We get questions all the time from our students about getting ready for their first competition. With this video, we will give you 10 essential tips to make your first competition a success.<\/p>\n
1 Read the rules<\/strong> 2 Game plan 3 Know when you\u2019re ready<\/strong> If you can hold your own against people with a similar size at white and maybe even blue belt, you are ready to compete.<\/p>\n 4 Outfit<\/strong> 5. Don\u2019t cut too much weight<\/strong> 6. Tournament selection <\/strong> When possible, try to do competitions where you are assured of more than one match. This stage in your journey is all about getting experience, so the more the better.<\/p>\n We share the competitions we focus on in the newsletter, at the bottom, every week. Pick one of those, then you can be sure a coach will be there.<\/p>\n 7. Be on time<\/strong> 8. Listen to the coaches 9. Bring food and water on the day 10. Most importantly: have fun That\u2019s it, everything you need to know before your first competition. Have fun and good luck competing!<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" We get questions all the time from our student about getting ready for their first competition. With this video we will give yoU 10 essential tips to make your first competition a success. 1 Read the rules First and most important, read the rules of the tournament. Each organization has slightly different rules. You need […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7492,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7471","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized-en"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
\nFirst and most important, read the rules of the tournament. Each organization has slightly different rules. You need to understand how to win, what is allowed and what is not allowed. When in doubt, ask your coach for clarification.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Make a simple game plan. Most importantly, know how to start the match. If you can consistently hit takedowns on training partners the same size as you in sparring, you can start with a takedown. If you can\u2019t, it\u2019s smarter to pull guard and work from there. Pick a guard you are comfortable with and perfect it. Give yourself a 6-week mini camp where you focus on applying your game plan in sparring.<\/p>\n
\nThis is a very personal one, but we recommend at least 6 months of experience. You also need to be comfortable at the mixed level classes, being able to finish those without any rest rounds.<\/p>\n
\nRead the rules for details. A white, royal blue or black gi is always good. For nogi, some competitions need a rashguard with a color that fits your rank. Others don\u2019t care. We always recommend wearing Haven BJJ team gear, then it\u2019s a lot easier for the coaches to see when you are going onto the mats. This is especially useful at tournaments where we have many competitors competing.<\/p>\n
\nThis is where a lot of people go wrong. They watch too many UFC Embedded videos and think they should weight cut like the pros. This is not the case. In BJJ there is no day before weigh-in and you are not a professional athlete. Compete at the weight class as close to your natural weight as possible, cutting a maximum of 1 to 2 kg, especially for your first competition.<\/p>\n
\nFor your first competition, do it close to home. Leave the far away tournaments for when you\u2019ve more experience. This takes away the stress of traveling, and make sure you have plenty of coaches and teammates with you to support you.<\/p>\n
\nMake sure you arrive at least 2 hours before your first match, preferably even earlier. Even if the train doesn\u2019t run, your car breaks down or you forget your gi, you will still be on time. Being on time takes away a lot of stress.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>Our coaches have coached thousands of matches, and have competed in hundreds of tournaments. It would be a waste to not use their experience. Find moments in the match to slow things down and listen to the coaches. One of the big indicators of success in jiu jitsu is your coach's ability.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>But don\u2019t take too much in one go. \u2019Better to be embarrassed for bringing it than to be embarrassed for not bringing it,\u2019 as we say in Dutch. Loosely translates to: better to be ashamed you brought it than be ashamed you didn\u2019t. Bring snacks, drinks, and lunch, but don\u2019t binge on it. A full stomach is a recipe for disaster. Keep it light, take nibbles and small sips. Save the binging for after your matches (or even better: don\u2019t binge at all).<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>You chose to do this, so don\u2019t suffer \u2013 enjoy. Nobody cares what happens in your first comp, it\u2019s about the experience. I never won a match until I competed at blue belt for over a year.<\/p>\n