In this study, I look at pulling guard in MMA as an alternative way of getting the fight on to the ground. It’s a rarely utilised strategy but has been successful for a small set of fighters who have excellent guards and have made it their speciality. The guard is technically an inferior position in fighting as you are on your back and trapped between the mat and the weight of your opponent on top of you while they can use the assistance of gravity to implement control and throw strikes.
However the UFC was built on Royce Gracie’s success from the guard and the impressive look of a small man submitting larger opponents off his back and Brazilian jiu-jitsu as a whole as built a reputation around taking this inferior position and with practice study and techniques turning into a spot where they have a competitive advantage and can finish fights. So in competition Brazilian jiu-jitsu players will often favour this position on their opponents to the point where double guard pulls where both competitors jump to pull guard at the same time was a problem, and a rule had to be developed to prevent both competitors from stalling from there. However, in mixed martial arts eventually, fighters got better at defending submissions from the guard and when you add that strikes are allowed the guard is not an excellent position to be in for a lot of sensible reasons. Not the least being that the time spent on your back will typically be seen as you losing the fight on the judges scorecards.
The Third Option: Pull Guard
So what situation would you need in MMA where pulling guard would make sense. Well, Eddie Bravo has a great video on this where he explains pulling guard is the third option. The basic concept is option number one in a fight is to beat your opponent standing with strikes and option two if you can’t win the battle there is to wrestle your opponent to the ground and score a takedown. The problem that arises is if your opponent has better striking than you and better wrestling so you cannot outstrike them and you cannot score a takedown. Well, that is where pulling guard becomes the third option. While I might suggest that clinching or working against the fence might be other options the point still stands that the guard can provide an avenue to victory that is often neglected.
Now several fighters have shown its effectiveness throughout the years, and a handful has actively sought this position in MMA. These are fighters who do have excellent attacking guards and are extremely dangerous when they’re in that position so for it to be considered a good strategy you do need to have the type of guard that the opponent would actively avoid if given a choice as they know they’d be in danger. So in this breakdown, I’ll look at the techniques that martial artists have used to pull guard and get the fight to the mat successfully.
Pulling Half Guard
Half guard is statistically the most common position that sweeps are successful from in MMA so pulling half guard is a great option if you have a strong sweep game to get on top and begin to throw grounded strikes or start working for a submission. Now if you want to pull guard, you will still have to close the distance on your opponent. Although sometimes guard pulls will be attempted by simply flopping onto your back, this is an awful tactic that leaves the decision to play guard as a choice for your opponent to make and looks terrible if they decide not to.
If your goal is to take your opponent down, then you’ll still need to be taking wrestling shots which may be getting sprawled on, and this is where we will begin to work one of the significant positions to execute a successful guard pull. This method still requires you shooting in deep for a single or double leg shot and getting to your opponent’s hips and thighs. So consider this the guard pulling paradox where one of the best ways to pull guard is going to require that you still have good setups and wrestling shots. Once in on your opponent’s hips, you’ll want to have your hands around their waist or even better maybe locked around a single leg.
The critical detail here is to get your outside leg to come round and hook behind one of the opponent’s calves which then allows some control over the opponent’s base to prevent them from standing back up and backing out. Once that outside leg has been hooked in place, then the inside leg can shift between the opponent’s legs to lock off a half guard position properly. Alternatively, the outside leg can be brought around the opponent’s back to control their posture while the inside legs knee is carried across the opponent’s hips. From there you can look to work one of the many half guard sweeps to get on top of your opponent and into a dominant top position or you could proceed to full guard and begin working for a submission.
Pulling Guard with a Collar Tie
The other majority of guard pulls are going to come from the standing upper body clinch position and performed with a few different gripping options with the first we’ll look at is the collar tie. Now, this still does require striking or feinting on your opponent to close the distance and get into the clinch and then securing an over tie a single collar tie or full Thai head control before jumping to pull guard.
These grips give control over the opponent’s head and are used to assist in executing the critical element of the standing guard pull which is breaking the opponent’s posture. With proper control over the opponent’s head and neck, the snapping them forward and adding your entire body weight for them to carry will help bring the fight to the mat. From these collar tie positions when the guard hits the mat, the collar tie can then remain on the back of the head to continue to control the opponent’s posture while the other hand can move to bicep or wrist control to start attacking a submission.
Pulling Guard with an Overhook
Another grip when in the upper body clinch is the over hook. This is good for guard pulls and setup by securing an over hook with one arm and having the other hand either controlling the opponent’s wrist or in a collar tie position. From there you can begin to break the opponent’s posture by getting them to walk forward with a Whizzer so that they become off-balance and when the guard jump is made the additional body weight will bend them at the hips and drag the opponent forward and down to the mat. Once hitting the mat that over hook gives a strong trapping guard that continues to control the posture of the opponent limiting their ability to land significant strikes and this position may be one of the best guards in MMA to begin to work for a triangle choke or an armbar.
Flying Triangle Guard Pull
Another guard pulling attack that works off the over hooks is to go for a flying triangle. With this move once clinched up with an over hook on one arm and wrist control on the opposite arm of your opponent, you jump in to pull guard while at the same time you push the opponent’s arm out of the guard on the side you have wrist control on so that you land in a fully locked triangle choke submission that you can begin to work on finishing immediately. Alternatively, if your Shinya Aoki you can pull off an extremely rare flying Omoplata that you use to sweep the opponent and land in top position.
Pulling Guard with Double Underhooks
Another option for the guard pull can also be performed from the double under hooks in the clinch. However, this would be my least preferred position to pull guard from, for starters if you do manage to get the double underhooks this is the best position to still work for a takedown so you may not want to give that up too quickly, but secondly if you do pull guard with double under hooks when you hit the mat it is going to be the most challenging position to control the opponent’s posture as both their hands are free to cross face and throw down significant strikes.
It can also be performed from a wrestling shot that is sprawled on, but the problem with being open to strikes remain as opposed to going to a half guard position where you are angled off to the side and working for a sweep. Alternatively pulling a butterfly guard with double underhooks may be the best position to work from with a butterfly sweep but if you can transition your grips quickly to gain control of the opponent’s posture, then this is still an option that has been used successfully many times by some of the fighters we’ve looked at.
The Jumping Guard Pull
A rarer option is to jump to the guard position from out of striking range or with only the slightest of contact being made on the hands of the opponent’s. Aoki and Imanari have done where they’ll run directly towards their opponent and jump at them relying solely on the momentum of the jump to break the posture of the opponent. This is pretty risky though, and you even run the chance of knocking yourself out as the back of your head slams down onto the mat but has been something that’s shown to work by these two fighters.
Throwing Kicks, Imanari Rolls & Leglocks
Throwing big kicks and guard pulling goes hand in hand, see another advantage of having a good guard is that it does open up more striking opportunities when standing as you can have the confidence to strike without being too scared of ending up on your back. This is especially true with kicks as you do not have a fear of your kick being caught and you being taken down as you know you can confidently attack or sweep from there. So with that belief, a common theme with fighters who have strong guards is that they will throw high kicks and low kicks with almost a reckless abandon.
Now a lot of the guard pulls in this study have been from Imanari, he might be most known for his Imanari Roll into a leg entanglement but should also be noted that many attempts at the Imanari roll often resulted in guard position which was just as desirable for him and may be seen as another option for pulling guard.
Moreover, there’s also a big crossover with the fighters pulling guard and attacking for leg locks. In the process of working to guard the opportunity for leg locks will be available and dropping into any of the leg locking positions in an MMA fight could be considered a guard pull. This is an exciting topic that is worthy of an individual study but be aware that leg locks and guard pulling are strongly connected.
A Conclusion to Pulling Guard in MMA
Now that rounds up this look at some of the various methods that have been used to implement this often neglected strategy, now while it is still recommended that fighters always work on their striking skills and wrestling skills to get them as technical as they possibly can. This is something to keep in mind if you have a dangerous guard and find yourself in a situation where you might need to use it. That indicates that you’ve spent time sharpening your guard, so you’re ready to sweep or submit your opponent as soon as it hits the mat
Peace, love and raging waters, Sonny Brown
References
Bravo, E. (2010). Mastering The System 10: Pulling Guard in MMA. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/IGkd6mlukoA
Gold, B. (2018). Why is “Pulling Guard” mocked in the BJJ community?. Retrieved from https://bjjproblems.com/blogs/bjj-problems/why-is-pulling-guard-mocked-in-bjj
Grant, T. (2016). The Art & Science Of Pulling Guard In Jiu-Jitsu — A Complete Guide. Retrieved from https://www.flograppling.com/articles/5049225-the-art-science-of-pulling-guard-in-jiu-jitsu-a-complete-guide
Kesting, S. (2011). Pulling Guard in MMA – Grapplearts. Retrieved from https://www.grapplearts.com/pulling-guard-in-mma/
MMA : Improve your gameplan – The 3rd option : Pull The Guard. Retrieved from http://moncoachsportifenligne.fr/pull-the-guard/
Why Pulling Guard is Killing BJJ. (2014). Retrieved from https://pennerlive.wordpress.com/2014/03/22/why-pulling-guard-is-killing-bjj/
Wilcox, N. (2010). Judo Chop: Paul Sass Gives a Clinic in Pulling Guard at UFC 120. Retrieved from https://www.bloodyelbow.com/2010/11/1/1759748/judo-chop-paul-sass-gives-a-clinic-in-pulling-guard-at-ufc-120
Zahabi, F. (2015). Pulling Web Guard Part 1 – Firas Zahabi – Guard Pulling 2.0 Series. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/K2SvF6kXNGk
The core of talent in martial arts is not dependent on the presence of remarkable attributes but rather the absence of limitations imposed on yourself by society and your subconscious. Society and self-interference can hinder your mental, physical and emotional performance and the four principles which embody this lack of obstruction are non-resistance, accommodation, balance and the natural order. All humans are naturally born free of all obstructions, and it is only through external influences of society and our upbringing that we unconsciously develop these restrictions that stifle our development as martial artists.
These four principles can all be witnessed in the natural world and explained in proverbs with which you might already be familiar. Trees that bend in the wind are examples of the principles of non-resistance, a gentle stream that can cut through stone is a case of the principle of accommodation, life thriving in moderate cycles is an example of the principle of balance and the regular changing of seasons is an example of the natural order. Nature can reveal these principles in action, but they are all psychophysical forces that transpire both equally in the human mind as well as the human body. It is said that training in the martial arts is 50 percent physical and 50 percent mental, or as former UFC heavyweight champion Bas Rutten would say it is 100 percent mental as you have to use your brain to want to get out of bed and go to training. A connection between the natural environment, the human psyche and body that creates a psychophysical hurdle that can be overcome by the four principles mentioned. Including these principles in your martial arts practice will change your training from a mere repetition of physical movements to natural movements that are influenced by your mental state, energy and environment. Embracing these principles can lead to reawakening your learning abilities and create benefits that will be developed through martial arts that can transfer to your daily life.
The Principle Of Non-Resistance
The forces of life will impact upon people in various forms, yet the ways to deal with these effects can be broken down into four different ways. You can disregard these forces them and risk having accidents that are caused by your ignorance; you can attempt to resist them in a manner that is inefficient and turbulent uses of energy, or you can implement the principle of non-resistance and use these forces to naturally blend with and energise your life. H is like building a sail that catches the wind to cross vast distances or how a bird can use that same wind to fly or a fish that swims with the current. All are examples of working together and in harmony with natural forces as resistance is not found in nature but is constructed in the minds of humans.
“Non-resistance is the key to the greatest power in the universe” – Eckhart Tolle
It should be clarified that non-resistance is not merely passive inaction in the face of life events as anyone with a lack of motivation can resign themselves to do nothing of consequence. Rather non-resistance is actively cultivating a sensitivity and intelligence to discern and interpret life’s subtle forces and then be able to naturally flow with them in peace. Problems of day to day life can be handled using the principle of non-resistance, but martial arts training and competition will also benefit from this concept. Through non-resistance, you use an opponents movement to your advantage and you can understand your opponent is a teacher that will educate you on your weaknesses and help you to improve and better yourself. Redirecting an opponent’s force to use it against them is a common theme in martial arts and is an excellent example of the principle of non-resistance in action.
“Do. Or do not. There is no try.” – Master Yoda
Unfortunately, most actions of humans are endeavours to push or pull on the river of life rather than flow with it in harmony, and this constant resistance is what causes physical and emotional anxiety. Anxiety or tension are subtle signals that something is amiss and should be carefully listened to so you can take responsibility for actions that may be causing this pressure and not resist by shifting the blame onto circumstances out of your control. The most common way a martial artist will experience resistance is by “trying” because the moment you begin to “try” you are immediately assuming a weakness to the challenge ahead of you, and this will cause tension. The tension created by “trying” is entirely a mental construct generated from trying too hard instead of flowing with nature.
“Aikido is the principle of non-resistance. Because it is non-resistant, it is victorious from the beginning. Those with evil intentions or contentious thoughts are instantly vanquished. Aikido is invincible because it contends with nothing.” – Morihei Ueshiba
A talented martial artist will never “try”, they will instead be smooth, relaxed, calm, confident and have a naturally continuous and flowing approach when training and competing. Trying to make or force things to happen creates turbulence and will be met with direct opposition, you can still achieve your goals by working with nature and flowing. Let things transpire naturally based on the complexities of circumstance and train without tension and resistance. For an example of this, consider placing a balance beam on the floor and walking across it and you will find the task relatively simple. But if you place the same balance beam across two skyscrapers you be in a different mental state that can cause tension despite it being the same physical task you have to perform. As soon as you begin to “Try” in martial arts you have created a mental opposition to your work instead of flowing, this psychological opposition will then create physical symptoms causing muscles tense and breathing to be interrupted.
The Principle Of Accommodation
Placing demands on yourself to encourage growth in training will need to take the form of progressive overloading where you repeatedly demand a little more of yourself than you are currently capable of dealing with comfortably. Progressive overload will require patience and the ability to tolerate repeated failures as you continually push yourself and take risks to achieve your life goals. Tolerance for failure will come with an intuitive understanding that each failure is an opportunity to learn and to make accommodations for these failures and lessons. To be able to build tolerance for your inevitable failures you must make your expectations realistic and achievable, so you know that with patience and continued perseverance you can achieve the goals you have set if you make your goals unrealistic and unachievable you will create frustration at your repeated failures.
“Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.” – Winston Churchill
Martial arts training then becomes a process of consistent development through an incremental progression of practical and sensible demands of your body and emotions. The principle of accommodation is much similar to a bodybuilder who wishes to increase muscle the muscle fibres must be broken down over time so that they can grow back stronger and evolve over time. Or think of grinding a rock into the shape of an arrowhead, this can be achieved if you grind the rock slowly and with patience but if you attempt to rush it and grind the rock quickly you risk breaking it. The demands you place on your body, mind and emotions must be gradual and within your capacity, taking one step at a time and this is the principle of accommodation. If you ever find yourself asking if you can become good at a skill, thinking that a particular skill would be too difficult you are not embracing the principle of accommodation. These question to yourself will create tension in your body and chip away at any motivation you have to achieve your goals. Instead, you must look at the gradual demands you can place on yourself and start making the steps on your path to whatever higher goal it is you wish to achieve.
“Failure is the key to success; each mistake teaches us something.” – Morihei Ueshiba
The Principle of Balance
Essentially the principle of balance can be summed up by stating “Neither too much nor too little.” and it is a principle that can be used in every aspect of your daily life, martial arts training and body and emotion. For a martial artist, balance is seen by not moving too fast or too slow, not being too aggressive or too tentative and not being too far high, low, left or right. The balance will control the pace and timing that every martial artist relies upon to be successful, and this will also filter through to your mindset in training. Understanding balance in training will allow you to accept that you will have good days and bad days and not become frustrated or impatient with an unrealistic expectation that every day of training should constantly be “good”. This understanding will free your mental state from the dependence of your outcomes of any particular training session and instead leave you to focus on the practical process of training and realise that the cycle of good and bad days will balance itself. Training becomes a balance of body, mind and emotions and any days where your physical performance is not excellent should be used to pay more attention to your mental clarity and emotional stability.
“Everything too fast is not good but everything too slow is also not good. You need balance. That’s why I like martial arts: it always tells you how to control your body, your mind, your heart. Balance. Balance can keep the world’s peace. I think that’s a very good thing.” – Jet Li
A martial artist will become centred and in balance with your physical body, mental and emotional states all simultaneously and notice how they all affect each other and are interconnected. The opposite effect of this can be seen in an opponent who is mentally out of balance or emotionally upset as they become much easier to defeat. Upsetting an opponent’s composure is what some prizefighters look to exploit when they trash talk an opponent in an attempt to emotionally unbalance their opponent so that their physical performance also becomes unbalanced. Physical balance and emotional turmoil are like fire and water as they do not mix.If you spend too much time thinking about your emotional problems, then you will become unbalanced, but if you meditate on your balance, then you will get rid of your emotional problems.
The Principle Of Natural Order
The principle of natural order is understanding the continual progressive development and changes that occur over time. For instance, the four seasons always stay in the same order and a tree always grows from a seed and never goes from a tree to seed. These processes cannot go backwards and cannot be rushed; it is human nature to want to accelerate the natural order, and this causes our mind to race faster than life is capable of moving. Although progression in the martial arts can still be seen as an equation of both time and concentration where you can spend less time to make the same progress if you concentrate your intensity, it still must remain in balance at all times. Training too long and too intense will cause you to overtrain, which is where your body cannot properly recover from the stress you are putting it under. Also not training enough and without any passion will cause you never to achieve your goals, so it is something that must be balanced and follow the natural order. A great sign that you have a balanced attitude to training is that you are happy and have a sense of humour, as you understand that no matter what achievements you make in martial arts they will not matter in the scheme of the universe or on the scale of the cosmos.
“There is no quick way to grow a tree that is strong enough to withstand a storm”
If you ever find yourself thinking that you should be doing better or you should be progressing faster, it is a sign that your mental state is not in the natural order as the word “should” has no place in the mind of the martial artist. As with the word “Try” the word “Should” suggest you are dissatisfied with your current state of being and will cause tension and emotional turmoil. Time is better spent taking action on what you can control rather than spending time thinking about the way things should be which can eventually lead you nowhere other than into neurosis. To continue your martial arts training with the principle of natural order, you must look to always be happy with your training and keep the enthusiasm and inspiration of a beginner.
These four principles of developing talent in martial arts will help you with your enjoyment and growth of both your martial arts practice and your daily life. You want to balance between the positive and negative aspects of life and practice nonresistance with whatever circumstances life will bring towards you. Do not get stressed if things do not happen fast enough for you and realise this it part of the natural order and instead embrace accommodation and work on the process of achieving small goes and make continued progress. You will use all these principles to transcend illusionary self-concepts, break down emotional obstacles and develop martial arts talent.
Reference: Millman, D. (1979). The Warrior Athlete. Walpole, N.H.: Stillpoint Pub.
If you are looking to improve, you need to become a self-reliant learner.
Typically we only spend a few hours each week in class, and this is simply not enough to progress in the sport! You need to spend time outside of class learning!
Prepare your mind to learn
Try to be in a happy, accepting state.
Try to not be negative about what has been going on in your day
If you need sleep and can afford to get more rest, SLEEP! If you have bad breath and that bothers you, BRUSH! If you have little pet peeves, which are bothering you, FIX THEM. The more that you have to keep your brain from wandering to the better!!!)
You must do something calming yet slightly active for exactly 10 minutes before class. If you do warm ups, then this is a good start but consider walking on the treadmill for 10 minutes and listening to music before you start your training. Stretching and listening to music is also good.
Establishing an emotional connection makes you learn faster. Think of all the subjects in high school that you didn’t want to learn. They were the most difficult ones for you while others that you enjoyed seems to be easy.
What style do I learn best?
Visual (spatial): You prefer using pictures, images, and spatial understanding.
Aural (auditory-musical): You prefer using sound and music.
Verbal (linguistic): You prefer using words, both in speech and writing.
Physical (kinesthetic): You prefer using your body, hands and sense of touch.
Logical (mathematical): You prefer using logic, reasoning and systems.
Social (interpersonal): You prefer to learn in groups or with other people.
Solitary (intrapersonal): You prefer to work alone and use self-study.
If you are a visual learner, use images, pictures, and other visual media to help you learn. Incorporate as much imagery into your visualizations as possible.
Use mind maps. Use color and pictures in place of text, wherever possible. If you don’t use the computer, make sure you have at least four different color pens.
Diagrams can help you visualize the links between parts of a system, for example, major engine parts or the principle of sailing in equilibrium. Replace words with pictures, and use color to highlight significant and minor links.
Use BJJ books and try to recall the step by step images in the book
Use sound recordings to provide a background and help you get into visualizations. For example, use a recording of you or the instructor talking through the techniques step by step. If you don’t have these recordings, consider creating them while training or writing them down and recording them after class.
Use mnemonics and acrostics, make the most of rhythm and rhyme, or set techniques to a jingle or part of a song.
If you are a verbal learner, try the techniques that involve speaking and writing. Find ways to incorporate more speaking and writing in techniques. For example, talk yourself through techniques or use recordings of your techniques or combos for repetition.
When you read content aloud, make it dramatic and varied. Instead of using a monotone voice to go over a procedure, turn it into a lively and energetic speech worthy of the theater. Not only does this help your recall, you get to practice your dramatic presence!
If you use action, movement and hands-on work in your learning activities. Having someone do the technique to you first is going to be your best option. Also drilling the move and going through details.
For visualization, focus on the sensations you would expect in each scenario. For example, if you are visualizing the feel of the gi collar or sleeve. Where your weight needs to be. Often you will feel yourself have to move around while visualizing.
Keep in mind as well that writing and drawing diagrams are physical activities, so don’t neglect these techniques. Perhaps use big sheets of paper and large color markers for your diagrams. You then get more action from the drawing.
If you are a logical learner, aim to understand the reasons behind your techniques. Knowing more detail behind your techniques helps you memorize and learn the material that you need to know. Explore the links between various methods, and note them down.
Think of concepts
Also, remember that association often works well when it is illogical and irrational. It doesn’t matter how logical two items are together. You have a better chance of recalling them later if you have made the association illogical. Your brain may protest at first! So think about giving concepts or techniques funny names.
You may sometimes over analyze certain parts of your learning or training. Over analyzing can lead to analysis paralysis. You may be busy, but not moving towards your goal. If you find, you are over analyzing stop! Take what you have and start doing. Often people try to take in a whole system of techniques and its tough to digest.
If you are a social learner, aim to work with others as much as possible. Try to hit as many classes as possible. If this is not available, then consider forming your group with others at a similar level. They don’t have to be from the same school or class.
Role-playing or slow rolling is a technique that works well with others, whether its one on one or with a group of people. Drilling with training partners in a slower scripted grappling session works great!
Mind maps and systems diagrams are great to work on outside of class. You can even use sites like Mind Mup to create them and share with your friends. Allowing them to add info or make changes.
Use books, DVDs, blogs and other media to learn as much as possible then ask questions of your instructors to help clarify gaps in your learning.
Align your goals and objectives with personal beliefs and values. If there is misalignment, you may run into issues with motivation or confidence.
Keep a journal of techniques, thoughts and feelings about the classes you attend.
When you associate and visualize, highlight what you would be thinking and feeling at the time you made the journal entries. You may want to do most of your visualization and association in private.
LEARNING PHASE: This is the initial phase. Generally this is when an instructor is showing you a technique for the first time and you are just beginning to start to learn it. Try to watch the instructor carefully and break the move into 4-5 small chunks. Write them down if you want.
RE-ITERATION PHASE: Begin to drill the techniques. Try to replay the steps in your head. Saying them under your breath if you want to.
REPEAT: Repeat the above steps for all the techniques
DO: Try to put yourself in the situations you learned that class
RETAINMENT PHASE: At the end of rolling try to recall each step of each technique you learned in class. Then later that night when you are going to bed do a mental check to see if you can remember the techniques you learned.
RE-DO PHASE: The next day in the morning commit a few minutes to trying to remember the techniques you learned. Using as many senses as possible to recall them. Saying them out loud or writing them down will help too. The last part is to work them into the next grappling session you have along with the new techniques you learned that day.
Block Vs Random Training
Block Training
Blocked Practice is what you see in gyms across America. These are all of the ‘traditional’ practice techniques that we thought were best. Block is when you work on one particular skill or technique at a time – think drilling 100 arm bars at a time
Random Training
Random Practice is a motor learning technique that creates a random and highly variable environment for development. Rather than focusing on just one skill or technique at a time. This will combine a number of techniques and skills in a random fashion
The great part is most gyms already are setup this way. You first learn via block than random. However you as a person need to make changes to make sure you are getting the most benefit from it!
Block Training
Technique Learning
Situational Drilling with no variables
This is still necessary in my opinion. You need to learn the skill in an organized fashion first. Concentrate on learning the technique and establish links to previous techniques or ideas.
Random Training
Live Grappling
Slow Rolling
Situational Drills with changing variables
When rolling try to put yourself into positions that you are still learning or have just learned to refine the new technique. Don’t always rely on tried and true techniques. Allow yourself to fail.
So what are you saying?
During the ‘extra’ batting practice sessions:
Each player in the Block Training group would receive 45 total pitches in a block pattern (15 curveballs, 15 fast-balls, 15 change-ups)
Each player in the Random Training group would receive 45 total pitches in a random pattern (curve, fast-ball, fast-ball, change-up, curve, etc…)
Two acquisition tests were performed to measure progress during the six week experiment. At the end of the acquisition phase a random transfer test was performed where all the players received 45 pitches and the number of ‘quality hits’ were measured.
A study was done looking into the effects of Block vs Random Practice on shooting a basketball. Students were divided up into two groups. One was trained in a block fashion (shooting the same shot repeatedly) and the other in a random fashion (shooting a variety of different shots). During the transfer test the experimenters measured the students’ success on their first shot attempt (a very game-like measurement because in a game you only get one chance to shoot a given shot). The results were again consistent with other experiments and field tests looking into the effects of Block vs Random Practice.
Each player in the Block Training group would receive 45 total pitches in a block pattern (15 curveballs, 15 fast-balls, 15 change-ups)
Each player in the Random Training group would receive 45 total pitches in a random pattern (curve, fast-ball, fast-ball, change-up, curve, etc…)
Two acquisition tests were performed to measure progress during the six week experiment. At the end of the acquisition phase a random transfer test was performed where all the players received 45 pitches and the number of ‘quality hits’ were measured.
The lizard brain will fight (to the death) if it has to, but would rather run away. It likes a vendetta and has no trouble getting angry.
The lizard brain cares what everyone else thinks, because status in the tribe is essential to its survival.
A squirrel runs around looking for nuts, hiding from foxes, listening for predators, and watching for other squirrels. The squirrel does this because that’s all it can do. All the squirrel has is a lizard brain.
The only correct answer to ‘Why did the chicken cross the road?’ is ‘Because it’s lizard brain told it to.’ Wild animals are wild because the only brain they posses is a lizard brain.
The lizard brain is not merely a concept. It’s real, and it’s living on the top of your spine, fighting for your survival. But, of course, survival and success are not the same thing.
The lizard brain is the reason you’re afraid, the reason you don’t do all the art you can, the reason you don’t ship when you can. The lizard brain is the source of the resistance.”
So how does this affect my learning in BJJ?
This is the part of the brain that tells you that you shouldn’t do this technique because you will look dumb in front of the group if you fail.
This is also the part of the brain that tells you that you shouldn’t grapple with the people that are better than you because you are afraid you will lose.
This is also why many people choose not to compete even if it would help their learning process.
Don’t try to fight it. You will lose. Acknowledge it and decide to do the opposite of what it says.
The lizard brain hates change. So make things random. Are you normally a guard player, try to get on top and be a top player for a bit. If you are a top player be on your back.
Treat your sense of fear and anxiety as a benchmark for things that you need to work on and get excited about making improvements there.
Everything is pretty scary at first. Driving a car, riding a bike and the first time you grappled, but once your lizard brain got over the fear it became old hat and now you barely think about it.
Learned Helplessness
Learned helplessness occurs when an animal is repeatedly subjected to an aversive stimulus that it cannot escape. Eventually, the animal will stop trying to avoid the stimulus and behave as if it is utterly helpless to change the situation. Even when opportunities to escape are presented, this learned helplessness will prevent any action.
While the concept is strongly tied to animal psychology and behavior, it can also apply to many situations involving human beings. When people feel that they have no control over their situation, they may also begin to behave in a helpless manner. This inaction can lead people to overlook opportunities for relief or change.
A great example of this is how they train elephants. When they are young they tie an elephant to a tree. The elephant tries to break free but is too small to break the tree. After days it gives up. Then when the elephant is bigger and could actually break the tree it doesn’t believe it can so it doesn’t even try.
How does this translate to learning in BJJ? Well when you first start you are often tapped out several times. This establishes a helplessness mindset. The great thing is that being aware of this helps you stay out of this trap. Everyone is human! Once you acquire enough skill you will be able to beat that person. The higher skilled practitioners are not unbeatable. He or she might just be right now with your current skill set but tomorrow is a different story.
Three stages of learning
Cognitive Stage- During this initial stage of motor learning, the goal is to develop an overall understanding of the skill. The learner must determine what the objective of the skill is and begin to process environmental factors that will affect their ability to produce the skill. The teacher must do their best to provide an optimal environment for learning, which may mean removing large distractors. During this stage, the learner mostly relies on visual input and trial and error to guide learning.
Associative Stage – During this stage, the learner begins to demonstrate a more refined movement through practice. Now that the learner has had some practice and has identified various stimuli that may occur, they can focus on “how to do” moving on from the “what to do” in the first stage. Here, visual cues become less important and proprioceptive cues become very important. Proprioceptive cues refer to the learner focusing more on how their body is moving in space and what input is being felt from their joints and muscles. The more practice, the more proprioceptive input the learner receives to aide learning. Therefore, the more practice the better!
Autonomous Stage – During this final stage of learning, the motor skill becomes mostly automatic. Progression to this level of learning allows the learner to perform the skill in any environment with very little cognitive involvement compared to the first stage.
Don’t get in this habit! This happens when you first start and you want to know everything about everything! Your brain can’t process all that data at one time. You have to cut it up into bite sized chunks. No more than 30-40 minutes learning. As far as a technique number no more than 4-5. Then get into the art of doing! Once you feel you have really learned those skills, do the next 4-5. Allow your brain to digest the information that you have just fed it.
Also get specific! Don’t say I want to learn more from guard. Say you want to learn 4 sweeps from full guard. This will narrow down your dataset and help you master certain positions.
Research – Do – Analyze your mistakes – Research – Do – Reanalyze
Failing to get better – Do’s
Failures, screw-ups, and unknowns help you build resilience and character, give you insights about your work, yourself, and others, enrich your experiences, test your emotional intelligence, and add to your knowledge and skills. To gain the most from them, you could practice the following dos and don’ts on how to respond:
Feel and Reflect: Fully experience the emotions that come with failure before you jump to the next thing. You owe it to yourself to process the feelings (e.g. sadness, fear or anger) without getting overly attached to them. Speeding up and keeping yourself busy can cause you to miss out on vital lessons. To reap the nuggets, reflect and take a close look at what went awry. Did the mistake arise from a well-intentioned error of judgment or just plain carelessness? Reflecting on what didn’t work helps you learn from your mistakes and get on the right path.
Claim Appropriate Responsibility: Blaming yourself for events that are outside your control or constantly rescuing others signals that you’re taking on too much responsibility. But step up to the plate when your involvement truly matters. Think about your role in the situation and decide what you can do differently and better, going forward. Acknowledge your limits. Do you need more training? Is your workload too much for you to cover?
Admit and Reframe : When you acknowledge your misstep, you free up your energy to refocus on next steps. Get real about what constitutes success–dedicated work and true grit, coupled with mistakes and uncertainty.
Take Effective Action :Forget the word “try.” Set out specific action steps that you must take. If you fail to complete them, regroup and reset. Although trying is better than not trying at all, it gives you wiggle room to avoid committed action. When you focus on doing, you drop the drama associated with trying.
Failures, Screw-ups, and Unknowns | Dyan Williams
Failing to get better – Don’ts
Blow Off Failure and Move On Too Quickly: Failure can trigger painful emotions. It can derail you, raise your self-doubt, and heighten your anxiety. It often brings unnecessary stigma and shame. To take the edge off, you might dismiss your failures as trivial or reinterpret them as successes. But adopting an unrealistic, Pollyanna attitude has serious drawbacks.
Blame and Make Excuses: When you don’t take ownership of your actions and choices, you miss out on the chance to correct course. Blaming others or external events can give you a sense of control, but makes it harder for you to effect change. While clueless colleagues or a poor economy might be contributing factors, dwelling on them doesn’t change much. Chastising yourself also adds barriers to bouncing back.
Deny and Cover Up: Ignoring and hiding your mistakes cause you to miss out on the valuable lessons they provide. You are bound to repeat them if you don’t shed light on them. Denying your role in the failure or that a failure occurred thwarts improvement. Find a supportive group or create a learning organization where goof-ups are openly discussed.
Give Up Easily :Stretching and growing involves facing uncertainty and having setbacks. If you are not willing to move beyond your comfort zone, you might feel safe, but surely limit your opportunities. While quitting is not in itself a bad choice, you want to make sure you’re not simply succumbing to fear of failure. This kind of relinquishment leads to regret.
Embracing failures doesn’t mean deliberately seeking it or creating a lax work environment. It’s not a call for reckless conduct and disregard of standards. Fear of failure can be healthy when it protects you and doesn’t paralyze you. Failure and mistakes have real consequences. Do what you must to avoid or minimize them.
Failures, Screw-ups, and Unknowns | Dyan Williams
Mistakes are feedback
To make mistakes proper feedback you need to categorize the mistake into one of three categories.
Fluke – Try not to lump everything into this category, but sometimes they happen. You get flying triangled in 10 seconds. That kind of stuff…. things you know how to defend but it just happened. Don’t worry about these. Keep positive, laugh it off and move on.
Error in the Process – Your technique was off. You left your arm out of position and you got armbarred. Ask your training partner what you could have done better then try to fix it. Use it as a tool for further learning.
Having no information – You are a new white belt and you got swept from De La Riva…. You have no idea what de la riva is… How can you be mad at making a mistake you have no knowledge about. Your mind has built up no memories of this position so it will fail. When these start to come up. Learn about that position. Ryan Hall is a great example of this. No one was doing 50/50 guard and he tore through people that had no clue about this position. So don’t blame yourself, learn about the position and combat it next time. Also don’t get mad at the position or the person doing it to you. Its a learning tool…they are preparing you for when it might happen in competition
Ask Why.. then why, how & what.
Ask yourself why you are doing a technique this way. Why are you are putting your hand on the collar? Why should my weight be here instead of there?
Understanding why will help you better understand every technique. Then you can start to form concepts and generalities that you can use to simplify your game.
If you want to go even further ask yourself Why, How and What. If you don’t know why you do something.. have you really learned it? This concept comes from Simon Sinek.
Don’t know why? Ask the instructor… They don’t know? Research it online
More videos!!
Becoming a self reliant learner
Use additional resources like:
Youtube
Books
DVDs
Magazines
Seminars
Podcasts
Much of these tips will overlap but with a few small differences
Youtube
What you will find is everyone has generally the same idea on techniques for some of the smaller details will change. This is normal and most of the time both people can be right they are just doing the technique slightly different.
Tips:
Question your source! Only get videos from people you have found to be good teachers. I will include a list of my subscriptions at the end.
Watch one technique or an idea then search for that same technique to get a different perspective. Do all the steps then do the next technique. No more than 4-5 techniques at one time.
Online watch a few videos and only watch something that you can conceptualize. Basically if you are new hold off on Berimbolo. Not to say that you can’t watch it, but it should merely be as fun activity rather than trying to actively learn
Write the name of the move down. Then take step by step notes on how to do it. Splitting it up into about 5 parts. I use my phone to take notes so I can access them easily. Evernote is a great app for this.
Say the steps out loud. Then try to visualize the video in your head and follow along.
Watch the videos again and see if you missed any piece of info. Yes it will take longer but I would rather have you learn a few techniques well, over learning a bunch poorly.
Then before class watch the videos one more time. Then try it in rolling. Lastly compare what happened to the video a last time. Often videos include small changes to make for defenses.
Books
I actually prefer books over videos, but I think that is due to my learning style. The nice thing is that you can bring books with you.
Tips:
Again question your source! Only get books from people you have found to be good teachers. I will include a list of my authors at the end.
Read one technique or idea. Do all the steps then do the next technique. No more than 4-5 techniques at one time. Write the name of the move down. Then take step by step notes on how to do it. Splitting it up into about 5 parts. Even though the technique is already written down, you should explain it in your own words.
Say the steps out loud. Then try to visualize the pictures in the book in your head and follow along.
Read the technique again and see if you missed any piece of info.
Only read and remark on about 4 techniques. Anymore than this and your mind starts to wander. Your brain will also reject it because it seems like a lot of work. To do all this for multiple techniques.
DVDs
Ah DVDs I have hundreds of them!!! This is not the way to go. It lowers my bank account and I haven’t even cracked open half of them. So please take it from me. Buy one set. Go through it systematically then sell it online and buy another set. For this its a combo of Youtube and book theory.
Usually DVDs come in sets of 3, 4 or 5. Find the one with the most relevance to you! For example if you suck at half guard maybe pop in that DVD in even if its really the 3rd DVD. Unless it is teaching a system over the course of those DVDs.
Watch one technique Do all the steps then do the next technique. No more than 4-5 techniques at one time.
Write the name of the move down. Then take step by step notes on how to do it. Splitting it up into about 5 parts. I use my phone to take notes so I can access them easily.
Say the steps out loud. Then try to visualize the video in your head and follow along.
Watch the videos again and see if you missed any piece of info. Yes it will take longer but I would rather have you learn a few techniques well, over learning a bunch poorly.
Then before class watch the videos one more time. Then try it in rolling. Lastly compare what happened to the video a last time. Often videos include small changes to make for defenses.
Magazines and Podcasts
I love listening to podcasts and reading BJJ magazines, but this is not where I choose to learn technique. With these take a lighter approach to the learning process on these. Listen to podcasts and read magazines for more of the lifestyle of BJJ instead of techniques. It also helps you learn who some of the better instructors are and the big names in the sport. Many of the magazines have technique sections, but often they are very complex speciality moves to look cool in the magazine. If you are a high rank person give them a shot! If you are a low rank person read them over and try to get the concept of the technique. This will help you later when you start getting into more complex techniques.
Seminars
Man! I have a love, hate relationship with seminars. They can be great and they can be terrible. I have probably attended 40+ seminars in my day. Most are 3 hours. Don’t expect to remember everything! If you can take notes… do it.. If they will let you video tape for sure do it… but often people won’t let you.
Tips:
Take notes
Realize that you wont remember it all
Do the move the way the instructor asks…(Often you will encounter instructors that do things differently. For instance on armbars some people will say to always grab with your elbows and some will say to always grab with your hands. Do it their way while you are at their seminar.
Try your best to lock in the moves you like
Again if you can video tape it. If they won’t let you … ask if you can videotape yourself doing the move on your phone. Dont disturb the seminar by talking through the video. Just rep the move
Attitudes
There are a few things thats can help you learn just by changing your mindest.
Have positive expectations about class and about learning- If you come in with a great attitude you are more open to learning.
Anticipate the next move – When your coach is teaching, listen but also try to anticipate the next portion of the technique. This will get you in an inquisitive mindset. If you are right great! If you aren’t it’s much more likely to stick because it disrupted your current thought pattern
Accept feedback – If someone tells you that you are doing something wrong try to listen to them. Maybe they are right, maybe they are wrong but give what they are saying a chance. Again if you go in with a negative mindset you will never believe what they are telling you.
Focus on the positives – maybe you didn’t get the entire technique right or maybe you couldn’t pull it off live. I am willing to bet that you got certain aspects of the technique right. You just need to go back research more, then test more.
Carol Dweck – A Study on Praise and Mindsets
Ashley Merryman: Top Dog – The Science of Winning and Losing
Randomness
Don’t let randomness change your attitude. Say you hit a particular move 50% of the time. One day you are doing the move live and you fail 5 times in a row. Often this will send someone into a negative attitude. Then your average will actually get a lot worse. Chances are over time you will hit the move 50% of the time but don’t allow random spots of failure change your mindset. Chances are you will get it the next 5 times.
That being said, you should go back and see if any other variables were at play. Was the person better defensively, was your timing off, did you forget a step. Take it as a learning tool and not something you failed at.
Boost your learning outside of BJJ
Do mental puzzles – This is a fun one to do with BJJ too. Try to figure out as many different way you can get to a certain technique or combo. Try to figure out if you can do moves from other positions. Also take stock of all the techniques you know from a certain position. If you can only think of a few, you probably just found your new early for learning.
Visualize and Walking Meditation – Pretty much every day I walk the dog and listen to music. This allows my brain better time to process. Often you will feel like you were on a 5 minute walk and it will be 40 minutes.
Eat right – Not only is it good for your body and learning in BJJ but its good for the mind.
Get some sunshine – Your brain needs vitamin D and melatonin
Get rest – Many researchers believe that rest is the most important part to learning. It is what locks it into your long term memory.
Become a teacher
When you are a white belt I don’t suggest this, but it your are a Blue or higher this is a great way to learn. It really makes you figure out techniques. The why that I was talking about earlier! Once you have the why, it makes the doing part a lot easier. Teaching also helps build up your confidence. The more confident you are the less likely you are to feel ashamed if you make a mistake in front of the group.
Don’t recreate the wheel
One of the best ways to get better is to research a person rather than a particular position or technique.
Try to find someone roughly your same size. Read up about their training and their style. Try to copy it at first then make it your own. Copy someone that is already in the spot you want to be in. They have created a training plan already you just have to follow it.
20 hours not 10,000
Most people have heard the idea that you have to do something for 10,000 hours to master something. This seems pretty daunting but it has been shown that you can become fairly proficient at something after just 20 hours. Especially if it is very specific.
Essentially about 20 minutes twice a day or one 40 minute session for a month.
So do you want to get better at submissions from butterfly guard? Spend two 20 minute sessions per day learning about submissions from butterfly. After a month you should be really good at submissions from butterfly. You have to be specific though and you can’t double up on skills and expect great results.
Mind maps
Use them!
Have two mind maps
1) Techniques that you know
2) Grappling system complete with all the defenses you have been presented with. So say one of your submissions from guard is armbar. Standard armbar. Then on your mind map some of the children of that armbar on your mindmap should be all the defenses you have seen so far and the counter to those defenses. This map will be massive but will also help your coach come tournament time. It will lay out all that you plan to do and your reactions to thier counters. Try to also do it in a way where a counter can lead back to another point much like a flow chart.
Rolling is great for testing these. If a new defense comes up. Get excited. It’s another to add to your mind map and you get to research how to combat that one!
Types of sparring partners
In live rolls you will mean 5 types of people. Here is how you should handle each one!
People way worse than you – Work your new and unrefined techniques when going with these partners. Allow yourself to try new things and don’t use your “A” game
People slightly worse than you – Try to work on more of your refined techniques mixed in with a few new tricks. Use some of your A game
Your equals – Use your main go to techniques and log the mistakes you found
People slightly better than you – Work on some of your defenses and try to impose your “A” game on them. Allow yourself to fail in new positions
People way better than you – Work on your defenses. Still try to out technique your opponent but realize the real learning is coming in your defenses.
Flow rolling with a purpose
In my eyes there are two types of flow rolling.
Flow rolling
1) Both people grappling with little to no resistance. Both are trying out new moves, having fun and just seeing where the roll takes them. This turns into an almost active meditation state and is great for having fun and learning new areas of the gym.
Flow rolling with a purpose
2) in the second situation one person goes in with the idea of drilling a specific set of techniques. Their partner helps them to get in these situations and allows them to do the move that they wish to do. Then they begin to add small amounts of resistance at those particular moves and presented different defenses to those particular moves. So you will continue to grapple just like your flow drilling but actively trying to put the main trading partner into those positions they want to learn.
Final thoughts
Be specific in what you want to learn – example I want to learn 3 sweeps from deep half guard
Be random in the way that you learn the techniques. Learning one technique then learning all the defenses and variations of that technique so nothing surprises you.
Use more senses – Hear, Watch, Write it out, say it out loud, recreate it on video
Get much needed rest
Ask why – if you know the why you are much more likely to understand how
Bring a positive attitude everytime to class and your learning
Don’t allow yourself to slip into learned helplessness
Notes on Beyond Technique Concept Focused BJJ – By Kit Dale and Nic Gregoriades
Beyond technique is a DVD of 20 BJJ concepts which can be summarized as follows :
Transitional Pressure When moving between positions, (sidemount, knee ride, north south, mount ) you want to maintain the pressure on your opponent at all times.At no point do you want to take the preassure off. Constant pressure and control.
The Fisherman
Like lifting your fishing rod up in the air before you begin to wind the reel to help land the fish.
If you are in someones guard and they have grips on your sleeve stand up and posture with your legs and hips and then recover control of your sleeves by bringing them closer to your body. The opposite would be just trying to pull your arms in on their own.
Instead let your legs, hips and posture be the fishing rod lifting up and then pull your arms in
The Quadrant
“A four legged table is a stable base, a two legged table falls of its own accord”
Consider an opponent on their hands and feet with each limb representing a table leg. Then Divide the body into 4 quadrants. With one quadrant representing the left leg, right leg, left arm and right arm.
To plan your sweeps you want to look at what quadrant of your opponent you have neutralised and that is the area and direction that they can be swept into.
A quadrant that is defended by a free hand or leg will be used to support the opponent if you try to sweep them into that quadrant. Instead immobilise a quadrant and sweep into that quadrant.
Post , Pressure and leverage.
Three principles used for sweeps. Either do all three or two really well for a sweep to work. Taking away the ability to post is the same as the quadrant concept .You then want to get a grip to take away the opponents posture. Once you have taken away their post and posture you need to create a leverage point on there body by getting a grip or using your foot and then sweep into the quadrant that you have taken away the post from.
The Porcupine
The porcupine concept states that when someone is trying to control you , you should be “spiky” or “Prickly” like a porcupine by using harder parts of your anatomy against softer parts of your opponents anatomy. For example using your wrist bone or the point of your elbow against soft parts of your opponent’s neck or sternum.
Nullifying the guard pull.
For competition Jiu Jitsu against guard pullers. TO pull guard the opponent’s hips must come closer than their shoulders. To nullify this look to grab their lapel on their shoulder and break them forward so that their shoulder will always be closer to you than their hips.
If they pop back after you have broken their posture forward the will be susceptible to leg sweeps / trip takedowns.
The Corkscrew
Deals with how you push and pull with your arms. Do not push straight out , it is a more efficient movement to rotate your arm when you push out, similar to throwing a punch.
When pulling it is the same concept but in reverse, so when you pull in you will rotate your arm.For example if your palm was facing down when you grabbed your opponent you will rotate your arm so that once you finish pulling in your palm will face up . Essentially pulling and pushing as if you were throwing punches and rolling your knuckles over.
Weight distribution
When guard passing you must always control your balance, base, center of gravity or else you will be easy to sweep.
Changing your center of gravity to the opposite of where your opponent is looking to sweep you will make it difficult for them. This will usually be controlled by moving your hips.
If they have taken a post away then you can use the quadrant concept in reverse by shifting your weight and center of gravity to the opposite quadrant from your compromised quadrant.
Collapsing and inserting structures
Using your body to strengthen and reinforce an area that your opponent may be attacking, for instance placing a structure of your elbows between your legs so that your opponent cannot squeeze your legs together. Or creating a structure by grabbing the outside of your own knees and placing your elbows on the mat to prevent toriander passes. Any area that your opponents is looking to squeeze or crush see if you can insert a structure to prevent this.
If your opponent is using a structure to attack , for instance spider guard where the structure would be the opponents legs. To escape the spider guard you cannot be rigid and tense as this will give strength to your opponent’s structure. Instead you should relax and take all pressure away which will collapse the structure.
Double-Barrel Shotgun
This concept is for keeping your guard. Think of each of your legs as the barrels of a double barreled shotgun. When you shoot one of the barrels this is when you extend one of your legs out. Now in this concept you never want to have shot both barrels at the same time, that is you never want to extend both of your legs at once. You always want to have one bullet in the chamber so that even if one of your legs is extended you want your other leg with your knee to your chest so that it can protect you from having your guard passed.
Open and closed chain
Consider your limbs as chains that start at your torso and end at the end of your limbs. Your chains are vulnerable from being attacked when they are opened. Open is when they are not attached to the floor, holding into something or hidden away.
When considering the chain of your arms you want to protect the hand and the wrist because this is the end of the chain. For instance if you are feeling vulnerable to an armbar you need to hide or protect the end of the chain which is your hand and wrist. As long as you keep the chain closed, or hide the end of it away the opponent cannot finish the attack on the chain.
With leglocks your foot is the end of the chain. So a common leglock escape would be to clear your hip and put all your weight on your foot so that it connects to the floor . This is closing the chain of your legs by connecting your foot to the floor.
Removing leverage
If you are passing someones guard it is helpful to make yourself feel as heavy as possible to your opponent. This is done by removing the opponents leverage points or levers so that they are not leveraging any part of your body and instead are carrying all of your weight. An example of this would be when in butterfly guard pinning both the opponents legs together so that the butterfly guards lever is removed.
Spinal Torque
Consider your spine and when it is in a neutral position it is at its strongest. But if it is twisted, bent or kinked it instantly weakens your entire structure. Always be looking to put a kink in your opponents spine or torque it in some way to weaken their entire structure. Conversely when defending you want to keep your spine in the neutral position the entire time to retain your strength. For instance moving your opponents hips one way but keeping their upper body pinne or even moving their jaw / head in the opposite direction.By torqing the spine by attacking and twisting the jaw you will even weaken your opponents legs.
If you find yourself in a stalemate with your opponent consider their spine, is it in a neutral position ? Or could you torque it by moving their hips or jaw. And conversely consider your spines position and make sure it is neutral to generate the maximum amount of leverage.
Size specific strategy
For when certain moves only work on certain body types. For instance if you are against a taller opponent playing spider guard will be really difficult as they can create a lot of slack in their arms by simply standing . For a tall opponent you want to use a short range guard not a long range guard as you want to neutralise the advantage of height that your opponent may have. Conversely If you are taller use a long range guard.
The same principle applies when passing. If you are going against a taller opponent you will have to pass by keeping close to their body or by using a half guard pass so that they cannot use the full length of their limbs.
Border Patrol
Consider you have an invisible border running down the side of your torso and between your shoulder and across your hips. Think of a rectangle between your shoulders and hips.. You want to make sure your opponent never gets inside your borders if they are wanting to control you. Conversely if you are looking to control your opponent then you want to get inside this border. When defending your border you never want to let your opponent get there body in your border so your would jam a limb or knee between your border and your opponents body to prevent this.
Even when on mount this would be pulling the opponents elbows away from their body / border so that they become compromised.
Loading the spring
When passing the guard or sweeping you can accidently telegraph your move, consider this as loading up your punches or pulling back before you punch.
For example when attempting a pass when you would push your opponents legs in and then pull them out to pass the legs. You do not want to push the legs in suddenly as this is the telegraph to your opponent. Instead you would load the spring by driving your pressure in slowly until you feel your opponent start to push away and you would then pull their legs out.
If any movement involves a push / pull motion then loading the spring is not exploding into the push pull which would telegraph your intentions. But rather slowly forcing your opponent into the position where you would have pushed them (this would be when the spring is loaded) and then executing the pull.
The Pendulum
Using a part of your anatomy that you throw through space that creates a pendulum effect to move the rest of your body.
For example when laying flat and looking to sit up you would not just raise your shoulders up , instead you would raise your legs to the sky and then throw them down towards the ground. THis would create the pendulum effect that would lift your shoulders.
Take down postures
A concept that takes your opponents posture into account to dictate what takedown you would use against them. If they are standing very upright then you would attack their legs with trips or leg picks. If your opponent is leaning forward then you would instead consider throwing them.If your opponent is really far back and leaning forward then you would look to snap them down.
With these three setups in mind you can rotate between them as the counters from one posture and take down will usually lead them into one of the other postures.
Hip centric movement
Often in scrambles you may reflexively move your arms to gain control over your opponent but it is instead much better to think of where you move your hips and use your hip position to gain control over your opponent. For instance do not reach or grab your opponent but rather move your hips closer to them which will give you much more leverage.
The Misdirection
Like Judo whoever gets the dominant grips will most likely win. Misdirection is to get the grips you want without telegraphing your intention. If you want to grab their feet you do not want to look at there feet and move directly to grab them as it will be obvious to your opponent. instead want to see where your opponent is looking or paying attention to and use movement to misdirect them away from where you are looking to grip. This may be looking at their legs and grabbing the lapel instead and not easily telegraphing your intention to your opponent.
