Martial Artists are TERRIBLE Athletes!

Why don't martial artists (BJJ players in particular) take heir strength training as seriously as athletes in other sports? Some personal anecdotes about training, grappling, teaching, learning.
Ramsey Dewey is an MMA coach and fight commentator, and occasional musician based in Shanghai, China.
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This video features original music by Ramsey Dewey
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[@warriorfire8103]

Is this why wrestlers perform so well? I've never seen a wrestler who didn't understand the value of good strength n cardio. Technique is great too and is crucial, but you stack the deck in your favor.

[@RamseyDewey]

That's a big part of the reason

[@Torthrodhel]

It's definitely something you need all those things for. It's downright dangerous if you don't have the tools necessary to do what you're attempting to do. You're keeping your opponent safe just as much as you're keeping yourself safe. It's a kind of dance that has lots of hard impacts in it, basically. On a pretty unique surface, too. Nothing like a boxing ring, for instance. The mat is rigid and bouncy, and the cables are tight and springy, and built to support any individual's full bodyweight flung directly into them as hard as possible. It saps a nice amount of energy just moving around on it.

[@Torthrodhel]

Oh my mistake. Damn that was dumb of me.

[@fitofight8540]

NappaTheProducer if technique is about to fail strength takes over

[@KWillo]

@Daniel Mendoza he still can't dunk a basketball if I'm not mistaken.He's a fighter, not a b-ball player, though.lol

[@5TailFox]

"A defeat you learn from, is worth far more than just another empty victory."~Ryu

[@joshuabenson2568]

"Ryu"? Like the video game character?

[@5TailFox]

Joshua Benson Yup.

[@sscrystal10]

"You must defeat Sheng Long to stand a chance"

[@bobbyfischer604]

Considering Ryu never lost, he probably doesn't really know what he's talking about.

[@themites5918]

Didn't he lose against Sagat the first time?

[@chi7818]

saying "if only he wasn't so big and strong I would have won" is the same as an untrained man saying "if only he didn't train martial arts all his life I would beat his ass". it's not realistic because in in life you don't pick your opponents and you will run into people big and strong and who have trained martial arts their entire lives. good job on not making excuses and learning from it, that's really hard to do.

[@bondjames-bond7664]

This is so true bruhhhh .... You never pick your opponents ....

[@datoolz0]

What are the odds on that? Less than 1% of the population trains martial arts in the first place. Less than 1% of that population is large to begin with.

[@chi7818]

@@datoolz0 that wasn’t the point. The point is you are making an excuse when you say “if only he wasn’t big” or “if only he wasn’t trained”. That’s speaking in hindsight after the fact and shows you are a coward since if you knew from the beginning you were going to lose then you wouldn’t have messed with them. Also as far as the 1% of people are trained in martial arts, I can guarantee that the ones who look for fights or will fight back when threatened are more likely than not to have fighting experience.

[@datoolz0]

@@chi7818 Would I though? In all honesty I ain't going to start a fight with someone I think is obviously superior. That is most amateur mma fighters. Although inferior fighters it is only by their permission in the octagon. Lots of bad fighters think they can win. No street fights. I probably would lose to most heavyweight fighters because I am 70 kilos. 100 kilos is a massive burden to beat.

[@chi7818]

@@datoolz0 ok sorry rewatched the video to clarify since its been 4 years. Yeah my point stands 100%. Physical Strength is an extremely important part of fighting and if you lose because a dude is stronger than you, then you still lose. It doesn’t matter if your technique is better, if they just overpower you and you can’t display that technique, then you lost fair and square. This is what I originally meant when I said “saying you only lost because the dude is stronger than you” is an excuse. Plus not all strong people are physically bigger than you. I wrestled 130 weight class in high school but I also lifted weights so I could overpower people a few weight classes higher than me and I won a lot of my matches simply because I was physically stronger than them. This is also why men will generally beat women in a fight. The trained part was just an analogy.

[@dirkplankchest1796]

Coming from a wrestling background. I came into bjj squatting, deadlifting, overhead pressing, power cleaning, and doing weighted dips and pull ups, every fourth day. And I was surprised by how much I overpowered a lot of guys in the gym. It wasn't like that in wrestling, basically everyone trained hard off the mats if they took it seriously.

[@andrewminer3308]

1000%

[@MrCmon113]

If you get stronger, there's fewer people, who match you, and it becomes harder to improve your technique.

[@RK-um2bj]

That's how I started treating my karate after gettin the shit kicked out of me

[@stantheheadhumongous9402]

Fake martial artists: "strength is irrelavent" Brock Lesnar: "hold my beer.."

[@jlogan2228]

All those roids couldn't stregnthen that chin of his though

[@shawnj1966]

J Logan, Lesnar doesn't like to be hit but there is nothing wrong with his, "chin". He has lost by submission, a body kick and was stopped by Cain but he has never been knocked out. Carwin knocked the shit out of him and he came back to win. If anyone ever knocked him unconscious I must have missed it.

[@chompchompnomnom4256]

@William Halter because he was roided up to the gills. After he got caught and quit the roids he lost half his size.

[@darrynjacobs8550]

@Grand Vizier Because Frank Mir and Carwin was small, lol idiot

[@darrynjacobs8550]

@Grand Vizier You mentioned one guy, Randy, who took it from Tim Sylvia, who is 6ft8 and has also fought at super heavyweight at 311lbs before. Your whole point is moot. Just stfu up and move on

[@paulcai9751]

An ancient chinese wisdom is “一力降十会”. Meaning “one level of strength will defeat ten levels of technique”.

[@TitoMcFadden]

I was fully expecting to watch this and be infuriated. I was pleasantly surprised to get a well articulated video about the nuances of technique vs. strength and how they are NOT diametrically opposed. You earned a sub, sir. Lots of great gems here

[@larryking8217]

got so triggered by the thumbnail ^^!

[@StJay]

I fully agree, same initial thougths and same surprised face

[@TusharRoy01]

I guess the thumbnail is a little clickbaity. Although I too subscribed after watching the video.

[@jeffwanta9105]

Matthew Rodriguez lmfao

[@rossturchyn253]

awww - too bad Ramsey couldn't get more into How of Tai Chi training mind-body-spirit. I'm doing genetic therapy training (nervous system neurogenesis) to qualify for the Canadian Olympic biathlon team (ski&shoot). Secret is lightest to strongest wins! "Secret" to Tai Chi is awareness 1st! (and always~) "Step Back to Repulse the Monkey" as a walking drill (for hours) expanding scope of your peripheral vision by focusing to the palms... And just breath! Now check how your head feels~ When you watch Karate practicing their fist technique - as an athlete you notice at that speed you're learning ?10% or less muscle-memory!! Sure, and 100 000 sword-strokes in 100's makes you a Samurai "master"~ Slow it waayyy down to the speed of your breath and muscle memory goes to +90% - too easy!! Now slow your awareness down to your breath and Then (in those moments) you're training at the speed of trance - or meditation - where instead of training the 9-18% conscious limits of your muscle-skeleton, now, you are training directly to your SUBCONSCIOUS muscle memory. Suddenly waayyy faster - when you're not thinking! ~so why train "1" "2" "5" .."10" reps? "Thinking" ..or.. 15-20 minutes as single breath focus. NO thinking. Breathing. Think in the morning, work in the day, be social at night ~live a long and full life. Bringing your own breath into your awareness, even 4 mornings a week, just extends your awareness into your day. Do that 3 times in 1 Tai Chi set (for breath 1st, form 2nd, colours/energy/power 3rd) or about 45 minutes and you haven't just multiplied your breath, or your energy, or just your awareness - but after 30 years you have extended All those things into your Day. After 50 years - you have extended those things into your Life. Multiplying incremental gains, not over seconds of a race, but over your life of subconscious learning. ~that's depleted-uranium kryptonite - with cherries on Top. Now THAT's how you stack a learning-curve for Epic result. I can kick a strong man all day armoured in muscle - kick anyone once in your reflex, and it is Your muscles which sent you flying~ *remember - you too are a gigantic ball of elastic bands, saturated in highly conductive fluid, on a grounding calcium crystal frame - that Breathes so IS aware *;)

[@mattm1192]

I had the same thing happen to me. NOT because I was weaker, but because someone with lesser technique but more STAMINA beat me. NOW, For me, RUNNING was the greatest addition to my BJJ game. Having an EXCELLENT cardio base (for example a resting heart rate of 50BPM) is VERY very important. Being strong IS important. But being strong for a LONG TIME, being strong through the ENTIRE match is more important than anything!!!

[@sergioj972]

Matt M I support this. Maybe even more for grappling.

[@poorkwamoi]

Yes, absolutely agree with this statement when it comes to training for fighting...STAMINA STRENGTH AND CORRECTLY APPLIED STRENGTH

[@calvintrainer1212]

Next time before you and your trainer partner grapple, pre-exhaust your legs within 30s or less, then go on with usual your BJJ practice . There's many way to pump up your legs before an exercise. I normally do bodyweight squat until I feel my legs begin to get pumped, exercise or wrestle for 3 minutes. Repeat the bw squat over and and over after each round on the ground. Why do we this pre-exhaust thingy? You force your body to work hard even if your legs were already gone is the key to get fitter IMO quickly. I can go on and on with this, but there's no need to write too long. The idea is to train while your legs already tired, so when you fight your still have gas in later rounds, because your body had already been through all that in training. I am 62 and I still train that way.

[@calvintrainer1212]

I knew a boxer in my gym normally hit the bag for many rounds in training. I made him sprint up short hill several time in 30 sec. then hit the bag. It took only 3 rounds and he's done, unable to proceed any further. The legs gone the body will follow. By the time he can reach his normal number of rounds he'd be so much more fit and with great endurance

[@MrAmhara]

What happens when the guy you face doesn't need a long time to finish you. Stamina means nothing when your ko'd.

[@CyberdarkHellKaiser]

I've been powerlifting for a few years, competed and won my weight class so I am a lot stronger than I look. The first time I went into a BJJ gym, they had us do rolling without teaching us fundamentals and so I got into top guard and just pinned the bottom guys down, when I was underneath a full mount I would just plant my heels and use my hip strength to stand up and let them fall. If you can't counter raw strength from a guy who has 2 minutes of experience then you need to either get stronger or get better technically

[@instantkarma2724]

Stop bullshittin, you probably the typical powerlifter/builder walking around in the gym looking yourself in the mirror constantly. Telling yourself that you some sort of bad ass that can beat everybody because of your bodymass/muscles.

[@Streetpfosten]

@@instantkarma2724 I had the same experience in my first BJJ class. I won my first 3 grappling matches against other white belts who had been training there for at least a few months. Thing is I was much bigger than them (I'm almost 2m). Over the next few sessions I was matched against people my size and obviously they could do whatever they want to me, but strength is a factor in BJJ! A stronger guy will always be able to out-muscle you to a certain degree.

[@ottovuorio382]

@@instantkarma2724 Then prove the big strong men otherwise if you can. If you even do martial arts for that matter. Because if that is not the case, then you don't even know what you are talking about and shouldn't claim otherwise. Right now, all I can imagine behind the keyboard is a little guy with an inferiority complex and a ton of insecurity. You're biased.

[@instantkarma2724]

@@ottovuorio382 hahah I'm been a boxer all my life. Big guys have weight and mass advantages that can be extremely benefit in a fight but alot of body builders or fitness model's throw hands like women beginners. Then they get punch in the nose and then it's no fun anymore. Not to mention the cardio that's usually awful, 2 minutes and they done

[@ottovuorio382]

@@instantkarma2724 Yeah, you are talking about bodybuilders. Powerlifters are another story for the most part.

[@teebirderv8]

You need strength and cardio. I feel like if strength is horsepower then cardio is fuel in the tank. I'm a former hs wrestler, and new to jiu jitsu. I noticed with sparring, I can hold my own against more experienced opponents because of my strength. However, after a few sessions rolling and I start to gas, that strength advantage goes away pretty quickly. I think it's a double edged sword too because all the muscle costs energy to move.

[@GG-nr1lb]

In your experience do you think bjj people could transition Into wrestling better than wrestlers to bjj. From my experience I think having the background in bjj is better when going into wrestling rather than learning just wrestling

[@kabitaphuyal354]

The reason your cardio depleted was in my opinion due to not being used to the sport

[@Vlad-yr9do]

@@GG-nr1lb i think it's equal. it transitions well to both, i've also done wrestling and jiu jitsu (i started off with jiu jitsu)

[@Summer_Tea]

"After this old man beat us up he started doing backflips and round offs." LMAO

[@fanofgodjimindiva2497]

It must have been that old man from the Kill Bill movie

[@stevest8675]

Natsu , a crazy master

[@chrismcdaniel475]

I call bs.lol

[@djibrilr6s]

That old man is such a troll LMFAOOOOOOOOO

[@magnusemeritus]

He is like a Tekken character!

[@XxJERICHOHOLICxX13]

Helio Gracie was even on record saying "If you're over 6 feet and 200 pounds, you don't need or deserve jiujitsu" He went on to have a billion children and grand children, most of which are well over 6 feet tall.

[@ruggerREL]

Idk who this guy is or why this is show up on the recommendation but his voice is amazing

[@RamseyDewey]

Thanks!

[@gerbilking5100]

He sounds like someone who was bullied and tries intentionally to sound deeper and more masculine.

[@kidkangaroo5213]

@@gerbilking5100 Shut up, dude. Don't project your own insecurities onto others

[@gerbilking5100]

@@kidkangaroo5213 You're absolutely right. I should have said: he sounds like someone who, as a result of years of bullying, intentionally tries to deepen his voice to sound more masculine... as someone who does this myself, of course. Man that troll bait took a while to get a bite

[@GungHo1234]

The Carl Sagan of Combat Sports

[@fabricembida4526]

Strenght is a technique... What a beautiful quote!

[@gerrylynch7914]

I definitely agree with Ramsey. Done multiple martial arts and often been told I carry too much muscle. Bull*****, I am not that big and don't want to be but you need to carry some weight. Even in Tai Chi you can't always rely on technique. Look at Bruce Lee he looks like a normal person until he takes off the shirt.

[@darmoforeelz5857]

Having "to much muscle" is only a downside at a world class level like in the ufc because you gass out much quicker than your opponent, but then again they have specific weight classes, if someone from welterweight were to fight a heavyweight they would get absolutely murdered even if their technique is much better. Saying oh my opponent is too strong that's not fair is just a lame excuse, you cant just practice technique OR strength it's all about being well-rounded

[@Jandro1083]

strength doesn't equate weight though. I'm 145 lbs and when I go to the gym, I lift more than the average 175-200 pounder.

[@darmoforeelz5857]

@@Jandro1083 strength does equate weight if two individuals workout the same for the same amount of time, there's a reason all the strongest men in the world weigh like 350-400lbs+, and the hardest hitters in the ufc is either light-heavyweight or heavyweight.

[@Thareldis]

Well Bruce Lee is another story entirely. I think Ramsey even did a video on that Topic. To cut that short he's overrated as a fighter or rather overgloryfied nowadays.I don't know which martial arts you practiced, so I can only say what I know from our Hung Gar training. Long Story short: You can never have too much strength, as long as you can still move properly. More mucles equates to harder hits if your technique and precision allow you to actually hit your Opponent properly.In the end I'm really happy I found that school by accident. They combined useful traditions with modern standards and a big emphasis on real fighting and not just doing forms and punching air.

[@tonytomato100]

@@Thareldis it wasn't that he was overrated, it was that people didn't credit him for what his actual discovery was, the idea of combining effective techniques that normaly didn't go together and not being tied to tradition. He was praised for his body when his mind was his biggest asset

[@ShovelChef]

Wow. You basically sparred with The Mountain. Am I crazy for thinking that sounds like fun? :) That, plus the old man story, just makes your whole life sound like a shonen anime. These are among the reasons I miss fighting.

[@stevest8675]

Kofi Mills' Videos , awesome story

[@henriquenakamura5752]

Sounds like one of those stories where you drop to your knees and say: "Shifu, please teach me!" xD

[@stevest8675]

Henrique Nakamura , LoL

[@khatack]

Hah, that's the reason strength is seen as a "sin", it's more difficult to find training partners that are sufficiently powerful that they actually force you to improve your technique rather than just dominating through sheer strength. Big-ass training partners on the other hand are awesome to train against, because you're really forced into a position to improve your technique, but the bigger you are yourself, the more difficult it is to find sufficiently big training partners.

[@ray.n_l]

Lmao in wrestling, people always power against eachother even in drills. The reason they do this is because they are so competitive, they are constantly pushing themselves even during warmups

[@wanksystylelivepisstreamsm2456]

did some karate way back. later did weightlifting/bodybuilding for years and gain aylot of size and strength and explosiveness ( fast Sprinting) , adn after practisin alittle shadowpunching became FAST at that too. the body is the machine. technique is the way of USING that machine . if teqniue are the same then the betetr machine wins always. and paintolerance is something u learn well in bodybuilding HIGH INtensity and Superslow type training and going Beyond Failure. because u have to KEEP goin EVEN when u in paina nd often the results Come only from the part of teh Set when teh PAIN has started. Bones get harder toow ith a good diet and powerlifitng and SPeed too. did a few classes of Muay Thay much later , havin gianed size and always did aylot of cardio. could keep up rpetty good with the class of two hours almost nonstop. didnt have the perfect technique of coruse so i was performing SUboptimal. wasnt interested too long in it ebcuase of the chance of Injurty and couldnt combine both at high level. now after gaining even more size my punching is even faster. and it all comes form my huge calf muscles. and the force travels from the groudn therough the calves up to the body into the fist. and the TIming is essential fo when to activate calf muscle and upperbody. if that is achieved the speed is crazy even with a bigegr body and heavy msucled. ( at bodyweight 125 kg was punching fast because of this. of course gassed out fast.) now cutting to lower weight and do crossfit for GPP to have mroe gas and will probably do 6 months of MMA or BJJ to get blue belt . am curious how i will do. the BJJ practitioenrs i have encountered in real lfie ( no jacked or heavy) always were biased abotu technique and mroe or less claimed they could win from much ehavier stronger guys. also a small ass wing chun guy claimed he could win from much bigger guys. Hilarious. they underestimate the pure raw strength a powerlifter has. u develop a very very strong COre because of powerlifting and core connects the lower body's force generated to the upper body punch. and in grappling : u get insane grip strength because of powerlifting and ABILITY to consciously COntract muscles at will. a bigger msucle if activated hard is a stronger muscle. even the smaller type of StrongMen like the famous small jewish guy and others have insane grip strength and mental focus adn have had fought many guys and won by just the strength abilities and hard bones. a good technique is nto ENOUGH to withstand sheer strength and hdense bones. whcih are scientifically proved to be achieved with STrength training even in osteoporose risk for the elderly.

[@MrCmon113]

Yeah, realistically you have to pull punches to get something out of training. When I'm going against the girls or small guys, I need to think "could I do this if she was as strong as me"?

[@MrCmon113]

@@ray.n_l For them it's fine, because they're all young guys with roughly equal strength. When I'm going against retired police officers or 60kg women, I can't be in bear-fight mode all the time.

[@khatack]

@@ray.n_l nah the reason they do that in wrestling is because with wrestling techniques you can go full power without killing or cripling the other dude 😂

[@maladjustedmaverick6619]

"Technique is the efficient application of strength." I'm going to remember that. When I was in Karate, I was routinely praised for my technique, but my Sensei told me I needed to work on my power. No matter how hard I tried to put more power into my moves, I wasn't seeing any difference. Later, I had to quit Karate due to a variety of health issues, but I picked up weight training as something I could handle at that point in time if I was careful. After about a year of that, I randomly practiced Karate a few times on a whim, and lo and behold, that missing power was there! Not only were my moves more powerful, they also felt cleaner, sharper, and more controlled. Lesson learned. If and when I can return to martial arts, weight training will still be the foundation of my fitness regimen.

[@achannel1818]

Joe Rogan should hear the tai chi anecdote

[@KyLe-cp7lh]

It's like Ramsey says, building mind, body, and spirit at the same time. The problem with most Tai chi practitioners is they focus on just mind, while a few will focus on mind and spirit. But they miss integrating the body too in tai chi and that's why so many tai chi practitioners are hacks A shame because tai chi is the martial art I practiced for most of my life 😕

[@JenkemSuperfan]

When all else is relatively equal, strength wins

[@smokeybirdman]

searchoverload8 strength is also an attribute. What really wins is cognitive ability/skill and BALLS

[@JenkemSuperfan]

smokeybirdman hence "when all else is equal"

[@keisi1574]

searchoverload8 "When all else is equal, cognitive ability wins" = "When all else is equal, physical strength wins" = "When all else is equal, speed wins" . It's the same exact point. This can go on n on n on.

[@JenkemSuperfan]

Rusty Sanders except those things aren't ignored by martial artists. Strength is

[@JenkemSuperfan]

Dominus Providebit other than that being LITERALLY the point of the video, there's what every fucking striking coach says about "don't lift or do strength training it makes you stiff

[@kamransadiq8491]

I like how you put technique and strentgh together. I train BJJ and ever since I started powerlifting and running my game has improved.

[@lcj9564]

I would add stretching or being flexible just as important.

[@colossalbear3166]

Your voice would be amazing on radio

[@fakrulislam9333]

My thoughts, too. Fantastic voice for voice overs and narration.

[@bbqseitan7106]

His podcast is good too

[@dannytennial5311]

Indeed. His voice rivals my own.

[@stophi2581]

He is a Kommentator!

[@neilkorchinski1006]

The part about strength being a technique reminds me of doing concrete work with my dad, and watching him swing a 12 pound sledge hammer with one arm, at 73 years old. That guy could hit harder with a sledge using one arm than I could with both. Decades of practice.

[@Dvergenlied]

I think that too many people forget that the “martial” part of “martial arts” means “war.” No one expects combat personnel to rely only on their weapons; we train and train and practice and PT and then we PT and train some more. Great thoughts, great vid.

[@Valvadosworkshop]

I agree you on so many ways. I hate that thing in bjj community. There is so many skinny techinal guys who never hit weights and they say they have no need to. But everytime they want spar with same weight guys and always are those who remind us for weight classes. Thats not realistic attitude. Its way to cheat yourself.

[@instantkarma2724]

Yeah but in the same weight class they win. It's about feeling comfortable with your body. Finding mind body connection. But of course streghnt and conditioning is a fundamental like in all sports. that's oubious. But hit weights like traditionally like in isolated movements is not a priority. Why would it be. All you need is, deadlifts, squats, chin up, some benchpress

[@jamashulios7497]

Crazy how the guys with a deep voice and indestructible attitude are the same guys that were once bullied. I'm like that now, and I used to wish I could go back and change my past, until I realized it's those hardships that brought to the spot I'm in today

[@mynameisnobody3931]

Jamas Hulios it's because people that bully others, are hurting inside themselves. It's really quite simple. . Bully victims are actually often the strong ones. And the bully is the weak one. This is how karma works. When the bully is bullying. He is allready suffering. He just hides it. And you don't know what's going on at his house....

[@daniel-zh9nj6yn6y]

@@mynameisnobody3931 GSP talked about meeting a former bully. He was homeless.

[@anarchic_ramblings]

Yes, my bjj coach says it himself: bjj guys are relatively poor athletes. Judo and wrestling require much more athleticism. In bjj we can spend half our time just hanging out on our backs.

[@rinkamarsmark8078]

Well bjj is a pure technique sport is the closest to chess u can't loose focus or ur get submitted,I personally get more tired grappling than boxing or kickboxing

[@rinkamarsmark8078]

Arr Ere then how u explain dern defeating gabi garcia in bjj or royce gracie tapping people 20/30 pounds heavier . Of course u need strength but technique overcome brute force , u got maywether no power punch but still undefeated and he faced power punchers how he dealt with technique

[@jerppazz4525]

@@rinkamarsmark8078 yes of course there are a few examples like that but realistically speaking that is not going to happen. and yes if one is an expert in a grappling martial art he can probably beat someone that only has strength but no training. the point is that what if the a lot heavier and stronger guy has training in grappling? then strength will help you win even tho your technique might be worse than the smaller guy.

[@rinkamarsmark8078]

jerppaz z of course strength is needed but let me remind u guys royce a welterweight beating 200 pounder even heavier he dealt with technique used opponent weight to his advantage bjj is not a brute force sport

[@jerppazz4525]

@@rinkamarsmark8078 do you have any idea how much he trains? that is 1 guy that is insanely talented, but again is that realistic for 99%of the people? no.

[@keen2419]

I wanted to train Aikido to do some exercise while learn something and have fun. I entered a dojo and found that there were 6 over weight high ranked men training. I never went back, because I didn't want to end up look like that :) But I kept searching I found another dojo people were training judo - fit strong athletes with nice attitude - now I am one of them /cheers

[@davibourne3856]

Keen Good for you man, judo a very beautiful art.

[@quasar4601]

You must be a very tough guy to train Judo lol

[@quasar4601]

In the USA, its all BJJ

[@peterpace3379]

That Aikido gym must be run by Steven the fatty Seagal haha, it being full of over-weights. No disrespect to Aikido tho.

[@Knurrbauch1]

My Karate sensei is also a bit overweigth but he has the strongest punches i have ever seen in real live, do not underestimate these guys. He is also fast as Fuck and with his mass and muscles he takes hits like they are nothing. You shouldn't juge people based on their looks but by their performence. Its just that some people like to eat good food^^

[@nhlfan1001]

Striking athletes do a lot of athletic training. As a fat kid when I learned boxing and muay thai i was in a whole world of pain but the more I ran the better I got

[@BellowDGaming]

I remember what Jackie Chan said all you need is consistent training. The real secret is train train train everyday.

[@zakiwagiman1039]

Damn right!

[@vldbzh]

To be precise, start at 8 y.o. training 3+ hours daily.

[@Kaledrone]

@@vldbzh 3+ hours? Do you have a full time job?

[@AmbroseBoaBowie]

"Size dosent matter" BULLSHIT!!!! YES IT DOES!! It is a huge advantage in a fight!

[@wordupmagazines32]

American Berserker STRENGHT does...not size. Im a big myself, went with plenty big weaklings.

[@mrkiky]

But size usually correlates with strength. I mean two people who don't train, the bigger one is stronger by default because he has to carry his big body around plus his muscles are bigger too.

[@shimarcadogan6228]

This is true

[@thedarkknight646]

Samuel Watford bigger people tend to be stronger (I mean bigger build not just being fatter) and have a weight advantage if grappling is involved if you've got a heavy guy sitting on you and beating your head in and you don't know how to escape you're in trouble

[@stevebrindle1724]

In boxing, i was taught that a good big one will always beat a good little one!

[@peteramaya3584]

Plot twist: The old man was Ip Man. Or Master Roshi. Anyway, great story!

[@ivanraimi5524]

It was Master Wong

[@MrJohneblaze822]

That old man sounds like some anime character LoL 🤣

[@oz_jones]

Pai Mei :D

[@ivanangelov2992]

In Baki The Grappler the old men. That was in the tournament in s2!!!

[@rusbla0071]

@@ivanangelov2992 you mean shibukawa?he is pretty cool.

[@ivanangelov2992]

@@rusbla0071 Yea.

[@SnippyFilly114]

Holy Land wait until the anime gets to Kaku Kaioh

[@happynickdm]

I remind my students that martial arts is an efficient application of leverage. Leverage is force multiplied over an area. Force comes from strength and explosive speed, area comes from your technique (the placing of the opponent within the armbar, or the placement of your hips when throwing, knuckle alignment when punching, torque from your hips when kicking, etc.). Both of these can be maximized with training. Both of these MUST be maximized for EITHER to be effective.

[@bobgarrett7134]

Dewey is a genius... "Strength is technique" is a subtle concept. Strength training teaches you how to apply strength more efficiently to the weight. That's part of your gains as you make steady increases in in power over months and years... 10 oz gloves feel lighter to a physically stronger boxer. His right hand punch is ripped in faster and with less effort. When it connects it does more damage -- allowing him to follow up with a sharper left hook, which is thrown with seemingly more precise timing because your reaction is slowed just a tad. He has more stopping power .... And when you're wrestling, the stronger man maneuvers his left hand behind your neck. He pulls your head down with beastly strength while he forces his right forearm under your left armpit. You know damned well he's going to flip you on your back, but you're powerless to stop it.

[@Yourmomma568]

My old bjj coach made us work out all the time. "Technique will give you and edge, physique will let you dominate" he used to say. It worked, before he died our gym swept the divisions we were in at a pretty big tournament. Our guys could muscle people in to position and made getting subs really easy. When i joined i was pretty good for my belt level and was pretty strong. He was super strong (20" arms) and he would let me put him in positions with good leverage just to prove that he could muscle his way out if he really tried. In an arm bar he would litterally pull my legs apart and roll over, grab his arm and pull it out of my grip in less than 3 seconds, and he would say just snap it. That guy was a really good coach after he learned how to do it. At first he over trained us a lot because he was used to being able to push a pace that we weren't. I remember the first day i went for a workout with him, i couldnt lift my arms past my shoulders for 5 days.

[@Phyoomz]

Ramsey tangled with the Mountain and made it out with both of his eyes.

[@TheOneBadAssGamer]

if your story is true i need to find this old man.

[@bombastikderteutone6858]

Tim Hanselbach why?

[@kimlee3982]

even if you find him your late hes 6feet under ground. 80 years old that not young

[@stevest8675]

TheOneBadAssGamer , me too

[@StaticDreamsEntert]

@@kimlee3982 You don’t know that, he’s probably doing wax on wax off with the man as we speak.

[@marcomay6157]

Bruce Lee once said about 60-70 is core (body/training), the rest is technik....

[@slavaukraine716]

That old man reminds me of Pai Mei from the movie Kill Bill. It really does sound like the stuff of Chinese legends. Maybe there's some truth to them after all? Granted, I don't think anyone could live for hundreds or thousands of years like those legends claim. The physical feats however... World class athletes can do a triathlon, lift 350 lbs, do a quadruple 540 backflip, or sprint at 28mph with the right dedication. If you apply consistent interdisciplinary training those legendary feats might be possible.

[@app3297]

wow so much truth to this . when I joined bjj I was often faced prejudice due to the fact of being a big strong guy who lifted weights.

[@marcopohl4875]

wait! you need strength to breath? HOW AM I STILL ALIVE!?

[@faianatur]

Breathing is strenght

[@tonyd5009]

we are in serious agreement about strength being a technique! this is something I've been teaching my students for a LONG time! good on you brotha!

[@foreverzero15x6]

I remember when i first started off in Bjj like 3 months into it i came across another student who was a body builder and he would roll hard with me and everyone. It was annoying at first because while i was more technically proffecient I didn't have the speed or strength he did to overcome. Then my strategy around him changed like at first i was trying to match him for strength in sparring but then i turned to a more defensive approach. I understood he was going to literally drag me into a technique without proper setup because of his strenght I anticipated his moves and place my hands and body in the right places to stop, escape or frustrate him. Over time rolling with him my goal changed from trying to beat him into becoming a defense check for me to see if i am properly defending myself. Eventually I ended up beating him a few times. However the fact that i was able to practice my defense with him made me more confident in my own ability to defend myself in grappling situations. Rolling with stronger guys is a strange blessing it really helps your technique

[@achannel1818]

The tai chi master story is my absolute favourite

[@mattm1192]

Your right. To be a good martial artist, a martial artists HAS to be in excellent, excellent athletes. you NEED cardio, you need strength, you need stamina - you need to be an EXCELLENT all around athlete for BJJ or kickboxing.

[@RamboRichardson]

Thank you! Finally an American Martial Artist advocates for balancing the mind, body, and soul! What gym do you teach at? I would like to train with you now 😎😇

[@Kaledrone]

He is American, but he lives in Shanghai, China lol, this video wasn't recorded in the US.

[@kotsifis250]

Getting overwhelmed by pure strength is actually terrifying.

[@RamseyDewey]

Isn’t it though? There are some beasts that walk among us in human form- and some of them can fight!

[@RamseyDewey]

Perfect example

[@houseofaction]

that is only an example of the skill of the individual, Mariusz Pudzianowski's strength didn't beat the techniques of Tim Sylvia

[@jasonchinnick4773]

You are speaking real truth brother. I am glad you are teaching other people. Your attitude and thought process is wonderful. Keep up the good work!

[@pavelandonov3345]

Great video! Reminds me of a situation I got into. I am a wrestler and hit the gym regularly. But my size is pretty average (5'9, 145.5). A friend of mine who is around 6'0, 198 started working out in the gym with me. He had no training background but in a little more than a year he caught up with me (despite me progressing too and having a better start). Now he is surpassing me... And I know for sure if I wrestle with him his size and strength would challenge me despite my training.

[@nurse425]

When I started in the martial arts 25 years ago I had a similar epiphany. I believed technique would be enough. Than I realized without strength to back up the technique I'd never be able to compete at a high level. Trained my body to be as physically strong as it could be for my height and biological condition and man the results were and still are amazing. Great video, well articulated.

[@starvethebeast6480]

And technique is not a substitute for strength and power either.

[@RonnieD1970]

Roberio, Buchecha, Roger Gracie are all F@CKING STRONG. Grips like vices, hips like cement and the ability to control and squeze the hell out us. Whoever says BJJ doesn't need strength is certuanly not winning BJJ championships

[@E.J.Crunkleton]

I've never been to a Bjj gym that didn't encourage a strength training component. It wasn't mandatory to strength train by any means, but it was strongly encouraged.

[@sidekickcomedy]

if only we have footages of hidden masters like that old tai chi man

[@Dan0rioN]

This older man you speak of is essentially what I aspire to be & will become! Great story

[@eclipserh]

Thank you for this. In a recent tournament fight I participated in, I faced a stronger/larger opponent who swarmed me to death with heavy punches for a solid 3 minutes. I totally lost. Afterwards, similar to you, my pride started talking to me saying I should have won. Watching this video made me realize that the fight was a teaching moment and that I need to get better in a lot of other areas, strength included.

[@GMack333]

Olympic weightlifting is an excellent example of both strength and technique.

[@rb9998]

Refreshing dialogue on a variety of topics. Thank you

[@eileenkwan7176]

The thumbnail to this video looked like a Jason Statham mask. I was expecting a troll and got a guy with a real discussion.

[@thelionofthewest9168]

Eileen Kwan you know i knew Ramsey reminded of someone.Now i know who O_O

[@SnippyFilly114]

There’s a quote I like. “There’s 3 parts of a fighter: Body, Technique and spirit.” Strength is as important as training martial arts techniques.

[@wanksystylelivepisstreamsm2456]

i belive all teh real chine fghters ALWAYS worked on Strength allday. like in shalin movies

[@zoommair]

OMG, I commented before the story, but that has got to be one of the best martial arts stories I've ever heard, so I had to comment again. I'll be thinking of that story for months to come while I train.

[@WhatWouldNinjasDo]

This video was epic. There were some really strong elements in here, and I am happy for you to be able to recognize when your own pride was standing in the way of your improvements, and instead chose to view the obstacle as a challenge and improved from it. I also like the clear definition of power & strength and how it's applied to our techniques. This video was definitely a motivating one! Especially about the consistency and the effects of it to continue down the road of improvement and doing what we enjoy, martial arts!

[@HansDavidian]

I am watching this while getting high and this feels so deep.

[@sethtorres3112]

Hans David he'll yeah

[@ericdelpiano8552]

Hans David same 😂

[@smokeybirdman]

Hans David exercise is getting high on dope.. amine

[@tommiller842]

Hans David oh wow he went deep o. Your ass

[@oneDonly]

Why are there times that you are not high?

[@llllb2]

Thank you for making this. Years ago I tried wrestling in high school and came from football and powerlifting (I'm not a tall guy about 5'7 170lbs). the Coach loved that i was strong but i found it wasn't for me. I recently took on Judo and have loved it. The power and technique aspects of it I love. However many of my sparing partners that are at a higher level than me have been telling me "I am good for being so strong". I don't want to be good because i am strong but because I am good. I'm ok with strength and power being an aspect of my game, but i felt that they were using it as an insult. I understand that i should work on technique but i feel that you need some athleticism to make some work the way you want to.

[@Palpitacje]

I wouldn't treat it as an insult, more like a guidance. I guess one could reverse the whole argument. Strength alone, just like a technique, can only get you so far. If you rely mainly on strength, it might be easier to be sloppy with a technique. Problem is - sooner o later you'll gonna stumble upon some opponent who is equally strong and big as you but with a flawless technique. Then you're screwed. Point is - you have to have both.

[@johnathankim3657]

The great Masahiko Kimura was known for his insane strength on top of flawless technique. Dude was jacked since his youth and I don't know what these other guys are smoking saying that garbage about "good for being strong" because Kimura made sure all of his students were strong as bulls.

[@eduardlaser96]

Ramsey you're such an inspiration for every teacher/martial arts instructor 🙏

[@TheGears999]

I would love the opportunity the train with/learn from you. I love your approach to martial arts and whole attitude. No BS but still humble and respectful. We need more of that

[@mstathakis]

I JUST recently watched a video by two of the Gracies that commented on the affects of strength, age, etc in BJJ. They weren't trying to be scientific but made a point they called the "Boyd" something or another. It was a student of theirs that was a black belt and he couldn't defeat a lower ranked belt and was feeling badly about that. The point of the video was that we decrease as we age and that it's understandable that he couldn't take out the lesser ranked opponent. I am now 60. Man, that's hard to write and say.. for I remember when I had explosive moves that are no more... 2 slipped disks, a shoulder that dislocates if I sneeze at the wrong angle, yada yada.. I've maintained my weight training but, I certainly agree with your conclusion that strength is a formidable "skill". When I started, I was 14 and studied Judo. When I went to partake with a friend who was interested but couldn't afford the training, I couldn't throw him.. He was much stronger than I. It's kind of funny cause, back then, there wasn't a discussion...It was the dark days.

[@mynameisnobody3931]

mstathakis when I was a total noob in karate. A much more advanced guy had a very hard time accepting that he couldn't get me to the ground. I was strong. Did a lot of weightlifting.

[@TheMan-je5xq]

1:22 clearly your opponent was Gregor Clegane lol

[@oz_jones]

Or Hulk. Lol.

[@Kaledrone]

Or Darkseid. Lol.

[@samuelnewton1312]

Amazing story at the end bud. Thank you.

[@gorillamax4872]

You are very good at breaking down concepts and articulating them in a very sensible way

[@davidtice4972]

Even Royce Gracie started lifting weights and taking steroids.

[@ChimenExpress]

You sound like Adam West :D

[@anathamon]

Or Morpheus

[@dmitritaichi7872]

Yes, Ramsey Dewey is BATMAN!!

[@219garry]

@@anathamon Or Agent Smith

[@HwaRang1970]

This was extremely enjoyable and motivational! Well done, sir!

[@MichaelGrubbEvolvedMinistry]

Interesting. I was enthralled. I watched every minute without falter. You're a very good speaker and excellent with motivation. Well done.

[@affiance6]

Absolutely correct.... I've been a soldier for 25 years.... Everything you say here is correct

[@insidetrip101]

You're right, that was controversial. Strength isn't a technique, but it most certainly makes the moves "make sense." I didn't start lifting until 2 years after I started wrestling in jr. high school, and really that was just learning how to lift. I'm really really sorry I didn't take that more seriously, because I never took the weight room seriously until college. I'll tell you what, suddenly all the moves that I couldn't do suddenly "made sense." Additionally, it just locked up the scramble positions from more "finesse" type moves like low singles. Strength isn't a substitute for technique, but technique isn't a substitute for strength either. There's a reason why Bruce Lee said to train every single inch of your body.

[@Cormac2023]

Your story about the bullies is the same as mine. I learned that although it was harsh, it was something you must embrace and count it as an opportunity to exercise and develop your fortitude.

[@bmarsh8343]

The more I watch your video's the more I get impressed with your knowledge and truth. Nothing but respect for what you do

[@tOOballs]

dude i want to see that fight ;D

[@superawesomejeff]

There are levels to it. I've noticed this trend in both striking and grappling: -Sometimes beginners are too tense and need to learn to relax their bodies (and minds) to move with suddenness. They stiffen up, and try to resist everything with strength. My judo and BJJ coach in college used to talk about "The philosophy of Jiu - push when pulled, pull when pushed". Some beginners just flat out don't understand this. They need to learn structure and technique. Most laymen are at this level. -Sometimes, a journeyman martial artist becomes too reliant on structure and wits, and they can get overpowered and smashed on by people who have abnormal size, strength, speed, or endurance, but also good fundamental skills. This is when the differences in conditioning become the most obvious. So this is when athleticism and conditioning is Paramount for improvement. Most fighters on TV are at this level, as well as most instructors of most martial arts. -At the highest level, it's about deception and defensive responsibility. Triple feints, reversals/counters, and efficient economy of movement are all very common at this level. These skills take decades of experience to apply correctly and you have to understand fundamental technique, structure, and have a good baseline of conditioning, emphasis being on flexibility, agility, and cardio, but not ignoring strength training. This is the level that exceptionally good fighters, and masterful instructors are at.

[@i_am_o_o9506]

So much wisdom in this video! Thank you for sharing 🙏🏼

[@mellowmax]

DUDE, just such a good monologue. one video, subscribed

[@kovenmaitreya7184]

I had a similar experience. I've only been training for a little over a year. When I was about 4 or 5 months into my training, I met up with this guy who I had sparred against once before I started training bjj. When I first sparred him, I could'nt do anything against him, and could only try to survive because he was this great athlete (army guy) and seemed to have grappling experience that I didn't (wrestling, I think). When I met up with him after starting bjj, an interesting thing happened. We started and I managed to take him down then tap him out with an armbar, at first. I felt good, but the effort left me completely drained. We continued to spar for another 40 minutes, though, and he COMPLETELY owned me after that! I couldn't do much else against him. He managed to tap me out like 3 or 4 times and just basically ragdolled me the rest of the time. We also did some striking sparring and he basically whooped me in that too, except for one or two hits. I started down the same initial thought processes as you, but I also quickly realized there was a learning oppurtunity for me. Even though he wasn't doing Jujitisu (and by this point, I had already seen how dominant jujitsu guys can be in almost any grappling scenario), he had some attributes and/or skills that I did not have. He did ask about whether I do any strength training and I didn't at the time. After that experience, I began to hit the gym again and start strength training. His strength and prior grappling training was able to almost completely outclass my jujitsu and other martial arts training up till then.

[@logicallion2196]

I'm a natural heavyweight and I've trained in America, Thailand, and now Cambodia. I have to say, everything you say in this video is spot on. I've been to a wealth of gyms and there's often an air of superiority regarding the ground guys, regardless of their size. Often I found myself rolling with much smaller, but far more skilled grapplers, but it never really made a difference. One you get 40-50 pounds on someone, almost no level of skill is going to overcompensate for sheer size and strength. My last actual fight (in February) was a spur of the moment thing where I volunteered from the crowd to take the place of a missing fighter. I had at least 60 pounds on the other guy, and, though his takedowns were top shelf and he took me to the ground 3 times in the first round and a half, he did literally nothing to me. Literally nothing. At one point he full mounted me and I just rolled over and stood up. When he tried to RNC, I just bent his arm out of the way and peeled him off me. I just basically shrugged him off literally every time he tried a submission and got back to my feet to continue trying to knock his head off. He was technically dominating me but was on the verge of getting knocked out. Likely would have too had I not planted against another of his takedowns and dislocated my kneecap (for those who haven't, don't - worst pain ever). I learned two lessons from that fight: technique vs power has limits, and sprawl no matter how small the guy is (in my head, I could just stonewall the takedown... my knee disagreed). ...sometimes I imagine how amazing it would be if I actually had a ground game.... scary! :D

[@stevest8675]

This is my favorite video from Ramsey Dewey.

[@user-ol8kl3wi5b]

Just discovered your channel and I'm loving it. You're very wise and I have learned a lot.

[@zedek_]

Strength is absolutely a technique, or a skill, and literally so. The growth of muscle is just one component, and there is a reasion why serious strength athletes focus on the _quality_ of a contraction; because the *primary* way you gain strength is through the efficiency of your muscle contractions, which you _practice_ by lifting very heavy weight. Look up *greasing the groove* . This is why volume matters, and this is why training for pure strength consists of _minimum reps_ , with maximum weight (strong muscle contraction). That's not to say you won't gain muscle size, but that the _emphasis_ is instead put on "teaching" your body how to contract effectively, how to incorporate the rest of the seemingly unrelated muscle groups into the movement.

[@myutuber100]

Then what is the point of learning karate if size is the sole determinater

[@markharrison6498]

@@myutuber100 self improvement

[@justwait9822]

I think you fought the old aikido guy from baki grappler.

[@TheGiantRobot]

That was so inspiring. I love, love, love stories like that.

[@OLBICHL]

Wow... you are so inspiring! I'll be back soon... so pumped up, I wanna go out and root out trees!

[@kallepikku4991]

Catch wrestling 101: technique within strength. Technique, power, speed, stamina and quickness of thought are all important. If you just concentrate on one aspect, you'll just create a bottleneck for yourself.

[@majdikamal1389]

Hi Mr. Ramsey ... Could you please tell me about your thoughts on Kyokushin karate and Kudo karate? Thank's

[@jesjaxon]

BAKI BAKI BAKI!

[@lucasday6013]

really liked this video man! There is lots of knowledge to be had on your channel, thank you!

[@luisalicea282]

👍👍😎 thank you brother,keep the videos coming.

[@Sandlin22]

I flex on the mat when grappling it's just who I am. I tried to focus more on the art of jiu jitsu but what I learned about myself is if I don't go hard I'm too nice to my opponent. So I just let people know ahead of time that I'm here to go hard and I mean no disrespect but I train to win so don't be silly if I catch you than you better tap and if you catch me I'll do the same. I feel like not going hard is a disservice to my partners because their opponents or some weirdo that grabs them on the street won't go easy on them.

[@EmoEmu]

Omg it was Killer Kowalski and his claw move! ;)

[@rrt1592]

One of the best videos I've ever heard and seen. Thanks!

[@ayooslimm4650]

This just motivated me, thank you for the beautiful message. Namaste