BJJ Black Belt Henry Akins Answers Questions About Blue Belts

The five questions about BJJ blue belts we asked to Black Belt Henry Akins.
Do you have requirements for a blue belt? What are they?
How important is it for students to be able to “defend” their belt?
How many intangibles (good teammate, good effort, helps others) come into play when promoting someone to blue belt?
Do you ever regret giving someone a blue belt?
What advice to you have for the new blue belt?
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[@bananapatch9118]

I started at 59 at a Gracie school. I’m 9 months in and I love it. I go 3-4 days a week and on my days off I typically feel like I’ve been hit by a truck. Some days I feel like I have learned quite a bit….other days I leave wondering if I am learning anything at all. I do know that if I fought myself from 9 months ago, I’d win easily. I am the oldest guy at the school. Most guys I train with are 35-45 and in great shape, but they are so helpful and always take time with me. I have never had anyone try to hurt me at all. I started with my grandson because he was getting bullied at school, and he went home when summer was over and I just kept going. I LOVE IT ! Will I get a black belt at 70…who knows, but I do hope to get my blue belt one day and just keep going.

[@spiritsplice]

Different standards = bullshit. You are essentially saying the belt is meaningless due to you making it meaningless.

[@NefariousPorpoise]

When you receive the blue belt *is* meaningless, it's one or two years out of a lifetime of grappling.

[@profd65]

@Spirit Splice No, idiot. All a blue belt means is that a person has acquired a certain amount of knowledge and a certain number of skills; it doesn't mean that person X who has a blue belt must always beat person Y who has a white belt. If person X is sixty years old and weighs 150 pounds and person Y is thirty years old and weighs 220, person X will obviously lose to person Y a lot of the time, but that's entirely because X lacks the size and physical abilities of Y.

[@pauliegualtieri733]

profd65 absolutely right.

[@connerhartman9336]

Helio gracie used to say that belts were more for "teaching". He said that if he had gone to a black belt tournament he would get stomped. You really think that Helio gracie in 2008 could beat, royler gracie, or marcelo garcia? probably not, hes slower, older, more fragile and his stamina is not nearly as good, plus, theres a multitude of new techniques that have been developed. Point: him saying that he doesnt expect a blue belt to always beat a white belt does not make belts meaningless, especially if you think of them as "how much can you teach and how well can you teach it".