GD Jiu-Jitsu Academy

Happy holidays & a happy new years to everyone!

here is the schedule for the upcoming holidays! 🎁🎄

12/23 & 12/24- Open Mat @ 11am
12/30 & 12/31 - Open Mat @ 11am
Regular schedule classes - Monday to Thursday during the two weeks!!

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

Let’s make sure to participate in annual toy drive for Arizona’s foster children & families in need by donating any unwrapped toys/gifts for ages 0-17 years old!

Boxes are located in the front lobby by the front door. Deadline is this coming Monday, December 19th.

Congratulations to all students who chose to compete in either event from this past weekend. Regardless of the outcome, great job going out of your comfort zone to challenge yourself. 👏

The next tournament will be the AZBJJL Arizona International Open on February 11. All ages, from kids to master 5. Gi only. More info is coming soon at www.azbjjl.com 

Kids Cup:
TALLIN WHETTEN - 3rd place 🥉
OWEN HOFFMAN - 3rd place 🥉
ZEKE MALAIS - 1st place 🥇

Masters Cup:
LUIS HOLGUIN - 3rd place 🥉
PATRICK VALANDRA - 1st place 🥇
ADRIAN CHIONGBIAN - 1st place 🥇
ROBERT GRAHAM - 1st place 🥇

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

This Saturday, December 10th is the AZBJJL Kids/Masters cup! 🥋

Brackets will be posted on Thursday December 8th, make sure to check your match time and try to show up at least an hour early to warm up and assure you’re on time for your match. ⏰

Good luck to everyone competing!
see you there 👊

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

About a week ago I visited JJT's Arizona's number one school supporter, the Mountain Tribe BJJ, in Prescott, AZ, with Rob Johnson. Rob is a black belt under Steve Judson, a GD 4th Degree Black belt. I taught a jiu-jitsu class for about 90 minutes; Then, I shared a thirty-minute presentation introducing Jiu-Jitsu Tribe's work for the students who didn't know much about the organization and the project has helped with the fundraiser in the past, .

If you have read my previous posts, in 2019, During my visit to in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, I met an incredible Social Worker who supports Gaditas, Nina Cardoso. We kept in contact, and in 2021 she started her own Social Project, Instituto Ascendendo Mentes.

I have mentioned in earlier posts and e-mails was able to cover the open area they will use for classes donating $4308.72 for phase one. The organization accomplished phase two of raising $2300 for the mats with previous fundraisers, including money from the GD annual party.

At , we raised $2788 with the raffle, plus their academy's gi sale portion. With this money, plus the previous money raised and 's donation, was able to finish phases three and four, raising money to buy forty gi's and twelve months of salary guaranteed to the coach, securing the organization's sustainability until the end of the following year. As a result of all the donor's efforts, raised over $10K to help inspire, impact and improve another tribe! Thank you to all who made this happen!!!

#

We had a large group for today’s thanksgiving open mat, It’s great to see so many of you show up on a holiday! 🥋👏

We wish everyone a happy thanksgiving! 🦃

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

This coming Thursday, Friday, and Saturday there will not be any classes, instead we will be having open mat from 11am-1pm due to Thanksgiving.

We hope everyone has a happy thanksgiving! 🦃

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

A belated congratulations to both, Robert Graham and Michael Velazquez for being promoted to black belt last week! 🥳👏👏👏

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

I had the opportunity to promote my long-time student Chris Lopez to fourth-degree black belt tonight at Lopez Jiu-Jitsu in Chandler, AZ. Chris is part of the first group of GD Black Belts along with Brian Mitchell, Gaty Matsch & Steve Judson.

I taught a jiu-jitsu class for an hour, and I shared a thirty-minute presentation introducing Jiu-Jitsu Tribe's work, sharing the stories, and announcing ' fundraiser.

In 2019, During my visit to in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, I met an incredible Social Worker who supports Gaditas, Nina Cardoso. We kept in contact, and in 2021 she started her own Social Project, Instituto Ascendendo Mentes.

Institute Ascending Minds believes that it is possible to change the world with affection, treating each being as unique and offering support and education during their journey. They act by guiding vulnerable young people to perceive belonging and understand their roles in the world. As a result, they become protagonists of a whole and sustainable life. They developed an innovative methodology project focused on emotional intelligence, professional and socioeconomic education, entrepreneurship, and mentoring for young people aged 10 to 22 in social vulnerability.

The talk about starting offering martial arts classes at IAM began last year. JJT this year was able to cover the open area that will use for the classes donating $4308.72 for phase one.

Now, we're raising money to buy the mats. It costs around $3000. We're choosing mats there are easy to set up and remove. With that, IAM can utilize the room for other activities as well.

At Lopez Jiu-Jitsu we raised $510 with the raffle, which puts us at $2210. So now, we're only $790 to finish phase two!

www.jiu-jitsutribe.org Donate as much as you want because the extra money goes towards phase three of this mission, buying the Gis.

Last weekend I had the opportunity to attend Robson Moura's RMNU Jiu-Jitsu Camp in Tampa, Florida. Robson is a personal friend and a supporter of the non-profit organization Jiu-Jitsu Tribe I co-founded in 2010.

I shared a thirty-minute presentation introducing JJT's work, sharing the stories, and announcing ' fundraiser.

In 2019, During my visit to in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, I met an incredible Social Worker who supports Gaditas, Nina Cardoso. We kept in contact, and in 2021 she started her own Social Project, Instituto Ascendendo Mentes.

Institute Ascending Minds believes that it is possible to change the world with affection, treating each being as unique and offering support and education during their journey. They act by guiding vulnerable young people to perceive belonging and understand their roles in the world. As a result, they become protagonists of a whole and sustainable life. They developed an innovative methodology project focused on emotional intelligence, professional and socioeconomic education, entrepreneurship, and mentoring for young people aged 10 to 22 in social vulnerability.

The talk about starting offering martial arts classes at IAM began last year. JJT this year was able to cover the open area that will use for the classes donating $4308.72.

Now, we're raising money to buy the mats. It costs around $3000. We're choosing mats there are easy to set up and remove. With that, IAM can utilize the room for other activities as well.

During the camp, we raised half of the money! $1500 with the raffle. You still can help! At our annual party, we will be doing a raffle as a fundraiser. You receive a ticket for every $5 you donate, and we will announce the prizes soon.

The fundraiser starts today! You're welcome to purchase the tickets in cash at the school or message how many tickets you want; we can charge your card and leave your tickets at the front desk.

Donate as much as you want because the extra money goes towards the next phase of this mission, buying the Gi's.

Eventually, pay the coach a salary equivalent to $250 per month. By the way, if you are interested in adopting a social project jiu-jitsu instructor for twelve months, please get in touch with us by DM to introduce us to possible sponsored candidates. Many projects die because these humble volunteers often need to stop teaching to find another job to support their families since most instructors are in vulnerable situations.

Thank you for the support!

Congratulations to all students who competed at the Southwest Classic on October 15th. Here are some of the competitors and our team’s MVP of the tournament Zac Bighorn with Early 🐦 Bird Coach.🙌👏👏👏

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

Congratulations to Jeff Cloud on his brown belt. 🥳He wasn’t able to attend the last promotion and he finally got promoted. 👏👏👏

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

Congratulations to all students who were promoted at our latest belt ceremony. 🥳 We haven’t had a big promotion like this in a long time! 👏👏👏

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
🌐www.gdjjonline.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

Congratulations to Gary Matsch, Brian Mitchell & Steve Judson on their fourth degree and Heath Flicker on his second degree. 🥳👏👏👏

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
🌐www.gdjjonline.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

On September 1, 2 & 3, it took place in Las Vegas, the biggest event of the year in the US (8300 competitors), Jiu-Jitsu Con. In addition, the IBJJF event included the Master's World Championship & the Jiu-Jitsu Con for all other age groups and belts. The standout of the weekend was Brian McCluskey. He had five matches and lost in the finals. Here are results:

Jiu-Jitsu Con
Brian McCluskey - Adult/Blue/Feather🥈

Masters
Joe Solorio- M7/ Black/Middle 🥉 & Open Class 🥉
Vanessa Rodriguez- M2/Brown/Rooster 🥈
Paul Slaybaugh- M4/Brown/Light 🥉
George Watson - M2/Purple/Medium Heavy 🥉
Loleini Emmsley - M3/Purple/Super Heavy 🥉

Congratulations to all competitors, regardless of the outcome.🙌

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

& 🥋🙌🏽



Even after retiring Mike Lin is still our forever super cop.😎👮‍♀️

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
🌐www.gdjjonline.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

with .repost
・・・
Super solid crew this a.m. at GD Jiu Jitsu. Proud of everyone’s commitment and consistency. Leveling up every day. LFG 🔥

Tech: Double Sleeve Control > Deep Lasso Guard / basic control / sweeps

Congratulations to everyone who competed at Novice Cup & AZ No-Gi State Championship. Nine students represented .

Teens:
Ezra Adams 🥈
Noah Adams 🥉
Patience Tod 🥇

Adults:
Danny Palmer 🥈
Jandely Eich 🥈
Logan Arredondo 🥈
Luis Holguin 🥇
Raeshelle Tod 🥇
Tony Vitali 🥉

The longer you train jiu-jitsu, the more you realize how this art teaches you many life lessons, one of which is a personal responsibility.

There are great benefits of playing group sports; however, in my humble opinion, individual sports teach you personal responsibility like no other. There is no one to blame. It's you!

When you DECIDE to compete in jiu-jitsu, you must have the personal responsibility to choose a weight class and show up on the day of the tournament on the dot or under. Look what the AZBJJL Site says:

"Before his/her first fight, the athlete will check his/her weight with the Gi. There is only one opportunity to check the weight. If the competitor does not make his/her weight, they will be immediately disqualified. There is no tolerance on weight allowed.

Please make sure that you are in the correct weight division. You can not change divisions, if you do not make your designated division. No changes will be accepted in the tournament day, no refund.

It is the responsibility of the athlete to be knowledgeable of the rules and guidelines pertaining to the sport (as outlined in the IBJJF Rules Book). Please refer to the https://ibjjf.com/rules/ website for the latest rules."

Missing weight can happen to anyone; big well-known world-class competitors have missed weight before. Stuff happens! As long as you take full responsibility for your mistake and recognize that you need to improve this area of your preparation to minimize the chances of happening again, it's all good. 👍 Just make sure not to blame the organization or someone else because you didn't take personal responsibility for being on weight. 😉

"Learn from the past. Prepare for the future. Perform in the present." (Gary Mack)

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

GD Jiu-Jitsu Academy Updated Schedule:
Now offering Intermediate classes on Tuesdays & Thursdays.
www.gdjiujitsu.com

GD Jiu-Jitsu Tournament Simulation
Location: GDJJ Academy

1:30pm - Rules Meeting with an AZBJJL Referee (15 min). Not mandatory, but highly recommended to competitors who are not very knowledgeable with the IBJJF rules set.

GD Jiu-Jitsu Association Tournament Simulation

On Saturday, August 6, at , we will host another tournament simulation starting at 2:00 pm. It's an excellent opportunity if you are interested in competing.

Pre-Requirement only for GDJJ Academy students: The student trains at least three times weekly, and also, at least a white belt with two stripes and higher, or approved by me, Gustavo.

The event aims to allow students to experience a tournament match with an official referee and scoreboard. The simulation is open to white and blue belts only (16 years and up).

We do our best to match students in weight, age, and experience; however, we do not mix up belt levels.

On Friday, August 5, we will announce the order of the matches and the time. There will be two competition areas, and we shoot for the competitors to have at least two matches. Students from GD Jiu-Jitsu Association Affiliates from around the valley will also participate.

The event is limited to fifty people, so sign up asap at https://tinyurl.com/ya7rtfjv The event is free of charge. The registration ends on Thursday, August 4, at 10:00 pm or before it reaches its limit.

The doors open at 1:00 pm. At 1:30 pm, there will be a quick rules meeting, and the event starts at 2:00 pm sharp.

Space is limited, so competitors and coaches only.

Congratulations to everyone who competed at the Phoenix Open in Scottsdale. Twelve students represented .

As you already know, Jiu-Jitsu is an incredible personal development tool, and you don't have to compete to experiment with the benefits of jiu-jitsu. However, when you participate in a competition, you amplify your personal development experience as you now need to deal with your emotions in underpressure situations.

You learn a lot about yourself, especially during the preparation for the tournament, the process which potentializes your jiu-jitsu skills. The competition celebrates every competitor's hard work, including yours.

Unfortunately, situations out of our control can happen in any tournament, like a no-show for one match or no one in your division, but no one signed up to the open class, or your one competitor did not make weight. If this happened to you, be at peace that you did your part. You prepared for it; you handled your weight and showed up.

So if you didn't get a chance to compete, it is what it is. However, you better believe your effort was not entirely in vain. Don't underestimate your growth during your process. Technically, Physically, Mentally, and Emotionally.

"Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is often more important than the outcome." (Arthur Ashe)

Here are the student's results:
Adam Christie - 🥈
Animesh Rajvanshi - 🥇
Charissa Dantas - 🥈
Dillon Barrett - 🥇
George Watson - 🥇🥉
Forest Oates - 🥈
Jeff Rogers - 🥇🥈
Jonathan Dantas - 🥉
Loleine Emmsley - 🥇🥇
Robert Graham - 🥇🥇
Uriel Mejia -🥈

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
🌐www.gdjjonline.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

boyz from stopped by to get some rolls before the Phoenix Open. Great job with them 🤙🏽🤙🏽

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
🌐www.gdjjonline.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

4th of July open mat!🥳🇺🇸

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
🌐www.gdjjonline.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

Congratulations to the GD Association team for going out and challenging themselves at the 2022 American Nationals!
Results:
Robert Graham of GD Jiu Jitsu Academy] : 🥇🥈
Bryce Cooper of GD Jiu Jitsu Academy]: 🥉
Zeruiah Medina of : 🥇🥉
Awesome job! 👏

Congratulations to on his first degree.👏👏👏

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
🌐www.gdjjonline.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

“We won't grow and learn, doing what we've always done, and thinking what we've always thought. We need to move beyond our comfort zones. We need to engage with new and different if we want to expand ourselves.”
(Akiroq Brost)

Congratulations to you, & competitors, who chose to go out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself at the 2022 AZ State Championship. I found a few pics from 📸 AZBJJL Facebook.

I suggest you to re-evaluate your performance and ask yourself two questions:

“What did you do right?” and “What would you have done differently?”, take in consideration the process/preparation and the performance.

Focus on improvement.🤜🏽🤛🏽

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

Congratulations to black belt 🥋 on his first degree.🥳👏👏👏

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
🌐www.gdjjonline.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

Great seminar at in North Charleston, South Carolina with 🤜🏽🤛🏽😎 It was great to see one of black belts Fernando Armenta attending the seminar. 🙌🏽

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
🌐www.gdjjonline.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

Congratulations to all four who chose to challenge themselves on Saturday. Kyle Moynihan won his division in Mexico City 🥇🇲🇽.👏👏👏

In Arizona, three students competed at the World Series of Jiu-Jitsu: Animesh Rajvanshi 🥈, Jorge Irutetagoyena 🥈 and John Charette 🥈.👏👏👏

🌐www.gdjiujitsu.com
🌐www.gdjjonline.com
☎️ 480-968-6303
1848 E. University Dr. #108
Tempe, AZ 85281

Jiu Jitsu is the best medicine for a healthy mind and body. Being surrounded by others who share similar goals is uplifting and motivating. Physical contact and intense learning boosts the release of oxytocin, serotonin, and all the feel good hormones. 🙌🏼

Today’s plan: Bottom Half Guard >> Underhook >> Rollunder Sweep >> Top Flat Half Guard >> Head & Arm Choke (Arm Triangle) 🔥

I’m gonna bet this group will have an excellent remainder of their day. Train early, train often… 🤙🏼💯

MW 6:30am BJJ Fundamentals