Does anybody else have share my problem of forgetting bjj techniques when sparring? It's really slowing my progress. I thought about writing them down after class? 
Keeping a journal of everything you learn is always a good idea. So for instance you are rolling and say get halfway through a move...then forget the rest or a technique isn't working and you can't figure out why...you can go back and look at your notes. Usually it'll clear up what the issue is. Just writing it down, even if I don't read it again, really helps to lock it in my memory b/c I have to go through the technique step by step to write a proper description down.
Yeah that makes a lot of sense. Thanks! I think I need to prepare better for classes too. Doesn't help when you arrive late after a long stressful day at work ??
i like to just work on a few techniques a month and try to do them every roll.
im lucky if i can add 1 new technique a month to my game. When i do learn something new it is usually the next step to something i already know. Its easier for me to remember things this way and keep adding to it. I to keep a journal and it helps some what. Try relaxing on your drive to the gym and forget about all the other stressful things. I have been in classes and my mind was so jumbled i couldnt grasp anything.
Great advice, think I'm guilty of trying to learn every possible technique in one class. Think it's called 'bottlenecking' information. Patience is crucial, even if it's frustrating ha
I've tried.. I can't really write or barely hold a pen after class. Let alone keep the sweat from my left handed self from smearing all over.
I do try to note stuff down on my computer. I reference videos, etc. And I try to review a couple of key things just prior to my next class. It's usually just a couple of adjustments, maybe a timing thing... just another step in the right direction.
thesalfordmongoose - Great advice, think I'm guilty of trying to learn every possible technique in one class. Think it's called 'bottlenecking' information. Patience is crucial, even if it's frustrating ha
Common problem. We want to learn every single possible submission then choose one when we think its appropriate. This type of thinking slows you down. Learn say 1 choke and 1 armbar from the guard then work on those techniques until you can do them blindfolded then maybe work on a few variations for the common defenses to those submissions, also work on troubleshooting those same subs when they dont get the tap, maybe the position or grip is off etc. The tendency for so many students is to get so so at a submission then move on to the next and the next, never fully implementing each submission into their game.
Happens to me all the time. For some reason side control is usually where I draw a blank.
You are never going to remember them while rolling. You have to have practiced and drilled them enough that they just become a part of what you do.
^^^ nonsense. you will remember. I do all the time. but don't try to remember ALL of them. pick ONE while rolling and try it at all costs even if it means getting swept, passed or submitted. then you will have a base to work with. keep trying it that night over and over. then the next night pick a different one...but still try the former nights move a handful of times. the third night you should have figured out where the move lies in the scheme of your game/practicality/ease of execution/many other factors which will allow you to decide if you want to have the move be part of your game or not. if you do keep working on it each time you roll. after a while of this you will be able to "juggle" moves where your focus on that night is the new move but you are throwing other "newer"things in from previous days and weeks and deciding what works and what does not, what you like and you don't and actually practicing the new stuff along with your base game (if you don't have one yet thats ok too...even better actually since then you are forced to remember!!)
don't get me wrong...drilling is great but you will never use what you don't try...and probably fail at. 
sooo...reading comprehension aside...setree said "you are never going to remember them while rolling"
I said "nonsense. you will remember...pick one technique and work it while rolling"
I didn't address drilling at all except to say it was great but simply drilling will not help you remember unless you actually try to use it in practice. which he seemed to me to be suggesting drilling and drilling before ever attempting it because "you will not remember while rolling"
my point was that drilling aside, jump right in and attempt it...over and over. while rolling.
if it seems like I repeated myself several times in this post I did because your sarcasm indicated you didn't understand what was being said by either party. hopefully now it is clear and you can contribute something relevant.
the thread is about remembering techniques while rolling. why are you still talking about drilling?
drilling is superior to rolling. 2 days a week (small classI drill and then roll for 10-15 minutes. saturdays (big class)is open mat and i have been told by multiple people that i have gotten way better. I think muscle memory first then you have to time it durin sparing.
If you have to think about it,its too late
^^^ sure. and katas are superior to sparring. as mr.ed lover would say...C'mon son!
Four tips that will solve the problem for you:
1) Limit what you work on to a logical sequence, and in bite-size pieces. Much easier to learn three transitions from back control than it is to learn a de la riva sweep, a guard sub and a mount transition. Also -- learning (and assimilating (as opposed to being exposed to) more than a couple of techniques per week is a fool's errand. Do the math: 50 weeks of training in a year @ two techniques per week = 100 techniques assimilated into your game. Can you do that? I can't. And VERY few people can.
2) Drill. Then drill again. And again.
3) Roll at 305 with a partner who'd doing the same. This will allow you to 'be present' in the roll and see what's happening. Why your technique is working (or, more likely failing), what your opponent is doing to make it complicated, etc. It will also help you with the feel. Rolling hard has it's place, but rolling at 30% is a very underused tool to transition the learning from drilling to application.
4) On a similar note: stop rolling to win. Roll to learn. Once you make that mental shift, you can start adding to your game. Rolling to win is great for tournament prep, but it's rarely conducive to adding technique, as any new technique is going to be low percentage until you get it down.
Trust me on these four points, you'll thank me later.
/\i think what made the biggest difference was slowing down. That was the single most important thing i could tell anyone.
joe canada - Four tips that will solve the problem for you:
1) Limit what you work on to a logical sequence, and in bite-size pieces. Much easier to learn three transitions from back control than it is to learn a de la riva sweep, a guard sub and a mount transition. Also -- learning (and assimilating (as opposed to being exposed to) more than a couple of techniques per week is a fool's errand. Do the math: 50 weeks of training in a year @ two techniques per week = 100 techniques assimilated into your game. Can you do that? I can't. And VERY few people can.
2) Drill. Then drill again. And again.
3) Roll at 305 with a partner who'd doing the same. This will allow you to 'be present' in the roll and see what's happening. Why your technique is working (or, more likely failing), what your opponent is doing to make it complicated, etc. It will also help you with the feel. Rolling hard has it's place, but rolling at 30% is a very underused tool to transition the learning from drilling to application.
4) On a similar note: stop rolling to win. Roll to learn. Once you make that mental shift, you can start adding to your game. Rolling to win is great for tournament prep, but it's rarely conducive to adding technique, as any new technique is going to be low percentage until you get it down.
Trust me on these four points, you'll thank me later.
I spent most of this post trying to figure out how I'd missed this new term, "rolling at 305" and wondering what it meant.
now i understand.
good list too.
Setree - You are never going to remember them while rolling. You have to have practiced and drilled them enough that they just become a part of what you do.
I take back the "never." There will be a day where you'll be able to remember moves while rolling. And there will probably even be a day where you'll be able to get them to work. But it won't be as a beginner. Until you can get some movements on autopilot, you won't have enough space in your head to remember anything.
Jessy30, your idea about trying a particular move, at all costs, is a good one. I do it all the time. I consider it a form of drilling, SECRET drilling. And it can be a very effective training tool! But it can also be nearly impossible to do as a beginner: until you can dictate the position and direction of the roll, you won't be able to practice your move.
If you can't do a move easily against a nonresisting partner, what hope do you have of doing it against a resisting partner?
setree. good points. I apologize if my post was overly aggressive. also. I like your vids. good stuff!