BJJ Mental Models

This week, we're joined by Brandon Reed! Brandon is a three-time NAIA national champion wrestler from Louisville, Kentucky, who now trains jiu-jitsu full-time in Guelph, Ontario. In this episode, Brandon explains hand fighting for jiu-jitsu standup: how to get past your opponent's head, hands, and hips while protecting your own. Topics include: your default stance and the down block hand, feints and distance management, "positive" versus "negative" wrestling, fighting for inside ties, and play wrestling to build timing.

Learn wrestling for jiu-jitsu from Brandon at WrestleJitsu Club:
https://www.wrestlejitsu.club

Get Dominate the Hand Fight:
https://www.wrestlejitsu.club/dominate

Follow Brandon on Instagram:
https://instagram.com/brandonreed001

Subscribe to Brandon on YouTube:
https://youtube.com/@brandonreed3x

Mental models discussed in this episode:
Controlling the Distance
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/controlling-the-distance

Opening Salvos
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/opening-salvos

Predictable Responses
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/predictable-responses

Mask Your Intentions
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/mask-your-intentions

Tokui Waza
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/tokui-waza

Keep It Playful
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/keep-it-playful

Do What Works
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/do-what-works

Inside Channel Control
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/inside-channel-control

Constraints-Led Approach
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/constraints-led-approach

Head Position
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/head-position

Windows of Opportunity
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/windows-of-opportunity

Kuzushi
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/kuzushi

Dictate the Pace
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/dictate-the-pace

Investing in Loss
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/investing-in-loss

Grips Dictate Position
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/grips-dictate-position

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Learn more mental models in our online database:
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/database

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https://instagram.com/bjjmentalmodels
https://threads.com/@bjjmentalmodels
https://bjjmentalmodels.bsky.social
https://youtube.com/@bjjmentalmodels

Music by Enterprize:
https://enterprize.bandcamp.com

In this mini-episode, we explain confirmation bias: the human tendency to favor information that supports our existing beliefs, and discard information that doesn't.

Get our Intro to Mechanics audio course, normally $79, FREE:
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/freeintro

⬆️ LEVEL UP with BJJ Mental Models Premium!

The world's LARGEST library of jiu-jitsu audio lessons, our complete podcast network, online coaching, and much more! Your first week is free:
https://bjjmentalmodels.com

Need more BJJ Mental Models?

Get the legendary BJJMM newsletter:
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/newsletter

Learn more mental models in our online database:
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/database

Follow us on social:
https://instagram.com/bjjmentalmodels
https://threads.com/@bjjmentalmodels
https://bjjmentalmodels.bsky.social
https://youtube.com/@bjjmentalmodels

This week, we're joined by Jeff Serafin! Jeff runs Serafin Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu out of Gym 1801 in Evanston, Illinois, and has been training jiu-jitsu for almost 30 years. In this episode, Jeff talks about the fragmentation of the jiu-jitsu community, and what coaches and students can do to bring it back together. Topics include: gi versus no-gi tribalism, ecological versus traditional training, gatekeeping, and cross-training.

Train at Serafin Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (inside Gym 1801) in Evanston, IL:
https://serafinjiujitsu.com

Follow Jeff on Instagram:
https://instagram.com/serafinbjj

Follow Gym 1801 on Instagram:
https://instagram.com/gym.1801

Resources discussed in this episode:

Mini Ep. 120: Ecological Dynamics, by Steve Kwan:
https://bjj.plus/mini120

Mental models discussed in this episode:
Ecological Dynamics
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/ecological-dynamics

Constraints-Led Approach
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/constraints-led-approach

Keep Your Identity Small
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/keep-your-identity-small

Certainty Heuristic
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/certainty-heuristic

Beginner's Mind
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/beginners-mind

Resulting Fallacy
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/resulting

Silver Bullet Fallacy
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/silver-bullet-fallacy

Survivorship Bias
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/survivorship-bias

Rapoport's Rules
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/rapoports-rules

Curse of Knowledge
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/curse-of-knowledge

Intention
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/intention

⬆️ LEVEL UP with BJJ Mental Models Premium!

The world's LARGEST library of jiu-jitsu audio lessons, our complete podcast network, online coaching, and much more! Your first week is free:
https://bjjmentalmodels.com

Need more BJJ Mental Models?

Get the legendary BJJMM newsletter:
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/newsletter

Learn more mental models in our online database:
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/database

Follow us on social:
https://instagram.com/bjjmentalmodels
https://threads.com/@bjjmentalmodels
https://bjjmentalmodels.bsky.social
https://youtube.com/@bjjmentalmodels

Music by Enterprize:
https://enterprize.bandcamp.com

In this mini-episode, we explain visualization: the science behind it, its limitations, the difference between general and technique visualization, and how it applies to jiu-jitsu.

Get our Intro to Mechanics audio course, normally $79, FREE:
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/freeintro

⬆️ LEVEL UP with BJJ Mental Models Premium!

The world's LARGEST library of jiu-jitsu audio lessons, our complete podcast network, online coaching, and much more! Your first week is free:
https://bjjmentalmodels.com

Need more BJJ Mental Models?

Get the legendary BJJMM newsletter:
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/newsletter

Learn more mental models in our online database:
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/database

Follow us on social:
https://instagram.com/bjjmentalmodels
https://threads.com/@bjjmentalmodels
https://bjjmentalmodels.bsky.social
https://youtube.com/@bjjmentalmodels

This week, we're joined by Hillary VanOrnum! Hillary is a third-degree black belt who runs Unicorn Jiu Jitsu in Portland, Oregon with her husband, and she just won her first Masters World Championship at black belt. In this episode, Hillary explains the difference between instructing and coaching, and how she uses questions to help students work out answers for themselves. Topics include: relating jiu-jitsu to sports students already know, building on each student's favorite techniques, letting go of control as a gym owner, turning Instagram clips into homework, and coaching students who only train twice a week.

Train at Unicorn Jiu Jitsu in Portland, OR:
https://unicornjiujitsu.com

Get private lessons, online coaching, or coach mentorship with Hillary:
https://unicornjiujitsu.com/page/PrivateLessons

Follow Hillary on Instagram:
https://instagram.com/unicorn_jiujitsu

Follow Unicorn Jiu Jitsu on Instagram:
https://instagram.com/unicornjiujitsupdx

Follow the Gathering of the Unicorns women's camp on Instagram:
https://instagram.com/gathering_of_the_unicorns

Mental models discussed in this episode:
Transfer of Learning
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/transfer-of-learning

Tokui Waza
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/tokui-waza

Growth from Discomfort
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/growth-from-discomfort

Constraints-Led Approach
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/constraints-led-approach

Feedback Loop
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/feedback-loop

Effortful Retrieval
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/effortful-retrieval

Psychological Safety
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/psychological-safety

⬆️ LEVEL UP with BJJ Mental Models Premium!

The world's LARGEST library of jiu-jitsu audio lessons, our complete podcast network, online coaching, and much more! Your first week is free:
https://bjjmentalmodels.com

Need more BJJ Mental Models?

Get the legendary BJJMM newsletter:
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/newsletter

Learn more mental models in our online database:
https://bjjmentalmodels.com/database

Follow us on social:
https://instagram.com/bjjmentalmodels
https://threads.com/@bjjmentalmodels
https://bjjmentalmodels.bsky.social
https://youtube.com/@bjjmentalmodels

Music by Enterprize:
https://enterprize.bandcamp.com