OK, today we're going to talk about something that's both very simple and incredibly important. I've explained this to SO many grapplers over the years it's not even funny, and most of the time the reaction is a "Doh! I should have known that!!!" Here's what I'm talking about... The guillotine choke has a strong side and a weak side. Attacking with a strong sided guillotine is MUCH … [Read more...]
Podcast: Exposing Martial Arts Frauds with McDojolife!
Rob from McDojoLife has been relentless in his attempts to expose martial arts frauds, exposing everyone from from chi-based knockout masters to ninjas who practise bending joints in the direction they are designed to bend. Honestly some of the videos he's shared with people over the years have been hilarious for all the wrong reasons! (Scroll down for some of my favourite videos!) In … [Read more...]
Do Dirty Fighting Moves Work in Grappling?
Have you run into that guy who thinks he can eye gouge his way out of your mount, groin punch his way past your guard, and bite your ribs from side control? Well, today's video is for him! Now it's true that on the street you may need to pull hair, gouge the eyes, kick the groin, grab the throat. Then, if all that doesn't work then you'll need to start fighting dirty ;) But a martial … [Read more...]
Some High Percentage Pin Escapes from the North South Position
One of the most common questions I get asked is "how do I escape from north south?" It's a totally understandable question, because the north south position is a TERRIBLE place to be stuck in! On the bottom your arms are dangling out ripe for armlocking, your neck is just waiting to be choked, and the whole time your opponent is smashing you with heavy pressure from the top. Some of … [Read more...]
How to Defend and Escape the Kimura from Side Control
7 Defending and escaping the Kimura when you're on the bottom of side control is always difficult. There are several different reason for this... First of all, the figure four grip used in the Kimura is very powerful control. It creates a natural handle that your opponent can use to manipulate your entire body, both in gi or no gi. And once your opponent has secured this grip it's a real … [Read more...]
How to Defend and Escape the Armbar from Guard
If you've been grappling for any length of time then you know that anytime you're in the closed guard you've got to watch out for the armbar from guard. It's one of the most common and highest percentage submissions in all of BJJ, submission grappling and MMA. So if we're going to be running into a technique like the armbar from guard this frequently then we HAVE to have some good answers for … [Read more...]
How to Defend and Escape the Rear Naked Choke
There's a reason that the Rear Naked Choke (or RNC) has finished so many matches in MMA, BJJ and submission grappling: it's a very powerful and super-difficult to escape submission! This effectiveness is the main reason that we've devoted so much time to this choke on Grapplearts - (click here to see the RNC archives). But even if your opponent is getting close to sinking this submission don't … [Read more...]
How to Make It MUCH Harder to Pass Your Single Leg X Guard!
I love the Single Leg X Guard position! It's relatively easy to get to, offers you many powerful sweeps, gives you the option to upgrade into other forms of X guard, and - if you want to go that way - it dovetails very nicely with the leglock game (seeing as it's basically the same as the 'ashi garami' leglock position). But a lot of people get a key element of the Single Leg X Guard … [Read more...]
Why People Believe Crazy Things
My guest is a science advocate generally known as The Genetically Modified Skeptic. In this hard-hitting (and likely controversial) discussion Drew discusses magical thinking in the martial arts, essential oils, alternative medicine, cult leaders, Jordan Peterson, religion, the anti-vaccine movement, fake cancer cures and much more. I hope you find it interesting and though provoking. Go … [Read more...]
The Standing Sakuraba-Style Kimura Armlock
The first time someone showed me the standing Kimura attack I was pretty skeptical... I was like, "yeah, that would never work, not in a million years!" Whoops, was I ever wrong. You see, shortly after I was introduced to that supposedly 'useless' technique, a Japanese fighter named Kazushi Sakuraba started used the standing Kimura to tear a bloody swath through MMA world, besting a … [Read more...]
The 6 Ranges of Half Guard
The half guard is one of the three fundamental classifications of guard (closed, open, half). It can be used as both an offensive and a defensive position. There are many different variations of half guard, and one way to categorise those variations is by how far away you are from your opponent's hips. If there's a big space between your hips and his then you're at long range. If your hips … [Read more...]
Kata is Useless for Combat, Prove Me Wrong. A Discussion with Iain Abernathy, 7th Degree Karate Black Belt.
In some ways this podcast about the usefulness of kata was destined to happen... In the last couple of years several people suggested that I should talk to Iain Abernathy, an expert in the application of karate kata, because I am generally quite dubious about the utility of karate kata and kung fu forms. Then I published a controversial video on Youtube called "Why Kung Fu Forms and Karate … [Read more...]
On Staying Calm When All Hell is Breaking Loose
Leadership is easy when things are going well,but is considerably more difficult when all hell is breaking loose and the s**t is hitting the fan. In this episode of The Strenuous Life Podcast we look at a common denominator of great leadership in difficult situations, the optimal state of arousal, and a few examples of good and bad leadership in the fire department. If you enjoyed this … [Read more...]
10 Pieces of Advice for BJJ White Belts
A Guest Article, by Rhett Burch There are many articles for BJJ beginners, but not many of them are written by a purple belt. I figured I'd share my thoughts since it wasn't long ago when I was white belt. The following things have helped me tremendously as a beginner. 1) Relax And Breathe First, is relax. Almost every BJJ beginner moves like a terrified animal initially. Practicing … [Read more...]
5 Counters to Your Opponent Standing in Your Triangle Choke
If you've got someone in the triangle choke then you want them on their knees. You really don't want them standing up while they're in your choke. Here are the main reasons why you don't want them to stand... There are more counters and escapes to the triangle choke when someone is on their feet... If it's an MMA or self defense situation they can punch you much harder... If they're … [Read more...]
JP Dinnell Podcast
This podcast with JP Dinnell is full of actionable tips for people who want to get off their asses and start achieving things in life. JP is former Navy Seal who spent nearly a decade in SEAL teams, with three separate deployments overseas. He served under Jocko Willink and Leif Babin on many combat operations with Task Unit Bruiser in Ramadi, Iraq, where he was a point man, machine gunner, … [Read more...]
Fabio Gurgel on Fighting Vale Tudo in Brazil, Training BJJ World Champions, and More…
I was thrilled to meet up with multiple time BJJ world champion Fabio Gurgel and get him on my show for you. We talked about everything from his experiences in old school Vale Tudo matches in Brazil to the details of running Alliance and creating a team of world champion BJJ killers. Also front and center was the debate between traditional vs modern jiu-jitsu, why the level of BJJ right now … [Read more...]
A Throw and Leglock Combination
In the video above my friend and training partner Ritchie Yip shows a really cool throw that goes directly into a match-ending submission. Specifically it's a combination of a throw called Yoko Sumi Gaeshi and the kneebar submission. Yoko Sumi Gaeshi is one of my very favourite throws, and I learned the details of it from UFC champion and Sambo practitioner Oleg Taktarov. This throw … [Read more...]
Dealing with Doubt and Fear in the Martial Arts with Ando Mierzwa
I'm thrilled to have Ando Mierzwa back on the podcast in episode 165 to discuss dealing with doubt and fear in the martial arts, overcoming claustrophobia, whether martial arts lessons can be life lessons, training differently based on your age, fitness, and goals, and much more! To listen to this episode (number 165 of The Strenuous Life Podcast) you can subscribe on the podcast player that … [Read more...]
Mindset, Preparation and Close Calls with Ice Climber Will Gadd
Will Gadd is an extreme athlete, perhaps best known for ice climbing Niagara Falls in the winter (video at the bottom of this page). But he's also pioneered many novel routes, including Helmcken Falls, icebergs in the ocean, and underground river tunnels in the Greenland ice. In this chat we talked about those first ascents, but also touched on mindset, dealing with risk and unknowns, … [Read more...]
The Butterfly Sweep from Half Guard
The half butterfly guard is a variation of half guard where you entangle one of your opponent's legs with your inside leg and then insert a single butterfly hook under his thigh with your outside leg. As such this position combines aspects of both the traditional half guard AND the butterfly guard. Two of the most popular attacks in the half butterfly position are Sweeping your opponent … [Read more...]
A Weight Cutting Plan for BJJ, MMA, and No Gi Competition
Weight cutting is a fact of life in modern MMA and also in many jiu-jitsu and submission grappling competitions. And the person who does it correctly usually has an undeniable advantage. But it can also be very dangerous if done wrong - people have sabotaged their performance, gone into kidney failure, and even died after cutting weight badly. So if you're going to cut weight you need to do … [Read more...]
Full Contact Jousting with Shane Adams
Shane Adams is the star of Full Metal Jousting and has been featured in the New York Times because is the godfather of modern full contact jousting. In full contact jousting two knights wearing 150 lbs of armour ride on charging horses and try to unhorse each other using 11 foot long solid wooden lances that deliver 2,000 lbs of force. Yes, this is an actual sport: there are rules, … [Read more...]
Sim Go and the Legacy of Cobra Kai
Simpson (Sim) Go is a BJJ blackbelt and owner of Cobra Kai Jiu-Jitsu in Las Vegas. He is also a 14 time Grappler's Quest champion and competed at ADCC 2007, so he know his jiu-jitsu inside-out! In this podcast we chatted about many things, including 00:54 - How they decided to use the name 'Cobra Kai' for a jiu-jitsu school 06:16 - The influence and training of Marc Laimon 08:20 - How … [Read more...]
The Ultimate Guide to the Guillotine Choke in BJJ
The guillotine choke is a powerful submission in BJJ, no gi grappling, and mixed martial arts. At first glance it seems like a simple submission - you just wrap your opponent's neck with your arms, pull up and squeeze, right? Not so fast... There are a LOT of subtleties that you need to master before this submission starts being reliable for you, especially if you don't spend 4 hours a … [Read more...]