The Benefits of BJJ Open Mat

Want to up-level your Jiu Jitsu Training? Open Mat practice may be the secret to your success.

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) is not just a martial art; it's a way of life

If you're already a practitioner or considering stepping onto the mat for the first time, one practice you don't want to miss out on is attending Open Mats. Practitioners from various schools and skill levels come together to train, offering many benefits that can significantly enhance your BJJ journey. Let's delve into some of these advantages:

1. Diverse Training Partners: Open Mat sessions attract a wide range of participants, from beginners to seasoned black belts. Training with different partners exposes you to various styles, techniques, and strategies. This diversity in training partners is key to enhancing your skills.

2. Improved Adaptability: Rolling with various training partners challenges your adaptability. You'll encounter different body types, strengths, and weaknesses, forcing you to enhance your game. This adaptability is invaluable in real-life self-defense situations and competitions.

3. Enhanced Technique Refinement: Open Mat practice provides a relaxed and focused environment for refining your techniques. Without the pressure of competition, you can experiment with new moves and fine-tune existing ones. Treat an open mat like your kitchen, spice it up, and see what works. Sometimes, the best flavors come from the most unlikely ingredients.

4. Mental Toughness: BJJ is as much a mental game as a physical one. Open Mat sessions help you build mental resilience as you encounter various challenges and learning opportunities. Many practitioners get comfortable training with the same crew of people daily, creating stagnation in their progression and passivity in their game. Exposing yourself to novel training partners and staying calm and focused amidst diverse training partners hones your mental strength.

5. Networking and Building Relationships: The BJJ community is known for camaraderie. Open Mat sessions are an excellent place to meet like-minded individuals, build friendships, and network with practitioners from different backgrounds. You might even find a mentor or a training partner who can help you significantly progress.

6. Deliberate Practice: It is often believed that more time on the mat equates to accelerated progress. Though you cannot grow in BJJ without your presence on the mat, the quality of time spent on the mat is often squandered on training with the same partners in the same positions. Open Mat sessions provide extra training time outside your comfort zone and allow you to subject yourself to new scenarios your academy may never train. You can also purposefully place yourself in a disadvantaged position from the beginning of each roll to sharpen skills your current teammates may not challenge.

7. Problem-Solving: Rolling with different partners presents unique challenges, encouraging you to become a better problem solver on the mat. This problem-solving ability can extend to other areas of your life as well.

8. Injury Prevention: You are in control of your training environment. Take advantage of the open mat sessions to include drills, and do situational rolling that way, you can get in quality rounds while being mindful of body positioning and injury-prone areas. This variation can help reduce the risk of injuries associated with high-intensity training.

9. Motivation and Inspiration: Watching high-level practitioners at Open Mat sessions can be incredibly motivating. It reminds you of what's possible with dedication and hard work, inspiring you to set and achieve your goals.

10. Fun and Enjoyment: Open Mat practices are fun. They offer a break from the structured training of regular classes, allowing you to explore your jiu- jitsu journey.

Open Mat offers many benefits, including exposure to diverse training partners, technique refinement, deliberate practice, mental toughness, networking opportunities, increased mat time, and injury prevention. Open mat is not just a practice; it's an essential experience on your journey to becoming a well-rounded BJJ practitioner.