My mission is to teach Jiu-Jitsu to students across the world. That's why I created Atos BJJ On Demand - to give everyone access to the secrets that kept me at the top level of competitive Jiu-Jitsu for 20 years. Join my mailing list to keep up-to-date with tips on improving your Jiu-Jitsu, competition highlights from Atos athletes and highlights from our website.
The origins of modern Jiu-Jitsu
|
Do you know the story behind the origins of modern Jiu-Jitsu? The legend goes that Hélio Gracie – the man who created the system of Jiu-Jitsu we train today – suffered a lot of illnesses when he was young. This made training more difficult for Hélio than for his brothers. He spent much of his time watching his brother Carlos teach. But he couldn’t train at the same intensity. One day Carlos didn’t show up for class at the expected time. So Carlos’s students were left waiting for him to show up. Hélio decided to teach them what he knew. Just from watching his brother’s classes, Hélio was able to perform and teach the techniques he had watched Carlos teach over the years. However, because he was weaker than Carlos, he modified them to make them more efficient and easier to perform. This – according to the legend – is how modern Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu was created. It’s an inspiring story. What strikes me most is how Hélio learned just by watching. Over many years, he absorbed the details and was able to adjust it to his body type and strength. That’s why I believe in studying Jiu-Jitsu off the mats. Because so many students come to me with this very question: “How do I get better at Jiu-Jitsu when I’m not on the mats?” When I started training, I studied video tapes and books. I even wrote one of these books after I became a World Champion, Drill to Win. These days, there are a lot more resources online to help you. But you need to structure your learning. Atos BJJ On Demand is designed to help you with that structure. The search filters can give you extremely specific results. We release weekly series (basically a masterclass instructional every week on one topic.) And we also have series which are specifically designed for different levels (such as “White Belt – The Path to Stripe #1”) Play around with the search filters, check out the videos specific to your level and have a look at our weekly series. Remember: just by intentionally sitting down for 15-30 minutes a day, you can improve SO MUCH. Just like Hélio Gracie watching his brother Carlos one hundred years ago. And just like me watching VHS tapes and reading books in the early 2000s. Oss P.S. This week I’m celebrating two big occasions… First, the anniversary of our academy – 14 years in San Diego! And second, it’s my birthday on Sunday! I’m planning a few small surprises this weekend (Sept 27-29) so keep an eye on your inbox. |
Hey guys! I'm Andre Galvao, 15X Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt World Champion and Head Coach at Atos BJJ
My mission is to teach Jiu-Jitsu to students across the world. That's why I created Atos BJJ On Demand - to give everyone access to the secrets that kept me at the top level of competitive Jiu-Jitsu for 20 years. Join my mailing list to keep up-to-date with tips on improving your Jiu-Jitsu, competition highlights from Atos athletes and highlights from our website.
This week we're celebrating our 14th anniversary at the academy. I remember when I got to San Diego in 2010… We officially opened the gym in September. Great things happen to me in September. Maybe it’s because it’s my birthday month! I remember I used to teach only three times a week – Mondays, Wednesdays and Friday. In the beginning, there were like only ten people at the gym – not even that. Then little by little, we started increasing the number of students. The gym started really blowing...
Kade Ruotolo VS. Andrew Tackett was the most exciting match at CJI. Maybe even the most exciting Jiu-Jitsu match of all time. There are so many comments online of people saying that if they had to introduce their friends to Jiu-Jitsu, THIS would be the one video they would show them. So I wanted to dive deeper into one really incredible moment from the match. (Actually, I’ve been doing this for a few of the best fights from Team Atos on our online platform. See my "P.S.") This was the moment...
In recent weeks, I’ve been thinking a lot about Atos and what it means. I wanted to write a short manifesto – to get my thoughts down in writing and to share them with you guys. You see, I originally chose the name Atos because it’s the Portuguese word for “Acts” which specifically references the “Book of Acts” in the Bible: “God can do amazing things through ordinary people, when He empowers them through His Spirit.” Of course, my Faith will always be tied together with my life’s work. But...