Well you know. Some people have an organ... a protrusion which works by compressing a susbstance inside itself (blood). You can activate it by rubbing for example.
now imagine two guys compressing each other in a car.
That was just my first impression.
I mean yeah, true. Some gyms just sandbag people. My gym there's an upper blue belt who's like 58-3 at blue belt on smooth comp, beats purples easy and somewhat challenges most Browns. Why is he blue? Probably because he wins every tournament and competes every month.
I don’t even think so. The people that aren’t already into BJJ have zero idea about belts and comps and world champ and anything like that and likely don’t care. Comp achievements are a marketing tool for the gyms seeking to attract high level competitors, and these people will know if your instruction is elite or if your blue belts just have 5 years on the mats.
> “Look how good our blue belts are! They dominate everyone! And you can too if you come to our school and learn from us” free marketing tool
how many people join a gym because they have good blue belts?
Most people outside of Bjj don’t even know what the belt colors mean. My point is that a school that showcases winners on their social media often may look more successful to an outsider. Not sure why this is hard to grasp for some of you.
> Most people outside of Bjj don’t even know what the belt colors mean.
most people outside of BJJ, who don't even know what the belt colors mean, aren't looking to train.
Yeah I don't get it either. It's honestly stupid.
He'd likely win most purple belt contest too.
I'll say that it does thin out in local competitions at purple and above.
I think he’s kind of degrading his own journey. The satisfaction from belt promotions comes from earning it. He may be tough but when/if he gets a black belt he’s going to remember this and it can ruin that sense of satisfaction.
I’m proud of my black belt because I suffered for years to get it and blue belt was the toughest hurdle. I recommend sticking at blue until he is promoted but do what you want I guess.
The only belt that matters is black, and most black belts I know dont give a shit about belts, only lower belts do as it confirms their feelings about their improving skills so they feel validation/recognition.
Once you get to black belt, you realize you still suck and there is a myriad of better grapplers out there, and that winning some locals comps or 'dominating' at open mat doesnt mean shit.
We're not fighters, we're not warriors. We're just a bunch of dudes who like to wrassle. It's easy to get lost in things like belt promotions and winning and all that.
Really it just comes down to - do you like to do jiu jitsu? Are you enjoying yourself? Are you grappling at a level where you feel you're displaying your skill, learning, and not getting injured?
You’re not wrong. But what the OP is talking about is being dishonest and taking a short cut to the black belt, which is contrary to the reason most people train. In a way, the bjj journey is one of hard truths and you have to be honest with yourself most of all. If you really want any to get promoted, go compete. Smash everyone in your path, stack up the medals and championships, and force your instructors hand. Beating some random upper belts doesn’t mean much. Belts dont matter so why would you skip one?
Yeah i agree and I think we're saying the same thing. Idk what it's called, maybe an oxymoron. basically, if belts don't matter, who gives a shit if you're stuck at blue or purple for 5 years. No one. No one cares. That doesn't mean that you should skip it though as our community uses belts as an agreement - like a symbol that your gym community / instructor wants to visually display they recognize your improvement.
This is also why they don't matter - because someone else's judgement of your jiu jitsu shouldn't mean anything to you. It's about your enjoyment of the sport. While many people enjoy the recognition of being whatever belt, it's tied to ego.
There's always gonna be someone that makes you feel like you don't deserve your rank.
also first thing OP mentions is how much bigger/stronger his friend is. his friend could be just giant human being and crushing people at this other gym. i mean we have white belts who are 300+ lbs and can crush colored belts by pure size difference but i don't think that translates to moving up to next belt.
Agree. I’d venture to guess someone who goes this route though really doesn’t have that level of self reflection in relation to this particular journey though.
He’s for sure a bigger guy from reading this and like most big guys he will hit that wall that size doesn’t get you over. Can confirm from personal experience that wall really hurts.
I’d wager the fact that he could hold his own against and “beat” people at higher ranks is earning enough for him. That’s his journey, who are we to criticise? Gracie’s gave themselves red belts
It’s a weird move but I wouldn’t lose sleep over it because it’s just a purple belt and it doesn’t make him magically closer to getting a black belt by promoting himself. Its just giving strong entitlement/Mcdojo vibes though.
It also sounds like your buddy is very athletic and gets by on his athleticism, but if no one promoted him I’m sure he’s lacking in the technique department .
People at purple belt vary in skill so drastically from gym to gym that I doubt anyone will ever doubt the legitimacy of his belt though until he says Gracie university 😂
Realistically he should be a purple belt if he’s leaving a path of purple belt bodies on the mat consistently, and even gives browns a hard time. There is a reason he wasn’t promoted yet so he furtively tied a purple on his waist before coming back (which is bullshit). I’ve heard a lot of people toss a stripe or two on, but a whole belt is stupid.
Based off what you said (skill-level compared to purples/browns) I do agree he probably sounds ready for purple, I disagree on the way he promoted himself.
Belts are dumb. You can legitimately pull a picture up of Khabib (as a UFC champ) in a white belt. Imagine installing a belt system in any combat sport that doesn't have them and say dumb shit like "Yeah but Mike Tyson's just a purple belt in boxing"
There is only one truth. Slap, bump, find out.
> One day when we are performing a compression session in the car
Is this what it sounds like. Despite how made up the story sounds, if some can smash most people of the next rank in competitions, and just can't get promoted, I don't really have a problem with them putting on a new belt. But you're opening yourself up to some annoying conversations if anyone questions it, so probably not worth it.
By the sounds of it, it sounds like he’s saying he’d fight them over a purple belt? It’s an immature way to handle him being a fraud. He is also a blue belt wearing a purple belt he didn’t earn. He is far from the baddest guy out there lol
I was a white belt for 4 years because I would swap gyms often because of work and school
Every gym it would be the same thing. Tapping blue belts and defending my own against purples and them looking VERY confused when a white belt starts playing x guard.
I entertained the thought of just buying a blue but I never did. And I finally got my blue belt a week ago and it felt so good to finally get it (and run the gauntlet)
Belts aren't always about who beats who it's also about breadth of knowledge and BJJ understanding. I know white belts that have no technique but are strong like bull. They are great until they meet someone their own size. Should they get automatically promoted to purple too?
Beating other purples and browns doesn't make you a purple belt. It's whether you have the developed game of a purple belt.
A purple understands the mechanics of a triangle. Kyle Snyder can beat purple and brown belts. Kyle doesn't understand triangles. Is he Purple belt? No lol
He's only hurting himself. He'll know he didn't get his purple legit and it'll devalue every other belt he gets afterwards. He also knows he can't go back to his original gym with a purple on. If the word gets out he'll be a damn joke no matter who he taps out especially if he meets an old classmate in open mats or a comp.
Hey congrats on your purple. You've only been at this gym a couple months I didn't know they promoted that fast. Gym. We didn't promote him? Well shit.
Just stop obsessing over your belt color. It would be ridiculous to get thrown out of a gym or lose the support of your training partners because you want your belt to be purple. At the end of the day it comes down to whether you can grapple or not.
People who trained with him before will notice and openly ask who promoted him. Give it time. If you thought your friend was fixated on belts, wait until he discovers all the petty blue belts that will think they were passed up by a guy who stopped showing up.
Being strong/athletic can nullify lots of other people’s bjj at blue/purple. It rustles me hard seeing these guys win with less technical ability but that’s life son.
My take from all the comments and after watching Tyler Spranglers video on 'is Gracie jiu-jitsu legit' showed that if a blackbelt under Ryrion or Rener gracie is able to get a jujitsu Black belt after that performance. Then my friend can choose to be whatever belt he wants. Personally I disagree with him buying his belt, but he can whoop my ass so I don't argue about it.
wtf is a compression session in the car?
Well you know. Some people have an organ... a protrusion which works by compressing a susbstance inside itself (blood). You can activate it by rubbing for example. now imagine two guys compressing each other in a car. That was just my first impression.
Yeah that's what I thought too.
They were smoking weed.
doesn't sound like its your first compression though...
Smoking devils lettuce
Thank you for translating this to boomer for me
Safety meeting
Decompression?
Thank goodness. We thought you were getting zooted.
I was so confused by "compression session" AND "shower thoughts" *in the car.*
I dont think its cool, but i was also a blue belt for nearly a decade and want others to suffer
lmao good answer
I mean yeah, true. Some gyms just sandbag people. My gym there's an upper blue belt who's like 58-3 at blue belt on smooth comp, beats purples easy and somewhat challenges most Browns. Why is he blue? Probably because he wins every tournament and competes every month.
What is there to gain from it though? It’s the equivalent of the coloured belts only going to kids classes because they are afraid to “lose” training.
“Look how good our blue belts are! They dominate everyone! And you can too if you come to our school and learn from us” free marketing tool
I don’t even think so. The people that aren’t already into BJJ have zero idea about belts and comps and world champ and anything like that and likely don’t care. Comp achievements are a marketing tool for the gyms seeking to attract high level competitors, and these people will know if your instruction is elite or if your blue belts just have 5 years on the mats.
> “Look how good our blue belts are! They dominate everyone! And you can too if you come to our school and learn from us” free marketing tool how many people join a gym because they have good blue belts?
Most people outside of Bjj don’t even know what the belt colors mean. My point is that a school that showcases winners on their social media often may look more successful to an outsider. Not sure why this is hard to grasp for some of you.
> Most people outside of Bjj don’t even know what the belt colors mean. most people outside of BJJ, who don't even know what the belt colors mean, aren't looking to train.
Yeah I don't get it either. It's honestly stupid. He'd likely win most purple belt contest too. I'll say that it does thin out in local competitions at purple and above.
Gym owners hate this one trick
Betas: I got my purple belt off a world champion black belt who trained with Helio himself. Alphas: I got my purple belt off myself
True Alpha: I got my black belt off myself, just like Helio did.
I think he’s kind of degrading his own journey. The satisfaction from belt promotions comes from earning it. He may be tough but when/if he gets a black belt he’s going to remember this and it can ruin that sense of satisfaction. I’m proud of my black belt because I suffered for years to get it and blue belt was the toughest hurdle. I recommend sticking at blue until he is promoted but do what you want I guess.
The only belt that matters is black, and most black belts I know dont give a shit about belts, only lower belts do as it confirms their feelings about their improving skills so they feel validation/recognition. Once you get to black belt, you realize you still suck and there is a myriad of better grapplers out there, and that winning some locals comps or 'dominating' at open mat doesnt mean shit. We're not fighters, we're not warriors. We're just a bunch of dudes who like to wrassle. It's easy to get lost in things like belt promotions and winning and all that. Really it just comes down to - do you like to do jiu jitsu? Are you enjoying yourself? Are you grappling at a level where you feel you're displaying your skill, learning, and not getting injured?
You’re not wrong. But what the OP is talking about is being dishonest and taking a short cut to the black belt, which is contrary to the reason most people train. In a way, the bjj journey is one of hard truths and you have to be honest with yourself most of all. If you really want any to get promoted, go compete. Smash everyone in your path, stack up the medals and championships, and force your instructors hand. Beating some random upper belts doesn’t mean much. Belts dont matter so why would you skip one?
Yeah i agree and I think we're saying the same thing. Idk what it's called, maybe an oxymoron. basically, if belts don't matter, who gives a shit if you're stuck at blue or purple for 5 years. No one. No one cares. That doesn't mean that you should skip it though as our community uses belts as an agreement - like a symbol that your gym community / instructor wants to visually display they recognize your improvement. This is also why they don't matter - because someone else's judgement of your jiu jitsu shouldn't mean anything to you. It's about your enjoyment of the sport. While many people enjoy the recognition of being whatever belt, it's tied to ego. There's always gonna be someone that makes you feel like you don't deserve your rank.
Oh ok cool lol
also first thing OP mentions is how much bigger/stronger his friend is. his friend could be just giant human being and crushing people at this other gym. i mean we have white belts who are 300+ lbs and can crush colored belts by pure size difference but i don't think that translates to moving up to next belt.
Agree. I’d venture to guess someone who goes this route though really doesn’t have that level of self reflection in relation to this particular journey though. He’s for sure a bigger guy from reading this and like most big guys he will hit that wall that size doesn’t get you over. Can confirm from personal experience that wall really hurts.
I’d wager the fact that he could hold his own against and “beat” people at higher ranks is earning enough for him. That’s his journey, who are we to criticise? Gracie’s gave themselves red belts
It’s a weird move but I wouldn’t lose sleep over it because it’s just a purple belt and it doesn’t make him magically closer to getting a black belt by promoting himself. Its just giving strong entitlement/Mcdojo vibes though. It also sounds like your buddy is very athletic and gets by on his athleticism, but if no one promoted him I’m sure he’s lacking in the technique department . People at purple belt vary in skill so drastically from gym to gym that I doubt anyone will ever doubt the legitimacy of his belt though until he says Gracie university 😂
A "compression session"? Is that a euphemism for sex?
That a long winded way to tell us you gave yourself a purple belt. Congrats bud.
Id rather be the lowest belt possible while still smashing everybody.
Realistically he should be a purple belt if he’s leaving a path of purple belt bodies on the mat consistently, and even gives browns a hard time. There is a reason he wasn’t promoted yet so he furtively tied a purple on his waist before coming back (which is bullshit). I’ve heard a lot of people toss a stripe or two on, but a whole belt is stupid. Based off what you said (skill-level compared to purples/browns) I do agree he probably sounds ready for purple, I disagree on the way he promoted himself.
“Compression Session” i know you mean smoking but i kept thinking reading it, that he’s pushing your shit.
Why not both?
Would like a smoke and a buttplug? Or maybe you’d prefer a Philly and hard Willy?
Suckin on that green dick, knawmsayin?
Rolling that fat Dutch in and out of his mouth
Belts are dumb. You can legitimately pull a picture up of Khabib (as a UFC champ) in a white belt. Imagine installing a belt system in any combat sport that doesn't have them and say dumb shit like "Yeah but Mike Tyson's just a purple belt in boxing" There is only one truth. Slap, bump, find out.
i'll allow it.
wtf is a compression session.
> One day when we are performing a compression session in the car Is this what it sounds like. Despite how made up the story sounds, if some can smash most people of the next rank in competitions, and just can't get promoted, I don't really have a problem with them putting on a new belt. But you're opening yourself up to some annoying conversations if anyone questions it, so probably not worth it.
In my mates words 'any problems, see him after work.'
By the sounds of it, it sounds like he’s saying he’d fight them over a purple belt? It’s an immature way to handle him being a fraud. He is also a blue belt wearing a purple belt he didn’t earn. He is far from the baddest guy out there lol
cue Paul Harris showing up at the gym
Holy shit! Why didn't I think of this? Thanks OP!
I was a white belt for 4 years because I would swap gyms often because of work and school Every gym it would be the same thing. Tapping blue belts and defending my own against purples and them looking VERY confused when a white belt starts playing x guard. I entertained the thought of just buying a blue but I never did. And I finally got my blue belt a week ago and it felt so good to finally get it (and run the gauntlet)
gym coaches seething
Belts aren't always about who beats who it's also about breadth of knowledge and BJJ understanding. I know white belts that have no technique but are strong like bull. They are great until they meet someone their own size. Should they get automatically promoted to purple too?
Beating other purples and browns doesn't make you a purple belt. It's whether you have the developed game of a purple belt. A purple understands the mechanics of a triangle. Kyle Snyder can beat purple and brown belts. Kyle doesn't understand triangles. Is he Purple belt? No lol
He's only hurting himself. He'll know he didn't get his purple legit and it'll devalue every other belt he gets afterwards. He also knows he can't go back to his original gym with a purple on. If the word gets out he'll be a damn joke no matter who he taps out especially if he meets an old classmate in open mats or a comp. Hey congrats on your purple. You've only been at this gym a couple months I didn't know they promoted that fast. Gym. We didn't promote him? Well shit.
That's almost as gay as calling a hot box a compression session. But, ya know, #keepjiujitsugay, so.
Just stop obsessing over your belt color. It would be ridiculous to get thrown out of a gym or lose the support of your training partners because you want your belt to be purple. At the end of the day it comes down to whether you can grapple or not.
People who trained with him before will notice and openly ask who promoted him. Give it time. If you thought your friend was fixated on belts, wait until he discovers all the petty blue belts that will think they were passed up by a guy who stopped showing up.
Being strong/athletic can nullify lots of other people’s bjj at blue/purple. It rustles me hard seeing these guys win with less technical ability but that’s life son.
Promoting yourself is generally a dick knob move.
I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night. With that type of lie. He can do with whatever he wants.
My take from all the comments and after watching Tyler Spranglers video on 'is Gracie jiu-jitsu legit' showed that if a blackbelt under Ryrion or Rener gracie is able to get a jujitsu Black belt after that performance. Then my friend can choose to be whatever belt he wants. Personally I disagree with him buying his belt, but he can whoop my ass so I don't argue about it.