Jiu-jitsu and submission grappling offer techniques to attack almost every major joint in the body including the elbow, shoulder, neck, knees, feet, and ankles. These should be your bread and butter submissions because they have a long, proven track record of effectiveness. I think a bit of variety is a good thing, however, so let’s talk about a not-so-common attack: wrist locks! The … [Read more...]
Three and a Half Techniques to Escape from a Tight Closed Guard Overhook
Just the other day I shared four counters to a pesky deep cross-collar grip from closed guard. Well, the cross-collar grip isn't the only way your opponent might try to destroy your posture... There's another posture-breaking grip that can be just as bad, and unlike the cross-collar this one can be used in BJJ, MMA and submission grappling. Gi and no gi. … [Read more...]
BJJ Wrist Injuries and My Guilty Conscience
Today's tip comes from my heart, because I learned this lesson first hand when I injured my first BJJ teacher (and friend) Pshemek Drabchinsky. Once upon a time we were grappling. I was on top and things seemed to be going well (this was unusual at the time because he was way more skilled than I). However on this day I almost had him pinned! Pshemek is one of those Daddy Long Legs kind of … [Read more...]
The Dangerous Locks
Not all submissions are created equal: some cause pain, some put you to sleep, and some do a lot of damage. Today I want to talk about the latter category, those submissions most likely to send you to the orthopedic surgeon. Knowing which locks are dangerous is important for at least two reasons: first, you need to know which submissions to tap out early to if you are caught in one yourself, … [Read more...]