The Chewjitsu Podcast

On this episode of the podcast, we are joined by strength, nutrition, and lifestyle coach Eli Coffey and introduce Eli and Chewy's new strength and hypertrophy training program for Jiu-Jitsu athletes called "Swole & Roll." Eli is a WBFF Pro Muscle Model, holds state and national bench press records, and is a black belt in Japanese Jujitsu. On this episode, Eli discusses his start in martial arts a...

Ffion Davies is a Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt, multiple-time Jiu-Jitsu World Champion, and the 2022 ADCC Women's -60 kg champion. On this episode, Ffion discusses her start in Judo, being very shy as a kid and what helped her overcome her shyness, fighting in MMA, finding a love for Jiu-Jitsu, moving to New York, why she chose to train with JT Torres, what she looks for in a coach and gym, "culty" gym cu...

On this episode of the podcast, we are joined by Owen Livesey. Owen is a Jiu-Jitsu and Judo black belt, ADCC veteran, grappling coach, and owner of Carlson Gracie-Hull. On this episode Owen discusses his start in Judo and transitioning to BJJ, getting a job teaching wrestling to a Rugby team, how Judo helped his transition to no-gi grappling, whether Owen prefers Gi or No-Gi training, what rule ch...

On this episode of the podcast, Chewy and Eugene discuss the importance of long-term consistency to achieve goals and the quality of your effort. We also discuss why people are dishonest about their training, why the "10,000 hour rule" is inaccurate for mastering a technique, why how you perform your repetitions is vital, the value of having a coach, what makes the gym unique, if "mat enforcers" a...

On this episode, Chewy shares one of his top 5 strategies for BJJ. Chewy also shares some interesting and random history facts about Gladiators at the start of the episode. Chewy discusses how he improved his guard passing by working on his bottom game, having patience with grip fighting, the importance of discipline when trying to pass guard, whether you should practice on one side or both sides...

Jaidyn Mueller is a Jiu-Jitsu brown belt and up and coming Jiu-Jitsu athlete. Jaidyn joins the podcast to discuss her start in martial arts, her initial love for striking and MMA, her first experience in Jiu-Jitsu, gaining a love for Jiu-Jitsu, the decision and process of wanting to pursue Jiu-Jitsu full-time, working for and competing in "Fight 2 Win," her experience as a coach and teaching kid's...

Nicolas Gregoriades is a BJJ black belt under Roger Gracie, a Jiu-Jitsu coach, podcaster, and men's coach. On this episode,  Nicolas discusses growing up in South Africa, the life-changing experiences that impacted his life, the paradox of building yourself up to be better and at the same time knowing that you are enough, not basing your self-worth on your physical abilities in Jiu-Jitsu, finding...

On this episode of the podcast, Chewy and Eugene discuss how to overcome the fear on getting injured in competition.   We discuss whether risk of injuries is higher in competition or training, when you are most likely to get injured in Jiu-Jitsu, why people avoid trying new things, whether increased exposure to a position decreases injury risk, why opponents feel stronger in competition, and how t...

On this episode of the podcast, Chewy and Eugene answer the question of whether you should compare yourself to others in Jiu-Jitsu. We discuss why you should compare processes and not results, how to transition to a different mindset when comparing yourself to others, why self-awareness is transformative, being selective in what you compare and how you compare yourself to others, and why you shoul...

Leah Stumpf is a BJJ black belt, a head coach at SBG-Montana, and the wife of retired Navy Seal Andy Stumpf. Leah joins the podcast to discuss her start in martial arts, her path to black belt, and how to grow a women's Jiu-Jitsu program. Leah discusses her first experience with training BJJ, how to approach training with a less experienced BJJ practitioner, how to tell if you're improving, some o...

On this episode, Chewy and Eugene chat about Chewy's 5 major takeaways from the 2022 No-Gi Worlds that were integral in Chewy's success at the competition. Five Key Takeaways: 1. Importance of drilling. 2. Knowing your game plan. 3. Taking days off. 4. Having a supportive partner. 5. Proper diet. Bonus: "Get lost between matches." We also discuss when to adjust your competition game plan, the valu...

Chewy and Eugene discuss the 2022 No-Gi Worlds, Chewy winning the Master 2 No-Gi Worlds, and also game planning for tournaments. We discuss IBJJF rules and our thoughts on purple belts doing heel hooks in competition, injuries in competition, tapping early, dealing with haters on the internet, Chewy's training schedule and tournament prep, the value of having good training partners, getting back i...

On this episode, Chewy discusses his diet, how eating the right foods, and how "meal timing" can help with performance on the mats. We also chat about macronutrients and how needs   fluctuate based on your activity, when to eat fats, how not eating too long before training will impact your performance, what to eat before training and what to eat when not training, how to use your food to help reco...

On this episode of the podcast, Chewy and Eugene discuss why you should chase abilities and not belts, and why you should focus on your development not the destination. We discuss why focusing only on goals can result in "fulfillment fatigue," why the magic isn't in the things you achieve, but the process and who you become when you achieve them. We also chat about what to do after you experience...

On this episode, Chewy and Eugene are joined by 10th Jiu-Jitsu Planet Black Belt and the head coach and owner of 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu - Las Vegas, Casey Halstead. Casey discusses his start in Jiu-Jitsu, how Jiu-Jitsu impacted his life after getting out of a difficult relationship, starting Jiu-Jitsu at an old-school gym that was against cross-training and the process of changing to a 10th Planet...

On this episode, Chewy and Eugene discuss how to build your confidence on the Jiu-Jitsu mats and in life. We discuss building confidence through exposure and how to build confidence when coming back to Jiu-Jitsu after an injury. We also discuss why your rank in Jiu-Jitsu is meaningful, why you should put yourself into uncomfortable and uncertain situations, the most important thing for building co...

On this episode, Chewy and Eugene discuss if BJJ is becoming more dangerous because people aren't giving their opponents enough time to tap. We discuss the unwritten rule in training about not ripping submissions, thoughts on whether you should aggressively finish submissions in competition, the contrast of going for submissions in Judo, and if there is any way to decrease injuries in competition....

On this episode, Chewy and Eugene discuss some ideas around a   quote from the author Thomas Sowell, "There are no solutions, just trade-offs," and how this thinking applies to Jiu-Jitsu and also to life. We discuss why you shouldn't push yourself too hard when you first start training, using a reward system when starting a task, the importance of keeping Jiu-Jitsu fun early on, why life is a poor...

On this episode of the podcast, Chewy discusses techniques that were seen as low percentage that have become high percentage effective techniques. We chat about specific techniques that were seen as low percentage and have become high percentage, why it's important to have an open mind and experiment with BJJ techniques, why we can be considered "creatures of self-esteem," how Chewy evolves his te...

Chewy and Eugene are joined by BJJ black belt and the 2022 ADCC 88 kg World Champion Giancarlo Bodoni. Giancarlo joins the show to discusses his preferred rule sets for grappling, starting BJJ primarily as a Gi practitioner and then transitioning to primarily training No-Gi. Giancarlo also talks about starting BJJ at 12 years old, what was unique about BJJ compared to other martial arts, the story...

Chewy and Eugene chat with BJJ legend Andre "Dedeco" Almeida. Dedeco is a 6th degree BJJ black belt under Ricardo Liborio. On this episode, Dedeco discusses owning and running a gym, the right way to open a Jiu-Jitsu gym, how Dedeco started teaching, how teaching improves your Jiu-Jitsu, the biggest mistake people make when opening a BJJ school, what makes a BJJ technique "right" or "wrong," Dedec...

On this episode, Chewy and Eugene discuss the video of a 140 lb. teenage BJJ blue belt getting slammed by a 265 lb. purple belt during training. Chewy gives advice on how to roll with someone that a you don't know, how the rules engagement in BJJ dictate your reaction and perception of the type of training, whether you can prevent getting slammed in training, why a BJJ belt does and doesn't matter...

On this episode of the podcast, we chat with Rob, who runs the popular Instagram and YouTube channel McDojoLife , where he exposes fraudulent martial artists. We are also joined by Matt Wahlstrom, a BJJ black belt and owner of Epic Roll BJJ apparel company. Rob and Matt discuss what it was like attending ADCC 2022 in Las Vegas, the popularity of Jiu-Jitsu and what can help grow the sport more, how...

Chewy and Eugene recap the events of the 2022 ADCC championships including what it was like attending this event. We chat about some of our favorite experiences and matches, what made this ADCC different from the others, the style of match that we thought was most enjoyable to watch, rule changes that could make the matches more enjoyable to watch and more exciting, thoughts on the "no points" por...

On this episode, we discuss why you should keep your training private. We chat about why you shouldn't record your training sessions or post them on social media, the need for students to experiment and how a recorded roll can change the feel of a training session, the importance of not "talking and tapping," why Chewy decided to stop recording his rolls, w hat to do when someone asks to record yo...