If You Do BJJ And Want To Start Lifting But Don't Have A Good Program Or Know How To Balance, The 2 Without Getting Injured?
Then keep reading and I'll tell you how to do it!
Dear Fellow Grappler.
If for some reason you don't know who I am. Everyone in BJJ calls me Chewy.
I've been a coach for over a decade, I'm a decorated Black Belt competitor and I've been lifting weights since I was 12.
And on this page, I want to share with you about an unexpected discovery I had just a few years ago that led to me getting in better shape and my body feeling better than it has in years.
It All Started After The 2020 Lockdowns. . .
The lockdowns had just ended in my area and I was back in the gym full force.
If we're being honest, which we are, I never stopped lifting and working out. My wife practically pushed me out of the house to work out. She said I was getting grumpy. Maybe you can relate?
But like many people I’d picked up a couple extra LBS and when I’d look in the mirror, I saw a little extra jiggle. More than I was comfortable with. And as a guy who likes to have goals to chase after I looked at the extra fluff around my midsection and decided to focus on a workout program and diet.
I wanted to get lean like I used to for my old MMA fights back in the day. To give me a bit of help I hired a bodybuilder and coach named Eli to write up a diet for me.
I Hired This Guy!
The guy with me in the picture is Eli. A professional competitor in the world of bodybuilding and a professional coach to people looking to change their bodies through diet and lifting.
I hired Eli because when I used to lose weight for MMA fights and BJJ competitions the process was brutal!
Back in the day I'd train as hard as I could and start to remove food from my diet. I always felt hungry, tired, irritable and my training always suffered. My hope was that Eli could use some of his expertise to help me diet in a more sensible way since I wasn't in my 20s anymore. I also had seen his social media posts of him helping average men and women. That was a good sign to me because my thinking was, "if he can help regular soccer moms and dads, then what can he do with a professional athlete who trains all the time?"
Now along with dieting to lose weight I also wanted to experiment with a bodybuilding style program that focused on hypertrophy (getting the muscles bigger).
I’d never done a bodybuilding program before and to be honest I just wanted to build some muscles to look better with my clothes off. Who doesn't want that right?
Now, long story short.
I eventually lost around 15lbs, got lean and even competed at the 2020 No Gi Pans at a lower weight class where I won gold. All of this was supported by a sensible diet and weight training program he had crafted for me. Later, I started bulking back up using the same diet (just more food) and reached a much leaner 205lbs than I used to be. But here’s the cool part I didn’t expect.
During the course of this diet and program, my body felt better than it had in years!
Not only that, but I was training more than I had in years. It doesn't seem to make sense, does it? I was training more, and my body felt better. Well, here's the reasons I believe this happened. . .
I Was Using Lighter Weight
Lifting weights became one of my 1st athletic loves. As an overweight kid who got picked on it was a way to build physical confidence in myself.
And by the time I was a junior in high school I was clanging and banging with the football team and could throw up 315lbs on the bench press and squat 405lbs. Not a big deal these days, but back then it was decent weight for a high schooler. And all throughout most of my life I’ve focused on heavy lifting. It was part of who I was. After high school I got into powerlifting, strongman and even dabbled in CrossFit. All of these involve using weights to really push yourself. They're focused on performance. How much did you lift, how fast did you do the exercises, and so on.
Well, the program Eli had written for me was different. While I was still lifting challenging weight, the main focus was on stimulating the muscles with full range of motion. It wasn't to go as heavy or as fast as possible. In fact, sometimes it was the exact opposite!
There was more volume in the program (meaning more exercises and reps) and there were different parameters to stimulate the muscles like slowing down the reps, adding in pauses, and so on. All of this high rep stuff was out of my normal routine, and I wasn't so sure about it at first. It seemed like it would take more of a toll on me than my heavy weight/lower rep style of lifting I was used to. And at first the lifting made me super sore! But my body quickly adapted, and I actually found that it didn't negatively like I expected.
In fact, here's a few things I experienced from lifting this way. . .
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I wasn’t as fatigued from the lifts which meant I could lift more often and train BJJ without any issues.
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I could lift and train BJJ more often without injury or being overly exhausted. I could eat a good meal afterwards and be ready to train BJJ later on.
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My joints didn't ache hurt after lifting since I wasn't going as heavy. This was especially true with leg day since I've had 2 knee surgeries in the past.
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My body felt more stable. From doing more exercises that targeted smaller muscle groups I used to ignore my body started to feel more stable from head to toe. My shoulders and knees in particular felt might tighter and stronger afterwards.
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My flexibility and mobility actually improved since I was focused on getting full range of motion during the lifts rather than just how much I was lifting. In short, the quality of the movement was more important than just the weight.
Did This Type Of Lifting Kill My Cardio??
1 of the questions I got asked a bunch when I started this type of lifting was. . .
"How's your cardio? Isn't bodybuilding style lifting bad for your cardio and muscular endurance on the mats?"
I mean on the surface it seems like it would make sense, right? Usually, big muscle-bound people who come into the gym gas out quick! So, if I was focusing on building more muscle, wouldn't I too? Well, at least for me the answer was no. I didn't gas out.
Again, it seems somewhat counterintuitive, but I actually felt like my muscular endurance went up!
I suspect this was due to the higher reps during the exercises. Also, as I was doing the new program, I was still doing BJJ. And something I've always found to be true is that as you develop strength, muscle or other attributes off the mats. You give the abilities function on the mats. Like when I started doing Yoga years ago and improved the flexibility in certain joints. I had to learn how to use the new flexibility on the mats.
I Ate More Food And Still Lost Weight?
Yep, you read that right. Trust me, I was surprised as you.
When I 1st got my diet from Eli I looked at it and wasn't sure if he send me the right information. I even asked him if he was sure this was going to work. I mean it was 6 meals and it was a lot of food.
He just said, "Yep, trust me bro."
And within a week my weight was down and from that point we continually tweaked the diet to eventually get down to the mid 190s. And not once did I feel starving. I was always eating a lot of food. It was just food specific to my needs. The beautiful part about this was that since I was eating plenty of food I never had crazy cravings for food and never felt the urge to binge on junk like diets I had done in the past.
Most people don't really understand how many grams of protein, carbohydrates or grams of fat they need. They may hear some stuff from someone in a video on social media or a podcast. But unless you've done your homework you probably have no clue. This is why you have people who think all carbs are bad, all fats or bad or whatever nonsense is circulating at the time. But the reality is food isn't good or evil, it's just a resource and certain nutrients have certain effects on your body.
Oh, and remember earlier how I said even my joints felt better on the program?
Well one of the things that I noticed after being on this diet for about 2 months was that my joints felt amazing. In particular my hands which definitely have some arthritis built up (it's as much hereditary as it is from grappling) felt better than I can remember. When I spoked to Eli about it, he said it was probably because of the diet and I probably removed something that was causing inflammation in my body. Which I thought was crazy since I ate a pretty clean diet beforehand. But after working with Eli, I was super dialed in. I knew every item that went into each meal and most meals were made up of single ingredient foods (minus a protein shake). And to this day, one of the reasons why it's so easy to stay on the diet is because of how good I feel. If I eat a bunch of junk over a weekend my body feels terrible. So I maintain the same diet I did back in 2020, just with more or less food depending on my goals at anytime.
Ready To Try The Program Yourself?
After my positive results back in 2020 many of my students got interested. So, what did they do? They hired Eli for themselves. And their results? They were really similar to mine. Their programs & diets were tailored to their needs, but overall, they had very similar results. The ages of some of my students ranged from late 20s to 50 years old.
And following me and my student's positive experiences over the last few years with his programs I do what I always do. . .
I share with others!
If you follow me online, are on my email list or are 1 of my students then you've already been exposed to some of the ideas I've talked about today and more. But I wanted to package something together for people that could be incredibly useful.
So, over the past year I've been working with Eli to produce a program we call Swole & Roll which will give you a weight training program to follow and information on balancing your Brazilian Jiu-jitsu training with it. Inside I also share details on the specific diet I follow.
Inside the program Eli has created 2 separate lifting programs along with a ton of fundamental knowledge for lifting and dieting and I've adding information about balancing it all out with BJJ training. And if you'd like to get access to the program, scroll down below and hit the button to get started.
Introducing The Swole & Roll Program
Get the program during the early launch and receive a discount, a special drilling bonus and a chance to contribute to the next batch of content for the program.
Digital & Physical Bundles Available Until 11/3/24!
Here's What You Get Inside Swole & Roll. . .
3-Day Mechanical Phase
This 3-day split program is focused on getting you acclimated to this style of lifting and building a strong foundation.
Also, the exercises are performed in a way to help develop solid movement patterns and technique to stimulate muscle growth in a safe and effective way.
5-Day Lifting Advanced Phase
The 5-day split program included is higher volume and pushes the pace a bit more. If you've completed a solid 8 weeks of the 3-day split or you're a more experienced lifter, you'll be fine here.
1 side note is that if you struggle to use a 5-day split with your BJJ schedule, no sweat. You can always do the 5-day split over the course of 2 weeks. I have to do this during my harder BJJ training periods.
Guidance On Balancing BJJ & Weight Training
I'll teach you how I juggle BJJ training and weight training without falling apart. In the sections included we'll also get into adapting a program to your specific needs with training.
Along With The Lifting Programs & BJJ Training Information, You'll Also Receive. . .
Nutrition Primer & Meal Builder Template
Inside this section I'll show you the exact diet I used to eat more, lose weight and show you some ideas on how to adapt it to yourself.
Just a warning, this is not a hardcore dieting advice book. Diets are unique to a person, but I believe showing people what's worked in the past can be instructive.
My Simple Guide To Cardio
This is a no-nonsense cardio guide for those of us who want to have a full tank of gas but maybe aren't trying to be the next 20 year old world champion.
That said, the strategies I show in this guide have been used to win Masters titles at No Gi Pans, No Gi Worlds and medal at ADCC trials.
The guide is all about getting the most bang for your buck. Doing the least amount needed to get a positive benefit for your cardio on the mats.
My Weekly Training Planner Guide
Trying to make major changes in your training, diet and lifestyle is a battle! I'm sure you know this.
So you're going to need a plan.
In this section I'll show you how I craft my training schedule for the week. You could also use this for any other aspect of your lifestyle you're trying to change.
And after going through the videos, interviews and the fully 86 page Swole & Roll manual you'll learn the following. . .
- How to balance lifting and BJJ. (This is important at any age but especially important as you get a bit older.)
- Specific adjustments to common lifts to increase safety and their ability to grow your muscle. (Seriously! Be sure to watch the over 40+ videos inside the members area where Eli and I go through the lifts together. Even as lifter most of my life I learned a lot of new tricks.)
- The reasons many people ruin their lifting sessions with their 1st or last set. (This is inside the booklet included with the course and is probably why so many people lift all the time and never make any changes in their body.)
- An inside look at my exact diet, down to the gram, I used to lean out for competition. (This includes my pre-workout & post-workout meals and even my evening snack that eliminates any sweet cravings I have.)
- How to work around injuries or problem areas of your body. (Have a bad back? A jacked-up knee? It happens to most of us in BJJ at some point. And we can work around these minor injuries to get a solid workout.)
- The most important type of cardio for a grappler. (Hint: It's not killing yourself on a stationary bike.This is included in the special bonus for the early release.)
- 6 ways I improved the #1 activity for recovery. (Supplements, ice baths, sauna, it's all great. But you can't be serious about recovery until you get this activity into place.)
- Why you should avoid sport specific exercises and what to do instead. (I'll explain how trying to mimic BJJ in the weight room led to some of the worse tendonitis I've ever had. . . and i wasn't even in my mid 20s yet!)
- How to design your own weekly training schedule for both BJJ and lifting. More on this one for a second. . .Since everything with lifting and dieting depends on long term consistency. We're not just after a diet or a temporary program. We're focused on building a habit. Habits will carry you through for years to come. And in my bearded opinion, the key to creating habits is starting with a plan in the form of a schedule. I'll show you how I do my weekly plan in less than 20 minutes.
- Want bigger arms? (Who doesn't, right? If this is the case, then pay attention to the details in the arm exercises like being "fancy" with your curls.)
- Why starving yourself to lose weight is 1 of the worst things you can do! (Nearly every new BJJ practitioner I meet does this. They starve themselves to lose weight. There's a much more effective way that will help you lose weight and maintain performance.)
- Some of the best exercises for supporting your knee joints. (Most guys feel silly doing these exercises, but they'll protect your knees big time!)
- The basics on my favorite Pre and Post workout meals. (Eli will also explain some useful ideas on choosing foods for the meals around your workouts.)
- How to properly use many of the most common machines in your gym. (Small adjustments can make the difference between you building your muscles and shearing your joints. You'll learn how to make sure you're not doing the latter.)
- How to use a type of food that everyone says is bad for you and use it to make your workouts better!
- How to use this common leg machine to build strength in multiple areas of your hips and hips and build more flexibility at the same time. (Most people use only use this machine 1 way and miss out on tons of potential for building strength and muscle in their body.)
- How I used a systematic method of dieting that made my weight cuts a breeze! (This section could be very instructive for you for your next future weight cut.)
- The training and injury-prevention secrets of my 50-year-old Black Belt friend who has been training since his 20s and hasn’t had 1 surgery yet! (This is included in the interviews section.)
- Why you shouldn’t avoid having “cheat” meals and how they can actually make your life, relationships and mindset better.
- Ideas on how much water to consume during your training days.
- Why the myth of late-night meals making you fat isn't true.
- The ideal length of time for a lifting workout. (I’ll also share some ways to shave off the time by eliminating the most common culprits that waste time in the gym.)
- Ideas on the right amount of protein you’ll need in your diet to support growing muscle and fuel recovery from training.
- How to make gains even if you can only lift 2 times a week. (Even if you can only squeeze in 2 days a week, we'll show you the right exercises to focus on to make progress.)
- Countless tricks, techniques, and methods from a WBFF pro to build muscle. (In BJJ we know all about little details and how powerful they can be, right? Well, in the program you'll learn all sorts of powerful little details that can improve the effectiveness of your lifting and training. I know this was the case for me.)
- How to develop discipline and create your own motivation! (If you struggle with staying motivated then this video may be worth the price of admission.)
- A clever way to use your warm-up sets to improve your mobility. (Most people just breeze through their warm-up sets. I’ll show you how to make the most of them by taking just a few extra seconds with the lifts.)
- How to shave the time off your workouts so that you're getting a fantastic workout without spending several hours in the gym. (It's simple, and all you have to do is use your phone.)
- Why you should slow your reps down to build more muscle and save your joints. (This specific style of repetitions, which is included in the program, not only helped me build more muscle but feel stronger on the mats.)
- Why your 1 rep max isn't that important. (Most of the time people only think of strength in terms of how much they can lift for 1 rep. But BJJ isn't powerlifting. This is why I feel stronger for BJJ using this program, even though I don't lift as heavy.)
I’ve also included several interviews and conversations I’ve had with my coach as well as friends about lifting, BJJ and how to balance the 2.
So if all of that sounds good to you then just click the button below to get the Swole & Roll program. .
Ready to get swole while you roll?
Get the program during the early launch and receive a discount, a special drilling bonus and a chance to contribute to the next batch of content for the program.
Digital & Physical Bundles Available Until 11/3/24!
Frequently Asked Questions
With some experience you can adjust the program to all sorts of situations. But ideally you would like access to a full weightlifting gym.
The workouts will last around 60 minutes once you're familiar with the exercises.
However, if you follow the directions inside the members area, you'll learn how to shorten the workouts if needed.
Technically you could keep using the program for as long as you want. There's not a hard end date.
But I usually stick to a program for at least 8-12 weeks before I consider switching just to see what kind of results I'll get.
You'll have 30 days to try the program. If for some reason it doesn't work with you, you can email [email protected] and request a refund.
Yes! Due to popular demand, we've included a home version of the program. That said you'll still need access to a barbell, a bench, power rack, dumbbells and some resistance bands to get the most of it.
Read The Disclaimer:
Please understand that my results and those of my students aren’t typical. I’m not saying you can’t duplicate them or even do better. I hope you do! I really mean that and it's why I'm sharing this program with you.
I’m lucky enough to have been involved with weight training since a kid. And I've experienced the benefits of it during my years of grappling. And so just as I share my videos and BJJ techniques with you. I'd also like to share the enhancing effects of weight training as well.
That said, the average person who buys products online unfortunately gets little to no results. Because information is just information. It's not integration.
A tool that is only as good as the effort used with it, right?
It requires action to put it together!
So, if you invest in the Swole & Roll program for your weight training and BJJ goals. I sincerely hope you put it to use and take action! Now I'll give you all the best tips on how to execute on this program. But remember, it's all just a tool. You have to do the work. There are no shortcuts.
Ready To Get Swole And Roll?
You've read the website, maybe gotten an email from me or received a video. At this point you know what I'm offering. A lifting and training guide to help you lift weights and train BJJ. Along with the programs I'll share my exact diet along with useful ideas on cardio and planning out your training.
So, if this sounds good to you then just grapple with the button below to get the program and let's get started!
And if not, no sweat. I wish you the best of luck with your training.
-Chewy
Get The Swole & Roll Program
