I just published a new article on the importance of drilling. I think it's one of the most under-utilized aspect of BJJ.
http://www.insidebjj.com/2011/02/23/the-importance-of-drilling/
Let me know your feedback!
Thanks!
Mt 
Not bad. If you want honest feedback I think you need to define what a drill is in depth. I know that quite a few people have very different ideas about what a drill is. I think from your article (hard to tell from lack of information) that your idea of drill is not at all what SBG thinks of when they say drill.
Also you talk about drilling escapes and also drilling upas and shrimps etc. Partner drills and solo drills are very different animals. Some ideas about how they are different and why you would do one over another would be good information.
When doing partner drills do your partners provide resistance? or do they provide cooperative energy? Why? Should you be practicing dead reps or reps against resistance? Or both? Why? Are there different types of drills? What are the types? Why would you do one type over another?
My honest feedback is that it reads like an off the cuff writing without much depth. I think it could be a good piece with more work and some more depth though. You obviously know how to write.
cprevost,
Thanks for the great feedback. The drilling article is posted as a tip so it is much more off the cuff than a typical article. I like your questions and feedback and I think they'll help me work the bit into a more in-depth article.
Thanks Again
Tim
i only do drills if the uke is resisting in gradual increasing intervals.
you start off just doing the move/setup/sweep, whatever, slow.
you then have them go to 30% for ten reps or so.
they go to 60 for another ten.
then roll for a while.
I agree with Cain, and I vouch that he def. knows what he is talking about. But im a huge SBGi fanboy lol. If they had an affiliate in my town I would switch schools in a heart beat. You do have a good thing there that would be a very nice contribution to the BJJ community with some more development like was previously said.
TL:DR
"SBGi is the bomb; keep up the good work OP"
Didn't mean to sound too critical. You obviously have some good info to share. I'd just like to see more of it.
I wish you would have gone more in depth. Maybe you weren't given the space? I would love to read more. Can't really afford the Galvao book until next paycheck....so I'm all about free info....
Cprevost makes some good points, however the thing about drilling which, in my opinion, is very important to keep in mind is this: drills are a means to an end and not an end in and of itself. In my opinion, some people over think the idea and concept of drills and essentially make them much harder than they need to be. The last thing you would want is too get too caught up and lost in "how" to drill. Drilling is apart of skill development. It is something people who desire to be skilful in a given skill have been doing since the beginning of time. It is not new.
There are alot of ways to drill. How one drills should suit ones personality and learning style. Certain drilling methods may suit a person better than others. Furthermore, certain drilling methods may suit one better than others "at a given time". The key about drilling, again in my opinion, is to be very consistent when doing them and, probably just as important, invest some thought into them. I'm not saying to over think them but rather but some thought into what you're doing and what you're trying to achieve.
bleh.
now that i think about it. just roll.
m g I think you are absolutely correct that drills are only usable if they are effective in increasing performance. The drill is not the thing. That's why you have to be very specific about what a drill is, why you are doing it, what performance you are targeting, and how the specific drill targets that performance. Otherwise you are just wasting your time and you may as well roll instead...
Storkukidinmun - I wish you would have gone more in depth. Maybe you weren't given the space? I would love to read more. Can't really afford the Galvao book until next paycheck....so I'm all about free info....
The initial article was really meant to be a tip but the feedback has been great and I'm going to develop this into a full article in the future.
cprevost,
Good point! However, the specificity of drills is certainly important BUT that doesn't justify over thinking or over analzying them.
Drilling, in my opinion, is as much art as it is science. Although I think it is very important to have some understanding as to the function and purpose of any giving drill one doesn't need to disect them nor understand them to the nth degree in order for any given drill to be effective.
In my opinion it is important to invest thought into the drills one does and into the activity of drilling. BUT again, we don't want to get too carried away with the amount of thought we put into it.
Like I said drills and drilling is a means to an end and not an end in and of itself. Drills and drilling are meant to facilitate improvement in performance. In my opinion, if a person over thinks drills and drilling then he or she is making the means more important than the end.
Not sure what you mean by overthinking? In class I devise a drill on the spot when I need to target a particular performance objective. The reason for the drill is that it's the best and most efficient method to improve performance at that time and place. Now, after training I think a lot about drills. It's about 70% of my classes so I need to be very specific about what performance I'm trying to improve and the best way to measure the performance, develop the performance, and transfer the performance to the delivery system (bjj). That takes some thought and planning.
cprevost,
Overthinking is putting so much thought into a drill that the drill actually becomes more important than what it is suppose to accomplish.
My "advice" about not overthinking drills actually isn't original. It comes from great coaches like John Wooden and Dan Gable from other sports.
Devising and developing drills on the spot is what good coaches do. But it isn't the "drill" that really makes the difference but rather the coach. Drills are just drills. It is the coach that devises, develops, adjusts, adapts, improvises, shapes, ect. Drills, like I said, are just a means to an end.
cprevost,
Overthinking is putting so much thought into a drill that the drill actually becomes more important than what it is suppose to accomplish.
My "advice" about not overthinking drills actually isn't original. It comes from great coaches like John Wooden and Dan Gable from other sports.
Devising and developing drills on the spot is what good coaches do. But it isn't the "drill" that really makes the difference but rather the coach. Drills are just drills. It is the coach that devises, develops, adjusts, adapts, improvises, shapes, ect. Drills, like I said, are just a means to an end.
cprevost,
Overthinking is putting so much thought into a drill that the drill actually becomes more important than what it is suppose to accomplish.
My "advice" about not overthinking drills actually isn't original. It comes from great coaches like John Wooden and Dan Gable from other sports.
Devising and developing drills on the spot is what good coaches do. But it isn't the "drill" that really makes the difference but rather the coach. Drills are just drills. It is the coach that devises, develops, adjusts, adapts, improvises, shapes, ect. Drills, like I said, are just a means to an end.
cprevost,
Overthinking is putting so much thought into a drill that the drill actually becomes more important than what it is suppose to accomplish.
My "advice" about not overthinking drills actually isn't original. It comes from great coaches like John Wooden and Dan Gable from other sports.
Devising and developing drills on the spot is what good coaches do. But it isn't the "drill" that really makes the difference but rather the coach. Drills are just drills. It is the coach that devises, develops, adjusts, adapts, improvises, shapes, ect. Drills, like I said, are just a means to an end.
cprevost,
Overthinking is putting so much thought into a drill that the drill actually becomes more important than what it is suppose to accomplish.
My "advice" about not overthinking drills actually isn't original. It comes from great coaches like John Wooden and Dan Gable from other sports.
Devising and developing drills on the spot is what good coaches do. But it isn't the "drill" that really makes the difference but rather the coach. Drills are just drills. It is the coach that devises, develops, adjusts, adapts, improvises, shapes, ect. Drills, like I said, are just a means to an end.
As a white belt I feel I learn the most from drilling specific techniques ie-escapes with very little resistance (20-40) once my opponent starts to put the weight down I tend to scrap technique and go back to bad habits. I've noticed the techniques i have consistently drilled with light resistance has helped my technique during rolling and competition