Michael Proctor of Gamebred Jiu-Jitsu Tacoma, WA

**M.C.** · Posted On: 8/11/2009 2:22pm

Training every day is a great thing and you can see some good results but there are limits! And the step from blue to almost brown is quite a big on.

@Mproctor While your offer for me to come and see your certs and train with you is a nice thing, it is useless at the same time, given that I will have a hard time being there any time soon, which I guess is true for most of the posters her. Just scan the certs, take a photo... And get this out of the way. No ill feelings or anything, this is just about the love for bjj. You yourself say how much time and heart you put into bjj, it should be in your interest that people who come of as non kosher get looked into, it helps you to sell bjj, it makes sure that the respect a purple/brown or bb gets is the respect he deserves.

**MProctor** · Posted On: 8/11/2009 2:23pm

Originally Posted by cyrijl

I'd have to say that makes sense in terms of training full time. If I had 8-10 months of training bascially full time i'd be purple by then (starting at 2 stripe blue). But you should understand Mike, that, that is not the norm. Especially without specific grappling competition experience.

Thank you. I do have plenty of grappling/competition experience. I have not competed in a BJJ/Grappling tournament in about a year only because I have been running an academy of 50+ students full time. I did just fight and won by Tapout. I will also be competing in a big tournament in the near future.

What is the "norm"? Are you an instructor? Do you know what happens to your game when you are an instructor? Anyone can come on in and roll with me to judge for yourself.

**UpaLumpa** · Posted On: 8/11/2009 2:23pm

Originally Posted by cyrijl

I'd have to say that makes sense in terms of training full time. If I had 8-10 months of training bascially full time i'd be purple by then (starting at 2 stripe blue). But you should understand Mike, that, that is not the norm. Especially without specific grappling competition experience.

No. It is three months. It is 8-10 months from 2-stripe blue to 3-stripe purple.
Of course, I know ****-all about what the hell stripes are supposed to mean.

**cyrijl** · Posted On: 8/11/2009 2:28pm

Mike,
It wasn't an attack on you, just that you should recognize that such a jump in such a time frame might make some people question your ability.

Upa,
The way I look at it, training full time allows you to focus on strength and conditioning as well as bjj. It would allow you to get adequate rest (for me, commuting plus the hours at work limit the amount of training outside of bjj that I can do). I am not venturing a guess either way what is going on, but I don't think it is utterly and totally unbelievable.

I'd prefer to take the agnostic view until some evidence can be obtained.

**MProctor** · Posted On: 8/11/2009 2:31pm

Originally Posted by M.C.

Training every day is a great thing and you can see some good results but there are limits! And the step from blue to almost brown is quite a big on.

@Mproctor While your offer for me to come and see your certs and train with you is a nice thing, it is useless at the same time, given that I will have a hard time being there any time soon, which I guess is true for most of the posters her. Just scan the certs, take a photo... And get this out of the way. No ill feelings or anything, this is just about the love for bjj. You yourself say how much time and heart you put into bjj, it should be in your interest that people who come of as non kosher get looked into, it helps you to sell bjj, it makes sure that the respect a purple/brown or bb gets is the respect he deserves.

Scan my certs? Really? I'm a purple belt lol. I'm not a black belt trying to sell a lie. I'd like to know where you train and what your qualifications are. Scan your certs. Do you run an academy 6 days per week? Do you train under Professor Monteiro? If not, then I think you need to give it up. Unless you are man enough to come on in, I have already answered your questions.

**MProctor** · Posted On: 8/11/2009 2:46pm

Originally Posted by UpaLumpa

So, if I'm following, you were a 2-stripe bluebelt in October and got your purple in January? So three months?

We're trying to get facts straight. Anyway, my post addressed a more fundamental point: Time in is least important aspect of belt ranking, your post suggested otherwise. That is wrong and leads to crappy brown and black belts.

Frankly the fact that you go from a mid-level blue to a purple in three months (while simultaneously sacrificing your own mat time by teaching more) smells bad.

I was given my third and forth stripe on my blue belt in one promotion in 2008.

I believe belt ranking should be based on skill and knowledge level before time on the mats. Although time on the mats is very important, you cannot take someones level of skill and understanding away from them. Every instructor has their own curriculum. I have my own instructor. I don't give myself promotions but I am willing to back up the position that I have earned. If you haven't rolled with me or even met me then who are you to judge me? You're definitely entitled to your opinions and I respect that, however; if you want to knock me for my accomplishments that's just an opinion.

**UpaLumpa** · Posted On: 8/11/2009 2:47pm

Originally Posted by cyrijl

Upa,
The way I look at it, training full time allows you to focus on strength and conditioning as well as bjj. It would allow you to get adequate rest (for me, commuting plus the hours at work limit the amount of training outside of bjj that I can do). I am not venturing a guess either way what is going on, but I don't think it is utterly and totally unbelievable.

I'd prefer to take the agnostic view until some evidence can be obtained.

What? The only relevance I can see of this post was an earlier comment I made about why some people get promoted faster than another.

By his own chronology M.Porter went from mid-level blue to purple in three months. That seems fast. There are a couple of explanations for that, the one that seems to match a lot of anecdotes is that he is currently under someone with less stringent requirements than his previous instructor.

**lionknight** · Posted On: 8/11/2009 2:48pm

Originally Posted by MProctor

Scan my certs? Really? I'm a purple belt lol. I'm not a black belt trying to sell a lie. I'd like to know where you train and what your qualifications are. Scan your certs. Do you run an academy 6 days per week? Do you train under Professor Monteiro? If not, then I think you need to give it up. Unless you are man enough to come on in, I have already answered your questions.

I really don't get your hostility here. You offer to show your certs to anyone that comes in, but you get defensive at anyone suggesting that you scan and post them for review?

For most people it's a non-issue. – “Oh you want to see my ranking certificate? Ok, here it is.” – Done.

Truthfully I think a lot of people here are willing to give you the benefit of the doubt, but you’re making it seem like you've got something to hide. Coming to your place when you showing a hostile attitude will make a lot of people hostile right back at you.

Take a breather and realize we just want to verify information at this point and are not attacking your skills.

You've competed in grappling tournaments - great; you've fought mma - great; now just verify some facts, easiest way to do that is to provide the evidence requested. You could also ask Professor Monteiro to come on to this thread and vouch for you.

**UpaLumpa** · Posted On: 8/11/2009 2:50pm

Originally Posted by MProctor

I believe belt ranking should be based on skill and knowledge level before time on the mats.

This seems to contradict the earlier post you made.
I am curious as to how you went from mid-level blue to purple in three months. Did you vastly improve in that time, does your new instructor disagree with your previous instructor's assessment of your skill, does your new instructor have different criteria?

**UpaLumpa** · Posted On: 8/11/2009 2:51pm

Originally Posted by MProctor

Scan my certs? Really? I'm a purple belt lol.

I agree it is silly to worry about this at the purple level except that since you're an instructor it makes sense. Lots of people do self-promote (I really don't think you did, I think it is one of the other options I mentioned).