First things first the PRICC is back and even better so if you are seeing this maybe it's a sign you should go snag one. https://www.executivetraininggrp.com/product-page/pricc you'll thank me later.
Now on to the matter of the day. The term zealot has always stuck out to me. Obviously it gets used a lot in the realm of religious context, but there is somewhere else I think it truly fits. It is easy to become a zealot for something you have spent a large amount of time training. It could be shooting or grappling or striking etc. So why can this become a hindrance? If it means we stop looking at things pragmatically and let our bias towards art or skill blind us. I have been shooting way longer than I have been doing BJJ, but I can tell you I was in danger of being a zealot for both. Before I knew how to fight I thought I would just figure it out. I lacked education on so many things and didn't want to come to terms with the reality that I needed to train. I had questions but I simply stuffed or breezed over them to save my ego. When I finally gave in and said "okay I am insecure here in this skill set and sometimes a gun is not the only answer" I started BJJ. Now fast forward 3 years and a blue belt what are my thoughts? BJJ is great but it is only a tool in the tool kit. Just because you have a flat head screwdriver doesn't mean every screw is a flat head.
So what do we do? Well, get good at extracting the values from each skill. In one-on-one fights in the street, it is hard to beat BJJ in my opinion, but Multiple attackers and fighting for your life pulling guard would be very, very low on my list of things to defend myself. One thing BJJ does teach is to be balanced then gain a position then submit. This can be very good for feeling out when you can create distance and do what you need to fight towards a much higher percentage weapon than your body...a gun.
The main point here is setting goals and constantly looking at what hard skills you are training and how they plug into your defense plan. Find wholes and at least be honest about them.
Lastly, do You want to learn more about this? come try out a class.
Thank you,
Garret
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