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Archive for the ‘self defense’ Category


The 3 Most Common First-Time Competition Errors

Tuesday, November 15th, 2011

I recently got an email from a reader getting ready to compete in his first BJJ tournament.

One of the things that he asked me was “what are the most common mistakes that first-time competitors make?”

BJJ tournaments in general, and ESPECIALLY your first competition, are likely to be a little bit chaotic.  So it’s a little hard to make generalizations about what you might run into…

But in a way, this chaos is the whole point!

Not knowing what you’re about to face, but going out and doing it anyway, is a relatively safe way to field-test your skills.

And, strangely enough, there are even self-defense benefits from competing!

(I can just see the angry emails arriving from ‘reality-based’ practitioners saying that tournaments have nothing to do with self defense. But they’re wrong.  Competition can teach you to successfully surf the giant adrenaline wave coming with facing new challenges in unfamiliar settings. And these fear-management skills can definitely help keep your wits about you when things get hairy in the street.)

So then, what are the most common errors I see?

TOP COMPETITION ERROR NUMBER ONE

The most common error is getting so stressed out that you hold your breath for most of the match.

I’ve written quite extensively about this in the past, so I’m going to keep the discussion of this error short…

Suffice it to say that holding the breath is really, really common for first-time competitors.

And this inevitably leads to total exhaustion, and not even coming close to performing up to your potential (which always sucks).

Read this article for the story of how one grappler overcame his tendency to hold his breath on the mats (it wasn’t in competition, but it’s still totally relevant nonetheless):

www.grapplearts.com/Blog/2004/10/breathing-oxygen-and-exhaustion/

TOP COMPETITION ERROR NUMBER TWO

The next most common mistake I’ve seen is waiting around all day and not hydrating or feeding yourself properly.

In a way, this is understandable…

You’re nervous, you don’t know exactly when you’re going to be called up for your division, and you DON’T want to have a full stomach when you start your match.

But being undernourished and dehydrated really doesn’t set you up for success!

Dehydration reduces your strength, your endurance, makes your heart work harder, etc.

And not having eaten enough also makes you listless and just plain grumpy…

And these problems are even worse if you’ve cut weight before the tournament. (If you’re going to cut weight then make sure you get the kinks out of the system by  doing a trial run BEFORE the tournament.  You shouldn’t be doing anything new, unusual or untried on the big day, just in case it all goes terribly wrong.)

To prevent the tournament blahs drink regularly and eat small, easy to digest mini-meals at spaced-out intervals throughout the day.

Experiment with different foods you might be eating on tournament day by trying them out before the big day, in your regular training sessions.

For example, through trial and error I found that a single piece of whole-grain toast with almond butter sustains me for a couple hours of training but is also light enough that I’m not going to throw up if someone puts their knee on my belly…

So that works for me, but experiment until you find something that works for you!

TOP COMPETITION ERROR NUMBER THREE

The third most common error I see is tournament newbies putting way, way, waaaaaay too much pressure on themselves.

They’re afraid of what their teacher and classmates will think if they lose their match…

Or they’re worried about letting down their team…

Or they just don’t want to look stupid…

Listen to me!  If it’s your first tournament then IT REALLY DOESN’T MATTER IF YOU WIN OR LOSE!

Honestly, I promise that the sun will still rise tomorrow morning…

… and that if you keep training you’ll eventually earn your blue belt promotion…

… and that your team and teacher will be just fine if you lose.

As I write this I am also waving my magic jiu-jitsu wand which utterly, completely absolves you from carrying the weight of the world upon your shoulders if/when you decide to go compete.

Really, a tournament is best viewed as a learning experience, so go and learn a LOT.  And if you happen to do well, then so much the better.

But you’re a newbie so nobody expects a world class performance from you anyhow.  So what better time to get out there and make all your stupid mistakes?

Preparing for competition is a pretty huge topic, and I’ve really just scraped the surface here…

If you want to have another perspective check out this list of 18 competition tips by Grapplearts guest author Jason Scully:

www.grapplearts.com/bjj-grappling-competition-tips.html 

Posted in bjj, competition, self defense, sports psychology, the mental aspect | No Comments »

Tony Blauer on Fitness, Fear Management, and Combat Psychology

Monday, August 1st, 2011

I just interviewed Tony Blauer.  He’s the head of Blauer Tactical Systems which specializes in close quarter tactics & scenario-based training for law enforcement, military and professional self-defense instructors.

We had a great conversation about Crossfit, fear management, adrenaline dumps, and his recent ‘immersion’ in BJJ…

This is pretty relevant stuff!  Everybody (who’s not insane) feels fear, whether we’re freaked out about sparring somebody new, entering our first BJJ tournament, fighting MMA, or defending ourselves on the street.

So find out what to do about it!

You can listen to, or download the audio by doing one of the following:

1. Hit play in the middle of the black bar (the audio player link) at the bottom of this list, and/or

2. Right click on this link and select ‘save as’ to download the mp3 file to your computer, and/or

3. Subscribe to the Grapplearts Podcast in iTunes (and also listen to previous audio interviews).

P.S. For anyone who wants to attend Tony’s annual Combatives Camp on August 6th and 7th in Las Vegas, my readers will get a huge price break! Just email “karen (insert ‘at’ symbol here) blauertactical.com” and ask for the “Grapplearts Discount.” You’ll get $120 off the regular price.

Click here for more info about the camp:
http://us2.campaign-archive1.com/?u=2b2f231492dc2fd5aa7953559&id=fb8f574968

Posted in breathing, competition, conditioning, fitness, interviews, podcasts, self defense, tony blauer, Uncategorized | No Comments »

A Woman’s Jiu-Jitsu Journey from White Belt to Black Belt

Saturday, May 14th, 2011

Emily-Kwok-Woman-Jiu-Jitsu-3In this feature interview I talk with Emily Kwok who is a very smart, very talented jiu-jitsu practitioner.

She’s been involved in the woman’s competition circuit for a long time, having competed both with and without the gi, and in MMA overseas. Her ability as a teacher of jiu-jitsu – to both men and women – is proved every time she steps on the mats at her BJJ Academy in Princeton, NJ.

In this interview she shares survival strategies when you’re always the smallest person on the mat, how women should deal with inappropriate situations they encounter during training, how to pick a school that fits your needs, and much more.

You can either read the interview below or listen/download the audio by doing one of the following:

1. Hit play in the middle of the black bar (the audio player link) at the bottom of this list, and/or

2. Right click on this link and select ‘save as’ to download the mp3 file to your computer, and/or

3. Subscribe to the Grapplearts Podcast in iTunes (and also listen to previous audio interviews),

4. Read the transcript of the entire interview by clicking here

P.S. If you like the interview then also check out Emily’s 5 DVD Set, ‘How to Defeat the Bigger, Stronger Opponent’ with the techniques, tips, drills and strategies that she uses every day while training with, and competing against, bigger stronger opponents.  They’re really good!

Posted in bjj, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, interviews, podcasts, self defense, the mental aspect, women | No Comments »

How to Defend Strikes on the Ground

Tuesday, December 21st, 2010

It doesn’t matter if your goal is casual recreation or if you wanna be the next UFC champ, what I’m going to talk about applies whether you practice BJJ, MMA or submission grappling…  Regardless if you’ve got three pairs Chuck Liddell signature series UFC gloves, or you wouldn’t be caught dead in a Tapout beanie…

You’ve GOTTA have a basic idea of how to defend strikes on the ground!!!

(This grappling stuff is a lot of fun, but it is still a martial art. And that means knowing how to apply your techniques in a self defense situation when someone might be trying to rearrange your face with wild haymakers).

Click here to open our comic-format instructional on how to defend strikes on the ground!

This is an important subject presented in a kinda fun way.  The direct link to the PDF is

http://tinyurl.com/2b72w2f

Here’s my official permission to spread this PDF on Strike Defense any way you want.

This includes Facebook / Twitter / Email / Forums / Blog Posts / Website.  No charge; it’s free!  Now and forever.


Posted in bjj, concepts, escapes, ground and pound, martial arts, MMA, no gi, omo plata, positions, self defense, striking, sweeps, techniques, the guard | No Comments »

How To Escape the Headlock and Kesa-Gatame

Sunday, December 5th, 2010

Headlocks are often overlooked in BJJ – they’re not considered to be a very technical pinning position.

But not training your headlock escapes is a HUGE mistake!

First of all, when an untrained person ends up on the ground, then nine out of ten times he’ll wrap his arm around your head and hold on for dear life.

And because this is that untrained fighter’s ONLY strategy he’ll be ferociously single-minded about hanging onto the headlock. This determination in itself can make escaping the headlock quite difficult.

Just like everything else in BJJ, in order to get good at something you need to do it ‘for real’ in sparring.

Since you hardly ever encounter headlocks in BJJ class dealing with them can be awkward. You might not know what to do and won’t be used to dealing with that particular energy.

Also there are other grappling arts (like Judo, Sambo and wrestling) which DO have pinning positions that look a LOT like headlocks. These positions may have fancy names like ‘kesa-gatame’ or ‘head and arm pin,’ but they’re basically just headlock variations.

(What’s even worse is that there are lots of ways to choke, armlock and leglock somebody from kesa-gatame. In fact, if you know what to do from there and your opponent doesn’t then it’s like taking candy from a baby…)

You ABSOLUTELY NEED NEED TO HAVE some good headlock escapes you can rely on!!!

Here’s my very favorite headlock escape. It also works against kesa-gatame and most headlock variations. If you know all the details and do it correctly you can send a larger, heavier opponent flying!

Make sure to practice the technique in this video below!!

P.S. Check out my Unorthodox Positions and Attacks DVD to find out what your OFFENSIVE options are from the headlock and kesa gatame postions!

P.P.S. If you own an iPhone, iPad or iPpod Touch and haven’t downloaded the three Grapplearts apps yet then what are you waiting for??? Each app has a ton of top-notch video instruction, and at only $3.99 each they’re an incredible value!!!

Posted in bjj, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, escapes, headlock, iphone, judo, kesa gatame, self defense, techniques | No Comments »

How To Escape Side Mount

Sunday, December 5th, 2010

Knowing the little details behind escaping the side mount is critical if you want to be able to deal with Side Mount, arguably the most common pinning position in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, submission grappling and MMA.

A while ago I shared something about the two fundamental techniques and the three most important movements for escaping side mount (click here for the original blog post).

Both of those fundamental techniques referred to in the post above are among the escape techniques broken down for you in my third iPhone app: Grapplearts Pin Escapes.  (This video-based app made it to the number one spot in the sports apps category almost immediately upon release.)

Thanks to the miracle of YouTube and streaming online video, here’s Jennifer Weintz and myself demonstrating the first of those super-important side mount escapes.

Posted in bjj, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, escapes, grapplearts, iphone, MMA, positions, self defense | No Comments »

One Of My Favorite Techniques…

Sunday, December 5th, 2010

Here’s a breakdown one of my favorite techniques: the sitout from turtle position.

It’s a very versatile move: you can use it to finish a pin escape, or recover after a failed takedown attempt, or to get the upper hand during a scramble.  It gets you out of trouble and into a dominant position.

But – like most techniques – there are some very important details. And if you ignore these details then the technique will completely fail.  So watch right to the end of the video, because that’s where I show you the critical details that make the difference between success and failure.

P.S.  This is an excerpt from our number-one selling sports app, Grapplearts Pin Escapes.  If you have an iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch you really should download this app – for the amount of information that’s in it I think it’s a fantastic value!

Posted in bjj, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, escapes, iphone, MMA, no gi, self defense | No Comments »

Blood, Sweat and… Sparta!!!

Monday, November 1st, 2010

This may sound a bit weird coming from a guy who runs a grappling site, but I want you to ask yourself a question: why on earth are you spending hours and hours rolling around on the ground with men wearing spandex and/or pajamas?

Really… I mean it’s not the easiest of activities.  And it’s sweaty and sometimes it’s even painful…

Obviously there’s self defense benefits to training, but if that was your only concern then you should just buy a gun!

There are health and fitness benefits, sure, but wouldn’t it be easier to just hire a personal trainer a few times a week?

I think that a large part of the appeal of grappling is that it ISN’T a walk in the park!

We don’t train because it’s easy.  We train because it’s hard!

And the major milestones in your training – attending your first class, competing in your first tournament, getting your black belt – function as a sort of rite of passage, which is something that we’ve mostly lost in our society.

We have to remind ourselves that in bygone times rites of passage weren’t easy.  There was no guarantee of success.

But you need the possibility of failure to get the transformation and transcendence.

Let’s look at some historical rites of passage.  Not only is there the possibility of failure, but many of them were actually pretty brutal.

Did you see the movie 300?  Do you remember the flashback to King Leonidas killing the wolf as a teenager?  That was actually part of the brutal krypteia ritual that young Spartan men had to undergo in order to come of age.  And not all of them survived.

Old navy rituals for pollywogs (new sailors crossing the equator for the first time) sent many injured men to sickbay, but also marked an important transition in the sailor’s career.

And not all Australian Aborigine adolescents who took off into the bush for months to do their walkabout returned.

Am I saying that you have to go out and assassinate slaves bare-handedly like ancient Spartan youths?

No.

Am I saying that you should get beaten with boards and flogged with wet ropes like a sailor in the Royal Navy?

Not exactly…

But there is a certain glory in dragging your butt to class and getting it royally kicked.  Or waiting to compete at a tournament, scared s***less.

Most people get up, go to work, come home, watch some TV, and go to bed. And repeat it all the next day.  Repeat, repeat, repeat…

That’s NOT what you’re doing – you’re doing something tough.  Something challenging.  You’re putting it on the line in a public setting and you could publicly fail.  It’s not easy, but it’s probably going to change you and make you a better person.

Of course I’m not suggesting that all modern rites of passage need to come from the martial arts.

For example in my career with the fire department there have been certain ceremonies that served to mark the the transition from civilian to recruit, and then from probationary to a full-fledged firefighter.  And there was also an 1,800 mile (2,880 kilometers) solo canoe trip across the Canadian North that I undertook as a sort of vision quest.  It remains one of the pivotal experiences of my life.

Whatever the rites of passage have been in YOUR life,  they’ve served as markers of psychological time.  They’re lines in the sand where you can say “there, regardless of what happens now, I’m a little different from when I began.”

The martial arts – training, competing, conditioning – are an entirely voluntary, self-imposed, self-improvement ritual.

By pushing yourself physically, mentally and emotionally you’re going to grow as a human being.

You train because it’s hard. Good for you.

Click here for part two of this article: Belugas, Bears and an Offshore Tide on Hudson Bay

Posted in bjj, classes, competition, inspiration, martial arts, self defense, the mental aspect | No Comments »

More on Self Defense, MMA and the UFC

Wednesday, October 20th, 2010

I’ve received lots of email recently, so today I thought I’d dip into the mailbag and share a few emails. I’ve also quickly jotted down some quick comments, and some links to a few relevant articles.

****** A READER WRITES ******

Hello Stephan

I just wanted to tell you that I placed second place in the Senior Class at the Pan Ams No Gi and second in the Absolute division.

It was my first competition.  I applied alot of your training principles so I wanted to thank you for everything!!!!!

Frank Soto

~~~~~~ MY COMMENTS ~~~~~~

Thanks Frank, and congratulations on your performance!!  I hoped that you learned lots by competing.

You mentioned using training principles…  I’ve been and advocate for principle-based training for a long time and really believe one concept is worth a thousand techniques.

Along those lines, have you seen Erik Paulson’s article “10 Principles to Prepare for Battle” that you can download for free from  Grapplearts?  It’s a very cool and informative document!

****** A READER WRITES ******

Hi Stephan,

About the video that you recently posted on Facebook: Is grappling and BJJ useful for self defense?  Yes, it’s definitely very useful. I completely agree here.

But does the UFC favour striking?  Well, your points are definitely valuable but I would like to add arguments why it actually favours grapplers.

Strikers are forced to strike `non-dangerous` areas.  Which, to me, is like trying to apply a choke on the forehead or a joint lock on a body part that has no joint.

You want to strike where it is the most effective.  Examples: back of the head after a failed takedown attempt.  Front kick/stomp to knee.

Some other MMA organizations allow more strikes, like the old Pride FC. They allowed stomps, soccer kicks and knees to the head of a downed opponent.  This makes a failed takedown attempt much more dangerous.  (You can still see Wanderlei or Shogun having to suppress this tendency in their UFC fights.)

Also groin kicks, can be very effective. I think there are more types of strikes banned than types of locks and chokes.

To wrap things up.  Grappling and striking go hand in hand into any fight.  You need both, and both are fun to train.

Please keep posting those great videos of you, as I learn a lot (I also like that they are short and to the point).

Kind Regards,

F.S.

~~~~~~ MY COMMENTS ~~~~~~

Hi F.S. Well first off, I think we agree on a lot of things.

And thank you for keeping the conversation civil even through we disagree on a few points.  That means I won’t have to challenge you to crossed swords at dawn!

I watched a lot of Pride FC before that MMA organization went under – there were some really exciting match-ups, weren’t there?

And yes, Pride gave their strikers a lot more leeway when it came to striking a downed opponent, although the lack of elbows meant that ground and pound was a little less effective too.  (Btw, here’s former Pride fighter Denis Kang talking about how to throw elbows on the ground).

I haven’t done the exact math, but I seem to remember a lot more submissions in the old Pride FC fights than in today’s UFC, despite the supposedly ‘more deadly’ strikes allowed in Pride.

If you got rid of judges and referees in MMA, locked fighters into a cage and didn’t open the doors until one of them gave up (or was unconscious) then most fights would be decided on the ground!  It’s a sport, I get that, but it’s important to recognize that there are a lot of rules shaping the sport, currently biasing it towards striking.

But lets talk about self defense for a moment.

I’m not saying that rolling around on the ground in an alleyway is a good idea, but YOU OFTEN DON’T GET A  CHOICE IN WHETHER TO GO TO THE GROUND OR NOT!

You could trip, get tackled, get knocked down, get blindsided, etc., and if that happens to you then you’d better be prepared for it.

And going to the ground against your will happens a LOT (if you don’t believe me then check out the next letter…).

Ultimately, the genius of grappling is that you can train frequently and almost at full-force.

Because you can spar against heavy resistance, you get really good at dealing with heavy resistance.  And being able to perform your skills under pressure is incredibly important for self defense.

To illustrate this concept, let’s assume for a minute that the groin kick IS the ultimate weapon…

Well in order to add the groin kick to your repertoire and make it effective you’re going to need to train it against resisting opponents, i.e. people who are doing everything they can not to let you kick them in the groin, while trying their very best to kick you in the groin themselves.

How many training partners are there who will let you kick them in the groin full force?  And how many times a year could you train this way?

Not very many…

By contrast, grappling allows me to REALLY try to choke you, and you REALLY try to resist me, and the result is that we BOTH get really good at attacking and defending.

****** A READER WRITES ******

Hey Stephan,

I just watched the Facebook video on grappling, self defense and MMA, and as usual I agree with you.  As someone who has been a NYC police officer for 14 years I can tell you that every use of force type incident I had went to the ground.

I should also point out that unlike a scheduled fight the most likely scenario on the street is a bigger vs smaller opponent and of course that goes back to Helio Gracies notion of BJJ being for the smaller, weaker guy against the brute.  I do not really watch the UFC much (I prefer the WEC, seems to be more submissions) but I agree with your comments.

By the way – just to let you know – thanks to you and your help after over 2 years of bjj my claustrophobia issue is almost non existant.  Thanks for that!!

Now that I feel better with claustrophobia and bjj my next project is the adrenaline dump from competition and for me I feel exposure will be the best agent for that just like it was for claustrophobia.

Thanks and be well.
M.D.

~~~~~~ MY COMMENTS ~~~~~~

Wow.  Every use of force incident in your 14 years on the job ended up on the ground!  Well if that isn’t an incentive to take the time and make the effort to get good at this grappling stuff (fast) then I don’t know what is.  Thanks for contributing that to the conversation!!

And congratulations on making headway on your claustrophobia issues – that’s huge!

I don’t have problems with that myself, but I talk to enough people to know that it affects a large number of grapplers.  And I totally respect those people who’re trying to come to terms with it.

Incidentally there are more than 400 articles, blog posts and tips on Grapplearts.  Wanna guess which one I get the most feedback about?  It’s this one:

http://www.grapplearts.com/Grappling-BJJ-Claustrophobia.html

So help me get the word out about that article: send the link to someone you know who is bravely working their way through claustrophobic sensations while studying BJJ, MMA or submission grappling.

Posted in bjj, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, claustrophobia, grapplearts, MMA, self defense, UFC | No Comments »

Is Grappling Still Relevant to Self Defense?

Wednesday, October 20th, 2010

I’ve been wanting to get something off my chest, so I just put a new video up onto the Grapplearts Facebook page.  In it I break down:

  • why we’re seeing more knockouts and less submissions in modern MMA,
  • exactly how the UFC (and every other MMA organization) blatantly discriminates against grapplers,
  • my suggestion to Dana White on how to fix the problem,
  • and why grappling is still SUPER-important for self-defense.

So check out this video:

http://www.facebook.com/Grapplearts?ref=ts#!/video/video.php?v=157474750954197

And while you’re there, please take the extra 0.25 seconds and hit the “Like” button.  Grapplearts fans, stand up and be counted!!!


Posted in bjj, MMA, self defense, UFC | No Comments »

Get Off the Ground!!!

Wednesday, September 8th, 2010

Once you get good at Brazilian jiu-jitsu the ground will be your happy place.  Rolling around and hunting for submissions will feel as natural as walking!

But there’s a time and a place for everything…

Spending a long time on the ground in a street self-defense situation might not be the best idea.  And getting back to your feet from the guard is an option that MMA fighters simply need to have in their repertoire.

So even if you love groundfighting, you ALSO need to know how to get the heck off the ground.

There are right ways and there are wrong ways to get back to your feet.  Here’s a link to my article which breaks down some of your best options for how to get back to your feet properly.

Make sure you check it out – it’s a really important article.  And feel free to forward this email or the article link to your training partners so that they can read it too.

Also, for an in-depth analysis of different techniques, strategies and drills to get off the ground and back to your feet check out my Mixed Martial Arts DVD.  It’s NOT just about MMA – there’s a ton of stuff on it that’s directly relevant to self defense too!

Posted in bjj, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, butterfly guard, escapes, self defense, unorthodox strategies | No Comments »

Tony Blauer’s Combatives Summer Camp

Monday, July 5th, 2010

My friend Tony Blauer is a leader in the field of urban combatives.  He’s going to be hosting his annual Summer Camp in San Diego this year, so if the self defense aspect of martial arts is important to you I’d recommend checking it out!

Download the flyer for the event by clicking here

Posted in self defense | No Comments »

The Two WORST Martial Arts Techniques of All Time!

Monday, September 14th, 2009

Disclaimer: I’ve trained with some great teachers, getting tons of top-notch information from them. But my teachers are NOT AT ALL RESPONSIBLE for today’s video!

You see, I’ve just posted a video about the two absolute WORST techniques that I’ve ever seen in almost 30 years of martial arts training!

Hope you enjoy watching it as much as I enjoyed making it. Please rate and comment on the video if you get the chance!

Posted in martial arts, self defense, weapons | No Comments »

BJJ & Submission Grappling Competition: Everything You Ever Wanted To Know!

Wednesday, August 26th, 2009

“Everything you ever wanted to know about Brazilian Jiu-jitsu competition but were afraid to ask!”

That’s a strong statement, but it’s almost even true. In my latest podcast I talk extensively with David Meyer, author of Training for Competition: Brazilian Jiu-jitsu and Submission Grappling.

We cover a TON of ground in this interview, ranging from why you might want to compete at all, to physical conditioning for competition, to specific strategies you can use against certain types of opponents.

This is one of the best interviews I’ve ever done. There is so much good information here that it’ll be very useful for anyone who trains in BJJ or another grappling art, even if they don’t compete.

And you can listen to the whole interview right here using the player embedded at the bottom of this post.

If you want to download future episodes of my podcasts and interviews automatically then click here to sign up for Grapplearts Radio in iTunes – it’s completely free and totally simple.

Click the player below to listen to the whole 1 hour, 20 minute interview on BJJ and Submission Grappling Competition (or right click this link: http://media.libsyn.com/media/kesting/BJJ_Competition.mp3 and select “Save Link As…” to save the mp3 file to your computer)

Posted in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, competition, podcasts, self defense, submission grappling, the mental aspect, training | No Comments »

Getting Back to Your Feet From Guard

Monday, January 26th, 2009

In the early days of MMA fighters who took someone down tried to keep the fight there. They’d stay on the ground even if they couldn’t pass their opponent’s guard or mount an effective ground-and-pound offense.

Then the game evolved. I still remember how surprised I was the first time I saw a fighter stand up out of his opponent’s guard, back up 10 feet and invite the guy lying on his back to stand up too.

Then the game evolved AGAIN. Strikers figured out how to get back to their feet when they were on the bottom. They’d use the guard to survive but also immediately start to work for the standup. The first big name fighter I saw get back to his feet repeatedly from the bottom was Chuck Liddell. He could even do it multiple times against the same opponent, which speaks to how well he’d developed his guard standup techniques.

It’s easy for grapplers to forget this, but there are still hundreds of thousands of martial artists with ZERO knowledge of the ground game. The funny thing is that most of them have roughly the same strategy as Chuck Liddell (just without the skills to back it up).

“I’ll just get back to my feet and use my super-duper kung fu pressure-point punching technique to finish off my opponent,” they say. What they don’t realize (and probably never will until they get in a real fight) is how difficult it is to stand up when a skilled opponent is holding you down.

Please notice how I said it’s “difficult,” not “impossible,” to stand up.

We do difficult things in grappling all the time. Proper technique and training strategies make difficult things possible. Train standups the same way you would train any other move: first learn the correct technique, drill it, and then try to use it against people who are trying to stop you from standing up.

This topic was on my mind when I interviewed Marc Laimon a few years ago (he was coaching on The Ultimate Fighter TV show at the time). Afterwards I published an article with Marc showing two specific ways how to stand up out of guard in Ultimate Grappling Magazine, but I’ve only just now made it available online.

So if you’re interested in more information (and two step-by-step techniques) on standing up out of guard please check out the How to Stand Up from Guard article on Grapplearts.com

Even if you NEVER intend to fight MMA, you can’t guarantee that you won’t end up on the bottom in a streetfight. Hanging out in the guard on the street isn’t a great idea, so either sweep the guy, submit the guy, or get the hell back up to your feet.

Posted in MMA, self defense, the guard | No Comments »

Why I Started Martial Arts

Monday, January 12th, 2009

Normally I use these posts to focus on one particular aspect of grappling. In previous tips I’ve covered everything from the anatomy of chokes (here, here and here) to post-workout nutrition (here).

Well not this time…

I’m still overwhelmed with the release of the BJJ Roadmap Package, and so I decided to put a video onto Youtube that I’ve been meaning to post for a while now. It’s not about technique at all; instead it’s just me sitting and talking about what got me started in martial arts, which instructors most influenced me, and so on.

If you’re interested in that sort of thing, you can watch it below, or else you can scroll on and get to the ‘good stuff’

Posted in self defense, teachers | No Comments »

Survival Story

Monday, February 18th, 2008

An anonymous person contacted me recently and shared a story of how a female friend had used a few months of BJJ training to escape from an assault and/or attempted rape situation. Using BJJ she managed to escape a pin, stand up and then run away and get help. She probably just used very basic pin escape movements, but pulling them off under emotional duress, with limited training and a large size and strength disadvantage points to the effectiveness of both the techniques she learned and the training methods used to ingrain them in her.

Arguments about the relative importance of grappling in MMA go on and on, but women’s self defense is not MMA. Virtually all rapes end up on the ground, and I think that some form of grappling is critical for women everywhere. This takes us back to the article written by the female readership of this newsletter entitled ‘Why Should Women Grapple” – it’s an article that is still very relevant and I’m proud to have it on my site. Please feel free to forward this article to the women in your life, it might just make them a little safer.

Posted in self defense, women | No Comments »


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