July 11, 2005
Air Chokes
For the last two weeks we have primarily been discussing strangles – this week I’d like to move on to ‘chokes’. A choke is a submission which primarily cuts off the flow of air through the windpipe, as opposed to a strangle which primarily cuts off the flow of blood to the brain.
Chokes are typically applied to the front of the throat, usually with the forearm (although hands, knees, shins, and other body parts can also be used). This action pushes on the Adam’s apple and compresses the windpipe which prevents air from moving down to the lungs. Since it blocks airflow, rather than blood flow, chokes usually take longer than chokes to render someone unconscious.
The paradox is that people usually tap out QUICKER from a choke than from a strangle. This is because chokes are very painful, whereas many strangles are not painful. Chokes work just fine on the mat, where most people will tap out when caught in a painful technique, but they may not be the technique of choice in a self-defense situation. If your opponent has a very high pain tolerance however, or is on a lot of drugs, then strangling would be the technique of choice, not choking.
One other thing to keep in mind is that choking is probably more dangerous than strangling. There have been several deaths recorded where police officers and sheriffs applied chokes and managed to kill the person by accident. The intent of those officers was almost certainly to put the resisting person to sleep, but they applied a choke rather than a strangle. The choke then damaged the person’s windpipe, compromising their breathing even after it was released, and the person died.
There are several morals to these stories. The first is that you should really know the difference between a choke and a strangle, and have the presence of mind to choose the appropriate technique for the appropriate situation. The other take-home point is that it is VERY important to monitor your opponent during the choke/strangle, and after you have released it. These are powerful techniques, and like we all learned in the Spiderman movie, “with great power comes great responsibility”.
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Chokes are typically applied to the front of the throat, usually with the forearm (although hands, knees, shins, and other body parts can also be used). This action pushes on the Adam’s apple and compresses the windpipe which prevents air from moving down to the lungs. Since it blocks airflow, rather than blood flow, chokes usually take longer than chokes to render someone unconscious.
The paradox is that people usually tap out QUICKER from a choke than from a strangle. This is because chokes are very painful, whereas many strangles are not painful. Chokes work just fine on the mat, where most people will tap out when caught in a painful technique, but they may not be the technique of choice in a self-defense situation. If your opponent has a very high pain tolerance however, or is on a lot of drugs, then strangling would be the technique of choice, not choking.
One other thing to keep in mind is that choking is probably more dangerous than strangling. There have been several deaths recorded where police officers and sheriffs applied chokes and managed to kill the person by accident. The intent of those officers was almost certainly to put the resisting person to sleep, but they applied a choke rather than a strangle. The choke then damaged the person’s windpipe, compromising their breathing even after it was released, and the person died.
There are several morals to these stories. The first is that you should really know the difference between a choke and a strangle, and have the presence of mind to choose the appropriate technique for the appropriate situation. The other take-home point is that it is VERY important to monitor your opponent during the choke/strangle, and after you have released it. These are powerful techniques, and like we all learned in the Spiderman movie, “with great power comes great responsibility”.
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December 08, 2004
Surviving the Smother
There is nothing worse than tapping out to a smother. It is one thing to get caught in a nice technical choke and having to tap out, but it really sucks to get slowly smothered as someone covers your nose and mouth with some part of their body. It's slow, it's frustrating and it's undignified. Sometimes the guy doesn't even know that he's doing it to you, which doesn't make it any better...
Here is a simple, but not commonly known, technique to survive the smother. When you feel like there simply isn't enough air coming into your mouth and nose, open your mouth as wide as it can go. Most of the time the increased intake area will allow enough air to get into your lungs to survive and start plotting your escape and revenge.
This is particularly relevant when you are doing gi-jiujitsu (although it is occasionally useful in no-gi submission grappling as well). If your face is covered by someone's gi and your mouth is just a little bit open, then you are trying to suck air through a relatively small area. If you open your mouth wide then you double or triple the area of gi you are breathing through, making life much better for you.
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Here is a simple, but not commonly known, technique to survive the smother. When you feel like there simply isn't enough air coming into your mouth and nose, open your mouth as wide as it can go. Most of the time the increased intake area will allow enough air to get into your lungs to survive and start plotting your escape and revenge.
This is particularly relevant when you are doing gi-jiujitsu (although it is occasionally useful in no-gi submission grappling as well). If your face is covered by someone's gi and your mouth is just a little bit open, then you are trying to suck air through a relatively small area. If you open your mouth wide then you double or triple the area of gi you are breathing through, making life much better for you.
Labels: breathing, chokes, positions
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October 23, 2004
Breathing, Oxygen and Exhaustion
For the past two weeks I have been talking about breathing, concentrating on unusual situations, like hyperventilation and the Valsalva Maneuver. I should probably have started out by talking about something that is a bit more universally applicable.
Let’s talk about this: no breathing equals no oxygen equals total exhaustion.
It's storytime: a few months ago I was talking with a very frustrated and discouraged grappler. For the sake of this story, let’s call the grappler ‘Fred’. Anyway, ‘Fred’ was a fit guy who did lots of cardiovascular conditioning to help him with his endurance, but had an unusual problem with his grappling. In his own words:
“The situation seems to occur when I train against new people who are very aggressive, usually wrestlers. I try to relax, but it doesn't seem to be working. I still seem to tense up and gas out. But when I fight guys who are so much better than me I can train for a long time and even roll for 30-40 minutes at a time with minimal breaks.”
In other words he had MORE endurance when he was sparring advanced people who kicked his butt than he did when he was grappling aggressive beginners.
It took some experimentation and discussion, but what we finally discovered was that he was holding his breath while fighting certain types of opponents. When he grappled beginners he tensed up and held his breath because he did not want to tap, or get schooled, by a beginner.
Against advanced grapplers he knew he was going to tap: he could accept that they were more skilled than he was, could concentrate on putting up a good fight and doing his best on the mat.
His anxiety was causing him to hold his breath. No breathing equals no oxygen equals total exhaustion.
The solution was fairly simple: he had to concentrate on his breathing before all else. He started to focus on inhalation and exhalation while doing pushups, while doing Yoga and especially while grappling.
Fred also used a fairly simple tool to ensure he wasn’t holding his breath while grappling: every 5 or 10 seconds he would check in on his breathing and ask himself if he was holding his breath. Submissions, body positions and techniques were all secondary to focusing on the breath, making sure that it continued to flow in and out during the heat of the battle.
Here is what happened in Fred’s words:
“When it came time for sparring, I picked one of the heavier aggressive guys to go against. I did what you said and kept reminding myself to breathe. Every 5-10 secs I was just saying to myself breathe, breathe, and breathe. I wasn't even thinking 'too hard' about my attacks and defense, I just wanted to relax and flow.”
“But you know what happened, I was thinking so clearly. I subbed this guy 5 times in 5 minutes! I have never subbed anyone that many times before in that amount of time. I hit triangles (I suck at triangles, trust me) twice, two of your kneebars, and then the ‘Minotauro’ choke.”
“The important thing was I wasn't even trying, it was weird. I mean I wasn't lying like a log, but I was just focusing on breathing rather than just trying to 'fight'. And everything was so clear. I even let this guy take my back and pass my guard, but I recovered easily.”
“The next rolling partner I had was a solid blue and I asked him to just smash me. He did smash me, but I wasn't gasping from escaping. I kept breathing and just trying to remember good posture. It was really good. I gave him a tough time and he really had to work to get me.”
“The next partner was probably the same level as me. I kept the breathing concept in mind and I nailed some more moves I don't easily pull off normally in sparring.”
Things went really well for the next couple of weeks. So well, in fact, that he decided to enter a NAGA tournament:
“Well since everything has been going so well thanks to you I am gonna put my money where my mouth is and compete in NAGA in 2 weeks. My wrestling is something that needs improvement but I feel confident enough that my other attributes will even things out.”
Shortly thereafter I received an email from Fred: below you can read parts of it:
“Stephan! I won my division in NAGA. Thanks so much for all your help. I was doing well with my breathing until the finals, where I left it all on the mat. I did not notice I was breathing a lot until they called time and I felt the exhaustion. But no one scored any points on me and I got some nice armbars … Throughout my matches I did the breathing check every 10 seconds. If you told me to compete in NAGA 2 months ago I would have laughed and thought you were crazy.”
If you find your endurance fading unexpectedly, be it when fighting certain types of opponents or in certain situations (competition at tournaments, sparring at other clubs, etc.) the FIRST thing you could do is to ensure that you aren’t holding your breath. Ask someone to watch you, and/or do an internal breathing check every 5 or 10 seconds. Think a little bit less about technique and constantly remind yourself “breathe, breathe and breathe!” You may be pleasantly surprised.
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Let’s talk about this: no breathing equals no oxygen equals total exhaustion.
It's storytime: a few months ago I was talking with a very frustrated and discouraged grappler. For the sake of this story, let’s call the grappler ‘Fred’. Anyway, ‘Fred’ was a fit guy who did lots of cardiovascular conditioning to help him with his endurance, but had an unusual problem with his grappling. In his own words:
“The situation seems to occur when I train against new people who are very aggressive, usually wrestlers. I try to relax, but it doesn't seem to be working. I still seem to tense up and gas out. But when I fight guys who are so much better than me I can train for a long time and even roll for 30-40 minutes at a time with minimal breaks.”
In other words he had MORE endurance when he was sparring advanced people who kicked his butt than he did when he was grappling aggressive beginners.
It took some experimentation and discussion, but what we finally discovered was that he was holding his breath while fighting certain types of opponents. When he grappled beginners he tensed up and held his breath because he did not want to tap, or get schooled, by a beginner.
Against advanced grapplers he knew he was going to tap: he could accept that they were more skilled than he was, could concentrate on putting up a good fight and doing his best on the mat.
His anxiety was causing him to hold his breath. No breathing equals no oxygen equals total exhaustion.
The solution was fairly simple: he had to concentrate on his breathing before all else. He started to focus on inhalation and exhalation while doing pushups, while doing Yoga and especially while grappling.
Fred also used a fairly simple tool to ensure he wasn’t holding his breath while grappling: every 5 or 10 seconds he would check in on his breathing and ask himself if he was holding his breath. Submissions, body positions and techniques were all secondary to focusing on the breath, making sure that it continued to flow in and out during the heat of the battle.
Here is what happened in Fred’s words:
“When it came time for sparring, I picked one of the heavier aggressive guys to go against. I did what you said and kept reminding myself to breathe. Every 5-10 secs I was just saying to myself breathe, breathe, and breathe. I wasn't even thinking 'too hard' about my attacks and defense, I just wanted to relax and flow.”
“But you know what happened, I was thinking so clearly. I subbed this guy 5 times in 5 minutes! I have never subbed anyone that many times before in that amount of time. I hit triangles (I suck at triangles, trust me) twice, two of your kneebars, and then the ‘Minotauro’ choke.”
“The important thing was I wasn't even trying, it was weird. I mean I wasn't lying like a log, but I was just focusing on breathing rather than just trying to 'fight'. And everything was so clear. I even let this guy take my back and pass my guard, but I recovered easily.”
“The next rolling partner I had was a solid blue and I asked him to just smash me. He did smash me, but I wasn't gasping from escaping. I kept breathing and just trying to remember good posture. It was really good. I gave him a tough time and he really had to work to get me.”
“The next partner was probably the same level as me. I kept the breathing concept in mind and I nailed some more moves I don't easily pull off normally in sparring.”
Things went really well for the next couple of weeks. So well, in fact, that he decided to enter a NAGA tournament:
“Well since everything has been going so well thanks to you I am gonna put my money where my mouth is and compete in NAGA in 2 weeks. My wrestling is something that needs improvement but I feel confident enough that my other attributes will even things out.”
Shortly thereafter I received an email from Fred: below you can read parts of it:
“Stephan! I won my division in NAGA. Thanks so much for all your help. I was doing well with my breathing until the finals, where I left it all on the mat. I did not notice I was breathing a lot until they called time and I felt the exhaustion. But no one scored any points on me and I got some nice armbars … Throughout my matches I did the breathing check every 10 seconds. If you told me to compete in NAGA 2 months ago I would have laughed and thought you were crazy.”
If you find your endurance fading unexpectedly, be it when fighting certain types of opponents or in certain situations (competition at tournaments, sparring at other clubs, etc.) the FIRST thing you could do is to ensure that you aren’t holding your breath. Ask someone to watch you, and/or do an internal breathing check every 5 or 10 seconds. Think a little bit less about technique and constantly remind yourself “breathe, breathe and breathe!” You may be pleasantly surprised.
Labels: breathing, conditioning, the mental aspect
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October 16, 2004
What the Hell is a 'Valsalva Maneuver'?
Today’s question is: “should you ever hold your breath while sparring”. Many instructors would tell you that holding your breath is a big no-no, and generally I agree with them. What I want to talk about today, however, is a possible exception to this rule.
Doctors (and powerlifters) refer to something called a ‘Valsalva maneuver’. In this maneuver you attempt to breath out forcibly while keeping your mouth and nose closed. Internally it feels like you are bearing down on your lower abdomen.
Why on earth would you want to push your breath like this? The reason doctors sometimes get their patients to do it is that if a doctor listens to your chest with a stethoscope while you are doing the Valsalva maneuver he or she might be able to diagnose certain heart conditions.
More relevant to grappling, powerlifters use the Valsalva when they are lifting maximal weight (their one or two rep maximum). Use of the Valsalva at the most difficult part of a squat or deadlift helps stabilize the shoulders and trunk and makes the lifter a little stronger. Powerlifters make sure to release their breath after they have passed the sticking point of their lifts, because if you hold a Valsalva for any length of time while lifting you can easily pass out!
What does this have to do with grappling? I believe that the Valsalva maneuver is a legitimate way to occasionally generate a little extra power in an emergency, so long as you recognize its limitations.
If you have ever absolutely, positively needed to generate maximum power you may already have used the Valsalva. Some people might use it when they are bridging out of the mount of a heavy opponent, escaping an armbar, or lifting an opponent to finish a takedown. Often times an audible grunt at the peak of effort is a sign that someone is using the Valsalva maneuver (although they may not be aware of it).
Regardless of the ‘grappling emergency’ it is not a good idea to use the Valsalva for more than one or two seconds (at the most). An inappropriate use of this technique might be to finish an armlock on an opponent who is defending well. Typically an armlock attempt might take 5 to 10 seconds to succeed, and that is way too long to hold your breath. If you don’t succeed you’ll end up very tired (or unconscious). It is also not a good idea to use this maneuver too often – like I said earlier, powerlifters use this for their maximum lifts, not for repeated submaximal lifts in training.
I’m not saying that you should adopt this type of breathing consciously, but if you are going to use this technique on purpose then keep the following precautions in mind:
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Doctors (and powerlifters) refer to something called a ‘Valsalva maneuver’. In this maneuver you attempt to breath out forcibly while keeping your mouth and nose closed. Internally it feels like you are bearing down on your lower abdomen.
Why on earth would you want to push your breath like this? The reason doctors sometimes get their patients to do it is that if a doctor listens to your chest with a stethoscope while you are doing the Valsalva maneuver he or she might be able to diagnose certain heart conditions.
More relevant to grappling, powerlifters use the Valsalva when they are lifting maximal weight (their one or two rep maximum). Use of the Valsalva at the most difficult part of a squat or deadlift helps stabilize the shoulders and trunk and makes the lifter a little stronger. Powerlifters make sure to release their breath after they have passed the sticking point of their lifts, because if you hold a Valsalva for any length of time while lifting you can easily pass out!
What does this have to do with grappling? I believe that the Valsalva maneuver is a legitimate way to occasionally generate a little extra power in an emergency, so long as you recognize its limitations.
If you have ever absolutely, positively needed to generate maximum power you may already have used the Valsalva. Some people might use it when they are bridging out of the mount of a heavy opponent, escaping an armbar, or lifting an opponent to finish a takedown. Often times an audible grunt at the peak of effort is a sign that someone is using the Valsalva maneuver (although they may not be aware of it).
Regardless of the ‘grappling emergency’ it is not a good idea to use the Valsalva for more than one or two seconds (at the most). An inappropriate use of this technique might be to finish an armlock on an opponent who is defending well. Typically an armlock attempt might take 5 to 10 seconds to succeed, and that is way too long to hold your breath. If you don’t succeed you’ll end up very tired (or unconscious). It is also not a good idea to use this maneuver too often – like I said earlier, powerlifters use this for their maximum lifts, not for repeated submaximal lifts in training.
I’m not saying that you should adopt this type of breathing consciously, but if you are going to use this technique on purpose then keep the following precautions in mind:
- Use it in emergencies, not as a staple technique
- Don’t hold your breath for more than a second or so
- Be sure to resume regular breathing immediately after your maximum effort, whether your attempt succeeded or not
Labels: breathing, conditioning
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October 07, 2004
Conscious Hyperventilation
I sometimes get asked questions about how to breath while sparring, in particular, how to control your breathing when you are really fighting hard.
When you are sparring at an easy to moderate pace then it is a good idea to keep your breath regular, deep and even. You don't want to hyperventilate unnecessarily. So far, so good: most experts would agree with me on this point.
Now it gets a bit more controversial. I believe that the situation changes considerably when one is engaged in extremely strenuous exercise. Let's say that you are sparring or competing and you are in an all-out dogfight: you are trading attacks, escapes, takedowns and reversals with your opponent at a fast and furious pace. My advice here is to go ahead and breathe as quick and as hard as you need to, even perhaps a little harder than you think neccesary.
Here is a little story: I used to compete in the Firefighter Combat Challenge, which is an anaerobic event known as "the toughest 2 minutes in sport" on ESPN. In this event firefighters race in full turnout gear and breathing apparatus, trying to complete 5 tasks as fast as they can. These tasks include carrying a load up a 5-story tower, hoisting, chopping, dragging hoses and finally rescuing a life-sized, 175 lb. "victim". This event is an all-out lactic acid fiesta, and it is common for some competitors to require medical aid at the end of their run.
When I first started competing I struggled to break the 2-minute mark. I'd start my race breathing normally and increase my breathing as the event went on. By the time I got to the finish line I'd be hyperventilating and trying to breath in through every orifice in my body.
Finally a teammate suggested that I start hyperventilating early - about 5 seconds before the race began, and keep on hyperventilating the whole race. I was worried about passing out and he said "yes you might pass out if you weren't going as hard as you can, but you are going to use all that extra oxygen and still need more".
I tried this technique that day: in the last few seconds before taking off up the stairs I started taking rapid and very deep breaths. I continued breathing this way for the whole event: every few seconds I reminded myself "breathe, Breathe, BREATHE". That day I took 10 seconds off my time, which is a huge improvement. Within a year I eventually ran the event in one minute and 33 seconds, which is considered an 'elite' level performance.
Conscious hyperventilation not a technique you want to use all the time. That being said, when there is a lot of action in your next grappling match and you know that you are about to get tired, you may want to give it a try.
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When you are sparring at an easy to moderate pace then it is a good idea to keep your breath regular, deep and even. You don't want to hyperventilate unnecessarily. So far, so good: most experts would agree with me on this point.
Now it gets a bit more controversial. I believe that the situation changes considerably when one is engaged in extremely strenuous exercise. Let's say that you are sparring or competing and you are in an all-out dogfight: you are trading attacks, escapes, takedowns and reversals with your opponent at a fast and furious pace. My advice here is to go ahead and breathe as quick and as hard as you need to, even perhaps a little harder than you think neccesary.
Here is a little story: I used to compete in the Firefighter Combat Challenge, which is an anaerobic event known as "the toughest 2 minutes in sport" on ESPN. In this event firefighters race in full turnout gear and breathing apparatus, trying to complete 5 tasks as fast as they can. These tasks include carrying a load up a 5-story tower, hoisting, chopping, dragging hoses and finally rescuing a life-sized, 175 lb. "victim". This event is an all-out lactic acid fiesta, and it is common for some competitors to require medical aid at the end of their run.
When I first started competing I struggled to break the 2-minute mark. I'd start my race breathing normally and increase my breathing as the event went on. By the time I got to the finish line I'd be hyperventilating and trying to breath in through every orifice in my body.
Finally a teammate suggested that I start hyperventilating early - about 5 seconds before the race began, and keep on hyperventilating the whole race. I was worried about passing out and he said "yes you might pass out if you weren't going as hard as you can, but you are going to use all that extra oxygen and still need more".
I tried this technique that day: in the last few seconds before taking off up the stairs I started taking rapid and very deep breaths. I continued breathing this way for the whole event: every few seconds I reminded myself "breathe, Breathe, BREATHE". That day I took 10 seconds off my time, which is a huge improvement. Within a year I eventually ran the event in one minute and 33 seconds, which is considered an 'elite' level performance.
Conscious hyperventilation not a technique you want to use all the time. That being said, when there is a lot of action in your next grappling match and you know that you are about to get tired, you may want to give it a try.
Labels: breathing
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September 12, 2004
Breathing and Stretching and Yoga
Yoga pays a lot of attention to breathing – Yoga has many special breathing exercises, ranging from the simple to the downright esoteric. For martial artists and grapplers, however, the integration of breathing and stretching is of particular interest. Here is a simple, but very useful yoga principle to apply to your own stretching regimen.
When you are stretching breathe deeply and slowly. As you breath in imagine that your spine is getting longer and longer. Visualize the breath increasing the distance between your pelvis and the top of your head. Then, as you breathe out, really relax and try to go deeper into the stretch. Repeat this in and out pattern to go deeper into the stretch, being sure to stop before you feel any pain.
Whether you are working towards touching your toes or doing the full splits this simple concept can really help you improve the quality of your stretching time.
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When you are stretching breathe deeply and slowly. As you breath in imagine that your spine is getting longer and longer. Visualize the breath increasing the distance between your pelvis and the top of your head. Then, as you breathe out, really relax and try to go deeper into the stretch. Repeat this in and out pattern to go deeper into the stretch, being sure to stop before you feel any pain.
Whether you are working towards touching your toes or doing the full splits this simple concept can really help you improve the quality of your stretching time.
Labels: breathing
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