Sun-block, Surf Wax, Strength and Kimonos
The water was a little cold as my feet stepped slowly on the rocky beach. Surfboard in my hands and a Jiu-Jitsu kimono in my friend’s car right next to some sun block and surf wax; everything was perfect. There was a smile on my face because I knew finally made it back to California by way of Philadelphia. As I jumped through the air and landed on my board just over the white water moving quickly underneath me, I realized that I had been away from my second love far too long. When I made it out to the surfing lineup with surfers that looked so skilled and after paddling myself far from the beach, I could only take a deep breath and loosen my neck and back muscles, which were being worked in the surf. Maybe I wasn’t in as good of shape after all. Jiu-Jitsu training alone hadn’t prepared me for these waves that were 3 to 5 feet high. After two hours, I returned to the beach with sore arms and small cuts on my ankles. All I could think about was getting some Mexican food and sitting back to watch the sunset.
When I was finishing my surfing experience with my friends (by the way one of them broke his surfboard in half at San Onofre, Ca) I started to think about all the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu fighters that surfed too. Rickson and Royler Gracie came to mind first, and then there was Relson Gracie; I knew he surfed as well. What was it that makes these Gracie fighters and many others Jiu-Jitsu fighters hit and charge the waves?
Now writing about how surfing improves your balance, and how in jiu-jitsu you need balance, is not really how I think surfing can improve one’s performance for jiu-jitsu; however, personally, I am more relaxed during training when surfing is present in my life. Nonetheless, being able to standup on a surfboard and express oneself without wiping out in the ocean takes a lot of skill. This type of skill, realistically, can improve anyone’s abilities to even walk straighter.
Recently I took a seminar (2001) with Royler Gracie. He was excited to learn that I was into surfing. He even asked me about it and showed me a picture of him riding a wave from a book that he was signing for another student. Royler had that look in his eye because he knew that I knew about the feeling of being in sync with the ocean or watching something that is so very fast move so very slow. Maybe that is what draws all people to surfing, not just Jiu-Jitsu fighters.
As a Jiu-Jitsu stylist, I am always reading about how important it is to have a strong neck and back. My experience surfing this summer shows that paddling under and over waves strengthened my neck and back muscles in an exciting way. Other byproducts of surfing are having stronger arms and better conditioning. I love to train jiu-jitsu and I love surfing. Surfing has given me a way to strengthen the muscles that are important to jiu-jitsu. And jiu-jitsu has given me and blesses me with the confidence to control myself and avoid fighting with other surfers when the concepts of localism and surf rage show their ugly faces. I recommend learning and passing on a good thing; by the way, I am not talking about Martial Arts!
My best,
Prof. Tony Pacenski
2nd Degree Black Belt
BJJ Revolution Team
Elite Training Center
1628 South Pacific Coast Highway,
Redondo Beach, CA 90277
(310) 543-1600
www.elitetrainingcenter.net
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Sun-block, Surf Wax, Strength and Kimonos
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With Respect – No Affiliation with RCJ Machado Jiu-Jitsu and Carlos Machado 10/4/13
Nenhuma afiliação com RCJ Machado Jiu-Jitsu e Carlos Machado 4/10/13
