Jiu Jitsu Quotes

This is a trust that you just cannot find in modern society for there are no conditions to forge it. ~ Chris Matakas

I have seen far by seeing through the lens of Jiu Jitsu. I have exchanged a great deal of physical health for these insights, and these were trades worth making. My efforts were worth the return. I have sacrificed much in the name of this craft. Not for trophies or belts or prestige. For these fall away like dust. I pursued this art so fervently because it was not actually Jiu Jitsu I pursued. It was myself. ~ Chris Matakas

After I received my blue belt, I soon recognized that the belts were simply an external representation of an inner experience, and that they mattered little compared to the person I was becoming. ~ Chris Matakas

Relationships formed through Jiu Jitsu are deeply rooted in respect for one another, and this is often not the case in matters of modern society. ~ Chris Matakas

I have been given the rare opportunity to teach Jiu Jitsu for a living. This is a privilege that I wake up everyday grateful for, and a responsibility that I hold dearly. I understand how rare it is to be employed through a labor you genuinely love, and one which can be used as a vehicle for positive change in the lives of others. Even rarer still, I am often reminded of the quality of Jiu Jitsu I have learned, and the opportunity to have learned it. ~ Chris Matakas

To achieve anything we must grind, but to enjoy anything we must flow. ~ Chris Matakas

Jiu Jitsu has shown me that we are not confined to the lot which we inherit. We are not bound to these fetters eternally. They are temporal. We can transcend them should we sincerely choose to. Sincere effort is in fact the rarest virtue among man. ~ Chris Matakas

I use my understanding of jiu jitsu as a road map to learn other activities. I look for the similarities between the two, and use jiu jitsu as an allegory for whatever my new practice may be. I truly believe once you have learned one thing, you have learned all things because you have learned how to learn. ~ Chris Matakas

We call it training. Not because we are training for Jiu Jitsu. We are training for life. ~ Chris Matakas

I believe that which you study is only matched in importance by the sincerity with which you approach it. ~ Chris Matakas

Through Jiu Jitsu I have developed many of the most meaningful relationships in my life, and if that were the only benefit of my practice, Jiu Jitsu would still be the best endeavor I have ever undertaken. ~ Chris Matakas

I will continue dedicating myself to MMA in 2015, but fighting in the ADCC interests me, yes.. The Jiu-Jitsu Worlds does not interest me, I see fighters with a different goal from mine. They want to hold your sleeve, grab you and wait for time to pass. They just want to stall the game. I do not see this as a real fight, I see only as a strategy to win. For me, Jiu-Jitsu is much more than that. ~ Kron Gracie

The highest aim was never to master Jiu Jitsu; it was to master myself. ~ Chris Matakas

The road from white belt to black is long and arduous; most never reach the end. There are simply too many obstacles of daily life, and too much effort and attention required, for this to be something that the majority of practitioners achieve. This is why a black belt in Jiu Jitsu, especially from a reputable source, is the pinnacle of martial arts rank. It is valuable because of what must be traded for its achievement. ~ Chris Matakas

I do trust you though. I think if someone tried to take me, you'd at least fight them for me a little…" I watched his face for a moment before narrowing my eyes. "Wouldn't you?"

That had his other eye popping open, his cheeks still slightly pink, but everything else about him completely alert. "You know I would."

Why that pleased me so much, I wasn't going to overanalyze.

"If someone tried to take you, I know aikido, some jiu-jitsu, and kickboxing," I offered him up. "But my dentist says I have really strong teeth, so I'd be better off trying to bite someone's finger or ear off instead."

Aaron's eyebrows climbed up his forehead almost comically. "Like a little Chihuahua," he suggested, the spoon going into his mouth with a sly grin.

I winked at him, immediately regretting it. I didn't want it to come across like I was flirting. "I was thinking more of a piranha. I've only had one filling in my entire life," I told him, wishing each word coming out of my mouth wasn't coming out of it.

If he thought I was being awkward or a flirt, he didn't make it known. "Or a raptor."

"A lion."

"A tiger."

"Did you know a jaguar has twice the strength in its bite than a tiger does?"

Aaron frowned as he took another bite of his oatmeal. "No shit?"

"No. Two thousand pounds per square inch. They're the only big cat that kills their prey by biting its head, through bone and ever ~ Mariana Zapata

In Jiu Jitsu, we often fall into the trap of simply trying a technique "harder," rather than recognizing that it is a poorly chosen tool for the task at hand. ~ Chris Matakas

There is no more valuable skill than studentship. The farther we go down one area of human understanding, the more we see the corollaries that all activities share. Everything I do for the rest of my life, all the skills I acquire, will be made possible because of my time spent on the mats. It has revealed a symbiosis between all things that I never knew existed. ~ Chris Matakas

We must remember that regardless of our differences in rank we are all equal as human beings. You can always tell how caring and compassionate others are in their actions towards those "below" them. Of course you are going to treat your black belt professor kindly, but how do you treat the white belt taking their first class? In spite of the division in belt rank there must be no division as people. ~ Chris Matakas

The major events in our lives receive the entire spotlight, but ultimately your life will be defined by the same handful of choices you make each day. ~ Chris Matakas

The infinitude of Jiu Jitsu allows for the infinitude of the types of practitioners. There exists a game for each and every one of us which is specifically possible within the confines of our particular skill set. ~ Chris Matakas

When you realize you are no longer made of glass, you lose the desire to demonstrate that fragility in others. ~ Chris Matakas

Devoting yourself to a particular art is invaluable. The art becomes our vehicle with which we drive down the road of life. We use this vehicle to learn about ourselves and this place, to conquer fears, to become more of what we already are. In my own life, I have found most valuable the transferable skills of learning from jiu jitsu to all other facets of day to day study. In devoting myself with such commitment to this art, in undertaking the task of understanding jiu jitsu to whatever degree by circumstance allows, I have unknowingly learned how to learn. ~ Chris Matakas

The best thing that could've happened to me was that I learned a lot in Vegas, but I didn't know how to implement it. Whenever I came to Texas, all we had was Marc Laimon, jiu-jitsu coach. We didn't have a striking coach. So me and him started to just develop our own game, because he knows nothing about striking. We sat down and we sort of found my style. I think that was the best thing that could've happened to me. ~ Johny Hendricks

Autopilot is great, and removal of thought is one of the highest ideals of training. But removal of thought in the moment must be preceded by purposeful thought beforehand. ~ Chris Matakas

We must remember that science is a way of using empirical evidence to better understand our world. We are all scientists, just many of us are not very good ones. However, we are all capable of exercising our intellects in a purposeful, linear pursuit of knowledge. ~ Chris Matakas

Turning the other cheek is a kind of moral jiu-jitsu. ~ Gerald Stanley Lee

I wasn't a good student, and even now I never say that I am better than anybody, but I know I love Jiu Jitsu more than anybody. I love the energy and that it gets deeper the more you study. ~ Marcelo Garcia

Do not seek victory, for victory in itself will not serve you. Seek to understand what made the victory possible. ~ Chris Matakas

People that don't know and hear about it, they start to think that all the people that do jiu-jitsu smokes pot, is a drug addict. Here I am fighting for something good, and the guy is fighting for something bad, in my point of view. I can't agree with that, what he represents. Nothing to do with his jiu-jitsu, his school. If you want to do something like that, do it in private. Keep it to yourself. ~ Royce Gracie

I am fortunate to be content with having very little, and so I never wanted the new car, fancy clothes, the big TV and the video games. All I ever wanted to do was read, walk through the woods and do Jiu Jitsu. When this is the foundation upon which your life is built, you need very little in the way of material security. ~ Chris Matakas

The time we spend talking about Jiu Jitsu is time not spent practicing Jiu Jitsu. This is a necessary aspect of study, but it is one we mustn't lose ourselves in; we learn best by doing. ~ Chris Matakas

We must not learn to try harder. The key is to learn how not to try in the first place. ~ Chris Matakas

Consistently failing is nothing more than an indication that you are progressing. The more we fail the farther we will see. Failure is not an option; it is the only option. A master is a master because he has had the courage to fail and the wisdom to learn from it. ~ Chris Matakas

I train because it makes every area of my life better, and it makes me better at every area of my life. ~ Chris Matakas

Anyone who is serious about jiu-jitsu should know that the ability to defeat an opponent is nothing more than a metaphor for the ultimate combat, for the most significant victories are the ones we accomplish within ourselves ~ Rorion Gracie

There is no concrete way to play Jiu Jitsu, and this is why so many different types of people find joy in it. ~ Chris Matakas

I wanted to get to the most essential aspect of my being, and look around for a while. I wanted to explore what I am in my most basic self. I wanted to chip away at all of the nonsense I have acquired through my twenty-nine years on this earth. I wanted to find truth. Thoreau went to the woods. I went to the mats. Jiu Jitsu has peeled the veil of daily life, and has shown me what lies beyond the curtain. We willingly accept the chains that circumstance forces upon us, and we grow to find comfort in them. We attach various fetters of day-to-day living to our being, and we do so with a smile. We accept these constraints for they come in the way of comfort. We accept conformity for it appears the path of least resistance. We strive toward the middle, and we run from ourselves. ~ Chris Matakas

Nothing worthwhile ever came from divided attention. ~ Chris Matakas

I believe the real reason we pursue anything in life is not for the thing itself, but for who we become on the way to its accomplishment. We strive to accomplish things in the attempt to mold ourselves. The greatest benefits Jiu Jitsu will have in your life will have nothing to do with Jiu Jitsu. It is this simple understanding that allows me to persist in my study. Even on the rare days when I may not have a burning desire to practice Jiu Jitsu, I am reminded that my practicing Jiu Jitsu is more accurately my practicing to become a better human being. The lessons I learn on the mat will serve me in every area of life
personal development, relationships, business, and the like. ~ Chris Matakas

We can either approach Jiu Jitsu through the lens of the "real world" or we can approach the real world through the lens of Jiu Jitsu. I have found the latter to be far more rewarding. ~ Chris Matakas

I don't even know how to swim! ~ Lea Thompson

Where my tendons have been torn, my psyche has been mended. This was a worthy trade. ~ Chris Matakas

The idea of jiu-jitsu is to give the little guy a chance to beat the big guy. ~ Royce Gracie

Today's world is flooded with participation trophies. In an attempt to promote equality we have robbed our youth of the most growth-inducing aspect of competition, failing. If you want to be resurrected, you have to first be crucified. Everybody wants to be reborn, but no one is willing to die. Losing, in the context of whatever arena it may be, is a microcosmic death. When we learn from our failures and grow because of them, we are reborn. ~ Chris Matakas

Jiu Jitsu has given me an education in education, which I now see is the most valuable education there is. ~ Chris Matakas

Anyone can be tough for a season. It takes a special kind of human to rise to life's challenges for a lifetime. ~ Chris Matakas

The medal from an old grappling tournament will not serve me today, but the courage I developed in its acquisition will. By investing in yourself, by using all endeavors as a vehicle to shape who we are, we exist in the present moment with a lifetime of growth behind us. I have loved many vehicles throughout the years, Jiu Jitsu more than any other, but the vehicle has, and always will, be a distant second to the driver. ~ Chris Matakas

The only way to consistently perform at your potential is to ask: Am I better than I was yesterday? ~ Chris Matakas

After jiu-jitsu, you will appreciate how well the body works without our even realizing or recognizing it. You will, however, have some insight into its extraordinariness when you have trouble wiping your bum because it hurts to straighten your arm. I guarantee at that point and time you will really appreciate what your body can do. ~ Mark Johnson

For the sincere student, it mustn't be enough to simply understand Jiu Jitsu. We must seek to understand ourselves. ~ Chris Matakas

If you are not comortable to deal with an opponent 50 lbs heavier than you, there is something wrong with your Jiu Jitsu ... ~ Rickson Gracie

Sometimes I train in the middle of the night, all on my own. Can't sleep, don't want to sleep, get up, go to the gym, work. This is early for me, being here at half ten in the morning, this is really early, and I'm only here because I screwed up yesterday and kept you hanging around. Other times I'll call up my wrestling coach, or my jiu jitsu coach, or my deep-tissue guy, and want to really focus on one part of what I do. I train in all these different disciplines. ~ Conor McGregor

I had no desire of being professionally successful. No desire for material wealth. All I wanted out of life was Jiu Jitsu. ~ Chris Matakas

Jiu Jitsu has given me something to pursue. We all need something to work towards. For people, as well as every piece of matter in the universe, there is no such thing as maintenance. If you are not growing you are decaying. The insidious nature of modern times is that it is so easy not to pursue anything. Societal norms pressure us into jobs we do not like, and the daily comforts of televisions and computers offer much in the way of distraction. If that isn't enough, there is always the numbing effects of alcohol coupled with attention-grabbing sporting events which conveniently run year round so one is never short of stimulus. ~ Chris Matakas

If you can wrestle but not play Jiu Jitsu, or you can play Jiu Jitsu but not wrestle, you are not a complete grappler and lack the sufficient skills to safely subdue an opponent. ~ Chris Matakas

The con is a kind of jiu-jitsu that turns the sucker's own greed into its principal weapon. The greedier you are the more likely you are to be conned, and for the greater a sum. Since people regularly dispose of their intelligence in their rush to be swindled, and then turn right around and do it again, humans must want to be duped. Institutionalized wishful thinking - the stock market, religion, advertising - is after all a cornerstone of our system. ~ Luc Sante

Jiu Jitsu uses us to express itself, and the best thing we can do to is to become a vehicle capable of expressing Jiu Jitsu with all of its perfection minus our imperfections. ~ Chris Matakas

Jiu-Jitsu is like a philosophy. It helps me learn how to face life. ~ Helio Gracie

When you do Jiu Jitsu, you won't look at a bigger guy and say 'oh no', you'll look and say 'how interesting!' ~ Rener Gracie

The big, strong, tough guy goes to class, and he keeps getting tapped by the skinny, technical guy. It begins to change him. It makes him humble. That's what Jiu Jitsu does to you. It makes you humble. ~ Relson Gracie

The pine fought the storm and broke. The willow yielded to the wind and snow and did not break. Practice Jiu-Jitsu in just this way. ~ Kano Jigoro

We seek to understand Jiu Jitsu as a vehicle to understand ourselves. We have different explicit goals, from getting in shape, learning self-defense or competition, but tacitly we all seek mastery of ourselves. ~ Chris Matakas

Make no mistake, you earn a white belt. The belt is a physical representation of a commitment to the beginner's mind. It is a vulnerability and a willingness to learn that shines through. ~ Chris Matakas

I don't know Jiu-Jitsu, I don't know wrestling, all I know is how to fight. Period. ~ James Toney

I train Jiu Jitsu because I recognize that I am a piece of the whole, and as I grow so does that which contains me. The whole of man advances with the growth of a single individual. Every life I influence is benefited from the fact that I have devoted such a large portion of my life to this pursuit. I will be a better husband, father, and whatever other future roles I may hold because of my time in this sport. In making me a better man, I know that society as a whole is improved. ~ Chris Matakas

I grew up in Westlake Villiage, a suburb of L.A. There was a guy there who was a fighter and was like, 'I'll teach you to box.' I started a little bit of boxing, then it crossed over into jiu-jitsu. I was into it for a little while, but then I started doing basketball, baseball, team sports. ~ Jonathan Lipnicki

Plateaus are a manifestation of the law of diminishing returns, and when we reach one it simply means that it is time to adjust our methods. ~ Chris Matakas

Sometimes, you don't have to win, you cannot win. but that has nothing to do with losing. ~ Rickson Gracie

I can think of no more worthwhile aim than pursuing mastery in this craft while transcending one's own limitations. ~ Chris Matakas

Jiu Jitsu is the vehicle. Not the road. ~ Chris Matakas

A real jiu-jitsu fighter does not go around beating people down. Our defense is made to neutralize aggression. ~ Helio Gracie

Jiu Jitsu at the end of the day, is the art of expressing yourself honestly. Everytime you put on a Gi, you can't lie. ~ Saulo Ribeiro

Boxing, jiu-jitsu, scaling the Matterhorn ... I did cardio before cardio was cool. ~ Theodore Roosevelt

When you first start to do jiu-jitsu everyone has the goal of being a black belt. You want to be great at everything you do. ~ Junior Dos Santos

I do Jiu Jitsu so I can protect you when I fight you. ~ Ryron Gracie

Jiu-jitsu is personal efficiency to protect the weaker, which anyone can do. It is the force of leverage against brute force. ~ Helio Gracie

Jiu Jitsu is cognitively-complex, so much so that there is a great barrier to entry in terms of intellect. I have never met a great Jiu Jitsu player who was not highly intelligent, and I don't think I ever will. ~ Chris Matakas

I believe we must pursue mastery for who we become along the way in its achievement. When we progress in Jiu Jitsu, that newfound experience and wisdom transcends into all areas of our lives. We use Jiu Jitsu as the vehicle for growth, but that growth radiates over all of human activity. Someone who devotes time and energy in learning this skill is learning far more than how to subdue an opponent. The student learns persistence, perseverance, pattern recognition, problem solving, and most importantly, learning how to learn. In the arena of life, these virtues are far more valuable than any guard pass. ~ Chris Matakas

Jiu Jitsu opened up doors in my mind that public education had bolted shut. In hindsight, I see just how superficial my thoughts had been prior to this art. It is no coincidence that my efforts in reading and writing have run parallel with this craft. I began training Jiu Jitsu at twenty-two, and at the time of this writing I am about to turn thirty. I have learned more in the past eight years than the previous twenty-two, and have no doubts that Jiu Jitsu opened up my mind in a way traditional organized education never could. Jiu Jitsu gave me a life when I didn't know how to live. It is the best thing I have ever done, and is the foundation upon which all I will do. ~ Chris Matakas

It is fellowship, this most fundamental need on our way toward achieving our highest expression of the human experience, which Jiu Jitsu provides. ~ Chris Matakas

I believe the best use of ones life is to serve others through a medium you are most passionate. Jiu Jitsu allows me the opportunity to give someone my time in the pursuit of THEIR dreams. It affords me the gift of willingly spending my non-redeemable life in the interest of another. Jiu JItsu has given me the opportunity to positively influence countless lives. ~ Chris Matakas

I would more appropriately define mastery as the technical ability possible within the constraints of your particular existence. It must be noted that this is a subjective definition, and that this degree of mastery would be individual to each of us. ~ Chris Matakas

Your progress as a Jiu Jitsu practitioner is a direct reflection of the standards you have for yourself. ~ Chris Matakas

To base your self worth relative to others is to play a losing game. If you are at the bottom, you will be filled with self-loathing. If you are at the top, you will be filled with self-aggrandizement and ego. This will most certainly be one of your greatest obstacles to achieving whatever degree of mastery you are capable. ~ Chris Matakas

Jiu Jitsu gives each of us something that no other sport can. We have the opportunity to become truly great regardless of what circumstance fate has handed us. We have complete freedom and responsibility to achieve whatever level of mastery we wish. ~ Chris Matakas

Jiu Jitsu shielded me from all of this. While many were investing in jobs they did not like, or frequenting bars and spending their weekends in front of the television, I pursued something worthy of my choosing. I say this not to slander another, but to show the sincerity with which I appreciate Jiu Jitsu's influence in my life. It saved me from the rat race. I found a reason to eat healthy, to get to bed early. A reason to stay in Friday nights, resulting in fewer beers and more books. I found a medium with which to carve my soul. ~ Chris Matakas

I've been training Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu all my life. Boxing, kickboxing. I'm definitely not a fighter, but I defend my honor. ~ Spencer Pratt

Jiu Jitsu is basic training for life. We are training not to learn how to fight, but how to live. ~ Chris Matakas

Jiu Jitsu removes the societal walls that we have been forced to unknowingly hold up with our adopted beliefs. It removes the limits of common thought, and allows for expression of our highest ideals. ~ Chris Matakas

Thoreau went to the woods. I went to the mats. ~ Chris Matakas

The high-minded pursuit of a Jiu Jitsu practitioner pursuing mastery cannot coexist well with the modern world. Our values vary immensely from our contemporaries. This pursuit leaves societal norms slaughtered in our wake. Those who share this journey will praise our efforts; those in the hive will think we have lost it. We must be willing to be misunderstood if we are to understand ourselves. ~ Chris Matakas

For me, I learnt from jiu-jitsu and martial arts to be humble and to go forward in life in a positive way. ~ Ricardo Liborio

We can lose the roll, we can lose position, but we can constantly strive to win the moment. ~ Chris Matakas

The ground is my ocean, I'm the shark, and most people don't even know how to swim. ~ Carlos Machado

Jiu Jitsu gave me the opportunity to be a real human being. It opened my heart and my mind. I am kinder, more gentle and more loving due to my efforts in this art. ~ Chris Matakas

When I started out, Jiu-Jitsu was really an elite thing in Brazil, and there was some prejudice towards poorer kids, so I had to learn things on my own. Some of my neighbours started doing Jiu-Jitsu, so I started watching it, and then started rolling with them. It wasn't organized training, but it was better than nothing. ~ Anderson Silva

Many of us begin this art with little to no understanding of what we are getting ourselves into. Then, maybe a year or a black belt later, we realize this odyssey we have embarked upon and rest happily in knowing we have chosen a noble struggle.

I think we owe most of our successes to our initial ignorance. When we begin, we cannot see the obstacles ahead, and so we march on optimistically. In hindsight, when we look back and connect the dots, we see just how green we were at the start, and it was only our ignorance that upheld us from the crushing despair of the task at hand. ~ Chris Matakas

If you are fortunate enough to have a particular activity with which you find greatest joy and technical success, it is your responsibility as a growing human being to continue that study. Whatever your endeavor, if you can expand upon the knowledge in your strongest subject, that new found understanding of all things will trickle down to every other area of your life. ~ Chris Matakas

In Jiu Jitsu an inch is a mile, and a second is an eternity. Use each wisely. ~ Chris Matakas

An arm bar in a vacuum is worthless. It is the realization of the truths which constitute that arm bar that is the real treasure we seek. ~ Chris Matakas