We Spent Thousands On Private Lessons And Learned This...

Obviously , they've got people paying their memberships , but really the model of doing a one-on-one lesson with your coach , it's like personal training for BJJ and yeah , I wanted to get into this because there's been some very positive experiences for some folks . But then I heard a story about a not very good experience and I wanted to go deeper on this show .

Where do you , where do you sit in this view on the private lesson in BJJ ?

Some people find groups hard to handle , yes , right , um , but also , too , in the group thing , something is lost , right in terms of every person getting exactly what they need at every session .

Yeah , we , we kind of trade that for the good vibes and the energy and the diversity of training partners , but often if you do a private lesson , you just focus in on the specific things you need , but they're also not as fun right ?

However , with that said , I think a lot of coaches can probably get a bit lazy about the whole thing , which can result in private lessons really becoming kind of low value for folks while costing a fuckload of money .

I guess the way I frame it as being personal training for BJJ is when I first started in the gym as a trainer , I was just a lowly kind of first year trainer , just putting the weights back , cleaning the treadmills , sorting out the programs . I wasn't actually allowed to do PT because I'd only had my Cert III at this stage , I was just studying my Cert 4 .

But what I saw was people who did PT consistently got better , faster , they improved within a very short space of time . And then there was people who always just showed up to the gym and they're always there , but they just did the same thing .

Whereas the people who did PT , they got guidance , they got feedback , and I was like that's the fucking way , like this is before . I was even interested in in in doing BJJs back when I was doing Taekwondo and a bunch of other sports , I was like , oh my God , like this is , this is

the unlock .

People who get those that , that feedback and those lessons do well , uh , do better , significantly so , and I have found myself even though I've had good and bad experiences with getting private lessons huge unlocks for me in terms of understanding jiu-jitsu have come from investing in the thing , and it's also maybe this is like a bit of a bias , but it's also been

shown that when you pay for something like you pay more , you value it more Because you're like this is important .

And historically in jiu-jitsu , when I was going back and I was looking in the kind of early 90s , the graces would mainly give private lessons and it was usually two to one .

In the kind of early 90s , the Gracies would mainly give private lessons and it was usually two to one , so there'd be the instructor they would have like their uke , and then the student , right , so they would demonstrate on the UK and then they would get the student to come in and then they could give them feedback from watching them do it .

And when I did private lessons in Brazil , that's how it was taught as well , right , and it was great . I was like , wow , that's really powerful .

Before it moved to this more like group class , bigger business type thing , yeah , and some would argue that maybe the whole idea of a group class is more about the gym making money more than it is you about getting better , if that makes sense , oh yeah , yeah , I mean , I guess I can see .

Sure , I've recognized , saying my own training , that if I do a private like every few months or something , it's a good chance to like zero in on maybe some mistakes I'm making and get a specific fix for a couple of issues I'm having . Yeah , um , that then allows me to get more out of my group training for the next period of time .

But I don't like , I don't love that . It's not what I'm into . You know and and I think it , you know , it's knowing yourself and what you like about jiu-jitsu . If you're super technically minded , you probably love a private session , right , because you can fucking get into the nitty-gritty for sure .

I just want to stand and bang with fucking people in a class , anyone you know me king kong boy oh shoot . We weren't throwing strikes tonight .

Go work on it for the next little while , come back . How did that go ? Good , yeah , no , okay , let's look at more of that . Or

okay , let's fix this other thing . And it just . There's an accountability to the private training yes , which that's what it is right For the people who invest in PT in a gym . There's an accountability . They've got to show up . They've got your eyes on them the whole time . You're critiquing them . They've got to fix the mistakes .

And if you don't get feedback , like you , you don't know what , you don't know right and there's a white belt . That's a lot of shit that you don't know . So if you're just working on one thing or you're just trying to get better at a thing , the sooner you can get some really kind of informed feedback , the sooner you can get better .

And honestly , the first two years of my jujitsu was like the slowest , even though the enthusiasm was through the roof . I was fucking here for it , man , I was frothing out , I got very little feedback and even though I was good at the one or two techniques I did like , my jujitsu was just fucking stagnant .

It was only once I got to work with a coach who gave a shit about me and inputted more into my game that I really started to get good at jujitsu . The first two years I even paid . I had a fairly negative experience that I paid for some private lessons and then I did learn a few things in the first couple lessons and then just did like three .

I paid for 10 . I paid for like a 10 pack of lessons and I paid up front . So it was like 150 bucks a lesson . It's 1500 and at that time like I didn't have a bunch of money , to be honest , um , but I was invested this private . I was invested , right , I fucking really wanted to get good at this thing , and so it was .

I learned a few things , first couple lessons , and then there was a bit of a cancel , like , oh , sorry , mate , my car broke down , can't be there . And I was like , oh , okay , and the second time , no show . Which I thought was weird .

So then I asked later I'm like , oh , he's like , yeah , sorry , mate , times couldn't book times and then never got another private lesson again . And they kept the money . And I was like , yeah , it was a bit , it was a bit shit .

And even though I don't think I was conscious of it at the time , that was definitely like a drop of water in the glass that made me go . You know what ? I'm going to go somewhere where they give a fuck about me . It's , I'm not just paying money to be here . Where they give a fuck about me . It's I'm not just paying money to be here .

And I have heard from another guy he was very good white belt at his gym but his coach had said to him oh , you're not going to grade to blue belt until you do some private lessons , but the guy's really good , like good enough to be a blue belt , but it was like a tax . It's like no , you want to go up a belt , you're basically paying for it .

Like you've got to do at least five private lessons before you're allowed to grade the blue belt . That's what they were saying .

Yeah , this is a totally different gym . You know , I won't name the gym , but I was like that's extortionary , like that's extortionate . I should say Like it's just not , that's got nothing , my beef . With old school martial arts gyms . They were very keen for you to grade when you did Taekwondo because you had to pay 50 bucks every time you graded .

Um , I don't , I don't have an issue if , if , if there were a gym and I don't really know any gyms that have this as a policy but where it was like , look , the way we teach is that we do group training and that you , and then there's also a component of private training and you know we , it's , it's what we believe is the best way for because , say ,

we do that , like we . We've sort of have that to a degree here at this gym , sure , where it's like , um , and I've known other gyms who have it quite strictly where it's like you need to do a pt session every month on top of your group membership , right , and that costs x .

And if it's like , oh , need to do a PT session every month on top of your group membership , right , and that costs X , sure . And if it's like , oh , well , that's what it is , then that's fine because it's mentioned at the outset and expectations are clear .

It is an app that gives you access to simple and brutally effective programs that are going to help you to perform at your best on the mats , to stave off injury as much as possible and to also be as healthy and enjoy life as much as you can . And the best part is that you don't have to be experienced in gym training .

We teach you how to do that and you also don't need to put a huge amount of time towards it each week . Best part is , you can access all of our programs for 14 days for free .

All you need to do is go to the app store whether you're on an Android or iPhone , search Bulletproof for BJJ , get the app , get your 14 day free trial and once you get in there , you'll be able to get coached directly by JT and myself and the Bulletproof coaching team .

We look forward to the other side of it , too , and this is something that I find myself reminding coaches of this a lot , not jujitsu coaches , but like gym coaches , right Is that ?

It's very easy to get complacent and lazy in your role as a coach , and when you've got someone coming in to train with you privately every week , it's just oh , hey , yeah , it's 12 o'clock Wednesday . Good to see you , man . Yep , we're doing the same . Yep , get the weight on the bar , let's do your warm-up .

Like and you often you have a conversation , how's your weekend ? But before you know the hour's gone . Right , yes , and you're like that was a good session , but that person and and sometimes often that person's like , yeah , it was a good session , but sometimes as well .

Often that person is like , motherfucker , I'm paying you 130 for the hour , bring me some fucking structure and some energy .

Like I'm paying for a service here yeah and so and I think this is where a lot of coaches get lazy and jujitsu coaches it sounds like the experience you had was that where it's like mate , I've paid you 1500 bucks , like I've made a significant investment which I'm super happy with if you're going to fucking show up and give me value , but if you're just going

to get lazy about it and then , after enough time passes , you're going to kind of scratch it like it never happened , like that's actually super dishonest .

care about you getting better . And also , it was just very- .

But then I've also paid high level money to high level coaches because I was trying to show them that I'm like Fabio Gagel . I did lessons with him . I paid a lot of money for those lessons , but I was trying to prove to him like bro , I'm fucking here for this .

It was a message of intent to him so that he would pay attention to me , because obviously the guy is very important . He oversees all these fucking champions . Why would he give a shit about some random gringo ? He oversees all these fucking champions . Why would he give a shit about some random gringo ?

I'm like bro , I flew from the other side of the earth to fucking listen to you and I'm I'm I'm paying you to pay attention to me . And and he was like , yeah , okay , I can respect that . So what's ?

So it was totally worth the money , even though the price was crazy it's like 500 bucks a lesson but I can say at least I did private lessons with him when that was a thing and it really shaped the way I look at jiu-jitsu and how I feel about it as a result .

So I think it is an unparalleled investment to improve your j at jujitsu and how I feel about it as a result . So I think it is an unparalleled investment to improve your jujitsu , but obviously depending on your coach and the relationship that's going to dictate it , how it runs .

You know , like as in , as in , well , I think , a good coach will hold himself accountable well , they will , they will , but but you know like people with good intentions will still get lazy right , sure , and and , as we know , like often in when you're in the coaching life , you've just taught fucking two classes in a row and then you got three privates and

you happen to be the third one right before their lunch break and they're like just dragging themselves over the finish line . Sure , and it's like if you kind of get , if you detect that , I'll tell you this . So I'm paying a coach to teach me guitar .

No , no , no , no , he's always there , he's always there , but we only get 30 minutes together , right , and , um , often , and he he loves to go on about the philosophical side of it and and I'm there for it I'm like great , but often the 30 minutes is up and I'm like I've hardly touched my guitar like I've had and he gets to play a bunch because he's like

let me show you this and then this and then this , and he's showing me all this high level stuff . Yeah , and one day we'll get you into this and you better do . And I'm like this guy's doing all the playing . And so I told him like man , look , I really enjoy it .

I appreciate your approach , um , but I often come away and feel like I actually didn't get to fucking play my guitar while I get to watch you play a bunch .

And and I was like this is a make or break moment , because he's either going to be like fuck you , that's my process , I guess we're not cut out for each other , yeah , or he's going to change his ways and he was like you're totally right , I get a bit carried away sometimes . Next , week it will be all you .

Yeah , my point there is that sometimes that little bit of like me keeping him accountable prompt was just what he needed , you know , and sometimes that tired coach , that might be the thing , or it might be that , no , this person's not bringing their best energy to your private session and you should stop paying them for them , that's right , you just get the fuck

out of there , yeah .

It might actually be with the super enthusiastic purple belt or the brown belt assistant coach who's just really dialed into what you do , and so I think a person's level of enthusiasm and empathy and just care for what you're doing is the absolute underpinning for the success of a private lesson , and I actually think it is one of the best investments you can make

in your jujitsu . But there might be a bit of trial and error in getting to the right coach with the right format and all of that . Yeah , I dig it there . It is folks private lessons very valuable if you get it in the right context . Now , that's the thing about working up close and personal with people .

I speak with people about this podcast and they're like man Hugh and Joey love hanging out and talking with you guys and it's a funny conversation because you hear us talk . But we don't always get to hear you talk , even though we do feel like we're connected with y'all .

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