Choose one skill you want to understand better
Start with a situation you can recognize during training. “What happens when I try to turn toward my partner from under side control?” gives you more to work with than “Am I getting better?” BJJ Mental Models' guide to deliberate practice describes setting a specific goal before training and reflecting afterward.
If you want to start a round in one position to explore that question, read how positional sparring gives a round a purpose.
What can you record after a round?
Four short lines are enough to capture a question, an attempt, the response you saw, and what to ask next. For example, imagine a round that starts with you underneath side control. This is a hypothetical note, not a student's result or a move to follow:
- Question before the round
- What happens when I try to turn toward my partner from under side control?
- Action I tried
- I made space and tried to turn toward them.
- Response I saw
- My partner followed the turn and stayed in side control.
- Next question
- What stopped the turn when my partner followed me?
That last line gives you a specific moment to ask about. In Sonny Brown's interview with Lachlan Giles, Giles describes partners discussing what frustrated them after a training round.
Compare the question, not just the result
A different partner, starting position, or pace changes the round. Turning successfully once and staying under side control another time would not, by itself, tell you how much you have learned. Look instead at the moment you tried, what your partner did, and whether you have a clearer question for the next round. The note helps you remember an exchange; it is not a progress score.
When competition changes the goal
A tournament result tells you whether you won a match under its rules. It will not tell you what happened when your partner followed your turn from side control. If you compete, you could review one exchange from a match; if you do not, use one from class.
Check current adult class times
Phantom's weekly schedule lists its current adult classes and times.