May 26, 2025

Gunshots to Grappling: Two Lives Transformed by Jiu-Jitsu with Black Belt Mike Medina and Nate Crisler

Gunshots to Grappling: Two Lives Transformed by Jiu-Jitsu with Black Belt Mike Medina and Nate Crisler

Shoot me a message! BJJ Black Belt Mike Medina and Rising star Blue Belt Nate Crisler share their extraordinary journeys through trauma and resilience, revealing how Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu transformed their lives from surviving childhood violence to building community through martial arts. • Mike survived being shot in a drive-by shooting at age 11 in Taos, New Mexico • Nate lost his father at age 9 and moved frequently during his formative years • Both found purpose and direction through Brazi...

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Season 3

Shoot me a message!

BJJ Black Belt Mike Medina and Rising star Blue Belt Nate Crisler share their extraordinary journeys through trauma and resilience, revealing how Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu transformed their lives from surviving childhood violence to building community through martial arts.

• Mike survived being shot in a drive-by shooting at age 11 in Taos, New Mexico
• Nate lost his father at age 9 and moved frequently during his formative years
• Both found purpose and direction through Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu training
• The gentle art provides mental focus that takes practitioners' minds off everything else
• Training partners and gym culture are crucial factors in BJJ development
• Competition requires both mental and physical preparation
• Finding the right gym environment makes all the difference for beginners
• Mike opened his own gym to create a welcoming family atmosphere
• Resilience is defined as "you versus you" - becoming better than yesterday
• The hardest part of jiu-jitsu is simply showing up consistently

If you're interested in trying Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, remember it's not about who you are or what you look like - this martial art is truly for everyone. As Mike says, "It's the most positive addiction you can have."


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Episode Powered By Act Now Education

00:00 - Welcome to the Morning Formation

02:21 - Mike's Childhood Trauma and Resilience

08:05 - Nate's Journey Through Loss

15:25 - Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu: The Perfect Art

27:29 - Nate's Path to Competitive Excellence

42:30 - The Mental Game of Competition

56:36 - Jiu-Jitsu's Growing Popularity

01:03:04 - Final Thoughts and Upcoming Events

WEBVTT

00:00:18.570 --> 00:00:19.911
Welcome to the Morning Formation.

00:00:19.911 --> 00:00:22.693
Strive, thrive and survive through life's toughest challenges.

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I'm your host, kp, and today we're testing out some new in-studio features and tech.

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I guess you could say I am featuring two incredible human beings in front of me from the world of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

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Joining me today is coach Mike Medina, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt and longtime mentor on and off the mats.

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Right Alongside him is Nate Kreisler.

00:00:50.945 --> 00:00:53.371
He's a blue belt, rising student of the craft.

00:00:53.371 --> 00:00:55.866
Awesome Pleasure to be here.

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So today's episode is all about getting to know these two warriors, learning about their journeys and tapping into some trending topics, from fitness routines to mental resilience.

00:01:06.423 --> 00:01:07.325
So let's get after it.

00:01:07.325 --> 00:01:08.188
How are you guys doing today?

00:01:08.728 --> 00:01:09.331
Doing good, thank you.

00:01:09.331 --> 00:01:10.362
Thank you for having us.

00:01:10.403 --> 00:01:10.965
Yeah, doing good.

00:01:10.965 --> 00:01:11.989
Thank you for having us.

00:01:13.742 --> 00:01:15.667
I appreciate you guys being my guinea pigs.

00:01:16.349 --> 00:01:17.109
Yeah, no problem.

00:01:17.311 --> 00:01:20.962
Yeah, I mean, it's the first time for me, but I think it's pretty cool.

00:01:20.962 --> 00:01:21.643
Man, I'm excited.

00:01:21.944 --> 00:01:22.703
Yeah, absolutely.

00:01:23.284 --> 00:01:26.388
Yeah, I wish I could say I knew what I was doing, but I really don't Like.

00:01:26.388 --> 00:01:30.593
I bought all this stuff at a garage sale, sort of Like a virtual garage sale.

00:01:30.593 --> 00:01:32.495
It's called OfferUp, oh okay.

00:01:32.614 --> 00:01:33.194
Yeah, I've been on.

00:01:33.234 --> 00:01:41.966
OfferUp yeah, I love that, so, yeah, so, let's get at it, man, so you.

00:01:43.128 --> 00:01:44.709
So I was born in Denver, colorado.

00:01:44.709 --> 00:01:49.756
I moved to Rear Rancho, new Mexico.

00:01:49.756 --> 00:01:55.668
It's where I spent like most of my childhood and teenage years and life was good.

00:01:55.668 --> 00:02:00.162
Life was good I had.

00:02:00.162 --> 00:02:04.474
My parents were awesome, put me in boxing as a young kid, so that kind of like changed the direction of my life.

00:02:04.474 --> 00:02:06.281
Uh, kind of at a young age.

00:02:06.281 --> 00:02:10.191
So, um, yeah, I've been, I've been pretty fortunate.

00:02:10.191 --> 00:02:13.979
I didn't have too much like hardship, luckily, well, when did you move to new mexico?

00:02:17.663 --> 00:02:20.167
second grade, second grade.

00:02:20.167 --> 00:02:28.020
So it's probably what I'll do in second grade, like five yeah, eight yeah, maybe yeah some seven, eight or nine.

00:02:28.040 --> 00:02:37.264
Yeah, I don't know so when you moved to new mexico you mentioned that before that that it was rough there, right?

00:02:38.366 --> 00:03:06.866
yeah, so originally my parents moved to a little small town and unfortunately I was like the only white kid so people weren't very nice to me so but eventually I ended up, like you know, kind of getting past that, getting past that point and kind of overcoming being bullied and kind of being alone Cause my, my older brothers, were already out of the house so I kind of had no one to like back me up and protect me, so I kind of had to kind of learn how to do that on my own, you know.

00:03:06.866 --> 00:03:11.943
So that was, that was always a problem, but you know I was still pretty fortunate.

00:03:12.183 --> 00:03:19.060
So but was there any incident growing up that changed your life?

00:03:19.060 --> 00:03:23.046
I mean like traumatic incident, that that you want to talk about?

00:03:23.747 --> 00:03:25.691
Um, well, something did happen when I was younger.

00:03:25.691 --> 00:03:34.545
Um, when I was, I think, around 11 or 12, I was shot in a drive-by, so that was kind of intense.

00:03:34.545 --> 00:03:35.949
This was in Albuquerque.

00:03:35.949 --> 00:03:36.862
This was in Taos.

00:03:36.862 --> 00:03:38.066
This was in Taos, new Mexico.

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It's like a really small town.

00:03:40.061 --> 00:03:42.342
So so, yeah, so was that.

00:03:42.342 --> 00:03:44.969
So was that common there to have drive-bys, or was that pretty?

00:03:45.030 --> 00:03:45.211
rare.

00:03:45.211 --> 00:03:46.860
No, it was pretty rare.

00:03:46.860 --> 00:03:47.501
I mean it was.

00:03:47.501 --> 00:03:58.037
It was the day before the 4th of July and I was going to pick up some fireworks and I was riding my bike and my friend was like, hey, let me ride your bike.

00:03:58.037 --> 00:03:58.979
I said, yeah, no problem.

00:03:58.979 --> 00:04:09.007
And uh, as soon as he got on my bike and we traded, he started riding away and these guys rolled up and just started firing a .22 rifle at me and my friend and I ended up getting shot in the knee.

00:04:09.007 --> 00:04:16.132
And yeah, it was crazy because I had that fight or flight moment, because I thought they were going to turn around.

00:04:16.132 --> 00:04:18.487
So I was worried that I was going to die.

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So I ran across the street and I knocked on a random stranger's door and this dude opened the door.

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I'll never forget

00:04:26.562 --> 00:04:26.721
this.

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This guy had a beer in his hand.

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He was like an army ranger.

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He had like a you know those hats that are camouflage on.

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He was like what's going on?

00:04:33.396 --> 00:04:35.725
He's like I thought I heard bullets or gunshots.

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He picked me up, drove me to the hospital, stayed with me until my parents got there and you know it was was pretty intense, you know.

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Did they ever catch the guys that did it.

00:04:50.845 --> 00:04:51.826
So we went to court.

00:04:51.826 --> 00:04:55.211
They had me look out of a lineup and everything happened so fast.

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But I kind of remembered the guy's eyes.

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He locked eyes for a second, I kind of remembered what they looked like.

00:05:00.642 --> 00:05:07.461
And out of the lineup I chose the person that I thought was him and I went to court and he got off.

00:05:07.461 --> 00:05:08.324
They said it wasn't him, he had alibis.

00:05:08.324 --> 00:05:11.841
But turns out like a lot of the alibis were like lying and all kinds of stuff.

00:05:11.841 --> 00:05:13.925
So who knows, who knows?

00:05:14.747 --> 00:05:22.466
do you remember when you were in that moment of like flight or flight or fight, uh, where you had to react?

00:05:23.829 --> 00:05:26.091
yeah, yeah, it was, it was.

00:05:26.091 --> 00:05:36.355
It's kind of like how they say, even like you have to either make the move or just stay there, like for for a split second I was paused and I was just shocked and I wanted to stay there but something told me no, you got it.

00:05:36.355 --> 00:05:37.942
Like if they turn around, they start shooting.

00:05:37.942 --> 00:05:40.367
Like it could be worse than just where I was shot at.

00:05:40.367 --> 00:05:44.663
You know, I mean, god forbid, I got hit in my neck or my stomach or something right?

00:05:44.663 --> 00:05:46.086
So I just ran.

00:05:46.086 --> 00:05:52.543
I just, despite how bad my knee was, I just I just ran across the street and wanted to get into someone's house.

00:05:53.204 --> 00:06:00.872
So so you literally ran across the street and you had a bullet in your in my knee yeah, your knee yeah, damn, that's wild man.

00:06:00.971 --> 00:06:04.406
I was terrified, like it is the fact that they were going to turn around, as my buddy said.

00:06:04.406 --> 00:06:05.230
He said they were going to turn around.

00:06:05.230 --> 00:06:06.336
As my buddy said, he said they're going to turn around.

00:06:06.336 --> 00:06:07.942
And I was like, oh no, I'm dead.

00:06:08.605 --> 00:06:12.949
At that point I didn't even know how to process that at that age it's pretty crazy.

00:06:13.009 --> 00:06:13.529
No, it was rough.

00:06:13.529 --> 00:06:16.961
And then my mom didn't believe my friend that I got shot.

00:06:16.961 --> 00:06:18.682
She's like, oh, mike got shot.

00:06:18.682 --> 00:06:23.185
About an hour later she showed up.

00:06:23.185 --> 00:06:25.187
So were you their target?

00:06:25.187 --> 00:06:28.870
No, so they were doing a string of random shootings.

00:06:28.870 --> 00:06:32.911
They were just driving around the town shooting random people, I guess like a gang initiation.

00:06:33.153 --> 00:06:35.093
Yeah, that's what I've heard People do that.

00:06:35.314 --> 00:06:40.276
They shot at some dudes, some guy that worked at a fireworks stand.

00:06:40.276 --> 00:06:43.786
They shot at him, but I was the only one to get hit.

00:06:43.786 --> 00:06:44.937
Wow, yeah, just know, but I was the only one to get hit.

00:06:44.937 --> 00:06:46.165
So wow, yeah, just bad luck, I guess.

00:06:48.319 --> 00:06:49.302
But to be honest with you, that's.

00:06:49.302 --> 00:06:52.468
That's New Mexico, it's wild.

00:06:52.507 --> 00:06:55.432
Yeah, it's a wild west Wild west Yep it's the wild west.

00:06:55.432 --> 00:06:58.002
And I was young, I was like nine, 10 years old.

00:06:58.002 --> 00:07:00.906
Like these dudes are going to just shoot at some kid, two kids, you know.

00:07:00.906 --> 00:07:02.048
But what can you do?

00:07:02.588 --> 00:07:03.389
that's crazy, man.

00:07:03.389 --> 00:07:10.125
Yeah now, nate, I know you grew up in bel-air and you had a much better life growing up, right?

00:07:10.125 --> 00:07:13.050
No, not necessarily.

00:07:13.050 --> 00:07:13.911
Where did you?

00:07:14.954 --> 00:07:15.519
where did you go up?

00:07:15.519 --> 00:07:30.970
So I was born in, uh, westminster, colorado, grew up, lived there for about nine years I think it was the Arapahoe County area and then mom and dad went through some stuff, ended up getting divorced.

00:07:30.970 --> 00:07:47.141
So I moved out with my mom, went to Washington State when I was nine years old, lived there for about two years with my mom's sister, my aunt, and then actually came to find out that my dad ended up passing away when I was nine.

00:07:47.141 --> 00:07:52.331
So, um, just went through the struggles of that for a little bit.

00:07:52.331 --> 00:08:02.581
I think, being at such young age, I didn't really know how to process it and in the moment, um, it just didn't really affect me in like a sad way, I don't know.

00:08:02.581 --> 00:08:08.012
So I mean, now that I'm much older, I think I can understand that, because it happened at such a young age.

00:08:08.012 --> 00:08:15.091
It's it's hard to process traumatic events like that that go on and then, uh, but you know, you move on.

00:08:15.091 --> 00:08:22.091
I think it's made me the person I am today, so forever thankful that, uh, things play out the way they do.

00:08:22.091 --> 00:08:27.067
You know I would never go back in time and change anything, and I think that's a good mindset to have.

00:08:27.067 --> 00:08:31.954
So, after Washington, lived there for two years about 2012,.

00:08:35.780 --> 00:08:36.741
Moved down to Orange County.

00:08:36.741 --> 00:08:39.287
So I lived in Tustin, starting middle school.

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For what was it?

00:08:42.332 --> 00:08:44.748
Three, three years I was in Tustin.

00:08:44.748 --> 00:09:01.123
So my mom ended up meeting another guy, another gentleman, who later became my stepfather and, uh, we moved down here because he's a screenwriter or that's what he liked to do as a uh, as a hobby, so moved down here so he could be closer to hollywood.

00:09:01.123 --> 00:09:06.841
My mom originally from Torrance, so coming back home for her.

00:09:06.841 --> 00:09:13.201
And then, once middle school ended, about eighth grade, they decided we're going to move up to Pasadena.

00:09:13.201 --> 00:09:25.812
So moved to Pasadena, lived there for about 10 years and then just been in the LA greater Los Angeles area for, I mean, I guess, 12, 13 years now.

00:09:25.812 --> 00:09:27.677
So you?

00:09:27.898 --> 00:09:29.621
you bounced around quite a bit, did you?

00:09:29.621 --> 00:09:32.386
Did you have a good relationship with your father growing up?

00:09:33.850 --> 00:09:39.884
Um, I'd say yeah, I'd say we'd had a decent relationship.

00:09:39.884 --> 00:09:43.268
I think, you know, since I was so young, it's.

00:09:43.268 --> 00:09:45.250
I think you know, since I was so young, it's, it's.

00:09:45.250 --> 00:09:51.917
It's almost like a blur, you know, and I only I try not to think about the bad times that would happen.

00:09:51.917 --> 00:09:59.005
I only try to think about the good times.

00:09:59.005 --> 00:10:01.620
But, um, you know, I mean regular dad stuff, we'd go to football games and you know, barbecue in the backyard.

00:10:01.620 --> 00:10:09.932
I mean it was, it was good until it wasn't good, you know, and yeah you, you actually did a lot of adjusting.

00:10:09.952 --> 00:10:12.620
You know you, you were almost like a military brat.

00:10:14.445 --> 00:10:15.307
Yeah, yeah.

00:10:15.307 --> 00:10:17.552
Actually, I wanted to be in the military for the longest.

00:10:17.552 --> 00:10:22.346
My dad was in the Air Force, gramps was, uh, also in the Air Force.

00:10:22.405 --> 00:10:31.028
Both sides of my family I've had a bunch of people in the military, so yeah, because usually military rats have to adjust every four years, like they have to move every four years.

00:10:31.028 --> 00:10:37.528
And you moved from Colorado to Washington, down to Orange County, up to Pasadena, I mean those are.

00:10:37.528 --> 00:10:48.054
I mean it's it's still Pacific time zone for the most part, but still I mean you're moved, bouncing around quite a bit and having to readjust and having to reestablish yourself all over again and your friends and everything.

00:10:48.054 --> 00:10:52.211
So at what point did you start training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu?

00:10:53.620 --> 00:10:58.753
So I actually didn't start training Jiu Jitsu until I was 22.

00:11:00.163 --> 00:11:01.648
I thought you just started training like three months ago.

00:11:01.648 --> 00:11:03.825
That's what I like to tell people.

00:11:03.825 --> 00:11:04.708
It makes me look better.

00:11:05.740 --> 00:11:07.086
No, so I just started training like three months ago.

00:11:07.086 --> 00:11:07.770
That's what I like to tell people.

00:11:07.770 --> 00:11:08.273
It makes me look better.

00:11:08.273 --> 00:11:09.639
No, so I just started training seriously about at 22.

00:11:10.120 --> 00:11:32.881
So we met through a mutual buddy, actually on Mike's birthday a couple years back, our buddy Chris, and you know I was talking to Mike about how I love jiu-jitsu, but he was giving me crap because he was like you don't train man, you know so just at the time, jiu jujitsu, but he was giving me crap because he was like you don't train man, you know so, uh, just at the time, jujitsu is not like a super cheap sport, you know, I'm saying especially as someone who's 22.

00:11:32.881 --> 00:11:53.903
Right at the time I was taking classes, uh, in college, I was working a job, so I didn't have the time, didn't have the money, um, and so I was mentioning these things to mike and he uh told me he was opening up his gym in alhambra and he uh he mentioned to come train with him, uh, when it opened.

00:11:53.903 --> 00:11:57.732
And you know, ever since then that's where it started.

00:11:57.732 --> 00:12:00.764
So, yeah, super fortunate for that opportunity.

00:12:00.764 --> 00:12:02.467
I think it uh changed my life.

00:12:02.467 --> 00:12:04.071
Crazy how things work out.

00:12:04.913 --> 00:12:05.352
Absolutely.

00:12:05.774 --> 00:12:20.871
Yeah, mike, you seem like you have a lot of outreach when it comes to young adults and getting them in the gym, because I noticed there's a few guys at the gym that are in their mid-20s.

00:12:21.340 --> 00:12:21.600
Yeah.

00:12:21.721 --> 00:12:25.511
And you kind of brought them in and brought them on board and got them training right.

00:12:26.980 --> 00:12:33.732
You know, for me, I just feel that I see, I think jiu-jitsu could change anyone's life if given the opportunity.

00:12:33.732 --> 00:12:40.842
You know, like when I started, I've had some great friends do great things in jiu-jitsu, so I always know that.

00:12:40.842 --> 00:12:43.888
You know, for young people it's a positive thing to be a part of.

00:12:43.888 --> 00:12:49.562
You know, especially when you're young, a lot of people are influenced by partying and you know some a lot of negative things.

00:12:49.562 --> 00:12:56.006
At least jiu-jitsu gets people addicted to something, um, that can change your life, you know the thing is, though, is like you're not.

00:12:56.346 --> 00:12:58.919
You're not like a one-trick pony, because you do.

00:12:59.240 --> 00:13:05.769
You've done muay thai boxing right yeah, yeah, boxing muay thai wing chan so why?

00:13:06.311 --> 00:13:06.912
why jiu-jitsu?

00:13:08.413 --> 00:13:08.674
I think.

00:13:08.674 --> 00:13:12.889
For me it just seemed more functional for what I wanted to do, if that makes sense.

00:13:12.889 --> 00:13:15.984
I uh did all these arts and I knew something always felt like it was missing.

00:13:15.984 --> 00:13:32.604
I was still chasing something else and then, once I had the opportunity to train with some really good wrestlers in new mexico, I realized I was like, wow, like, no matter how good my stand-up is or, uh, my cardio, these guys were able to get underneath me, take me down and really, like, put me in some bad positions.

00:13:32.604 --> 00:13:34.671
So I said, wow, I need to, uh, I need to learn this.

00:13:34.671 --> 00:13:40.191
So I'm I'm never one to just, you know, be held down, if that makes any sense.

00:13:40.230 --> 00:13:47.692
So so you think you think, out of all the martial arts that you train, that jiu-jitsu is the best one?

00:13:47.692 --> 00:13:53.806
Jiu-jitsu, wrestling any type of art that's like grappling to control the fight yeah, absolutely.

00:13:54.559 --> 00:13:56.267
I mean not to take anything away from anything else.

00:13:56.267 --> 00:14:02.121
I mean I believe the art and the person like you could learn karate or taekwondo If you're really passionate about it.

00:14:02.121 --> 00:14:04.907
You could be deadly at it, you, you know if you're a master of the craft.

00:14:04.907 --> 00:14:07.831
But um, for me I just figured.

00:14:07.831 --> 00:14:10.884
Well, I already knew a little bit of stand up, I knew a little bit a little bit of everything else.

00:14:10.884 --> 00:14:22.046
If I just did jujitsu, where I could train every day, spar every day and not be injured, not have any um headaches, you don't kind of take away from that issue, I was like perfect, sign me up.

00:14:22.326 --> 00:14:24.634
So oh yeah, that's uh.

00:14:24.634 --> 00:14:33.221
I've I've been doing jiu-jitsu for 12 years on and off, had injuries here and there, and I I love seeing guys like nate over here.

00:14:33.221 --> 00:14:34.464
Who's just nate?

00:14:34.464 --> 00:14:34.924
How old are you?

00:14:36.067 --> 00:14:36.687
23.

00:14:36.727 --> 00:14:44.014
I'll be uh 24 next month you're 23 man and you, just you just dove head first into it and you train like every single day.

00:14:44.014 --> 00:14:46.681
How many full time, how many competitions have you done?

00:14:47.322 --> 00:14:48.484
oh, I've lost count.

00:14:48.484 --> 00:14:49.384
I've lost count.

00:14:49.946 --> 00:15:21.316
Uh, maybe 15 to 20, 15 to 20 in the past year, so year or so that's the one thing that I regret is when I was younger, was not training even harder like taking off, taking, taking time off, not taking, because the older you get, the more, the more uh variables are going to get a hundred percent so you got to get it in when you're young as much as possible, Cause when you get kids, you get married, you have work and all this other stuff going on.

00:15:21.375 --> 00:15:21.436
It.

00:15:21.436 --> 00:15:22.881
Just it just starts getting in the way.

00:15:22.881 --> 00:15:24.866
So I like how you are.

00:15:24.866 --> 00:15:28.225
You're in it and you're in it every day, man, and you take it serious.

00:15:28.225 --> 00:15:30.928
I mean, it's a business for you, almost right, no, 100%.

00:15:31.039 --> 00:15:33.528
I mean, jiu-jitsu is my life.

00:15:33.528 --> 00:15:35.508
It's completely consumed me for the better.

00:15:35.508 --> 00:15:44.971
And I think people have always told me that you're going to find something that's going to just call to you and you're going to do that.

00:15:44.971 --> 00:15:46.989
You're going to find something that's going to just call to you and you're going to do that.

00:15:46.989 --> 00:15:48.677
And I mean, ever since I started jujitsu, I just felt like it was my calling.

00:15:48.677 --> 00:15:53.998
You know, maybe I love competing, you know, and if it doesn't work out, competing, that's completely.

00:15:53.998 --> 00:15:55.140
I'm totally okay with that.

00:15:55.140 --> 00:15:58.163
You know, I love the coaching aspect of of doing jujitsu.

00:15:58.163 --> 00:16:05.011
I think I get a lot of, I reap a lot of the benefits being a coach and you know that builds my character a lot.

00:16:05.011 --> 00:16:09.841
So, yeah, jujitsu has just completely traversed my life Now.

00:16:10.001 --> 00:16:11.969
for me, it was easy to get into it because I wrestled.

00:16:11.969 --> 00:16:13.504
Did you wrestle in high school?

00:16:13.846 --> 00:16:14.509
No, I did not.

00:16:14.509 --> 00:16:19.644
I was a tennis player so.

00:16:19.644 --> 00:16:21.950
But yeah, I did tennis to get out of class.

00:16:21.950 --> 00:16:22.913
I was one of those kids.

00:16:22.913 --> 00:16:26.750
But yeah, I never played really sports in high school.

00:16:26.750 --> 00:16:28.746
I was always active, you know.

00:16:28.746 --> 00:16:31.668
But yeah, no wrestling.

00:16:31.668 --> 00:16:35.445
My school actually didn't offer wrestling, unfortunately, otherwise I probably would have done it.

00:16:35.725 --> 00:16:35.927
Yeah.

00:16:35.927 --> 00:16:39.009
But, no, wrestling, no, I had a similar thing too.

00:16:39.009 --> 00:16:44.086
I wrestled my junior and senior year and my first high school didn't have it.

00:16:44.086 --> 00:16:49.649
So, okay, I end up doing it like for the first time, but it gave me a good base.

00:16:49.649 --> 00:17:11.285
But the thing is, is a lot of my competition of the the other wrestlers that I was going against, they literally were wrestling since they could walk, and this is in the state of ohio so it's a wrestling state just like you know, it's just like any other big state when sports and stuff so for sure but um, mike, I didn't ask you, man, when did your um, when did your jiu-jitsu journey start for you?

00:17:11.325 --> 00:17:15.843
I know you mentioned your parents started you in boxing yeah, so it started when I was young.

00:17:15.863 --> 00:17:18.432
Um, obviously you know I'm a lot older.

00:17:18.432 --> 00:17:23.849
I was born in 1984, so I was influenced by like rocky and all, like rambo, all these stuff, right?

00:17:23.849 --> 00:17:30.410
So wwf yeah like I was yeah, hulk hogan, ultimate warrior, um, you know.

00:17:30.410 --> 00:17:31.976
And then I I wanted to try wrestling.

00:17:31.976 --> 00:17:38.361
I went to wrestling, I did all the practices until it was time to uh, get the slinglet size and I was like, no, I'm not wearing that.

00:17:38.361 --> 00:17:45.386
I was like why, I don't know, I don't know why now and now I can see you in a singlet you know I'd be comfortable wearing it.

00:17:45.720 --> 00:17:54.407
You know, in my no-gi career I'd wear just little shorts with no top and nothing, and the slinglet was a killer for me, it's like a leotard for gymnastics.

00:17:54.407 --> 00:17:57.084
Yeah, I don't know what it was, but yeah, I ended up with mine.

00:17:58.488 --> 00:17:59.411
I've never tried one on.

00:17:59.411 --> 00:18:01.944
I mean I've never we need to get you.

00:18:02.025 --> 00:18:02.787
We need to get you one.

00:18:02.787 --> 00:18:04.069
We'll get you some custom ones.

00:18:04.069 --> 00:18:04.550
Why don't we?

00:18:04.550 --> 00:18:04.991
We?

00:18:05.011 --> 00:18:08.792
should make him one, make me a custom custom singlet.

00:18:08.813 --> 00:18:11.364
I think, adcc, you can compete in a singlet.

00:18:11.444 --> 00:18:15.974
I want one of those ones that are like super far down you know, oh we can make it sexy.

00:18:15.996 --> 00:18:16.319
No, you want.

00:18:16.965 --> 00:18:26.491
You want the Borat one yeah, the Borat one for sure, that'd be hilarious but um, but no, I did boxing was a state champion my first year.

00:18:26.511 --> 00:18:29.604
I was in um crazy story actually.

00:18:29.604 --> 00:18:41.413
So I joined boxing and the first day they had the tryouts there was like 150 kids there and every week 20 would drop bam, bam, bam.

00:18:41.413 --> 00:18:49.189
It was only me and two other kids who stayed, and the kids kids that I stayed with were some really good friends of mine, one of them being Nathaniel Duran.

00:18:49.189 --> 00:18:52.566
He was a multiple time national champion as a kid.

00:18:52.566 --> 00:18:53.428
He was phenomenal.

00:18:53.428 --> 00:18:55.932
We were best friends.

00:18:55.932 --> 00:18:58.666
We ended up having a falling out.

00:18:58.686 --> 00:19:04.304
I left boxing and I was like kind of jaded by the situation because his uncle was the coach and he was really like hard on us.

00:19:04.304 --> 00:19:06.847
And I just kind of jaded by the situation because his uncle was the coach and he was really hard on us.

00:19:06.847 --> 00:19:12.015
I just wasn't really comfortable around him, the coach, as far as the way he just handled things.

00:19:12.015 --> 00:19:17.917
He was a good guy but he was just really rough.

00:19:17.917 --> 00:19:24.836
And years later I stopped doing boxing and I got into music and watching the news and Nathaniel Duran ended up murdering a lady.

00:19:24.836 --> 00:19:25.640
He's like my best friend.

00:19:25.640 --> 00:19:38.112
Yeah, he was just like promising boxer, like off for stardom and, yeah, end up committing murder and getting into drugs and yeah, crazy, I got out of there like right at the nick of time.

00:19:38.112 --> 00:19:40.885
You know, it was like just really weird how that all worked out.

00:19:40.965 --> 00:19:47.652
But yeah, something I think about so when you left boxing, did you go to jujitsu or did you get into Muay Thai?

00:19:48.201 --> 00:19:57.438
No, I didn't get into Muay Thai until I was in MMA, until I was like probably around like Nate's age, like 23, 22, when I started taking it seriously.

00:19:57.438 --> 00:19:59.864
I actually wanted to do Jeet Kune Do.

00:19:59.864 --> 00:20:02.730
I was a big Bruce Lee fan and he was, you know.

00:20:02.730 --> 00:20:07.911
I was like all right, you know, I want to learn that stuff and be super, super good street fighter and all that stuff.

00:20:07.911 --> 00:20:16.249
And I found I found a gentleman in Albuquerque, a coach, sifu Rei Yi, which is an amazing guy, helped me out a lot actually.

00:20:16.249 --> 00:20:23.865
But I trained with him and he had this little tiny dojo and I just stayed with him and then he got into MMA.

00:20:23.865 --> 00:20:38.306
Some wrestlers came in and wanted to learn striking, so he started taking these guys on this whole striking journey and then that's where my whole journey transitioned to mixed martial arts and I wanted to be an mma fighter and all that stuff.

00:20:38.326 --> 00:20:47.106
So I mean, nate, you're probably too young to understand, but like in the 80s, like we, we thought wwf at least I did.

00:20:47.106 --> 00:20:53.087
I thought wwf was real, yeah, and I thought steven seagal was real and I thought I thought all that, I thought it's not.

00:20:53.087 --> 00:20:54.310
No, I'm just kidding dude.

00:20:54.310 --> 00:20:54.471
I.

00:20:54.471 --> 00:20:56.967
I mean I thought that john claude van Damme was real.

00:20:56.967 --> 00:21:09.904
I thought like that's how fighting went down, right, right, and it totally does not at all Like UFC, kind of you know, broke, broke that whole myth really quick, really quick.

00:21:10.565 --> 00:21:10.945
It was just.

00:21:10.945 --> 00:21:16.471
It was just the more real form of seeing who's you know, out of all the years of all this combat and dojo storming.

00:21:16.951 --> 00:21:21.675
I mean, I remember seeing fights at school and I'm not even shitting you.

00:21:21.675 --> 00:21:32.058
I would see fights at school where people would do that like pat their elbow and then do that elbow drop, like because that's what we saw in wrestling.

00:21:32.058 --> 00:21:34.460
Now, oh yeah, I've seen that, I've seen that before.

00:21:34.460 --> 00:21:38.766
So that's what we thought, man like back in the day, so like like back in the day, so like you wanting to do.

00:21:38.766 --> 00:21:44.474
I mean, it's amazing that your parents even put you in martial arts to begin with, because my dad would never do it.

00:21:51.039 --> 00:21:54.234
Well, I think New Mexico is a big boxing community, you know, among the Latino people.

00:21:54.234 --> 00:22:02.710
You know it was that or karate, and my dad's like no, we're not doing karate, he's like, you know, he's like no offense, but the guy teaching is like 90 years old, you know I mean.

00:22:02.710 --> 00:22:11.050
So I said, okay, fine, no problem, so put me in boxing and it's probably the greatest thing that ever happened to me, besides like my, you know, uncomfortable, being uncomfortable around the coach.

00:22:13.163 --> 00:22:20.263
The teammates were really nice and you know it was a good time what's the one thing that you see related to all the martial arts that you've done?

00:22:20.263 --> 00:22:26.173
Footwork is it, is it transition like what?

00:22:26.173 --> 00:22:26.355
Like?

00:22:26.355 --> 00:22:29.886
What do you think is similar across across the board for everyone?

00:22:31.088 --> 00:22:35.585
you know, I think it's just for me.

00:22:35.585 --> 00:22:38.534
It was like I always sought out the most brutal form, right it's.

00:22:38.534 --> 00:22:40.319
It's just for me, it was like I always sought out the most brutal form, right.

00:22:40.319 --> 00:22:45.066
They're both really gentle, but they could be extremely brutal, and those are the sports that I was kind of always drawn to.

00:22:45.066 --> 00:22:46.190
You know what I'm saying.

00:22:46.309 --> 00:22:46.490
Yeah.

00:22:48.361 --> 00:22:48.962
Like Wing Chun.

00:22:48.962 --> 00:22:52.147
People think it's a real soft art, but it's incredibly brutal.

00:22:52.147 --> 00:23:11.583
Same thing with Muay Thai Jiu-Jitsuitsu it's a very gentle art but at the same time, if you start adding in other variables, such as punches, headbutts and all this stuff, it changes an art that's, you know, gentle to an art that's very deadly, you know so that always attracted me because, growing up, I wanted I didn't.

00:23:11.923 --> 00:23:24.605
I wanted to be someone who could protect themselves in the street, no matter what you know, and that was a goal of me trying to learn all these martial arts is, if I ever had to protect my family or myself, I wouldn't be a victim you know.

00:23:24.786 --> 00:23:36.384
so you know for me, man, I think for me it's about slowing it down, slowing the action down, sort of like the matrix, and being able to see things and see windows open and see those clothes at the same time, absolutely.

00:23:36.384 --> 00:23:47.951
And so, especially like in the law enforcement, military realm, like it's important for you to be able to do that under stress and anxiety, to see action and to slow that action down.

00:23:47.951 --> 00:23:52.948
And, nate, the only thing you've trained so far is just tennis and Brazilian jiu-jitsu.

00:23:55.500 --> 00:23:59.369
So growing up I actually did taekwondo okay I don't really uh.

00:23:59.369 --> 00:24:03.205
Well, I mean, don't really consider that people too much dude.

00:24:03.226 --> 00:24:09.820
I mean people, people kind of shit on taekwondo and like karate, but in reality, like tell me if I'm wrong, like you would, you would know this better than me.

00:24:09.861 --> 00:24:19.481
Like it teaches you discipline right and how to do proper strikes yeah, you know, I was having a conversation today with one of my students and he was like why don't?

00:24:19.481 --> 00:24:20.923
Why isn't it more efficient?

00:24:20.923 --> 00:24:29.150
You know, and I said, well, a lot of, especially with Taekwondo, right, it's a lot of kicks and no punches to the face, only punches to the body.

00:24:29.150 --> 00:24:35.074
Right, it kind of limits your form of what you're used to doing, right, like if you're used to punching and in a controlled environment like that.

00:24:35.074 --> 00:24:44.925
But if you go, you know you're at school, you're like still gonna want to punch the body and you know, yeah, unless you, you know, have really good kicks, then that separates you from everyone else.

00:24:44.925 --> 00:24:51.451
Right, and, like I've always said, it doesn't matter about the martial art, it matters about the person training the martial art.

00:24:51.451 --> 00:24:54.023
You know, if they're, if they're intense and they want to be brutal, they can make.

00:24:54.023 --> 00:24:57.811
They can make anything gentle, brutal, for sure, so I like that.

00:24:57.912 --> 00:24:59.515
I like that gentle brutal.

00:24:59.515 --> 00:25:03.063
Yeah, speaking of gentle, real nate, you're a fucking beast man on the mats.

00:25:03.063 --> 00:25:14.051
Um, I appreciate that I'm just saying, man, you're you're, you're relentless and uh, and just for having trained what you said three years now yeah, just under three.

00:25:14.051 --> 00:25:21.053
Two, two and a half so, in those three years, man, what do you think is your biggest struggle or breakthrough so far in your journey?

00:25:23.320 --> 00:25:24.144
That's a good question.

00:25:25.141 --> 00:25:26.666
There's got to be something that sticks out in your mind.

00:25:26.666 --> 00:25:34.284
The most difficult thing, or like struggle, struggle, just the one thing that sticks out in your mind.

00:25:34.284 --> 00:25:37.152
That is either a struggle or a breakthrough that you've had.

00:25:42.440 --> 00:25:43.823
Maybe it's a competition that you, I think it's the uh.

00:25:43.823 --> 00:26:11.820
Well, when I first started competing, I actually ended up losing my first 10 tournaments, and so I think that takes a toll on your mental drive, right, because I'm paying money out of my pocket to do all these tournaments and I'm not performing good, I'm not even scoring any points, and so I think the the mental resilience of not giving up and still pursuing my desire to compete, I think that's probably where the uh, the biggest struggle was.

00:26:11.820 --> 00:26:21.095
You know, and then eventually, when I just became full focus on competing and taking it more serious and just not stopping, I mean, there's no secret.

00:26:21.095 --> 00:26:29.554
You say I'm good at jiu-jitsu, but anybody can be really good at something if they dedicate and have passion and spend a lot of time working at it.

00:26:30.981 --> 00:26:33.410
I wasn't born a gifted individual for jiu-jitsu.

00:26:33.410 --> 00:26:35.830
I don't think a lot of people are.

00:26:35.830 --> 00:26:38.545
I mean, maybe some people are more athletic than others.

00:26:38.545 --> 00:26:40.373
People have done sports growing up.

00:26:40.373 --> 00:26:47.740
But if you want to get good at jujitsu, that's the one beautiful thing is it's just time on the mat, time on the mat and how hard you're willing to work.

00:26:47.740 --> 00:27:00.114
And for me, um, I was just, I'm always that person where I want to make sure that I'm the hardest worker in the room, you know, not just for me but for those people around me, so I can set a standard.

00:27:00.114 --> 00:27:04.722
You know, and try and be uh, try and be just a role model.

00:27:05.064 --> 00:27:07.209
So that's true leadership, man.

00:27:07.209 --> 00:27:21.259
And I'll say this much uh, Brazilian jujitsu for me has been like anytime I was going through a rough patch in my life, like when I was going through a divorce or anything like that I had two options I could either get my ass in the gym or I could go to the bar.

00:27:21.259 --> 00:27:31.882
And I lived in great places like Chicago that have great bar scenes and so, and they also have great MMA gyms, great BJJ gyms, and so whenever I was going through those rough patches in my life, that's where I would go.

00:27:31.882 --> 00:27:40.888
I would just go to the gym, and I've been very blessed to have people that own gyms that would just throw me the keys and say anytime you need to go in there, just go in there.

00:27:40.888 --> 00:27:45.990
And I would spend like a lot of time just going to the gym, and when it was closed I had to find something else to do.

00:27:45.990 --> 00:27:53.779
But, yeah, taking accountability and having that self-awareness is really, really important.

00:27:53.779 --> 00:27:55.627
A hundred percent, A hundred percent.

00:27:55.700 --> 00:28:07.272
Especially for young adults, military veterans, I think especially like meeting people in the middle and having self-awareness and accountability is really important and knowing thyself.

00:28:07.272 --> 00:28:11.346
So I want to throw this question out to both of you right now and you guys can answer however you want.

00:28:11.346 --> 00:28:18.672
But how do you both, how do you both define resilience in your personal life or on the mats?

00:28:18.672 --> 00:28:24.568
How do you define resilience in your personal life or on the mats just from what you've seen over the years?

00:28:26.972 --> 00:28:27.934
Go ahead.

00:28:27.934 --> 00:28:29.646
I guess I'll speak on this first.

00:28:29.646 --> 00:28:30.684
I think it's you versus you.

00:28:30.684 --> 00:28:37.232
I mean, at the end of the day, you got to be resilient about being a better person, being a better man, being a better woman.

00:28:37.232 --> 00:28:41.791
I can't be better than the next guy and the next guy can't be better than me.

00:28:41.791 --> 00:28:47.935
He wasn't dealt the same cards that I was dealt, you know, and vice versa.

00:28:47.935 --> 00:29:00.405
So I think resilience, through the cards you're dealt and trying trying to use it to become, you know, a better individual, yeah, um, not only for you but for the people around you, you know.

00:29:00.405 --> 00:29:03.175
And so I always try to tell myself it's you versus you.

00:29:03.175 --> 00:29:05.686
You know, especially in jujitsu.

00:29:05.686 --> 00:29:07.313
I can't be better than the next guy at jujitsu.

00:29:07.313 --> 00:29:14.502
You can't be better than me, you know, all I can be is better than the person I was yesterday or better than I was six months ago, you know.

00:29:14.502 --> 00:29:25.450
So I know, as long as I'm making progressive changes and it's making me better, not only on the mats but as a person, then that's resilience for me.

00:29:26.500 --> 00:29:27.203
Yeah, I agree with that.

00:29:27.223 --> 00:29:27.645
I like that yeah.

00:29:28.721 --> 00:29:36.269
I mean, I like it because a perspective from a 23-year-old young adult who's been training relentlessly from three years.

00:29:36.269 --> 00:29:41.746
But, mike, you're a 40 year old black belt brazilian jiu-jitsu man.

00:29:41.746 --> 00:29:42.807
What's, what's your take on that?

00:29:43.690 --> 00:29:44.432
well, for me it was.

00:29:44.432 --> 00:29:46.763
It was just staying consistent.

00:29:46.763 --> 00:29:51.554
You know, as, like you I had, I went through divorce and I had nothing.

00:29:51.554 --> 00:29:52.621
I had nothing left.

00:29:52.621 --> 00:29:54.403
So I had the same choice to make, right.

00:29:54.403 --> 00:29:58.848
But luckily I had a really good friends who kind of believed in my journey, right.

00:29:58.848 --> 00:30:07.329
So, um, it just taught me that if you just set a goal like I tell my students if you have a goal, you have something to work towards, right.

00:30:07.329 --> 00:30:09.346
If you, if you reach that goal, you set another goal.

00:30:09.385 --> 00:30:25.193
If you don't have no goal to reach, then you're kind of just floating by, you're just training to train or you're just you're just training to train, or you're just, you're just showing up to show up, Right, but if you put goals and you, you meet those and you become more, more of a way, better person.

00:30:25.193 --> 00:30:27.038
You know, yeah, I agree with you for sure on that man and um, resilience.

00:30:27.038 --> 00:30:32.662
You know I always say this, uh, whenever I was in the military and law enforcement everyone has their own idea of a bad day.

00:30:32.662 --> 00:30:35.446
Everybody has run it Nate.

00:30:35.446 --> 00:30:52.692
I know you've been in some, some matches where the guy that you've been going against has really pushed you to the limits and you had to choose do I just roll over or do I keep fighting 100, and whether you win or lose, like it changes you like you literally break through a whole new floor oh yeah, I think it's all mindset, you know, at the end of the day.

00:30:53.201 --> 00:30:53.721
What do they say?

00:30:53.721 --> 00:30:56.028
It's uh, 90 mental, 10 physical.

00:30:56.028 --> 00:30:58.823
So it's all just dependent on how you look at the hardship.

00:30:58.823 --> 00:31:02.134
You can either let it break you or it can make you.

00:31:02.134 --> 00:31:04.001
And so I always try to have the mindset.

00:31:04.001 --> 00:31:11.483
If I go out anywhere in life and I, you know, have a difficult situation or competition in the room, I'm getting beat.

00:31:11.483 --> 00:31:17.795
You know, it's super easy when times get hard, right, to just give up and shy away.

00:31:17.795 --> 00:31:22.951
And I try my best, you know, to not have that mindset.

00:31:22.951 --> 00:31:27.420
I try to say work through the hard times, it'll make you, you know, a better person.

00:31:27.420 --> 00:31:28.565
And what's the saying?

00:31:28.565 --> 00:31:32.750
You can't make a scrambled egg without cracking some eggs, right?

00:31:32.750 --> 00:31:39.862
So yeah, just try to take the good with the ugly and I think that's all you can do.

00:31:39.862 --> 00:31:42.970
You know it's everything's hindsight 50, 50 at the end of the day.

00:31:42.970 --> 00:31:47.821
So you know you're not going to be able to go back in time and change this, so might as well adapt, learn and overcome.

00:31:48.221 --> 00:32:07.163
So yeah, exactly yeah, I learned at a young age man like, even when I, when I had like a toxic situations being in the military, bad leadership or whatever, I walked away a better man because I learned how to navigate, manage the managers, manage the situation, take accountability.

00:32:07.163 --> 00:32:15.148
Some self-awareness fall on your face and fall forward at the same time when you guys are in competition.

00:32:15.148 --> 00:32:19.666
When you guys are in competition, what are both of your biggest competitions so far?

00:32:19.666 --> 00:32:22.545
If you had to rank them like, what have you been to?

00:32:22.545 --> 00:32:23.328
Like Worlds?

00:32:24.001 --> 00:32:27.548
I did Worlds last year so I got actually Worlds coming up in two weeks.

00:32:27.548 --> 00:32:29.788
So but yeah, I did Worlds last year.

00:32:29.788 --> 00:32:43.689
Biggest tournament, I guess that just depends on, you know, maybe the notoriety, and I guess Worlds is considered the biggest tournament, absolutely, um, but biggest in terms of matches I've had.

00:32:43.689 --> 00:32:54.481
Uh, I wouldn't say it's worlds, I'd say it's more one of the opens, you know, but I guess it just depends on how you look at it yeah, I was really surprised.

00:32:54.542 --> 00:32:59.182
I did a tournament in uh, indiana once and it was a little tournament, it wasn't ibjj.

00:32:59.182 --> 00:33:02.972
I ran at that and I, I did not, I did not take it serious, I didn't cut weight.

00:33:02.972 --> 00:33:06.288
Huge mistake, man, huge mistake.

00:33:06.288 --> 00:33:10.037
I, oh yeah, ended up getting mopped in that tournament.

00:33:10.037 --> 00:33:18.528
But uh, so yeah, I know what you're saying when it comes to like what's, like, what's big, that's, that's subjective, right, but take me through a typical training day for you.

00:33:18.528 --> 00:33:27.201
When you're, when you're in the zone both of you, when you guys are getting ready for a competition I mean, because your diet changes and like 100, how much do you train?

00:33:27.862 --> 00:33:31.851
so for myself, I'm a lot older so it's a little different, right, um?

00:33:31.851 --> 00:33:41.792
But for me I just try to train with the best, with every day, with the guys in the room right, try to have a good diet, and for me, I believe a lot of it's for myself is just self-belief.

00:33:41.792 --> 00:33:48.961
If I can, if I know I put in the hard work and I've given it my all, then I'm gonna have no regret, no matter what right, win or lose.

00:33:48.961 --> 00:33:54.351
But I I never want to go in half-ass and have to live with the fact that I got beat by someone.

00:33:54.351 --> 00:33:57.136
I shouldn't have been beat by or made a mistake.

00:33:57.136 --> 00:34:02.951
I shouldn't if I just prepared right, because for myself, regret's something I don't like at all.

00:34:03.260 --> 00:34:05.384
Have you ever made that mistake about taking something serious?

00:34:05.384 --> 00:34:05.961
Yeah?

00:34:06.544 --> 00:34:07.026
a lot of times.

00:34:07.026 --> 00:34:13.226
I mean, I didn't start doing good in competition until I was a black belt, so everything else I was always mediocre.

00:34:13.226 --> 00:34:16.568
Really, yeah, I would win one tournament here.

00:34:16.568 --> 00:34:18.085
I was always like top three.

00:34:18.085 --> 00:34:19.804
You know, I can never like break through.

00:34:19.804 --> 00:34:40.625
And then, uh, you know, as soon as I like got, actually as soon as I opened my gym, more than I really started doing good, which is really weird, because I didn't have a room full of like a bunch of tough guys, you know, I had a bunch of beginners and, you know, my nephew and my nephews and all them to work with, and that's kind of all I had to prepare me, yeah.

00:34:40.625 --> 00:34:43.853
So it was uh shout out, you know yeah shout out.

00:34:43.880 --> 00:34:46.766
You know right, yeah, yeah, shout out.

00:34:46.766 --> 00:34:49.012
You know, giudini, for all his hard work.

00:34:49.012 --> 00:34:52.327
He was with us, you know, helping me coach with all the students and he's.

00:34:52.327 --> 00:34:56.166
He's something else too to have in a room when you have at least one good guy.

00:34:56.166 --> 00:35:07.445
But but I had all my nephews there, so I had, you know, nate was coming up and a couple guys from the gym that I had before that I was working at before kind of came over, and that's all I had.

00:35:07.445 --> 00:35:14.527
But I knew that if I could just hone in my technique, that I could go do it when it mattered.

00:35:14.527 --> 00:35:19.012
You know, I mean, I've been doing this long enough that I know that like what I need to do to mentally prepare.

00:35:19.413 --> 00:35:21.074
It sounds like you're talking about a specific tournament.

00:35:21.074 --> 00:35:22.115
Which tournament was that and how?

00:35:22.115 --> 00:35:22.737
What was the outcome?

00:35:24.059 --> 00:35:26.025
Well, it was one of my first.

00:35:26.025 --> 00:35:31.724
So, growing up in a small town, I've always wanted to win an IBJJF, let alone at Black Belt right, that was like a big goal of mine.

00:35:31.724 --> 00:35:41.164
So, um, so, uh, and not only that, I just opened the gym right.

00:35:41.164 --> 00:35:43.391
All my students came parents, you know.

00:35:43.391 --> 00:35:43.690
So it was.

00:35:43.690 --> 00:35:45.456
I think it was 2023 orange county open.

00:35:45.476 --> 00:35:45.775
I remember that.

00:35:45.775 --> 00:35:46.998
Yeah, I just started yeah.

00:35:47.039 --> 00:35:47.681
So that was like.

00:35:47.681 --> 00:36:01.130
That was like a big win for me, because that that solidified for my for me not, I didn't really care what anyone else thought, I just solidified to me that I could go and put myself on there and fight guys that normally I wouldn't be able to beat.

00:36:01.291 --> 00:36:01.992
So you got first.

00:36:02.291 --> 00:36:04.074
Yeah, submitted to everybody.

00:36:04.074 --> 00:36:05.695
That's right, and Orange County too.

00:36:05.780 --> 00:36:07.025
Yeah, submitted all my opponents.

00:36:07.045 --> 00:36:08.701
Yeah, orange County Again.

00:36:08.701 --> 00:36:09.625
Some tough guys too.

00:36:09.684 --> 00:36:13.925
I will say that I mean Orange County, that's a big, a big.

00:36:14.246 --> 00:36:16.710
Yeah, they don't call it the aoj open for no reason.

00:36:16.771 --> 00:36:38.442
Yeah well, I just knew that, you know my students were going to show up and I had to, uh, I had to be ready, you know, because I just opened the gym in alhambra and I knew, hey, like it was mainly for myself, like I had done the nabjf worlds and won and done these tournaments, but I was like, okay, this is like in my backyard, you know, like everyone knows out, everyone knows, like Orange County, la area, we have the best jujitsu.

00:36:38.442 --> 00:36:41.409
Besides, maybe Brazil even then, right, we have some of the best.

00:36:41.670 --> 00:36:47.489
So yeah, when I used to train out in Cincinnati, the guys would fly out here for the tournaments.

00:36:47.489 --> 00:36:49.661
I mean, this is a big state for that.

00:36:49.722 --> 00:36:49.942
Yeah.

00:36:49.942 --> 00:36:52.469
So if you can come out and, like I said, that was my goal.

00:36:52.469 --> 00:36:59.346
So for me I just, you know, I was just ready, I was motivated and mentally prepared.

00:36:59.365 --> 00:37:01.894
If I'm mentally prepared, I feel that I can't be beaten by anybody.

00:37:01.894 --> 00:37:03.219
So, yeah, what about you, nate man?

00:37:03.219 --> 00:37:03.340
What?

00:37:03.340 --> 00:37:07.570
What is your uh typical training like when you're leading up to a big competition?

00:37:08.030 --> 00:37:12.224
so I'll just give you the rundown, uh, of my day-to-day right now.

00:37:12.224 --> 00:37:44.393
So, uh, I wake up about 9 am, go do a morning training session for about an hour or two and then, um, after that I go to do strength and conditioning with one of our guys at the gym there shout out kev nimble athletics, and he's been training me for the past couple weeks, getting me ready for worlds and then, um, after that I come home, I'm working with the nutritionist right now, so just to help me shed these uh extra pounds a little bit easier what weight are you at?

00:37:45.802 --> 00:37:53.324
right now I'm 155, so I fight featherweight, which is 150, but you walk around at what about 160?

00:37:53.324 --> 00:37:55.831
It depends on how much I'm eating, how much I I'm splurging.

00:37:55.831 --> 00:37:57.494
I'm a big back, so I love food.

00:37:57.494 --> 00:38:02.027
But last tournament I weighed in when I fought heavyweight.

00:38:02.027 --> 00:38:04.030
I was 168.

00:38:05.253 --> 00:38:05.693
Heavyweight.

00:38:06.260 --> 00:38:12.092
Yeah, I fought heavyweight, but for Worlds I wanted to cut down.

00:38:12.092 --> 00:38:17.947
That's why I implemented working with strength and conditioning and working with a nutritionist.

00:38:17.947 --> 00:38:28.635
These are all things I could do myself, but it's the accountability of having someone that's coaching you and there to push you that, I think, is helping me a lot, especially with the nutrition factor.

00:38:28.635 --> 00:38:33.067
I've always cut weight on my own, I've always understood the calorie deficit and everything.

00:38:33.067 --> 00:38:46.253
But I think, uh, taking the chance and leap of faith in someone else, especially a professional, and having that accountability has really solidified it being a good thing for me.

00:38:46.253 --> 00:38:54.063
So, but, uh, after strength and conditioning for a couple hours, I come back home, rest up a little bit and then I'm back on the mat.

00:38:54.063 --> 00:39:10.471
Uh, coaching kids class for a couple hours, depends on the day, usually one or two classes, and then have the adult training at night wow, yeah, I mean back in the day when I used to do tournaments, I was pretty regimented, disciplined.

00:39:11.432 --> 00:39:15.268
Would you believe that I was down to 145 at one point, accidentally?

00:39:15.929 --> 00:39:20.369
accidentally, accidentally dude, I'm sure you looked like a lean and mean 145 dude, I can believe that.

00:39:20.389 --> 00:39:26.166
I can believe that dude, I I got down to 145 and I was, I was working you probably moved really good too.

00:39:26.226 --> 00:39:38.168
Yeah, super fast and uh the the thing is is I wasn't trying to do it, but I was, so I mean, it was a rough patch of my life, so I literally just soaked myself into jujitsu.

00:39:38.168 --> 00:39:46.349
I was doing hot yoga at the same time, which is next door to the MMA gym that I trained at, and then I was also going to the sauna.

00:39:46.349 --> 00:39:50.744
I was eating nothing but like Subway chicken sandwiches nothing on it, just plain.

00:39:51.166 --> 00:39:51.929
Oof damn.

00:39:53.503 --> 00:39:59.628
So yeah, I mean I mentally went there at one point, but I know it's very trying.

00:40:00.389 --> 00:40:05.351
It is, and I think the sacrifice is what makes it.

00:40:05.351 --> 00:40:09.471
Like I said earlier, it's 90% mental, 10% physical.

00:40:09.471 --> 00:40:18.449
So if I'm willing to go the extra step and if all said is done, it doesn't help me out, but I go in there mentally believing that it helped me out.

00:40:18.449 --> 00:40:22.507
I mean, that's, you know, 100% of matters, even if it's a placebo.

00:40:22.507 --> 00:40:24.413
You know, what I'm saying, I'm taking that bet.

00:40:24.780 --> 00:40:28.371
The trend that I'm seeing here is you both were talking about being mentally prepared.

00:40:28.371 --> 00:40:30.668
Mentally ready and in the right state of mind, right?

00:40:30.668 --> 00:40:32.784
You think being relaxed really helps you out?

00:40:32.824 --> 00:40:44.193
quite a bit Relaxed helps you out quite a bit relaxed, um, nervous, but yet I think, for myself, prepared, I think, prepared, I think you just got to go out and have fun.

00:40:44.193 --> 00:40:56.161
You know like, especially if you're competing, it's like it's beyond, I think, being nervous, right, you're not getting punched, right, if you think about it, you're just kind of like playing a game plan, right, you're just trying to implement the game that you've been training.

00:40:56.161 --> 00:41:03.626
You know, and for me, I think if, when I said think about it that way, I wouldn't be nervous, you know, it's like, well, what could really go wrong?

00:41:03.940 --> 00:41:15.150
You know, as long as I just go in there and just try to win, it's kind of like the knobs on this audio and just setting it just right to where you're nervous, taking it serious, but you're relaxed at the same time.

00:41:15.150 --> 00:41:15.489
Yeah.

00:41:15.530 --> 00:41:17.592
Yeah, I mean they all play a factor for the mental part.

00:41:17.592 --> 00:41:19.034
You know, it's just how you're.

00:41:19.034 --> 00:41:21.606
You deal with each emotion, each feeling, right, you know?

00:41:21.847 --> 00:41:22.570
and everyone's different.

00:41:22.570 --> 00:41:23.978
Everyone people, some.

00:41:23.978 --> 00:41:26.204
Some people need nerves, some people don't get nervous.

00:41:26.204 --> 00:41:29.552
One of my teammates, estevan Martinez, he would.

00:41:29.552 --> 00:41:32.766
This guy would never get nervous and this guy would fight big guys.

00:41:32.766 --> 00:41:33.889
And I'm like like man, what do you?

00:41:33.889 --> 00:41:37.960
You don't get nervous, he's like no man, I just go out there and fight.

00:41:37.960 --> 00:41:50.025
And I was like man, that's something I always look at and be like, wow, that's that's a rare yeah thing to find in somebody who just like has zero fear when he competes, like no nerves, he could like eat food, take a nap, it's nothing.

00:41:50.025 --> 00:41:50.907
Was you know where me?

00:41:50.907 --> 00:41:52.391
I'm like all right, I gotta be sharp, I.

00:41:52.391 --> 00:41:59.282
But then I realized like I mean, if I'm prepared and I trained hard, what's you know, my body's going to react to everything I've done.

00:41:59.403 --> 00:42:01.748
So just, exactly, yeah, it's going to happen.

00:42:01.748 --> 00:42:12.632
So I've noticed that for me, like when I'm shooting or doing tactics, that when I it's, it's almost like the least I give a shit, the better off I do, because I'm putting the fundamentals together that I've.

00:42:12.632 --> 00:42:16.389
That I basically have been practicing this whole time.

00:42:16.509 --> 00:42:18.092
Muscle memory yeah, exactly.

00:42:18.780 --> 00:42:19.784
I'm going back to my training.

00:42:19.784 --> 00:42:21.371
Yep, you know.

00:42:21.371 --> 00:42:24.621
I wanted to ask both of you guys, man, what are your thoughts on?

00:42:24.621 --> 00:42:34.931
Brazilian jujitsu is growing popularity in mainstream culture movies, celebs, training there's a lot of celebrities now that are that are training and whatnot.

00:42:34.931 --> 00:42:35.907
What are you guys thought on that?

00:42:36.108 --> 00:42:36.492
I love it.

00:42:36.492 --> 00:42:52.048
Yeah, I love it, especially as, I mean, you know, I'm a I'm a jujitsu business owner, so for me it's something that I you know, just to see anyone come in who normally wouldn't do jujitsu to me is amazing whether you're a celebrity, uh, you know, a comedian, whatnot you know?

00:42:52.048 --> 00:42:53.880
That's always cool to see but it's still.

00:42:54.041 --> 00:42:54.963
It's still black magic.

00:42:54.963 --> 00:42:58.389
I mean, there's still a lot of people that don't train I could see that.

00:42:58.748 --> 00:42:59.250
I could see that.

00:42:59.250 --> 00:43:02.581
I mean I I would love more people to to join and do jiu-jitsu.

00:43:02.581 --> 00:43:15.501
I recommend it to everybody, but I just wouldn't want it to water down yeah the sport you know, in terms of, of, uh yeah, the promotions are just watering down, just for for money, or anything like that.

00:43:15.501 --> 00:43:16.103
You know what I'm saying.

00:43:16.103 --> 00:43:19.650
I think yeah the value that jujitsu brings is super important.

00:43:20.373 --> 00:43:44.123
So uh, that, just like karate or taekwondo, I think, because they're so oversaturated, they have so many people doing the sport, it kind of takes you know the meaning away a little bit you think the rules, the rules could be a way of watering it down, like not allowing certain things to happen, like not striking in the face like they did in some of those strike martial arts, I mean, how like?

00:43:44.123 --> 00:43:44.625
How would you want?

00:43:44.625 --> 00:43:49.170
I feel like jujitsu is just like a proving ground where you, you can't either.

00:43:49.170 --> 00:43:53.403
You're like, if you walk into a gym and you're wearing a belt, you can't lie.

00:43:53.403 --> 00:43:54.346
Yeah 100.

00:43:54.465 --> 00:43:55.907
Yeah, the bell is just a caller.

00:43:56.148 --> 00:43:59.034
I can't break boards or not strike you in the face.

00:43:59.034 --> 00:44:01.563
It is a grind.

00:44:01.563 --> 00:44:07.646
You are going to get put through a meat grinder when you first walk into a gym and it also depends on the gym you're training at.

00:44:07.686 --> 00:44:07.847
Too.

00:44:07.847 --> 00:44:12.847
A lot of gyms they have different ways of training and teaching their students, you're right.

00:44:12.847 --> 00:44:17.757
So there's some gyms where their aspect is strictly competition.

00:44:17.757 --> 00:44:19.367
So there's two to me.

00:44:19.367 --> 00:44:25.405
I noticed the students are very like, have a very good iq, but they're not very tough outside.

00:44:25.405 --> 00:44:26.246
Does that make sense?

00:44:26.246 --> 00:44:32.248
So I think it just depends on where you're, who your instructor is right.

00:44:32.590 --> 00:44:37.447
So yeah, what that culture is yeah yeah because some gyms I've heard they don't some.

00:44:37.447 --> 00:44:39.572
We had a student come in.

00:44:39.572 --> 00:44:41.657
He said, hey, me and my buddy are both training jujitsu.

00:44:41.657 --> 00:44:43.550
I trained it and I'm not gonna say the name of the gym.

00:44:43.550 --> 00:44:44.693
He said I'm training at this gym.

00:44:44.693 --> 00:44:48.871
Uh, he's training with us, his, his friend's, training at a gym and they don't spar at all.

00:44:48.871 --> 00:44:52.186
He's like, yeah, he's not allowed to spar until he's like a blue belt.

00:44:52.186 --> 00:44:52.969
You know, we start.

00:44:52.969 --> 00:45:00.938
We start teaching people how to spar like their very first class yeah, right, so banging yeah, it's you know, it's night and day.

00:45:01.119 --> 00:45:07.012
So when they, when they, when they meet up to train, he's just like smashing this guy and he's you know his buddy's like wow, I don't know why I'm not progressing.

00:45:07.012 --> 00:45:11.181
And it's like, well, it's not that he's not progressing, he's just learning in a different way.

00:45:11.181 --> 00:45:16.108
Right, it's not that it's wrong, it's just not the way we do it, you know yeah, you got to be careful where you train at, man.

00:45:16.168 --> 00:45:21.947
Some gyms are dangerous and some gyms aren't teaching you the proper way yeah, definitely, definitely.

00:45:21.987 --> 00:45:27.875
but to circle back to what mike was saying, I think it's all about the leader and the person running the gym.

00:45:27.875 --> 00:45:39.652
Yeah, you know for sure, I know some guys too that run gyms or train at other gyms and you can see the type of person that, uh, their coach rubs off on them.

00:45:39.652 --> 00:46:03.748
Right and, thankfully for me, because mike has been my professor, my coach, my teacher, and knowing, knowing him as a person, has rubbed off on me and uh, I mean the mental fortitude that this guy has, you know as as rubbed off greatly on me and his confidence and seeing everything, I think I think it uh rubs off on everybody in the gym and I think that's an important factor to have.

00:46:04.710 --> 00:46:05.592
Yeah, that's huge.

00:46:05.592 --> 00:46:17.431
That's why I stuck around, because I mean, I, I had I was gonna start at a different gym and then I went to go pick up a pizza at papa john's and then I saw that brazilian jiu-jitsu canvas outside.

00:46:17.431 --> 00:46:19.135
I was like, oh, there's a jiu-jitsu gym here.

00:46:19.135 --> 00:46:21.027
I was like I need, I need to get back into it again.

00:46:21.027 --> 00:46:23.831
Yep and uh, I was like I'll give this place a try.

00:46:23.831 --> 00:46:24.452
I.

00:46:24.753 --> 00:46:35.577
What I really liked was I liked how the gym had a very family environment where, like not family, like kids and adults I'm talking about family we're like.

00:46:35.577 --> 00:46:57.449
Everybody was there to get better, no matter what level you're at, because my first gym that I started at was Midwest training center and at that gym I tell people all the time, like, at that gym day, one night, one you were were a rag, they would ragdoll you, they would beat you because the guys were fighters I mean, that's where clay guida was, jason guida will, brooks, like.

00:46:57.449 --> 00:47:07.552
All those guys were there like and they would and their, their objective in that gym was to create fighters and so if you're a hobbyist, dad walking in, you became a grappling dummy, yeah, and so I did that for a body.

00:47:07.552 --> 00:47:09.085
I survived because of my wrestling.

00:47:09.085 --> 00:47:12.333
And then I then I moved on to a carlson junior school.

00:47:12.414 --> 00:47:14.987
Christian uflacker shout out to him uh, south chicago.

00:47:14.987 --> 00:47:23.766
Uh, got my blue belt through him, um, and I got to see what a real gym, how a real gym is supposed to operate.

00:47:23.766 --> 00:47:36.148
And so, yeah, be careful where you train at, because some places can be dangerous, you know, if you, especially if you have to go into work tomorrow yeah, I think that's a that's a good thing that our gym does.

00:47:36.188 --> 00:47:38.097
We try to cater to everybody, you know.

00:47:38.097 --> 00:47:52.135
Yeah, there's so many different reasons people start jiu-jitsu, whether it's to get in shape, you know, or, um, it's to compete right, or just become a better person, or maybe you just want the camaraderie of being around other guys or other people.

00:47:52.135 --> 00:48:03.431
You know, I think that that's what we do really good is we attract people and people that come to do jiu-jitsu, for whatever reason it may be.

00:48:03.431 --> 00:48:05.291
You know we're able to fulfill that.

00:48:06.246 --> 00:48:07.331
Definitely agree with that man.

00:48:07.331 --> 00:48:08.690
Mike, you run a really good school man.

00:48:08.690 --> 00:48:09.869
Thanks, I appreciate that.

00:48:09.869 --> 00:48:11.588
I try Not just kissing your butt Cause you're here.

00:48:11.588 --> 00:48:12.331
I really feel that way.

00:48:12.331 --> 00:48:18.730
Thank you for for opening up where you did and having a pizza shop next door, otherwise I would have never found you.

00:48:19.605 --> 00:48:20.525
I've been, I've been blessed.

00:48:20.525 --> 00:48:22.768
The Alhambra area has been amazing.

00:48:22.768 --> 00:48:27.554
I've had incredible students and you know that was my goal opening the gym.

00:48:27.554 --> 00:48:40.079
I've, you know, traveled all over, trained at a lot of gyms and I always noticed there was a lot of clicks, you know, and I always didn't like to go in and you know I was like man, I wish I would just feel more comfortable training somewhere, you know.

00:48:40.039 --> 00:48:44.373
So I made sure that my students, when someone comes in, you know we make sure they're, they're a part of the gym.

00:48:44.373 --> 00:48:52.190
We're not a separate entity inside the gym where these guys are friends and these guys are friends and you can't hang out with these guys because they're too cool black belts.

00:48:52.190 --> 00:48:53.635
It's not like that at all.

00:48:53.635 --> 00:48:56.934
You could walk up to me and any one of us ask us any questions any time.

00:48:56.934 --> 00:48:57.766
We're just.

00:48:57.766 --> 00:49:06.456
You know that was the goal to family, kids, everyone, to just be happy and learn jujitsu because it's for everybody.

00:49:06.456 --> 00:49:16.492
And I hear so many stories of people going to try a jujitsu gym and they get hurt and they never do it and they don't want to put their kids in it, right, and now they're jaded to that experience and it's not fair right, you know for sure.

00:49:16.532 --> 00:49:22.688
So yeah, you definitely have had those, those gatekeepers there too to control the new folks that are coming through the door.

00:49:22.688 --> 00:49:26.512
Oh yeah, um, to kind of hold them down sometimes.

00:49:26.512 --> 00:49:29.094
You know you got those guys that they could be pretty rough.

00:49:29.094 --> 00:49:31.277
How did you get your start?

00:49:31.277 --> 00:49:33.400
I mean, you you opened the gym.

00:49:33.400 --> 00:49:35.201
You already knew, nate.

00:49:35.201 --> 00:49:41.456
Like how did or did you just open up and you had no body there and you're just sitting there waiting for people to walk in?

00:49:42.288 --> 00:49:43.793
No, so I moved back.

00:49:43.793 --> 00:49:54.690
So my wife is in the military, so I was in Maryland and my business partner now koji shout out, koji um wanted to open a gym.

00:49:54.690 --> 00:49:56.594
Long story short.

00:49:56.594 --> 00:50:00.250
Uh, professor lucas gave me a call and said hey, we want to open a gym.

00:50:00.250 --> 00:50:01.753
So I said, well, why don't I come out and work?

00:50:01.753 --> 00:50:04.610
I'll work for you until the gym, until everything works out.

00:50:04.610 --> 00:50:11.436
So I end up working for professor lucas for, geez, about a year and a half, maybe a little more, until the gym opened.

00:50:11.436 --> 00:50:13.947
And then I'd already had like put out that I was opening a gym.

00:50:13.947 --> 00:50:18.077
So, uh, luckily, I had people literally waiting to join.

00:50:18.097 --> 00:50:24.538
Okay, good so as soon as the doors opened I had like rent was already paid my first day, like everything was.

00:50:24.538 --> 00:50:28.010
It was just such a blessing, like right off the bat, and I met nate.

00:50:28.010 --> 00:50:31.536
I knew him from my buddy estevan.

00:50:31.536 --> 00:50:36.568
They knew each other so like I kind of had like known of nate and then when I moved back we.

00:50:36.568 --> 00:50:40.717
Our mutual friend of ours introduced us and yeah to piggyback.

00:50:41.157 --> 00:50:43.288
I know I'm pretty close with his nephew, juno.

00:50:43.288 --> 00:50:45.431
Yeah, so I knew juno.

00:50:45.431 --> 00:50:49.039
I actually knew mike before he knew me and I have a quick funny story.

00:50:49.039 --> 00:50:53.918
So the very first day we met, um, it was at a bar in monrovia.

00:50:53.918 --> 00:51:07.387
We're celebrating his birthday with some of the jujitsu guys and I was actually super hesitant on going because, uh, my buddy chris was training at the time and he's like, dude, just come, you know, like it's, it's mike's birthday, it's gonna be a good time.

00:51:07.387 --> 00:51:08.210
A bunch of jujitsu guys.

00:51:08.210 --> 00:51:12.907
I was like I don't know man, like you know, these guys don't know me, I don't know them, you know.

00:51:12.907 --> 00:51:17.137
And I was like, all right, you know, I'll go, and I mean, thankfully I did.

00:51:17.217 --> 00:51:33.804
But when I got there, I remember I sat down right next to mike and he's wearing a denver broncos hat and I'm like, oh you, like you like the broncos, like I'm from denver, and you could tell, like knowing mike now and knowing how his sense of humor is, you know it's it's funny to look back in time and laugh at this situation.

00:51:33.804 --> 00:51:35.710
But I remember he was giving me a hard time.

00:51:35.710 --> 00:51:54.239
He asked me if I was doing jujitsu and I said no and he just told me I had a really punchable face and you know, back then looking back it's hilarious, right, knowing his sense of humor, but at the time time I'm never the type of person to let just someone talk smack.

00:51:54.239 --> 00:52:02.018
But I already had knew Mike before he knew me, so I knew I got to pick and choose what I say around him because he doesn't know me yet.

00:52:02.018 --> 00:52:07.197
So I don't want to rub off on him and get my ass beat right on his birthday.

00:52:07.197 --> 00:52:10.869
Want to rub off on him and get my ass beat right on his birthday.

00:52:10.869 --> 00:52:13.436
So, um, but we ended up clicking through our, through our buddy yesterday and through juno.

00:52:13.456 --> 00:52:20.347
And yeah, like I said, he said he was opening up a gym and he actually told me, you know he's like, I know you're struggling, I know you want to do jujitsu.

00:52:20.347 --> 00:52:28.927
He said, uh, and I'll never forget this, he told me I'll let you come train with me, but on one condition you're going to be the hardest worker in the room.

00:52:28.927 --> 00:52:34.570
And you know, right then, and there I told him I promise you I'm going to be that hardest, I'm going to be the hardest worker in that gym.

00:52:34.570 --> 00:52:37.237
And uh, he told me right back.

00:52:37.237 --> 00:52:38.806
He said actions speak louder than words.

00:52:38.806 --> 00:52:40.969
You know, a man is only as good as his word.

00:52:41.028 --> 00:52:43.132
So I was like, you know, I got.

00:52:43.132 --> 00:52:45.916
I got to prove not only to him but to myself.

00:52:45.916 --> 00:52:50.141
You know, I've always been a person where if I say I'm going to do something, I do it.

00:52:50.141 --> 00:52:54.456
So I knew this wasn't an opportunity I couldn't pass up.

00:52:54.456 --> 00:53:10.418
And as soon as he opened up the gym, showing up every single day offering to help to clean the mats, trying to put up my end of the bargain, you know, because I know at the end of the day it's a business for him, yeah, so if I'm not paying right, it's, it's taken out, you know, of his livelihood.

00:53:10.438 --> 00:53:13.722
So you have to help him in a positive way yeah, run the business.

00:53:13.722 --> 00:53:19.905
Yeah, exactly.

00:53:19.905 --> 00:53:21.268
So, mike, how many times have you extended that, that olive branch?

00:53:21.268 --> 00:53:22.992
And people just don't show up and show out.

00:53:22.992 --> 00:53:23.773
I've had a few.

00:53:23.773 --> 00:53:25.036
Yeah, I've had a few, but I don't offer it too much.

00:53:25.056 --> 00:53:28.061
You know, like I've had, I've had a few, I've had a few, but I don't offer it too much.

00:53:28.061 --> 00:53:44.347
You know, like I've had, I've had, like I said, I've been around some very successful people that I've came up with from, you know, white belt to black belt, and you know, um, I just, I just like to help, right, and sometimes you, you help people and they don't reciprocate it, right, but uh, or they don't?

00:53:44.367 --> 00:53:45.389
they just don't appreciate it.

00:53:45.469 --> 00:53:47.710
Yeah, they don't want to like.

00:53:47.710 --> 00:53:56.820
Yeah, they don't want to like be, or like just be a part of the gym, right, it's like, if you have that opportunity, you should be more of a role model in the gym.

00:53:56.820 --> 00:54:05.103
You should be asking for help, you should be respectful, right, there's a lot of things that go along with that, right?

00:54:05.103 --> 00:54:21.730
So, yeah, only if I see something, if I see something in someone, then I'll, you know, extend that, because I there's a point in my life where I remember going to Jiu Jitsu and they're like, yeah, man, it's 200 bucks and I'm broke and, you know, my wife is paying for my Jiu Jitsu because I can't, you know, pay for it.

00:54:21.730 --> 00:54:31.036
So it's like, man who knows of the opportunity for a lot of people who have the chance to be great at jujitsu, but they, you know, money is the barrier between them and success, right?

00:54:31.036 --> 00:54:31.739
Or learning the art.

00:54:31.739 --> 00:54:37.507
So, right, you know, I mean I can only do so much, but when I can, I will.

00:54:37.748 --> 00:54:42.150
So, no, I think that's huge man, Like whether you want to be considered or not.

00:54:42.150 --> 00:54:52.309
I mean, at the end of the day, you are a mentor, you're a mentor and it can be very frustrating mentoring because you don't run into people like nate over here all the time.

00:54:52.309 --> 00:55:03.134
I mean it to actually put it out there, offer it up and then them follow through and take it serious yeah that's not something that happens quite often it's not, but you know what I could say?

00:55:03.173 --> 00:55:04.800
we're very fortunate at our location.

00:55:04.800 --> 00:55:09.431
We're like every single person who walks through those doors is a blessing to the gym in some way.

00:55:09.431 --> 00:55:15.853
Rather, it's their personality, or if it's, you know, they were just willingness to learn or be around others and it's just it's.

00:55:15.853 --> 00:55:18.005
It's really amazing, it's.

00:55:18.567 --> 00:55:18.827
I mean.

00:55:19.429 --> 00:55:22.677
I can't say enough how lucky I am, so you know absolutely.

00:55:25.065 --> 00:55:58.318
No doubt, and overall, like would you say that, uh, you are where you thought you'd be right now, like with, with the business and everything no, really no, I was, I was worried from the very get-go you don't think, you didn't think it'd work out no, I mean, uh, when I first started jujitsu, I was like Nate, I was very dedicated and at the time I was in a very toxic marriage and everyone around me was saying you've got to quit jujitsu, it's going to ruin your life, you'll never make a living, there's no money in it.

00:55:58.318 --> 00:56:03.262
And I said, I just believed in it.

00:56:03.262 --> 00:56:06.909
I didn't go to college.

00:56:06.909 --> 00:56:11.914
The only thing have, you know, the only thing I was good at is fighting, you know, and being that person.

00:56:11.914 --> 00:56:12.355
And I didn't.

00:56:12.434 --> 00:56:13.297
And there was two ways to go.

00:56:13.297 --> 00:56:16.893
I could try to make a professional route or I could, you know, go a bad route.

00:56:16.893 --> 00:56:22.269
So, um, I decided, you know, I'm going to just train every day.

00:56:22.269 --> 00:56:30.347
And I ended up having to choose between my relationship and jujitsu at one point in my life and I chose jujitsu and it, uh, you know, led me to a great place.

00:56:30.347 --> 00:56:32.512
So now I'm pretty pretty happy.

00:56:32.552 --> 00:56:38.715
So yeah, I tried to warn nate about that, about relationships about the relationships and jujitsu.

00:56:38.715 --> 00:56:40.298
Do girls hate jujitsu I?

00:56:40.298 --> 00:56:42.429
Mean unless they do jujitsu.

00:56:42.608 --> 00:56:56.867
Yeah, they fucking, they hate it I've been super fortunate, uh, to to have a partner that is super supportive of what I do, and you know, and I'm I mean, I'm super blessed for that you know I told her, told her at the beginning.

00:56:56.907 --> 00:56:57.648
I set the standard.

00:56:57.648 --> 00:56:59.653
I said, hey, you know we're gonna.

00:56:59.653 --> 00:57:07.849
If you want to date me, my life is jujitsu and if at any point in time you make me choose between you or jujitsu, I mean I'm gonna choose jujitsu.

00:57:07.849 --> 00:57:13.994
So, and she knew that from the get-go and you know she's like, I support you 100 and anything that you do.

00:57:13.994 --> 00:57:15.327
If you need my help, I'm always here.

00:57:15.367 --> 00:57:19.644
So shout out to her well, that makes it, that makes you a better jujitsu athlete.

00:57:19.644 --> 00:57:31.936
Though, when you have someone who supports you, yeah, and believes in your dream, oh, it does, yeah, it pushes you so much because there's times that I know me, I wouldn't believe in myself and my wife would like force me.

00:57:31.936 --> 00:57:39.056
Hey, you know you can do this, you you know, yeah, keep going, yeah, right, so it's like when you have that dynamic, it works out.

00:57:39.056 --> 00:57:40.927
I didn't have the dynamic, it didn't work out.

00:57:41.228 --> 00:57:48.152
Then, now that I have that dynamic, yeah you know I couldn't be any, I couldn't ask for anything more so that's awesome, man.

00:57:48.956 --> 00:57:49.465
That's awesome.

00:57:49.465 --> 00:58:09.393
Yeah, jujitsu has definitely made a huge purposeful change in my life and it's made such great connections for me too, like it actually got me in a movie last year like a guy that I remember that a guy that I trained with, like when, when I was a blue belt in cincinnati, northern kentucky, there, like, he's now a stunt coordinator and he's actually coming back soon.

00:58:09.432 --> 00:58:10.675
He's coming back for a few days.

00:58:10.675 --> 00:58:18.106
He just talked to me today, in July, so I'll I'll bring him by the gym, but he's a black belt under Carlson jr Awesome, really, really great guy.

00:58:18.106 --> 00:58:23.072
But you know we've been doing this for about an hour now, man, and I know this isn't the last time we're going to be doing this.

00:58:23.072 --> 00:58:39.996
But I want to fire off some rapid fire questions to you guys and get your thoughts on it real quick before we round it off, and I just wanted to have an opportunity in this episode to get to know both of you and in the future, man, I'd like to do some video commentaries.

00:58:39.996 --> 00:58:42.974
The way I got this place set up is specifically for you guys.

00:58:42.974 --> 00:58:48.277
Like, I've got the monitor right here where you can see the video and everything.

00:58:49.945 --> 00:58:50.266
And I like it.

00:58:50.266 --> 00:58:50.708
It already I do too.

00:58:50.728 --> 00:58:53.800
I already like where I love it, I think it's super dope, so I'm gonna have it lined up to where.

00:58:53.800 --> 00:58:58.114
Because there's a lot, there's a lot of uh, bull jitsu out there.

00:58:58.233 --> 00:59:16.418
That's going on and I I a lot of bullshit and I just want to get your guys's opinion on it, of course, and I think it's great I think it's great because you got a competitive blue belt right here 23 year old blue belt and then you've got a 40 year old black belt that's been in the game for a while and then myself, just a fucking loser.

00:59:16.498 --> 00:59:20.009
But like I'm just kidding I'm just.

00:59:20.088 --> 00:59:21.853
I'm just a big beefy guy but it's tough.

00:59:21.873 --> 00:59:22.855
He doesn't give himself credit.

00:59:22.894 --> 00:59:29.215
no, um, but yeah, man like this, uh that I definitely want to do some video commentary and stuff.

00:59:29.215 --> 00:59:30.878
Absolutely All right guys.

00:59:30.878 --> 00:59:32.307
Rapid fire round.

00:59:32.527 --> 00:59:32.849
All right.

00:59:33.469 --> 00:59:33.971
Let's do it.

00:59:34.070 --> 00:59:34.532
Gi or no?

00:59:34.532 --> 00:59:37.978
Gi Gi Gi, for sure, absolutely.

00:59:38.867 --> 00:59:46.653
I'm not a big no Gi guy, even though I started no Gi, and all my students know I'm not quite fond of no Gi.

00:59:46.653 --> 00:59:50.425
But that's okay, yeah, unless you're fighting naked in the street, yeah.

00:59:50.425 --> 00:59:53.175
It's, look it's, it's jujitsu at the end of the day is what I say.

00:59:53.175 --> 00:59:57.135
But my preference, you know, the gi for sure.

00:59:57.715 --> 00:59:59.045
Absolutely Both.

00:59:59.045 --> 01:00:02.331
Gi huh, okay, I agree, I agree, everybody's.

01:00:02.331 --> 01:00:08.231
Everybody's got a belt for the most part and everybody's got clothes on, so it's definitely good to know where those handles are for sure.

01:00:08.231 --> 01:00:12.114
All right, what was the first submission you ever landed?

01:00:13.074 --> 01:00:13.615
In a tournament.

01:00:13.615 --> 01:00:16.599
Yeah, triangle, really.

01:00:16.599 --> 01:00:19.300
Yeah, I've always been a triangle guy, I don't know why.

01:00:21.045 --> 01:00:21.485
I wish I was.

01:00:21.485 --> 01:00:33.532
So mine first was actually at worlds last year and it was a conto choke and that's been kind of my uh, signature, signature submission since then so conto choke conto interesting.

01:00:35.155 --> 01:00:36.938
What is your favorite post-training meal?

01:00:38.588 --> 01:00:43.117
oh my god when I'm cutting weight or when I'm not.

01:00:45.648 --> 01:00:52.889
I'll take this first it's a good question, go for it either american barbecue or uh like.

01:00:53.391 --> 01:00:56.742
My favorite place now, honestly, is prince street pizza in pasadena.

01:00:56.742 --> 01:01:00.050
That's where we get our pizza from and that place is phenomenal, let's try it out.

01:01:00.050 --> 01:01:02.255
And uh moose as well.

01:01:02.255 --> 01:01:07.172
So those are two places that, like I, go 100.

01:01:07.172 --> 01:01:07.853
I think.

01:01:07.992 --> 01:01:30.597
I think, if I'm not cutting weight, those two, for sure are, are up there, I'm never cutting weight when I am cutting weight um you don't have to probably probably some steak, some ribeye, a nice ribeye, not too much, but some ribeye, and then, uh some, some fruit and honey, not smoked, I usually pan sear it.

01:01:30.597 --> 01:01:33.141
Oh yeah, it's delicious.

01:01:33.521 --> 01:01:46.878
Yeah, man, I tell you, one time I cut weight for a tournament and then the next day I went directly to Cinnabon and I bought the biggest Cinnabon with cream on it, nuts and everything.

01:01:46.878 --> 01:01:52.550
Dude, you can get sick, sick I didn't know that that's a real like I was sick as a dog.

01:01:52.550 --> 01:01:57.797
That's a lot of sugar, man, it was a lot of sugar and I I didn't know that that was even a real, that you could really.

01:01:57.797 --> 01:01:59.746
I really was sick after that, yeah, I've been there.

01:01:59.867 --> 01:02:00.809
I've been there, I was in uh.

01:02:00.809 --> 01:02:24.458
Actually earlier this year I went, flew out to albuquerque, did a tournament out there and, uh, after nogi we went out with the boys and went out with my buddies and ended up eating six sopapillas with honey and an entire plate of new mexican food, which, if you don't know what sopapillas are, it's a uh it's like it's like fried fried bread.

01:02:24.958 --> 01:02:29.768
No, it's like like if you got a piece of dough like pizza dough and you're fried in it, kind of bubbles up it's.

01:02:29.768 --> 01:02:34.806
They're delicious super delicious new mexico cuisine is yeah, but I ended up getting.

01:02:35.487 --> 01:02:41.007
I ended up getting like really badly sick and it wasn't like throwing up, it was just really bad stomach pains.

01:02:41.007 --> 01:02:50.829
I think my, since I was cutting away, my body just wasn't ready, you know, to to intake all that all that flour expands in your stomach and it pushes it out, especially when you're cutting weight.

01:02:50.909 --> 01:02:51.813
Nightmare.

01:02:51.813 --> 01:02:53.288
That's a real thing, though, yeah.

01:02:53.288 --> 01:03:00.673
So if you guys could roll or, I'm sorry, if you guys could train, I'm just going to say train if you guys could train with anyone, past or present, who would it be?

01:03:00.673 --> 01:03:01.896
You go ahead.

01:03:02.864 --> 01:03:04.650
Let's hear what the younger guys got to say about it.

01:03:05.351 --> 01:03:06.795
If I could train with anybody.

01:03:06.795 --> 01:03:12.969
Younger guys got to say about it.

01:03:12.969 --> 01:03:16.938
If I could train with anybody, um, you know, I'm gonna keep it humble on this one and I'm gonna say, man, that's tough, there's so many.

01:03:16.938 --> 01:03:26.090
I think, off the top of my head I'm gonna go two people, okay, and this is gonna sound super cliche and gooberish but probably mike and uh and juno.

01:03:26.090 --> 01:03:31.072
You know, there's a bunch of great people out there, especially in jiu-jitsu.

01:03:31.072 --> 01:03:32.014
There's a bunch of great guys.

01:03:32.014 --> 01:03:38.492
But just because they're really good at jiu-jitsu and they show you something, that doesn't mean it's going to work for you.

01:03:38.492 --> 01:03:44.251
I think the biggest part about doing jiu-jitsu in general is having fun doing it.

01:03:44.251 --> 01:03:55.431
I think I'm having a lot of fun with the people that I'm around every single day and if I had two people to choose, it would be them.

01:03:55.431 --> 01:03:57.271
So good answer.

01:03:58.346 --> 01:03:59.371
It's definitely not my answer.

01:04:01.327 --> 01:04:04.688
How to keep it a little cliche so are you going to say Nate?

01:04:05.291 --> 01:04:06.152
Yeah, you better say me.

01:04:06.393 --> 01:04:06.996
No, I would say.

01:04:06.996 --> 01:04:14.150
I mean, you know, I've trained with so many jujitsu greats, literally Like I've.

01:04:14.150 --> 01:04:21.619
If I had to choose one, I'd probably I'd probably holes Gracie.

01:04:21.619 --> 01:04:27.009
He passed away in a hang gliding accident a long time ago and apparently he was like the ultimate.

01:04:27.009 --> 01:04:35.016
Like he was apparently I'm not no, I now I'm not, I don't know this but he was a lot better than hickson and um, I think that'd just be cool him.

01:04:35.016 --> 01:04:38.867
Or like haja gracie, someone that's like tall that that kind of jujitsu gives me a problem.

01:04:39.048 --> 01:05:03.434
So it'd be cool just to learn, you know so, yeah, that'd be a really good guy, because I've learned from I've came up with a lot of really good guys that I've trained with, you know I don't want to say a bunch of names, but yeah, yeah, I've been pretty blessed, so probably someone that's trying to think if there's somebody that's that's like passed away, that I would bring back and train with leandro low actually, yeah, leandro low for sure.

01:05:03.856 --> 01:05:15.436
But, for sure, leandro low, um, yeah, I need any top guy I would love to train with, you know, yeah, I've been fortunate enough to be in some rooms with some top guys as well, you know.

01:05:15.436 --> 01:05:29.257
So, um, but I think at the end of the day, it all just boils down to to having fun and, yeah, as long as you're around the people that you're having fun doing jujitsu with, you know, I think that's the most important.

01:05:29.257 --> 01:05:35.773
So, who knows, if I, if I bring them back and we connect, you know, or something like that maybe in a perfect world, leandro.

01:05:35.813 --> 01:05:37.704
Lowe would be a great training partner.

01:05:37.704 --> 01:05:38.467
But you never know.

01:05:38.467 --> 01:05:40.735
I'd like to say maybe Craig Jones too.

01:05:40.735 --> 01:05:43.914
I think he's a funny, funny guy, good personality.

01:05:43.914 --> 01:05:49.246
I think it would just be fun to hang out with him on and off the mat, so maybe personality.

01:05:49.266 --> 01:05:51.516
I think it would just be fun to hang out with him on and off the mat, so maybe, maybe him as well.

01:05:51.516 --> 01:05:57.393
To me it's kind of weird how those guys sort of have like celebrity status now yeah you got craig jones, ryan gordon, who else is out there?

01:05:57.393 --> 01:05:58.235
I mean a lot of these guys.

01:05:58.235 --> 01:06:00.726
Now they even have like the marcello marcello.

01:06:00.726 --> 01:06:04.534
They have like the the jiu-jitsu tournament now, uh, in vegas, what's that called?

01:06:04.534 --> 01:06:06.557
With this televised um, the nogi one.

01:06:07.760 --> 01:06:18.672
Oh, uh, adcc, yeah and cj like that like that's televised is a big deal, you know so I mean it's, it's growing and it's more people are getting into it I, more people in their 40s are getting to it.

01:06:18.672 --> 01:06:30.619
Or white belts like yeah, just it's their first time starting out, you know, and and it's great, you know it's great I think I think that's the thing about jiu-jitsu, like there's a style you can learn for every body type.

01:06:31.967 --> 01:06:34.735
You could be a huge overweight guy and you're going to be a pressure passer.

01:06:34.735 --> 01:06:36.490
If you're really skinny and flexible, right.

01:06:36.490 --> 01:06:37.554
You're going to be a guard player.

01:06:37.554 --> 01:06:44.954
If you're you know, kind of that like mid-stature right, you might be a great guard passer, whatever, right.

01:06:44.954 --> 01:06:47.269
So you can kind of adapt your game.

01:06:47.269 --> 01:06:51.530
I've even seen big guys who are like chunky, invert and backtake, and I'm like everyone.

01:06:51.771 --> 01:07:04.853
Everyone has their own game, yeah, yeah, everyone knows that I'm like everyone knows, like I'm smashing pass, like every time like for sure, and like it's kind of a kryptonite to do the same thing over again and I'm trying to develop that.

01:07:04.853 --> 01:07:21.677
But the thing is is I always tell people is know your adversary, or have an idea of your adversary, like look at his size, look at, look at how big they are, how strong they are, and like think about what you would do, have a game plan, yeah, and then have a contingency.

01:07:21.677 --> 01:07:28.197
If first thing you do fails, then we go to this, then we go to that, so on and so forth.

01:07:28.197 --> 01:07:30.831
Don't treat me the same way you would 120 pounder.

01:07:31.172 --> 01:07:31.896
Right, Right.

01:07:31.896 --> 01:07:37.914
A game plan is is important, but you just got to be prepared for adaptability Right, not going your way.

01:07:38.014 --> 01:07:46.952
Like when you rolled against the heavyweight guy, like the last place you probably wanted to be was for him to be on top of you, smashing you absolutely out of control.

01:07:47.032 --> 01:07:47.231
Right.

01:07:47.353 --> 01:07:49.900
Absolutely Out of control, right, Absolutely.

01:07:49.900 --> 01:07:51.630
So that's what I always tell people is to just have a game plan.

01:07:51.630 --> 01:07:52.554
Know your adversary.

01:07:52.554 --> 01:07:59.152
If you see them wearing like a brown belt or a black belt or a higher belt, don't do the same thing you would do to a white belt.

01:07:59.373 --> 01:07:59.634
Yeah.

01:08:00.204 --> 01:08:01.911
You know, try to get the advantage and hold it.

01:08:02.184 --> 01:08:04.210
And that's the thing with jujitsu is looks can be deceiving.

01:08:04.210 --> 01:08:08.320
Yeah, it's like you don't know, because when you're wearing the gi, everyone looks like the same.

01:08:08.320 --> 01:08:08.599
You don't.

01:08:08.599 --> 01:08:11.065
You don't know if they're packed full of muscle, if they got zero muscle.

01:08:11.065 --> 01:08:12.269
You're like you're just wearing the uniform.

01:08:12.289 --> 01:08:13.614
You don't know both of you guys.

01:08:13.614 --> 01:08:16.529
Have you guys been, uh, underestimated before?

01:08:16.529 --> 01:08:17.631
Or like anyone?

01:08:17.652 --> 01:08:19.234
look at you like oh, I'm sure I do.

01:08:19.234 --> 01:08:21.359
I feel all the time.

01:08:21.845 --> 01:08:24.088
I don't know, maybe I don't, can't speak for everybody.

01:08:24.088 --> 01:08:30.056
I feel people look me and underestimate me, especially maybe going into like a heavier weight class or something.

01:08:30.056 --> 01:08:31.479
If I was, they overlook me.

01:08:31.658 --> 01:08:32.479
If I was untrained?

01:08:32.479 --> 01:08:36.692
If I was, if I was untrained, I would underestimate both of you.

01:08:36.692 --> 01:08:39.810
Oh for sure, Because you're both you're both skinny and you're both small.

01:08:39.810 --> 01:08:44.548
Yeah, yeah, you know, but I'm but I trained, so I know better.

01:08:44.668 --> 01:08:51.389
Yeah you know, surprisingly though, I I like, for some reason, people just when I go out, they just think.

01:08:51.389 --> 01:08:54.627
They like think I'm an mma fighter or something, so they just like they don't mess with me.

01:08:54.627 --> 01:09:00.690
It was because of my ears, yeah, but I usually that's always like the topic those are talking and then, you know, it's pretty chill.

01:09:00.690 --> 01:09:06.175
Never had someone be like, hey, man, like you know, usually they'll like be like, oh you are you, you train?

01:09:06.175 --> 01:09:12.065
I'm like, yeah, and that's how it goes.

01:09:12.065 --> 01:09:14.015
My wife always says man, more guys talk to you than they like come up and talk to her.

01:09:14.015 --> 01:09:15.743
You know, like talking about my ears or something, I'm like, oh my gosh, I think.

01:09:15.804 --> 01:09:16.426
I think that's the.

01:09:16.426 --> 01:09:31.345
Uh, the beautiful, beautiful thing about jiu-jitsu is it's almost designed for the little guy to win right or the yeah maybe not the little guy to win but but to have like a defense and an offense fighting against a bigger opponent.

01:09:31.345 --> 01:09:45.934
So for sure, I think, being a smaller guy you get overlooked, not just in jujitsu, maybe less in jujitsu because people understand, but for sure on the street you know for sure, people are looking at you and I think a lot of it boils down to ego.

01:09:46.335 --> 01:09:46.536
Right.

01:09:47.426 --> 01:09:49.252
That's a beautiful thing about juiu-jitsu as well.

01:09:49.252 --> 01:09:52.494
It's an ego humbler oh totally.

01:09:52.494 --> 01:09:54.369
A bunch of guys that don't do it.

01:09:54.369 --> 01:09:56.515
Unfortunately, they don't get humbled.

01:09:56.864 --> 01:10:04.711
I can't tell you how many times people like weightlifters have come to a jiu-jitsu class and walked away like I'm really sore man.

01:10:05.193 --> 01:10:07.112
Oh yeah, it's the hardest thing they've ever done.

01:10:12.704 --> 01:10:12.867
Doing those.

01:10:12.867 --> 01:10:12.956
I'm really sore man.

01:10:12.956 --> 01:10:13.319
Oh yeah, they say it's the hardest thing they've ever done.

01:10:13.319 --> 01:10:14.095
Like you know, like doing those bicep curls.

01:10:14.095 --> 01:10:14.648
That that's my problem is.

01:10:14.648 --> 01:10:16.063
Back in the day, like when I was in college, I did the beach muscles, yeah Right.

01:10:16.063 --> 01:10:23.556
And then during pandemic I worked out with you know, beach muscles, so kind of one of those things for me, like they don't, it doesn't help you like in a fight.

01:10:28.704 --> 01:10:29.328
No, definitely no, definitely not.

01:10:29.328 --> 01:10:29.670
It tires you out.

01:10:29.670 --> 01:10:29.951
I don't think.

01:10:29.951 --> 01:10:31.055
If you know you got into a fight against a bigger guy.

01:10:31.055 --> 01:10:31.719
That is untrained, right, you know?

01:10:31.719 --> 01:10:32.483
The only thing he's gonna say is what?

01:10:32.483 --> 01:10:34.108
Like, let's have a bench off, right, right?

01:10:34.108 --> 01:10:39.007
Like, yeah, you may be able to lift more than me, but let's see where those weights really come in handy.

01:10:39.028 --> 01:10:55.875
You know what I'm saying, so yeah, if you, if you had one thing to say to encourage someone who's on the fence to train or not to train let's say the guys in his 30s, 40s the older you get, the harder it is to walk into that gym.

01:10:55.875 --> 01:10:58.666
Yeah, what, what would be your push?

01:11:00.489 --> 01:11:01.431
so I'll say two things.

01:11:01.511 --> 01:11:14.206
First, number one, the hardest part is always showing up, right, it's super, like I said earlier, it's super easier, or it's super easy, excuse me when something's tough, to shy away from doing it, especially with jujitsu.

01:11:14.246 --> 01:11:23.895
It's not easy to show up every single day, or to show up on the first day and and and tell yourself you're going to do it and uh, I think that's super important.

01:11:23.895 --> 01:11:50.127
And second thing is for me, what actually kept me going at the beginning was the fact that I always tell everybody this jiu jitsu takes your mind off of everything, and I've never experienced something like that with uh training at the gym, right, lifting weights and you know, maybe that's just me and maybe some people do go to the gym and it takes their mind off of whatever they're going through or relieves the anxiety.

01:11:50.127 --> 01:12:03.314
But for me, jiu-jitsu it's, I think, that being in a situation where all you can do about all you can do is think about what's going on in the moment, think about what's going on in the match, and it just takes everything away.

01:12:03.314 --> 01:12:06.324
I think that's an attractive feature for jiu-jitsu.

01:12:06.324 --> 01:12:12.332
And, you know, I highly recommend anybody to at least give it a try Cause, like I said, the hardest part is showing up.

01:12:12.774 --> 01:12:14.930
Yeah, how do you get them through the door?

01:12:14.970 --> 01:12:15.131
Mike.

01:12:15.131 --> 01:12:17.190
Well, I usually say that first.

01:12:17.190 --> 01:12:20.194
That's when they got that from um hardest parts is showing up, actually, yeah.

01:12:20.564 --> 01:12:25.957
But, uh, I, my thing is, I just try to show people the beauty of jujitsu, like it's for everybody.

01:12:25.957 --> 01:12:29.099
You know, like, oh, you know I don't want to show up.

01:12:29.099 --> 01:12:41.067
You know it's a lot of people when they end up do showing up, they're trying to rush the positions right, because it gets really frustrating when you're brand new and guys are doing things you don't know and you're like, hey, you know, it's too much for me, it's just like, man, you gotta like.

01:12:41.067 --> 01:12:43.930
You know it's not a sprint, it's a marathon.

01:12:43.930 --> 01:12:45.011
You know, you gotta your time.

01:12:45.011 --> 01:12:47.135
You have to like, and a lot of it has to do.

01:12:47.135 --> 01:12:47.416
Is you?

01:12:47.416 --> 01:12:49.438
You got to people, got to feel comfortable walking in.

01:12:49.918 --> 01:12:55.305
You know, always try to make sure every single person that walks in those doors feels like their family from the moment they step foot in the door.

01:12:55.305 --> 01:13:01.886
You know, um, so I mean just and not only that I tell them look, it could change your life in many ways.

01:13:01.886 --> 01:13:05.052
You can compete, right, you can, you know, help you with your body.

01:13:05.052 --> 01:13:11.154
It can help your mental state, your confidence, right, if you're being bullied at work, all these things are just coming to play for people.

01:13:11.154 --> 01:13:16.253
So I try to just reiterate that it's just for everyone and it's such a positive addiction that's what I tell people.

01:13:16.253 --> 01:13:17.810
It's the most positive addiction you can have.

01:13:18.231 --> 01:13:18.753
Absolutely.

01:13:19.005 --> 01:13:19.667
Worst comes to worst.

01:13:19.667 --> 01:13:21.193
You'll introduce you to jujitsu.

01:13:21.193 --> 01:13:27.917
You're gonna be by looking at geese, you know, or looking at technique, you know.

01:13:27.917 --> 01:13:28.559
That's not bad.

01:13:28.559 --> 01:13:29.765
It could be much worse, you know.

01:13:30.386 --> 01:13:31.649
I thought you were going somewhere else with that.

01:13:31.670 --> 01:13:37.832
Yeah, hey, you never know you never, know Me, I always got caught looking at jiu-jitsu, so it's like whatever.

01:13:38.444 --> 01:13:41.713
Watching, looking at dudes wrestling each other on the mat.

01:13:42.114 --> 01:13:42.837
Yeah, exactly.

01:13:52.505 --> 01:13:52.658
And you know.

01:13:52.658 --> 01:13:53.716
But you know it's just, it's an ongoing, it's an evolution of getting better.

01:13:53.716 --> 01:13:55.192
You know, just trying to yeah, test yourself.

01:13:55.099 --> 01:13:55.713
Absorb as much as you can.

01:13:55.713 --> 01:13:55.707
You know.

01:13:55.707 --> 01:13:56.189
Yeah, I think it's one of the ultimate tests you can do.

01:13:56.189 --> 01:13:56.625
Yeah, I definitely agree, man.

01:13:56.625 --> 01:14:01.239
It's challenging for sure, and it's, uh, it's, it's, it's more realistic than weightlifting.

01:14:01.239 --> 01:14:02.461
It's real life stuff.

01:14:02.461 --> 01:14:07.662
It might, it may even save your life at some point, or someone else's life and that's and that's why it's worth training.

01:14:07.662 --> 01:14:12.423
Just one last thing, man, I want to ask you both so you guys are mma fighters.

01:14:12.423 --> 01:14:14.206
What's your walkout song?

01:14:17.511 --> 01:14:20.015
I got a couple I got your number one.

01:14:20.015 --> 01:14:20.896
What's your number one, though?

01:14:22.078 --> 01:14:29.466
I'll let I'll let mike answer this one first, so I have more time to think honestly, mine would probably be uh one first, so I have more time to think.

01:14:29.487 --> 01:14:36.118
Honestly, mine would probably be uh bon jovi, the song that they played for young guns oh uh, blaze of glory.

01:14:36.158 --> 01:14:38.529
Blaze of glory, nate's like, what is that?

01:14:38.569 --> 01:14:39.952
yeah and who is bon jovi.

01:14:40.113 --> 01:14:42.438
Nate's like I'm too young for that, bon jovi.

01:14:42.765 --> 01:14:49.394
I was actually trying to look at my spotify right now but that was just off the top of my head, either that, or like a rocky song or something, or maybe something super modern.

01:14:49.394 --> 01:14:58.716
But other than that probably because that it's an old jam and the movie really resonated with me as a kid I liked it too.

01:14:58.716 --> 01:14:59.738
You know, I liked it too.

01:15:00.024 --> 01:15:01.530
I wanted to be Lou Diamond Fellows man yeah.

01:15:01.530 --> 01:15:02.474
He was a badass.

01:15:02.474 --> 01:15:03.487
I wanted to be Billy the Kid.

01:15:04.307 --> 01:15:06.872
yeah, I was like a million west of they're coming out with part three.

01:15:07.052 --> 01:15:09.216
I can't wait, yeah, can't wait, we'll see.

01:15:09.216 --> 01:15:13.430
Hopefully, don't ruin it, I'm sure they will what's up, nate?

01:15:13.510 --> 01:15:13.850
what is it?

01:15:13.850 --> 01:15:16.417
I got a couple, but uh he said one man.

01:15:16.417 --> 01:15:22.835
Yeah, I know, man, I he's had one, so I think off the top of my head uh uptown girl.

01:15:22.835 --> 01:15:28.112
No, I'm just kidding girl not probably something that would get the crowd going.

01:15:28.112 --> 01:15:35.006
I think like, uh, I don't know if you guys have ever heard of track called the heads will roll, but it's a very popular track.

01:15:35.006 --> 01:15:38.092
Actually, patty pimlet, the ufc fighter, it's his walkout song.

01:15:38.673 --> 01:15:43.641
He actually stole it from me no no, I'm just kidding, but I think that would be a really cool walkout song.

01:15:43.641 --> 01:16:02.305
I think whatever gets the crowd hyped and behind you, you know that that extra fire and and your and your heart and in your mind is is everything, so something that gets the crowd going yeah I've heard some crazy walkout songs also yeah, maybe the game like the, the game wwe, what was his name?

01:16:02.326 --> 01:16:09.923
triple h's intro or is a, I don't know time to play the game I stopped watching wwf like or wwe back in like 95.

01:16:11.528 --> 01:16:12.210
Yeah, there's a bunch of.

01:16:12.250 --> 01:16:27.865
There's a bunch, you know, but I think something just to get the crowd hyped up anything by acdc, you know, yeah, that's a good one, get the ground going yeah, the funniest one I ever heard was um blink 182, all the small things, and I think it was what's his name.

01:16:27.865 --> 01:16:28.789
Man, it was that one guy.

01:16:28.789 --> 01:16:32.952
He's a grappler here from Southern California and he just told them like, put on whatever.

01:16:32.952 --> 01:16:36.193
And they put on All the Small Things by Blink-182.

01:16:36.193 --> 01:16:39.309
Nice, and he's walking out to that and I thought that was strange.

01:16:40.072 --> 01:16:40.753
It's a good song, though.

01:16:41.666 --> 01:16:42.488
Yeah, it's a good song.

01:16:42.488 --> 01:16:45.353
It was a good song worse yeah, could be worse.

01:16:45.393 --> 01:16:50.493
Mike perry picked a song and they they picked the wrong one and it was like a beyonce song.

01:16:50.493 --> 01:16:52.823
But he was walking out and he's like yeah, he was like jamming.

01:16:52.823 --> 01:16:54.309
Yeah, he was like he looked at his lady.

01:16:54.309 --> 01:16:58.311
He's like, well, it is what it is, let's go double down yeah he won that fight too that's funny.

01:16:58.412 --> 01:17:02.546
so so, man, before we round it off, man, is there anything that you guys want to mention?

01:17:02.546 --> 01:17:13.014
Um, I mean, we'll come back to the table again, but but anything that I didn't mention that you want to throw out there, no, Nate you got a competition coming up in a couple weeks.

01:17:13.604 --> 01:17:16.432
Yeah, I got the world championship coming up.

01:17:16.573 --> 01:17:18.136
That'll be cool when at.

01:17:18.725 --> 01:17:23.644
That's going to be in Long Beach at the Pyramid, walter Pyramid, long Beach State, I think it's at.

01:17:23.644 --> 01:17:33.787
But if there was one thing I could say, it would be, um, to just try jujitsu.

01:17:33.787 --> 01:17:35.251
You know, um, you don't know what it can do for you.

01:17:35.251 --> 01:17:42.395
You don't know what it could do for the those around you absolutely, and for me it, like I said, it completely changed my life, and for the better.

01:17:42.697 --> 01:17:46.994
Find a great gym yeah, yeah absolutely that's key absolutely find a place where you're comfortable.

01:17:46.994 --> 01:17:48.047
That's why I tell people.

01:17:48.047 --> 01:17:54.773
But, like, people will call and they'll say, hey, we want to sign up, and I'll say, well, why don't you come first and make sure this is what you want, right?

01:17:54.773 --> 01:17:55.636
Especially for us too.

01:17:55.636 --> 01:18:02.027
Like we don't want someone coming in here and trying to like bully someone right, where I have to step in and kick someone out or you know.

01:18:02.327 --> 01:18:06.493
So it's got to be chill we'll get into that next time, because I know you have footage on that one.

01:18:06.792 --> 01:18:15.551
Oh no, maybe I'll bring it for you guys yeah and see that one yeah, we'll have to come back after after world yeah yeah, that'd be great.

01:18:16.113 --> 01:18:16.313
What?

01:18:16.313 --> 01:18:18.438
What about you mike with uh, anything to say?

01:18:19.307 --> 01:18:31.347
I just want to say just thank you to everyone, you know, thank you to you and all the students and everyone who made you know, my transition to being a jujitsu professor happen, you know, make it a reality.

01:18:31.347 --> 01:18:38.475
So all my students, my wife, my daughter, you know, my son, everyone, if you build it, they will come.

01:18:38.784 --> 01:18:40.730
It's what they say and it's true, you know, it's true.

01:18:40.730 --> 01:18:47.270
So, and I we're, we're looking to expand, so hopefully soon we'll have a bigger, bigger location, you know, and all that good stuff.

01:18:47.270 --> 01:18:51.155
So have a place for a podcast and everything.

01:18:51.256 --> 01:18:51.697
That's right.

01:18:51.697 --> 01:18:52.759
There you go.

01:18:52.759 --> 01:18:54.060
All right folks.

01:18:54.060 --> 01:19:09.721
Well, that's a wrap, and today's in studio episode of the morning formation podcast huge shout out to coach Mike Medina, professor Mike Medina and Nate Chrysler here the young the young resilient, the young gun, the young gun.

01:19:09.761 --> 01:19:10.505
Right there you go.

01:19:10.505 --> 01:19:21.505
Thank you, guys, for pulling back the curtain and sharing your stories about where you're from and a little bit about your thoughts on Brazilian jiu-jitsu and whether you're new to the game or deep in the grind.

01:19:21.505 --> 01:19:25.936
We hope this episode gave you some insight and inspiration to keep fighting the good fight.

01:19:25.936 --> 01:19:28.894
Don't forget to follow, subscribe and leave us a review.

01:19:28.894 --> 01:19:35.158
As always, I want you to stay tuned, stay focused and stay motivated.

01:19:35.158 --> 01:19:37.811
Warriors fall out.