The omoplata is one of my very favorite attacks and submissions (hey, it was the subject of my first instructional after all). You can hit it from almost any position, and finish it in a huge number of different ways. But just as with any successful attack there are a lot of counters your opponent can use, and you need to know how to react to those counters. One of the most common … [Read more...]
How to Take the Back from Side Control Using the Kimura Armlock Grip
The rear mount is arguably the best position in BJJ. (For a breakdown of the 6 basic positions click here.) Once you're behind the other guy you can attack him with chokes, joint locks and even strikes without much fear of retaliation. But establishing rear mount on a resisting opponent can be tricky, especially if he has learned some basic defenses like not exposing his back during … [Read more...]
A Primer for Inversions in BJJ
Inversions and going upside down have become part of mainstream jiu-jitsu. There are now many techniques where you flip upside down temporarily to achieve your defensive or offensive goals Now can you train BJJ without ever inverting? Absolutely! But can you compete at a high level without inverting? Probably not. I think it's safe to say that every high level competitive blackbelt today … [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...]
Advanced Omoplata Finish
Jiu-jitsu is so cool! As you might know, the omoplata armlock is one of my very favorite techniques. But even after 10 years of studying this position, I'm still learning new stuff about it... Today I want to share a variation of the omoplata that I learned this summer working with Brandon Mullins. Of course this finish works great on larger people, but even though I'm 6'2' and 215 lbs I'm … [Read more...]
12 BJJ Black Belts Give Their Best Tips for Starting BJJ {Video and Podcast}
Today you're going to get 12 BJJ black belts give their best tips, strategies and advice for people just starting out in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. White belts looking for help getting started and organising their training will really benefit from watching this. Although there are a few themes the fascinating thing is how diverse the advice is. There is no one path, no one BJJ tip to rule them all, … [Read more...]
A Simple Tweak for a Killer Triangle Choke
In the late 1990's I had the pleasure of training with UFC fighter and Sambo champion Oleg Tartarov a number of times. And it turned out that not only was he a tough, skilled and relentless competitor, but he was also a very skilled teacher. Here's a detail about the triangle choke that he showed me that I share just about every time I ever teach this move. It's all about how hiding the … [Read more...]
de la Riva guard Basic Grips
The de la Riva guard is a super-powerful position in modern jiu-jitsu, and many competitors use it as their primary open guard option, especially when they need to control a standing opponent. But this position is very grip dependent. Different grips open up different attacks. Want to dump him on his face with the ball and chain sweep? Better get your hands on that far sleeve! Want to … [Read more...]
Your Open Guard Options vs. Standing Opponents
If you end up on the bottom with your opponent standing up and detached from you then be prepared for a very frantic and dangerous scramble. Unhindered by your grips and hooks he can deploy his favourite Open Guard passes on you without having to feel endangered by your own attacks. Now of course one option is to use the separation and stand back up to your own feet using the technical … [Read more...]
Napoleon and How To Be Ready for Anything in BJJ
Napoleon Bonaparte may have been a megalomaniac who left millions dead in his wake, but if you read about his battles and military campaigns there is no doubt that he was a strategic and tactical genius. (Well, maybe he wasn't a genius when he invaded Russia in 1812, but before that he was damn near unstoppable...) He fought over sixty battles in his lifetime, during which he was … [Read more...]
Dealing with Big, Strong Wrestlers in Your Guard
I got the following question on Twitter where I hang out as @stephankesting. I think it's a question worth exploring because a lot of people find dealing with strong, large and aggressive wrestlers very difficult. Question: Hi Stephan, I’ve been training BJJ for a few years now, but I get frustrated when I roll with one particular bigger, stronger whitebelt coming from a wrestling … [Read more...]
A de la Riva Guard Submission: the Triangle Choke
The de la Riva guard is often thought of as primarily being a sweeping tool. But you can also land a lot of different submissions from de la Riva guard too! The main submissions include the triangle choke, omoplata, armbar and a few leglocks. Here's one of my very favorite de la Riva guard submissions demonstrated by Brandon 'Wolverine' Mullins. But before I go on I have to confess … [Read more...]
Non-Stop de la Riva Guard Instructional App Now Available!
We've just put out a brand new app that could add an entirely new aspect to your guard game! It's the 'Non-Stop de la Riva Guard' instructional app by Brandon 'Wolverine' Mullins and myself. And it's available for iOS, Android and Kindle devices. The focus of this app is on giving you a simple and easy-to deploy system for the de la Riva guard. A gameplan that DOESN'T require you to be … [Read more...]
How to Take the Back from X Guard
It's almost impossible to use the Butterfly Guard without also using the X Guard... When you attack with the Butterfly Guard your opponent is going to be doing his absolute best to shut you down. For example, that means that he'll be posting hands and feet all over the place to stop you from sweeping him. When he posts his hands or otherwise gets them out of position it opens up … [Read more...]
Hitting the Omoplata from the Butterfly Guard
Many people use the butterfly guard only as a sweeping position. But that's a mistake because you can also hit powerful submissions from the butterfly guard. In fact attacking with sweeps sets up submissions, and attacking with submissions sets up sweeps. Attacking with both from any guard position makes your game so much more effective; why would you want to limit yourself to only one or the … [Read more...]
A High Percentage Triangle Choke from Half Guard
In this new video my friend, BJJ black belt and world champion Brandon ‘Wolverine’ Mullins shows how to set up and finish his favourite submission from the half guard. As you watch it pay attention not only to the details of the movement, but it's really the underlying pattern of bridging and shrimping that powers the whole technique. Breaking a technique down into its fundamental components … [Read more...]
How To Use Moves You Already Know to Do Advanced Techniques
We've just launched the latest Grapplearts BJJ instructional mobile app with my friend Brandon 'Wolverine' Mullins. It's called Advanced BJJ Fundamentals. The name of this app isn't accidental, because it's all about using the fundamental building blocks of jiu-jitsu to make learning easier, to amplify the effectiveness and reliability of your techniques, and to build an advanced … [Read more...]
Top 10 Throws and Takedowns for BJJ
If you do BJJ or submission grappling then you should have some ways to get the fight to the ground. Yes, pulling guard is an option in sport BJJ competition, but ultimately this is a martial art, which means we have to at least occasionally consider the self defense aspects of what we're doing. Are you going to pull guard in a streetfight? Not bloody likely. In this Grapplearts article … [Read more...]
How to Pass the Leg Lasso in Spider Guard
Passing the guard of a good Spider Guard player is one of the most difficult, most frustrating aspects of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. And one of the very worst variations of Spider Guard to deal with is the 'Leg Lasso.' This is when your opponent wraps his leg around your arm and buries his foot under your armpit. (If you can't visualise the Leg Lasso from this description then watch the video - … [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...]