Brazilian Jiu-jitsu

 Brazilian Jiu-jitsu has been around for many years but it wasn't until Royce Gracie in the Ultimate Fighting Championship made it famous in the United States by . Many people were not that familiar with the style until Gracie entered the UFC and dominated fighters of all styles and weight classes one after the other. As soon as people began to see how quickly Royce Gracie could defeat an adversary, they quickly became fascinated with the art of Brazilian Jiu-jitsu.

Brazilian Jiu-jitsu is an martial art that is applied by grappling on the ground , with very little stand up fighting skills involved. A majority of the techniques used with-in the martial art are carried out on the ground. The techniques involve very little strength from the martial artist, as most of the movements are all about the technique behind them. Some Brazilian Jiu-jitsu stylists weigh only 100 lbs or less and can quickly put a submission lock on someone who is two to three times their weight and size.

Although Brazilian Jiu-jitsu is great for tournament fighting, it is not the best style against multiple attackers. It dominates with a one on one fight , but if you are facing multiple attackers it will be very difficult to pull off one of the choke holds or arm locks. You simply will not have the time to do it and could put your self in extreme danger, as the other attackers will be trying to take your head off.

From the ground, employing Brazilian Jiu-jitsu , the martial artist will have many options that he can apply. He can use choke holds, arm locks, leg locks, and plethora of other techniques that can arrest a persons offensive attacks in a matter of seconds. When the artist is on his back with the opponent on top of him he has the guard, which is where he wraps his legs around the aggressor. From the guard positioning, the stylist can execute dozens of moves - even though it may appear he at a disadvantage

The mount, side control, and back mount are principal positions, along with the guard. The mount position is where the artist is mounted on top of the aggressor on the ground - a position where he can punch or perform a submission hold. With side control, the stylist is laying on the opponents chest, a position where he can easily carry out an arm lock. Back mount is among the most dangerous positions for the aggressor - when the martial artist is on the opponents back the artist can really do some damage if the opponent has no ground fighting experience.

In Brazilian Jiu-jitsu , the ranks start out at white belt, then advance to blue, purple, brown, and the highest color - black belt. To move through the grades it requires a lot of practice and commitment, approximately two to three years per belt. When a student reaches black belt, he is capable of becoming a instructor to the other students. It takes more then 10 years to reach this point of mastery, although it is well worth it.

In martial arts world, Brazilian Jiu-jitsu is very effective. It is one of the most effective martial arts for ground fighting, particularly in tournaments. Ground fighting is very popular with martial arts contest these days, which is why it pays to be a well rounded martial artist. Very few martial arts styles can contend with Brazilian Jiu-jitsu on the ground, which is why so many people are deciding to study it. If you have decided to start studying this extraordinary ground based martial art it will a decision you won't regret