In BJJ, there is a cycle of phases we go through. As a white belt we go hammer and tong and use all our strength and muscles when we roll,holding on and squeezing as hard as we can and find that we are totally exhausted after 30 secs of it,we only think about getting a submission and tapping the other person out,leaving everything else exposed,we find that one submission that works and just constantly rely on that move while still leaving everything else exposed.

When we move onto the Blue belt level we have a basic knowledge of positions and maybe a handful of submissions and our guard has become more of a comfortable position now,yet we still try and muscle our way in a grapple. Eventually we start trying new things and get more comfortable with certain submissions and positions,we start to favor certain moves,We go through stages when you cant stop thinking about jiu jitsu,as we drive,work and have sleepless nights thinking about moves and techniques,visualizing the roll.

Then we enter the purple belt level,for me this was a confusing stage as i went through a stage of plateau,more so late in blue belt and early purple belt,we feel like we are not progressing and stuck,i, myself even went through a stage of severe frustration and depression because of it,i was confused and didn’t know what i needed to advance to the next level.

You are comfortable with your game and have your signature moves,your are comfortable and confident with most positions,you learn to relax and be more patient,as you get into the later stage of purple belt,you mind opens,i stopped worrying about the tap,i stopped muscling and became fluint,i stopped looking and began feeling,using my body for pressure,stopped forcing things and used what they gave me,i started understanding the FEEL,the body mechanics.

This is the level i am at now,where it feels like a lightning bolt had struck me and i’m back to sleepless nights,constantly thinking about moves,inventing and playing rolls over and over in my head,and finding all the tiny details of movement and breaking things down to small sections and refining basic techniques,i feel i am starting to really understand BJJ.

I cannot say what the next phases will be like but i feel it is a cycle that goes around,i believe once we get to a black belt level we go back to the start and refine and break down everything we know to a point where every single move becomes multiples in its self. I am so looking forward to this cycle and a cycle that we never stop learning and creating.