Eddie “Cabecao” Camden Interview
by Kid Peligrio

KP:  How do you view martial arts training?

EC:  I see martial arts as a vehicle for personal growth and self-defense.  That is why our slogan is, “Tying self-protection with self-perfection.”  The training reflects three main areas:  self-defense, fitness, and the positive lifestyle benefits.

KP:  Can you expand on those areas?

EC:  Sure.  To me, the first component that must be addressed is the ability to protect oneself.  Anyone getting involved in martial arts of any kind assumes they are learning something about self-defense, whether this is their goal or not.  I think that it is important that this is realistically addressed.  To me, one’s true measure of self-confidence comes down to the ability to defend yourself and family with your bare hands.

KP:  What do you mean by “true measure”?

EC:  Well look, people often derive their confidence by things that come and go:  money, the kind of car they drive, their job, or carry a weapon.  But if you take all that away, things get pretty simple.  I think that because of this survival mechanism, the ability to defend oneself is as basic as food, shelter, and procreation.

KP:  Do you think that confidence can help in a self-defense situation?

EC:  Absolutely.  Often, carrying yourself with confidence will prevent an altercation all together.  That is why all self-defense training must be divided into physical and mental aspects.  The physical skills give you the ability to handle sudden aggression.  The mental aspects give you the ability to avoid aggression and diffuse a situation.  When I say confidence, I do not mean cockiness.

KP:  Can you explain that more?

EC:  Yes, look at it like this.  All the confidence in the world is not going to help you if a 220 pound ex-con is coming at you.  You must have the physical skill to stop the attack.  However, at the same time, good posture and self-assurance will help deter you from being marked as a target in the first place.  Imagine you are pumping gas and not paying attention to your surroundings.  Your back is slumped and you are looking at the ground.  A criminally minded person looks at this and says there is my carjacking victim.  Now, let’s imagine a different scenario.  This time, you’re pumping gas, back straight, head moving side to side, aware of your surroundings.  The same criminally minded person looks at this and thinks, “Not the easiest target.  I’ll move on to someone else.”

KP:  I take it you have used both the physical and mental?

EC:  Absolutely.  Unfortunately, over and over again.  I’ve had situations where physical confrontations just could not be avoided.  At the same time, I’ve been in many situations where the best option was the strategic self-defense we just talked about.

KP:  Can you give us and example?

EC:  Sure.  About a year ago I came to the aid of one of my students, who was surrounded by about eight people.  Now I don’t care who you are and what you know, those are just bad odds.

KP:  So what did you do?

EC:  I just projected a lot of confidence verbally and with my posture and gestures.  These guys saw this and decided it was not worth the effort.  They all went the other way.

KP:  This sounds like bluff in poker!

EC:  Okay, it was the best, most effective use of martial arts training in that situation.

KP:  Going back to the other two aspects of martial arts training, you mentioned fitness and the positive lifestyle benefits.  Can you give us details about them?

EC:  On the fitness side, we work on all the areas:  stamina, muscle tone, coordination, flexibility, balance, etc.  For the kids, not only does this keep them healthy, but it builds their basic athleticism and this will help with any athletic endeavor in their future.

KP:  What about adults?

EC:  For adults, the results are the same.  Keeping a good level of fitness helps combat fatigue, stress, and illness.  Plus it gives you the energy to enjoy other things you like.  Hopefully you don’t have to use physical martial arts every day.  However, everyone has to deal with stress and keeping the immune system strong all the time.

KP:  So you think a good level of fitness helps deal with stress?

EC:  Absolutely.  You will handle any stressful situation better and more effectively if you are in good shape.  This could be a difficulty at work, home, in traffic or a physical confrontation.

KP:  How important is physical fitness for self-defense?

EC:  It is huge.  Imagine knowing everything about running:  what kind of shoes to wear, how to pace yourself, the right type of stride.  Even with all that knowledge you couldn’t run a marathon if you weren’t in shape.  The same can be said for self-defense.  It doesn’t matter what belt you are or who your teachers were.  If you are out of shape you will have a very difficult time to defend yourself physically.

KP:  And the final aspect of training the positive lifestyle benefits?

EC:  Well this is unique to the individual and probably what most people including myself like best about training.  Some people come in and get more confidence, discipline, self-control.  Some people who are already strong in those areas just enjoy being in a positive environment that impacts work, relationships, school, hobbies, etc.

KP:  Now let’s talk about one of our favorite subjects, jiu-jitsu.  You have one of the most successful programs anywhere.  Can you tell me about that?

EC:  Well thanks.  We have really put a lot into it and are seeing great results.  We have between 350-400 students at the academy, most of which are adults.  However, we have a fantastic kids program as well.  We offer Gracie Jiu-Jitsu starting at the four and my oldest student is sixty-five.

KP:  You prefer to use the term Gracie Jiu-Jitsu over Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu?

EC:  Yes I do.  I like to give credit to the Gracie family and specifically Grandmaster Helio Gracie for developing this martial art.  In addition, I think that calling the system Gracie Jiu-Jitsu is not only honest but also emphasizes the self-defense aspect over the sportive aspect.

KP:  Speaking of the self-protective aspect, what are your thoughts on that?

EC:  Well let me just say that Gracie Jiu-Jitsu is a combative self-defense system and not a sport.  Unfortunately, what has  been emphasized in recent years is the competitive aspect of the art.  Years ago, Team Tiger was also very involved in this aspect, just like everyone else.  We were doing a tournament or NHB fight every three months.

KP:  Do you think tournaments can help the art?

EC:  I think it is a double edged sword.  On one end yes, it can help to make it popular.  But on the other end, I think it is very limited and short sighted.  When a teacher mainly focuses on tournaments they will neglect certain parts of the curriculum and the student body.

KP:  What do you mean?

EC:  If I only want to have the best competition team, the school will focus on the strong, athletic, confident, young guys.  If you think about it, these are the people who really don’t need jiu-jitsu.  To me, the reflection of a great school and teacher is one that gives equal time and quality to everybody; the housewife, doctor, police officer, computer programmer, professional fighter, retiree or small child.

KP:  You mentioned that the curriculum changes also.  How so?

EC:  Okay.  If I only want to train guys for tournaments, why teach standup self-defense, gun, knife or stick disarms?  Of course, if that was your emphasis you would naturally not teach these things.  It has little value, if any, for sport jiu-jitsu tournaments.  Again, Gracie Jiu-Jitsu is a complete self-protection system that works for everybody regardless of size or strength.  It is for the small person, the woman, the police officer who is constantly in the line of aggression.  I want to reach everybody with jiu-jitsu.  That is my dream and vision.

KP:  Now we talk about tournaments but what about mixed martial arts?

EC:  First let me say one more thing about tournaments.  If I train guys for submission to finish a fight and stop an attacker, and you train guys to manipulate points to win a tournament, you always have the advantage.  All your guys have to do is play it safe and win on points.  My guys would be at risk going for submissions because if missed, points are scored against you if you lose the position.  However, if we start to train for points, who does that help in a real down and out self-protection situation?  No one!!!  Besides, if you want to play for points, do Judo.  If you think of it, that is the sport of jiu-jitsu.  It even has a different name to differentiate it.

KP:  Interesting point... Going back to mixed martial arts?

EC:  I think it was very valuable to prove Gracie Jiu-Jitsu works consistently for a smaller person.  But now that it has been proven there is no more need.  You can not know Muay thai, boxing or wrestling and be a good mixed martial arts fighter, but if you don’t know jiu-jitsu, forget it!  Because everybody now knows the same things, athleticism and aggression get emphasized.  This is a natural part of a sport.  Unfortunately and inevitably, with this come the use of performance enhancing drugs.

KP:  And the training changes also!

EC:  Absolutely.  You fight the way you train.  Bruce Lee said that.  Why would you teach an NHB fighter gun disarms or escapes from a rear bear hug?  You wouldn’t.  But what about a police officer or business owner that leaves work late at night?  They need to know these things.  My point is that any sportive aspect changes the self-defense nature of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu.

KP:  Who do you think had the greatest effect on the popularity of Jiu-Jitsu?

EC:  Wow, that is a hard question.  Of course I really appreciate and admire Royce Gracie.  He put it (jiu-jitsu) on the map in the U.S. and did so in a stunning fashion, defeating much larger, more athletic opponents with pure technique and was only 176 lbs.  Today I feel Royce could fight anyone in MMA in any weight division and do very well.  I’m not saying he could always win but at 176 lbs. he would do well with anybody and that says a lot.  There are tough guys who do well in their weight division but if they fought someone 50, 100 or even 200 lbs. heavier, how would they do?

KP:  Who else do you think has played a big part in the Jiu-Jitsu movement?

EC:  Without a doubt, Rorion.  Even though we don’t hear a lot about him, he has kept a pure vision, jiu-jitsu for self-defense; the good, basic stuff.  Throw out the rest.  He is the person most responsible in the U.S. for its popularity.  He came up with the UFC and really showcased the system.

KP:  Hopefully everybody knows Rorion is Helio Gracie’s eldest son.  Helio was recently at your school.  Tell us about that?

EC:  What can I say?  He is the guy who came up with the whole thing.  At ninety plus years old he is unbelievable.  He has the purest, most basic vision of jiu-jitsu.  The thing everybody forgets about professor Helio is that when he fought he was developing this thing.  That is the amazing part.

KP:  What do you mean?

EC:  Well look, as great as Royce is, he got in the ring with the confidence that he had the tools to win.  He knew this because his family had been doing the same thing for sixty plus years.  Professor Helio, on the other hand, did not have that.  He was 135 lbs. and wanted to see what would happen if he fought someone 50, 100 lbs. bigger.  In 2005, with  the Pride and UFC popularity that doesn’t seem like a big deal.  But imagine 50, 60, 70 years ago that is unbelievable.  He is the original Ultimate Fighter.

KP:  Cabecao, it was good to talk.  Best wishes with everything and we all appreciate your wisdom for jiu-jitsu.

EC:  Thanks Kid.  I appreciate all your help.