If you've got your opponent in side control then you're definitely dominating the match, but if he's being defensive then it can still be hard to finish from there. A smart opponent will keep his arms in and protect his neck with his hands, making it challenging to catch an armlock or force a choke. This is where deception comes in. You've got to lure your opponent into a trap by giving him … [Read more...]
Kneebar Mastery: Fixing the Most Common Mistakes
The kneebar is the king of leg submissions: you are attacking one of the largest joints in the body and demonstrating mastery over your opponent. Unlike heelhooks and toeholds, which often have to be applied gently in training to avoid injury, a successful kneebar leaves no doubt or debate as to its effectiveness. The kneebar is a fairly safe submission when applied properly, but is also a … [Read more...]
BJJ for Women’s Self Defense
I really enjoyed talking with Rachel Honeyman about modifying BJJ for self defense, which techniques to focus on and which positions to avoid. Rachel has trained in BJJ, the Filipino Martial Arts, Muay Thai, and many other martial arts and runs FearlessFemmes.com. BJJ for Women's Self Defense - Audio Only This conversation was also published as episode 401 of The Strenuous Life Podcast. You … [Read more...]
Don’t be that Peaked-in-High-School Jiu-Jitsu Practitioner
I don’t think we can deny that jiu-jitsu is evolving really fast. Whether it’s the false reap, the buggy choke, the Aoki lock, the berimbolo, the roadhouse choke, or the upside-down-inside-out-caterpillar guard, new techniques and strategies are popping up all the time. Even if you don’t want (or can’t) learn the berimbolo (or whatever) shouldn’t you at least know how to counter it? So … [Read more...]
Your New Technique (Probably) Isn’t Going To Work
You know that new choke you saw the other day and hope to use in class tonight? Yeah... about that. That shiny new choke probably isn't going to work. The truth is that any signature moves you develop in your jiu-jitsu career will be the lone survivors standing on top of a mountain of discarded techniques that you just couldn't get to click. Every time I try something new, I think, … [Read more...]
BJJ Foundations for Apple and Android
The best-selling BJJ Foundations instructional is finally available on your phone. This ground-breaking instructional is the best training guide I've ever seen if you want to do extra training outside of class, structure your sparring to be more productive in class, or even teach a class of your own. In this app module you'll get all the techniques, details, drills and combinations on the … [Read more...]
How to Do the Half Granby Roll in BJJ (and Other Critical Guard Retention Movements)
The half granby movement is super important for guard retention in BJJ. However, it can be intimidating to learn, so here's how to drill it against a wall in the privacy of your own home or on the mat before class. 0:00 How to do the half granby movement 0:58 How to drill the high leg movement 2:08 How to learn the full inversion on the wall … [Read more...]
Innovation and Technical Refinement in Jiu-Jitsu
Rob Biernacki is my guest today to talk about how injury and physical limitations have led to some of the fastest technical development of his career and the refinement of entirely new techniques like the Roadhouse Choke. Since some form of injury is inevitable there are a LOT of takeaways in this episode. We also discuss... Risk vs reward in your choice of techniques, How new … [Read more...]
Breathing, Oxygen and Exhaustion
I've previously discussed breathing but have concentrated on unusual situations, like conscious 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. Storytime: I once talked with a very frustrated and discouraged … [Read more...]
Lessons Learned from Extreme Athletes Like Alex Honnold
From war-torn Africa to climbing remote peaks in Greenland with Alex Honnold, Matt Pycroft has built a very impressive career working as a journalist and filmmaker. In our conversation he goes into detail how he gradually acquired the skills to achieve his goals and the lessons he's learned working with extreme athletes in inhospitable settings all over the globe. Follow Matt on Instagram … [Read more...]
What Is Positional Wisdom in BJJ?
I recently rolled with a young punk who was strong as a chimpanzee and flexible as an octopus. Not only was he a physical specimen, but - to make matters worse - he also had some really good attack sequences. For example, every time he got the overhook from closed guard I was fending off a barrage of triangles, omoplatas, baratoplatas, and weird-ass backtakes. And when he got to my back he … [Read more...]
How to Train The Guard WITHOUT Using Your Hands
The No Hands Guard Drill is one of the very best ways to develop leg dexterity and guard retention in jiu-jitsu. It's also a great way to continue training and making progress if you have an elbow or shoulder injury that makes regular sparring difficult. Here's a video from BJJ Games breaking down the No Hands Guard Drill for you: live footage of the drill in action begins at … [Read more...]
Training to Get Maximum Results from Your BJJ Training in Minimum Time
The traditional class structure of doing a warmup, learning a couple of new techniques, and followed by sparring is NOT an efficient way to learn jiu-jitsu. We can do much better if we use insights from research on coaching and learning. Today's guest is Cal MacDonald, a BJJ black belt and competitor who has dedicated himself to developing his teaching and coaching skills to the highest … [Read more...]
A Training Plan to Improve Your Jiu-Jitsu Skills
This is BIG! I’ve been studying Jiu-Jitsu since the late 1980’s and have trained at many different schools and with hundreds of different instructors. Recently I've been working on a new instructional with BJJ black belt Cal MacDonald, and I'm just SO impressed with what he's put together. His 8-volume instructional called BJJ Foundations covers the exact techniques and movements that … [Read more...]
BJJ Longevity with Mike Mahaffey (Strenuous Life Podcast Ep 396)
In episode 396 of The Strenuous Life Podcast, I talk about BJJ longevity, weight training, practicing at home, and optimal training methods with BJJ old-timer Mike Mahaffey. There are a TON of valuable take-home lessons here for anyone who trains jiu-jitsu, and ESPECIALLY the over-40 crowd! Longevity in BJJ with Mike Mahaffey - Audio Only This conversation was also published as episode … [Read more...]
Should You Train Jiu-Jitsu Every Day?
It's true that some high-level athletes recommend training every day or even multiple times a day. And it's true that all things being equal, more training equals faster progress. The problem is that all things are NOT always equal in this formulation. And to some extent, this advice is the product of survivor bias; you only hear from the people who did this and were successful, and not the … [Read more...]
D’Arce Choke Defense
The D'Arce choke is super-popular right now. This is a choke that traps your opponent's neck and arm inside your figure-foured arms and you can apply it against the half guard, against turtle, from guard passing, and in a ton of scrambles. (Click here for a detailed breakd0wn for applying the D'Arce choke.) This choke is especially popular in no gi grappling because the decreased friction … [Read more...]
Catchwrestling: from the Snake Pit in Wigan England, to Pride FC in Japan, to Modern Submission Grappling
In episode 395 of The Strenuous Life Podcast I talk to Oz Austwick, who has extensively studied armed and unarmed combat systems in England and Europe. Today we focus on the historical wrestling systems of England... Cornish, Lancashire, Devonshire, Cumberland and Westmoreland wrestling and catchwrestling The influence of Japanese Judo and Jiu-Jitsu on English Wrestling The great Billy … [Read more...]
About That Leglock-Shaped Hole in Your Game
There was a time when you could be good at jiu-jitsu and not know anything about leglocks. (I miss this era because knowing a few leglocks back then made it relatively easy to ambush and tap out even high-level black belts.) But now jiu-jitsu has changed. Everyone and their dog is busy ankle locking and heel hooking and kneebarring and toeholding. I'd go so far as to say that if you … [Read more...]
This Black Belt’s Advice Would Have Killed Me
Back in 2014, an old friend called. He was a very high-level striking coach and an occasional jiu-jitsu student of mine. As we chatted, I mentioned that I was dying of kidney failure due to Polycystic Kidney Disease and was waiting for a life-saving transplant. Holy crap, was I ever not ready for what came next. He went on an alternative health tirade with evangelical fervor... He told … [Read more...]