Tuesday (02/28) No-Gi Class Mounted Armbars

One of my favorite techniques is the armbar from mount. It's a great technique for a couple of reasons. One is that I love the mount, no matter how you get there you always get points for it and it's a position you can use to rest. Two, once your in mount the only thing your opponent can do is try to escape. No jiu-jitsu players are ever comfortable being mounted. This discomfort can lead to lots of mistakes that you can capitalize on. The mounted armbar is a quick and easy high percentage way to end a match, as long as it is executed correctly. We will start with a video of the basic armbar from the mount.

So this video does a good job of highlighting some of the basic tenants of the mounted armbar. You need to get into a high mount position with your knees under the arm pits to execute any sort of offense. Notice that throughout the technique the hips stay tight to your opponent. Second you need to trap the arm and get it away from the body. This becomes much easier when your opponent attempts to post their hands on your chest or belly. Finally you must keep the hips tight and have the the arm trapped before sitting back for the finish. I like to make sure that I am actually sitting on my opponent before I lay back for the finish. We won't be doing this specific armbar today but it is a good set up for the technique we will be doing.

More commonly your opponent will know that once they are mounted they are in deep trouble. Often they will pull their arms in tight and you will have to do a little more maneuvering to get the arm isolated for the armbar. This is where the armbar from "S" mount comes in. The next video lays out the "S" mounted armbar in fantastic detail.

Notice that with the "S" Mounted armbar you are using your hips like a wedge to pry the arm away from the body. Also note that you need to squeeze the foot to the knee during the set up. This step will keep the elbows up and the arms isolated. Finally again you have to make sure that the leg gets in front of the face before you sit back for the armbar or you will lose it completely. So your keys to the "S" mount armbar are...

1. Move into you offensive mount-I thought about including a video of Bas Rutten talking about proper mount position but decided that would be too many videos. But know that before you are going to attack anything you need to move your hips up on the chest. Never sit down on the hips, that is just asking to be reversed.
2. Keep the hips low-if possible the hips should never leave contact with your opponents body. Hopping, jumping, or diving for a position or limb will just get you reversed instead of getting you closer to a submission.
3. Force the elbows up-part of the reason for moving up the body is to free the elbow and put you in a good position to take control of the arm.
4. Pinch the foot to the knee in "S" mount-don't let guys maneuver out of your "S" mount. A vital part of making sure that you keep control of your opponents arm is to keep the "S" of the "S" mount pinched tight around the shoulders and head.
5. Sit on your opponent- when the leg comes over the face you are not sitting back at the same time. The leg comes over you sit on the side and shoulder while you make sure you have the correct arm position. Only after this is complete do you sit back for the finish.
6. Thumbs up for the win-as with all armbars knees are pinched together and the thumb should be pointed up for the finish.

Bonus Advanced Maneuver - when your opponent protects the arm you are attacking they leave the other arm out and susceptible to attack. The last video shows a quick and easy way to attack the opposite arm when it becomes available. Just a quick shift of the hips and you wont have to worry about breaking grips or hand fighting.

As always if there are questions or clarifications please leave them in the comments section and don't forget to follow me on Twitter and Like me on Facebook. I'll see you on the mats.

Hooray, I just got tapped!

Let it be said from the beginning I don't like tapping. I do it on a regular basis, but much like vegetables, jogging, and listening to NPR I don't have have to like it. Tapping has never given me that warm feeling I get from escapes, advancing position, or sinking one of my increasingly spars submissions. (Why do white belts have to get better? At least humor me, I'm old and lazy) No tapping just makes me think, "Damn it, damn it, damn it!!! I knew I shouldn't have let him get the hook in but what was the worst that could happen?"Well apparently the worst that could happen is being chocked out with your own arm. The question becomes, if I despise submitting so much why do I continue to put myself in positions where it is likely to happen? The answer is simple, because it makes me better.

In my opinion, there are two chief benefits to being submitted. The most obvious benefit is that you learn not to do the same thing that got you submitted last time. After so many times being submitted for the same thing eventually you learn. Never look at being submitted as the end of a sequence but instead view it as part of the process of rolling. If you view it as the end of a roll then there is nothing more to be done but if you view it as part of the process there is always something to improve in the next roll.

The second, less obvious, benefit to being submitted is that it means you are pushing past your current abilities and knowledge level. I don't usually get submitted when playing a purely defensive game. If I pull all my limbs in, tuck my chin, and let you sit in mount we can be there all day before you find a submission. When I get caught it usually comes when I am attempting to pass, or moving to sweep, or attempting submissions from less dominate positions. I was committed to moving out of my comfort zone and sometimes that just isn't going to to work on the first try.  You have to be willing to try things that aren't go to work to find which techniques are going to work for you.

Tapping may never feel good, it may never seem motivating, and it most definitely never feels like an uplifting experience but it doesn't have to be a set back. It can be a marker on the road when you are beyond being submitted by basic submission set ups. It can mean that you are trying to move beyond your comfort zone. Just remember that a single submission is not the end of your journey just another bend in the road.

As always if there are questions or ccomments please leave them in the comments section and don't forget to follow me on Twitter and Like me on Facebook. I'll see you on the mats.

Thursday (02/23) No-Gi Class Brabo/Darce Choke

The answer is nothing, I just thought it was funny that the first 25 pictures that show up when you Google "brabo" are this statue in Antwerp. Now moving on to the relevant information, we have been working a lot of attacks and variations from side control. All of the attacks we have worked so far have been attacks on the far side arm. Tonight I thought I'd give you an additional tool to use, the brabo choke attacking with the near side arm. Note sometimes this choke is called a darce choke. I'm not sure if there is a difference between the two or if the difference is so subtle I missed it. If you know please post in the comments section.

This choke is a little harder to understand than most of the chokes we use on a regular basis, but once you get the basics you'll see that this position and control comes up all over the place in jiu-jitsu. First I have Brandon Quick doing a break down of the basics of how to get the submission. 

Be sure that you are shooting the arm through deep around the head to ensure you are getting the correct pressure. Also I like the detail about actually reaching around to the triceps instead of reaching for the biceps to get a tighter squeeze is brilliant. Next up a video of Daniel Strauss using the submission from side control.

Switching the hips is a very common way to free the arm and get it outside the hips. From that position you can get armbars and chokes very easily. I also noticed that he doesn't reach just behind the head he goes all the way between the legs to set up his transition. So here are your keys to sinking the brabo from side control.

1. Free the arm from your hips-you need the arm outside the hips to secure it and move to position. Maintain pressure on the chest during your hip switch and be sure to get the arm far enough out that your opponent can not get it back.
2. Reach deep-the arm needs to go between the legs and not just behind the head to make the technique work.
3. Keep chest pressure on the shoulder-during your transition to the opposite side make sure you keep tight downward pressure on the shoulder and drive the arm all the way across the neck, don't let it get stuck across the face. 
4. Reach through past the biceps-if you imagine you a reaching through to the triceps you will get a tighter closure around the bottom side of the neck allowing you to get a better squeeze.
5. Consistent pressure for the finish-don't jerk everything together all at ounce. Make sure you are applying consistent increasing pressure so your opponent doesn't know when the choke will end.

BONUS: Here is a step over armbar from the same side control position. I have taught this series in class before so some of you that have been around long enough have seen it. I may not show this one in class this time but, if you want to see how dynamic this position can be here is a bonus technique for you.

As always if there are questions or clarifications please leave them in the comments section and don't forget to follow me on Twitter and Like me on Facebook. I'll see you on the mats.

The "That Guy" Phenominon (Updated)

Everybody knows or has seen "that guy" if you‘ve spent enough time in a jiu-jitsu school, wrestling room, or really any sort of combat sports establishment. Everyone hates “that guy”. He may have been on the football team in high school, built himself a nice set of beach muscles, and in a different world could have been the next epic bar fighting legend. Now he's seen the UFC in all its violent splendor and decided that he is the next light heavy weight champ. All he has to do is sharpen up that “jew-jitzu” skill they keep talking about. I mean how hard could that be? It’s all just smashing and rolling around on the ground anyway right? Now he is in your no-gi class, because we all know that “those white pajamas are only for those karate homos”. Every roll is his championship match, he’s not tapping just let it snap, and why can’t he neck crank you? In a real fight he would just pop your head off your shoulders Jack Bauer style. Every person in the class knows this guy won’t make it longer than a week but for now you have to train with him. Forearms in the face, flailing legs, fingers persistently in your face, he is “that guy” and nobody likes “that guy”.

Me rolling before the hair fell out with at blue belt so new it still has creases.

I understand that bjj is a rich tapestry of people. All levels of grappling experience, backgrounds, and mindsets make up the populations of a jiu-jitsu school. When you’re newer you always feel like you have more to prove. New competitors never want to tap and always want to roll 100%. If you’re reading this odds are you are committed to growing as a grappler. When I say “that guy” it shouldn’t read “new guy” it should read “grappling dummy” or if you prefer “the resident gym a-hole”. Note that just because you train hard doesn’t make you “that guy”, just because you are new you’re not “that guy”, but if you read this and are concerned that you are “that guy” realize it’s never too late to repent and change your ways.

Rodolfo Vieira Photo via bjjheroes.com

Brazilian Jiu-Jitus is art, it’s sport, it’s combat and on occasion it’s brutal. When it was labeled “arte suave de Brazil” it was only “sauve” compared to traditional martial arts that require strikes to the head to subdue your opponent. Watch Rodolfo Vieira’s recent performance at the IBJJF European nationals, his match with Braulio Estima hurts me and I’m just watching. Vieira uses crushing topside pressure and some vicious transitions to dominate Estima until the match reaches its inevitable conclusion. You might look at that and say it is probably awful to train with that guy because he is just out to smash you  in to submission. I would guess that he probably mastered that type of game by finding out what kind of pressure he needed to control an opponent. He probably has a stable of fantastic grapplers that want to train with him because there is a certain give and take of knowledge that benefits both people. He probably isn’t “that guy” in the gym.

When someone decides to roll with you there should always be a certain understanding between the two grapplers. Each gym will have its own culture, standards, and instructors. The things I find as acceptable in my classes and the things I allow to go on during rolling might be different than your gym. There are a few guidelines that I think should be universal in the grappling world though.   

1.  In lieu of a referee I am trusting you with my physical safety. I trust that you are not going to intentionally do anything that is going to cause me any long term injury and that you are executing techniques with only the best of intentions.
2.   I trust that you are attempting you use this time to advance as a jiu-jitsu player. In training I’m not interested in who can take the most punishment while rolling or how fast you think you can tap me. I’m training to get better and I expect the same from all of my training partners. If you’re not about improvement then I’m not interested.
3. I trust that you know how to control yourself physically, mentally, and emotionally. If you and I are rolling you’re an adult, or close enough to one, conduct yourself like an adult. Just because you get chin control does not mean you should put my head on backwards. Don’t flail, flop, kick, punch, slap without purpose. Don’t throw a fit if you get caught in a submission. 
4.  I’m trusting you to protect yourself. In training I tap early and I tap often because I like being able to do it five to six times a week. I trust you to do the same. Nobody gets a medal for blowing up their elbow fighting and arm bar in training.  

T-Town MMA Class 2012

I hope Brazilian jiu-jitsu becomes the largest sport in the world some day. I hope that gyms open in every medium sized town in America and we dominate it as an Olympic sport. I hope that one day the doors of reputable jiu-jitsu schools are overflowing with grapplers yearning to learn, but I will sacrifice all of that to make sure that the sport is filled the right people and not “that guy”. Remember take care of your training partners and they will take care of you.

Please feel free to email or comment with questions or input otherwise, I will see you all on the mats.

(Update: The match I was thinking of was Rodolfo Viera vs. Victor Estima. I mentioned the wrong Estima earlier.)

Tuesday (02/21) No Gi Class Americana, Straight Armbar, Kimura Series

In jiu-jitsu, especially when just beginning to compete, it is essential for competitors to have a series of moves that they can go to without hesitation. These techniques should be easy to execute, high percentage, and will need to be executable under pressure. I like to think of these as jiu-jitsu "Fatalities". The moves you choose will vary based on personal preference, body type, and ability. Don't be discouraged if  something works for me but doesn't become a go to move for you.

One of my favorite "fatalities" is the three arm lock series from side control. The series consists of an americana, straight armbar, and a kimura. Each of these techniques is a high percentage move from side control and the likelihood of success only goes up when they are chained together. These submissions can be executed in any order depending on how your opponent defends. Below are a few videos that layout the techniques individually (excluding the straight armbar)  and then one that I made showing how they fit together.

First we have James Foster of showing your basic americana. He dedicates a lot of time in the beginning of the video to how to break the grip and free your opponents arm for you to attack. This is a larger issue in gi jiu-jitsu than no gi but if you are having trouble getting enough space to execute the technique remember to suck the elbow and shrug the shoulder. Also notice that finishing the lock should require only a minimal amount of twisting if you are preforming it correctly. If you are not getting a finish reset, reposition, and re-attack.

Next we have a basic step over kimura. This video does a great job showing the difference between just attempting the kimura from side control and executing the step over. Securing the head is what will allow you to finish the move and not be reversed. There is also a little bonus same side armbar thrown in at the end.

Next we have my poorly shot and demonstrated video tying the three techniques together. Remember you can go for these submissions any time your opponent moves his arm away from his body while he is in your side control. When I show the alternate finish position for the kimura remember that you need to maintain control of the arm while switching your hand position or your opponent will pull it back into his body and you'll have to start the process again. Also when I sit on the head, I literally sit on Stephens ear so he can't turn his head.

 Finally there are a few keys to executing each of these techniques.

1. Keep downward pressure on the chest-if you lift your chest off your opponent your giving them a chance to escape. Keep the pressure on, make them uncomfortable, force them to make a mistake.
2. Keep the wrists curled-I like to curl them prior to putting pressure on a limb to ensure they never bend backwards as well as putting some additional torque on my opponents arm.

Please feel free to email or comment with questions or input otherwise, I will see you all on the mats.

Jazz-Jitsu

Andre Galvao image via graciemag.com

We are constantly looking for ways to describe Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu to the uninitiated. We say its like wrestling with the added danger of submissions, or boxing but more three dimensional, or physical chess. All of these analogies fall short of the actual complexity of a really high caliber jiu-jitsu game. If you watch the games of guys like Andrea Galvao, Rudolfo Vieira, or Rafael Lovato Jr. you will see that describing their game as chess does a disservice to the feats of technique, strength, timing, and strategy that these athletes are able to accomplish. Not only are you competing through mental fatigue but there is also physical and emotional fatigue that is unique to combat sports that must be overcome in order to be a champion. If jiu-jitsu is like chess, it's chess where both players can move their pieces at the same time, your opponent can win at anytime regardless of where his pieces are, and  your doing push ups the entire time.

Rafael Lovato Jr. image via graciemag.com

Brazilian jiu-jitsu is a sport unlike any other, raw aggression wont win matches, strategy wont win matches, superior physical condition wont do it, and superior technique without any of theses other factors will just get you smashed. So with all this said what is jiu-jitsu? I like to think of it as more amorphous than any of the rigid  analogies we try to force it into. The best way I can describe jiu-jitsu to those not already lured in is, it is jazz manifest in physical form.

"Warrior" image via theaustralian.com.au

In the 2011 movie Warrior Joel Edgerton's trainer Frank Campana, played by Frank Grillo, is a Greg Jackson-esque semi mystic sort of unconventional trainer. One of the points the movie brings up is that Grillo's character encourages his fighters to listen to classical music while training to work on timing and flow. Watching the movie I thought it was nice to hear a little classical as background music as opposed to the usual bad nu metal and rap mix you hear blasted through most MMA/BJJ gyms. I also thought it was a forced a plot device to show the contrast between his and Tom Hardy's character's training regimen; but I digress, classical may work for boxing but it doesn't work for jiu-jitsu. Jiu-jitsu is two soloists battling for dominance. We are both in the same key, standing, guard, side control but both are always in a state of movement. It's wild and chaotic but with and underlying order that is so subtle you almost have to versed to appreciate its brilliance. Jiu-jitsu is jazz, few rules, action and movement limited only by the players talents.  To me this is jiu-jitsu, the improvisation, the innovation, the lack of structure is where the real beauty of jiu-jitsu lays. There are no rigid forms, no concrete rules on body position, no turns to take or wait for. There is only your complete skill, commitment, and passion versus your opponents. This is how I describe jiu-jitsu.