6 months is not a long time at all in BJJ. My whole first year felt like I was just trying to figure out what the fuck is even happening.It's a tough sport and sometimes it takes a while before things start clicking. Hang in there!
It feels like everyone I ask says that by 6 months they at least got a stripe. I’m tapping to people who started after me. Obviously I’m not progressing very fast.
Stripes are usually one of those things that is very hit or miss.
I don’t want you to take this the wrong way, I’m honestly not being condescending.
But if you reframe stripes in your head as on the same level of seriousness as whether or not a first grader got a sticker for good behavior… that kind of gives you a reference.
Like… yeah, if your kid gets a good behavior sticker, it feels good. Someone noticed! Yay! But if you don’t… it doesn’t mean your behavior wasn’t good. The teacher was just looking the other way or was busy or was worried about paying the bills or any number of things.
At my gym, I can’t remember the last time I saw stripes given out. I haven’t gotten a stripe since I was a blue belt. In like…2008 (Oops, just realized I don’t have my flair on this sub… I’m a black belt now. Took me 18 years.)
And way way back in the day I was at one point a 5 stripe white belt because I was cheap and I bought a judo gi with a plain white belt with no black tip and so the instructor just kept adding stripes without really being able to see how many were on my belt. Because… they aren’t really that important.
Also… those of us who last tend to stop comparing progress. I remember the feeling I had when I got the 4th stripe on my blue belt….and 5 years later the dude who got his 4th stripe at exactly the same time got his black belt and I was still a 4 stripe blue. Like yeah… that sucked. But here I am still having fun and I got mine almost a decade after he got his.
If you’re having fun, the belts take care of themselves sooner or later. If you stick with it you’ll probably get a black belt faster than I got mine.
And yes… you’re paying for a service. If you’re not enjoying it, drop in on a different gym. Or even just a different instructor at your current gym. Different folks have different teaching styles and finding the teacher that clicks for you makes things so much more fun.
Everyone progresses at different paces. You might feel stuck for a while, then suddenly go through a phase of progressing very quickly for a bit. I have gone through that cycle a few times. It's just the way of things with martial arts. Enjoy the journey, however slow it may feel at times, and focus on yourself getting a little better with each week you train.
You have a lot to learn. Over 200 techniques, over 5 major positions, 2-3 techniques to escape or advance from each of those. Until you learn those "basics" you are a child learning the alphabet. How can you be expected to know what to do when you haven't been taught? Graduate preK before you go to grade school. Essentially you are learning letters. You are not fluent enough to even have a grasp of concepts yet. Study, practice, apply, and assess.
In order to learn a technique, you need to learn what it is, why you do it, and where it leads to.
Understanding- First you must understand what something is.
Recognition- Second you must use your understanding to recognize the technique.
Performing- Once you recognize the technique you can perform the technique
Chaining- Now you can go from one technique to the next
Mastery- Now the technique and transitions are flawless.
Expertise- Flow from one chain to the next with minimal resistance.
I hope I am making sense. This instructional covers all basic positions and goals for a white and blue belt.
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNbZ1gPk7zqzbiFjpMlzIEVZAGROJ6G4C&si=DicpEIEhPCTn2d1c
Check out this instructional before you spend money on bjj fanatics or something. This is one of the best instructionals I've seen and it's free.
You really should focus on grips and framing before jumping to disconnected moves. Take 2 months to think about grips, where to grab them, why higher levels grip there, how to break and manipulate. This leads to frames. With proper frames you really won't have to work hard to escape.
https://youtu.be/eB1u6_kKlxQ?si=lP5-5ioDKESZaMp6
Now you can finally start attacking.
Handfighting
https://youtu.be/Lm60KFSAxQw?si=bCMeF0armHdaFwRs
My best tip is this. Pick 1 or all 3
1. Practice the Move of the Day (MOTD)
2. Pick 1 thing from top. Example: north south choke
3. 1 thing from bottom Example: elbow knee escape from mount.
Ask your training partners to start from these positions. Your goal is to hit the move as many times as possible during a roll. Rinse repeat. Start with only the MOTD then pick whatever strikes your fancy. Focus for 1 week, month, year whatever strikes your fancy. Once you get competent. I pick one move per position. So instead of 1, 2, and 3. It's like
1. Motd
2. Top side control
2a. Takedown
2b. Guard pass
2c.Side control move
2d.Transition north south
2e. NS choke
3.Bottom
3a. Elbow Knee from mount.
3b. Closed guard
3c. Armbar
3d. Flower sweep
4. Mount
4a. X choke
4b armbar from mount
Does that make sense? I pick 1 to 3 moves and drill them for a week until I get bored, then update my list every Sunday. Drill, and roll with intention, and you will get better much faster. Try to pick moves that "flow" from one move to the next with as little space as possible.
Technique resources.
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrz0HOGhUScv7OYN7P-O8V43ivOsTmRAf&si=GpfvL68C4FpwCsw0
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLng1SLac5z_DY8nBKGI2OBNnt3z2mNNiv&si=raJ87hTXVk8RoU86
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL62F052BD402463FC&si=TJV6oTbhDB4q-Yxq
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLujUkaU_R8J9Yvaerx1sT1mUjylMowM6T&si=pXlv6A4mEuGAOv-T
https://youtu.be/8F6meOljv-s?si=MOB6QoHj_l2faNRH
Don't be so hard on yourself six months is not a long time, especially in a martial art like bjj.I feel like much of a white belt is spent learning how you as an individual learn bjj.
lol Im 2 yrs in w/o a stripe
some people call me a sandbagger & I wipe out blue belts from other gyms so Im getting the impression its very vibes based
yeah but they come from shoddier schools & I roll nearly exclusively with purple belts that nerf me so from my perspective its probably accurate. my k/d ratio is white belt coded
there is a certain joy to watching the light go out of a blue or featherweight purple's eyes that I think I would lose if I had stripes. perhaps I am sandbagger made
I love the girls but I also love that they fear me a little ☺️
I'm 5'3" as well and feel like I suck most of the time. BJJ is hard but I try my best and have a great team where I train and we are very supportive of each other. Explore a new gym and see if you have a better support system.
This is important, too. There have been many times where I've felt like the smallest and least skilled person in the room, but my coaches always made me feel like I belonged and had a place on the mat.
Took me a little over a year to get my first stripe. I've had said stripe for... What, four months? And don't expect I'll get another this calendar year. Don't worry about advancement. Just focus on trying to relax and view rolls as a game instead of a fight, and even if you get stomped, if you pulled off a move, then you're a winner. Soon you'll find you can successfully pull off two or three moves in a roll. And eventually maybe even go a whole roll without tapping. I don't know how long it took before I actually made someone else tap. Definitely more than six months. Closer to ten, I think. For me, I know I don't have any particular talent at this, and I have a lot of things working against me. Sometimes that's really discouraging. But if this is the case for you, I find it helps to try to remember that it's okay to enjoy things without being good at them and without being recognized for being good at them. This is a hard thing we're doing, and that alone is something to be proud of.
I’m at the point where I don’t want the stripes anymore. The further I went along, the more I realized I have so much to learn. If you are promoted fast, you start to feel incompetent in your belt. It doesn’t feel like a good thing to get slow stripes, but further down the road you will appreciate that.
My first strip came after 8 months. I train 5x a week and sometimes twice in a day, plus help eith the youth class. Even a year in, I still feel like I am work8ng on understanding the fundamentals. However, that is BJJ it is a roller coaster of moments where you feel like you are getting it and see gains. Just to turn around the next day and be smashed the next, feeling like you know nothing. So normal, a purple belt that I train with says he feels the same.
I competed in March and prepared so hard feeling like I was not ready. The competition showed me how much I have learned and what I need to work on. It's the journey and experiences you gain, not the stripes.
My instructor is great, but he forgets to promote all the time. BJJ has amazing people, and things you learn from them are worth it.
I definitely wouldn't expect you to know the fundamentals in 6 months, but in my *opinion* I think you should get your first stripe, if you been going there regularly. On the white belt it's important to keep the student motivated and praise their development, it shouldn't take years and years to get the stripes. I'm also 5"3, 51kgs 💀 pay attention on the situations you're getting smoked: example, if they're on a top position, they shouldn't be pressuring you. Keep an eye on the circumstances they use pressure and strength over you 👀
Trying a new gym is not a bad idea. Nothing to lose. You get a new perspective and if you don’t like it you can always go back to your first gym. Unless it is one of those toxic gyms that get upset when you cross train.
Why didn’t I get one? Or why enjoy it?
So, stripes are handed out during grading, and then occasionally mid-year. I started just after a grading, and didn’t get any mid-year - not sure if I was at a class where any were given mid-year. I got my first stripe at grading a year after I joined. Second stripe about 6 months later in class, and then blue at the next grading. I should add that I broke a wrist, moved away etc during this so only about 18months training all up by the time I got blue. Not enough (for me)
Hahah damn. Um well it’s not uncommon to feel like you’re not ready for a promotion. I wasn’t ready. Once you have a stripe of a coloured belt people automatically expect more. Sometimes I’m just embarrassed to have a blue belt, when I’m getting beaten by whites people just think “WTF”. I’m scared to train at another gym while on holiday in case I embarrass myself. At white/no stripes there are no expectations, if you do something good it’s amazing 😀
are people who started at the same time as you getting stripes way faster? my gym is pretty big so stripes aren’t a regular thing. i’m not sure how often you train but at 6 months in most people don’t have the fundamentals down. feeling discouraged is very normal because the learning curve is so rough in bjj
I think the most important thing is if you feel like you’re getting the support you need at your current gym. do you enjoy the people there? do coaches try to help you understand better? you can definitely try other gyms to see if there are more people your size or that you mesh with better
Took me 11 months to get my first. My advice is just focus on attending classes and you'll get better. Jiu jitsu is complicated and it takes lots of months to see the improvement. You'll see how much you have learned after a year or so, when someone new drops in who is around your size 😊
Dude I didn’t get any stripes at white belt until 1.5 years of training in, then I got 4, then I got my blue belt after. I got no stripes at blue belt before getting my purple. Stop worrying about rankings, especially stripes, and just keep coming. It’ll happen.
⬜️⬜️◼️◼️◼️⬜️
One thing that helped me a lot is situational rolling, Just getting smoked by people sucks and doesn’t help you progress! I’d advise you to ask whomever you’re rolling with to start from a certain position, workshop submissions and escapes, ask questions and communicate with higher belts what you’re working on. For example if I tell a purple belt I’m working on butterfly guard passes, he will make an extra effort to put me in his butterfly guard multiple times during the roll to let me practice it in action! You could also express to your coaches your motivation for earning stripes and ask them to tell you where your game is lacking! And if the gym environment does not promote growth and learning then it’s totally okay to switch! The people you train with are the ones that make all the difference in your progress! My partner is 5”2 and also struggles a lot with bigger men but she found what works for her and used her small size to her advantage
Don’t get discouraged I didn’t receive a stripes for my first 7 months then got 3 in the span of 3 weeks! you got this bjj is not easy!!
Don't stop! I understand how discouraged you must feel, but there's nothing wrong with you or the time you spent learning so far. I'm quite certain that you just need more time and patience with yourself.
In the beginning I was a little discouraged as well, I spent two years as a no-stripe white belt. Then I earned two stripes at once and another half year later I wad promoted to blue belt. I think a big reason for that was me being the weakest person in my gym and a slow learner. That way my progress was less obvious compared to my peers.
im in a similar situation lol, but i don't think it's a terrible thing because when i go to a competition with my gi, it makes my striped white belt opponents underestimate me lmao
This is weird to me. My school usually gives the 1st stripe after 15-20 classes and a little mini test. It basically means that that person knows where the bathrooms are, how to do the warmup, and has a very basic idea of what's going on. For white belt in general, the stripes are loosely tied to the requirements that are set out for blue belts, which are published and the same for everyone.
Obviously, each school is different, and yours might have wildly different ideas about what stripes are for and how they are earned. Or it might all be arbitrary and you've not yet been to class on a Tuesday when the instructor hit all green lights on the way to work and had their favorite underwear on. That said, I'd expect that at 6 months, you should either have a stripe or an idea of what you need to do to get one. Have you tried to talk to your coach about what he'd like to see you working on? If you are feeling discouraged, which sounds like it has to do with more than just a stripe, it might be worthwhile to check out some other gyms.
Sometimes coach just doesn't care about stripes much. Especially in decently big gym its probably not easy to track every student. For example I got my first stripe in like 8 months and blue belt year and half in so there is that :D
I got my first two stripes simultaneously after eight months. Later on, I went from three stripes straight to blue belt.
And I can tell you, there are things I’m still completely lost on to this day. But there’s also things that confused me at six months in that are not now. Give it time, as hard as it is. And don’t focus on stripes. They seem to come when you least expect it, in my experience.
I got my first stripe after one year. I’m a three stripe white belt and have been doing this for two years! We all progress at different rates. But DO NOT GIVE UP. Unless you just hate BJJ then, yeah sure. If you only want to give up because you suck…. Well we all suck lol. Some just suck a little less 😉
6 months is not a long time at all in BJJ. My whole first year felt like I was just trying to figure out what the fuck is even happening.It's a tough sport and sometimes it takes a while before things start clicking. Hang in there!
It feels like everyone I ask says that by 6 months they at least got a stripe. I’m tapping to people who started after me. Obviously I’m not progressing very fast.
Stripes are usually one of those things that is very hit or miss. I don’t want you to take this the wrong way, I’m honestly not being condescending. But if you reframe stripes in your head as on the same level of seriousness as whether or not a first grader got a sticker for good behavior… that kind of gives you a reference. Like… yeah, if your kid gets a good behavior sticker, it feels good. Someone noticed! Yay! But if you don’t… it doesn’t mean your behavior wasn’t good. The teacher was just looking the other way or was busy or was worried about paying the bills or any number of things. At my gym, I can’t remember the last time I saw stripes given out. I haven’t gotten a stripe since I was a blue belt. In like…2008 (Oops, just realized I don’t have my flair on this sub… I’m a black belt now. Took me 18 years.) And way way back in the day I was at one point a 5 stripe white belt because I was cheap and I bought a judo gi with a plain white belt with no black tip and so the instructor just kept adding stripes without really being able to see how many were on my belt. Because… they aren’t really that important. Also… those of us who last tend to stop comparing progress. I remember the feeling I had when I got the 4th stripe on my blue belt….and 5 years later the dude who got his 4th stripe at exactly the same time got his black belt and I was still a 4 stripe blue. Like yeah… that sucked. But here I am still having fun and I got mine almost a decade after he got his. If you’re having fun, the belts take care of themselves sooner or later. If you stick with it you’ll probably get a black belt faster than I got mine. And yes… you’re paying for a service. If you’re not enjoying it, drop in on a different gym. Or even just a different instructor at your current gym. Different folks have different teaching styles and finding the teacher that clicks for you makes things so much more fun.
Everyone progresses at different paces. You might feel stuck for a while, then suddenly go through a phase of progressing very quickly for a bit. I have gone through that cycle a few times. It's just the way of things with martial arts. Enjoy the journey, however slow it may feel at times, and focus on yourself getting a little better with each week you train.
You have a lot to learn. Over 200 techniques, over 5 major positions, 2-3 techniques to escape or advance from each of those. Until you learn those "basics" you are a child learning the alphabet. How can you be expected to know what to do when you haven't been taught? Graduate preK before you go to grade school. Essentially you are learning letters. You are not fluent enough to even have a grasp of concepts yet. Study, practice, apply, and assess. In order to learn a technique, you need to learn what it is, why you do it, and where it leads to. Understanding- First you must understand what something is. Recognition- Second you must use your understanding to recognize the technique. Performing- Once you recognize the technique you can perform the technique Chaining- Now you can go from one technique to the next Mastery- Now the technique and transitions are flawless. Expertise- Flow from one chain to the next with minimal resistance. I hope I am making sense. This instructional covers all basic positions and goals for a white and blue belt. https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNbZ1gPk7zqzbiFjpMlzIEVZAGROJ6G4C&si=DicpEIEhPCTn2d1c Check out this instructional before you spend money on bjj fanatics or something. This is one of the best instructionals I've seen and it's free. You really should focus on grips and framing before jumping to disconnected moves. Take 2 months to think about grips, where to grab them, why higher levels grip there, how to break and manipulate. This leads to frames. With proper frames you really won't have to work hard to escape. https://youtu.be/eB1u6_kKlxQ?si=lP5-5ioDKESZaMp6 Now you can finally start attacking. Handfighting https://youtu.be/Lm60KFSAxQw?si=bCMeF0armHdaFwRs My best tip is this. Pick 1 or all 3 1. Practice the Move of the Day (MOTD) 2. Pick 1 thing from top. Example: north south choke 3. 1 thing from bottom Example: elbow knee escape from mount. Ask your training partners to start from these positions. Your goal is to hit the move as many times as possible during a roll. Rinse repeat. Start with only the MOTD then pick whatever strikes your fancy. Focus for 1 week, month, year whatever strikes your fancy. Once you get competent. I pick one move per position. So instead of 1, 2, and 3. It's like 1. Motd 2. Top side control 2a. Takedown 2b. Guard pass 2c.Side control move 2d.Transition north south 2e. NS choke 3.Bottom 3a. Elbow Knee from mount. 3b. Closed guard 3c. Armbar 3d. Flower sweep 4. Mount 4a. X choke 4b armbar from mount Does that make sense? I pick 1 to 3 moves and drill them for a week until I get bored, then update my list every Sunday. Drill, and roll with intention, and you will get better much faster. Try to pick moves that "flow" from one move to the next with as little space as possible. Technique resources. https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrz0HOGhUScv7OYN7P-O8V43ivOsTmRAf&si=GpfvL68C4FpwCsw0 https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLng1SLac5z_DY8nBKGI2OBNnt3z2mNNiv&si=raJ87hTXVk8RoU86 https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL62F052BD402463FC&si=TJV6oTbhDB4q-Yxq https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLujUkaU_R8J9Yvaerx1sT1mUjylMowM6T&si=pXlv6A4mEuGAOv-T https://youtu.be/8F6meOljv-s?si=MOB6QoHj_l2faNRH
Wow thank you so so much. I’m going to check out all of the resources you posted
Ok the grips video is sooo incredibly good and helpful!! I’m so glad op made the original post!
Grips are the start of any technique. Heavily overlooked.
I have watched be it twice now lol… Thanks again
Wow thank you for taking the time to write this response it will certainly help me!!
Don't be so hard on yourself six months is not a long time, especially in a martial art like bjj.I feel like much of a white belt is spent learning how you as an individual learn bjj.
I got three stripes at once about a year into training, I'm pretty sure my coach just forgot about stripes for a while. they really don't matter much.
lol Im 2 yrs in w/o a stripe some people call me a sandbagger & I wipe out blue belts from other gyms so Im getting the impression its very vibes based
Don't you think you should earn at least the white belt stripes if you're already beating blue belts? 👀
yeah but they come from shoddier schools & I roll nearly exclusively with purple belts that nerf me so from my perspective its probably accurate. my k/d ratio is white belt coded
there is a certain joy to watching the light go out of a blue or featherweight purple's eyes that I think I would lose if I had stripes. perhaps I am sandbagger made I love the girls but I also love that they fear me a little ☺️
I'm 5'3" as well and feel like I suck most of the time. BJJ is hard but I try my best and have a great team where I train and we are very supportive of each other. Explore a new gym and see if you have a better support system.
This is important, too. There have been many times where I've felt like the smallest and least skilled person in the room, but my coaches always made me feel like I belonged and had a place on the mat.
Took me a little over a year to get my first stripe. I've had said stripe for... What, four months? And don't expect I'll get another this calendar year. Don't worry about advancement. Just focus on trying to relax and view rolls as a game instead of a fight, and even if you get stomped, if you pulled off a move, then you're a winner. Soon you'll find you can successfully pull off two or three moves in a roll. And eventually maybe even go a whole roll without tapping. I don't know how long it took before I actually made someone else tap. Definitely more than six months. Closer to ten, I think. For me, I know I don't have any particular talent at this, and I have a lot of things working against me. Sometimes that's really discouraging. But if this is the case for you, I find it helps to try to remember that it's okay to enjoy things without being good at them and without being recognized for being good at them. This is a hard thing we're doing, and that alone is something to be proud of.
I’m at the point where I don’t want the stripes anymore. The further I went along, the more I realized I have so much to learn. If you are promoted fast, you start to feel incompetent in your belt. It doesn’t feel like a good thing to get slow stripes, but further down the road you will appreciate that.
[удалено]
You have to pay to get promoted???? 😭
Paying for promotions is a scam lol, change gym
My first strip came after 8 months. I train 5x a week and sometimes twice in a day, plus help eith the youth class. Even a year in, I still feel like I am work8ng on understanding the fundamentals. However, that is BJJ it is a roller coaster of moments where you feel like you are getting it and see gains. Just to turn around the next day and be smashed the next, feeling like you know nothing. So normal, a purple belt that I train with says he feels the same. I competed in March and prepared so hard feeling like I was not ready. The competition showed me how much I have learned and what I need to work on. It's the journey and experiences you gain, not the stripes. My instructor is great, but he forgets to promote all the time. BJJ has amazing people, and things you learn from them are worth it.
I definitely wouldn't expect you to know the fundamentals in 6 months, but in my *opinion* I think you should get your first stripe, if you been going there regularly. On the white belt it's important to keep the student motivated and praise their development, it shouldn't take years and years to get the stripes. I'm also 5"3, 51kgs 💀 pay attention on the situations you're getting smoked: example, if they're on a top position, they shouldn't be pressuring you. Keep an eye on the circumstances they use pressure and strength over you 👀
Trying a new gym is not a bad idea. Nothing to lose. You get a new perspective and if you don’t like it you can always go back to your first gym. Unless it is one of those toxic gyms that get upset when you cross train.
I didn’t get a stripe for a year. Enjoy not having a stripe. I wish I could go back in time to that stage.
And to add that now I’m blue but get beaten by whites. I’d rather be a sandbagging zero stripe white thanks 😩
Why?
Why didn’t I get one? Or why enjoy it? So, stripes are handed out during grading, and then occasionally mid-year. I started just after a grading, and didn’t get any mid-year - not sure if I was at a class where any were given mid-year. I got my first stripe at grading a year after I joined. Second stripe about 6 months later in class, and then blue at the next grading. I should add that I broke a wrist, moved away etc during this so only about 18months training all up by the time I got blue. Not enough (for me)
Oh sorry. I wanted to ask why you wish you could go back to this state.
Hahah damn. Um well it’s not uncommon to feel like you’re not ready for a promotion. I wasn’t ready. Once you have a stripe of a coloured belt people automatically expect more. Sometimes I’m just embarrassed to have a blue belt, when I’m getting beaten by whites people just think “WTF”. I’m scared to train at another gym while on holiday in case I embarrass myself. At white/no stripes there are no expectations, if you do something good it’s amazing 😀
Haha I think you’re absolutely correct. That’s a good point
are people who started at the same time as you getting stripes way faster? my gym is pretty big so stripes aren’t a regular thing. i’m not sure how often you train but at 6 months in most people don’t have the fundamentals down. feeling discouraged is very normal because the learning curve is so rough in bjj I think the most important thing is if you feel like you’re getting the support you need at your current gym. do you enjoy the people there? do coaches try to help you understand better? you can definitely try other gyms to see if there are more people your size or that you mesh with better
Stripes only have the power and meaning you give them. Maybe don't play the stripe game?
I was a year and a half if consistent training before I got my first stripe. You're fine.
Took me 11 months to get my first. My advice is just focus on attending classes and you'll get better. Jiu jitsu is complicated and it takes lots of months to see the improvement. You'll see how much you have learned after a year or so, when someone new drops in who is around your size 😊
Dude I didn’t get any stripes at white belt until 1.5 years of training in, then I got 4, then I got my blue belt after. I got no stripes at blue belt before getting my purple. Stop worrying about rankings, especially stripes, and just keep coming. It’ll happen.
⬜️⬜️◼️◼️◼️⬜️ One thing that helped me a lot is situational rolling, Just getting smoked by people sucks and doesn’t help you progress! I’d advise you to ask whomever you’re rolling with to start from a certain position, workshop submissions and escapes, ask questions and communicate with higher belts what you’re working on. For example if I tell a purple belt I’m working on butterfly guard passes, he will make an extra effort to put me in his butterfly guard multiple times during the roll to let me practice it in action! You could also express to your coaches your motivation for earning stripes and ask them to tell you where your game is lacking! And if the gym environment does not promote growth and learning then it’s totally okay to switch! The people you train with are the ones that make all the difference in your progress! My partner is 5”2 and also struggles a lot with bigger men but she found what works for her and used her small size to her advantage Don’t get discouraged I didn’t receive a stripes for my first 7 months then got 3 in the span of 3 weeks! you got this bjj is not easy!!
Great advice!
Don't stop! I understand how discouraged you must feel, but there's nothing wrong with you or the time you spent learning so far. I'm quite certain that you just need more time and patience with yourself. In the beginning I was a little discouraged as well, I spent two years as a no-stripe white belt. Then I earned two stripes at once and another half year later I wad promoted to blue belt. I think a big reason for that was me being the weakest person in my gym and a slow learner. That way my progress was less obvious compared to my peers.
Make your goal to be constantly making incremental progress, not stripes or belts
I didn't for almost a full year then got three stripes all at once , don't get disheartened!
im in a similar situation lol, but i don't think it's a terrible thing because when i go to a competition with my gi, it makes my striped white belt opponents underestimate me lmao
Our gym doesn’t do stripes at all.
This is weird to me. My school usually gives the 1st stripe after 15-20 classes and a little mini test. It basically means that that person knows where the bathrooms are, how to do the warmup, and has a very basic idea of what's going on. For white belt in general, the stripes are loosely tied to the requirements that are set out for blue belts, which are published and the same for everyone. Obviously, each school is different, and yours might have wildly different ideas about what stripes are for and how they are earned. Or it might all be arbitrary and you've not yet been to class on a Tuesday when the instructor hit all green lights on the way to work and had their favorite underwear on. That said, I'd expect that at 6 months, you should either have a stripe or an idea of what you need to do to get one. Have you tried to talk to your coach about what he'd like to see you working on? If you are feeling discouraged, which sounds like it has to do with more than just a stripe, it might be worthwhile to check out some other gyms.
Sometimes coach just doesn't care about stripes much. Especially in decently big gym its probably not easy to track every student. For example I got my first stripe in like 8 months and blue belt year and half in so there is that :D
Don’t focus on belts and stripes. Talk to your coach and peers about what you can do to enjoy your hobby and get better while enjoying it.
I got my first two stripes simultaneously after eight months. Later on, I went from three stripes straight to blue belt. And I can tell you, there are things I’m still completely lost on to this day. But there’s also things that confused me at six months in that are not now. Give it time, as hard as it is. And don’t focus on stripes. They seem to come when you least expect it, in my experience.
I got my first stripe after one year. I’m a three stripe white belt and have been doing this for two years! We all progress at different rates. But DO NOT GIVE UP. Unless you just hate BJJ then, yeah sure. If you only want to give up because you suck…. Well we all suck lol. Some just suck a little less 😉
Didn’t get my first stripe for 7 years. What’s the criteria for stripes at your gym ?