2011 Goals and What's Your Jiu Jitsu Animal?

Here are my goals for 2011.  I wrote out my goals and my BJJ blueprint back in January.  I've modified it a few times, but the goals have remained the same.  I thought it was a good time to revisit them.  Only a couple more months left in 2011 so it's time to take stock and see where I am.  
 

My Goals:

Blue belt by YE2011

Compete in one more tournament before blue belt

Continue to lose weight and work on cardio

At this point, all I can do is focus on improving my jiu jitsu.  I'm trying not to think too much about the belt or the stripes.  When did all that stuff become so important anyway?  This week I'm going to forget about the goals and do some things differently.  I read a great blog post over at JoshJitsu - Tappin' and Nappin'.  Here's what he had to say...

What kind of animal is your jiujitsu? Is it otterjitsu where you are laughing and playing on the mats all the time, just looking to roll playfully with everyone all the time? Is it wolfjitsu where you play the long hunt and never let your opponent rest until they are so tired they just give you an arm? Is it bearjitsu where you crush your opponent down and then maul them? What kind of attitude do you approach your jiujitsu with?

So, figure out what kind of animal your jiujitsu is and then look at how that affects your rolling habits and patterns. Now CHANGE ANIMALS. You're normally a wolf? Be a tiger for a day. The quick spring and savage finish instead of the long steady chase. When you play differently and change gears you'll find that different techniques and strategies start to open up to you. Different ways to play the same game will appear as you adjust your attitude towards the roll.

I really thought it was a great idea and I had to share.  If you're curious...I'm an alligator, slow moving but capable of short powerful bursts.  Still can't decide what animal I'm going to try out this week...stay tuned.  

As far as the tournament thing goes, I am officially registered for the Texas Open and I still intend to compete. I'm desperately trying to get back to that place in my head where I was stone cold ready.  I've got a good month to work on that and I'm sure it will all fall into place.  I'm not going to put any pressure on myself or have any expectations.  I'm going to approach this tournament as a fun-filled learning experience.  I don't have anything to lose, but I have lots of experience to gain.  

I am still struggling with my weight and my cardio.  They officially both suck at this point.  Coach told me a while back that I already know what I have to do to make the necessary changes.  But am I mentally ready for what that actually means?  I don't know.  Only time will tell.  I'm just taking it one day at a time.  

Last Friday night I bit the bullet again and got another tattoo.  It's Japanese Kanji for "Beautiful Journey".  It's very symbolic of my jiu jitsu journey and how someday I want my jiu jitsu to be beautiful.  For now it's just the symbols, but I'm open to the possibility of adding to it and enhancing it over time.