I am a 4 stripe blue belt and have never taken a private lesson. I find my work schedule keeping me from training as much as I would like. I am seriously considering taking a private every 2 weeks or so to keep my game advancing. Do you guys that have taken a lot of privates feel like they have significantly enhanced your development? Thanks.
Joe
I think it would help. It's always good to have that 1 on 1 instruction. I guess it comes down to how good your instructor is at seeing the holes in your game and helping you fix those.
how much more a month would you be spending
Yeah, that's what I'm looking at. Work schedule makes training almost impossible, so it's better for me to get my 1-2/month in as privates rather than full classes.
If you can afford it there is no substitute for privates. I know I did a private lesson every week for years. I am not sure how many but without that I would be no where near where I am now physically or just mental understanding the game .Not to mention the extra help on me being a better instructor and fantastic hints on running my buisness better.
yes,but you wont need to learn any new subs.just position
and set ups,pressure and cleaning up your area's that are loose
Yes, I think that private lessons are the fastest way to learn. BJJ is one martial art that you need the correct defense to practice the correct response. However, I have done over 300 hours of privates in the past 3 years. 90% with black belts and 10% with browns. I have rolled with many many world champs. The limitation I see in my own game is that I am real good with brown and blacks...but with white belts I stink! That is because that most people spend a lot of time with white belts were I have spent hardly any time maybe 10-20 hours of rolling with white belts. They react very differently then an experienced player and there for I just have no experience reacting to them.
John
I have never taken a private either, but I have known a few people who JUST take privates.
From what I have seen, this is simply not as effective a way to learn BJJ as attending a normal class.
No matter how good the private instructor is, he just can't replicate what it is like to roll with all different kinds of people.
Also, you learn a LOT of BJJ directly and indirectly from other people in class.
Taking some privates can be very beneficial I'm sure if they are focused and you go to the right person, but not as an on-going way to learn. I think that is a waste of money.
Very possibly this has a lot to do with the personalities of some of the people who seek a lot of private instruction; they want to "buy" skill. They feel if they take a private from __________ they will get all the secret shortcuts to becoming "good" without the drudgery of attending class and getting squashed.
Now again, I know "good" people who take privates too, but they are also people who are committed to attending a class.
It of course depends on what's available. What I find with group classes is I can't attend all of them, so often when they assume something that was taught in a previous class I missed, I'm lost and I can't ask the instructor to switch gears. With a private I can.
Privates are the best way to tighten up your loose ends, BUT you HAVE to attend regular classes just to roll against different types of individuals and belts.. Just like a poster said earlier, even though your game will improve against higher belts, if you can't handle a white belt because you're not used to the way they roll then there is a problem..thus the reason you need to attend regular classes too.
But Privates + Regular classes = Faster progression....even Helio agreed that occasional Private Lessons were the fastest route to BJJ proficiency. It;s obvious, you have a Blackbelt watching/feeling your every move, and he will be able to help you with your weakest points..thus bringing your game to a NEW level!
I really think a lot of people should take privates when they can, especially if you wanna focus on a certain aspect of the game..whether it be real self defense(which is lacking in most group classes in most schools) or a weak part of your game..no better person to go to than a Black Belt in the art.
It's the same as getting a private tutor in College, you learn at a much faster rate than taking regular classes because you have someone there teaching AND correcting your EVERY move...
shen speaks the truth, but there is nothing wrong with an occasional private to refine technique. Once every two weeks is pretty frequent, but once a month or even once a quarter can be ultra beneficial.
prvts are awesome but you gotta find time to free train to practice what you learned in your prvts nothing substitutes for time on the mats. And just free training doesn't make you better without instructional.
I can't really wrap my head around how private lessons work.
For example, if it's one on one, how can the instructor demonstrate a move since he's demonstrating it on you. Also, how does the instructor recognize the holes in your game unless he rolls with you constantly? Plus, how many moves can he cover in the hour, especially if he has no curriculum set for you.
Any high level guys here teach privates? How do you go about doing things.
(I've obviously never had a "true" private lesson)
yes
I definitely would not use the privates as a substitute for regular class...just an addition to help me improve. I am also not looking for "new moves" per se, more like to correct mistakes I am making in every day jiu jitsu positions and grappling. Thanks for the advice guys.
What i found with privates was the instructor usually asks you,"what do you want to work on."This is simple because only you know what's fustrating you on the mat.The holes he fixes are those fustrations.For example say you're having problems getting your second hook in from the back mount.He will show you new ways of getting that second hook.
I actually teach some privates, but I always try to get the person to find a regular class to attend or at least get together and roll with people if they are not already taking class somewhere. Without that, privates are not nearly as beneficial.
/really weirded out by shen giving a serious answer.
RobbieH - Privates are the best way to tighten up your loose ends, BUT you HAVE to attend regular classes just to roll against different types of individuals and belts.. Just like a poster said earlier, even though your game will improve against higher belts, if you can't handle a white belt because you're not used to the way they roll then there is a problem..thus the reason you need to attend regular classes too.
But Privates + Regular classes = Faster progression....even Helio agreed that occasional Private Lessons were the fastest route to BJJ proficiency. It;s obvious, you have a Blackbelt watching/feeling your every move, and he will be able to help you with your weakest points..thus bringing your game to a NEW level!
I really think a lot of people should take privates when they can, especially if you wanna focus on a certain aspect of the game..whether it be real self defense(which is lacking in most group classes in most schools) or a weak part of your game..no better person to go to than a Black Belt in the art.
It's the same as getting a private tutor in College, you learn at a much faster rate than taking regular classes because you have someone there teaching AND correcting your EVERY move...
Great post.
laqueus - /really weirded out by shen giving a serious answer.
Don't be weirded out.
Truth is I've never taken a jiu-jitsu class in my entire life, yet have beeen giving advice on here for YEARS!