The Grappling Monthly Podcast

In this episode of The Grappling Monthly Podcast, I sit down with Professor Hector Beltran at Academy Jiu-Jitsu for a conversation about competition, longevity, coaching, pressure, and the deeper lessons that come from staying on the mats. Hector shares how he first found jiu-jitsu through kickboxing and early amateur MMA, why competition became such a major part of his journey, and how his approa...

In this episode of The Grappling Monthly Podcast, I sit down with Professor Rose Miller in San Diego for a conversation about jiu-jitsu, identity, competition, injuries, coaching, and the psychology of taking the sport seriously without losing yourself in it. Rose shares how she went from dance and boxing into jiu-jitsu, why the sport gave her a roadmap at a time when she was working hard without...

In this episode of The Grappling Monthly Podcast, I sit down with Professor Aleksandr Ustimenko at All In Academy Los Angeles. Aleksandr's story starts in Russia, where he first found Brazilian jiu-jitsu after earning his black belt in karate. What began as a way to train hard and get in shape eventually became the center of his life. He went from training as a beginner, to working the front desk...

In this episode of The Grappling Monthly Podcast, I sit down with Jeff and Yego from Powertrip Worldwide at Legacy Glendale for a conversation about jiu-jitsu, punk, skateboarding, DIY culture, design, zines, wrestling, and the creative side of martial arts. Powertrip Worldwide is "a creative publisher that celebrates global grappling cultures, built on the idea that fighting's true purpose isn't...

In this episode of The Grappling Monthly Podcast, we sit down in San Diego with Captain Harlan Berk to talk about 25 years in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, the evolution of the San Diego grappling scene, open mat culture, competition, teaching, longevity, and what it means to keep learning after decades on the mat.   Harlan started training in 2001, when the jiu-jitsu community in San Diego was much smalle...

Professora Monika joins The Grappling Monthly Podcast to discuss building a jiu-jitsu practice around learning, movement, and longevity. Monika began training after first trying Muay Thai in Hollywood, where watching the jiu-jitsu class from the sidelines eventually turned into stepping onto the mat herself. More than ten years later, she is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu instructor, TACFIT coach, and fasc...

Professor Shoya Ishiguro is Japan's top black belt competitors and a fixture at the highest levels of IBJJF competition. He joins the podcast in Los Angeles, where he has been training for three weeks ahead of the IBJJF World Championship, preparing for rematches with rivals Diego "Pato" Oliveira and Rerisson alongside coach Isaac Doederlein. The conversation covers ground that goes well beyond co...

Tayane Porfírio joins The Grappling Monthly Podcast at Alliance Jiu Jitsu in Huntington Beach for a conversation about her start in Brazil, the Alliance competition team, winning early, returning to high-level competition after years away, motherhood, mental health, teaching, women’s jiu-jitsu, and the pressure of competing at the highest level. Tayane is a multiple-time world champion and one of...

Professor Lila Smadja-Cruz is a second degree black belt from 10th Planet under Eddie Bravo. She started at the Bomb Squad in West Hollywood doing Muay Thai at fourteen, watched Eddie Bravo and a group of no-gi practitioners take over the mat after her class, and thought she would never do that. She eventually did. She never left. In this conversation, Smadja-Cruz traces the full arc: from Muay Th...

Mike Dytri is the founder of Vanguard Kimono. He is also a third-degree black belt under Chris Haueter, a former MMA fighter, a longtime designer in streetwear and skateboarding, and the design consultant behind Gracie Barra's GB Wear program. We sat down at the Vanguard studio to talk about how a kimono actually gets made, and what that process reveals about the people wearing it. The conversatio...

A lot of beginners do not struggle in jiu-jitsu because they are untalented. They struggle because they go too hard, too soon, and never learn how to pace themselves. In this episode of The Grappling Monthly Podcast, Rodrigo Freitas talks about growing up in Brazil, discovering jiu-jitsu through the early UFC, competing for years at a high level, moving to the United States without speaking Englis...

Professor Fabio Holanda has spent decades teaching jiu-jitsu and MMA through a clear lens: top position matters, fundamentals matter, and technique should still work when the pace rises and the consequences change. In this episode of The Grappling Monthly Podcast, Fabio reflects on his start in Natal, Brazil, his connection to Carlson Gracie and Brazilian Top Team, his move to Montreal, and the tr...

From Rio de Janeiro to Montreal’s West Island, Professor Marcelo Bonança talks about starting in martial arts, leaving a finance career, reconnecting with jiu-jitsu in Canada, and what it means to teach in a way students can actually absorb. We also get into Gracie Barra’s structure, the realities of opening a school in Quebec, why principles matter more than information overload, and what a good...

If you train jiu-jitsu long enough, pain is not the surprise. The real question is whether you know how to recover intelligently and stay on the mats. In this episode of The Grappling Monthly Podcast, I sit down with Dr. Diana and Dr. Kris Martin of Open Mat Physio to talk about injury recovery, overtraining, sleep, inflammation, strength work, nervous system regulation, and why so many grapplers...

Professor Marvin Castel and Coach K of 10th Planet Torrance join The Grappling Monthly Podcast for a wide-ranging conversation on 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu, gym ownership, teaching philosophy, women’s training, self-defense, competition, culture, and what it actually takes to build a serious room.   Marvin shares how his first exposure to jiu-jitsu came through MMA training in Michigan, how that exper...

Mauricio “Tinguinha” Mariano joins The Grappling Monthly Podcast for a conversation on the older generation of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, the transition from vale tudo culture to modern academy structure, and the changes that helped jiu-jitsu grow around the world. Prof. Tinguinha is a 6th degree black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, a spider guard pioneer, and the owner and head instructor of Tinguinha BJ...

Professor Anjanette Lima started training Brazilian jiu-jitsu in her mid-30s. No athletic background. No grappling experience. She Googled "gentle martial art" and ended up on a mat in Virginia doing forward rolls until she threw up. Ten years later, she is an instructor at Legacy Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in Burbank, California, running women's classes, kids programs, and a self-defense curriculum for...

What can jiu-jitsu actually give you beyond technique and medals? In Episode 34 of the Grappling Monthly Podcast, we sit down with Professor Thyago Martins — owner and head instructor of TM Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Academy in Orange, California for one of the most honest and wide-ranging conversations we've had on the show. Thyago's story starts in Manaus, Brazil, where he began training BJJ after bein...

In Episode 33 of The Grappling Monthly Podcast, Professor Laercio Fernandes of Alliance Laguna Hills shares his journey from São Paulo, Brazil to building a structured, system-driven academy in Southern California. Professor Laercio began training Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in 1993 in São Paulo. What started as a way to stay out of trouble evolved into a lifelong pursuit that included earning an engineer...

A jiu-jitsu gym is supposed to be the safest room you walk into all week. The recent allegations involving some of the biggest names in our sport pushed a harder question into the open: what does real safety look like in a sport built on trust, proximity, hierarchy, and access to people’s bodies? In this special Grappling Monthly episode, I’m joined by Lindsay Kreighbaum and Professor Bryan Greger...

On this week's episode of The Grappling Monthly Podcast I had the privilege of sitting down with Professor Blake Kasemeier in sunny Glendale, CA.   @blakeoftoday  is a father of two, a prolific storyteller, a writer,  a badass jiu jitsu black belt and a genuinely nice guy. On this episode we discuss:  - Blake's first contact with Jiu Jitsu  - Finding the right place to train  - Carving out time in...

On this week's episode of The Grappling Monthly Podcast, I had the honor of sitting with Professor Ricardo "Franjinha" Miller at his academy in Ventura, California: Paragon BJJ. Professor Ricardo Miller, commonly known in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu  as “Franjinha”,  is regarded as one of the top BJJ coaches in the world, having graduated from his famed Paragon Jiu Jitsu Academy, big names of the grapplin...

This week's episode of The Grappling Monthly Podcast we had the privilege of sitting down with 6th degree black belt and legend in the game: Professor Chris Haueter in his home in Redondo Beach, California. Prof. Haueter is one of the first 12 non-Brazilians to be awarded the rank of black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in the United States in the late 90's. Chris Haueter was born in 1964 in Californ...

On this week's episode of The Grappling Monthly Podcast, I had the privilege of sitting with professor Paul Schreiner in his beautiful academy Frogtown Jiu Jitsu in Los Angeles, CA.  Originally from Santa Cruz, Prof. Schreiner has decades of experience training, teaching, and competing at the highest levels of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. In this episode, Prof. Schreiner shares parts of his journey in the...

What's your preferred set up for grappling competitions? A mat, the pit, the bowl, a cage? This week's guest has experience in all 4! This week the Grappling Monthly Podcast travels to Encinitas, CA to chat with one of jiu jitsu’s elite competitors Prof. Keith Krikorian! On this episode Keith shares his passion for martial arts, competing in wrestling and Jiu Jitsu, the sacrifices and discipline i...