What's the most common problem (aside from getting caught under side control) facing the BJJ beginner? It's probably feeling overwhelmed by the staggering number of techniques that Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu contains! There are a thousand variations of sweeps and locks and chokes and pins and escapes and guard passes. It's enough to make your head spin! So where then do you start? Which … [Read more...]
Armbar
A Powerful Side Mount Escape That Leads Directly into an Armbar Finish
Going directly into the armbar from the bottom side mount has to be one of the most surprising escapes for the guy on top. One moment he's crushing you with his crossface, and the next he's tapping out to a match-ending submission. The first time I saw this technique I didn't think it was very realistic. It looked like a power move that required tremendous upper body strength. But when I … [Read more...]
The Step-by-Step Armbar from Mount
The armbar from mount is often taught as the 'CPR' armbar where you're mounted on your opponent, he sticks his arms straight up, you put both your hands on his chest and swing around into the armbar. It's slick, it's smooth, and it looks great. But the only reason the CPR armbar works is because your opponent has broken his own structure by pushing on your chest. Good opponents will almost … [Read more...]
Near and Far Arm Ambar Attacks from Side Control
When it comes to BJJ the straight armbar is one of the highest percentage submissions, and side control (aka sidemount, cross side, and 100 kilos) is probably the most common pinning position. So you absolutely NEED to have some reliable armbar attacks from side control or you're missing out on some huge opportunities. Fundamentally when you're in side control you can attack the near arm … [Read more...]
Making the Armbar from Guard Harder to Escape
How many times have you gone for an armbar from the guard only to have your opponent escape your attack, pass your guard, and then smash you from a dominant position? This is an incredibly common scenario, but it really doesn't need to happen nearly as often! The truth is that by making some simple tweaks to your technique and the sequence in which you apply that technique you'll make the … [Read more...]
3 Tips to Tighten Any Joint Lock Technique
It' s not easy to tap out a high level grappler with a joint lock. First of all their submission prevention is tight. They do everything they can to stop you from getting the submission in the first place. Next, their defense and escape techniques are also top notch. If you give them even an inch of slack they'll use that space to wiggle out of the submission. Finally elite grapplers are … [Read more...]
The 6 Steps of a Good Submission
Did you know that there's an actual physics and biomechanics-based procedure that'll definitely help you tap out many more people in BJJ? At a high level there's so much more more to getting a choke or an armlock than simply seeing an opportunity and jumping on it. That approach rarely works against good people. Instead it's about gradually manoeuvring your opponent into worse and worse … [Read more...]
Back Attacks 5: How to Switch to an Armbar Submission When You’re on the Back!
Many people are surprised to learn that the straight armbar is a reliable, high-percentage, and super-powerful submission, from the back when you're grappling in BJJ, No Gi or MMA. Here's Rob Biernacki of BJJ Formula fame showing exactly how to do that. This is part 5 in a series on the so-called 'weak side' of the back we're releasing on Youtube and is a small part of the Back Control module … [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 Vinny Magalhães Survived Fabrício Werdum’s Armbar to Win ADCC
In the heaviest weight class of the 2011 ADCC submission fighting championships there was a fascinating matchup between accomplished grappler and MMA fighter Vinny Magalhães and the two time ADCC champion, Fabrício Werdum. After an initial exchange on the feet Vinny caught Fabrício in an omoplata sweep and got ahead on points. Fabrício escapes, they get back to the feet, there's another … [Read more...]
Jiu-Jitsu for the Zombie Apocalypse
As we get closer and closer to Halloween it's important to shift your priorities from training jiu-jitsu to surviving the impending zombie apocalypse. (After all, it's tough to train jiu-jitsu when you're dead. Or undead, as the case may be.) That's why you've got to check out the most important video I've ever put onto Youtube: Jiu-Jitsu for the Zombie Apocalypse. A lot of people will … [Read more...]
3 Spider Guard Drills to Improve Your Sweeping and Submissions
The last time I had a filming session with my friend and training partner Ritchie Yip who runs a BJJ school in Vancouver, BC, he showed me something really cool... It was a series of 3 drills to improve your spider guard sweeps and submissions. The first drill is a relatively easy one to that develops hip mobility and leg dexterity. Spider guard is NOT a static position; as your opponent … [Read more...]
Is Really Position vs Submission? Sometimes You Can Have Both…
One of the fundamental rules of BJJ is that you should value 'Position over Submission.' This means is that you shouldn't abandon a good position - like the mount for example - to go for a dubious submission and lose the position. This is even more important in MMA and self defense: imagine going for an armbar from mount, your opponent escaping it, and you now ending up on the bottom … [Read more...]
10 Key Techniques and Tactics of Marcelo Garcia
Marcelo Garcia is probably the most dominant jiu-jitsu athlete of the last 15 years. When he was competing he owned both the gi and the no gi divisions (4 x ADCC champion, 5 x Mundial World Champion). As if that wasn't enough, his amazing performances in the absolute division against giants like Ricco Rodriguez have ensured his place in grappling history. It’s always a good idea to … [Read more...]
How to do the Armbar Without Crushing Your Balls
It's a question that I get from BJJ beginners all the time, "How do I do the armbar without crushing my balls in the process?" And it's a legitimate problem for people starting out their BJJ career. In fact, it's a simple equation... Elbow + Groin = OUCH!! Now you could wear a cup, but most intermediate and advanced players don't do that unless they're training for MMA. Instead of … [Read more...]
Top 3 Armbar Mistakes in BJJ
The basic armbar is one of those bread-and-butter submission techniques in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. You just can't do BJJ without it, so it's SUPER important to understand this submission inside out! But I see people make the same silly errors for the armbar all the time. That's why I shot a quick and dirty video showing the three most common mistakes for the armbar (plus how to fix … [Read more...]
Don’t Overthink Jiu-Jitsu
Back when I was a brown belt I rolled with a large, strong, aggressive and completely unskilled white belt. This white belt was absolutely determined to illustrate the size difference between us by using all his weight and all his strength at all times. You know the type... At one point he was in my guard with his forearm across my throat. Essentially he was giving me the classic trigger … [Read more...]
New T-Shirts: Keep Calm and Grapple On
We just released these brand new shirts. I had fun looking into the history of the classic 'Keep Calm and Carry On' meme - turns out it comes from just before World War 2 where the British government was trying to bolster the public morale in the face of imminent war. They might boost your morale too, but hopefully your situation is a little bit less dire than Europe in 1939... There are … [Read more...]
A Better Armbar?
The armbar, as it is usually taught, involves using BOTH of your hands or arms to control ONE of your opponent's arms. This two-on-one control can be used when trying to break through your opponent's defenses, as in the photo below: The two-on-one arm control is usually retained right until your opponent taps out to the finalized armbar, as in the following photo: Now this regular … [Read more...]
Flying Armbar Guard Pull
Some people will tell you never, ever to pull guard. "Fight from the top," they tell you... In general that's good advice, but what if you run into someone with vastly superior takedown skills? Or someone who is good at defending takedowns and determined to fight a completely defensive battle? It's good to have some takedowns in your arsenal. But it's also good to have some other ways to get … [Read more...]