Sparring in Jiu Jitsu: Everything You Need to Know
Sparring in Jiu-Jitsu is one of the most important events that you can partake in.
In this page, we will explain why Jiu-Jitsu Sparring is so important, and all of the benefits that it provides.
1. Practice Your Moves in Real Time
One of the main benefits of sparring in Jiu-Jitsu is that you're able to practice the moves that you've learned in class, in a real situation.
There's a giant difference between understanding moves when the professor is doing them, to even working on them with your partner during class (who is giving minimum resistance), to applying them in a real situation.
Rolling with another student allows both students to engage in a 'live rolling situation', where each student can practice their moves and figure out which ones work, and which ones don't.
As you begin to figure out the moves that work for you, it will provide you with confidence.
You'll begin to understand why that move works, how to set it up, and even how to escape that move.
For the moves that don't work, you'll be able to ask your professor or training partner questions (after the roll), about why they didn't work.
They will be able to provide invaluable advice, as you begin to figure out what you did wrong, and how to correct them.
This alone can help you improve your Jiu-Jitsu game tremendously.
2. Develop and Improve Your Game
As you begin to figure out which moves work best for you, you'll begin to expand on those moves and tie them together in a sequence.
It will allow you to further develop your game, with moves that you know for a fact work, as you've done them on a real person in a rolling situation.
Developing your game is one of the most fun (and addicting) portions of Jiu-Jitsu.
One of the best parts of Jiu-Jitsu is the amount of creativity that is allowed.
You have large amounts of creativity that you can implement into your game, and further develop as you advance and improve.
3. Be Introduced to Different Styles of Grappling
When you begin to roll, you'll be able to roll students with different sets of skills, belts, and even unique styles of grappling.
What may work against most students in your gym, may not necessarily work against others who are just visiting/or began their BJJ journey at another gym.
One of the most eye-opening experiences for me was when a blue belt from Europe visited our gym for a week.
At that time, I was simply a white belt but felt like I had enough of an understanding (from religiously rolling every day), to have answers for certain moves.
Additionally, I had my own set of moves that worked against seemingly everyone (that wasn't a brown or a black belt at my gym), and due to that, those became my go-to moves to start a roll.
Only against this visiting student, none of the moves that I had thought I mastered worked.
He had a unique style that severely limited what I wanted to do.
This was a humbling experience, as I began to understand that everyone rolls a bit differently, has their unique styles, and even brings in some of their unique moves from their gym into ours.
4. Build Friendships
The moment before actually rolling, the roll is kicked off with you and your partner showing respect to one another with the Jiu-Jitsu handshake.
Immediately after that, you'll both get into your Jiu-Jitsu Fighting Stance and begin the roll.
A very underrated part of rolling in Jiu Jitsu is the friendships that you'll make, both competitively and personally.
You'll naturally gravitate toward other students that are your rank, but you'll also make plenty of friendships with the higher belts who are eager to help you.
When you participate in a great gym, everyone is competitive but understands there are different levels of skills and are willing to help each other get better.
This creates a camaraderie which makes training overall much better, as it is competitively fun, while challenging.
5. Confidence Outside of the Gym
Once you've rolled in Jiu-Jitsu several times, you'll quickly begin to improve and realize how you had no idea what you were doing in the beginning.
This will provide you with confidence outside of the gym if you need to protect yourself.
Having the ability to protect yourself from danger can provide you with tremendous peace of mind, in every situation.
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