Sometimes you just gotta have faith…

In the first few years of my BJJ career I was shown the armlock in the video above multiple times.  And I always thought it was hogwash; that any good opponent would simply twist out of it and I’d end up in a terrible position.

I was always polite about it, of course: when someone taught it to me I would practice it a few times.  The whole time, however, I’d be inwardly groaning about how this ‘stupid’ technique would never work on a quality opponent.

Of course I never used it in sparring, and consequently I  never tapped out anybody with it, not even the scrawniest beginner whitebelt.

Then one day I was competing in a local tournament…

I tried to throw my opponent with a throw called Tai Otoshi, and when that didn’t work I pulled guard.  I then swept my opponent using the omoplata log roll sweep, and got to the top. Once in side mount I noticed that his arm was in the exact position for this attack that I’d written off so many times.  Almost in slow motion I shifted my grips, moved my body, and applied the submission.  He tapped out right away, and I was kind of blown away.

But my trust in this submission didn’t last.

Before long I’d convinced myself that this was a one-time fluke.   A coincidence.

And so, once again, I never even attempted that armlock in sparring.

(Despite my success using it against a tough opponent, and despite my 5th degree black belt instructor telling me it was a good attack, deep down I still ‘knew’ that it wasn’t a legitimate attack).

So there I was, secure in my knowledge that this was an ineffective attack.

Let’s fast forward to the next tournament. In that tournament I ended up fighting a big, strong, aggressive guy.  When we got our grips on our feet I remember thinking, ‘holy crap, this dude is strong.’

Somehow I got him to the ground and secured side mount.

Once again I noticed that his arm was in exactly the correct position to attack with this same armlock.  Slowly, methodically (and with an overwhelming sense of déjà vu all over again) I applied it.  Once again, it worked and he tapped out!

I might be a slow learner, but I’m not completely stupid.  It’s pretty hard to write off two successful attacks in a row leading to two tournament victories against big, strong, motivated opponents. I had to admit that this technique worked.  And that I’d been a bit of bonehead for writing it off.

Obviously when you’re building your game you can’t concentrate on everything all at once.  There just isn’t enough time. And that means that you’ve got to ignore certain aspects of grappling while concentrating on other aspects of your game.

So after a certain point in your development you SHOULD focus on your best moves.  Train with a purpose and don’t dilute your game by trying to get good at absolutely every technique, every position and every strategy.

But at the same time keep an open mind…

Have you heard of the “70/20/10 rule” that has helped make Google a multi-billion dollar company?  Briefly, it goes like this:

• You dedicate about 70% of your time to your core business tasks
• You dedicate about 20% of your time to other projects that still relate to your core business
• You dedicate about 10% of your time to projects that don’t have anything to do with your core business.

I’m equating your bread and butter grappling game to Google’s core business tasks…

And I’m saying it’s worthwhile to spend about 10%  of your training time playing with different techniques and strategies that might seem really weird and wacky at first.  I’m officially giving you a ‘hall pass’ to occasionally creatively explore areas that have nothing to with your main game.

If one of the most successful companies in the world thinks that it’s OK for its employees to work on projects that usually lead to dead ends, then it’s OK for you to explore sweeps, submissions, escapes, reversals and other techniques that may seem exotic, impractical, or even foolish.

Being focused is a good thing. But keeping an open mind is good too!  Who knows, maybe that ‘stupid’ technique that would never work in a million bazillion years will save your butt someday…

Just like that stupid armlock that I ‘knew’ wouldn’t work saved my butt two tournaments in a row!

Click here for a video breakdown of this specific armlock, including the normal way it’s taught and a not-so-friendly, tournament-only version that puts incredible pressure on your opponent.

However if your opponent gets his grips, flattens you out and drives all his weight onto you it really sucks. And then it’s only a matter of time till he passes your guard…

But even if you get flattened out, don’t give up hope.  There is something that you can do that not only gets you out of trouble, but often puts you on top as well.

Here’s a video clip in which I teach the ‘Kamikaze’ half guard sweep for that exact situation. Plus I also show you a hidden detail that is often overlooked. And finally I introduce you to a related, very powerful sweep I learned from a top BJJ competitor.

Q: “Hi Stephan. Will you analyze Palhares’ sick heelhooks and combinations or is it more thanks to his bull strength that he’s so successful. Or maybe do already you teach that in your leglocks DVD. Thanks for all your stuff and for responding my previous mail! Jonathan”

A: Thanks for an interesting question Jonathan!

UFC fans might be familiar with Rousimar Palhares because he recently showcased his skills in UFC 142, tapping out Mike Massenzio with a slick heelhook in round 1.

This is a relatively common occurrence in Palhares’s fights.  In fact, he has 14 MMA victories, 7 of which are by leglock.  And he’s not limiting his exploits just to MMA either: in 2011 at the most prestigious submission grappling competition in the world – the Abu Dhabi Combat Championships – Palhares finished 3 matches in a row with heel hooks!

So his leglocking credentials are impeccable.

As you point out he is an absolute bull.  In fact, his nickname in Brazil is Toquinho, which is Portuguese for “little tree stump.” He’s covered in slabs of muscle, and could probably compete successfully in bodybuilding if he wasn’t ripping people’s legs apart in MMA.

Both Palhares’s physique and his single-minded pursuit of the submission are evident in the highlight video below:

The idea of someone as powerful as Palhares using all his strength to twist your leg, shredding the tiny ligaments that hold your knee and ankle together, should send shivers down your spine.

We’re talking serious, permanent, damage here folks…

(At this point I have to belabor the obvious and point out that heelhooks really are dangerous.  But if you want a relatively safe way to get better at heelhooks, first work on the basic ankle lock!  Doing this will build your heelhooking foundation, because it teaches you how to control your opponent’s foot and leg in a relatively safe position.  Once you’ve mastered the ankle lock, upgrading your attacks to the heel hook will require only relatively small modifications.)

OK, so now we’ve talked a little bit about Palhares.  But there are actually TWO currently-active MMA fighters changing the game with leglocks…

In fact, you can’t discuss leglocking in modern MMA without also talking about another leg locking master: Masakazu Imanari.

Fighting mostly in Japan, Imanari has 24 wins in MMA, 9 of which come from a dizzying variety of leg locks attacks.

He has an insane ability to jump onto someone’s legs and then relentlessly pursue the leglock finish. No wonder that his nickname is “Ashikan Judan” which, in English, means “10th Dan of Leglocks”

For a quick taste of Imanari’s fighting style (and some fantastic leg locking combinations) check out the highly entertaining video below

So there we have the two undisputed best leglockers active in MMA today: Palhares and Imanari…

Isn’t it interesting that these two fighters have such different body types?

Palhares, as I’ve said, is an absolute powerhouse who could probably do well in bodybuilding contests.  Imanari, although obviously fit, is much slimmer and lankier.

Two entirely different body types.  One identical, relentless strategy.

The fact is that heel hooks work for all kinds of bodytypes, physiques and strength levels.  Palhares’s athleticism and ability to benchpress 400 lbs certainly doesn’t hurt his ability to finish the heelhook, but it’s NOT the major thing he’s got going for him…

It’s technique!

Some people write off leg locks as not being lowbrow techniques and not very technical…

But clearly, both Imanari and Palhares are ultra-technical.  They both use basic leg lock entries as the foundation of their game, and then build on that to apply some truly spectacular spinning, jumping, upside-down leg lock attacks from unexpected angles and positions.

If you’re a grappler you’ve GOT to be familiar with the most common lower body attacks (ankle locks, toe holds, heel hooks and kneebars).  You don’t necessarily need to be an expert leglocker, but you’ve got to have played with them a bit, understand the mechanics, know how to counter them, etc.

First of all, if someone attacks you with a leglock you don’t recognize it, and don’t know how to counter it (or even realize that you should be tapping out) you could be in a world of hurt…

And also consider this: heel hooks are the great equalizer.

Strength and power are nice to have of course, but you DON’T need much strength to finish larger, stronger opponents with a heel hook.

In fact, if I was facing someone 100 lbs heavier than me I’d be thinking about two main submissions: the rear naked choke, and the heel hook!

Before I wrap up I have to throw in an important caveat!

The sad fact is that when it comes to submitting much larger opponents, not all leglocks are created equal.

I love the kneebar.  But if your opponent is a LOT bigger and stronger than you, then kneebars might not be the best submissions to use.

With the heel hook you’re mainly attacking the small and vulnerable cruciate ligaments of the knee.  Even someone as large as Brock Lesnar is still going to have relatively small cruciate ligaments, making the heel hook a perfect tool with which to bring down a Goliath.

But to apply a kneebar you have to overpower a relatively larger muscle in your opponent’s leg: the hamstring.

Most of the time this isn’t a problem, because if you do the kneebar correctly you end up using the power of BOTH your legs AND your body against your opponent’s one hamstring. These are pretty good odds, and that’s good enough to finish the kneebar on 90% of the opponents you’ll encounter.

But if someone is much stronger than you then you’re going to run into the upper limit of kneebars…

Consider one of the most exciting fights in MMA history, Antonio Nogueira’s epic battle against the Bob Sapp in Pride.  Nogueira was outweighed by at least 100 pounds, and at one point he spun under Sapp, getting into the kneebar position.   Mainly because there was such a big strength and weight difference, Bob Sapp basically ignored the kneebar and then punished Nogueira with a huge drop knee to the face.

You can see that kneebar attempt and Sapp’s Neanderthal counter just after the 11 minute mark of  this video here:

Nogueira’s inhuman toughness and tenacity not only allowed him to survive this fight, but eventually earned him one of the most tenacious victories of all time (watch part two of the fight here).

To wrap up, looking at both Imanari and Palhares competing in MMA leads you to a few different take-home messages…

The first take-home message is that leg locks are just as technical as any other aspect of the sport.  It’s NOT just about grabbing someone’s leg and twisting!  There are specific techniques, drills, principles, counters and combinations that you need to know if you want to get good at leglocks, just like any other submission.

Secondly, there are a lot of leglocks – heel hooks in particular – that can be a devastating part of your arsenal, regardless of your body type.  Short or tall, muscular or lanky, strong or weak: the heelhook can finish just about any opponent.  This makes it a must-have technique, an ace in a hole that can instantly finish just about anybody in a submission grappling match, an MMA fight or a street self defense situation!

Let me explain…

There is no shortage of different submission attacks from the bottom position.  Most typically you’d attack from the closed guard, open guard or half guard position, but you can also use submissions if you’re turtled under your opponent, or even pinned in side mount.

Of course if you finish a submission from the bottom and your opponent taps out, that’s great!  End of story.  Move along folks, nothing to see here…

But have you ever burned yourself out trying to finish a a choke or a jointlock?  It happens to everyone, and it’s especially common from the bottom!

Here’s what typically happens…

You see a good submission opportunity and lock in your grips, but try as you might your opponent just won’t tap out.

You strain and strain and strain, trying to finish the submission, but you just can’t finalize it.  Maybe your grips are just a little out of position, or you don’t have the right angle, or maybe your opponent is freakishly strong, or flexible, or stubborn, or whatever…

The bottom line is that if you keep on straining and don’t submit him, then before long you’ll be exhausted, your arms will turn into jello and your fingers into useless collections of limp sausages, unable to grip to grip anything at all…

(I’ve made this mistake lots of times and it sucks.)

Instead of ending up like this, sometimes it’s better to cut your losses!

Let’s say that you’re trying to apply a submission but you realize that you probably WON’T be able to finish it from the bottom.

Before you abandon the technique entirely, consider whether you can convert the submission attack into a sweep.

Sometimes you can use the leverage generated by your attacking position to power your opponent from the top to the bottom. And sometimes you can trick your opponent by letting him roll out and  partially ‘escape.’  If you anticipate his frantic rolling then you can follow him to the top and then promptly take away his mobility, locking him down and solidifying your top position.

If you use your submission as a ‘persuader’ in this way, then the best case scenario is that you end up on top and finish the submission from there.  And what’s great is that many submissions are actually more powerful if you’re on top, which then makes it easier to tap your opponent out!

But even if your opponent manages to slither out of the attack and avoids getting submitted, you’ll still often end up on top.  That’s kind of beginning to look like a guard sweep, isn’t it?  You might not have finished the submission, but that’s a pretty good worst-case scenario!

There are lots of specific examples of what I’m talking about…

The Arm Triangle Choke (aka “Kata Gatame”) from the closed guard is a submission that can be very useful if an opponent decides to play the bully and grind into your throat with one of his forearms.  It’s relatively easy to slap on the Arm Triangle Choke from there, but the sad truth is that sometimes this choke can be hard to finish from the bottom unless you’ve got strong, muscular arms.

Even if you can’t make him tap out, however, the good news is that in this position you’ve tied up one of his arms.  If he’s caught in the Arm Triangle Choke it’s physically impossible for him to post with the arm that’s trapped , so rolling him towards that side becomes a very powerful option for you.

And once on  top you end up in a great position to finish the match with the very same choke, except it’s now a LOT more effective than when using it from the bottom!

Using the Kimura Armlock position as a lever to ‘encourage’ your opponent to roll to his back is another very effective way to use a submission as a sweep.  This is a strategy that works from the closed guard, half guard, or even from the bottom of side mount.

A great example of this is the Kimura that was used by Frank Mir at UFC 140. At one point Frank was completely sidemounted, but he maintained the grip on Nogueira’s arm, used it to lever himself to the top, and then finished the armlock with devastating effectiveness.

Click here for a breakdown of the Kimura being used in MMA by Frank Mir.

The Omo Plata Armlock is a very versatile attack that leads into a lot of sweeps and other submissions.  The funny thing about this sweep is that as you face more and more advanced opponents you often start using it MORE as a sweep, and LESS as an actual submission…

One of my favorite sweep followups to an initial Omo Plata attack involves underhooking the near leg and rolling your opponent over top of you.   I call this the “Log Roll” Sweep, and if you have faith in it you can use it on significantly larger opponents.

I use the Log Roll Sweep all the time in actual rolling, and it’s featured in my first, somewhat-dated-but-still informative instructional DVD called ‘Omo Plata and the Dynamic Guard.’

Finally let’s talk about the Rolling Kneebar Submission from the turtle position.  This is a really good technique to add to your toolkit because it presents a constant submission threat to your opponent when you’re in a bad position (i.e. turtled).

Once again, even if you don’t end up in a successful knee bar, this rolling attack often lands you on top and in a great position to pass the guard.

Interestingly, there are number of advanced sweeps from the half guard and inverted guard that don’t typically finish with kneebars, but use very similar mechanics to the rolling kneebar.

So the rolling kneebar is definitely a good attack to learn – check out this link  and take a look at the technique #3 of the comic format introduction to the kneebar!

Don’t let me put you off of submissions from the bottom.  By all means, go for them with conviction!

But also remember that not all attacks starting from under your opponent require your opponent to tap out in order to be successful.  Sometimes getting to the top is enough!!

P.S.  If you want to be notified when I publish future articles like this one (and you don’t already receive my email newsletter) then I strongly suggest that you sign up right away.  I will never share or sell your email address, and you can unsubscribe with one click if you don’t like what I’m sending you. Finally it’s free and always will be: click here to sign up right now.

I’m a big fan of your website – I’ve been following it since 2009.  I compete in BJJ and No-Gi submission wrestling.

I’ve also been training MMA with hopes of having my first amateur fight within the year.  I’ve been very successful working my guard when I compete, and I’ve been able to often score submissions from there when I spar MMA.

With some MMA fighters pulling guard I was wondering if there’s a particular guard pull that works well in MMA (I’m not as comfortable in the half guard yet).

Thanks
Jerry

A: Hi there Jerry,

Thanks for your kind words about my website.  I never thought it would grow as big as it has become when I started it way back in 2002!

Now, with regards to pulling guard in Mixed Martial Arts competition…

The simplest thing to say is: don’t do it!!!!!!!

With one exception, I’m completely against pulling guard in MMA!

If you manage to successfully pull guard (and successfully pulling guard in MMA is definitely not a given) then the simple fact is that you’re on the bottom and your opponent is on top.

This gives him at least three advantages…

First of all, he can rest his weight on you.  All things being equal, that means that you’ll get tired faster than him.

And getting tired in MMA is a very bad thing.

As I said in my very first Grapplearts blog post ever, if you’re tired then you’re not fast, you’re not strong, you’re not explosive and you’re not even smart!

Secondly, he’ll have gravity on his side and that means he’ll be able to hit you much harder than you can hit him.

It’s true that sometimes your opponent trying to take your head off with his fists and elbows does opens up submission and sweeping opportunities.  But against a knowledgeable opponent in the slippery and sweaty world of MMA that can be a long shot.

(It’s also possible that your previous successes with submissions from the bottom during MMA sparring came, in part, from your training partners not punching you full force. Don’t underestimate how much getting punched in the face really hard will mess up your submission game!)

I don’t know what the exact statistics are, but I’m guessing that for every successful submission from the guard in MMA there have been three times as many KO’s and TKO’s resulting from the guy on the bottom getting pounded by the fighter on top.

Not great odds…

Finally, should your fight go the distance, most judges in MMA will give the fight to the guy on top because he’s supposedly being the aggressor.  Decisions don’t tend to favor the person on the bottom.

Now, there’s one important exception to all of this…

Let’s say that you’re totally outclassed in the striking or takedown department.  The fight isn’t going well and you’re gonna get knocked out on the feet, or end up completely exhausted by your opponent stuffing your takedown attempts.

If you know that you’re a better grappler, then your only option might be to get the fight to the ground quick. And the only way to do this might involve pulling guard.

So let’s talk about the right way and the wrong way to pull guard, regardless of whether you’re competing in BJJ or MMA…

Many people pull guard by falling backwards to the ground in a lazy kind of way.

This is dangerous because it gives your opponent the option of standing back and disengaging, in which case the referee will probably force you to get back to your feet again.  Or, even worse, he’ll take advantage of your lazy butt-flop and pass your guard, which could be disastrous in a real fight!

So you want to be sure that your guard pull works!

One option is to tie up (clinch) with your opponent and shoot your hips forward ultra-dynamically in an attempt to to get the closed guard.

Think of hitting him so hard that you knock him over backwards.  In all likelihood you won’t knock him over, but you probably will get to the closed guard.

It would also help if you had a solid half guard game.  Many times when you don’t get the full guard you end up in half guard.  And the half guard CAN work in MMA: watch the sweep that Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira (Big Nog) did on Tim Sylvia in UFC 81.

One final option I’m going to talk about today is something that I’ve seen work in both MMA and submission grappling.  Namely jumping to a leglock attack and/or to the single-leg X guard from a standing position!

This is a very surprising attack, with strong followup potential…

The goal is to submit your opponent with the leglock.  But even if that part doesn’t go according to plan, you still get to the ground, often ending up on top as your opponent tries to escape the submission attack.

Here’s a clip from my Leglock DVD taking you through that specific jumping leglock entry:

Before we get carried away talking about the specific techniques to pull guard, let’s make one thing really clear.  Regardless of the technique you’re using, if you’re even thinking about doing this in MMA then you’d better practice it first in sparring!

Here’s a drill that might help you (I previously taught this in “Lesson 4 – Escaping in Transition” of the Grappling Concepts Course).

This game is good for both partners.  It develops: A) effective guard pulling, and B) effective guard passing during the transition.

You and your training partner start on your feet.

Each person only has ONE way of scoring points in this game.

The first person’s goal is to pull guard.  If he can secure a guard position (any guard position, open or closed) for 3 seconds, he gets one point.

The other person’s DOESN’T want get caught in the guard.

His goal is to avoid getting entangled in the guard or half guard, and pass to a dominant position (side mount, kneemount, full mount, etc) as the other person transitions from standing to the the ground. If he passes the guard and maintains a dominant position for 3 seconds then he gets one point.

This is sparring with very limited parameters.

All one person is trying to do is get to the ground and maintain guard (or sweep him) for 3 seconds. All the other person is trying to do is not get caught in the guard and try to pass it even before it gets established.

After a pre-determined length of time you switch roles.

If you want pulling the guard in a match to be a last-ditch emergency option then this drill might be a good starting point for you.

But if your emphasis is MMA then you might want to mix it with some light boxing and/or clinchfighting with takedowns.

Also, you might want to award  the non-guard-pulling person ONE point if he breaks free of your guard and gets back to his feet, and TWO points if he passes your guard (this would reflect the severity of ending up in a bad position in MMA).

One last thing…

We’ve talked about pulling guard as an ace up your sleeve when nothing else is working.

Alright, we’re in agreement that it’s good to have a backup plan…

But if you want to fight MMA these days you need to have a striking game, a takedown game and a ground game!

Of course you’ll always be stronger in some areas than others – that’s completely normal, and is true even for the very best UFC fighters.

But if you only feel comfortable in one range then your opponents will eventually figure this out and clobber you.

Just remember, concussions are bad for you, and dental work is very, very expensive!  Train so that you got some options in all three areas of the game!

Take care, and good luck with your training!

Stephan Kesting

www.grapplearts.com

There are a only limited number of positions in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu.  The six most common positions are the Guard, Sidemount, Kneemount, Full Mount, Rear Mount and Turtle (click here to get a free book with a full explanation of this concept).

Now most of the time when you learn submissions – chokes, armlocks or leglocks – you start from one of these six basic, static positions.

And after you learn the mechanics of a technique, you then have to drill it to get your reps in, right?

Once again, 99% of technique drilling occurs from a static position.  You pick a technique, start in a recognizable position, and go through a series of steps until you end up locking on the final submission.

Drilling a single technique, step by step, with a partner in a specific static position like this is a great way to become familiar with the basic mechanics of a technique.

And there’s nothing wrong with this approach, at least initially…

But it’s NOT the most powerful way of applying these submissions.  You can do a lot better, and the key is that a lot of grappling occur BETWEEN positions, during the TRANSITIONS!

If you own the DVD series that Emily Kwok and I did on fighting bigger and stronger opponents then you’ll already familiar with the concept of defending and escaping bad positions during transitions (click here for a video clip about transitional escapes…)

Taking advantage of openings that present themselves during transitions is really important for advanced grappling.  And this applies not only to escapes, but also to the most exciting part of grappling, namely submissions.

Attacking with a submission when your opponent is on the move between formal positions is better because as he’s scrambling he’ll inevitably give you openings for your attack.  His defenses are down. He’s thinking about moving and scrambling, NOT about defending your submission.

In fact, your opponent often won’t even see the attack coming until it’s much too late.

I once saw Marcelo Garcia tap out a really good MMA fighter with a guillotine.  Marcelo slapped it on during a scramble.  Then the dude tried to cartwheel out of it which didn’t work.  He ended up tapping out in mid-air while upside down, with none of his limbs actually touching the floor.

That’s how quick a transitional attack can finish a fight.

Transitional attacks become even more important as you start fighting more skilled opponents and training partners.

Once people become familiar with a specific submission it becomes pretty hard to tap them out with it.  So you’ve got to catch them when they’re not quite expecting it (or at least not as able to defend)…

When people are safely settled down in a position they often become extremely defensive.  They tuck their chin, hold their arms close to their bodies, and are on the lookout for your attacks.

But movement creates openings.

Consider the guillotine choke for example…

Imagine sparring someone who is hunkered down in a really tight turtle position.  His hands are up, his neck is down, and he’s on high alert for any sort of attack.

How easy will it be to apply a guillotine on someone like that?

Right!  Not very easy at all.

But somehow your opponent must have gotten to that turtle position…

Maybe he shot in for a double leg takedown and you sprawled.  Or maybe you had him in sidemount and he turned in to his knees.  Or maybe he turtled because you were about to pass his guard…

There were probably a LOT more opportunities to get his neck while he was moving into the turtle compared to him being fully hunkered down in the turtle.  During that brief period of movement he’s much more vulnerable

This is a super-powerful concept.

The only  downside of this style of attacking is that that your game needs to be sharper…

You fight the way you train, so if you want to catch your opponent during the transitions between static positions then you need to have a deeper understanding of the game, drill transitional attacks, and be ready to jump on opportunities the split second they present themselves.

In the words of the famous philosopher Marshall Bruce Mathers III (also known as Eminem)

“Look, if you had, one shot, or one opportunity
To seize everything you ever wanted, one moment
Would you capture it?
Or just let it slip, yo”

Nailing a tough opponent with a submission is kind of like that…

Your homework is to take a look at some of the more common transitions in your sparring matches, some of the predictable scrambling patterns that occur over and over with your training partners, and figure out how to slap on some of your favorite submissions DURING the transition, BEFORE the position becomes fully stabilized.

This will really boost your finishing percentage, yo!

1) THE NUMBER ONE SET: HOW TO DEFEAT THE BIGGER, STRONGER OPPONENT

The most popular DVD set of the entire year has undoubtedly been “How to Defeat the Bigger, Stronger Opponent” that I filmed together with multiple-time world champion Emily Kwok.

Trust me – there is SO much good material in this set, including techniques, drills, strategies, tactics, tricks, tips and training methods.

And all of it is designed to allow you to handle yourself against bigger, stronger opponents when you run into them in training or in competition.

(Since filming this material with Emily I’ve started incorporating a lot of her techniques into my own game, and they all work brilliantly!)

==> www.grapplearts.com/biggerstronger/index.php

Of course if you’re a regular reader then there’s a good chance that you already own the Emily Kwok DVDs. But if you liked them then you might also like one of these top selling sets…

2) THE GRAPPLING CONCEPTS COURSE

The Grappling Concepts Course is my flagship product.

If you like learning techniques, but ALSO want to know how to choose the right technique at the right time, how to do the little tweaks and adjustments that black belts do automatically, and have a method for making techniques easier and faster to remember, then you’ll LOVE this course.

In the course I show you my the highest percentage moves. These are the ones I use all the time when I’m rolling (both with or without the gi).

This training consists of 26 weekly lessons that can be viewed online, downloaded to your computer, synched to your mobile device and/or read as a PDF document.

And you also get 5 physical DVDs of additional advanced content that perfectly complements the concepts, techniques, drills and strategies being taught in the course itself.

More info here:

==> www.grapplearts.tv

3) DYNAMIC GUARD SWEEPS 2 DVD SET

The Butterfly Guard and X Guard are modern guard positions that totally get away from the old ‘lay and pray’ closed guard strategies.

They are favorite positions of Marcelo Garcia (who has been a huge inspiration to me and is actually Emily’s main teacher right now).

Whether you want to use the half guard offensively as an attack position, or you just want to know what to do when your opponent has almost gotten past your guard and you’re just barely hanging on with the half guard, you NEED to know what to do from half guard too.

The techniques in the 2 DVD Guard Sweeps Package dovetail together to give you a very powerful sweeping and attacking game.

The DVDs are packed with tricks, techniques, drills, and strategies. Together they’re over 4 hours of material that will keep you learning for a long time. (I just got an email from someone who’s still referring to the first DVD, 5 years after he first bought it!)

A complete guard game in a box:

==> www.grapplearts.com/Guard-Sweep-DVDs.php

4) HIGH PERCENTAGE LEGLOCKS

The theme of the year seems to be how to get an edge when you’re smaller, weaker or less experienced than you opponent…

I’ve always said that leglocks are the great equalizer. If you’re going against someone who’s been a BJJ black belt since before the first UFC, then – hands down – your single best chance of tapping them out is by using a leglock.

And the same goes for size…

A TON of David vs Goliath grappling matches have ended suddenly when the smaller guy saw a leglock opportunity, jumped on it, and tapped the big guy out.

Finally, the leglock game meshes EXTREMELY well with the Single Leg X Guard position that’s recently becoming so popular (and is a core position in the Emily Kwok DVDs). Keeping your opponents guessing whether you’re going to sweep them with the Single Leg X Guard, or tap them out with a lightening quick leglock, is a very good combination.

High Percentage Leglocks will give you a rock-solid leglock game, including the ability to attack with AND defend against some of the fastest, most effective submissions in the grappler’s repertoire.

I’ve sold this one DVD for as much as $49.95. But if you use ‘XMAS’ at checkout that’ll drop that down to $33.71.

More info here:

==> www.grapplearts.com/High-Percentage-Leglocks.php

Take care

Stephan Kesting
www.grapplearts.com

There were lots of exciting matchups, but THE fight of the night was the much-anticipated rematch between heavyweights Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira and Frank Mir.

This fight displayed the highest level grappling ever seen in the heavyweight division of the UFC!  As soon as the match ended I looked at my good friend and training partner Ritchie Yip and said ‘we’ve GOT to make a video breaking down this match for people.’

And that’s exactly what we did early Sunday morning.  Check out the video below for a blow-by-blow, and submission-by-submission analysis of Mir vs Nogueira at UFC 140, including the SHOCKING end of the fight.

I believe it was Erik Paulson who said that older grapplers should focus on gi based grappling compared to no-gi since it was a slower and less explosive game.

I’ve been keeping this in mind as I look for clubs to train at. I’m getting up there in age and the plan is to continue into my forties and so forth. Would you agree that this is the wiser approach?

Thanks again,
Bob.

A: Hi Bob,

First of all, if Erik said something like that, take his advice!  That man’s a freaking genius!

My own perspective is this: when it comes to training without injury as an older grappler a lot depends on the school, your instructor and how crazy your training partners are.

If you’re trying to hang with a bunch of testosterone-soaked, steroid-amplified, MMA-wannabes then you’re gonna get hurt, plain and simple.

On the other hand, if you’ve got a bunch of respectful, careful training partners then you CAN train no-gi without too much risk.

In general it’s the head instructor who sets the tone.  The club will have a very different flavor depending on the example the instructor sets on the mats, and what kind of behavior he tolerates and/or encourages among his students.

Now, as a very general rule, people who train with the gi tend to be a little more analytical and move a little less explosively in sparring than those who train no-gi. There are a million exceptions of course, but it’s amazing how often this ends up being the case.

Two pieces of parting advice for you:

1, Read these articles about training in grappling as you get older, and

2, Go and check out a lot of schools and see if that whole gi vs. no-gi thing applies in your area. Listen to your gut on this one.

Good luck with your training

Stephan Kesting
www.grapplearts.com

Q:

I’ve been having problems with the triangle choke. I have rather thick, maybe even short, legs and I just can’t lock it in. I always seem to only be able to get my foot half way up my calf, then no more.

Are there tips or tricks or anything to help me, because I would hate to admit that the triangle choke is unavailable to me and many others.

Thank you,
Jeremy

A: Hi Jeremy,

The quick answer is that in your situation you can sometimes create more room for your legs to lock properly by positioning your body at an angle instead of remaining straight-on to your opponent.

Say you’ve got his head and right arm trapped between your legs…

If you’ve got super-long legs like Antonio Rodrigo Nogueria (in the photo above) then you can stay right in front of your opponent and still apply the triangle choke.

But if you’ve got shorter legs, try this.  Istead of staying in a straight line to your opponent bring your head and your upper torso to your right, so that you’re lying just in front of his left knee.

Angling your body like this sometimes helps create more room to lock your legs up correctly.  It can make the difference between success and failure in borderline cases…

But I’m not going to lie to you -  like any technique, there definitely ARE limits to the usefulness of this particular choke.  And you’re 100% correct that the triangle choke is a lot harder to do if your legs are short.  And the situation is made even worse if you’ve got muscular or ‘thick’ legs because now there’s even less room to work with.

Physical attributes such as leg length, flexibility, speed, strength, build, hand size, etc. DO affect which techniques will work best for you.

But it’s not all bad…

The same physical attributes that make the triangle choke difficult could give you a wickedly powerful kneebar, for example.  I discussed this concept in more detail in this blog post: Brazilian Jiu-jitsu and physical attributes.

And a final word of advice for short legged grapplers…

Keep in mind that almost every triangle choke situation can be converted into an omoplata. That means that you can still use all those cool triangle choke setups your instructor is showing you!  Just get to the general position and then be prepared to bail out and switch to the omoplata if you can’t get the triangle to work correctly for you.

To get you started, here’s a primer on how to do the omoplata armlock.