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I Don't Understand... Jiu-Jitsu
22 Plays1 month ago
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is a form of control. So control yourself. And enjoy JIU-JITSU from the BROWN BELT, Steven Shannon. Thank you Steven.
Steven is the co-owner of Shannon Property Management with his brother Greg.
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Transcript
Why Prioritize Outdoor Activities?
00:00:16
Speaker
Why under people who have invited me to go fishing? You are a man who knows how to get a boat, what to do with one, how to be on one, how to conduct himself aboard one.
00:00:28
Speaker
What do you view, why do you seem to prioritize outdoor activities so much? Like fishing in particular? Yes, exactly. I love a couch. Let me compare it to somebody like me Maybe you've never sat on a comfortable enough couch. I knew you were little stir crazy. Was that fair? That's probably for me. Like you want to move around, right? Yeah, like moving around. Yeah, but i don't want to
What Makes Fun and Adventure Important?
00:00:50
Speaker
move around. See, that's a little bit like a... I love a couch. Yeah.
00:00:54
Speaker
You hate your couch, maybe. Maybe that is it. Dang, you got me diagnosed. I'm going to get this guy a better couch. But really, when you're like like, let's go do something, what is it about, like, that what what do you what do you want? what do what is What's that energy? I mean, I like to just, like, have fun. i don't know. It's fun. I mean, it's really fun. It's like im drive fun and adventure. i don't know. I mean, you're a fucking alien. where was The word we were looking for was fun. Fun.
00:01:19
Speaker
The word we were looking for was fun. Yeah, I think so. I mean, that's probably like a big motivating for I like to just have a lot of fun. and say You're cool. That's very awesome. Sounds Hey, know what? fun yeah which
00:01:38
Speaker
Sounds
Understanding Jiu-Jitsu: Principles and Techniques
00:01:42
Speaker
fun. Yeah. Jujitsu is just fun.
00:01:48
Speaker
Super fun.
00:01:56
Speaker
Karate or any striking thing, you can't really spar. You can't actually punch someone in the face. ah That often. That's hard. What the fuck? What do you want? Because they're going to break their nose.
00:02:13
Speaker
I'm 10 years in, and I do train pretty hard. I mean, like, I go several times a week. I have for 10 years. I was very interested in that you could do a lot of it sitting down. Is that true?
00:02:24
Speaker
Okay, yeah, so... I mean... um That is one thing that differentiates jiu-jitsu from other, like, grappling sports. So, like, if you think of a fight, so like UFC... it's in in there trading leather Or even a street fight. Just a fight. that You can structure into three components. yeah oh So, like, you're standing with someone and punching and kicking is striking. yeah You're down on the ground rolling around.
00:02:54
Speaker
Okay, but then who determines or how does it get from one to the other? yeah What jujitsu is is a method of controlling somebody else. So it's a two-step process. That's it.
00:03:10
Speaker
Controlling somebody and then submitting them. They're the Kennedys of the tap out, the Barrymores of the octagon, the Rockefellers of the choke hold.
00:03:21
Speaker
Are we good? Are we filming? yeah Hi, welcome to the show. hi welcome to Steven. Hi, welcome. Hi. Thanks for doing this. No problem. We all look good. We all look comfortable. Hi, welcome to the I Don't Understand show.
00:03:34
Speaker
Steven was like having an older brother who just wasn't around a lot. He was in a different house filled with taller and skinnier people. Steven was my cousin. now I'm getting to that.
00:03:46
Speaker
We're building. so Right now he's just a guy.
Who is Steven Shannon?
00:03:49
Speaker
Steven Shannon is a man. I mean, you don't know anything. You don't know who I am. yeah yeah You gotta present these people. Who am I? Who gives a shit? Steven Shannon's my cousin.
00:03:58
Speaker
Who are you? Doesn't matter, but he's Steven Shannon. That's what fucking matters here. Shannon Property Management, founded by Steven and his brother Gregory Shannon, was recently voted the number one company my mom brings up when I talk about my podcast.
00:04:13
Speaker
He was recently crowned brown belt in jiu-jitsu, Steven Shannon. So that's why we have this happening right now. Steven, what appealed to you about jiu-jitsu? Why'd you get into it? I mean, you've always been a healthy person. Why did that, why did jiu-jitsu sound like, it sounded like something your body could do? you know, also watching UFC, you, it just, you came to realize that jiu-jitsu was actually
Philosophies and Techniques in Jiu-Jitsu
00:04:34
Speaker
effective. Other combat sports are mainly striking based. Right. Pushing away. This is bringing in. Punching, kicking. Yeah, that's a good way to put it. And that's... Because usually when you have a bad guy, you want a you bad guy to go away.
00:04:49
Speaker
Did you say, bad guy, come to me, i control you now? Kind of. You're mine. We are one? I love you, bad guy. Yeah. big Because, I mean, I'll would just put a caveat to that. Like, in wrestling or other, in judo, really, like, once you pin someone down onto their back... Ding, ding, ding.
00:05:08
Speaker
then it's it's done. Like, that's the point of it. You pin someone. w WWE, too. You pin someone on their back and they can't get up. So, jujitsu is like, wait, hold on. You actually still have a fighting chance just because you're on your back. Like, let's go until the other person just says they quit. So, we're comfortable down here. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. is' It's, ah you know, you're on your back, so what? So, you could take more advantage in that moment than most other...
00:05:32
Speaker
Yeah, now that's a whole cool there's a whole universe of stuff from your back. you can Yeah. Oh, it so it's not just sitting. It's also it's like laying. Yeah. that Position of the chill position. Yeah, like completely just supine on your own. Supine? That's cool.
The Evolution and Applications of Jiu-Jitsu
00:05:50
Speaker
Two main things you try to in Jujutsu to get the submission is block off their blood flow to their brain, which is strangling, or a joint lock. So you feel like... Joint. So physical pain like this, physical t does submission. like yeah youtube so yeah Can't bend it anymore or break. bend it anymore, it'll break. Yeah, and then you're gonna tap. And then, or you close off, basically, pretty much two of them. Not breathe though, that's where the, it's the blood. You wanna really close off the blood.
00:06:18
Speaker
to the burn that Close off these two carotid arteries and then... and then zero is So you can block someone's airway and choke them and they will be... it'll First off, it hurts because you're like crushing the... Sensitive. tra Such a sensitive air. When you block someone's just this, it actually doesn't hurt. It kind of feels good, really. like we observ If you close those two off, it just like you just kind of get warm. Oh, is this leading into...
00:06:45
Speaker
How are we gonna get into it? figure How are we gonna get into it? there Already? Gosh, I like it. Oh yeah, so sometimes it feels good, but okay. but yeah But then it gets scary again. Yeah, because you don't want to go to sleep. Yeah, that's right. But it does happen. I mean, from time, it's not super common and you want to tap early in practice for sure. Yeah, no matter what, you have to be ready to tap for your own safety. like Yeah, that's one of the things. Have you tapped?
00:07:10
Speaker
Oh, you tap. and You tap all the time. All the time. You have to. You have to. So that's that's a really cool part of it. It is. Well, I mean, there is like Love to tap. ah you know, some deeper like significance to the fact that you're literally just having to admit that another person just... Better. Is better. In that moment. Not forever.
00:07:30
Speaker
That's true. Yeah, that's right. Yeah, you that's right. That's right. But in that moment, you do. i mean know But in that moment, is a moment could go on for a long, long time. like, feeling dang, this person beat me. There's no question about Yes, and that's a fact.
00:07:43
Speaker
mean that's That's what's undeniable. because Because you really, that's why sometimes people do go unconscious because they're trying they don't want to... Stubborn. they're Stubborn. You will go unconscious. so Because it's a lot of bending of the neck. where You say a choke is generally like closing off the airway.
00:07:59
Speaker
so you can't breathe, right? But that doesn't really put you unconscious. What puts you on, what will make you lose consciousness and what, you know, you've experienced it where you you get like, you know, kind of tunnel vision or you kind of get warm yeah and fuzzy. I gotta wake up. Yeah, like that. You stand up too quick and it's like that type of feeling. Like that means in your if you're doing jujitsu and you feel like that,
How Are Jiu-Jitsu Matches Judged?
00:08:20
Speaker
you tap. But basically, that's what do you know. So choking is blocking off the airway and and strangling is technically what you are trying, is one of the things you're trying to do. Yeah, there's rules. It's a sport. yes What is this?
00:08:30
Speaker
Is this a sport? Okay, that's ah yeah that's a fair question. Yes, there's a sport's so there's twos there's there's a sport jujitsu, which has points. You are simulating like a potentially or actually like you're simulating a violent kind of like encounter in a way. I mean, it is a sport, but it's a self-defense thing.
00:08:50
Speaker
if somebody's judging this like you went with the windpipe there you didn't close his coronary artery you get less points for that like if you didn't kill him the right way he's dead 10 out of 10. this is on a dead body bleeding out of his neck yeah no but really if i was wait how do they judge it as if i'm a judge so the point system was based on like what like is based on uh how applicable it is to a real like self-defense situation. So there's there's positions where you're going to be, you relative to the other person, and you are either in like a dominant position, a neutral position, or a weaker position, and there's gradients in between that. Holy shit. Did y'all see that fly that just flew by?
00:09:36
Speaker
got to clean my apartment. And so the point system is based on on like where you fall on that spectrum. The sport all takes place on ah the mat? Yeah, like a mat. Like a gymnastics mat. What's it called? A mat. It all takes place on the mat. Yeah. What's in the mat? um Foam, I think. Do you a walkout song? do you listen to it? music? So there is like, there is a- or Can it alter mood? Can it load a gun for you and cock it too?
00:10:04
Speaker
Hey, do you have a walkout song? Can music actually alter your mood? Can I load a gun and
00:10:19
Speaker
Generally hip hop. I mean, yeah, before, before, I generally hip hop. Yeah. You gotta get it. Yeah. And stay calm though. So like, not, okay. Well,
Influence of Maeda and the Gracie Family
00:10:31
Speaker
not adrenaline.
00:10:32
Speaker
Nah, yeah, not really. Yeah, no. I'm more like, I want to be more like in a flowy, like I, in in general, I like to do jujitsu like kind of like real like, its it is, well, just as far as flow state, yeah, i mean, to me it's like bouncy, flowy, like it's, that's why it's, it's very fun. I mean, you got flow with them. They push you. Okay, so you're not going to, you don't necessarily It is what people, you hear about this with judo and stuff like that. They push you, okay, well just go with it. and fly Okay, you're pushing me, I'm not gonna necessarily just push you back and now we're just like doing this and just like you push me, okay then I,
00:11:06
Speaker
grab that. That's what you do or you're saying don't? Yeah, you do. You oh you go with it. So it's go there's more of like a flow. Oh, go with the flow. Go with the flow. That's right. Oh, we're going this way? Let's go this way. Oh, if if if you go against it, there might be more like, you know, more strategy with going with the flow. Here's some history and some like,
00:11:24
Speaker
things. I don't know. It might be interesting on jujitsu, but it's jujitsu. Well, the meaning is the gentle art or gentle technique. You're not punching people. There's not like an aggr... There's not really like an aggression, really. It's flow. I like the suiting up aspect. You wear a, what do you wear? What do you wear? You wear a gi. I don't know if you want. Suit me up. Originally really like jujitsu, Japanese martial art.
00:11:51
Speaker
You know, talking like fifteen hundreds like samurai type. time period and it evolved and there were all these different schools and whatnot. In the 1880s or so, um this guy, Jigoro Kano, kind of distilled a lot of the different schools of martial arts that had been floating around Japan into, essentially, he made Judah.
00:12:16
Speaker
me on but yeah He was obsessed with just finding what works. What's the most efficient way? neo thing Well, it's like Lorne Michaels in the 70s putting together everybody for Saturday Night Live. They're every bear doing their things, but let me bring together them for this one thing where everybody could be, so you know, all the best parts of everything. The things that work.
00:12:37
Speaker
That's right. So he was the Lorne Michaels of jujitsu? Exactly. Okay, go on that's what That's what a lot of people say, actually. So Lorne Michaels created judo. And then um from there, basically one of his students, Maeda, I think Mitsuyo Maeda, came from Japan and he actually like traveled to different parts of the world. He was in the US, I believe, and then Europe. And he was doing like exhibition matches and just like taking but but not but like taking on
00:13:08
Speaker
He's just doing this fight circuit. Chevy Chase leaves SNL. Lorne Michaels did that, but Chevy's gonna leave now and do his own movies. So that's why they call him Maeda, they call him the Chevy Chase. The Chevy Chase now. So what did Chevy do?
00:13:21
Speaker
I'm following. So yeah, so he ended up in Brazil.
00:13:28
Speaker
around World War Maeda was a real badass. I mean, he was fighting all these people for money and winning. He was doing you know exhibition matches, challenge matches. yeah He was in the US and Europe and in Brazil and then came into contact with ah guy, Carlos Gracie.
00:13:47
Speaker
Over three generations, the rough and ready Gracies from Rio de Janeiro have spread the gospel of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu across the globe. The Jiu Jitsu world that's named Gracie is like, is they they basically are the founding family of what then became Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Gotcha. today we paul I did not develop a sport.
00:14:10
Speaker
I developed a style for self-defense. And so then the Gracie family kind of took that, and now they're in Brazil. and they And they're like, figured out what really would work. And they started really taking on challenge fights with like, OK, you think your system works?
00:14:25
Speaker
come here, like here's our match. That's the thing about jujitsu. It's sort of like a bring on any martial art and we'll see if it's better. and Those type of challenge matches, let's see if it's better or not. I mean, it's super just empirical. It's just like, see if it works. If it works, you'll beat me. If not, I'll beat you. And so jujitsu,
00:14:42
Speaker
you know, has just proved itself by like beating that's cool a lot of other things. include And that goes all the So then it was in Brazil, Brazil, Brazil, and it really evolved and they turned it into that it just like into its own sport, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, that was just like ultra practical, ultra efficient at smaller people being able to control and then submit much larger people.
Challenges and Experiences in Belt Progression
00:15:06
Speaker
And someone who's much bigger and stronger than you, there's a lot of force that comes in that time frame between, you know I And there's a lot of space and what you want to do, what nullifies a degree of strength is just not letting there be space to build up that momentum. Yeah, so if you're hugging somebody and you're telling somebody, they can meet out and stuff, but You can definitely mitigate a lot the difference strength. Is it strength? Strength versus will. What wins? I don't know. It depends on the balance. don't know. It depends on the person, probably. Or the strength. Who's will? Peril.
00:15:49
Speaker
Brown belt? How long did that take? what What belt was the hardest? What belt were you on the longest? Is there like different like like levels of achievement, like a video game? Now um I could get it again. This is white, blue, purple, brown, black. Now would you hang out with a blue belt? No. You're going to have black belt. I hope so. how How do you achieve level? How do you level up in this? Yeah, that's like pretty interesting how that works. Who decides that? the The coach, basically. And it's not like a test.
00:16:19
Speaker
So yeah, you go white, blue, purple, brown, black. i was I was like three years at blue, three is zi three years at white, three years at blue, through four years at purple. So that's the 10. Basically, your coach is watching you spar every day. you know So you're just sparring.
00:16:34
Speaker
Left arm back to the knee. There you go. Well, push, push. He's watching you do techniques and different things on how how you're moving. There you go. But really, you have to beat the people below you you or or at your level. Nobody can beat you. And bigger. Yeah. So you're telling me that no purple belt, no, legally they can.
00:16:57
Speaker
No, no, no. So it gets channel muddled up there.
00:17:05
Speaker
You know what? Tom Hardy does this.
00:17:10
Speaker
Yes.
00:17:14
Speaker
thats a good Are you going to call him out? His candy ass out? Let's start a feud. He seems super legit.
00:17:23
Speaker
My cousin could beat up Tom Hardy. No, I'm saying that. To the public.
00:17:33
Speaker
I don't care that he was cast as the one actor who could believably beat up Batman. oh don't give a shit. Steven's my Batman. Right? That's actually kind of true. I actually remember when I saw Batman Begins, I was like, who does this remind me of? And he was like, this reminds me of Steven. This seems like some shit Steven would get himself into.
00:17:52
Speaker
Being Batman and doing the the scene where he has to go like with the blue flower all the way up the Himalayan mountains to find the ninja tribe. What are you seeking? I was like this... I see.
00:18:04
Speaker
This is a so stupid. The means to fight injustice. What if this led to Steven fighting Tom Hardy? Ding ding! Ding ding! Round one. Fight him! he's He's legit. No, you're gonna beat him, right? I don't know. You got this. Steven, you got this, right? want to Tom Hardy, could you fucking... You can't beat up my cousin.
00:18:26
Speaker
Tom and Aldo warm up before the evening's main event, about to establish British physical prowess against the local talent. It's gonna go really badly. like It does beat
Recovery through Cold Showers and Yoga
00:18:38
Speaker
your body up. Like, I mean, you're not getting punched, but you're just like getting smushed and... Yeah. Just like... Sore. Sore. Yeah, so I do yoga and stretch. How do you recover? that Yoga, I mean, it's stretching.
00:18:53
Speaker
you You used to be this cold shower man. Are you still? Yes. You take cold shower. You believe cold shower better than normal shower. I did cold showers for like several years, just like... Yeah, but you can you gotta be not a scared man like me. I'd be too scared.
00:19:09
Speaker
Yeah. i So I was doing the cold showers. Every day? no i wish. But my jujitsu gym, du my but the owner my jujitsu gym is a big into them. And he went to, where is he from? Holland and met Wim Hof and has a whole picture. It's pretty cool. To me, it's pretty cool. That is cool to me also. Yeah, so he's into it. He's definitely into it. ah so I like what you like. They have a cold plunge at the studio. That's where it's mostly cold, in Holland is probably where they invented the cold plunge. That's where ice was invented. Splash.
00:19:44
Speaker
Oh, I'm cold. So your benefits of that was that it would wake your ass something? Basically, I mean, I think it's as much- Wake my ass up? Literally, that is- i mean Don't talk to me before I've had my cold plunge? Yeah, I mean, pretty much, yeah. like that that i think Better than coffee?
00:19:59
Speaker
You take? ah The combo. You gotta try get and do the combo. You do coffee and cold plunge. Yeah. Don't talk to me before I've been cold and hot at the same time.
00:20:10
Speaker
What if you did them both at the same time? You'd just be warm. No, you do have to psych yourself up, but that is the benefit. it's Do you use this philosophy in life also? Are you able to like go live?
Jiu-Jitsu as a Life Philosophy
00:20:20
Speaker
For sure, jujitsu is permeated into just the way i like see everything. i mean, it's just problem solving is the probably the easiest way to say I mean, you're just continuously being put in a situation where, okay, i solve this weird problem that you've never seen. This guy, you know, somebody's on top of you doing this to your arm or whatever. So you you have to like stay calm, breathe. Okay, what am I going to here and solve that problem or not
00:20:45
Speaker
And so yeah, that is obviously applicable. My cousin has invited me on his insane podcast. How do I handle this? In the practical, you're going need it in a fight. Tables can turn like super, super quick. How fast can tables turn?
00:20:59
Speaker
I want to know about how your Stephen, these Stephen senses, because you will have to plot something, organize it and then activate it That's all happening.
00:21:11
Speaker
Yeah, well, I mean, I think that's why you have to, like, it takes years in turning it into essentially a ah lifestyle. Probably it kind of requires that type of commitment to progress in jujitsu. And...
00:21:28
Speaker
Once you've done that, then it then some things become instinctual, right? I mean, it has to be instinctual. Some things have to be. That's the whole thing that takes so so long. So so if it's and if it's instinctual, then it's instinctual. You practice it until it becomes instinct. You have to.
00:21:44
Speaker
That's awesome. You can't think about things. I mean, it's happening too fast.
00:21:49
Speaker
A Phish concert is kind of hard to describe.
Parallels Between Jiu-Jitsu and Phish Concerts
00:21:53
Speaker
At what age should kids get into Phish? Four also. it Same as jujitsu. Yes. How many fish shows have you been to? I'd have to really kind of do some math, but somewhere in the 70s. Oh, so. Yeah, I've counted it.
00:22:08
Speaker
So it is like a number like that. What do you want to ask me? Huh? What do you want to Are you enjoying yourself? Very much, are you? I'm enjoying myself. But you're on outside. Clack. Boop. Boop. I don't understand that. Exactly. What do they do that no other band can do or will do? When you're in that 70, you've been there for 70 times. What's bringing you back for 79 or 80? Okay, let me see how I can really describe it. It's hard to do, but I mean, um it does feel like you're going on some type of like adventure with them. like It's like, where are we going tonight? Who knows? like Where are we going? And you're really going on a ride somewhere that night. like I mean, it just like you're not just passively...
00:22:51
Speaker
kind of sitting there watching this thing happen. like It's like you're going on some type of adventure and they're taking you there. It's super like invigorating. It's it's just very yeah it's very fun. And then musically, they're just like actually incredible. And you have four incredible musicians that have been playing together for so long together. I mean, they're just so in sync with each other that it's just like they can flow. This is going back to jiu-jitsu. Let's tie all this together. Let's do it. Let's tie Steven together. on it Well, that's what we like. We were trying to be in this kind of like flow, like... Yeah, that's right. But yeah, you're there. I think in both of those cases, you're you're there. you're not anywhere else but where you are, which is where you should be.
00:23:48
Speaker
This time, this time I'm listening.
00:24:26
Speaker
We started from the bottom now. I got a shit. Started from the bottom now. We're here. I love Chili's nachos. Chili's nachos are what I love. Shout out to Harris Whittles, the creator of the term humblebrag, which people say all the time. It's crazy to think that Harris came up with it.
00:24:46
Speaker
But more importantly, he was Stephen's lifelong friend, and he and Stephen had a lot of fun going to Phish concerts together.