The Path to Purple

[Editor’s note:  This article is from the soon to be released RDA Student Handbook]

By TJ Brodeur

As I write this,  I have been a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu for just over one month.  The process of my transition from blue to purple is still very clear in my head, and has given me a much greater appreciation for the complexity and elegance of this art.  I hope that by sharing my experience in earning my purple belt, I will give the new practitioner a glimpse into a deeper part of the game and view of what is to come if they stick with it. 

There are many things that have changed for me on the way from white belt to purple belt.  However, to compare and contrast these changes, let me focus on three terms define this progression: clarity, efficiency, and purpose. 

Efficiency

Most new students leave their first classes—particularly after their first rolling experience—saying the same thing: “I need to get in better shape.”  While this may be true to some degree, the real problem—as Roy discusses so well in the Blue Belt Requirements DVD—is poor gas mileage or,  put another way, inefficiency of movement.  Plainly put, new students lack the basic skills to move themselves on the ground.

For the student who focuses their early efforts on learning and practicing fundamental movement drills (e.g., shrimping, rolling, bridging, etc), overcoming this gas mileage problem is easily accomplished and is their first real break-though in the art. 

By the time we reach blue belt, most students have made great improvements in energy conservation and economy of motion.  With the progression from blue belt to purple belt I have discovered the next evolution in improving efficiency. 

At first, this improvement manifested itself in more seamless transitions between movements.  The individual steps that defined a given technique at blue belt have morphed into a single, fluid movement.  The gaps that existed between, say, passing the guard and securing an arm lock have gotten smaller and smaller, until the momentum of the first carries into the second. 

But recently I have noticed an even more profound change in my efficiency; the ability to multi-task.  This was unexpected, but has dramatically changed my game.  There is now overlap in my movements and techniques.  While moving into mount, I find myself already beginning to control and isolate an arm.  This allows me to be 90% complete with my submission attempt by the time I establish my position; greatly increasing my effectiveness in getting the actual submission.

Much of this improved efficiency has been the result of drilling.  In hindsight, I now recognize how important—and often neglected—this aspect of training is.  Drilling movement and combinations, particularly while preparing for my purple belt demonstration, was the vehicle for change I experienced.  To the new student, I would offer the suggestion to resist the urge spar all the time, and instead use some portion of each open mat to drill techniques.

Clarity

Looking back at my first year (maybe two years) of training, the only way I can describe it is chaos.  It didn’t seem like chaos then, but is sure does in retrospect.  Chaos was in every aspect of my training.  Sparring was an exhausting thrash; desperately scrambling for positions and frantically—often futilely—grabbing for submissions.  Even after getting my blue belt, much of my sparring was still a random search for how to use the techniques I knew in a given situation.  I had not yet developed a “game”, as I will discuss later.

As a purple belt, rolling is no longer the foreign, confusing event it once was.  Instead has become more of a chess game for me.  I understand the rules of the game, I can see the position of the pieces on the board, and I know how each of them can move. 

Getting caught in a submission is no longer a “where did that come from” event.  Instead, I am aware of the set up and my options as the set up is happening, but getting tapped is often much more the result of a strategic error; I see the armlock set-up and the choke threat to prevent my counter, I begin to rotate, aware of the risk to my opposite arm, but leave it out for a fraction of a second too long, and “check mate.”  Conversely, the opposite is true; I have a better understanding of the strategies that make my own submissions work.

An additional dimension to this clarity is having a better understanding of what my opponent will do in a given situation.  I now know that if standing, a brand new student is likely to drop their head and attempt a tackle (perfect opening for a guillotine) or a bigger student will be likely to attempt to reach out and choke me if in my guard (truly a gift if you are ready to rotate for the arm lock). 

The magic of the submission that seems to “come out of nowhere,” that all of us have felt when rolling with a higher belt, is often just this; they knew what you were likely going to do before you did and were setting up while you were still dealing with the last movement.  As a purple belt, I get to be on the right side of this situation much more than I ever did when I was a blue belt.

Purpose

My definition of purpose is being deliberate and having a defined road map to rolling and training.  This is really just a result of the efficiency and clarity discussed above, but is more than that.  For the first time since starting BJJ, I feel I am developing a “game”.  As I stated before, the early parts of most of our training is a random search for techniques. 

The first step out of this was finding my first my first “bread and butter” submission.  For me this was the straight arm bar from the guard and it opened up a a whole new dimension to rolling.  It provided a regular method for “getting the tap”, but more importantly, it gave me something I could threaten my opponent with.

In hindsight, this was the first step to developing a game.  Having a way to force or at least encourage my opponent to respond to this threat, I was able to steer the direction of the fight.  I could begin to use the arm lock as a jab or feint, opening up other opportunities for submissions or sweeps; forcing my opponent into the position I wanted.

Simply put, having a “game” means having the ability to develop and implement a strategy.  I can set an objective while rolling and use the movements and techniques I know to get there.  The things I do have now have a very specific purpose.  This purpose to what I do on the mat has also affected how I train between sparring sessions.

Having a strategy I’m trying to implement allows me to better determine which things I need to focus on while training.  I often analyze my game for holes or weaknesses, figuring out which techniques I need to get better at, and focusing on those.  I determine tactical deficiencies and set out to obtain the weapons I need to fix them.

In closing, I will say that while I have discovered these things and they represent a significant achievement, this art is extremely deep and my development continues.  I will likely look back at my time as a purple belt much like I now look back at my white and blue belt years.  BJJ is much more enjoyable to me as a purple belt than as a blue belt, as imagine it will be even more enjoyable as a brown and, ultimately,  a black belt. 

To the new student, I would say to keep goin despite the frustration that may arise in the early parts of training.  It will get easier, it will get better. 

Look forward to each new breakthrough and enjoy it, but understand that with each new breakthrough comes a new challenge, and a new layer of the art that you were not remotely aware of.  Embrace this.