The Morning Formation Podcast
Hosted by KP Phillips—a U.S. Army combat veteran, former law enforcement officer, and seasoned instructor in tactics, firearms, and combatives—The Formation Podcast is built on the core pillars of Survivability, Situational Awareness, and the mindset to Adapt & Overcome.
Drawing from over two decades of real-world experience in combat zones and high-risk environments, KP leads authentic conversations with warriors, protectors, and everyday individuals who’ve faced adversity head-on. This podcast is more than content—it's a movement for those who understand that the fight begins before the event.
Through storytelling, lived experience, and expert insight, The Formation Podcast equips its listeners with the mindset, tools, and awareness to remain vigilant and prepared—whether on the battlefield, in the streets, or in everyday life.
The Morning Formation Podcast
Gunshots to Grappling: Two Lives Transformed by Jiu-Jitsu with Black Belt Mike Medina and Nate Crisler
BJJ Black Belt Mike Medina and Rising star Blue Belt Nate Crisler share their extraordinary journeys through trauma and resilience, revealing how Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu transformed their lives from surviving childhood violence to building community through martial arts.
• Mike survived being shot in a drive-by shooting at age 11 in Taos, New Mexico
• Nate lost his father at age 9 and moved frequently during his formative years
• Both found purpose and direction through Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu training
• The gentle art provides mental focus that takes practitioners' minds off everything else
• Training partners and gym culture are crucial factors in BJJ development
• Competition requires both mental and physical preparation
• Finding the right gym environment makes all the difference for beginners
• Mike opened his own gym to create a welcoming family atmosphere
• Resilience is defined as "you versus you" - becoming better than yesterday
• The hardest part of jiu-jitsu is simply showing up consistently
If you're interested in trying Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, remember it's not about who you are or what you look like - this martial art is truly for everyone. As Mike says, "It's the most positive addiction you can have."
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Episode Powered By Act Now Education
Welcome to the Morning Formation. Strive, thrive and survive through life's toughest challenges. I'm your host, kp, and today we're testing out some new in-studio features and tech. I guess you could say I am featuring two incredible human beings in front of me from the world of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Joining me today is coach Mike Medina, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt and longtime mentor on and off the mats. Right Alongside him is Nate Kreisler. He's a blue belt, rising student of the craft. Awesome Pleasure to be here. So today's episode is all about getting to know these two warriors, learning about their journeys and tapping into some trending topics, from fitness routines to mental resilience. So let's get after it. How are you guys doing today?
Speaker 2:Doing good, thank you. Thank you for having us.
Speaker 3:Yeah, doing good. Thank you for having us.
Speaker 1:I appreciate you guys being my guinea pigs.
Speaker 2:Yeah, no problem.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I mean, it's the first time for me, but I think it's pretty cool. Man, I'm excited.
Speaker 2:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I wish I could say I knew what I was doing, but I really don't Like. I bought all this stuff at a garage sale, sort of Like a virtual garage sale. It's called OfferUp, oh okay.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I've been on.
Speaker 1:OfferUp yeah, I love that, so, yeah, so, let's get at it, man, so you.
Speaker 2:So I was born in Denver, colorado. I moved to Rear Rancho, new Mexico. It's where I spent like most of my childhood and teenage years and life was good. Life was good I had. My parents were awesome, put me in boxing as a young kid, so that kind of like changed the direction of my life. Uh, kind of at a young age. So, um, yeah, I've been, I've been pretty fortunate. I didn't have too much like hardship, luckily, well, when did you move to new mexico?
Speaker 2:second grade, second grade. So it's probably what I'll do in second grade, like five yeah, eight yeah, maybe yeah some seven, eight or nine.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I don't know so when you moved to new mexico you mentioned that before that that it was rough there, right?
Speaker 2:yeah, so originally my parents moved to a little small town and unfortunately I was like the only white kid so people weren't very nice to me so but eventually I ended up, like you know, kind of getting past that, getting past that point and kind of overcoming being bullied and kind of being alone Cause my, my older brothers, were already out of the house so I kind of had no one to like back me up and protect me, so I kind of had to kind of learn how to do that on my own, you know. So that was, that was always a problem, but you know I was still pretty fortunate.
Speaker 1:So but was there any incident growing up that changed your life? I mean like traumatic incident, that that you want to talk about?
Speaker 2:Um, well, something did happen when I was younger. Um, when I was, I think, around 11 or 12, I was shot in a drive-by, so that was kind of intense. This was in Albuquerque. This was in Taos. This was in Taos, new Mexico. It's like a really small town.
Speaker 1:So so, yeah, so was that. So was that common there to have drive-bys, or was that pretty?
Speaker 2:rare. No, it was pretty rare. I mean it was. It was the day before the 4th of July and I was going to pick up some fireworks and I was riding my bike and my friend was like, hey, let me ride your bike. I said, yeah, no problem. And uh, as soon as he got on my bike and we traded, he started riding away and these guys rolled up and just started firing a .22 rifle at me and my friend and I ended up getting shot in the knee. And yeah, it was crazy because I had that fight or flight moment, because I thought they were going to turn around. So I was worried that I was going to die. So I ran across the street and I knocked on a random stranger's door and this dude opened the door. I'll never forget
Speaker 2:this. This guy had a beer in his hand. He was like an army ranger. He had like a you know those hats that are camouflage on. He was like what's going on? He's like I thought I heard bullets or gunshots. He picked me up, drove me to the hospital, stayed with me until my parents got there and you know it was was pretty intense, you know. Did they ever catch the guys that did it. So we went to court. They had me look out of a lineup and everything happened so fast. But I kind of remembered the guy's eyes. He locked eyes for a second, I kind of remembered what they looked like. And out of the lineup I chose the person that I thought was him and I went to court and he got off. They said it wasn't him, he had alibis. But turns out like a lot of the alibis were like lying and all kinds of stuff. So who knows, who knows?
Speaker 1:do you remember when you were in that moment of like flight or flight or fight, uh, where you had to react?
Speaker 2:yeah, yeah, it was, it was. It's kind of like how they say, even like you have to either make the move or just stay there, like for for a split second I was paused and I was just shocked and I wanted to stay there but something told me no, you got it. Like if they turn around, they start shooting. Like it could be worse than just where I was shot at. You know, I mean, god forbid, I got hit in my neck or my stomach or something right? So I just ran. I just, despite how bad my knee was, I just I just ran across the street and wanted to get into someone's house.
Speaker 1:So so you literally ran across the street and you had a bullet in your in my knee yeah, your knee yeah, damn, that's wild man.
Speaker 2:I was terrified, like it is the fact that they were going to turn around, as my buddy said. He said they were going to turn around. As my buddy said, he said they're going to turn around. And I was like, oh no, I'm dead.
Speaker 3:At that point I didn't even know how to process that at that age it's pretty crazy.
Speaker 2:No, it was rough. And then my mom didn't believe my friend that I got shot. She's like, oh, mike got shot. About an hour later she showed up. So were you their target? No, so they were doing a string of random shootings. They were just driving around the town shooting random people, I guess like a gang initiation.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that's what I've heard People do that.
Speaker 2:They shot at some dudes, some guy that worked at a fireworks stand. They shot at him, but I was the only one to get hit. Wow, yeah, just know, but I was the only one to get hit. So wow, yeah, just bad luck, I guess.
Speaker 1:But to be honest with you, that's. That's New Mexico, it's wild.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's a wild west Wild west Yep it's the wild west. And I was young, I was like nine, 10 years old. Like these dudes are going to just shoot at some kid, two kids, you know. But what can you do?
Speaker 1:that's crazy, man. Yeah now, nate, I know you grew up in bel-air and you had a much better life growing up, right? No, not necessarily. Where did you?
Speaker 3:where did you go up? So I was born in, uh, westminster, colorado, grew up, lived there for about nine years I think it was the Arapahoe County area and then mom and dad went through some stuff, ended up getting divorced. So I moved out with my mom, went to Washington State when I was nine years old, lived there for about two years with my mom's sister, my aunt, and then actually came to find out that my dad ended up passing away when I was nine. So, um, just went through the struggles of that for a little bit. I think, being at such young age, I didn't really know how to process it and in the moment, um, it just didn't really affect me in like a sad way, I don't know. So I mean, now that I'm much older, I think I can understand that, because it happened at such a young age. It's it's hard to process traumatic events like that that go on and then, uh, but you know, you move on. I think it's made me the person I am today, so forever thankful that, uh, things play out the way they do. You know I would never go back in time and change anything, and I think that's a good mindset to have. So, after Washington, lived there for two years about 2012,.
Speaker 3:Moved down to Orange County. So I lived in Tustin, starting middle school. For what was it? Three, three years I was in Tustin. So my mom ended up meeting another guy, another gentleman, who later became my stepfather and, uh, we moved down here because he's a screenwriter or that's what he liked to do as a uh, as a hobby, so moved down here so he could be closer to hollywood. My mom originally from Torrance, so coming back home for her. And then, once middle school ended, about eighth grade, they decided we're going to move up to Pasadena. So moved to Pasadena, lived there for about 10 years and then just been in the LA greater Los Angeles area for, I mean, I guess, 12, 13 years now. So you?
Speaker 1:you bounced around quite a bit, did you? Did you have a good relationship with your father growing up?
Speaker 3:Um, I'd say yeah, I'd say we'd had a decent relationship. I think, you know, since I was so young, it's. I think you know, since I was so young, it's, it's. It's almost like a blur, you know, and I only I try not to think about the bad times that would happen. I only try to think about the good times. But, um, you know, I mean regular dad stuff, we'd go to football games and you know, barbecue in the backyard. I mean it was, it was good until it wasn't good, you know, and yeah you, you actually did a lot of adjusting.
Speaker 1:You know you, you were almost like a military brat.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah. Actually, I wanted to be in the military for the longest. My dad was in the Air Force, gramps was, uh, also in the Air Force.
Speaker 1:Both sides of my family I've had a bunch of people in the military, so yeah, because usually military rats have to adjust every four years, like they have to move every four years. And you moved from Colorado to Washington, down to Orange County, up to Pasadena, I mean those are. I mean it's it's still Pacific time zone for the most part, but still I mean you're moved, bouncing around quite a bit and having to readjust and having to reestablish yourself all over again and your friends and everything. So at what point did you start training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu?
Speaker 3:So I actually didn't start training Jiu Jitsu until I was 22.
Speaker 1:I thought you just started training like three months ago. That's what I like to tell people. It makes me look better.
Speaker 3:No, so I just started training like three months ago. That's what I like to tell people. It makes me look better. No, so I just started training seriously about at 22.
Speaker 3:So we met through a mutual buddy, actually on Mike's birthday a couple years back, our buddy Chris, and you know I was talking to Mike about how I love jiu-jitsu, but he was giving me crap because he was like you don't train man, you know so just at the time, jiu jujitsu, but he was giving me crap because he was like you don't train man, you know so, uh, just at the time, jujitsu is not like a super cheap sport, you know, I'm saying especially as someone who's 22. Right at the time I was taking classes, uh, in college, I was working a job, so I didn't have the time, didn't have the money, um, and so I was mentioning these things to mike and he uh told me he was opening up his gym in alhambra and he uh he mentioned to come train with him, uh, when it opened. And you know, ever since then that's where it started. So, yeah, super fortunate for that opportunity. I think it uh changed my life. Crazy how things work out.
Speaker 2:Absolutely.
Speaker 1:Yeah, mike, you seem like you have a lot of outreach when it comes to young adults and getting them in the gym, because I noticed there's a few guys at the gym that are in their mid-20s.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And you kind of brought them in and brought them on board and got them training right.
Speaker 2:You know, for me, I just feel that I see, I think jiu-jitsu could change anyone's life if given the opportunity. You know, like when I started, I've had some great friends do great things in jiu-jitsu, so I always know that. You know, for young people it's a positive thing to be a part of. You know, especially when you're young, a lot of people are influenced by partying and you know some a lot of negative things. At least jiu-jitsu gets people addicted to something, um, that can change your life, you know the thing is, though, is like you're not.
Speaker 1:You're not like a one-trick pony, because you do.
Speaker 2:You've done muay thai boxing right yeah, yeah, boxing muay thai wing chan so why?
Speaker 1:why jiu-jitsu?
Speaker 2:I think. For me it just seemed more functional for what I wanted to do, if that makes sense. I uh did all these arts and I knew something always felt like it was missing. I was still chasing something else and then, once I had the opportunity to train with some really good wrestlers in new mexico, I realized I was like, wow, like, no matter how good my stand-up is or, uh, my cardio, these guys were able to get underneath me, take me down and really, like, put me in some bad positions. So I said, wow, I need to, uh, I need to learn this. So I'm I'm never one to just, you know, be held down, if that makes any sense.
Speaker 1:So so you think you think, out of all the martial arts that you train, that jiu-jitsu is the best one? Jiu-jitsu, wrestling any type of art that's like grappling to control the fight yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 2:I mean not to take anything away from anything else. I mean I believe the art and the person like you could learn karate or taekwondo If you're really passionate about it. You could be deadly at it, you, you know if you're a master of the craft. But um, for me I just figured. Well, I already knew a little bit of stand up, I knew a little bit a little bit of everything else. If I just did jujitsu, where I could train every day, spar every day and not be injured, not have any um headaches, you don't kind of take away from that issue, I was like perfect, sign me up.
Speaker 1:So oh yeah, that's uh. I've I've been doing jiu-jitsu for 12 years on and off, had injuries here and there, and I I love seeing guys like nate over here. Who's just nate? How old are you?
Speaker 3:23.
Speaker 1:I'll be uh 24 next month you're 23 man and you, just you just dove head first into it and you train like every single day. How many full time, how many competitions have you done?
Speaker 3:oh, I've lost count. I've lost count.
Speaker 1:Uh, maybe 15 to 20, 15 to 20 in the past year, so year or so that's the one thing that I regret is when I was younger, was not training even harder like taking off, taking, taking time off, not taking, because the older you get, the more, the more uh variables are going to get a hundred percent so you got to get it in when you're young as much as possible, Cause when you get kids, you get married, you have work and all this other stuff going on.
Speaker 1:It. Just it just starts getting in the way. So I like how you are. You're in it and you're in it every day, man, and you take it serious. I mean, it's a business for you, almost right, no, 100%.
Speaker 3:I mean, jiu-jitsu is my life. It's completely consumed me for the better. And I think people have always told me that you're going to find something that's going to just call to you and you're going to do that. You're going to find something that's going to just call to you and you're going to do that. And I mean, ever since I started jujitsu, I just felt like it was my calling. You know, maybe I love competing, you know, and if it doesn't work out, competing, that's completely. I'm totally okay with that. You know, I love the coaching aspect of of doing jujitsu. I think I get a lot of, I reap a lot of the benefits being a coach and you know that builds my character a lot. So, yeah, jujitsu has just completely traversed my life Now.
Speaker 1:for me, it was easy to get into it because I wrestled. Did you wrestle in high school?
Speaker 3:No, I did not. I was a tennis player so. But yeah, I did tennis to get out of class. I was one of those kids. But yeah, I never played really sports in high school. I was always active, you know. But yeah, no wrestling. My school actually didn't offer wrestling, unfortunately, otherwise I probably would have done it.
Speaker 1:Yeah. But, no, wrestling, no, I had a similar thing too. I wrestled my junior and senior year and my first high school didn't have it. So, okay, I end up doing it like for the first time, but it gave me a good base. But the thing is, is a lot of my competition of the the other wrestlers that I was going against, they literally were wrestling since they could walk, and this is in the state of ohio so it's a wrestling state just like you know, it's just like any other big state when sports and stuff so for sure but um, mike, I didn't ask you, man, when did your um, when did your jiu-jitsu journey start for you?
Speaker 1:I know you mentioned your parents started you in boxing yeah, so it started when I was young.
Speaker 2:Um, obviously you know I'm a lot older. I was born in 1984, so I was influenced by like rocky and all, like rambo, all these stuff, right? So wwf yeah like I was yeah, hulk hogan, ultimate warrior, um, you know. And then I I wanted to try wrestling. I went to wrestling, I did all the practices until it was time to uh, get the slinglet size and I was like, no, I'm not wearing that. I was like why, I don't know, I don't know why now and now I can see you in a singlet you know I'd be comfortable wearing it.
Speaker 2:You know, in my no-gi career I'd wear just little shorts with no top and nothing, and the slinglet was a killer for me, it's like a leotard for gymnastics. Yeah, I don't know what it was, but yeah, I ended up with mine.
Speaker 3:I've never tried one on. I mean I've never we need to get you.
Speaker 2:We need to get you one. We'll get you some custom ones. Why don't we? We?
Speaker 1:should make him one, make me a custom custom singlet.
Speaker 2:I think, adcc, you can compete in a singlet.
Speaker 3:I want one of those ones that are like super far down you know, oh we can make it sexy.
Speaker 2:No, you want.
Speaker 3:You want the Borat one yeah, the Borat one for sure, that'd be hilarious but um, but no, I did boxing was a state champion my first year.
Speaker 2:I was in um crazy story actually. So I joined boxing and the first day they had the tryouts there was like 150 kids there and every week 20 would drop bam, bam, bam. It was only me and two other kids who stayed, and the kids kids that I stayed with were some really good friends of mine, one of them being Nathaniel Duran. He was a multiple time national champion as a kid. He was phenomenal. We were best friends. We ended up having a falling out.
Speaker 2:I left boxing and I was like kind of jaded by the situation because his uncle was the coach and he was really like hard on us. And I just kind of jaded by the situation because his uncle was the coach and he was really hard on us. I just wasn't really comfortable around him, the coach, as far as the way he just handled things. He was a good guy but he was just really rough. And years later I stopped doing boxing and I got into music and watching the news and Nathaniel Duran ended up murdering a lady. He's like my best friend. Yeah, he was just like promising boxer, like off for stardom and, yeah, end up committing murder and getting into drugs and yeah, crazy, I got out of there like right at the nick of time. You know, it was like just really weird how that all worked out.
Speaker 1:But yeah, something I think about so when you left boxing, did you go to jujitsu or did you get into Muay Thai?
Speaker 2:No, I didn't get into Muay Thai until I was in MMA, until I was like probably around like Nate's age, like 23, 22, when I started taking it seriously. I actually wanted to do Jeet Kune Do. I was a big Bruce Lee fan and he was, you know. I was like all right, you know, I want to learn that stuff and be super, super good street fighter and all that stuff. And I found I found a gentleman in Albuquerque, a coach, sifu Rei Yi, which is an amazing guy, helped me out a lot actually. But I trained with him and he had this little tiny dojo and I just stayed with him and then he got into MMA. Some wrestlers came in and wanted to learn striking, so he started taking these guys on this whole striking journey and then that's where my whole journey transitioned to mixed martial arts and I wanted to be an mma fighter and all that stuff.
Speaker 1:So I mean, nate, you're probably too young to understand, but like in the 80s, like we, we thought wwf at least I did. I thought wwf was real, yeah, and I thought steven seagal was real and I thought I thought all that, I thought it's not. No, I'm just kidding dude. I. I mean I thought that john claude van Damme was real. I thought like that's how fighting went down, right, right, and it totally does not at all Like UFC, kind of you know, broke, broke that whole myth really quick, really quick.
Speaker 2:It was just. It was just the more real form of seeing who's you know, out of all the years of all this combat and dojo storming.
Speaker 1:I mean, I remember seeing fights at school and I'm not even shitting you. I would see fights at school where people would do that like pat their elbow and then do that elbow drop, like because that's what we saw in wrestling. Now, oh yeah, I've seen that, I've seen that before. So that's what we thought, man like back in the day, so like like back in the day, so like you wanting to do. I mean, it's amazing that your parents even put you in martial arts to begin with, because my dad would never do it.
Speaker 2:Well, I think New Mexico is a big boxing community, you know, among the Latino people. You know it was that or karate, and my dad's like no, we're not doing karate, he's like, you know, he's like no offense, but the guy teaching is like 90 years old, you know I mean. So I said, okay, fine, no problem, so put me in boxing and it's probably the greatest thing that ever happened to me, besides like my, you know, uncomfortable, being uncomfortable around the coach.
Speaker 1:The teammates were really nice and you know it was a good time what's the one thing that you see related to all the martial arts that you've done? Footwork is it, is it transition like what? Like? What do you think is similar across across the board for everyone?
Speaker 2:you know, I think it's just for me. It was like I always sought out the most brutal form, right it's. It's just for me, it was like I always sought out the most brutal form, right. They're both really gentle, but they could be extremely brutal, and those are the sports that I was kind of always drawn to. You know what I'm saying.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Like Wing Chun. People think it's a real soft art, but it's incredibly brutal. Same thing with Muay Thai Jiu-Jitsuitsu it's a very gentle art but at the same time, if you start adding in other variables, such as punches, headbutts and all this stuff, it changes an art that's, you know, gentle to an art that's very deadly, you know so that always attracted me because, growing up, I wanted I didn't.
Speaker 2:I wanted to be someone who could protect themselves in the street, no matter what you know, and that was a goal of me trying to learn all these martial arts is, if I ever had to protect my family or myself, I wouldn't be a victim you know.
Speaker 1:so you know for me, man, I think for me it's about slowing it down, slowing the action down, sort of like the matrix, and being able to see things and see windows open and see those clothes at the same time, absolutely. And so, especially like in the law enforcement, military realm, like it's important for you to be able to do that under stress and anxiety, to see action and to slow that action down. And, nate, the only thing you've trained so far is just tennis and Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
Speaker 3:So growing up I actually did taekwondo okay I don't really uh. Well, I mean, don't really consider that people too much dude.
Speaker 1:I mean people, people kind of shit on taekwondo and like karate, but in reality, like tell me if I'm wrong, like you would, you would know this better than me.
Speaker 2:Like it teaches you discipline right and how to do proper strikes yeah, you know, I was having a conversation today with one of my students and he was like why don't? Why isn't it more efficient? You know, and I said, well, a lot of, especially with Taekwondo, right, it's a lot of kicks and no punches to the face, only punches to the body. Right, it kind of limits your form of what you're used to doing, right, like if you're used to punching and in a controlled environment like that. But if you go, you know you're at school, you're like still gonna want to punch the body and you know, yeah, unless you, you know, have really good kicks, then that separates you from everyone else. Right, and, like I've always said, it doesn't matter about the martial art, it matters about the person training the martial art. You know, if they're, if they're intense and they want to be brutal, they can make. They can make anything gentle, brutal, for sure, so I like that.
Speaker 1:I like that gentle brutal. Yeah, speaking of gentle, real nate, you're a fucking beast man on the mats. Um, I appreciate that I'm just saying, man, you're you're, you're relentless and uh, and just for having trained what you said three years now yeah, just under three. Two, two and a half so, in those three years, man, what do you think is your biggest struggle or breakthrough so far in your journey?
Speaker 3:That's a good question.
Speaker 1:There's got to be something that sticks out in your mind. The most difficult thing, or like struggle, struggle, just the one thing that sticks out in your mind. That is either a struggle or a breakthrough that you've had.
Speaker 3:Maybe it's a competition that you, I think it's the uh. Well, when I first started competing, I actually ended up losing my first 10 tournaments, and so I think that takes a toll on your mental drive, right, because I'm paying money out of my pocket to do all these tournaments and I'm not performing good, I'm not even scoring any points, and so I think the the mental resilience of not giving up and still pursuing my desire to compete, I think that's probably where the uh, the biggest struggle was. You know, and then eventually, when I just became full focus on competing and taking it more serious and just not stopping, I mean, there's no secret. You say I'm good at jiu-jitsu, but anybody can be really good at something if they dedicate and have passion and spend a lot of time working at it.
Speaker 3:I wasn't born a gifted individual for jiu-jitsu. I don't think a lot of people are. I mean, maybe some people are more athletic than others. People have done sports growing up. But if you want to get good at jujitsu, that's the one beautiful thing is it's just time on the mat, time on the mat and how hard you're willing to work. And for me, um, I was just, I'm always that person where I want to make sure that I'm the hardest worker in the room, you know, not just for me but for those people around me, so I can set a standard. You know, and try and be uh, try and be just a role model.
Speaker 1:So that's true leadership, man. And I'll say this much uh, Brazilian jujitsu for me has been like anytime I was going through a rough patch in my life, like when I was going through a divorce or anything like that I had two options I could either get my ass in the gym or I could go to the bar. And I lived in great places like Chicago that have great bar scenes and so, and they also have great MMA gyms, great BJJ gyms, and so whenever I was going through those rough patches in my life, that's where I would go. I would just go to the gym, and I've been very blessed to have people that own gyms that would just throw me the keys and say anytime you need to go in there, just go in there. And I would spend like a lot of time just going to the gym, and when it was closed I had to find something else to do. But, yeah, taking accountability and having that self-awareness is really, really important. A hundred percent, A hundred percent.
Speaker 1:Especially for young adults, military veterans, I think especially like meeting people in the middle and having self-awareness and accountability is really important and knowing thyself. So I want to throw this question out to both of you right now and you guys can answer however you want. But how do you both, how do you both define resilience in your personal life or on the mats? How do you define resilience in your personal life or on the mats just from what you've seen over the years?
Speaker 3:Go ahead. I guess I'll speak on this first. I think it's you versus you. I mean, at the end of the day, you got to be resilient about being a better person, being a better man, being a better woman. I can't be better than the next guy and the next guy can't be better than me. He wasn't dealt the same cards that I was dealt, you know, and vice versa. So I think resilience, through the cards you're dealt and trying trying to use it to become, you know, a better individual, yeah, um, not only for you but for the people around you, you know. And so I always try to tell myself it's you versus you. You know, especially in jujitsu. I can't be better than the next guy at jujitsu. You can't be better than me, you know, all I can be is better than the person I was yesterday or better than I was six months ago, you know. So I know, as long as I'm making progressive changes and it's making me better, not only on the mats but as a person, then that's resilience for me.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I agree with that.
Speaker 3:I like that yeah.
Speaker 1:I mean, I like it because a perspective from a 23-year-old young adult who's been training relentlessly from three years. But, mike, you're a 40 year old black belt brazilian jiu-jitsu man. What's, what's your take on that?
Speaker 2:well, for me it was. It was just staying consistent. You know, as, like you I had, I went through divorce and I had nothing. I had nothing left. So I had the same choice to make, right. But luckily I had a really good friends who kind of believed in my journey, right. So, um, it just taught me that if you just set a goal like I tell my students if you have a goal, you have something to work towards, right. If you, if you reach that goal, you set another goal.
Speaker 1:If you don't have no goal to reach, then you're kind of just floating by, you're just training to train or you're just you're just training to train, or you're just, you're just showing up to show up, Right, but if you put goals and you, you meet those and you become more, more of a way, better person. You know, yeah, I agree with you for sure on that man and um, resilience. You know I always say this, uh, whenever I was in the military and law enforcement everyone has their own idea of a bad day. Everybody has run it Nate. I know you've been in some, some matches where the guy that you've been going against has really pushed you to the limits and you had to choose do I just roll over or do I keep fighting 100, and whether you win or lose, like it changes you like you literally break through a whole new floor oh yeah, I think it's all mindset, you know, at the end of the day.
Speaker 3:What do they say? It's uh, 90 mental, 10 physical. So it's all just dependent on how you look at the hardship. You can either let it break you or it can make you. And so I always try to have the mindset. If I go out anywhere in life and I, you know, have a difficult situation or competition in the room, I'm getting beat. You know, it's super easy when times get hard, right, to just give up and shy away. And I try my best, you know, to not have that mindset. I try to say work through the hard times, it'll make you, you know, a better person. And what's the saying? You can't make a scrambled egg without cracking some eggs, right? So yeah, just try to take the good with the ugly and I think that's all you can do. You know it's everything's hindsight 50, 50 at the end of the day. So you know you're not going to be able to go back in time and change this, so might as well adapt, learn and overcome.
Speaker 1:So yeah, exactly yeah, I learned at a young age man like, even when I, when I had like a toxic situations being in the military, bad leadership or whatever, I walked away a better man because I learned how to navigate, manage the managers, manage the situation, take accountability. Some self-awareness fall on your face and fall forward at the same time when you guys are in competition. When you guys are in competition, what are both of your biggest competitions so far? If you had to rank them like, what have you been to? Like Worlds?
Speaker 3:I did Worlds last year so I got actually Worlds coming up in two weeks. So but yeah, I did Worlds last year. Biggest tournament, I guess that just depends on, you know, maybe the notoriety, and I guess Worlds is considered the biggest tournament, absolutely, um, but biggest in terms of matches I've had. Uh, I wouldn't say it's worlds, I'd say it's more one of the opens, you know, but I guess it just depends on how you look at it yeah, I was really surprised.
Speaker 1:I did a tournament in uh, indiana once and it was a little tournament, it wasn't ibjj. I ran at that and I, I did not, I did not take it serious, I didn't cut weight. Huge mistake, man, huge mistake. I, oh yeah, ended up getting mopped in that tournament. But uh, so yeah, I know what you're saying when it comes to like what's, like, what's big, that's, that's subjective, right, but take me through a typical training day for you. When you're, when you're in the zone both of you, when you guys are getting ready for a competition I mean, because your diet changes and like 100, how much do you train?
Speaker 2:so for myself, I'm a lot older so it's a little different, right, um? But for me I just try to train with the best, with every day, with the guys in the room right, try to have a good diet, and for me, I believe a lot of it's for myself is just self-belief. If I can, if I know I put in the hard work and I've given it my all, then I'm gonna have no regret, no matter what right, win or lose. But I I never want to go in half-ass and have to live with the fact that I got beat by someone. I shouldn't have been beat by or made a mistake. I shouldn't if I just prepared right, because for myself, regret's something I don't like at all.
Speaker 1:Have you ever made that mistake about taking something serious? Yeah?
Speaker 2:a lot of times. I mean, I didn't start doing good in competition until I was a black belt, so everything else I was always mediocre. Really, yeah, I would win one tournament here. I was always like top three. You know, I can never like break through. And then, uh, you know, as soon as I like got, actually as soon as I opened my gym, more than I really started doing good, which is really weird, because I didn't have a room full of like a bunch of tough guys, you know, I had a bunch of beginners and, you know, my nephew and my nephews and all them to work with, and that's kind of all I had to prepare me, yeah. So it was uh shout out, you know yeah shout out.
Speaker 2:You know right, yeah, yeah, shout out. You know, giudini, for all his hard work. He was with us, you know, helping me coach with all the students and he's. He's something else too to have in a room when you have at least one good guy. But but I had all my nephews there, so I had, you know, nate was coming up and a couple guys from the gym that I had before that I was working at before kind of came over, and that's all I had. But I knew that if I could just hone in my technique, that I could go do it when it mattered. You know, I mean, I've been doing this long enough that I know that like what I need to do to mentally prepare.
Speaker 1:It sounds like you're talking about a specific tournament. Which tournament was that and how? What was the outcome?
Speaker 2:Well, it was one of my first. So, growing up in a small town, I've always wanted to win an IBJJF, let alone at Black Belt right, that was like a big goal of mine. So, um, so, uh, and not only that, I just opened the gym right. All my students came parents, you know. So it was. I think it was 2023 orange county open.
Speaker 1:I remember that. Yeah, I just started yeah.
Speaker 2:So that was like. That was like a big win for me, because that that solidified for my for me not, I didn't really care what anyone else thought, I just solidified to me that I could go and put myself on there and fight guys that normally I wouldn't be able to beat.
Speaker 1:So you got first.
Speaker 2:Yeah, submitted to everybody. That's right, and Orange County too.
Speaker 1:Yeah, submitted all my opponents.
Speaker 3:Yeah, orange County Again. Some tough guys too.
Speaker 1:I will say that I mean Orange County, that's a big, a big.
Speaker 3:Yeah, they don't call it the aoj open for no reason.
Speaker 2:Yeah well, I just knew that, you know my students were going to show up and I had to, uh, I had to be ready, you know, because I just opened the gym in alhambra and I knew, hey, like it was mainly for myself, like I had done the nabjf worlds and won and done these tournaments, but I was like, okay, this is like in my backyard, you know, like everyone knows out, everyone knows, like Orange County, la area, we have the best jujitsu. Besides, maybe Brazil even then, right, we have some of the best.
Speaker 1:So yeah, when I used to train out in Cincinnati, the guys would fly out here for the tournaments. I mean, this is a big state for that.
Speaker 2:Yeah. So if you can come out and, like I said, that was my goal. So for me I just, you know, I was just ready, I was motivated and mentally prepared.
Speaker 1:If I'm mentally prepared, I feel that I can't be beaten by anybody. So, yeah, what about you, nate man? What? What is your uh typical training like when you're leading up to a big competition?
Speaker 3:so I'll just give you the rundown, uh, of my day-to-day right now. So, uh, I wake up about 9 am, go do a morning training session for about an hour or two and then, um, after that I go to do strength and conditioning with one of our guys at the gym there shout out kev nimble athletics, and he's been training me for the past couple weeks, getting me ready for worlds and then, um, after that I come home, I'm working with the nutritionist right now, so just to help me shed these uh extra pounds a little bit easier what weight are you at?
Speaker 3:right now I'm 155, so I fight featherweight, which is 150, but you walk around at what about 160? It depends on how much I'm eating, how much I I'm splurging. I'm a big back, so I love food. But last tournament I weighed in when I fought heavyweight. I was 168.
Speaker 1:Heavyweight.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I fought heavyweight, but for Worlds I wanted to cut down. That's why I implemented working with strength and conditioning and working with a nutritionist. These are all things I could do myself, but it's the accountability of having someone that's coaching you and there to push you that, I think, is helping me a lot, especially with the nutrition factor. I've always cut weight on my own, I've always understood the calorie deficit and everything. But I think, uh, taking the chance and leap of faith in someone else, especially a professional, and having that accountability has really solidified it being a good thing for me. So, but, uh, after strength and conditioning for a couple hours, I come back home, rest up a little bit and then I'm back on the mat. Uh, coaching kids class for a couple hours, depends on the day, usually one or two classes, and then have the adult training at night wow, yeah, I mean back in the day when I used to do tournaments, I was pretty regimented, disciplined.
Speaker 1:Would you believe that I was down to 145 at one point, accidentally?
Speaker 3:accidentally, accidentally dude, I'm sure you looked like a lean and mean 145 dude, I can believe that.
Speaker 1:I can believe that dude, I I got down to 145 and I was, I was working you probably moved really good too.
Speaker 1:Yeah, super fast and uh the the thing is is I wasn't trying to do it, but I was, so I mean, it was a rough patch of my life, so I literally just soaked myself into jujitsu. I was doing hot yoga at the same time, which is next door to the MMA gym that I trained at, and then I was also going to the sauna. I was eating nothing but like Subway chicken sandwiches nothing on it, just plain.
Speaker 3:Oof damn.
Speaker 1:So yeah, I mean I mentally went there at one point, but I know it's very trying.
Speaker 3:It is, and I think the sacrifice is what makes it. Like I said earlier, it's 90% mental, 10% physical. So if I'm willing to go the extra step and if all said is done, it doesn't help me out, but I go in there mentally believing that it helped me out. I mean, that's, you know, 100% of matters, even if it's a placebo. You know, what I'm saying, I'm taking that bet.
Speaker 1:The trend that I'm seeing here is you both were talking about being mentally prepared. Mentally ready and in the right state of mind, right? You think being relaxed really helps you out?
Speaker 2:quite a bit Relaxed helps you out quite a bit relaxed, um, nervous, but yet I think, for myself, prepared, I think, prepared, I think you just got to go out and have fun. You know like, especially if you're competing, it's like it's beyond, I think, being nervous, right, you're not getting punched, right, if you think about it, you're just kind of like playing a game plan, right, you're just trying to implement the game that you've been training. You know, and for me, I think if, when I said think about it that way, I wouldn't be nervous, you know, it's like, well, what could really go wrong?
Speaker 1:You know, as long as I just go in there and just try to win, it's kind of like the knobs on this audio and just setting it just right to where you're nervous, taking it serious, but you're relaxed at the same time. Yeah.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I mean they all play a factor for the mental part. You know, it's just how you're. You deal with each emotion, each feeling, right, you know?
Speaker 2:and everyone's different. Everyone people, some. Some people need nerves, some people don't get nervous. One of my teammates, estevan Martinez, he would. This guy would never get nervous and this guy would fight big guys. And I'm like like man, what do you? You don't get nervous, he's like no man, I just go out there and fight. And I was like man, that's something I always look at and be like, wow, that's that's a rare yeah thing to find in somebody who just like has zero fear when he competes, like no nerves, he could like eat food, take a nap, it's nothing. Was you know where me? I'm like all right, I gotta be sharp, I. But then I realized like I mean, if I'm prepared and I trained hard, what's you know, my body's going to react to everything I've done.
Speaker 1:So just, exactly, yeah, it's going to happen. So I've noticed that for me, like when I'm shooting or doing tactics, that when I it's, it's almost like the least I give a shit, the better off I do, because I'm putting the fundamentals together that I've. That I basically have been practicing this whole time.
Speaker 3:Muscle memory yeah, exactly.
Speaker 1:I'm going back to my training. Yep, you know. I wanted to ask both of you guys, man, what are your thoughts on? Brazilian jujitsu is growing popularity in mainstream culture movies, celebs, training there's a lot of celebrities now that are that are training and whatnot. What are you guys thought on that?
Speaker 2:I love it. Yeah, I love it, especially as, I mean, you know, I'm a I'm a jujitsu business owner, so for me it's something that I you know, just to see anyone come in who normally wouldn't do jujitsu to me is amazing whether you're a celebrity, uh, you know, a comedian, whatnot you know? That's always cool to see but it's still.
Speaker 1:It's still black magic. I mean, there's still a lot of people that don't train I could see that.
Speaker 3:I could see that. I mean I I would love more people to to join and do jiu-jitsu. I recommend it to everybody, but I just wouldn't want it to water down yeah the sport you know, in terms of, of, uh yeah, the promotions are just watering down, just for for money, or anything like that. You know what I'm saying. I think yeah the value that jujitsu brings is super important.
Speaker 1:So uh, that, just like karate or taekwondo, I think, because they're so oversaturated, they have so many people doing the sport, it kind of takes you know the meaning away a little bit you think the rules, the rules could be a way of watering it down, like not allowing certain things to happen, like not striking in the face like they did in some of those strike martial arts, I mean, how like? How would you want? I feel like jujitsu is just like a proving ground where you, you can't either. You're like, if you walk into a gym and you're wearing a belt, you can't lie. Yeah 100.
Speaker 3:Yeah, the bell is just a caller.
Speaker 1:I can't break boards or not strike you in the face. It is a grind. You are going to get put through a meat grinder when you first walk into a gym and it also depends on the gym you're training at.
Speaker 2:Too. A lot of gyms they have different ways of training and teaching their students, you're right. So there's some gyms where their aspect is strictly competition. So there's two to me. I noticed the students are very like, have a very good iq, but they're not very tough outside. Does that make sense? So I think it just depends on where you're, who your instructor is right.
Speaker 2:So yeah, what that culture is yeah yeah because some gyms I've heard they don't some. We had a student come in. He said, hey, me and my buddy are both training jujitsu. I trained it and I'm not gonna say the name of the gym. He said I'm training at this gym. Uh, he's training with us, his, his friend's, training at a gym and they don't spar at all. He's like, yeah, he's not allowed to spar until he's like a blue belt. You know, we start. We start teaching people how to spar like their very first class yeah, right, so banging yeah, it's you know, it's night and day.
Speaker 2:So when they, when they, when they meet up to train, he's just like smashing this guy and he's you know his buddy's like wow, I don't know why I'm not progressing. And it's like, well, it's not that he's not progressing, he's just learning in a different way. Right, it's not that it's wrong, it's just not the way we do it, you know yeah, you got to be careful where you train at, man.
Speaker 1:Some gyms are dangerous and some gyms aren't teaching you the proper way yeah, definitely, definitely.
Speaker 3:but to circle back to what mike was saying, I think it's all about the leader and the person running the gym. Yeah, you know for sure, I know some guys too that run gyms or train at other gyms and you can see the type of person that, uh, their coach rubs off on them. Right and, thankfully for me, because mike has been my professor, my coach, my teacher, and knowing, knowing him as a person, has rubbed off on me and uh, I mean the mental fortitude that this guy has, you know as as rubbed off greatly on me and his confidence and seeing everything, I think I think it uh rubs off on everybody in the gym and I think that's an important factor to have.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's huge. That's why I stuck around, because I mean, I, I had I was gonna start at a different gym and then I went to go pick up a pizza at papa john's and then I saw that brazilian jiu-jitsu canvas outside. I was like, oh, there's a jiu-jitsu gym here. I was like I need, I need to get back into it again. Yep and uh, I was like I'll give this place a try. I.
Speaker 1:What I really liked was I liked how the gym had a very family environment where, like not family, like kids and adults I'm talking about family we're like. Everybody was there to get better, no matter what level you're at, because my first gym that I started at was Midwest training center and at that gym I tell people all the time, like, at that gym day, one night, one you were were a rag, they would ragdoll you, they would beat you because the guys were fighters I mean, that's where clay guida was, jason guida will, brooks, like. All those guys were there like and they would and their, their objective in that gym was to create fighters and so if you're a hobbyist, dad walking in, you became a grappling dummy, yeah, and so I did that for a body. I survived because of my wrestling. And then I then I moved on to a carlson junior school.
Speaker 1:Christian uflacker shout out to him uh, south chicago. Uh, got my blue belt through him, um, and I got to see what a real gym, how a real gym is supposed to operate. And so, yeah, be careful where you train at, because some places can be dangerous, you know, if you, especially if you have to go into work tomorrow yeah, I think that's a that's a good thing that our gym does.
Speaker 3:We try to cater to everybody, you know. Yeah, there's so many different reasons people start jiu-jitsu, whether it's to get in shape, you know, or, um, it's to compete right, or just become a better person, or maybe you just want the camaraderie of being around other guys or other people. You know, I think that that's what we do really good is we attract people and people that come to do jiu-jitsu, for whatever reason it may be. You know we're able to fulfill that.
Speaker 1:Definitely agree with that man. Mike, you run a really good school man. Thanks, I appreciate that. I try Not just kissing your butt Cause you're here. I really feel that way. Thank you for for opening up where you did and having a pizza shop next door, otherwise I would have never found you.
Speaker 2:I've been, I've been blessed. The Alhambra area has been amazing. I've had incredible students and you know that was my goal opening the gym. I've, you know, traveled all over, trained at a lot of gyms and I always noticed there was a lot of clicks, you know, and I always didn't like to go in and you know I was like man, I wish I would just feel more comfortable training somewhere, you know.
Speaker 2:So I made sure that my students, when someone comes in, you know we make sure they're, they're a part of the gym. We're not a separate entity inside the gym where these guys are friends and these guys are friends and you can't hang out with these guys because they're too cool black belts. It's not like that at all. You could walk up to me and any one of us ask us any questions any time. We're just. You know that was the goal to family, kids, everyone, to just be happy and learn jujitsu because it's for everybody. And I hear so many stories of people going to try a jujitsu gym and they get hurt and they never do it and they don't want to put their kids in it, right, and now they're jaded to that experience and it's not fair right, you know for sure.
Speaker 1:So yeah, you definitely have had those, those gatekeepers there too to control the new folks that are coming through the door. Oh yeah, um, to kind of hold them down sometimes. You know you got those guys that they could be pretty rough. How did you get your start? I mean, you you opened the gym. You already knew, nate. Like how did or did you just open up and you had no body there and you're just sitting there waiting for people to walk in?
Speaker 2:No, so I moved back. So my wife is in the military, so I was in Maryland and my business partner now koji shout out, koji um wanted to open a gym. Long story short. Uh, professor lucas gave me a call and said hey, we want to open a gym. So I said, well, why don't I come out and work? I'll work for you until the gym, until everything works out. So I end up working for professor lucas for, geez, about a year and a half, maybe a little more, until the gym opened. And then I'd already had like put out that I was opening a gym. So, uh, luckily, I had people literally waiting to join.
Speaker 2:Okay, good so as soon as the doors opened I had like rent was already paid my first day, like everything was. It was just such a blessing, like right off the bat, and I met nate. I knew him from my buddy estevan. They knew each other so like I kind of had like known of nate and then when I moved back we. Our mutual friend of ours introduced us and yeah to piggyback.
Speaker 3:I know I'm pretty close with his nephew, juno. Yeah, so I knew juno. I actually knew mike before he knew me and I have a quick funny story. So the very first day we met, um, it was at a bar in monrovia. We're celebrating his birthday with some of the jujitsu guys and I was actually super hesitant on going because, uh, my buddy chris was training at the time and he's like, dude, just come, you know, like it's, it's mike's birthday, it's gonna be a good time. A bunch of jujitsu guys. I was like I don't know man, like you know, these guys don't know me, I don't know them, you know. And I was like, all right, you know, I'll go, and I mean, thankfully I did.
Speaker 3:But when I got there, I remember I sat down right next to mike and he's wearing a denver broncos hat and I'm like, oh you, like you like the broncos, like I'm from denver, and you could tell, like knowing mike now and knowing how his sense of humor is, you know it's it's funny to look back in time and laugh at this situation. But I remember he was giving me a hard time. He asked me if I was doing jujitsu and I said no and he just told me I had a really punchable face and you know, back then looking back it's hilarious, right, knowing his sense of humor, but at the time time I'm never the type of person to let just someone talk smack. But I already had knew Mike before he knew me, so I knew I got to pick and choose what I say around him because he doesn't know me yet. So I don't want to rub off on him and get my ass beat right on his birthday. Want to rub off on him and get my ass beat right on his birthday. So, um, but we ended up clicking through our, through our buddy yesterday and through juno.
Speaker 3:And yeah, like I said, he said he was opening up a gym and he actually told me, you know he's like, I know you're struggling, I know you want to do jujitsu. He said, uh, and I'll never forget this, he told me I'll let you come train with me, but on one condition you're going to be the hardest worker in the room. And you know, right then, and there I told him I promise you I'm going to be that hardest, I'm going to be the hardest worker in that gym. And uh, he told me right back. He said actions speak louder than words. You know, a man is only as good as his word.
Speaker 3:So I was like, you know, I got. I got to prove not only to him but to myself. You know, I've always been a person where if I say I'm going to do something, I do it. So I knew this wasn't an opportunity I couldn't pass up. And as soon as he opened up the gym, showing up every single day offering to help to clean the mats, trying to put up my end of the bargain, you know, because I know at the end of the day it's a business for him, yeah, so if I'm not paying right, it's, it's taken out, you know, of his livelihood.
Speaker 1:So you have to help him in a positive way yeah, run the business. Yeah, exactly. So, mike, how many times have you extended that, that olive branch? And people just don't show up and show out. I've had a few. Yeah, I've had a few, but I don't offer it too much.
Speaker 2:You know, like I've had, I've had a few, I've had a few, but I don't offer it too much. You know, like I've had, I've had, like I said, I've been around some very successful people that I've came up with from, you know, white belt to black belt, and you know, um, I just, I just like to help, right, and sometimes you, you help people and they don't reciprocate it, right, but uh, or they don't?
Speaker 1:they just don't appreciate it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, they don't want to like. Yeah, they don't want to like be, or like just be a part of the gym, right, it's like, if you have that opportunity, you should be more of a role model in the gym. You should be asking for help, you should be respectful, right, there's a lot of things that go along with that, right? So, yeah, only if I see something, if I see something in someone, then I'll, you know, extend that, because I there's a point in my life where I remember going to Jiu Jitsu and they're like, yeah, man, it's 200 bucks and I'm broke and, you know, my wife is paying for my Jiu Jitsu because I can't, you know, pay for it. So it's like, man who knows of the opportunity for a lot of people who have the chance to be great at jujitsu, but they, you know, money is the barrier between them and success, right? Or learning the art. So, right, you know, I mean I can only do so much, but when I can, I will.
Speaker 1:So, no, I think that's huge man, Like whether you want to be considered or not. I mean, at the end of the day, you are a mentor, you're a mentor and it can be very frustrating mentoring because you don't run into people like nate over here all the time. I mean it to actually put it out there, offer it up and then them follow through and take it serious yeah that's not something that happens quite often it's not, but you know what I could say?
Speaker 2:we're very fortunate at our location. We're like every single person who walks through those doors is a blessing to the gym in some way. Rather, it's their personality, or if it's, you know, they were just willingness to learn or be around others and it's just it's. It's really amazing, it's.
Speaker 1:I mean.
Speaker 2:I can't say enough how lucky I am, so you know absolutely.
Speaker 2:No doubt, and overall, like would you say that, uh, you are where you thought you'd be right now, like with, with the business and everything no, really no, I was, I was worried from the very get-go you don't think, you didn't think it'd work out no, I mean, uh, when I first started jujitsu, I was like Nate, I was very dedicated and at the time I was in a very toxic marriage and everyone around me was saying you've got to quit jujitsu, it's going to ruin your life, you'll never make a living, there's no money in it. And I said, I just believed in it. I didn't go to college. The only thing have, you know, the only thing I was good at is fighting, you know, and being that person. And I didn't.
Speaker 2:And there was two ways to go. I could try to make a professional route or I could, you know, go a bad route. So, um, I decided, you know, I'm going to just train every day. And I ended up having to choose between my relationship and jujitsu at one point in my life and I chose jujitsu and it, uh, you know, led me to a great place. So now I'm pretty pretty happy.
Speaker 1:So yeah, I tried to warn nate about that, about relationships about the relationships and jujitsu. Do girls hate jujitsu I? Mean unless they do jujitsu.
Speaker 3:Yeah, they fucking, they hate it I've been super fortunate, uh, to to have a partner that is super supportive of what I do, and you know, and I'm I mean, I'm super blessed for that you know I told her, told her at the beginning.
Speaker 3:I set the standard. I said, hey, you know we're gonna. If you want to date me, my life is jujitsu and if at any point in time you make me choose between you or jujitsu, I mean I'm gonna choose jujitsu. So, and she knew that from the get-go and you know she's like, I support you 100 and anything that you do. If you need my help, I'm always here.
Speaker 2:So shout out to her well, that makes it, that makes you a better jujitsu athlete. Though, when you have someone who supports you, yeah, and believes in your dream, oh, it does, yeah, it pushes you so much because there's times that I know me, I wouldn't believe in myself and my wife would like force me. Hey, you know you can do this, you you know, yeah, keep going, yeah, right, so it's like when you have that dynamic, it works out. I didn't have the dynamic, it didn't work out.
Speaker 2:Then, now that I have that dynamic, yeah you know I couldn't be any, I couldn't ask for anything more so that's awesome, man.
Speaker 1:That's awesome. Yeah, jujitsu has definitely made a huge purposeful change in my life and it's made such great connections for me too, like it actually got me in a movie last year like a guy that I remember that a guy that I trained with, like when, when I was a blue belt in cincinnati, northern kentucky, there, like, he's now a stunt coordinator and he's actually coming back soon.
Speaker 1:He's coming back for a few days. He just talked to me today, in July, so I'll I'll bring him by the gym, but he's a black belt under Carlson jr Awesome, really, really great guy. But you know we've been doing this for about an hour now, man, and I know this isn't the last time we're going to be doing this. But I want to fire off some rapid fire questions to you guys and get your thoughts on it real quick before we round it off, and I just wanted to have an opportunity in this episode to get to know both of you and in the future, man, I'd like to do some video commentaries. The way I got this place set up is specifically for you guys. Like, I've got the monitor right here where you can see the video and everything.
Speaker 3:And I like it. It already I do too.
Speaker 1:I already like where I love it, I think it's super dope, so I'm gonna have it lined up to where. Because there's a lot, there's a lot of uh, bull jitsu out there.
Speaker 1:That's going on and I I a lot of bullshit and I just want to get your guys's opinion on it, of course, and I think it's great I think it's great because you got a competitive blue belt right here 23 year old blue belt and then you've got a 40 year old black belt that's been in the game for a while and then myself, just a fucking loser.
Speaker 2:But like I'm just kidding I'm just.
Speaker 1:I'm just a big beefy guy but it's tough.
Speaker 2:He doesn't give himself credit.
Speaker 1:no, um, but yeah, man like this, uh that I definitely want to do some video commentary and stuff. Absolutely All right guys. Rapid fire round.
Speaker 3:All right.
Speaker 1:Let's do it.
Speaker 3:Gi or no? Gi Gi Gi, for sure, absolutely.
Speaker 2:I'm not a big no Gi guy, even though I started no Gi, and all my students know I'm not quite fond of no Gi. But that's okay, yeah, unless you're fighting naked in the street, yeah. It's, look it's, it's jujitsu at the end of the day is what I say. But my preference, you know, the gi for sure.
Speaker 1:Absolutely Both. Gi huh, okay, I agree, I agree, everybody's. Everybody's got a belt for the most part and everybody's got clothes on, so it's definitely good to know where those handles are for sure. All right, what was the first submission you ever landed?
Speaker 2:In a tournament. Yeah, triangle, really. Yeah, I've always been a triangle guy, I don't know why.
Speaker 3:I wish I was. So mine first was actually at worlds last year and it was a conto choke and that's been kind of my uh, signature, signature submission since then so conto choke conto interesting.
Speaker 1:What is your favorite post-training meal?
Speaker 3:oh my god when I'm cutting weight or when I'm not.
Speaker 1:I'll take this first it's a good question, go for it either american barbecue or uh like.
Speaker 2:My favorite place now, honestly, is prince street pizza in pasadena. That's where we get our pizza from and that place is phenomenal, let's try it out. And uh moose as well. So those are two places that, like I, go 100. I think.
Speaker 3:I think, if I'm not cutting weight, those two, for sure are, are up there, I'm never cutting weight when I am cutting weight um you don't have to probably probably some steak, some ribeye, a nice ribeye, not too much, but some ribeye, and then, uh some, some fruit and honey, not smoked, I usually pan sear it. Oh yeah, it's delicious.
Speaker 1:Yeah, man, I tell you, one time I cut weight for a tournament and then the next day I went directly to Cinnabon and I bought the biggest Cinnabon with cream on it, nuts and everything. Dude, you can get sick, sick I didn't know that that's a real like I was sick as a dog. That's a lot of sugar, man, it was a lot of sugar and I I didn't know that that was even a real, that you could really. I really was sick after that, yeah, I've been there.
Speaker 3:I've been there, I was in uh. Actually earlier this year I went, flew out to albuquerque, did a tournament out there and, uh, after nogi we went out with the boys and went out with my buddies and ended up eating six sopapillas with honey and an entire plate of new mexican food, which, if you don't know what sopapillas are, it's a uh it's like it's like fried fried bread.
Speaker 2:No, it's like like if you got a piece of dough like pizza dough and you're fried in it, kind of bubbles up it's. They're delicious super delicious new mexico cuisine is yeah, but I ended up getting.
Speaker 3:I ended up getting like really badly sick and it wasn't like throwing up, it was just really bad stomach pains. I think my, since I was cutting away, my body just wasn't ready, you know, to to intake all that all that flour expands in your stomach and it pushes it out, especially when you're cutting weight.
Speaker 1:Nightmare. That's a real thing, though, yeah. So if you guys could roll or, I'm sorry, if you guys could train, I'm just going to say train if you guys could train with anyone, past or present, who would it be? You go ahead.
Speaker 2:Let's hear what the younger guys got to say about it.
Speaker 3:If I could train with anybody. Younger guys got to say about it. If I could train with anybody, um, you know, I'm gonna keep it humble on this one and I'm gonna say, man, that's tough, there's so many. I think, off the top of my head I'm gonna go two people, okay, and this is gonna sound super cliche and gooberish but probably mike and uh and juno. You know, there's a bunch of great people out there, especially in jiu-jitsu. There's a bunch of great guys. But just because they're really good at jiu-jitsu and they show you something, that doesn't mean it's going to work for you. I think the biggest part about doing jiu-jitsu in general is having fun doing it. I think I'm having a lot of fun with the people that I'm around every single day and if I had two people to choose, it would be them. So good answer.
Speaker 2:It's definitely not my answer.
Speaker 3:How to keep it a little cliche so are you going to say Nate?
Speaker 1:Yeah, you better say me.
Speaker 2:No, I would say. I mean, you know, I've trained with so many jujitsu greats, literally Like I've. If I had to choose one, I'd probably I'd probably holes Gracie. He passed away in a hang gliding accident a long time ago and apparently he was like the ultimate. Like he was apparently I'm not no, I now I'm not, I don't know this but he was a lot better than hickson and um, I think that'd just be cool him. Or like haja gracie, someone that's like tall that that kind of jujitsu gives me a problem.
Speaker 2:So it'd be cool just to learn, you know so, yeah, that'd be a really good guy, because I've learned from I've came up with a lot of really good guys that I've trained with, you know I don't want to say a bunch of names, but yeah, yeah, I've been pretty blessed, so probably someone that's trying to think if there's somebody that's that's like passed away, that I would bring back and train with leandro low actually, yeah, leandro low for sure.
Speaker 3:But, for sure, leandro low, um, yeah, I need any top guy I would love to train with, you know, yeah, I've been fortunate enough to be in some rooms with some top guys as well, you know. So, um, but I think at the end of the day, it all just boils down to to having fun and, yeah, as long as you're around the people that you're having fun doing jujitsu with, you know, I think that's the most important. So, who knows, if I, if I bring them back and we connect, you know, or something like that maybe in a perfect world, leandro.
Speaker 3:Lowe would be a great training partner. But you never know. I'd like to say maybe Craig Jones too. I think he's a funny, funny guy, good personality. I think it would just be fun to hang out with him on and off the mat, so maybe personality.
Speaker 1:I think it would just be fun to hang out with him on and off the mat, so maybe, maybe him as well. To me it's kind of weird how those guys sort of have like celebrity status now yeah you got craig jones, ryan gordon, who else is out there? I mean a lot of these guys. Now they even have like the marcello marcello. They have like the the jiu-jitsu tournament now, uh, in vegas, what's that called? With this televised um, the nogi one.
Speaker 1:Oh, uh, adcc, yeah and cj like that like that's televised is a big deal, you know so I mean it's, it's growing and it's more people are getting into it I, more people in their 40s are getting to it. Or white belts like yeah, just it's their first time starting out, you know, and and it's great, you know it's great I think I think that's the thing about jiu-jitsu, like there's a style you can learn for every body type.
Speaker 2:You could be a huge overweight guy and you're going to be a pressure passer. If you're really skinny and flexible, right. You're going to be a guard player. If you're you know, kind of that like mid-stature right, you might be a great guard passer, whatever, right. So you can kind of adapt your game. I've even seen big guys who are like chunky, invert and backtake, and I'm like everyone.
Speaker 1:Everyone has their own game, yeah, yeah, everyone knows that I'm like everyone knows, like I'm smashing pass, like every time like for sure, and like it's kind of a kryptonite to do the same thing over again and I'm trying to develop that. But the thing is is I always tell people is know your adversary, or have an idea of your adversary, like look at his size, look at, look at how big they are, how strong they are, and like think about what you would do, have a game plan, yeah, and then have a contingency. If first thing you do fails, then we go to this, then we go to that, so on and so forth. Don't treat me the same way you would 120 pounder.
Speaker 3:Right, Right. A game plan is is important, but you just got to be prepared for adaptability Right, not going your way.
Speaker 1:Like when you rolled against the heavyweight guy, like the last place you probably wanted to be was for him to be on top of you, smashing you absolutely out of control.
Speaker 3:Right.
Speaker 1:Absolutely Out of control, right, Absolutely. So that's what I always tell people is to just have a game plan. Know your adversary. If you see them wearing like a brown belt or a black belt or a higher belt, don't do the same thing you would do to a white belt.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:You know, try to get the advantage and hold it.
Speaker 2:And that's the thing with jujitsu is looks can be deceiving. Yeah, it's like you don't know, because when you're wearing the gi, everyone looks like the same. You don't. You don't know if they're packed full of muscle, if they got zero muscle. You're like you're just wearing the uniform.
Speaker 1:You don't know both of you guys. Have you guys been, uh, underestimated before? Or like anyone?
Speaker 2:look at you like oh, I'm sure I do. I feel all the time.
Speaker 3:I don't know, maybe I don't, can't speak for everybody. I feel people look me and underestimate me, especially maybe going into like a heavier weight class or something. If I was, they overlook me.
Speaker 1:If I was untrained? If I was, if I was untrained, I would underestimate both of you. Oh for sure, Because you're both you're both skinny and you're both small. Yeah, yeah, you know, but I'm but I trained, so I know better.
Speaker 2:Yeah you know, surprisingly though, I I like, for some reason, people just when I go out, they just think. They like think I'm an mma fighter or something, so they just like they don't mess with me. It was because of my ears, yeah, but I usually that's always like the topic those are talking and then, you know, it's pretty chill. Never had someone be like, hey, man, like you know, usually they'll like be like, oh you are you, you train? I'm like, yeah, and that's how it goes. My wife always says man, more guys talk to you than they like come up and talk to her. You know, like talking about my ears or something, I'm like, oh my gosh, I think.
Speaker 3:I think that's the. Uh, the beautiful, beautiful thing about jiu-jitsu is it's almost designed for the little guy to win right or the yeah maybe not the little guy to win but but to have like a defense and an offense fighting against a bigger opponent. So for sure, I think, being a smaller guy you get overlooked, not just in jujitsu, maybe less in jujitsu because people understand, but for sure on the street you know for sure, people are looking at you and I think a lot of it boils down to ego.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 3:That's a beautiful thing about juiu-jitsu as well. It's an ego humbler oh totally. A bunch of guys that don't do it. Unfortunately, they don't get humbled.
Speaker 1:I can't tell you how many times people like weightlifters have come to a jiu-jitsu class and walked away like I'm really sore man.
Speaker 3:Oh yeah, it's the hardest thing they've ever done.
Speaker 1:Doing those. I'm really sore man. Oh yeah, they say it's the hardest thing they've ever done. Like you know, like doing those bicep curls. That that's my problem is. Back in the day, like when I was in college, I did the beach muscles, yeah Right. And then during pandemic I worked out with you know, beach muscles, so kind of one of those things for me, like they don't, it doesn't help you like in a fight.
Speaker 3:No, definitely no, definitely not. It tires you out. I don't think. If you know you got into a fight against a bigger guy. That is untrained, right, you know? The only thing he's gonna say is what? Like, let's have a bench off, right, right? Like, yeah, you may be able to lift more than me, but let's see where those weights really come in handy.
Speaker 1:You know what I'm saying, so yeah, if you, if you had one thing to say to encourage someone who's on the fence to train or not to train let's say the guys in his 30s, 40s the older you get, the harder it is to walk into that gym. Yeah, what, what would be your push?
Speaker 3:so I'll say two things.
Speaker 3:First, number one, the hardest part is always showing up, right, it's super, like I said earlier, it's super easier, or it's super easy, excuse me when something's tough, to shy away from doing it, especially with jujitsu.
Speaker 3:It's not easy to show up every single day, or to show up on the first day and and and tell yourself you're going to do it and uh, I think that's super important. And second thing is for me, what actually kept me going at the beginning was the fact that I always tell everybody this jiu jitsu takes your mind off of everything, and I've never experienced something like that with uh training at the gym, right, lifting weights and you know, maybe that's just me and maybe some people do go to the gym and it takes their mind off of whatever they're going through or relieves the anxiety. But for me, jiu-jitsu it's, I think, that being in a situation where all you can do about all you can do is think about what's going on in the moment, think about what's going on in the match, and it just takes everything away. I think that's an attractive feature for jiu-jitsu. And, you know, I highly recommend anybody to at least give it a try Cause, like I said, the hardest part is showing up.
Speaker 1:Yeah, how do you get them through the door?
Speaker 2:Mike. Well, I usually say that first. That's when they got that from um hardest parts is showing up, actually, yeah.
Speaker 2:But, uh, I, my thing is, I just try to show people the beauty of jujitsu, like it's for everybody. You know, like, oh, you know I don't want to show up. You know it's a lot of people when they end up do showing up, they're trying to rush the positions right, because it gets really frustrating when you're brand new and guys are doing things you don't know and you're like, hey, you know, it's too much for me, it's just like, man, you gotta like. You know it's not a sprint, it's a marathon. You know, you gotta your time. You have to like, and a lot of it has to do. Is you? You got to people, got to feel comfortable walking in.
Speaker 2:You know, always try to make sure every single person that walks in those doors feels like their family from the moment they step foot in the door. You know, um, so I mean just and not only that I tell them look, it could change your life in many ways. You can compete, right, you can, you know, help you with your body. It can help your mental state, your confidence, right, if you're being bullied at work, all these things are just coming to play for people. So I try to just reiterate that it's just for everyone and it's such a positive addiction that's what I tell people. It's the most positive addiction you can have.
Speaker 3:Absolutely.
Speaker 2:Worst comes to worst. You'll introduce you to jujitsu. You're gonna be by looking at geese, you know, or looking at technique, you know. That's not bad. It could be much worse, you know.
Speaker 1:I thought you were going somewhere else with that.
Speaker 2:Yeah, hey, you never know you never, know Me, I always got caught looking at jiu-jitsu, so it's like whatever.
Speaker 1:Watching, looking at dudes wrestling each other on the mat.
Speaker 2:Yeah, exactly.
Speaker 3:And you know. But you know it's just, it's an ongoing, it's an evolution of getting better. You know, just trying to yeah, test yourself.
Speaker 1:Absorb as much as you can. You know. Yeah, I think it's one of the ultimate tests you can do. Yeah, I definitely agree, man. It's challenging for sure, and it's, uh, it's, it's, it's more realistic than weightlifting. It's real life stuff. It might, it may even save your life at some point, or someone else's life and that's and that's why it's worth training. Just one last thing, man, I want to ask you both so you guys are mma fighters. What's your walkout song?
Speaker 1:I got a couple I got your number one. What's your number one, though?
Speaker 3:I'll let I'll let mike answer this one first, so I have more time to think honestly, mine would probably be uh one first, so I have more time to think.
Speaker 2:Honestly, mine would probably be uh bon jovi, the song that they played for young guns oh uh, blaze of glory.
Speaker 1:Blaze of glory, nate's like, what is that?
Speaker 2:yeah and who is bon jovi.
Speaker 3:Nate's like I'm too young for that, bon jovi.
Speaker 2:I was actually trying to look at my spotify right now but that was just off the top of my head, either that, or like a rocky song or something, or maybe something super modern. But other than that probably because that it's an old jam and the movie really resonated with me as a kid I liked it too. You know, I liked it too.
Speaker 1:I wanted to be Lou Diamond Fellows man yeah. He was a badass. I wanted to be Billy the Kid.
Speaker 2:yeah, I was like a million west of they're coming out with part three.
Speaker 1:I can't wait, yeah, can't wait, we'll see. Hopefully, don't ruin it, I'm sure they will what's up, nate?
Speaker 3:what is it? I got a couple, but uh he said one man. Yeah, I know, man, I he's had one, so I think off the top of my head uh uptown girl. No, I'm just kidding girl not probably something that would get the crowd going. I think like, uh, I don't know if you guys have ever heard of track called the heads will roll, but it's a very popular track. Actually, patty pimlet, the ufc fighter, it's his walkout song.
Speaker 3:He actually stole it from me no no, I'm just kidding, but I think that would be a really cool walkout song. I think whatever gets the crowd hyped and behind you, you know that that extra fire and and your and your heart and in your mind is is everything, so something that gets the crowd going yeah I've heard some crazy walkout songs also yeah, maybe the game like the, the game wwe, what was his name?
Speaker 1:triple h's intro or is a, I don't know time to play the game I stopped watching wwf like or wwe back in like 95.
Speaker 3:Yeah, there's a bunch of.
Speaker 1:There's a bunch, you know, but I think something just to get the crowd hyped up anything by acdc, you know, yeah, that's a good one, get the ground going yeah, the funniest one I ever heard was um blink 182, all the small things, and I think it was what's his name. Man, it was that one guy. He's a grappler here from Southern California and he just told them like, put on whatever. And they put on All the Small Things by Blink-182. Nice, and he's walking out to that and I thought that was strange.
Speaker 3:It's a good song, though.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's a good song. It was a good song worse yeah, could be worse.
Speaker 2:Mike perry picked a song and they they picked the wrong one and it was like a beyonce song. But he was walking out and he's like yeah, he was like jamming. Yeah, he was like he looked at his lady. He's like, well, it is what it is, let's go double down yeah he won that fight too that's funny.
Speaker 1:so so, man, before we round it off, man, is there anything that you guys want to mention? Um, I mean, we'll come back to the table again, but but anything that I didn't mention that you want to throw out there, no, Nate you got a competition coming up in a couple weeks.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I got the world championship coming up.
Speaker 1:That'll be cool when at.
Speaker 3:That's going to be in Long Beach at the Pyramid, walter Pyramid, long Beach State, I think it's at. But if there was one thing I could say, it would be, um, to just try jujitsu. You know, um, you don't know what it can do for you. You don't know what it could do for the those around you absolutely, and for me it, like I said, it completely changed my life, and for the better.
Speaker 2:Find a great gym yeah, yeah absolutely that's key absolutely find a place where you're comfortable. That's why I tell people. But, like, people will call and they'll say, hey, we want to sign up, and I'll say, well, why don't you come first and make sure this is what you want, right? Especially for us too. Like we don't want someone coming in here and trying to like bully someone right, where I have to step in and kick someone out or you know.
Speaker 1:So it's got to be chill we'll get into that next time, because I know you have footage on that one.
Speaker 3:Oh no, maybe I'll bring it for you guys yeah and see that one yeah, we'll have to come back after after world yeah yeah, that'd be great.
Speaker 1:What? What about you mike with uh, anything to say?
Speaker 2:I just want to say just thank you to everyone, you know, thank you to you and all the students and everyone who made you know, my transition to being a jujitsu professor happen, you know, make it a reality. So all my students, my wife, my daughter, you know, my son, everyone, if you build it, they will come.
Speaker 2:It's what they say and it's true, you know, it's true. So, and I we're, we're looking to expand, so hopefully soon we'll have a bigger, bigger location, you know, and all that good stuff. So have a place for a podcast and everything.
Speaker 1:That's right. There you go. All right folks. Well, that's a wrap, and today's in studio episode of the morning formation podcast huge shout out to coach Mike Medina, professor Mike Medina and Nate Chrysler here the young the young resilient, the young gun, the young gun.
Speaker 1:Right there you go. Thank you, guys, for pulling back the curtain and sharing your stories about where you're from and a little bit about your thoughts on Brazilian jiu-jitsu and whether you're new to the game or deep in the grind. We hope this episode gave you some insight and inspiration to keep fighting the good fight. Don't forget to follow, subscribe and leave us a review. As always, I want you to stay tuned, stay focused and stay motivated. Warriors fall out.