This butterfly guard pass doesn't require athleticism, speed or killer grips; instead this guard pass is all about the timing. To have great timing you either need to have super-fast reflexes to react to your opponent, OR you have to 'train' your opponent to give you a certain energy so you can anticipate it and have your response already waiting for him. … [Read more...]
Concepts
Some Principles and Concepts for an Effective Closed Guard
Too often people forget about the bread-and-butter strategies that have been effective for decades and get seduced by the latest shiny technique. Maybe there's not a better example of something that has stood the test of time like the closed guard. The closed guard has been controlling and submitting opponents with the gi, in no gi submission grappling, in MMA and self defense for a very … [Read more...]
Just Say NO to Getting Swept in the Guard
There's a strong argument to be made for knowing how to pass the guard both standing up AND kneeling down. This keeps your opponent guessing and allows you to change your game up and avoid his strengths. What I'm going to give you today is a free sample of my Black Belt Grappling Concepts Course that'll show you how to shut down one of the most common problems you'll encounter when you're … [Read more...]
A Blackbelt’s Private Lesson With a Jiu-jitsu Master, by Mark Mullen
This is a very interesting field report by my first BJJ training partner (and now BJJ black belt) Mark Mullen, who just came back from a trip to Brazil - Stephan Kesting. I recently spent 2 months in Rio de Janeiro, shortly after graduating to black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. In addition to enjoying the beaches, acai and famous sights of Rio I was looking to get on the mat and learn some … [Read more...]
Crowdsourcing Your BJJ
There's never been a better time to get better at BJJ. A sixteenth century samurai who wanted to improve his duelling skills had relatively limited options. If he put up with enough hazing and character testing then, maybe, his sensei would eventually decide to teach him some good stuff. And hopefully he would have learned some things by watching, or participating in, the occasional sword … [Read more...]
How to Defeat a Smaller Opponent
Smaller opponents can become big nuisances, especially if they have legitimate skills. You would think that the very fact that you're bigger than your opponent means you should be able to go full-Conan on them every time... Mongol General: "Conan! What is best in life?" Conan: "To crush your enemies, see them driffen before you, and to hear the lamentation of their vimmen." … [Read more...]
Tricks, Concepts, Techniques and Drills to Stop Your Opponent from Passing Your Guard
In December, 2008, I sent out a Grappling Tip Email with a tip about not letting your opponent control your hips (see the first tip below). I asked readers to share their best tips for preventing or blocking the guard pass... … [Read more...]
BJJ Video Tips for Beginners
In the spring of 2009 I asked my readers to send in video tips to help BJJ beginners. The idea was to augment and complement the work I'm doing with the BeginningBJJ.com site. … [Read more...]
Podcast EP10: The First-Ever Grapplearts Q & A Podcast!
Hey guys! Here's something different: in November of 2011 I answered questions from my newsletter readers (sign up for free here) on the first ever Grapplearts Q & A Podcast. Click Play Below to Listen to the first Q&A Podcast.... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r70ppo_7ZYU Find out how how to taper for competition, what to do when you're getting crushed all the time, what to do … [Read more...]
High Level Pin Escapes
How many times has someone almost gotten past your guard... ...You're just about pinned; it's just a matter of time... ...So you mentally relax, concede the position and prepare for the battle to get out of sidemount using your pin escape techniques. This approach can work, but it's very much the hard way of going about things. To make your life on the mats MUCH easier watch the video … [Read more...]
Sports Psychology for BJJ, MMA & Submission Grappling
*** A Sports Psychology Question from a Reader *** Hi Stephan, I was listening to your interview with Ryan Hall and I was wondering about which Sports Psychology Books you had read or would recommend. … [Read more...]
How To Stop Someone From Passing Your Guard
A reader writes: Hi Stephan, Thank you for the newsletters! I started training BJJ and MMA about 5 months ago - it's been life changing for me. Do you have any tips for keeping someone in your guard and not letting them pass? Sincerely, R.W. ======== My Answer ======== Hi R, First of all, congratulations for jumping into such a challenging and hugely rewarding sport. Most of the … [Read more...]
How to Defeat the Bigger, Stronger Opponent
Today is a very exciting day! For the past few months I've been working like crazy to get my new DVD series finished. In these videos I'm collaborating with my friend, and former teammate, Emily Kwok. She's one of the best known competitive grapplers out there! For a lot of different reasons. … [Read more...]
What’s With ‘Sensitivity Training’ On The Mat?
There's just no way around it! Physical attribute are important in grappling. Some of the most important ones include speed, strength, balance, endurance, and flexibility. But there's another physical attribute that's often overlooked: sensitivity! … [Read more...]
Best Type of BJJ Guard for Beginners
Vitor 'Shaolin' Ribeiro is a four time World BJJ Champion. In MMA he held the welterweight title in Japanese Shooto. And he has the Cage Rage lightweight championship belt proudly mounted on the wall too... … [Read more...]
Marcelo Garcia Chokes Me Out Repeatedly
Marcelo Garcia is maybe the very best person in the world at attacking the turtle position. But before I tell you how I know this first hand, I should point out that as you get better you'll run into the turtle position more often. This is because when you're pinned by an advanced player it's pretty damn hard to put them back into your guard. And the other main escape option is to go to … [Read more...]
A concept that makes it MUCH harder to pass your guard
I shot a new video about a concept that makes it so much harder for someone to pass your guard. Figuring this one out was was a major "aha!" moment for me. And it works in the closed guard AND the open guard, both with the gi AND without the gi. … [Read more...]
Podcast EP3: Erik Paulson; an MMA Master Coach Shares His Secrets
Erik Paulson is an MMA Master Coach. He's trained tons of fighters competing at the highest levels of Mixed Martial Arts. And he held the Shooto light-heavyweight title in Japan for 5 years. He's also my friend and a mentor. Click Play Below to Listen to My Conversation with Erik Paulson... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cx7gT-EXohM Recently I asked my newsletter readers if there was … [Read more...]
Flow Sparring
Last week I had a short but fun training session with my friend Ritchie doing what we call 'flow sparring.' The rules of flow sparring are very simple: you have to keep moving, and you can't use strength. … [Read more...]
Black Belt Concepts Course Live Again
The Black Belt Concepts Course is finally live again!! There's no doubt in my mind that this is my very best instructional product; after all, it took an entire year of all-out work to create. … [Read more...]