Wrestling

Wrestling in El Dorado Hills at Sunday Funday

We will be hosting SUNDAY ~ FUNDAY with Coach Ryan Loder of Apex Wrestling. Apex Wrestling has the mission statement to build better people through wrestling. This is a great opportunity to learn from an division one NCAA All-American wrestler. Here are a few more details about coach Ryan:

– NCAA D1 All-American
– USA Wrestling Freestyle All-American
– CA USA Wrestling development coach
– MBA University of Northern Iowa

While Ryan comes from one of the prestigious wrestling universities under the leadership of coach Doug Schwab, he comes from a local high school, Granite Bay HS. He began Sunday Funday with a few specific goals in mind. Sunday Funday is an opportunity for wrestling to get on the mat and have fun while getting some guided instruction. The goal of Funday is to provide a healthy learning environment where wrestlers can come together to ask questions and make improvements to their specific style.

SUNDAY ~ FUNDAY details:

-> 3:00pm-5:00pm
-> All Clubs & Schools welcome
-> Drop ins: $20
-> EDH Members: $10

 

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The innovation of Jiu Jitsu as a Mixed Martial Art

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As we head into 2017, we are going to continue to see the innovation of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu by competitors and practitioners all over the world. I believe we will see an innovation of a jiu jitsu as a mixed martial art as practitioners from different cultures of grappling continue to give a try in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

While Brazilian Jiu Jitsu will maintain it’s strong foundation in it’s practical self defense applications, we should begin to see the sport continue to change. Just as international Judo competitions have noticed a cross over of the regions ethnic wrestling into their national and international Judo applications, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu will do the same.

Jiu Jitsu will no longer be exclusive to Jiu Jitsu, but also include those with wrestling, Judo, sambo, mongolian wrestling, and any form of grappling. This innovation of technique is possible because while technical subsets of the sport are highly specific and detailed, the common goal (to submit someone) is extremely broad. As long as you are able to submit someone or control a person on the ground you can be declared the winner.

As we look at Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in 2017, expect to see it’s continued innovation and evolution as a mixed martial art of grappling. Grapplers who explore different possibilities from their ethnic wrestling background and incorporate trainings to included them in their technical prowess will find success on the mat.

Author: Eliot Kelly
eliotkelly.com

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Javen Wins IBJJF Kids International Championships

Javen Jones, freshman at Oak Ridge High School, takes Gold at the IBJJF (International Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Federation) Kids International Championships this weekend in Long Beach, CA.

In the finals Javen showed impressive technical prowess, gaining a takedown, mount and eventually finishing with a armbar. This followed his win a few weeks ago at the Grappling X Championships held in Elk Grove, CA. When asked about jiujitsu Javen said, “I love jiujitsu. I love the way it has changed my mind, body, and spirit. One day I’m going to be a world champion!”

The tournament was held at CSULB Walter Pyramid.

community

Feed the Hungry: PB&J at EDHBJJ

15036445_1157774944308291_3547557936575797401_nWe are hosting our third PB&J Feed the Hungry event at El Dorado Hills Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. This is an all inclusive event for everyone in the community that would like to get involved to provide sandwiches to feed the hungry in downtown Sacramento.

Here is how you can contribute:

DATE: SUNDAY, December 4th
TIME: 13:00-14:00
LOCATION: EDH BJJ (1132 Suncast Lane. Suite #1)
BRING: Sandwich Bread / Peanut Butter / Jelly
Extra: Plastic Sandwich Bags

Wanna do more?

Drive down with us after clean up to go pass the sandwiches out to the hungry in Sacramento.

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Adults Jiu Jitsu, Tournaments

ADCC North American Trials Champion

Eliot Kelly, head instructor of El Dorado Hills Brazilian Jiu Jitsu & Self Defense, qualified for the most prestigious submission wrestling tournament in the world last weekend in Bayville, New Jersey at the ADCC North American Trials. The ADCC (Abu Dhabi Combat Club) Championships, often referred as the Olympics of grappling, will be held in Helsinki, Finland in September, 2017.

15138581_1298638326853621_3990788437185146723_oThe ADCC North American Trials featured some of the best grapplers in North America. Eliot had three bouts to secure his invitation. In his first,  he won by referee decision after no points in overtime. In his semi final match, he won by 2 points in the overtime round. In the final match, he won by 2 points in the regulation round. His bouts can be found on flograppling.com

15085560_1159304874155298_2924207230747964222_n“It’s never easy to travel all the way across the country and compete, but I was able to qualify and make it to the championships. There’s plenty of time to prepare so I’m getting together my coaches from EDH Jiu Jitsu, One Body Pain & Performance, and Apex Wrestling now to represent our community and the United States!”

Camp, Kids Jiu Jitsu

El Dorado Hills Kids Camp during Thanksgiving at EDH BJJ

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Thank you, to all the children and parents who participated in this year’s Thanksgiving Week Kids Camp!

The camp was held on the Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, leading up to Thanksgiving. It gave children the opportunity to spend more time in the dojo to explore other engaging activities that coincide with Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, self defense, and teamwork. The camp also gave our instructors the opportunity to connect with the children in an even more meaningful fashion than just learning and practicing BJJ.

15134554_1160365437382575_5885546125256103671_nEven though we had a scheduled agenda before the children arrived each day; we stepped out of the agenda and followed the interests of the children. Each day started with games and free play, to let the children socialize and become more comfortable with each other. That led to learning the basic and foundational movements and positions of BJJ. The campers expressed what they were thankful for by making cards and drawing pictures for their families. And we had plenty of snack breaks to feed our hungry learners!

15109355_1161485187270600_4703711507340850035_nChess seemed to be the most interesting daily activity for the group. For over an hour the children worked harmoniously together, as they helped each other setting up the Chessboard and learning how the pieces moved. We worked on game-planning and strategies. Does that sound like some familiar concepts we use for another game?

15171097_1162054420547010_623634796777894843_nYes! The camp was structured around getting each student to THINK. Not only about what they were thankful for, but that their actions have consequences, how to work together in groups or with a partner, and that the cross over between chess, jiujitsu and other activities off the mat. 

El Dorado Hills Jiu Jitsu
916.595.4064

Camp

Thanksgiving Week Kids Camp in El Dorado Hills

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battle

El Dorado Hills Brazilian Jiu Jitsu & Self Defense is hosting  a Kids camp during Thanksgiving week. The kids camp will include several different activities for kids ages 7 and up. NO JIU JITSU EXPERIENCE NECESSARY! 

What will the kids do: 

  1. CHESS: Chess is jiujitsu for the mind. Through chess coaches will be talking to the kids about following rules, knowing limitations, decisions having consequences, and other life skills that can be shared and learned through the fun activity of chess. Don’t know how to play? No problem, we will teach you!
  2. JIU-JITSU for ANTI BULLYING:  Bullying is always going to be an issues kids need to learn and think about. The more tools they have to deal with verbal, psychological, and physical altercations the better they will be. We will be covering each topic and going over how to diffuse and defend difficult altercations.
  3. JAPANESE GAMES: Campers will be exposed to Japanese language and culture lessons to invoke a curiosity for different cultures and languages. They won’t leave the camp fluent in another language, but hopefully they will become more curious about different cultures and have an interest in learning another language in the future.
  4. THANKFULNESS ACTIVITIES: Campers will be asked to think about what they are thankful for. Thankfulness and gratitude is a character trait we look to reinforce from the time during this camp.
  5. GAMES & PLAY: Campers will be playing a game of some type if they are not taking a snack break or participating in one of the activities. The games will vary from dodgeball, gymnastics, and more. (plan on giving them time to nap after camp)

Call for questions or register online!

EDH Kids Camp
916.595.4064

Tournaments

IBJJF World Master 2016 Results & Performances

14188489_10153893487628181_8753936075757770927_oEl Dorado Hills Brazilian Jiu Jitsu had an excellent showing this last week at the IBJJF World Master Championships. This was an exclusive world class event for Master competitors age 30 and above. The Master age divisions are divided in five year increments all the way up to Master 6.

Here are the competitors from EDH in action and their results:

Black Belt:
Michel Miyashita – eliminatory round
Eliot Kelly – Silver Medal
Brown Belt:
Sean Gonsolin – qtr finalist
Purple Belt:
Kiet Se – Silver Medal
Allan Scott – Bronze Medal
Blue Belt:
Kyle Parker – qtr finalist
Pedro Santos – eliminatory round
Mark Swisher – qtr finalist
Zack Smith – Silver Medal

The IBJJF World Master held in Las Vegas, NV was the largest event in the history of World Masters with competitors from all over the globe.  Hosted at the convention center, the tournament also featured sponsored booths like Adidas, Fighter’s Line, Gameness, Acai Sambazon, Evexia fit expo, and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu seminars by classic icons like Jacare, Almeida, Vieira, and 2016 Olympic Silver medalist in Judo Travis Stevens.

The Black belts opened the tournament this year. Michel, visiting from Sao Paulo, Brazil made is debut in the World Master category. He had a nail biting qtr final match, down by 2 advantage points he fought to hold a guard pass, but was unable to secure the points before time ran out. He lost the match by an advantage point. Eliot won his first by an advantage against an opponent from the Middle East. In the second round he was able get ahead by 18 points before finishing his opponent with a chock from the mount. In the third round, Eliot beat 7 time world champion, Xande Ribeiro in a close 2-0 match. Eliot faced Rafael Lovato jr. in the finals and was downed by a choke in the beginning of the match. This gave Eliot a Silver medal in the standings. Eliot also participated in the open class division later in the evening. He was downed by Rafael Formiga in a 2-2 referee decision.

The brown belts also competed on the opening day of the tournament. Sean Gonsolin had an impressive attack sequence in his first match showing total dominance. In the qtr final round he was set short in a tight back and forth match of sweeps and wasn’t awarded a sweep from a technicality in the rule book. Compared to last year, it was a noticeable improvement in his technical game!

Kiet Se had an impressive series of rounds in the preliminary rounds attacking from the feet, on top, and from guard. In the semi final match he came through on a very close back to back match to win the judges decision and advance to the championship finals. In the finals, he faced a seasoned purple belt veteran. While Kiet had an impressive series of attacks, his opponent was able to make strong counter attacks, taking the lead. While Kiet continued to attack, he was unable to come back to secure the victory. He finished with an impressive Silver medal.

The blue belts competed on the second day of the tournament. Zack opened the tournament with some impressive wins in the preliminary rounds. In the finals he faced an opponent with an extremely strategic game. He came two points short of the victory, fighting hard to secure some points before time had expired. He had an impressive performance!

Mark, Pedro, and Kyle all made the Master World Championships debut with this tournament. Mark played a solid attack from his guard working for sweeps and submissions from his back. He was barely stopped from advancing to the medal rounds in the quarter finals. Pedro made a move to attack early in his match but was stopped short by the eventual champion of his bracket. Kyle dominated in the early rounds with an impressive series of flow attacks from submission to submission, position to position. He met a tough battle in the quarter finals and was stopped from advancing to the medal rounds.

Congratulations on the team and competitors!!

EDH Jiu Jitsu & Self Defense

 

 

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Folsom Lake clean up! Tapping out litter bugs

On Labor Day, September 5th, EDH Jiu Jitsu is organizing a clean up at Folsom Lake. While the lake is at a low, it’s a great opportunity to talk about the importance of water preservation, cooperation, responsibility, and community while picking up litter left behind after recreational use of the lake.

This is a family friendly community event. Please feel free to invite your friends and family.

  • \Time: 8:00am-9:30am
  • Folsom Lake entry: Beals Point
  • Bring: gloves and trash bags and a “grabber” if you have one.More information on parking waivers will be on the facebook event page, but parking will be free!

 

Adults Jiu Jitsu, Kids Jiu Jitsu

We all get into jiujitsu for different reasons

Everyone gets into jiujitsu for different reasons. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is one of those martial arts that allows a wide range of people with different interests and at different stages in their life to begin training. Boys and girls as young 3 or 4 can start training and so can men or women in their 30s, 40s, or 50s start learning the art of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

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Anthony Bourdain competing in one of the annual IBJJF New York Opens

Anthony Bourdain is one example. Most of us know Anthony Bourdain from his famous traveling cousin show, No Reservations. His humor and observations that he shares with everyone casts a delightful light on the different cuisines and cultures of the world. Interestingly, Anthony is also a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu fanatic. When traveling he looks to find a place to train when there is down time. Born in 1956, that puts him at the ripe age of 60. Having started jiujitsu in his 50s, and currently a blue belt in rank, I’m going to guess it’s been an uphill battle since he started training. He says jiujitsu “appeals to some part of my brain I haven’t visited before.”

On the other end are these girls in the gi. This video was taken from the Kids American Nationals in 2015. These two girls were around age 5.
It’s fun to see them compete without any hesitation to try their best. No second guessing. Probably tapping into the same part of the brain that Anthony Bourdain talks about.

Never the less these girls and Anthony both have something in common. They share the passion to learn and have fun on the mat. To compete as a measurement of self improvement. They give their most even on days when they think that there is nothing more to give. They are competitors.

On the other hand, there are others who get into jiujitsu and never step into competition. Instead, they enjoy the relaxed learning environment of training and competitive rolling done in the safety of class with a partner they can get to know and trust. Some look to reap the benefits of getting in great shape, and being the most fit they have been in their life. While others look to learn jiujitsu from a more practical self defense perspective.

There are many angles we can think about self defense. There is the physical self defense jiujitsu can teach us how to protect ourselves when we go to our back and other positions from the feet and ground. However, there are many other self defense benefits to learning jiujitsu as well. The benefit of patience when put under adversity or high stress situations. The benefit of understanding consistency in training as opposed to short term intensity with little to no consistency. The benefit of a lifestyle of activity and movement while interacting with others on the mat. There are so many psycho social benefits to jiujitsu that are applicable to modern day self defense.

While some step onto the mat to become a world champion competitor,  some wanting to learn self defense, get in shape, or start a new hobby, everyone enters the dojo with the idea of self improvement. This idea is universal in jiujitsu. Everyone wants to improve and better themselves with each and every class. If you are looking to associate with strong, healthy minded people, give jiujitsu a try!

Eliot Kelly
EDH JiuJitsu
916.595.4064