The human body: To be a student of jiu jitsu is perhaps more than anything else; TO BE A STUDENT OF THE STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF THE HUMAN BODY. The more knowledge you accumulate in this regard, the more precise your attacks upon your opponent's body and the defense of your own shall be. Our bodies are remarkable insofar as they exhibit both remarkable weakness and surprising strength at the same time. What makes the difference is knowledge and training. Think of two twins separated at birth. One of the twins is out in an Olympic gymnastics program and rigorously trained for decades in elite gymnastic skills. The other is allowed to relax and enjoy himself on the couch and feast and watch movies. When they meet thirty years later, the difference between the two in physical performance capabilities will be massive – EVEN though THE GENETIC DIFFERENCES WILL BE MINIMAL. One will have a deep knowledge of how his body can be utilized to maximize physical performance, whilst the other, despite having virtually the same body, will lack the knowledge of body mechanics to perform anything more than the most rudimentary physical tasks. In jiu jitsu we must learn how make our own body strong, but even more important – HOW TO MAKE THE OPPONENTS BODY SLOW AND WEAK. This requires a deep knowledge of our physical structure and how to hold it in positions that prevent it from moving efficiently and how to manipulate it in ways that cause it damage. In the long term, we also need knowledge of dietary and lifestyle habits that extend the lifetime of our body, since our goal is to train for the longest possible time to accumulate the most skill possible. This is wisdom with regards the human body the beginning and end of wisdom with regards jiu jitsu. The latter cannot be understood without the former. Here, rapidly developing kohai student, Oliver Taza shows excellent knowledge of the structure of the upper body as he ties up an opponent with juji gatame (armlock) at a recent tournament. Look how immobilization skills allow him to maintain a very relaxed demeanor to begin solving the problems his opponent is creating and go in to overcome them and take victory.
