Black belts Gustavo Dantas and Robson Moura will welcome you for a full day of seminars on March 5, in Tampa, Florida.

The 6th Tampa Fusion consists of a Jiu-Jitsu seminar followed by a personal development event.

Watch the video to know more.

Click here for more info and to register now.

Sarah Black at the 2015 Worlds Masters

Sarah Black’s resume already includes World Championship titles at purple and brown belt. Now, as a brand new Gustavo Dantas black belt she has already made her presence known at the highest level of BJJ competition.

Sarah started her competitive black belt career this year at the IBJJF American Nationals where she earned the National title in her division for both Gi and No-Gi. She won a third National title for the No-Gi absolute division.

The rookie black belt participated this past weekend in 2015 IBJJF World Masters Championship where she won the Master 1 World Championship in the light weight division. She earned a silver medal in the Master 1 absolute division.

Her resume so far is inspiring. Already a second degree Black Belt in Judo Sarah is no stranger to high level competition. Currently, at 36 years old Sarah qualifies as a Master 2 competitor, but competes in the Adult division. She is a full-time software developer and the Women’s and Kid’s coach and program director at GD Jiu-Jitsu Headquarters in Tempe Arizona.

With the Adult and Master World Championships combined she has accumulated seven gold medals in the last 4 years:

• 2012 – World Masters – Double Gold (Light & Open) Blue Belt
• 2013 – World Adults – Purple Belt World Champion (Light)
• 2013 – World Masters – Double Gold (Light & Open) Purple Belt
• 2014 – Out due to injury
• 2015 – World Adults – Brown Belt World Champion (Light)
• 2015 – World Masters – Black Belt World Champion (Light)

We spoke to Sarah about her success and advice for other girls competing in Jiu-Jitsu.

“If you want to compete do it. If nerves are keeping competitions from being fun then keep signing up for tournaments until the nerves are manageable (it gets better). Don’t worry about winning so much as performing like you train. Then train. Just train. Show up. Show up injured and do what you can. Study. Fail. Focus on a topic and get good at it. Take care of your body so that you can train. There is not much of an off-season to thrash your body because it will affect your training and thus effect your competitions. Take off only a few days when needed and train lighter when you need rest.

Technique and conditioning, although critical, are not the only areas to focus on. Make sure you don’t neglect the mental aspect of your training. I constantly utilize the BJJ Mental Coach to make sure my mindset for training and competition is as strong as possible.”

The black belts at the big seminar. Photo: Marcelo Pereira

On Saturday, Jan. 17, Bruno Bastos of GMA Bastos BJJ Midland in Midland, TX received his fourth degree on his black belt. This promotion came from the hands of Professor Marcelo Pereira.

The day was part of a full seminar weekend where students were to learn from Ricardo Demente Abreu, Rico Bastos, Marcelo Pereira, Gustavo Dantas and Bruno himself. Promotions were also held for the students.

Hear what Bruno has to say about his promotion and check out the video below:

“Last Saturday I was awarded with the 4th Degree Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu by my long time friend, Professor Marcelo Pereira ( @marcelinhojj ). It was a BIG DAY for me. Very special moment. There witnessing this moment, my “Bebezao” Rico Bastos, Ricardo Demente Abreu ( @ricardodementeabreu ),#TheBjjMentalCoach Gustavo Dantas ( @gdjiujitsu ), the man who brought me to Midland Bradley Barnes ( @bradgordinho ), my lovely wife#BulgarianBeautyPetya Petya Bastos and ALL my @bastos_bjj_midland family alongside my affiliates as well.
14 years of Black Belt feels good and I’m ready for more. Next May I’ll be completing 25 years of Jiu-Jitsu and I’m going to celebrate competing in the Adults division to give some old man hard time for the young guns. There’s only one Highlander…”

Learn more about Bastos BJJ Midland at www.bastosbjjmidland.com

The seminar will run from 11 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. This seminar will cover specific techniques, tips, and exercises focused on strengthening and fine-tuning your competitive game. Also, in addition to the Fusion Seminar, the BJJ Mental Coach, Gustavo Dantas, will be doing a twenty-minute presentation of his Mental Skills Training program called “Inner Discovery for Outer Success” from 1:40 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. on the mat.

The seminar will be located at 2109 E. McDowell Rd. Phoenix, AZ 85006.

The registration deadline is tomorrow, Dec. 11 by 11:59 p.m.

You must reserve your spot as there will be no sign-ups at the door. To sign up now, go to http://www.strongvon.com/5thazfusion/m_tournament_main.jsp?page=m_location.jsp&id=1822

To learn more go to www.gdjjevents.com

Gustavo Dantas vs. Adriano Santiago

Black Belt Gustavo Dantas launched the BJJ Mental Coach to help competitors have a more balanced mindset for a better performance.

In this video-interview with Budo Videos, he talks about his own example after a tough loss in the 2014 Worlds Masters Championship.

Watch the interview and know more about the program at thebjjmentalcoach.com

You can also pre-order the set of DVDs.

Marcelo Melgaço vs. Gustavo Dantas. Photo: Ivan Trindade

Over the weekend of Nov. 1 & 2, Professor Gustavo Dantas of GMA GD Jiu-Jitsu was one of many who traveled to the Long Beach Pyramid to compete in the Masters Worlds. An avid competitor, leader of a strong team out of Arizona and promoter of mental training. The BJJ Mental Coach took to his blog to explain the outcome of his run at the Worlds.

While he didn’t get the gold, he has no shame or regrets in the performance he was able to have with the tools he had with him. He explains what is necessary in these tournaments and the correct mindset going into it, during it and after.

Check it out:

“Definition of movement: “An organized effort by supporters of a common goal”

First of all, I would like to congratulate all supporters of The BJJ Mental Coach® movement who competed at the 2014 World Masters Championship in Long Beach. I lost in my fourth and final match by one advantage and ended up with second place at the Black Belt/Feather/Master 2. It was not exactly the outcome that I had planned, but I can walk with my head up high and be in peace with myself, knowing that I did the best I could with the tools that I had during that moment. I made some tactical and strategic mistakes that I will have to review and then start working towards improvement.

But why did I call it The BJJ Mental Coach® movement? Because when you see competitors wearing a The BJJ Mental Coach® patch on their gis during competition, they BELIEVE in an idea:

“Always try to perform to the best of your ability and be your best self on and off the mat with the tools and knowledge that you have right now!”

The most frustrating feeling that a competitor can have (in my opinion) is the feeling that you lost to YOURSELF, when the nerves got the best of you and you didn’t perform to the best of your ability. I believe our losses are usually related to four key elements:

1-Technical mistakes

2-Physical conditioning

3-Tactical or strategic mistakes

4-Lack of mental preparation

The first three are easy to fix. The problem is the fourth one, the mental aspect. It takes a lot more work than people think to overcome it. You could have lost your match due to one key element, two, three, or even a combination of all four elements. The point is that when your nerves get the best of you, you are NOT being your best self on the mat, and it sucks! Trust me, I’ve been there many times. It doesn’t mean that you cannot WIN, though. That is not the point. The point is to perform just like you do in practice so you can truly be at peace with yourself. And the first step that helped me to overcome my mental blocks is actually the number one tip of my program, Inner Discovery for Outer Success:

Tip 1 – BE TRUE TO YOURSELF.

You are who you are, NOT what you do. Winning or losing a tournament will not make you a better or worse worthwhile person. The fear of failure, the fear of disappointing others (your coach, teammates, and/or family members), the fear of being judged if you don’t meet others’ expectations of your performance—these feelings hold SO many competitors back from performing to the best of their ability and being their best self on the mat. (They held me back for a long time.)

Keep one thing in mind: people who really love you and care about you will be there for you no matter what, winning or losing. Don’t let fear control your performance and/or your life, preventing you from pursuing your personal goals, dreams, and aspirations that you might have and performing to the best of your ability ON and OFF the mat. That is right—we need to perform to the best of our abilities every day! We need to be the best parent that we can be, the best husband/wife, business owner and so forth. Become a champion ON and OFF the mat.

This year was a great competition year for me! I have zero complaints, just appreciation. I’ve learned SO much about Jiu-Jitsu and about myself, including an appreciation for being healthy, for all the supportive people in my life, for living my teenage dream of teaching Jiu-Jitsu, for living, and for living my life purpose 100%.”

Follow more valuable lessons from Gustavo Dantas at www.thebjjmentalcoach.com

The Nova Uniao team takes first at the 2014 IBJJF Vegas Summer Open. Photo: Personal Archive

For the second year in a row, the IBJJF Vegas Summer International Open first place trophy went back to Arizona. The one-day tournament on Aug. 9 was a big day for the Nova Uniao team.

Led by GMA member Gustavo Dantas of GDJJ, team Nova Uniao took 34 competitors to Vegas and captured a total of 37 medals! That’s 17 gold, 11 silver and 9 bronze medals

“Winning is the result of being technically, physically and mentally prepared,” says the BJJ Mental Coach. “I am the leader of the team, but I’m not the only one responsible for the win, this was a team effort. This result would not be possible without the help of all coaches and assistant coaches of GD Jiu-Jitsu Association,” stated Dantas.

For more information about Gustavo Dantas and his team, please visit www.gdjiujitsu.com

Leader Gustavo Dantas. Photo: Personal Archive

Gustavo coaching. Photo: Erin Herle

Gustavo Dantas, the BJJ Mental Coach. Photo: Personal archive

Professor Gustavo Dantas is bringing a wealth of knowledge/experience to the students of Horizons Martial Arts. He is a fourth degree Jiu-Jitsu black belt with nearly twenty years of coaching experience. Gustavo has competed in tournaments in Brazil, United States, Japan and United Arab Emirates, including his most recent accomplishment, the gold medal at the 2014 Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship in the black belt master 2 featherweight division.

A motivational speaker, certified mental & life coach with a bachelor’s degree in physical education from UFRJ (Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro), Gustavo left Brazil in 1999 with three thousand dollars, two bags, and one teenage dream: to have his own 100% Jiu-Jitsu academy and make his living through the passion of his life, Jiu-Jitsu. The Gustavo Dantas Jiu-Jitsu Academy was established on March 6th, 2012, re-enforcing the statement, “Believe in your dreams. Hard work pays off”.

Gustavo was the Jiu-Jitsu coach of the Mixed Martial Arts Gym, Arizona Combat Sports for eleven years, where he achieved his 2-0 MMA Record. During that time, Gustavo started the mission of promoting Jiu-Jitsu in the State of Arizona, becoming the vice-president of the Arizona State Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation and turning a small, 40 competitor, “in-house” tournament in 2001 to an impressive 705 competitors in 2011, helping Arizona to be recognized as one of the Jiu-Jitsu power houses in the United States, where he produced nearly thirty World Championship medalists.

Well respected in the Jiu-Jitsu community as well as a great competitor, coach, and human being, Gustavo continues to build champions on the mat and in life in Arizona and he hopes to spread out his coaching philosophy to more Jiu-Jitsu practitioners for years to come.

Don’t miss the chance to learn from him at GD Jiu-Jitsu North PHX on the mat Monday through Thursday 7-8:30 p.m. or Tuesday or Thursday 10-11:30 p.m.

Learn more at www.thebjjmentalcoach.com

The BJJ Mental Coach (right) with Leo Santos (left) and Thales Leites (middle). Photo: Personal archive

Do you feel that you perform better than you compete?

On Saturday, June 14, Gustavo Dantas will be teaching his Mental Skills Training seminar called “Inner Discovery For Outer Success” at the Embassy Suites located at 4400 S. Rural Rd in Tempe, Arizona from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

This ninety-minute presentation will inspire you and give you tools to handle some of the mental blocks that prevent you from performing to the best of your ability. The BJJ Mental Coach, Gustavo Dantas, breaks down five tips that can help you to discover what is holding you back from reaching your full potential and achieving the success that you desire.

Full information available at www.thebjjmentalcoach.com

Check out what Gustavo has to say about the mental skills training below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4heLJL5Vxk

Two different states will hold three different chances to enhance technique and mental skills for both men and women from any team.

The Fusion Jiu-Jitsu Seminar with Robson Moura & Gustavo Dantas is going back to Tampa, Florida on April 5. This will mark its fifth edition at Robson Moura’s JJ Academy located at 11220 W Hillsborough Ave Tampa, FL 33615. The seminar will be held from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Learn knowledge that covers specific techniques, tips, and drills focused on strengthening and fine tuning in your competitive game. The seminar will also feature three special guests: Bruno Bastos, Marcelo Pereira and Jean Rotondaro.

Also, in addition to the Fusion seminar, Gustavo Dantas will be teaching a Mental Skills training class called “Inner discovery for outer success” on Friday, April, 4 at the Robson Moura’s Academy from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Do you feel that you perform in competition the same way you do in practice?

This one hour and a half presentation will inspire you and give you tools to handle some of the mental blocks that prevent you from performing to the best of your ability during competition. Gustavo breaks down five tips that can help you to discover what is holding you back from achieving the success that you desire. For more info about Gustavo’s program, please visit www.thebjjmentalcoach.com

Another event going on that same weekend is on Sunday, April 6, is the women’s camp. Women’s coach, judo black belt & #1 IBJJF rankings purple belt adult lightweight competitor Sarah Black of GDJJ will be conducting a female-only camp from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

All school are welcome at each event. For full into, go to www.gdjjevents.com

See what Gustavo Dantas has planned for his mental skills seminar in this video: