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TIPS, GUIDES &
REAL TALK

Everything you need to know about competing, training, finding gyms, and showing up prepared. Written by grapplers, for grapplers.

Featured

Technique Lab8 min read

Half Guard Is Not a Stalling Position: Build an Offensive System from the Bottom

Every time someone plays half guard and gets flattened out, their coach yells 'stop stalling.' That coach is wrong. Half guard is one of the most dangerous offensive positions in BJJ if you actually know what you're doing with it.

The RollCall Team

Jul 29, 2026

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Open Mats Build the BJJ Community You Never Knew You Needed

Your home gym is your foundation. But the BJJ community you actually belong to is bigger than one set of mats, one instructor, and one group of training partners who all roll the same way.

Jul 22

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Training Tips8 min

Training Through Minor Injuries: When to Push and When to Sit Out

Most grapplers are either training through things they absolutely shouldn't, or sitting out things they easily could train through. Here's how to actually tell the difference.

Jul 15

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Technique Lab

Closed Guard in 2025: Dead Position or Are You Just Playing It Wrong?

Everyone says closed guard is obsolete. Meanwhile, Gordon Ryan just got submitted from it at ADCC. Let's have an honest conversation about what's actually happening.

8 min

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Community

Open Mats Are Where BJJ's Real Culture Lives

You can learn a lot about a gym from its scheduled classes. You learn everything about its people at open mat. Here's why showing up somewhere other than your own gym might be the best training decision you make this year.

8 min

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Mental Game

Training to Win vs. Training to Not Lose: The Mindset Gap Killing Your Game

Most competitors think they're training to win. They're not. There's a difference, and it's costing them matches they should be taking.

7 min

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Training Tips

Why Your Gym Is Producing Terrible Wrestlers (And How to Fix It)

Most BJJ gyms treat takedowns like a warm-up drill. That's why their students get slammed at their first competition and never understand why.

8 min

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Community

Gym Loyalty vs Cross-Training: The Politics Nobody Talks About

Your coach hasn't said it out loud, but he noticed when you showed up with a different gym's rashguard. The unwritten rules of loyalty and cross-training are costing good grapplers training time they can't afford to lose.

7 min

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BJJ Basics

Your First Year in BJJ: A Brutally Honest Month-by-Month Breakdown

Everyone tells you the first year is hard. Nobody tells you exactly why, or what's actually happening to you. Here's the real timeline.

8 min

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Technique Lab

Why Your Guard Passing Sucks: The 3 Concepts Most People Skip

You've drilled the torreando a hundred times. You know the leg drag exists. So why does every decent guard player still make you look lost? It's not the techniques. It's three things nobody talks about.

7 min

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Technique Lab

The Most Underrated Submissions Nobody's Talking About at Each Belt

Everyone drills the same armbars and rear naked chokes. Meanwhile, these submissions are finishing matches at every level while most grapplers completely ignore them.

8 min

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Training Tips

3-4 Classes a Week Is Enough. But Only If You're Smart About It.

Most part-time grapplers waste half their mat time because nobody told them how to structure it. Here's how to actually get better on a limited schedule.

6 min

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Competition Prep

Why You Keep Losing in the First 30 Seconds and How to Fix It

Most grapplers lose their matches before they even break a sweat. The first 30 seconds aren't a coin flip — they're a skill set, and yours might be costing you everything.

8 min

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Gym Guide

How to Pick a BJJ Gym That Will Actually Develop Your Game

Most people pick a gym based on location and price. Then they wonder why they're still getting smashed the same way two years later. Here's what actually matters.

8 min

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Mental Game

BJJ Social Media: Useful Tool or the Ego Trap Killing Your Game?

You've watched 47 leg lock tutorials this week. You've rolled exactly zero times. We need to talk about what BJJ social media is actually doing to your development.

9 min

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Training Tips

Fuel the Fight: Nutrition Secrets Every Serious Grappler Needs Now

You've drilled the armbar a thousand times. But if you're gassing out in round three or feeling like death the morning after hard training, your diet is tapping before you do.

8 min

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Training Tips

Why Training Every Day Is Slowly Killing Your BJJ Progress

You're not tired because you're weak. You're tired because you've confused punishment with progress — and your game is stalling because of it.

8 min

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Find Your Next Tournament

Now that you’re prepared, find competitions running near you. Every IBJJF, NAGA, and independent tournament in one place.

Browse Competitions →

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Find the Right Gym

Looking for a new home gym? Browse verified BJJ academies near you with schedules, instructor info, and honest reviews from the community.

Explore Gyms →

TIPS, GUIDES &REAL TALK

Half Guard Is Not a Stalling Position: Build an Offensive System from the Bottom

Open Mats Build the BJJ Community You Never Knew You Needed

Training Through Minor Injuries: When to Push and When to Sit Out

Closed Guard in 2025: Dead Position or Are You Just Playing It Wrong?

Open Mats Are Where BJJ's Real Culture Lives

Training to Win vs. Training to Not Lose: The Mindset Gap Killing Your Game

Why Your Gym Is Producing Terrible Wrestlers (And How to Fix It)

Gym Loyalty vs Cross-Training: The Politics Nobody Talks About

Your First Year in BJJ: A Brutally Honest Month-by-Month Breakdown

Why Your Guard Passing Sucks: The 3 Concepts Most People Skip

The Most Underrated Submissions Nobody's Talking About at Each Belt

3-4 Classes a Week Is Enough. But Only If You're Smart About It.

Why You Keep Losing in the First 30 Seconds and How to Fix It

How to Pick a BJJ Gym That Will Actually Develop Your Game

BJJ Social Media: Useful Tool or the Ego Trap Killing Your Game?

Fuel the Fight: Nutrition Secrets Every Serious Grappler Needs Now

Why Training Every Day Is Slowly Killing Your BJJ Progress

Find Your Next Tournament

Find the Right Gym

TIPS, GUIDES &REAL TALK

Half Guard Is Not a Stalling Position: Build an Offensive System from the Bottom

Open Mats Build the BJJ Community You Never Knew You Needed

Training Through Minor Injuries: When to Push and When to Sit Out

Closed Guard in 2025: Dead Position or Are You Just Playing It Wrong?

Open Mats Are Where BJJ's Real Culture Lives

Training to Win vs. Training to Not Lose: The Mindset Gap Killing Your Game

Why Your Gym Is Producing Terrible Wrestlers (And How to Fix It)

Gym Loyalty vs Cross-Training: The Politics Nobody Talks About

Your First Year in BJJ: A Brutally Honest Month-by-Month Breakdown

Why Your Guard Passing Sucks: The 3 Concepts Most People Skip

The Most Underrated Submissions Nobody's Talking About at Each Belt

3-4 Classes a Week Is Enough. But Only If You're Smart About It.

Why You Keep Losing in the First 30 Seconds and How to Fix It

How to Pick a BJJ Gym That Will Actually Develop Your Game

BJJ Social Media: Useful Tool or the Ego Trap Killing Your Game?

Fuel the Fight: Nutrition Secrets Every Serious Grappler Needs Now

Why Training Every Day Is Slowly Killing Your BJJ Progress

Find Your Next Tournament

Find the Right Gym

TIPS, GUIDES &
REAL TALK

TIPS, GUIDES &
REAL TALK