54 Being a Competitive Person and the Desire to Be World Class From Day One

14:42 Early Competition Set Backs, Taking Ownership of Losses

17:48 How Weight Lifting Helped Vicky Find Success in Competition

20:56 The Moment Vicky Knew She Belonged With The Best in the World and Representing Canada in the JJIF

28:08 Dealing with Anxiety and How Vicky Wins with the Mental Battles in & Out Of Competition

34:38 The Importance of Taking Accountability in Training and Not Making Excuses

37:52 Vicky Talks About Her Spider Guard Game and Love of Pressure Passing

41:40 Vicky Talks About Her Struggles With Concussions and the Physical Cost of Being a World Class Athlete

48:10 Vicky's Experience and Perspective on Being a Female in BJJ and Her Thoughts on Training with Men

55:20 How Vicky Likes to Run Her Women's Program

1:00:51 Vicky's Advice for Women Starting BJJ

1:03:46 Being an Instructor at Toronto BJJ and The Impact of Jorge Britto

This week I get a chance to talk to a good friend of mine about his amazing life! Mat Rocca is a true Canadian MMA Pioneer who, in 1996, tried out for and made the infamous Lion's Den - a world class MMA team led by Ken and Frank Shamrock that produced many legends in the sport through intense and brutal training sessions. At the young age of 19, Mat found himself in the middle of a historic time in Mixed Martial Arts as the sport began to transition from the wild west to the highly regulated global phenomenon that we know it as today. Mat is also highly successful on the mats - he is currently Brown Belt in BJJ as well as a No Gi World Champion - we cover a ton of great topics listed below:

WATCH PODCAST VIDEOS & SUBSCRIBE TO THE PFED BJJ YOUTUBE CHANNEL:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcVLZKykiHAl7twBkwwrFTA

FOLLOW MAT ROCCA: https://www.instagram.com/thuh_rawk/

FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/pfedbjj/

SHOW NOTES:

2:42 Guest Intro

5:28 How Mat Met Ken Shamrock in 1995 & Found Himself Trying Out For the Lion's Den

15:25 The Gruelling Selection Process to Make the Team

20: 36 Why Did He Want to Make the Team at Age 19?

23:03 Mat's Martial Arts Background

24:35 Winning the Mental Battles: Mat's Mentality Towards Training, Life & How He Pushed Through to Make The Lion's Den

34:00 Crazy Stories: Training and Life In The Lion's Den

42:40 Mat's First Pro Fight in Australia, Bareknuckle

53:57 Fighting MMA Legend Akihiro Gono in Japan with Shooto

1:02:43 Finally Getting a Win Over Shawn Tompkins

1:04:14 Lessons From Fighting, Meeting Jocko Willink Trying to Get Back to a Normal Life

1:10:00 How Mat Helped Me Mentally At the No Gi World's in 2019

1:14:52 What Does Mat Think About Modern MMA & BJJ, Thoughts on the Evolution He's Seen Over the Years

1:29:00 How Mat Has Transitioned From Fighting To BJJ Competitor

1:32:04 Mat's Experience Winning Gold as a Purple Belt at No Gi World's

Super excited to have Nathan Dos Santos on this week! He's one of best BJJ Black Belts in Canada and a truly elite competitor earning medals at major events like the IBJJF World Championships, Pans, North Americans, and European Championships - he has also represented Canada on the international stage in the JJIF. Nathan is a Black Belt under Jorge Britto and also teaches out of Toronto BJJ - he's a super humble guys and we covered a lot of great topics outlined below:

FOLLOW NATHAN DOS SANTOS: https://www.instagram.com/nathandossantos/

FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/pfedbjj/

WATCH PODCAST VIDEOS & SUBSCRIBE TO THE PFED BJJ YOUTUBE CHANNEL:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcVLZKykiHAl7twBkwwrFTA

SHOW NOTES:

3:56 Guest Intro 5:30 Silver Lining: How Nathan Continues to Evolve During the Pandemic and Long Layoffs 11:09 Nathan's Start in BJJ, His Rise to Black Belt How Small Moments Can Lead To Major Achievements 19:19 Nathan's Interests off The Mats and How They Relative to his Jiu Jitsu Game 21:58 Dealing with Injuries, Setbacks and Using them As Opportunities To Grow 25:19 Rolling with Intention and the Importance Of Specific Sparring 29:09 How Nathan Structures His Classes and The Best Way To Train for Improvement 33:18 Training for Tournaments and Working Your A Game 36:28 Overtraining and Managing Your Work Load 40:10 Does Nathan Study his Opponent's Before Competition? 42:49 Sometimes Discipline Can Be Passive 45:41 Dreaming Big, Dealing With Anxiety & What Separates Elite Competitors from The Rest of the Pack 54:47 The Environment at Toronto BJJ and Jorge Britto As A Leader

My guest this week is a very talented freelance photographer & videographer who has done some amazing work with high level MMA & BJJ athletes across Canada and the US. Lauren was the creative force behind the Fight Files Vlog where she would produce intimate and candid pieces documenting the life of amateur and professional MMA fighters, giving a creative behind the scenes look into what it takes to make into the cage and live the fighting lifestyle. In addition to her full time job with Ontario Soccer, Lauren has covered many high profile events like BTC Fight Promotions and Para Bellum Quintet. We cover a ton of topics outlined below: 

FOLLOW LAUREN MAHARAJ: https://www.instagram.com/LMcreativefilm/

FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/pfedbjj/

WATCH PODCAST VIDEOS & SUBSCRIBE TO THE PFED BJJ YOUTUBE CHANNEL:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcVLZKykiHAl7twBkwwrFTA

SHOW NOTES:

3:18 Guest Intro

6:20 Starting Off and Getting Into Working With MMA & BJJ Athletes

10:50 The Fighters Lauren Has Worked With

12:40 Working With MMA Fighter Adam Defreitas and the Behind The Scenes Struggles That Fighters Often Experience

20:45 Working With MMA Fighter Jasmine Jasudavicius and The Behind the Scenes Look at Her Rapid Rise in MMA

24:30 Life Behind The Lens: The Para Bellum MMA Style and the Impact of Head Coach Lyndon Whitlock

27:39 Life Behind The Lens: Gaining Trust, Being in the Inner Circle and Having A Candid Look at The Fight Life

34:18 Lauren's Experience Covering BJJ, Being Part of Para Bellum Quintet & Trying to Bring More Attention to BJJ Athletes

41:00 Lauren's Process in Trying to Bring Out the Best In The Athletes and Gaining Trust

51:56 Lauren's Impressions of The BJJ and MMA Community and Changes She's Seen Over Time 55:15 Being A Videographer & Photographer in the Covid Era and Lauren's Future Plans

This is an unscripted and raw take on some of my initial feelings learning that my long time coach PJ O'Sullivan was forced to permanently close his gym after 11 years. Pura was my home for over a decade and the gym became a fixture in the BJJ community - it's incredibly sad to see this happen and in this episode I reflect on my time there and try to come to terms with the loss.

FOLLOW ME ON MY NEW INSTAGRAM HANDLE: https://www.instagram.com/pfedbjj/

WATCH PODCAST VIDEOS & SUBSCRIBE TO THE PFED BJJ YOUTUBE CHANNEL:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcVLZKykiHAl7twBkwwrFTA

My guest this week is one of the best MMA fighters Canada has ever produced! Josh "The Gentleman" Hill is Canada's #1 bantamweight and veteran of The Score Fighting Series, TKO, Fight Nights Global Russia, a 2x title challenger in the World Series of Fighting and veteran of the UFC reality show The Ultimate Fighter; Josh is now a top contender in Bellator MMA with a huge fight coming up THIS FRIDAY AUGUST 21st against UFC veteran Erik Perez. We cover a ton of topics outlined below: 

SHOW NOTES:

4:53 Time Machine: The World in 2009 When Josh Started Fighting and the Early Days of His Career

9:30 How People Don't Appreciate How Good Josh Is Everywhere

11:39 The Perception Of MMA Fighters & NO GI Jiu Jitsu in the BJJ Community

16:29 Bellator contact and experience

17:45 Being Stereotyped from TUF & Contender Series

20:50 MMA Contracts and Josh's Thoughts on How Fighters Should be Compensated

27:05 Scott Coker's Impact on Bellator

29:10 Josh's Training Camp During Covid

31:00 Upcoming Fight With Erik Perez

33:23 How Covid Has Impacted Josh On & Off The Mats

37:06 Life as a Father and Pro Fighter

40:10 Josh's Experience on TUF 18

45:00 Training at Team Alpha Male differences between Canada and US Gyms

48:00 The Importance of Wrestling in MMA & BJJ

50:38 Training with TJ Dillashaw & Steroids in MMA

55:04 Losing on TUF & Overcoming Adversity

1:00:20 Josh's Talks Dealing With Anxiety, Self Doubt & Improving Your Mental Game

1:09:15 The Negative Side of Social Media

1:12:27 The Time Josh Was Stranded in Russia

1:19:05 Josh's Prediction For DC vs. Stipe 3

1:20:35 Will Josh Ever Fight in the UFC?

WATCH PODCAST VIDEOS & SUBSCRIBE TO THE PFED BJJ YOUTUBE CHANNEL:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcVLZKykiHAl7twBkwwrFTA

FOLLOW JOSH HILL: https://www.instagram.com/gentlemanjhill/

FOLLOW ME ON MY NEW INSTAGRAM HANDLE: https://www.instagram.com/pfedbjj/