Archives for March 2013

Marcos realized a huge personal goal this last weekend.  He attained his first IBJJF Pan American Gold medal.  After a major campaign and lots of work, he had the following to say via facebook the next day:

Good morning!!!  As I wake up this morning the reality of a goal realized sinks in and I can reflect on both its merits and my next steps.  I am humbled by my experience yesterday as I Was able to fight very well with men I studied and have come to esteem at a deep level.  No one here knows how BAD I wanted this, and how hard I worked and I wanted to give some insight into Just how obsessed I was with Panams:

Panams was a tournament I considered “bad luck” for many years.  Those that know me now know that by implementing “mind power” I can get past these obstructions, but hear me out: One year I broke 2 ribs, another I broke my left foot off a toe hold in practice.  I had bad allergies that had me sick as a dog one year and I went through a NASTY divorce another.  Truth be told I CREATED a negative reality surrounding this tourney. This year I was determined to break the cycle!

I prepped my body and mind, making HUGE sacrifices to realize my goal.  I drilled at early hours of the am to prep some parts of my game and did 3-4 practices a day.  When Caio Terra presented the option to do a camp I asked to participate immediately.  Realizing the stress this places on my ( I teach ALL my classes at my gym and hate missing class to assure everyone gets the work they need) students; I am eternally grateful for their patience with me as I would not have been able to reach my goal had I not been in proper shape.

To Caio Terra, Leandro Lo, Quexinho, Samir Chantre, Marcus Antelante , Rafael Barbosa, Vicente Jr, Manny Diaz, Nathan Mendelson, and the TONS more at The camp THANK YOU!  Thank you so much for helping me!  I am very happy to have been a part of that camp and you can count on me to be a participant in the future!  To my students I thank them profusely as it is with THEM I do most of my training.  Thank you guys for supporting me in my endeavors!  To my son who is a HUGE fountain of motivation, no importa si me muera mañana estas palabras no se borraran: te amo mi hijo bello y espero que cuando leas esto te sientas dichoso de ser mi hijo!

To all my sponsors; Gilberto from Jiu Jitsu Pro Gear for that KICK ASS black gi I fought with!  I love it!  For Sam at NHBGEAR, your support since I was a purple belt has been clutch throughout the years!  For Peter and Penny Stone as their faith in me has also permitted me to realize my goals, Pete with your help and advice I am a better person, thank you for being in my corner!

Thank you to all the people that follow me (on facebook, twitter, youtube, etc), Team Yemaso is not going ANYWHERE and don’t get it sick and twisted, I am as hungry as EVER and this won’t stop here!  Major medals coming back to Team Yemaso as we are on a righteous path and only good can come from that!  Sorry if I left anyone out thank you all again and now on to the NY Open!

Btw, I wanted to mention that for almost 3 months I went to the gym with the SAME SHIRT ON!  My Panams shirt from God knows when but I saw the words: “Pan Ams” and focused on my goal. I saw no one, no machines, no weights, just myself on the podium.  I was so damn focused and so prepped that a recent back AND knee injury were not enough to derail me.  We live in the realities we create ladies and gentlemen.  I chose to not be derailed by a little bit of pain to achieve my ultimate goal and I did not have to step over anyone’s back to get there.  Thank God for giving me the lessons necessary to bring me to this goal here today and thank you all for believing in me!
Osu

 

Follow Marcos on Facebook & Twitter.

Team Yemaso Wins IBJJF Team Title at the IBJJF San Francisco 2013 Open

Last weekend was busy for Team Yemaso!  Saturday I met with fellow Team Yemaso coach
Eliot Kelly from EDHBJJ to attend the 2013 IBJJF Referee Course to update myself on the current changes to the rules.  Whether you like them or not, we all play by rules and in my humble opinion it is IMPERATIVE to learn them.  One of the biggest crimes of our sport is undereducated practitioners, not just the competitors but the refs as well.  I have seen coaches scream horrible things at the refs, wishing ill on their family for 3 generations, just as I was witness on Sunday to some of the worst calls I have seen from the reffing crew at the IBJJF.  The fact to the matter is I owe it to myself, to my students, and to the BJJ community that I represent to be educated so that I can illustrate and employ said knowledge both as a referee and an instructor.  I urge all of you reading this to educate yourselves on the rules. It doesn’t matter if you agree with them or not it is important that you know the rules of engagement!

Speaking of the students, Team Yemaso reached a historic milestone at the 2013 IBJJF San Francisco Open on Sunday bringing an unprecedented medal to competitor ratio (we had 22 competitors with 25 medals total!!!) in a strong push for a team title.  We did not disappoint and with just over 21 competitors we became the FIRST TEAM TO EVER bring back an IBJJF team title back to Sacramento, California!!!!  As a team we ranked second among the premier teams in California : Gracie Barra, Ralph Gracie, Atos, Academy of Jiu Jitsu, Brazilian Top Team Long Beach, and Guerrilla Jiu Jitsu, among many more.  Many people have asked me if I am surprised, and express astonishment having realized our monstrous goal with so few competitors.

I am not.

I have said it a million times; I train with a group of dedicated individuals that feed off my enthusiasm and correspond it with a passion of their own.  I SEE the work they put in, work I cannot fully describe in this blog as they are parts of our training methods, both physical and mental.  I witness their capacity for growth and the tenacity that keeps them pushing in the face of laziness.  Each one wanted this team title as much as I did and worked damn hard for it.  Some warmed up with smaller tournaments to get the pre-competition jitters out of their system to assure that the mental state would be perfect for the big show.  All brought tight training schedules, at my request, to assure that they were complying with what I saw as necessary levels of preparation for one to achieve his/her goal.

It is “Soul Food” for me to cultivate an environment like this, one where we develop goals and work hard to achieve them.  Better yet we did it as a team and we were able to synchronize our different academies in the Sacramento area, led by Eliot Kelly and Bill Click respectively, to all meet up, sit together, coach, and support each other in the pursuit of accomplishment.

This was the most powerful emotion for me this weekend.

I did my job as normal, running around and coaching, yelling and screaming in both joy and frustration while awaiting my own fights, but for me to see each team member running around doing the same to push their FRIENDS AND BROTHERS to new heights was POWERFUL.  They might not yet realize it but they are building on a foundation that will see their social circles and, by extension their lives, change.  Our BJJ families unite often to share many occasions from birthdays to holidays and even weddings!  To be by someone in their moment of emotion is to solidify a bond that will carry us into a united future and I am honored and emotional to be able to cultivate that environment at Yemaso BJJ!

It is said that, “Only he who fights loses”.  Not everyone achieved their ultimate goal of GOLD this weekend but to me that matters little.  Sure, I am happy because of the team title but had we not acquired it the work would have STILL been put in!  We are just that much better because what is gained through consistency is never lost.

It’s the trajectory that matters most and, ultimately, with the support of our brothers we will all achieve our goals!

I urge my team members to maintain consistency and regardless of a win or loss these are just learning experiences that should be utilized to motivate us to get better. I have faith in you all!

I personally took DOUBLE GOLD this weekend having some entertaining rolls and am on a war path for Pan Ams this year.  I am working particular parts of my game that I brought out this weekend but there is much more to work on!  I will not be stopped and less than 8 hrs after fighting I was drilling at 8 am.  We then had two classes on Monday so only Tuesday was I able to gather my thoughts on the weekend.  Next on my list is the IBJJF Chicago Open, another step on the way to Pan Ams and my determination is insatiable.  I am prepped both physically and mentally and these smaller Opens allow for me to be at my best in the quest for the elusive Pan Ams GOLD!

I am EXTREMELY proud of my team and look forward to going to the IBJJF San Francisco Open every year from now on to show we are not only the best team in Sacramento, but one of the best teams in California!

Follow me: @marcosyemaso