The Strenuous Life Podcast With Stephan Kesting / Grapplearts Radio

I'm on fire for this one because it really gets under my skin when people focus on the wrong thing in their martial arts training.  Boys and girls, it's about skill acquisition and NOT about the color of your belt.  Get this wrong and it will destroy your relationship to the martial arts!

Unfortunately injuries are just part of the game, and getting back to training after recuperating from an injury is always a tricky business.  In this episode I give some of my best advice about exactly how your return to the mats should be structured.  This is advice I've learned the hard way so take my advice - for the longest time I didn't use it myself and I wish I had!

This is for everyone - beginner and experienced martial artist - with a very tight schedule who can't train more than once a week.  Can you still make progress?  What are some tips for getting as good as you can when time is limited?  How do you not lose hope, momentum and confidence during these inevitable training slowdowns? Of course my main site is Grapplearts.com, but also check out my other site SelfDefenseTutorials.com where I'm posting a TON of martial arts and self defense tactics, techniques and training methods.

Endurance is the most important physical attribute in combat sport, but it can be time consuming to develop.  In this short episode I talk about some of the most efficient cardio protocols that I've used during periods of my life when I had no time for long, leisurely cardio.

I'm thrilled to bring you guys Pshemek Drabczynski who was my first BJJ teacher.  Pshemek is a BJJ black belt, a WKA North American kickboxing champion, and a physical conditioning guru.  In this episode we talk about martial arts specific fitness, getting stronger, improving endurance, eating properly preventing injuries, fasting and much more. If you're in the Orange County area and are looking for a personal trainer make sure to check out Pshemek at http://www.besthometrainer.com

A few days ago I had a great training session, and then today I had a bad one.  Here's why I didn't get too excited or bothered by either one, and why you shouldn't either!

This is a really good episode in which I talk to my friend, BJJ black belt, and world traveller Budo Jake. We cover a ton of topics including the evolution of Japanese ju-jutsu into BJJ, getting choked unconscious, the effectiveness of wrist locks in grappling, brain damage from striking, yoga and other recover methods, training at different academies, and advice for newbies.  Enjoy!

I really enjoyed being on James '300' Foster's podcast where we talked about figuring out grappling from scratch, why fighters fight injured, PEDs in the MMA, how jiu-jitsu will always be there for you after a long layoff, and a lot more!  I hope you enjoy it too! Check out Jame's podcast on iTunes at https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-spartan-underground/id1070092297?mt=2

Here's a quick rant about whether you should still train if you're beginning to come down with something.  The lessons in this particular podcast have repeated themselves many times until learned...

This is a fantastic episode.  I chat with historian Daniele Bolelli about everything from rough and tumble frontier wrestling, Theodore Roosevelt sparring in the White House,  what it's like to be a historian lecturing with bruises and black eyes, how martial arts helps people survive tough times, and much more. Check out Daniele's amazing History on Fire podcast at http://historyonfirepodcast.com Check out Daniele Bolelli teaching an strange technique for MMA at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaELw7GWvlw and getting elbow speared in the face at http://historyonfirepodcast.com The central page for this podcast if you want to share it is here: http://www.grapplearts.com/eye-gouging-hair-pulling-theodore-roosevelt-historian-daniele-bolelli/ Thank so much!  Enjoy!! 

It's a HUGE mistake to focus on techniques like biting, finger breaks and eye-gouging and avoiding techniques you can try out under pressure and against resistance in sparring.  Here's why that's the case, and why most martial sports participants are actually far deadlier than most martial artists.  

You'll like this episode!  In it I talk with 62 yr old BJJ black belt Rabbi Mordecai Finley (the Wrassling Rabbi) about starting BJJ at a later age, picking the right jiu-jitsu club, training after a heart attack, the horrors of the Eastern Front in World War 2, interpreting the Torah, being Leonard Cohen's Rabbi, and awarding Blue Belts in marriage counselling.  

In this episode I go into depth about why you (and everyone else) should train in martial arts.  Hint: it's not about self defense, fitness or socialising; those things are definitely benefits, but they're not the core reason that martial arts training is so transformative.  For more on this topic you can also check out a blog post I wrote on Grapplearts called Blood, Sweat and... Sparta!

I think you'll like this one!  In this episode I talk to 280 lb BJJ Masters World Champion James '300' Foster, fresh back from a pre Pan-Ams California training trip. We discuss getting kicked our of Karate after starting BJJ, the process of finding the correct mix of training that works best for you, cutting weight in BJJ, how to train successfully with smaller and/or less skilled students, 'modern’ BJJ techniques appearing in old Judo, the movie Logan and our favourite comic books.

Stephan talks with Filipino Martial Arts instructor Jarlo Ilano about sparring with sticks and knives, self defense and how the training methods you're using affect how your martial art will express itself when you're trying to use it under stress. Jarlo Ilano is an instructor under Burton Richardson https://jkdunlimited.com/ in his Battlefield Kali system and a purple belt in BJJ. And as well as being a physical therapist since 1998 with a board specialty in orthopedics, he is a co-founder and Managing Director at GMB Fitness https://gmb.io/ which specializes in online training for improving strength, flexibility, and body control through bodyweight exercise.

Stephan rants about the ethics and legal consquences of smashing someone's head in with a piece of concrete, otherwise known as the pavement coup de grace.  Check out the video version of this rant at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RF-J1M5QJs

In this 13 minute rant Stephan goes into the 3 essential components that make up every martial art on the planet, a concept he learned from the famous Filipino martial artist (and protege of Bruce Lee) Mr Dan Inosanto!  Lots of examples from Judo, Boxing, Wrestling, BJJ, MMA, Kali, Capoeira, and Kung Fu...

  This is a fun conversation about BJJ, Judo and MMA with Jeff Meszaros, one of the guys I started training with 23 years ago! Self defense applications of BJJ Russian team MMA events Judo, BJJ and the early days of the Uncle Willy's Grappling Association The joys and hazards of learning BJJ in Brazil The evolution of BJJ (and how we got to double guard pulls) Why describing BJJ as 'Male Pyjama Wrestler' tends to give people the wrong idea And much more...

It's way too easy to slack off and get totally out of shape when things get busy in your personal or professional life.  Here are some tips and training methods that'll keep you within striking distance of your optimum fitness level. Something is better than nothing, always!

Bernardo Faria, 5 x BJJ World Champion, discusses his training and conditioning routine with Stephan Kesting. We talked about what Exactly what his day to day training regimen looks like, Who he spars with How he's balancing his training as he gets older, How his training regimen changes as he gets closer to competition, Whether you should do extra conditioning or not, How he gets his signature guard pass on everybody, Health and nutrition, And a whole lot more. This was an episode of my podcast, the 'Grapplearts Radio Podcast', which you can  find on iTunes, Youtube, Stitcher, and Soundcloud. Here are the links: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/grapplearts-radio-all-things/id320705565?mt=2 http://www.youtube.com/stephankesting http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/stephan-kesting/grapplearts-radio-podcast https://soundcloud.com/user-993426357 And if you want an 'I Love BJJ' shirt you can grab that on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01BW64LDC