The bow and arrow choke is one of the highest percentage finishing techniques in all of jiu-jitsu. Statistically it's used to finish a very large number of matches at high level BJJ competition like the Mundials, the Pan-Ams, and more. But some ways of applying the bow and arrow are better than others. Some methods are tighter, some finishes are more powerful, and certain tweaks make it MUCH … [Read more...]
Bow and Arrow Choke
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...]
Bow and Arrow Chokes in the Street, with Adam Nadow
Jiu-jitsu black belt Adam Nadow was recently attacked in the street and used his training to defend himself and control his attacker until the police arrived. The video of this confrontation later went viral in the BJJ and self defense community. But what's not as commonly known is that he then involved himself in trying to rehabilitate his attacker, going so far as to provide him with food and … [Read more...]
A Bow and Arrow Choke Escape
The bow and arrow choke is one of the most powerful chokes from the back in the entire BJJ repertoire. Many matches in the black belt division of the Mundials have ended with this choke, so you know it works! This attack is called the 'Bow and Arrow' choke because when you apply it your opponent gets bent sideways into a bow shape, while you stay straight (i.e. an arrow). Bending your … [Read more...]
The 10 Second Choke Fix (or How to Tap Out More People)
How many times has a sparring partner told you "Man, I was SO close to tapping" after you'd been squeezing their neck like crazy in a desperate attempt to choke them, but then decided that it wasn't working and gave up on the submission? Frustrating, isn't it? Or have you ever held a choke for so long that you completely burn out your grips and have to fight the rest of the match with jello … [Read more...]
How to Make Your Chokes Tighter
Psst, wanna tap out more people with chokes, including that super-tough guy with the giant neck? Success in choking is all about the details and getting the underlying mechanics correct. Yes, you can get chokes to work with bad technique - people do it all the time. But it's difficult, wastes a lot of energy, and isn't very high percentage. But on the other hand as soon as you get the … [Read more...]
How To Do the Bow and Arrow Choke
The Bow and Arrow Choke is one of the top ten most successful submissions in BJJ. And when you get to the upper ranks - purple, brown and black - where people really know how to prevent and counter many of the 'easy' submissions - the Bow and Arrow is one of the top three submissions in BJJ competition. My point is that if you do BJJ you've gotta know how to do the Bow and Arrow Choke! In … [Read more...]
A Sneaky Rolling Judo Choke!
In BJJ it's often what you don't see coming that kills you. Which is why it's important to have a couple of surprise attacks in your arsenal. Today's video is from the Non-Stop Jiu-Jitsu instructional set that I did with BJJ world champion Brandon Mullins. It's a rolling entry from Judo that takes you directly into one of the most powerful chokes in the entire jiu-jitsu repertoire: the Bow and … [Read more...]
Some recent pics; see me get choked!
Emily Kwok is a BJJ black belt who has trained with some of the best people in the world. And she's been very successful at the highest levels of competition in BJJ, Submission Grappling and Women's MMA. And she recently choked me silly for the camera... … [Read more...]