Mind Body Soul

Schedule of the day is as follows:

BJJ divisions will be before No Gi

8am doors open

10am – Children 4-6 Game, Women BJJ/No Gi

10:30am – Children 7 BJJ/No Gi, Adult Kickboxing

11am – Children 8-9, 10-11, 12-13 BJJ/No Gi

12pm – SUPERFIGHTS, Adult Muay Thai / Executive BJJ

1pm – Purple, Brown, Black Belt BJJ, 14-16 BJJ/No Gi

2pm – Blue Belt BJJ, Children’s Kickboxing all ages

3pm – Submission Series Finals / Adv & Elite No Gi

4pm – White Belt BJJ, Novice & Intermediate No Gi / ALL ABSOLUTE BJJ

Please be prepared to compete 15 minutes before the scheduled time, and although we strive to have a smoothly run tournament, there are many factors out of our control that may slow the day down.  We will do our best, I promise!

What can you do to help make the day run smoother?

1. Pre-Register, this will save you time and money

2. Register/Weigh in at the scheduled times or 1 hour before your event is scheduled (cash only please)

3. Stay close to the rings and listen for your division

4. Don’t leave the ring if you are competing in No Gi.  It will follow BJJ immediately.

5. Please be patient.  I have been to many tournaments where I showed up and registered at 7am and did not compete until after 7pm (once just before midnight).  Schedules were not around back then.  We have set a standard and although many expect us to stick to it, it is difficult to predict times.

6. Lastly, volunteer.  We need many people to help set up, timekeep, present medals tear down etc.  These are simple jobs yet super important, volunteers can make or break a tourny.  if you would like to help please show up at 8:45am or if you would like to help set up email Mike at myackulic@arashido.com

Costs for Divisions:

Pre Register before May 15

Children Game/Muay Thai – ages 4-6 = $30 for 1 and $10 for the other

Children Ages 7-15 = $50 for 2 divisions and $10 for each one after that

Women =$50 for 2 divisions and $10 for each one after that

All other Adult Divisions = $65 for 2 divisions and $10 for each one after that

Pre Register May  16- May 26

Children Game/Muay Thai – ages 4-6 = $40 for 1 and $10 for the other

Children Ages 7-15 = $65 for 2 divisions and $10 for each one after that

Women =$65 for 2 divisions and $10 for each one after that

All other Adult Divisions = $80 for 2 divisions and $10 for each one after that

Good luck everyone!

We are happy to announce that the winners of the Adult BJJ divisions will win an OTM Gold Weave Gi.

This gi is of super quality and cut and has been on the market for several years.  It is made by the same company that makes Lucki Gis and is known for their durability and quality.

This great gi will be for the 1st place winners in each weight class of the Novice, Intermediate, Advanced and Elite Divisions… 24 in total!

Another Great reason to compete at the Mind Body Soul / Alberta Grappling Open.

Pre register now to save $$$

For those that would like to Pre -Register, here is the link:

http://albertagrapplingopen.eventbrite.ca

The Division sheet has been updated and the Rules as well to include the Children Muay Thai Divisions.

Please be sure to read them and let me know if you have any questions at myackulic@arashido.com

Good luck to all competitors!

Divisions are:

4/5 years old,    6/7 years old,    8/9 years old,    10/11 years old,    12/13 years old,    14-16 years old

Weight classes will be made based on how many competitors we have, but will be made to be as fair as possible.

Please make sure to read the rules as they are the same as the Adult Kickboxing (not Muay Thai) rules with some exceptions.

Lastly, although you can Pre-Register for the event, the registration page has to be updates and will take a few days.  Please bear with us, but you have until Thursday of next week to Pre-Register.

Costs for Divisions if you Pre-Register:

Children Game/Muay Thai – ages 4-7 = $20 for 1 and $10 for each one after that

Children Ages 8-16 = $40 for 1 and $10 for each one after that

Women =$40 for 1 and $10 for each one after that

All other Adult Divisions = $50 for 1 and $10 for each one after that

For those that would like to Register, here is the link:

http://albertagrapplingopen.eventbrite.ca

First and foremost, I suggest you train regularly for about two months before the particular tournament that you seek to enter. You can always jump in and be successful, but you will have much more success when you are adequately prepared. If you seek to be at the top of the top in this sport, you will have to train almost full-time according to Roger Gracie (who currently has the record for most black belt world titles). The competitions and numbers are definitely growing, so it’s only a matter of time before the competition gets even stiffer.

I also recommend a healthy diet if you seek to compete. I will not get into the finer details of what I think is the best way to lose weight or if weight loss is necessary, but often people will cut more weight than they can handle prior to a tournament and it may affect them. Discipline is crucial when it comes to dieting and making a proper training regimen.

Another suggestion is to make sure you warm up prior to your matches. I think warming up is much better than going into a match totally cold. There is a a world-class wrestler who would often have a warm up match with a teammate about thirty minutes prior to competition so that he could feel warm before he even stepped on the competition mat. How you warm up is solely up to you.

Most of these tournaments have your specific weight class and division on one mat. Then more than likely you will enter what is called a bracket and you will work your way through your opponents continuously until your division is done and a winner is declared.

When you become a more seasoned competitor, you may also begin to study potential opponents on YouTube and other various video outlets.

If you win, be humble, and if you lose, be gracious. Do not be that guy cursing at the referee; please do not lower yourself to this. There will be calls may not like, but a competition is something you chose to enter and the risks of losing and human imperfection are inherently there. I am not saying do not ever contest a call—just have some decency when doing so. Also be prepared, be on weight, arrive in shape. BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU is a contact sport and it can be very dangerous, especially if you are ill prepared or come in with an injury.

Here are the Rules again:

MBS Rules 2013

The “absolute division” is usually run by division or belt rank. In some tournaments all are welcome to compete. In any case, assuming it is run by belt or division, you will have to face anyone who enters in any weight category within your belt rank or division. This means someone who weighs 125 pounds may face someone who weighs 275 pounds. In some events, cash prizes are awarded. Like I said a few times already, read the rules carefully. And if you do not understand something, ask your instructor to help interpret it for you.

Of note is a term you may hear called “sandbagging.” Sandbagging is a common term used to describe when someone is held back in rank or someone is fraudulent regarding the division they have signed up for. Some and many promotions do not do background checks on each competitor so it is easy to be dishonest and falsify your years of experience in order to compete in a class with people who have less experience than you. For the most part sandbagging is rare, but it does occasionally happen.

Do not get all caught up in the commotion of sandbagging as others may. What I mean by this is you can only control you and what you do and how you are. If you have integrity, as most do in this sport, everything should work out fine in terms of what division you enter. Some people progress at a faster pace, some schools take longer to promote. You may face a white belt with less skill than yourself, and you may potentially face a white belt that has more skill. It is impossible for event promotions to police and makes no sense getting hot and bothered about it.

Stick around for Part 3 coming out Wednesday

Go to http://albertagrapplingopen.eventbrite.ca/ to register for the Mind Body Soul.

As you can see the medals this year are the same as last year… because they are so cool.  Weighing in at almost a pound, these medals aren’t fooling around.

All 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners will receive these medals. (Which we have sitting in my house right now).

Children Competitors that come out to challenge themselves but are unable to capture 1st, 2nd or 3rd will receive a smaller medal for showing the courage to come out and compete.

New things this year:

LOTS MORE DIVISIONS.  This is mostly for children because of the big surge in attendance for recent tournaments.  Please look at the Division page here to see where your child fits in:

MBS Divisions 2013

Also we will be adding a Executive Division for Competitors over 35 .  Please help spread the word about these extra divisions so we don’t have to join anything.

I look forward to seeing you all out in a coulpe weeks.

Mike Yackulic

Pre-Registration is something that drastically helps improve the ability for us to start on time the day of and makes you commit to your goal of improving yourself.

Please be sure to read the rules, find your proper division and know your weight needs to be before registering.  Those that weigh in over their division needs will need to pay a Administration charge of $20.

One of our goals is to constantly be improving the quality of our events.  This year to add value to your tournament experience we are going to be doing Double Elimination for: Children BJJ, Women BJJ, Novice BJJ, Intermediate BJJ, Women Kickboxing and Novice Kickboxing.  All other divisions will be normal Competitive Single Elimination formats ie No Gi and Muay Thai.

MBS Rules 2013

MBS Divisions 2013

MBS Waiver

Pre-Registering does not cost anything up front, it actually SAVES YOU MONEY.  There is no penalty for Pre-registering and not showing up if something happens, just please email us so we can adjust the divisions.

Costs for Divisions if you Pre-Register:

Children Game – ages 4-7 = $20

Children Ages 8-16 = $40 for 1 and $10 for each one after that

Women =$40 for 1 and $10 for each one after that

All other Adult Divisions = $50 for 1 and $10 for each one after that

If you Register day of it will cost $20 above what is listed.

If your weight is different than that which you registered in (we have to move you to another division) there is a $20 charge.  Please be prepared with your weight.

For those that are close to their weight we will allow a 1lb allowance for Children and 2lb allowance for adults since weight scales differ from those you may have in your home to the professional one we use.

Go to: http://albertagrapplingopen.eventbrite.ca to register now!

If you have any question please email me at: myackulic@arashido.com AFTER you reread the rules and division forms.

Albeit not a necessity, a small amount of you will compete at one time or another. Tournaments, or any form of competition, should be a benefit to your BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU game because you will often see flaws in your game you may not normally see in a low-pressure sparring session. And competition will also give you a chance to test your game against other people you may not normally get a chance to train with. If you desire to challenge yourself outside of your gym, there are many events that are available for you. The prices of many of these events are a bit steep depending on whom you ask. The prices range from about $50 to $200 depending on what event and how many divisions you compete in (many allow for you to compete in more than one category— be sure to read up on the registration form).

In most tournaments you will be grouped with your belt class, and your weight class will likely range within about 10-20 pounds; more disparity usually occurs at the heavier weight classes. Age categories will also vary from tournament promotion to tournament promotion. As a white belt, the time frame for many tournaments will be between about four to six minutes and will likely go up to approximately ten minutes for the higher belts such as black, advanced or expert (typically No Gi). Some tournaments like US Grappling will occasionally do submission-only events. This means the tournament will have no time limit and will end only by submission.

For No Gi you will usually start out at a novice or beginner division and end up in your later years at the advanced or expert division. Determining which division may be a bit tricky; grappling experience such as Judo or wrestling may count for years trained grappling. Belt rank with the Gi may also count as time spent on the mat. And some tournaments will have you compete No Gi according to your belt rank, especially if the promotion follows IBJJF rules. It will likely be discretionary from tournament promotion to tournament promotion so I recommend reading the rules for each promotion carefully.

Stay tuned for Part 2 coming out Monday

Check them out here.

Please make note of any typos or questions and let me know at: myackulic@arashido.com

MBS Rules 2013

MBS Divisions 2013

This year to add value to your tournament experience we are going to be doing

Double Elimination for:

Children BJJ

Women BJJ

Novice BJJ

Intermediate BJJ

Women Kickboxing

Novice Kickboxing

All other divisions will be normal Single Elimination formats.

Pre-Registration will be available this weekend.