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26/01/2012 - Teaching (Maintaining Open Guard)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 20:56:00 +0000

Teaching #038
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Can Sönmez, Bristol, UK - 26/01/2012

There are three main variants of spider guard, all of which require you to grab both sleeves: this guard isn't commonly used in nogi for that reason, though it is possible to adapt. You will also normally have your feet curled around their biceps. For the most common variant, put your feet on their same side biceps, pulling their sleeves towards you, then push one leg straight, while keeping the other leg bent. This is intended to break their posture, keeping them off balance.

That is true whether or not they are standing up. There are several basic spider guard sweeps, which begin by pushing one arm out to the side, that work in either situation. You also don't have to push your feet into both biceps. There are numerous spider guard variations, such as pushing into one arm while also hooking behind their same side leg, or pushing into an arm and also holding a collar, which can set you up nicely for a triangle or omoplata.

A second option is to use your knees rather than your feet. While you could use this when they stand, it is more typical to do so when they're sat in your guard, given the obvious point that you've got a much smaller tool to work with when using your knees rather than the full length of your legs. The same sweeps can work here too, except that you're shoving their arm out to the side with your knee rather than your foot.

In nogi, you could grab around the back of their arms, just behind the elbow. In gi, you can grab the sleeves. This is something that you'll see pop up in Gracie Combatives, where it is part of the punch block series. I don't really use this one, but it's an option, and there is a bunch of stuff you can do from here: for example, the series Big Mick taught when he was visiting us.

The third option, and the one I and Dónal prefer, is known as the lasso grip. Circle your leg around the outside of their arm, so that your lower leg is on the inside, then wrap your foot so that it hooks the outside of their arm. You can then either keep your foot there, or Dónal's option of going deeper, hooking it under their armpit and around their back. That gives you a bit more control over their posture.

In terms of your sleeve grip, it's important to get that fabric as far round the front of your thigh as you can, clamping your elbow tight to your side. Braulio uses the metaphor of tying up a boat at the harbour: to pull their arm free, they have to not only fight your grip strength, but your thigh and your elbow as well.

As before, you don't have to keep both feet against their arms. You can also switch grip on their non-lassoed arm from the sleeve to their collar, slide your foot to their shoulder, or indeed push on the hip. That's useful if you find that you want to create some distance, as well as keep them off-balance. Pushing into their non-lasso side knee is another option to disrupt their base.

One warning about spider guard is that it is liable to bust up your fingers. As I've mentioned a few times in the past, a black belt once told me he doesn't use spider much for that very reason. So, be careful with your grips, and know when to disengage and re-grip. Speaking of which, next time I might try adding in more about grip fighting, and possibly things like recovering spider guard from a guard pass. The technical instruction didn't take up much time: tonight's lesson was more about giving everybody plenty of opportunity to play around with the spider guard position. I may well shift things around next time, as I look to refine my lesson plans.

24/01/2012 - Gracie Barra Bristol (Butterfly Sweep)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 21:07:00 +0000

Class #442
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Dónal Carmody, Bristol, UK - 24/01/2012

More drilling with Mike before class started, working on an interesting quarter-guard sweep from Caio Terra's DVD. It's been useful for passing to keep working on specific positions like that, and hopefully has been useful for Mike too (in sparring, he swept me with the exact butterfly sweep we drilled a while ago, which was cool ;D).

Tonight's lesson went through the basic butterfly sweep. Dónal's variation was a little different, as you start from further out than normal. That means you're too far to get the usual deep underhook. Instead, you're going to grip on the back of their head, slightly higher up on the skull for better control (like a muay thai plum clinch, but with one hand).

Other than that, the sweep is the same. One foot is hooked underneath their thigh, while your opposite side hand grabs their same side sleeve. From there, lift with your foot on the head grab side, pulling the sleeve grip towards the hooked leg (you need to make sure they can't post with this). Your other leg threads underneath the underhook side leg, as you continue to drive their weight through their knee. Bring them to the mat, then transition to knee on belly. Normally it would be side control or scarf hold, but due to that increased distance, knee on belly feels more natural from here.

Specific sparring went as poorly as usual for my butterfly guard, which is a really weak position for me. My go-to guard is either cross-grip or spider, which are both long-distance, so the close-up nature of butterfly guard is still a struggle. I've said it before, but something I need to work on. Generally, they just stand up and we end up in one of the two aforementioned guards. I was trying to go to sitting guard instead, to stick with something at least related to butterfly guard, but that's even less familiar. So yeah, I didn't get too far on the bottom.

On top, I looked to pass the same way as when drilling with Mike a while back: stay low, get a strong grip on the collar, try to drive my knee through and get past their leg. I also had a go at the one Kev showed me a year or two ago, where you kick your leg back and bring both your knees against one of theirs. I think I forgot a few details though, as I was having trouble isolating the leg properly.

Good luck to Geeza and all the GB Bristol students competing at the Europeans! :)

19/01/2012 - Teaching (Passing Half Guard)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 20:30:00 +0000

Teaching #037
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Can Sönmez, Bristol, UK - 19/01/2012

Today I wanted to take a look at a position Ed Beneville and Tim Cartmell refer to as 'inverted half guard' in their book. The orthodox method is to get a similar 'super-hold' (as Xande calls it) to side control, then use shoulder pressure to hold them in place as you bounce your leg free and slide through.

With inverted half guard, you're using a different kind of pressure. For this pass, you will start off by controlling their head, where you have a broad choice of grips. Option one is to reach under their head with the arm on the same side as your trapped leg: that may feel counter-intuitive, as normally that is the arm you would use to underhook (it will make sense in a moment). Option two, still with that trapped-side arm, is to grab their opposite shoulder.

Option three is grabbing the back of their gi. Option four comes from the Beneville book: if you can get this one, it's probably the tightest option. Before you swing over, open up their lapel on the free leg side. Pass the end of their gi to the hand you have under their head and feed it through. Push their head slightly towards the trapped leg side, then shove your head there.

Whichever hold you've gone for (there are more, but we'll stick with four for now), the next step is to swing your free leg over to the trapped-leg side, so you're lying next to your opponent. This is where that grip comes in, as if you don't have one of those grips, they would be able to simply turn and take the top position. If you've gone with option two, in the process of swinging over, you'll bring your arm across their throat. That is therefore probably the least pleasant of the four options.

You need to be careful of their leg, as you don't want them to bridge. Grab their far knee to keep them in place. You can then kick their other leg off and free your foot. At this point, watch out for a counter they may try, which is to lift up your leg with their foot, flipping you over. To re-counter that, immediately switch from holding the knee to hooking behind their knee with your arm. That should stop them lifting for the sweep.

Also, very cool that there were two women in my class tonight. The number of female students regularly attending class at GB Bristol is about three at the moment, so I'm hoping that number continues to grow.

17/01/12 - Brown Belt Requirements Teaser & GB Bristol (DLR Back Take)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:30:00 +0000

Class #441
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Dónal Carmody, Bristol, UK - 17/01/2012

I'm among the fortunate group of people who received a pre-release teaser of Roy Dean's latest instructional, Brown Belt Requirements. So far, that just means the first DVD: judging by the outline I was sent, the set will be in four parts, with two DVDs of instruction, another with high quality versions of Dean's famous belt demonstrations (unsurprisingly the focus is on purple belts), then finally what looks to be a more artistic disc to finish off.

If you were a fan of 2009's Purple Belt Requirements, the new set looks like it will be following a comparable format. Again, the technical instruction is not in-depth, instead picking out details, almost always extending into combinations. There is coverage of the top and bottom game, generally finishing with a submission. You'll also get some insight into passing, but best of all, there is an extended discussion about pressure.

I'm looking forward to the full release, as there was a lot of content that would fit right into my game: I've been playing a lot more top game over the last few months, attempting to build up controlled pressure. That's exactly what Dean investigates, with his trademark smooth transitions. It's a DVD directed at senior belts, but not necessarily because of the techniques. I'm not talented or flashy, so to me, a lot of DVDs look cool, yet leave me thinking it's restricted to the latest Brazilian whizz-kid sensation, not me.

This DVD is advanced, but it didn't feel out of reach in the same way: to pull these moves off takes experience and timing rather than incredible athleticism. As in Purple Belt Requirements, the instruction is rapid, but there is more than enough detail if you've got the necessary mat time to recognise what's happening. Dean's selection is even more of an overview than Purple Belt Requirements, providing you with options and ideas rather than a carefully mapped out game plan.

It feels a bit like when you have a few higher belts on the mat before or after class, having a technical exchange. "Yeah, you could do that, but how about I go here?" "That looks good, but what about this?" I'm intrigued to see what else Dean is going to be sharing with the class, as he progresses to the undergraduate level of BJJ instructional.

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Tonight's class was a de la Riva back take I've seen before, but with a few different details, as Dónal has his own way of doing things. You're in de la Riva, hooked around one leg and holding the bottom of their trousers with your same side hand. Your other foot is pushing into their other leg, while your free hand is looking to grab a sleeve. They aren't letting you get the far arm, so instead, you grab their near arm. Swivel off to the side, lift your hips up, then kick your hooking leg through, so you can curl your instep all the way around their far hip.

Swing your other leg over their arm, trapping their limb, getting your foot behind their leg. Shimmy your hips to get square behind them, or alternatively, using your hooking leg to twist their knee, so they are presenting you with their back. When you're behind them, switch your grip on their trousers to the other trouser leg, then switch your sleeve grip to the back of their belt. With both feet behind their knees, kick forward to drop them in front of you and take the back.

I did some drilling and focused light sparring with Mike before class again, which proved useful for sparring, as it meant I did a lot of passing butterfly guard. I was tending to secure a collar, lock my elbow inside my knee, then work to shove down their leg and step over, or crush down with my hips. I was doing something similar during class, when specific sparring de la Riva. I definitely prefer to force half guard in order to pass, which in the past I've worried is something I rely upon.

Still, it is better than having no passing option at all, which is how I frequently feel in open guard. If I can develop a method of getting to top half from most open guard positions, then that means I can move into a situation I understand how to pass. It would be better to be able to pass a greater variety of guards with confidence, of course, but I'll take what I can get.

Also as has been the case over the last few months, I was spending a lot of time in top half or side control. Partially that's because I've been avoiding anything that puts strain on my neck, but I would also assume that it's because at GB Bristol the instructor almost always pairs you up for sparring. That means I'm normally with people about my own size, so I don't get squished on the bottom as often (unless I'm with somebody much better than me, like Dónal).

Even though I can get to those dominant positions, I continue to fail to launch much of an attack from there. Again, need to think about combinations, rather than just going for an americana over and over again, or always looking for my step over triangle positions. From what I've seen, it could be that Brown Belt Requirements is coming along at just the right time, as it deals with the same kind of positions I've been reaching. Handy. :)

12/01/2012 - Teaching (Attacking Half Guard)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 21:26:00 +0000

Teaching #036
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Can Sönmez, Bristol, UK - 12/01/2012

Continuing with the knee shield, I wanted to start with a simple sweep I learned from Nick Brooks. Having watched the Caio Terra DVD since then, I've been able to pick up a few more details: Terra refers to it as the 'half guard scissor'. Nicks version is from the knee shield with your feet locked, which I personally find more difficult to use (as I always get my knee shoved to the ground), but may work well for those with longer legs, or who are simply better at this position.

As I mentioned last week, the reason you lock your feet is so they can't raise their trapped leg and pivot, bringing their lower leg through the gap between your feet. If you're using the Terra version, you'll still need to drop your drop so that it is across their stomach, as with a scissor sweep from guard. In either position, always aim to prevent them getting a cross-face, as otherwise they will have a very strong position to work from on top. Therefore you need to block that arm, either with one or both hands, using the 'paw' grip.

For Nick's sweep, grip the sleeve of the arm with which they want to cross-face you with your opposite arm (i.e., the arm that would be on top if you were blocking with both hands). Your other hand reaches under their same side leg, grabbing the bottom of their trousers (not inside the cuff though, as that is illegal). Alternatively, Terra grabs the outside of the knee. In both cases, it is to block them posting out with that leg.

Pull their sleeve across your body so they can't post out on their hand. If you're having trouble getting that arm, push them a little first to lighten their arm, then pull it across to the other side. To finish, you want to do a scissor sweep motion, except that instead of chopping their knee with your leg, you're pulling it in with your arm. It also means you have both legs to lift and drive, rather than just one. Make sure you maintain the grips you have with your hands: this is key.

Also, don't get over-excited and try and jump right into side control. Instead, a great tip from Nick was to just roll your hips over, staying low and pressed into them the whole time, hip to hip. As you are still holding their leg, they can't re-lock their half guard. You can simply move your trapped leg backwards to stretch out their leg, then circle it free, moving into side control.

You also still have that grip on the sleeve, which sets you up immediately for an americana. You have a number of options to secure the figure four, depending on how you're holding that sleeve. One way is to control their arm with the other hand to then re-establish a better grip on the wrist with your first hand. Another is to roll your hand forward or backwards to change from the sleeve to the wrist. Or you could try pressing your head into their arm, and use that to hold it in place while you get the proper grips.

There is a handy follow-up if they shift their base to prevent the sweep, which Terra calls the back roll (I can't remember if Nick had a name for it, but 'back roll' is a rational choice). For example, you've gone for the scissor motion, but they have moved their head in the opposite direction your knee shield is pointing. You can no longer get the half guard scissor, but in changing their weight distribution, they have opened up an alternative.

Open up their arm with the sleeve grip, so that they move perpendicular to your body, using your leg grip to help (you may find the knee grip easier for this one, but experiment). This also means you can shift your knee shield so that they are balanced on the shin. If you get it right, they should feel fairly weightless. All you need to do now is roll backwards over your shoulder, still holding on to that sleeve grip. As before, you'll end up in side control with the americana ready to be applied.

Be careful of your head. Lift it a little off the ground and look in the direction their head is pointing. You obviously don't want to roll straight back over your head, or you're liable to hurt yourself. So, make sure it is out of the way and you instead roll over your shoulder, like when you do a basic backwards breakfall during drilling.

10/01/2012 - Gracie Barra Bristol (Side Control Choke)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 18:05:00 +0000

Class #440
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Dónal Carmody, Bristol, UK - 10/01/2012

Dónal is now back from Austria, which meant more cool drills to work body movement and weight distribution. They fit in particularly well tonight, as I spent about 30 mins with Mike before the lesson started drilling and then testing a butterfly sweep he wanted to practice. Dónal's drills were related to that baseball slide he has shown in the past, where you bring your knee out underneath your other leg. That has since increased in complexity to doing it from all fours, as well as doing a little hop and changing sides.

Dónal added on yet another layer of complexity with tonight's lesson. First off, he had us go on all fours, then fling our legs in the air, trying to land softly on one foot. The next stage was to do the same thing, but this time you switch your hips in mid-airs, bringing one leg underneath the other. That means you land with your legs splayed, like you would if you were dropping your hips low in scarf hold or something like that.

Even better, Dónal showed the application. As Miles attempted to butterfly sweep him, Dónal switched his hips. For the sweep, Miles had hooked under one leg: Dónal therefore swung his other leg over the top, which not only switched his hips, but also meant that he slid off Miles' hooking foot and into side control. Nice.

However, the main technique for tonight (and there was only one, which is good) was a choke from side control. This is the same thing I learned from Matt Burn a while back at RGA Bucks, but Dónal had a few more details to add. The basic idea is to open up your far lapel with your far hand, bunching it in your fist. Punch that past their arm so that your fist is next to their neck.

Your other hand should be underneath their neck, meaning you can then feed the lapel from your far hand to your near side arm hand. Straighten your near arm into their neck, then gradually bring your head to their near side hip. Keeping your arm straight as you turn should cause the pressure on the sides of their neck to increase until you land the choke.

Dónal suggested that you not only pull your lapel out of your gi, you also twist it up into a rope. Twist the gi towards your feet, until you have what is effectively a coil of rope. Hide that in your hand and punch it through as before. This rope should make the choke noticeably more effective at digging into the carotid arteries: keep in mind the choke is around the back of the neck and side, not the front or the throat.

Rather than simply straightening your arm, you also want to drop your shoulder and across. You can either sprawl as you move around, or you can raise your bum in the air to drive your weight through a smaller area. If you need some extra pressure when you're in that finishing position, Dónal moved his choking arm elbow across, which seemed to be a useful way to finish off a stubborn opponent.

Dónal also holds side control a bit differently. I normally bring my knees in tight, as I like that feeling of security: other people like to sprawl back, as they feel they can drive more weight through their opponent that way. Dónal sort of did both. He folded the leg nearest their hip right back, so that his heel was touching the back of his own leg, while still keeping the knee of that leg pressed into their side. His other leg was sprawled behind him.

Sparring started off with specific sparring from side control, which all of a sudden made me realise I haven't been under side control as much as usual (mainly because I've been either starting from or working towards the top due to that neck injury). Still, when I am underneath, I'm making the same mistakes, relying too much on stalling with the running escape position and either getting my back taken or getting passed.

I still feel relatively comfortable under there, when I look to recover guard with the basic shrimp escape, but as ever I need to be more proactive. Fortunately I'm teaching side control in a few weeks, so I can focus on revisiting those fundamentals again. Hence why I also started under side control in free sparring a few times too.

On top, also as ever, I'm mostly maintaining, failing to launch any real attacks aside from a transition to mount (which is useful, but not the same thing as improving my submissions). I had some relaxing technical rolls with the other two purples at GB Bristol, Miles and Dónal, which was cool as Miles isn't normally at the same classes as me.

With some of the blues, I was looking to work my guard passing and particular trying to get to the back, neither of which I did particularly well: I could start the movement, but not actually get to where I want to go (i.e., I was flailing around looking to break down their turtle, but didn't manage to get both my hooks in). Long term goal.

05/01/2012 - Teaching (Maintaining Half Guard)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 17:27:00 +0000

Teaching #035
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Can Sönmez, Bristol, UK - 05/01/2012

Last time, I went through what I see as the basics of half guard, which is essentially creating a frame to block their cross-face, get an underhook, then get onto your side. Somewhat reluctantly, I also went through the lockdown, which I was in two minds about teaching as it so often becomes a stalling position (not to mention it locks you in place, so it isn't something I generally advise people use).

This time, I began with a brief discussion of maintaining top half guard, which I wanted to use to illustrate a typical mistake in knee shield, which is my personal favourite way of holding half guard. Basically, I was just sharing what I tend to do, if people let me get away with it by keeping their knee shield too low. I immediately move to tightly underhook their arm then brace my other elbow against the back of their head, dropping my hips and sprawling back. From there, I try to gradually put them flat on their back, then establish the usual cross-face and gable grip.

Note that a good cross face involves you gripping under their head, so that your bicep is pressed into the side of their neck. Your shoulder drives across their throat and may also shove against their shin. The idea is to not only make them uncomfortable, but also prevent them from turning towards you (which they generally need to in order to escape).

I don't like hurting my training partners unnecessarily, as I've discussed before, so this is about the borderline for me in terms of 'dirty techniques'. It's possible to be quite mean with a cross-face, so use your own judgement based on the people you are training with (i.e., I wouldn't recommend smashing your shoulder into the throat of a small white belt who is trying out their first class. However in a competition, it may be entirely appropriate).

Getting on to the knee shield itself, (also known as z-guard, and I think Geeza calls it shin guard, though that may be slightly different), the central idea here is blocking their hip with your leg, meaning they have more difficulty moving forwards. One option is to position the knee across their hip, which means you can keep your feet locked.

However, that also means you knee is quite low, so there is the disadvantage that they may be able to shove your knee to the mat and pass, like we did earlier. To stop that, you could put your knee up high into their chest, like Caio Terra. As ever, there are pros and cons, as putting your knee up high may open up a gap between your feet.

If you leave a gap between your feet, it is possible your partner may then be able to simply circle their lower leg around and free themselves. So, if you can't cross your feet, then clamp them together, to create a barrier to that leg-circling. Alternatively, clamp them onto your partner's leg, again to make sure there isn't a gap.

The hand positioning is relatively similar to the Indrek Reiland version of half-guard I showed last time. Caio Terra gives a few more details on the 'paw' grip, noting that you should be blocking their arm with your wrist rather than your hand, as that makes it harder for them to bend your block backwards. The other arm forms a frame against their neck, meaning that the elbow of that arm is close to the knee of your knee shield (this comes in handy later for transitions and techniques, which I'll probably get into next week).

Terra also mentions that he likes to go in close with his head. The reason for that is to make it harder for them to circle their arm around his blocking 'paw'. If they can get past that, they can attack for the underhook. It's possible to keep re-establishing the paw, but then you'll probably get into an extended battle of who can swim their arm faster. Hence why Terra prefers to cut out that space by curling inwards.

03/01/2012 - Gracie Barra Bristol (Guard Pass)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 18:40:00 +0000

Class #439
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Luke Chamberlain, Bristol, UK - 02/01/2012

My first class of 2012 was, unusually, taken by Luke, one of the better blue belts at GB Bristol. I knew he had an interest in teaching from discussions we've had in the past, so I was intrigued as to what and how he would teach. Normally it would be Dónal, but I think he's skiing in Austria, and Geeza was also busy.

Luke more than lived up to expectations: he taught a very technical, carefully structured class, with loads of detail. That kicked off with a look at grip-breaking, which I'll definitely be keeping in mind for when I teach passing. Luke started with grip-breaking from the closed guard, from the perspective of the person on top looking to pass. If they grip your collar, the basic option is to place both your hands under their gripping wrist, then thrust upwards and away as you move your torso slightly backwards.

The second collar-grip break was a little more complex, which I hadn't seen before. IIRC, you start by bracing the elbow of your outside arm with your hip, cupping your hand underneath their arm, just before their elbow. Your other hand goes to the wrist again. Luke mentioned it was a bit like an armbar motion, as you're locking the arm out. As before, your then push up to break the grip (though I think I might be missing some details there).

Having dealt with the collar, Luke followed up with a grip break if they grab your sleeve. This was nice and simple, as you just circle your wrist in the direction of their thumb. If you try and go the other way, they can adjust and maintain the grip. Going against their thumb makes it much harder for them to retain their hold. Finally, if they grab your trousers near the knee, bring your hand underneath, then slide it up past their wrist to dislodge their grip.

Open guard grip breaks was next, focusing specifically on the spider guard. To escape my preferred lasso (where you wrap your leg around their arm), circle your hand behind their leg, then crawl your fingers around. I can't remember if the next one was also for a lasso or for the standard foot in bicep (I think it was the latter), but either way, you bring your arm down next to your knee, scraping their leg off, then circle your hand free of their grip as in the previous closed guard grip break.

If they are being sloppy with their feet in a foot-in-biceps spider guard, you may be able to simply circle your forearms under their legs, cupping the back of their ankle or leg with your hands, then push their legs off your biceps. That can then lead straight into a guard pass, as you take the opportunity to move round into knee on belly before they can recover their leg position.

The main technique of the night was the Margarida pass, named after Fernando 'Margarida' Pontes (read more about him here), a famous competitor from a few years back, who has beaten huge names like Saulo Ribeiro. Begin by grabbing their collars up high, near their chest, which is a common grip for when you want to stop them sitting up. Your other hand is going to grab low on their same side lapel, pulling it tight to take out any slack.

Use a swaying pendulum motion to stand up, then put the leg on the same side as your high collar gripping arm behind their bum. You want to get your knee into their tailbone: finding the right spot can be difficult, but if you just bounce your leg, that should be enough to jar their guard open. As soon as their legs open, drop down into a tight combat base: the knee on the tailbone break leg side will be raised. Your other knee will be on the floor, with the foot of that knee curled behind you, while your high collar grip is pressing into their shoulder.

It is important that you sink down quickly and tightly, as otherwise they may be able to sneak a leg behind to establish a de la Riva hook. I was finding that as I'm skinny, there was normally some space, but you can generally use your elbow to block what little bit of foot they manage to insert. Also, your weight should be mainly towards the leg you have on the floor rather than the raised knee. If your weight is leaning towards the raised knee, you're vulnerable to being swept.

Next, you want to slide your raised knee forward, up into their sternum, still pressing your high collar grip into their shoulder. The low grip you have on their lapel should help with this, as you can pull on that for additional leverage (a note of caution for drilling: you may end up squishing male training partners' tender areas if you're not careful). After that knee is into their sternum, you can shift your low lapel grip to the front of their same side trouser leg, about a fist's width below the knee.

Shove that leg down, coming up on your hips slightly if you need more force. Do a 'sumo step' over that leg once it is on the floor. Keep hold of that leg until you can slide your sternum knee to the mat, which will block that leg, meaning you can safely let go. Switch the leg gripping hand to instead grab their same side sleeve and pull it up high, across your chest.

If you can establish an underhook with your other arm, great, but most likely they'll be wise to that. In that likely event, drop the elbow of the high collar arm across to their other shoulder, so that your forearm is now pressing into their throat. Keep sliding through, until you can free your trapped foot, then move into side control. You also have the option to apply a collar choke, particularly if they're being very squirmy after you free your foot.

We didn't get a chance to practice that in specific sparring, moving straight into free sparring. I was paired up with three people not too far off my weight, which meant I was able to get into top half guard. I'm having a reasonable amount of success tightly underhooking their arm then bracing my other elbow against the back of their head, dropping my hips and sprawling back. From there, I found I could gradually put them flat on their back, then establish the usual cross-face and gable grip.

However, that was mainly because people weren't putting their knee up high towards my chest when they went to z-guard/knee shield. Instead, they were keeping it low by my hips, where I was able to sprawl on top of the knee and essentially negate it. That isn't a wholly reliable tactic on my part, as Callum used to knee-shield me all the time and I really struggled to get past: I think he must have had his knee a little bit higher.

I also failed to launch any real threat from top half guard. About the only attack I ever do is an americana, which is what people are expecting. I'm also often too hesitant about shifting from my secure grip to a position in which I can attack. I need to think of some options for offence based off that solid grip, with one arm under their head and the other under their armpit. Maybe some kind of choke?

Getting to mount a few times didn't help my attacks, as I'm limited there too. I'll either go for an ezequiel, but normally struggle to finish the choke (at least partially because I keep raising up, which gives them space to defend), or again an americana, but I'll often get stuck because my arm is still under their head. To complete the lock, I have to circle the arm over their head, at which point they can either block with their head, or take the opportunity to try and free their arm.

29/12/2011 - Teaching (Escaping the Back)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 13:34:00 +0000

Teaching #034
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Can Sönmez, Bristol, UK - 29/12/2011

I just finished my first day at a new job, which will inevitably cut down the hours I can spend preparing for lessons, especially as I'll need to carefully time-manage my PhD (although I've done that while working full-time before, so should be possible, especially as I'm in what should be the last few months of it now). Fortunately I'm also coming towards the end of my second cycle of planned lessons, after which I intend to restart at the beginning. I'll make a number of modifications to the lessons I taught in the first run-through of those two cycles, but it will be much easier than having to plan an entirely new thirty-six lessons. By the time I start into my third cycle, I should hopefully have got the PhD under wraps, which will free up lots of hours. :)

Tonight's lesson was relatively straightforward, as I was adding in some escapes to the body triangle I showed last week. I went through the escape briefly already last week, so discussed it in a little more detail this time round, adding in a slight variation from Nick Brooks. Once they lock the body triangle on you, your goal is to roll to the side of the dangling leg. Normally they will also be hooking their foot behind your knee (as this helps their control, because they can then lift and turn you).

If you can trap that leg on the floor, a simple footlock is now possible. Bring your nearest leg over the top of their dangling foot. Triangle your legs to prevent them moving their legs, then bridge, so that your hip shoves into the point at which their foot is locked behind their knee. That should cause sufficient pressure on their ankle and foot to make them tap. You can also try Brooks' version, where you instead use the heel of your foot to block their dangling leg in place, then bridge.

Two less effective options which may still yield results are to hook around their leg as they turn you to the other side. From here, you can again try and bridge into their locked foot and knee, but they have a much greater range of motion, so it will be tough to generate enough pressure. Similar, if their foot is dangling between your legs, you can try crossing your legs over that and bridging.

Finally, I went through a typical method for escaping the back, after you've managed to clear off one of their hooks. This is the one I saw a few days ago at RGA Bucks, which Sahid described as 'bobbing and weaving'. Pull the arm they have by your shoulder over your head, then fall in the direction of that arm. You're looking to trap it between your head and your arm: to further trap it, you can also try grabbing their tricep. Still on that side, pop your hips over as usual (either use your hand, if your neck is safe, or push their hook off with your opposite heel), but as you move around to side control, keep facing their head. That should set you up nicely for a d'arce choke.

Last week, there were only three people in class, which meant I could take part too. I found that the specific sparring drills from the back were helpful in terms of making me think more carefully about how I tried to escape: hopefully if it did that for me, the same was true of the students. So, I decided to include it again, with the same rule that the person on the back was purely looking to maintain the back position, not submit their opponent (although this time there were enough people that I didn't need to take part until later, when I paired people up).

There is the danger there that you become complacent about protecting your neck (so I made a point of mentioning that throughout: it should hopefully have become clear during a later round of specific sparring, where I brought submissions back in), but I think it also helps you really concentrate on how to remove those hooks. It also encourages you to pay careful attention to their weight distribution and use of pressure.

27/12/2011 - RGA Bucks (The Back)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 17:10:00 +0000

Class #438
RGA Bucks, (BJJ), Yas Wilson, Aylesbury, UK - 27/12/2011

Hope you all had a great christmas! I stuffed myself with biscuits, beef wellington and cheese, so it was good to make a start on working that off at RGA Bucks. I made sure to walk rather than accepting the offer of a lift from my parents (who were themselves on the way to a gym), to get in some extra beef-burning. It is a roughly 30-40 minute walk from their house, so I normally go on foot: if I lived here, then I'd probably cycle it instead.

Kev wasn't there, so I couldn't congratulate him on his shiny new black belt, but there were plenty of top notch training partners, like Sahid, Tom and fellow BJJ reviewer Dan, not to mention Yas herself. The topic for tonight was the back, and in classic RGA Bucks fashion, Yas covered both the attack and the defence.

To start with offence, Yas ran through the basic RNC. Her finish was slightly different, as she likes to push on the shoulder by your choking hand. That helps to cinch your grip in tight. Rather than then slipping the arm behind and squeezing, Yas does something more akin to an ezequiel without the gi (which is interesting, as I was just chatting about that with a cool female BJJer from NZL via email). Once she has the first arm wrapped around the front of the neck, she grabs her second arm. The second hand then goes to her choking arm shoulder. From there, slide it down into their neck, just like an ezequiel.

Next up was the basic sliding choke, similar to how I taught it recently. That was followed by escaping the back, which handily will be the topic of my GB Bristol class on Thursday. Again, this was relatively simple: base on your legs to put them on their back, then walk your shoulders to the mat. Move to the side to clear their hook (using your hand if you need to and your neck is protected), then once your hip is over, grab their opposite pant leg to stop them mounting or recovering back mount. Keep on pushing your hips back, until you can settle into side control.

Sahid had a couple of additional thoughts on this one while we were drilling, such as the tip to get your head underneath theirs (and therefore if you have the back mount, make sure they don't get their head underneath yours). I also continued to drill back mount escapes for a few minutes after class, during the open mat, mainly looking at two other options.

The first was an escape Sahid had mentioned earlier, which he calls 'bobbing and weaving'. Pull the arm they have by your shoulder over your head, then fall in the direction of that arm. You're looking to trap it between your head and your arm: Tom also suggested grabbing their tricep, to further prevent them from pulling their arm free. Still on that side, pop your hips over as before, but as you move around to side control, keep facing their head. That should set you up nicely for a d'arce choke, which I think Kev taught yesterday.

My second option was to play around with another escape Dónal had suggested, though I don't think I remembered all the details. This is slightly different, as you start by scooting down. Hook an arm under their leg to establish half guard, after which you can look to spin to come on top. Be careful that your other arm is also safe (e.g., hide it under their hooked leg), as otherwise they might be able to go for an armbar or even a triangle.

I may throw those in during my lesson on Thursday, but we'll see if I need to. At the moment, I intend to kick things off with a few basic body triangle escapes, then one other escape. The bobbing and weaving thing might be a useful addition, as I haven't shown it before, plus it also provides a different approach to the orthodox back escape.

Sparring started with specific from the back, where I was looking to trap their feet with my legs, or push off a hook with one of my feet. I'm still a bit prone to latching onto the arm when I think I've almost escaped, which I did again with Sahid. I asked him if he thought there was anything I could do to improve that, and he suggested that perhaps I was simply holding on to the arm too tightly. Instead, when I'm in that position, the focus should be turning to side control, rather than really yanking that arm in underneath my armpit.

On the back, I was able to play with bow and arrow chokes with the white belts, as well as seeing how I could adjust when they moved to escape. Release a hook and pushing off the mat works, but that is less successful with the higher belts, who tend to be wise to it. I wasn't getting anywhere with guys like Sahid: size is probably a factor, but still, my technique was sloppy.

In free sparring, I seemed to be getting d'arce choked by everyone who isn't a white belt. Which was fun. Again, I'm smaller, but nevertheless, I must be leaving myself vulnerable to that attack, so I'll have to be more careful of my arm, as well as paying more attention to grips they secure on me. As ever, Sahid is a good person to spar, because he'll always be able to come up with suggestions afterwards (which is great for someone like me who is keen to pepper everybody with questions).

For escaping the d'arce, he said the basic option is to arch your back to make space. If they are already locking it in, trying to grab under your own leg with the arm they want to choke you with. That will buy you some time to hopefully wriggle your way free. I think I was curled up and trying to turn, which wasn't getting me anywhere: staying curled up only helps them get the choke on faster.

Sahid was also good for testing out my beloved running escape posture. Against a lot of people, you'll find they're staring at the posture looking confused, so you can stall until you're ready to try and spin free. However, Sahid had a solution: he drove his knee over my rear leg, trapping it in place, meaning he could then move into a dominant position. If he couldn't get that rear leg, then he tried to step over both.

Awesome stuff, as by having people break down my running escape posture, that will help me make it better. Clearly I need to make sure that people can't shove their knee over, either by adjusting my legs, or perhaps using one of my hands to block that knee. At the same time, my arms need to be defending against the knee sneaking past my hip or choke attempts. One of the great things about BJJ is that you constantly have to think several moves ahead, with multiple options in your head. ;)

22/12/2011 - Teaching (Maintaining the Back)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 21:58:00 +0000

Teaching #033
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Can Sönmez, Bristol, UK - 22/12/2011

Next time I run through my first and second cycle of the curriculum I'm trying to develop, I think I'll split my previous maintaining and attack the back lessons, then spread out the maintaining part over two lessons (so, rather than showing how to trap an arm in the lesson on the RNC, I could put that in the second maintaining the back lesson). However, this time round, I wanted to play with something that will probably end up being in the third cycle, as it is a bit more advanced and lower percentage.

The usual way to maintain the back is with both insteps hooked inside their thighs, with a harness/seat belt/over-under (it has various names) grip over their upper body. I would recommend that as the most secure method of holding the back. Still, it is worth keeping in mind that there are other options. The best known alternative is probably the body triangle, which is exactly what it sounds like: you are triangling their body, rather than just their arm and head.

The basic idea is to get one leg across their torso (e.g., like you would when swivelling for the bow and arrow I taught last week), then locking that ankle behind the knee of your other leg, as you would with a triangle. This can generate lots of pressure, as you're squeezing the air out of your opponent. It can also result in a very tight control, against which the usual escapes will be less effective.

You'll also want to tuck your locking leg foot under their leg, so they have more trouble trying to attack it. To further control them, roll them to the non-hooked side. If you fall to the other side, there is a fairly simple escape they can use, similar to when somebody crosses their feet in back mount.

However, there are a number of problems with the body triangle. From a competitive perspective, it doesn't get you any points, as you don't technically have both hooks in. It is also possible that you are leaving yourself open to a footlock, one of which I mentioned above. Your movement is more restricted compared to orthodox back mount. Finally, the body triangle requires you to be flexible, have long legs or a particularly thin opponent. It therefore may not be applicable against someone your own size, especially if they're broad across the torso.

In MMA, the body triangle is arguably more useful than in BJJ, as it can provide you with a good platform for strikes. However, even there you might run into trouble, given that most MMA organisations don't allow you to hit someone in the back of the head.

I prefer the next technique, which I was first taught by Kev as a method of transitioning to an armbar from the back. However, it can also be a form of control in itself, as taught on Ryan Hall's DVD, Back Attacks. You have a basic harness grip, so one arm is over their shoulder, the other is under their armpit, then you link your hands together. You decide that you want to shift your hold for some reason (most commonly, you can't get the choke so you want to go for an armbar instead).

With your shoulder hand, grip their wrist on the armpit arm side. With your free hand, grab the wrist of your shoulder arm. You now have a figure-four grip, like you would for a kimura. Bring your shoulder arm over their head: at this point, you can now secure their arm, but there is an important point Hall mentions on his DVD. He mentions that he had been doing the technique wrong until Dave Camarillo showed him a better method. I realised the same thing after watching the DVD.

The wrong way is to suck their arm in tight to your body. Like Hall says, that feels right, but it actually makes it easier for them to turn towards you, drop their elbow and escape. The Camarillo method is to instead extend your arms and being to apply the kimura (i.e., you're pushing their wrist down while levering their elbow up). This makes it hard for them to move, as there is considerable pressure on their shoulder.

As with any kimura, you'll want to bring their hand away from their body, so they can't grab onto their gi to try and relieve the torque on their shoulder. Once you have that grip, you can switch to an armbar (which I'll show at some point in the future, based off what Kev taught me), which is one of a number of follow-ups. Hall goes into more depth on how to use that grip in his DVD.

That's my last lesson until the 27th, when I'll be training at RGA Bucks, so to everyone reading this: merry xmas! :D

20/12/2011 - Gracie Barra Bristol (Guard Retention)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 10:21:00 +0000

Class #437
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Dónal Carmody, Bristol, UK - 20/12/2011

For those who somehow missed it (it's been all over Facebook and the BJJ blogosphere), Aesopian's gi survey results are now out, here. Aesopian did a ton of work on this, which has really paid off: the result is a wealth of data which is set to get increasingly interesting. The most important point to take away is that there is very little difference between the top thirty-three brands: so, if someone is listed at #20, given the margin for error it is entirely possible that they could just as easily have been listed at #1.

Having said that, I was very pleased to see women-only brand Fenom come in at #19. It's a small company which has only been around a few years, and it's also the cheapest brand in the top 40 at $80. In the whole list, only Woldorf is cheaper at $72, but in Woldorf's case that is reflected in a low rating. Fenom, by contrast, is cheap but still high quality. If it wasn't for the Gracie Barra gis only rule at GB, I would be very tempted to buy a Fenom, despite not being a woman, as it is the only brand on the market which has a message I can support 100%. I wouldn't even mind the patches and embroidery. Might still buy one anyway, and just wear it when I train outside of GB. ;)

_______________________________________

I was reminded of the advantages of living nearby the academy tonight, as when I got there, I realised I'd forgotten my gi trousers. However, despite there being only fifteen minutes until class, I could quickly jog back to my house, grab the trousers, then jog back and get changed, with a few minutes to spare before class started. :D

Dónal was covering guard retention tonight, with his usual awesome array of warm-up drills to work jiu jitsu mechanics. There was the baseball slide, butterfly sweep and an old favourite of mine I learned from Kev, the Saulo Ribeiro running escape recovery. Dónal also added a useful method of practicing how to recover guard when they try to get under your legs. For that guard retention drill, you have one foot on their hip. They are reaching under and lifting the other leg.

First, push off their hip with your foot, raising your own hips to make a small shrimping movement. That should give you the space to bring the knee of your underhooked leg outwards (this is important: if you move your knee inwards, they can shove your leg across and crush you), then circle your leg inside their arm. Switch the leg you just circled to their hip, then as they reach under the other leg, repeat.

If they've managed to get a bit deeper and are working towards double underhooks, make your legs heavy, driving your heels downwards. If they try to lift up on one side to start a pass, immediately reach through under their armpit with your same side arm. Gable grip your other hand (palm to palm), then pull their trapped shoulder to your chest. From there, you could shift into a reverse kimura or an omoplata.

Alternatively, you can move into a triangle. As their arm is now trapped, kick your leg free, bring it inside their arm and over their back. Lock your ankles together. This means they now have one arm in and one arm out, so you're ready to adjust to go for the triangle. If not, then you're still in a good position: armbars, wristlocks and omoplatas are all available to you.

Another option is to reverse them as they try to pass. Before they complete their move to side control, clamp your hand around the back of their arm, just above the elbow, with your thumb pointing down (a little reminiscent of that Braulio side control escape I can never get). Straight-arm, to stop them turning towards you. You're then going to quickly spin and reach your other arm under their body, grasping for their far knee. You can then drive through to side control. The other possibility is to spin to the back, though I found that a little more difficult.

Sparring was initially from the guard, where I was happy enough on the bottom, but still not getting too far on top. I attempted to control the knees and straight arm them into the floor as I moved round. That sort of worked on the first leg, but I wasn't sufficiently controlling the remaining leg, meaning they still had enough mobility with their leg and hips to create a barrier. Still, it's better than just staring at people's open guard, which I've done in the past. ;)

The main interesting thing for me was when I was escaping the back a few times. As I've mentioned before, I will frequently half-escape, then try to secure their arm under my armpit. My aim is to crawl up their arm, until I can trap their arm and turn. That has never worked well for me (except when I can get close enough to reach around their head), so I got some tips from Dónal afterwards. I think I've asked him about this previously, but probably forgot.

Anyway, Dónal's suggestion for escaping the back was to focus on their leg rather than their arm. Pop their hook off your leg with your opposite foot, then slide your hip over the side you've opened up. Next, presuming your neck is safe, grab under their leg on the non-open side, then shimmy down into deep half guard. I'm not used to doing that, but I'll be looking to try it next time, to see if it stops me getting stuck. Most likely will lead to getting choked a few times, but that's the only way to learn.

15/12/2011 - Teaching (Attacking the Back)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 21:56:00 +0000

Teaching #032
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Can Sönmez, Bristol, UK - 15/12/2011

Last time I taught attacking the back, I went with the very basic rear naked choke. This time, I wanted to continue keeping things simple by moving on to an equally basic submission. The main difference is that this one uses the collar, so isn't 'naked' like the RNC. I know it as the sliding choke, but I imagine there are various names for it.

Before I started, I wanted to quickly run through the five points I mentioned in a previous lesson for maintaining the back, as there were a couple of beginners there (most notably a friend of my gf's who agreed to pop down, on the condition I was willing to check out her kung fu class. Should be fun! :D). To recap, those points are:

Slide one arm under their armpit and grab a collar, then bring your other arm over their shoulder. If you can't grab a collar, lock your hands
Hook inside their thighs with your insteps. Don't cross your feet, or you'll get footlocked
Keep your chest pressed against their upper back: they need space to escape, so don't let them have any
If they move, follow them with your hips, again to remove any space
Keep your head next to theirs on the armpit arm side, which helps you with both control and visibility

So, getting back to the sliding choke, you'll have one arm slid under their armpit, the other coming over their shoulder. Reaching to their nearest collar with your armpit hand, open up their gi, then feed the material to your shoulder hand, getting a deep grip, thumb inside with the four fingers on top. Your armpit hand now goes to their other collar and holds it slightly lower down.

To finish the choke, pull across with your shoulder hand, so that you are curling around their neck. Your armpit hand pulls straight down. The aim of the armpit hand is to take the slack out of their collar, but also to prevent them from turning away to try and escape. To further help with that, make sure you also clamp the elbow of the armpit arm into their ribs.

Both hands are going to be twisting outwards, following the same principle as a cross choke. Finally, to tighten the choke even more, lean back and drive forward with your hips as you twist your hands and cinch the choke. Also note that if they manage to bridge up and put you onto your back, it will be tough to land the submission. Ideally, you want to roll to the side your shoulder arm elbow is pointing towards. That means you can arch back much further, because you are no longer blocked by the floor.

Before you roll, bring the elbow of your shoulder arm slightly back, as if you roll on top of it, you'll lock it in place and find it hard to get the leverage for the choke. Braulio has an interesting tip, relating to the grip. He uses a thumb in grip, and notes that if you have all four fingers on top, that can limit your reach. To extend your range, you can instead just use two fingers, which enables you to curl your arm around further.

A related submission is the bow and arrow choke, a favourite of my old instructor and friend Kev Capel (who recently got promoted to black belt, which is awesome). Again grip their collar, but this time, it doesn't matter too much if your hold is a little loose. You then grab their same side pant leg with your free hand. That will enable you to swivel your body, until you can bring your leg over their shoulder (because you have a hold of their pant leg, it should be difficult for them to take advantage when you shift your hooks). Move your other leg up to meet it and cross your feet. You can now use pressure from your legs to effect the choke, pulling on the pant leg if you need to.

As ever, Saulo does things slightly differently. After getting the grip and swivelling, he doesn't try to bring both legs over and cross his ankles. Instead, he simply moves the leg by their head a bit further away, so that he can sit up slightly. That also means the person you're trying to choke naturally rolls onto their side and slides down a bit further, giving you more leverage to effect the choke.

Like with the rear naked choke, you can also trap their arms to make things easier for you. Braulio has another nice tip, for when they're blocking your initial hand. If they are trying to grab your hand, then you might be able to counterattack by grabbing their hand and swinging it out. You can then trap it with your leg, tucking your leg behind their back to lock their arm in place. That means you can pretty much attack with impunity.

Gi Review - Kingz 550 Comp

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 15:45:00 +0000

Short Review: This new brand out of Canada is among the most comfortable I've worn, particularly the trousers, which are further enhanced by the unusual addition of a flexible crotch panel. The jacket is modified too, in that the collar has a rubber insert, which means it dries more quickly and is less likely to gather bacteria. That also means it is more likely to be damaged by a hot wash, although I've been reassured this particular collar has been treated to make it much more resistant to higher temperatures. The overall fit of the gi was good, although the arms may be slightly long for some: it is pre-shrunk and does not seem to shrink much if at all in the wash, so the size chart should be relatively accurate. Available in white, blue and black (depending on stock) from FightersMarket.com here, for $150.

Full Review: I was contacted by Bruno Munduruca from Fighters Market about reviewing a new gi, which at first I assumed was from a third party manufacturer. It turns out that Munduruca himself is in charge of Kingz Kimonos, a company he set up this year. Bruno is also a purple belt instructor at Munduruca BJJ in Canada, alongside his brother, black belt Rodrigo Munduruca. Rodrigo is still an active competitor, winning the Masters Ultra Heavy category at the recent IBJJF No Gi Worlds. In other words, the people behind Kingz have plenty of practical knowledge about what makes a good gi. As Bruno put it when I asked what led him to found Kingz:

I have been selling BJJ kimonos since 2000 and have sold or seen pretty much every single gi made in Brazil and a lot of the gis made internationally. I tried to use the feedback from our customers and my personal experience to create this new brand.

Like most of my recent review gis, I again went for an A1, though as ever be sure to check the size chart, which covers everyone from 95lbs right up to 310lbs. At least for me (I'm 5'7" and about 145lbs), that chart was accurate: the Kingz 550 Comp fit great out of the bag. It is pre-shrunk, which no doubt helps a lot. The trousers especially are exactly the length I like, at 90cm. The jacket was 161.5cm from cuff to cuff, which is slightly long for me, but still comfortable. As you would expect from a pre-shrunk gi, after washing I couldn't see any obvious change, though I should note that I generally wash gis at 30 degrees Celsius then hang them up to dry.

There are three models currently available from Kingz. The 550 Comp is the heaviest of the three, with a pearl weave jacket, which is 550gsm (hence the name). Like most gis, the jacket is made from a single piece of fabric, meaning there is no seam on the back. The collar is vulcanised rubber, which helps in terms of drying quickly, but normally indicates that you don't want to put the gi in the tumble drier, or that rubber is liable to twist and curl due to the heat. However, the details from the website mention that the rubber is apparently heat resistant: Bruno also told me that it will not 'baconate' in higher temperature washes.

I found the jacket soft on the inside, but relatively abrasive on the outside, especially the back of the jacket skirt, for some reason. That could be potentially useful in competition, if you want your jacket to be harder to grip, although it may be that the slightly rougher texture will soften after repeated washing. There is triple stitched reinforcement on all the major stress points, and the rubber collar seems solid as well. As it's rubber that means it is a thinner collar than usual, but still firm, so tougher to grip than the more flimsy cotton equivalent.

The trousers are 11oz cotton twill with a standard flat cotton drawstring (which I prefer). There are six belt loops, grouped together in pairs: I don't think any of the other gis I own opt for that method, but you can see it on various premium brands, like Shoyoroll and Origin. I really like the Kingz trousers: they're comfortable, sturdy and fit my legs perfectly. There is lots of padding by the knees, which according to the official details are double reinforced, then triple stitched with an overlapped seam. The stitching on the trouser cuffs is equally beefy, with multiple rows.

I initially didn't notice the most interesting feature of these trousers, which is the flexible crotch panel. The only place I've seen that before is on the Sprawl Gi-Flex, where the designers opted for black in contrast to the rest of the trousers. That looks a little weird, so I think the decision by Kingz to keep their trousers all the same colour was a sensible one. I'm not sure how the stretchy fabric will hold up over time, as I wouldn't expect it is as strong as cotton twill, but so far I haven't noticed any damage after sparring or washing.

The gi has a number of patches, on both shoulders and the front jacket skirt, along with the lower front of the jacket and two patches on the trousers. There is no embroidery, though there is a logo trim along the bottom edge of the jacket, as well as inside the sleeve cuffs. Unlike some other gis, the tape inside the cuffs did not irritate my skin, so either the Kingz has better stitching or the tape material is smoother.

If like me you're not fond of patches, then they aren't too difficult to remove, as it is all single stitched (as opposed to the heavy layers of stitching on something like the Basico trouser patches). The patches on the skirt and trousers are especially simple to take off. However, the shoulder patches go under the collar, so that last bit is tough to pull out.

Also, having tested this (and then sewn it back up), I would advise you don't remove the logo trim. That's because the stitching on the tape is holding together a fold of material running along the bottom of the jacket, and like the shoulder patches it's also sewn under the collar. Naturally most people don't mind patches, so I've put up the pictures for you to judge for yourself. I should also add that even as a plain gi obsessive, I quite like the black and yellow colour scheme on the Kingz 550 patches, especially the two circular logos, which reflect the relatively minimalist design on the rest of the gi.

If you're looking for a comfortable gi with a clean design, I can recommend the Kingz. Keep in mind that it won't shrink, so check the size carefully. Also, at $150 it isn't cheap, but you do get quality in return for your cash. Available to buy in white, black or blue (though white is out of stock at time of writing) from FightersMarket.com, here.

14/12/2011 - Gracie Barra Bristol (Butterfly Guard)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 15:40:00 +0000

Class #436
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Dónal Carmody, Bristol, UK - 14/12/2011

Today Dónal (who has finally been promoted to a long overdue purple belt: congrats to him! :D) was looking at butterfly guard, which is handy because that's a guard I hardly ever use and have never been comfortable playing. As ever, Dónal had some cool drills at the start to help everyone understand the mechanics of the technique. He built up the complexity gradually, starting by have us slide one knee through (like you were playing baseball and skidding to the plate, if I've got that idiom right), then upping the difficulty by twisting to the other side first, then a small hop and twist back to slide through.

For drilling the specific mechanics of the butterfly sweep, Donal added in a drill to shrimping, where you are in butterfly guard position. So, you have one knee up, the other foot tucked in, same side arm braced inside your raised knee, while your other hand is posted behind for base. To move forward, use your posted hand and the foot of your raised leg to lift your hips slightly off the floor then slide forwards, with a similar motion to move backwards.

Next, from the same position, roll to one side, then posting on your shoulder, head and toes (for reference, that's the foot of the knee that would have been on the ground), push off the mat with your toes and swing your other leg up (so, that's the leg that would have been the raised knee previously). From there, Dónal then had us switch to basing with our hand rather than the head, so you could bring the knee of the leg in the air behind the leg on the ground, sliding through like in the baseball slide drill from earlier. Sounds complex, but worked pretty well as a drilling sequence. ;)

The first technique was therefore, unsurprisingly, the butterfly sweep. I have to admit I didn't actually get to see Dónal teach it, because there was something Geeza wanted to ask me, but judging by the drilling later when I rejoined the class, it was the classic butterfly sweep I'm used to (e.g., like the notes I wrote a few years ago, though I should emphasise that it isn't quite leaning back, as you're also leaning to the side of your non-raised knee).

Dónal then demonstrated a method of taking the back from butterfly, which relies largely upon reaching your underhook through until you can grab the back of their belt, palm down. Lean back slightly in order to make your hooking foot light, so you can extract that and kick it through (there is a possibility of getting passed, but your other leg is in position to at least take half guard if something goes very wrong).

Pull them past you with that belt grip, also twisting your arm over so that your shoulder and elbow are pressing into their upper back. That should enable you to move through to their back. When drilling this, I kept finding that I was ducking my head underneath their arm, which isn't the same thing. It is a bit like an arm-drag, but a sort of 'belt-drag' instead.

During sparring I'm still being careful of my neck, so with several people I though it made most sense to just give them a chance to work butterfly guard against resistance. It is tough to get the sweep to work against somebody who knows exactly what you're trying to do, as you can just stuff the leg, maintain your balance and post. So, I needed to keep in mind that the aim here was to help my training partner work on the technique with progressive resistance, rather than immediately shutting them down each time.

Hopefully it was useful: I tried to emphasise things like they needed to control my arm to stop me posting, be careful I don't put them flat on their back and maintain a hook on my inner thigh. Still, as my own butterfly guard is pretty pants, I'm not sure how much help I can be. Same thing happened when I had a white belt start on my back, as again I was looking to help them feel how I was trying to escape and what kind of reactions they should be expecting, as well as how to counter (e.g., if I start slipping out over one leg, well worth them trying to swing over and get to mount before they lose the position entirely).

Rolling with higher belts was cool too, starting with a typically relaxed spar with Dónal. I was mostly attempting to create frames to help recover guard, as well as continuing to shrimp rather than letting him settle into a position. Naturally we were going light, so I imagine he could have shut me down at various points. I still struggle a lot when I'm in somebody's open guard, as I always feel like I'm basically just waiting to get swept. However, the only way to get better at it is to keep on putting myself there. Hopefully I'll get the chance to do that with some lower belts too, to help build my confidence there.

That was highlighted again when rolling with Geeza. Not only is Geeza much bigger than me, he is also much better at jiu jitsu, so I'm often a bit uncertain how to approach the roll. As usual, he sat back and waited for me to attempt a pass, but also as usual, I ended up basically just flopping back without him even having to try and sweep. Still, I did at least try a sort of pass later on, where I spun to avoid his open guard, but that merely put me back in closed guard and also exposed my back (which he didn't take at that point, but it was certainly a major risk).

I had a chance to play around with the old running escape survival posture too, which I'm keen to practice against people who are much better than me. Against somebody who isn't that experienced, I can basically stall with the running escape, but somebody who knows what they're doing, like Geeza, will take the opportunity to set up a choke and take my back. So I'd like to try that more often, to really iron out the errors I making with the running escape, as I can be absolutely certain that a skilful grappler like Geeza is going to exploit them every time. :)

08/12/2011 - Teaching (Attacking Closed Guard)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 20:30:00 +0000

Teaching #031
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Can Sönmez, Bristol, UK - 08/12/2011

I was off sick last week, so Donal took the Thursday class instead, teaching an armdrag to the back. My planned class last week was going to be in a similar vein, moving to the back via some of the methods I showed in my maintaining closed guard lesson. I had four techniques in mind, but didn't expect to get through them all, as it increasingly seems that two is the ideal number unless the third and fourth are very closely tied in to the previous options.

To start with, I chose a method for taking the back from the inside two-on-one grip break. Similar to an arm drag, except that instead of yanking their arm then gripping the bicep, you use the sleeve. Once you've pulled their arm across as discussed last time, make sure to also bring them towards you with your legs. Open your guard and turn, also reaching around their back with your arm.

Release the grip on their sleeve to come up on that elbow, trying to drive their shoulder to the mat so you can clamp your chest to their back. Bring your hip up, so that your knee can slide out for base, swinging your other foot over the top. From there, you'll look to establish the back, keeping in mind that you may be in for a fight to get that second hook in. Alternatively from there, you could try to roll through using your existing hook, taking the back that way.

If you're having real trouble getting that second hook in, then you can still move to a dominant position. So, the second technique is a transition to technical mount, a position I discussed here. You've got to the back, and are looking to insert your second hook. They're being really tight, blocking all your attempts. However, you still have one hook, as your leg is underneath. Make sure to curl your foot around their thigh.

Move your upper body to the opposite side of that foot. Put your hands on the mat, then simply move your body backwards, towards your hooking foot. Applying some pressure with the leg of that foot in conjunction with your movement backwards should enable you to roll them into a technical mount position. Bring your other knee in to secure them in place. From here, you could still go to the back, by putting that second knee up close to their head, rolling them over it and establishing both hooks (like the Galvao back take).

06/12/2011 - Carlos Lemos Jr at Gracie Barra Bristol

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 21:00:00 +0000

Class #435
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Carlos Lemos Jr, Bristol, UK - 06/12/2011

Carlos Lemos Jr originally started Gracie Barra Bristol back in around 2004/2005. He hasn't lost touch with the club, which was later restarted by Geeza, as Lemos regularly returns to the UK to hold seminars (especially as his black belt student, Salvatore Pace, heads up nearby Gracie Barra Bath). Having held one of those seminars on Monday, he was due to fly back this morning.

However, it would appear forces more powerful that air travel conspired to keep him here, as that flight was cancelled. So instead, we got to benefit from his experience during the Tuesday class, which is normally run by Donal. That was also particularly good for me, as Lemos generously gave me thirty minutes of his time at the end to do an interview.

There aren't many people better suited to interviews: Lemos loves to talk. A large proportion of the class was taken up by Lemos' words of wisdom, talking about his history in sport, drawing analogies to MMA and fleshing out the principles and theory behind what he was teaching. It's an interesting instructional style, which reminds me of Saulo Ribeiro's approach in his DVDs. I can imagine Lemos would be a good choice to write an instructional book as a result, perhaps on escapes, given that's his specialty.

Lemos' nickname is 'Escorrega', which means 'slippery' in Portuguese. It's a reference to his ability to escape, part of which he shared with us tonight. That began with an Americana escape, which functions in much the same way whether it is applied from mount, side control or top half guard. It was also fairly simple, as you just straighten your arm to remove the angle they need.

You're still at risk of being armbarred, as they can just adjust their grip, then press your wrist down, hyperextending your elbow due to the position of their arm under yours. To avoid that follow-up, the solution again is simple: point your thumb down. Having avoided the initial attack, twist your thumb up and down, gradually wriggling your elbow back, until you can free your arm.

Next up was escaping the kimura from side control after they've stepped over your head. This proved slightly more complex. Start by immediately grabbing your belt or gi, to buy yourself some time. Next, swing your legs side to side, to generate momentum. Put your free hand on their thigh, then using that momentum from you legs, swivel and get your head free.

You can now face them square on and use your legs to recover guard. A more advanced option is to clamp the elbow of your trapped arm to your body, which in turn traps their arm. If you then swivel as before, you can move straight into an armbar, as you already have their arm secured.

I felt ok after drilling, so decided I should be alright for sparring. Of course, although the flu appears to have mostly gone, my neck is still dodgy. That meant Geeza put me with smaller people and children, which was helpful. I'm continuing to work that top half guard that doesn't require me to use my head for control, but as before I still need to take the next step and attack.

The main option would seem to be doing something with their arm, as I have that deep grip on their armpit, but then I would have to remove my other arm to attack it properly. So instead, I was trying to flatten them out and then go for the arm: this would be much easier if I could use my head as normal, as then I can press into the arm with my forehead and trap it on the mat.

I'm also not being proactive enough from open guard, particularly when they sit down with one knee raised. I know there are several sweeps from there, but I keep forgetting the steps. I'll have to go revise some of the ones I was using previously, or perhaps it would be good to dial it back to something more basic, working to recover full guard then go into the fundamental options like scissor, knee-push, sit-up and elevator.

03/12/2011 - Mauricio Gomes Masterclass & GB Submission Only Comp

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Sat, 03 Dec 2011 20:35:00 +0000

Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Mauricio 'Maurição' Motta Gomes, Bristol, UK - 03/12/2011

I've been out of training for the last week, as last weekend I got some kind of nasty flu. That meant I wasn't sleeping well, so spend the day and night sniffling while wrapped up in a sleeping bag, my laptop at the ready. Also meant I finally got round to watching the commentaries of my Blackadder box set, then put on Battlestar Galactica, which I keep hearing is really good. Decent plot and acting so far, but then I've only been through the mini-series and first episode.

I was determined to make today, as we were going to have the rare treat of Mauricio 'Maurição' Gomes popping down to do a 'masterclass', before the regular internal Gracie Barra competition Geeza runs every few months. If you don't know who he is, Maurição has four major claims to fame: first, he is one of the very few people to be promoted to black belt by Rolls Gracie. Second, he is the man largely responsible for growing BJJ in the UK. Third, he is a member of another rare group, red and black belts (the belt after black belt). Finally, his son is Roger Gracie, whose name might ring a bell. ;)

I was also to grab Maurição for an interview later in the day, which was cool: we spent a good forty minutes chatting about Rolls Gracie, BJJ in the UK, Roger, belt tests, the first female black belt and various other topics. Always great to chat to the big names. I have met Maurição before, back when I was training regularly at the RGA HQ, but I was surprised that he remembered me. Clearly a man with a good memory for faces! ;)

There was no warm-up, as Maurição went straight into technique, keeping things fairly basic. He started off with a guard pass, where you grab both their collars with one hand and their sleeve with the other. Shove that sleeve into their hip, then hop up into a crouch, basing by pressing your weight through your hands. Stand up, letting go of the collars but pulling up on their sleeve. With your free hand, press inside their knee while simultaneously stepping your same side leg back.

Ideally, that should mean you can now open their guard and shove their knee to the floor. As soon as you do, slide your same side knee over, pinning their leg to the mat with your shin. You now have two options for passing. Either you can bump their other leg up onto your shoulder, reach for the collar with your outside hand then smash pass (like I showed last week), or you can go the other way, backstepping then pulling your leg through.

Maurição followed up with some knee on belly attacks, of which I think there were about four. However, I was drilling with Maeve, so that was a bit overwhelming for a white belt, meaning we just stuck with the first one. After you've passed and established knee on belly, sliding your knee across their belt line, get a deep grip in their collar, four fingers in, just like you were going for a cross choke. Your other hand goes on top, gripping the other collar thumb in. Once you've secured that grip, sprawl back with your feet, which puts all your weight through the neck, then twist your wrists to finish the submission.

Having covered knee on belly, Maurição moved rapidly onto attacks from mount. Specifically, it was technical mount, for when your opponent has turned to one side. Again, just like a class I've taught before (although obviously I don't teach it anywhere near as well as Maurição, who has literally been a black belt longer than I've been alive), during the technical mount portion of my attacking the mount lesson.

Finally, Maurição went through a couple of basic sweeps, the double ankle grab and one of my favourites, the sickle sweep (which I last taught here). He then handed over to one of the other black belts in attendance, Nick Brooks (if you're wondering who the other two were, it was Salvo from GB Bath and Raphael Dos Santos, who runs a number of schools under the GB Cornwall banner)

Having experienced Nick's excellent instruction at Mill Hill a couple of times, I knew he'd have something good up his sleeve. Today, that was a nifty but simple half guard sweep. The starting position is unusual. You have your inside foot over their upper leg, hooking around for control, but the knee of your leg is still in front of them, pressing into their hip. Your outside leg is just clamping tight against them, rather than locked up into an orthodox half guard.

Grab their sleeve on the outside leg side, while also gripping their trouser leg on the inside leg side. Bridge slightly, then turn towards the outside leg, driving your knees in that direction, pulling on their sleeve and lifting with your trouser grip. Very simple, but effective.

That marked the end of the masterclass, which ran for about an hour. Geeza then sorted out the brackets for the internal competition. This is open to all Gracie Barra students in the UK. Previously, the competitions have mainly consisted of Gracie Barra Bristol and Gracie Barra Bath, but this time a number of students came along from Cornwall, Birmingham, Swindon, Wales, the main RGA school in London and Nick Brooks' school in Mill Hill. GB Bristol has a lot of mat space, so Geeza was able to have five matches running at once.

I wasn't feeling up to competing (perhaps I'll give it a shot in the future, as I couldn't really ask for a more convenient environment), so instead I helped out as a ref. Of course, that wasn't a very demanding job, given the rules of this particular competition. Geeza, as you may know if you've ever watched his TheRealGeeza YouTube channel, is a firm believer that you should aim to finish the fight, not play for points. To that end, the internal GB comps he runs are submission only.

That meant my job as a ref was basically to stop people rolling into other fights, avoid hitting the wall, pause the action if trousers or jacket were falling off (more common than you'd expect!), stop the fight once someone was tapping and then raise the hand of the winner. Some techniques were illegal, such as cervical locks, slamming and all leglocks except straight ankle locks, but nobody ended up doing them and getting disqualified.

It was cool to get some reffing experience, as that's something I'd like to get into, in order to become a better teacher: I'll often have students ask, "so how many points would that be?", and I'm not always certain when the situation gets a bit more complex. Submission only is a good way to dip my toes, as it is so much simpler than the usual IBJJF rules. Most of the fights were pretty quick, but there were a few monsters, such as the epic eighty minute white belt battle. Among the women, Maeve also had an impressively long fight, going for fifty-three minutes.

Finaly, it was great to catch up with some old training partners from RGA and GB Brum, especially Conor, who I hadn't even realised was here in England now rather than Belfast. There should eventually be lots of videos, either on TheRealGeeza or the official Gracie Barra Bristol channel, so keep an eye on those. :)

25/11/2011 - Gracie Barra Bristol (Side Control Escape)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 23:22:00 +0000

Class #433
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Nicolai 'Geeza' Holt, Bristol, UK - 25/11/2011

My neck is still sore, but as my gf was off on a work do, I thought I'd take the opportunity to get in another class tonight. After some self defence (following the Gracie Barra Fundamentals as usual), Geeza ran through the basic side control escape to the knees. One arm is under their forearm, the other hand by their hip. Bridge up, in order to make space to circle the neck arm around to reach for their back. Swivel, tucking your elbow so that you can move into the turtle position.

Adjust your grip to their leg, with your head on the other side (be wary of guillotines, as your head is on the outside). Step up your foot on the same side as your head, then pulling their other leg towards you, while driving with your foot and head, push through to side control. I rarely use this escape, and at the moment it is completely out of the question for me. Anything that involves turtling is off-limits, as I've busted and re-busted my neck whenever I've spent any length of time in turtle over the last two months. Almost certainly something flawed with how I using the turtle, but for now, I've banned myself from going there.

Specific sparring was from side control, which is good for me as it meant I could stay on top. I normally go for the orthodox side control, arm under the head with the other arm under their far armpit. However, tonight I wanted to try to avoid starting from there, as that's my comfort zone: it also has more likelihood of involving my head (e.g., for base if they try to roll me). Instead, I began from the position we used for drilling, where you have the arm nearest their head over to the far side, under their shoulder, with your other hand blocks their near hip.

It was interesting playing with the grip by the near hip, trying blocking with the hand, grabbing the gi material by their butt, or hooking the leg. That isn't a control I use all that often (as my hands are usually much higher up their body), but I found it helped the transition to north-south, which I was also doing a lot during sparring. I was looking to isolate an arm for the kimura at one point, but didn't clamp it to my chest quickly enough, so they were able to defend well by grabbing under their leg.

I also had a go at the gi choke Matt Burn showed me, where you feed your lapel under their neck to your other hand, then walk round in order to bring your head to their opposite hip. I got the lapel under their head and secured the grip, but I'm not sure I quite had it right. I also didn't do a good job of controlling their hips, as they could pretty much follow me round as I moved my head to the opposite hip. Something to play with nonetheless, as I'd like to expand my range of side control submissions beyond 'Americana' and 'north south kimura'.

24/11/2011 - Teaching (Passing Closed Guard)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 20:30:00 +0000

Teaching #030
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Can Sönmez, Bristol, UK - 24/11/2011

The first guard pass most people learn is the single underhook, sometimes known as a smash pass (although confusingly, there is also a completely different pass you might see called the 'smash pass'. The joys of BJJ's non-standardised terminology). After you've opened their guard (this can also work off a failed armbar or triangle attempt on their part), you need to get one of your arms under their leg. Your other elbow – and this is absolutely key – must not slip in front of their other knee. If it does, then you're at risk of being triangled: they simply need to pull the arm forwards to move into a triangle set up, as your first arm is already out of the picture.

You don't want to leave that first arm under their leg, as unless you're much bigger, their leg is always going to be able to outpower your arm. Therefore you need to get their leg up onto your shoulder, either bumping it with your arm, or dropping down to put your shoulder in place. At that point, drive forward so that you're shoving their knee into their face. When you've got them stacked, reach your stacking side arm around their leg and grab their collar. I tend to go four fingers in, but a thumb in grip sets you up for a simple (if somewhat crappy, so it's mainly for distraction) forearm choke. You can also try grabbing their opposite shoulder.

Keep on driving forward, until they become so uncomfortable that they basically want you to pass. Don't lift your head to get past their legs. You are going to squash your body into them until you can slide by their legs, using constant forward pressure. At most, you might need to nudge their legs with your shoulder. To further enhance your stack, you can grab the back of their trousers, or alternatively put your knee there as a wedge.

A similar option is the stack pass, also known as a double underhooks pass (and probably a bunch of other things). The main difference is that you're putting your arms under both their legs instead of just one. Slip your arms underneath both legs and get a secure gable grip (palm to palm). If you prefer, you can instead grip their trousers and lock your elbows, or indeed their belt: the problem with those grips is that the loose fabric may provide them with enough space that they can make room to escape.

Whichever grip you prefer, you now want to stack your opponent, driving forward off your toes. To get them in position for stacking, the two basic methods are to either pull them up onto your hips using your thighs as a ramp, or move forwards so you're close behind them and they are rolled up onto their shoulders. If you don't get them stacked and therefore leave space between their hips and yours, then they can still use their legs to stop you, such as by hooking under your thighs with their insteps. Once you've got them stacked, the aim is again to push their knee right into their face.

At that point, the process becomes much the same as the smash pass, as like before, you'll grab their opposite collar with one of your hands, sliding your fingers inside. That is just one grip, as you could also reach behind their head. An even tighter option is to reach behind their head and grab the shoulder. Be careful you don't start neck cranking with a can opener, however, as that's illegal in most competitions for a reason: speaking as somebody with a currently messed up neck, please don't mash up your training partner's vertebrae. ;)

Move round gradually on your toes and/or press one hip into theirs to shift them to the side, and with the other hand hold the back of their trousers and lift their hips (Ed Beneville has a bunch of other options for keeping them stacked, such as holding their gi lapel, their wrist, or bracing them against the inside of your leg) Remember, it is important to keep maintaining heavy downwards pressure throughout this pass. Keep pushing until eventually you drive past their leg and transition to side control: don't raise your head, just keep pushing until you slide past. Alternatively, you can do what Abmar Barbosa does and drive off your feet to shove their legs out of the way.

23/11/2011 - Teaching (Attacking Half Guard)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 15:47:00 +0000

Teaching #029
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Can Sönmez, Bristol, UK - 23/11/2011

I don't normally show up to Wednesdays, but as my evenings have been busy recently, I decided it would be a good chance to get in some extra training. As it turned out, it was fortunate I chose today to try it out, as Donal unfortunately had a puncture in his bike tyre on the way over. That meant he had to wheel his bike all the way home, so wasn't able to make it to class. Instead, I found myself with a surprise extra teaching session.

It is the first time I've taught a class without having anything prepared, but that wasn't a problem, as Donal's Wednesday classes are a repeat of the Tuesday class. Given that I had been there on Tuesday, I could therefore just teach the same half guard back take Donal showed, which would be a good test of how much I'd managed to remember.

So, to copy what I wrote down for yesterday, start by swimming the arm you have by their head under their neck, circling your hand around. Don't reach over their head with their arm, just swivel your hand: otherwise, you arm becomes vulnerable to submission. Once the hand is through, you can then brace your forearm into their throat, to prevent them driving their weight through their shoulder into your neck.

You now want to get on your side. Kick your leg forwards to swing your body up. You can either have your knee by your elbow, to try and maintain that space, or you can stick your knee on their hip. As you pop up onto your side, slide in and sink right down, so that your ear is by their belly button. Switch your arm to grip around their back. Also turn your knee outwards to give yourself base.

The next step, which Donal added on Tuesday, is to take the back. Grab their opposite lapel and pull it across their waist, clamping your elbow around their hip. You need to be careful when doing that, as if you reach in too far with your arm, they can reach back, hook your elbow and roll you. You also need to make sure you are curling your arm around their hip, rather than keeping it too high. The idea is to secure both their hips: one with your elbow, the other with the tension created by pulling their gi lapel tightly across.

Your other hand is going to grab the gi material behind their same side elbow. Straighten your arm, so that you are driving their arm into the mat using your skeletal structure rather than muscle power. You don't want them to be able to post with that hand, or they will be able to prevent your back take. Finally, move off to the side slightly, pulling on that trapped lapel. This should yank them along in your wake, enabling you to swivel them right into back mount.

Also like yesterday, I went through Donal's two main tips for making space under half guard. The first was very simple: wait. Normally, they will eventually make a move, which is when you can react by exploiting any space they leave as a result, getting the arm into their neck.

Alternatively, you can use the Demian Maia approach to escaping side control. Reach up with the arm you have by their head so that your bicep whacks into the side of their head. You want to use that to bump their head to the side, in order to create some space. Make sure that you're pressing towards the top of their head: if you're too low, then there won't be enough leverage (so, the same principle as with a muay thai clinch: you grab higher up behind their head, or you won't be able to pull their head down effectively).

I also emphasised that you need to be careful they don't knock your arm across and move into an arm triangle, which is the problem I have with that type of escape. Like I said earlier, any time you extend your arm away from your body, you are putting yourself at risk. However, it is useful in certain situations, not to mention then Demian Maia is really damn good at jiu jitsu, so I'm sure he knows what he's doing. ;)

22/11/2011 - Gracie Barra Bristol (Half Guard Back Take)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 20:30:00 +0000

Class #432
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Donal Carmody, Bristol, UK - 22/11/2011

Building on what he taught a little while ago, tonight Donal was showing us a route to the back. So, to copy what I wrote previously, start by swimming the arm you have by their head under their neck, circling your hand around. You can then brace your forearm into their throat, to prevent them driving their weight through their shoulder into your neck.

Be aware that they may try to knock your arm sideways across your throat, so they can go for an arm triangle. Also, any time you extend your arm they may try and grab it for a keylock, so whenever possible aim to keep your elbows tight to your side, never leaving a limb flopping and vulnerable.

You now want to get on your side. Kick your leg forwards to swing your body up. You can either have your knee by your elbow, to try and maintain that space, or you can stick your knee on their hip. As you pop up onto your side, slide in and sink right down, so that your ear is by their belly button. Switch your arm to grip around their back. Also turn your knee outwards to give yourself base.

The next step, which Donal added tonight, is to take the back. Grab their opposite lapel and pull it across their waist, clamping your elbow around their hip. You need to be careful when doing that, as if you reach in too far with your arm, they can reach back, hook your elbow and roll you. You also need to make sure you are curling your arm around their hip, rather than keeping it too high. The idea is to secure both their hips: one with your elbow, the other with the tension created by pulling their gi lapel tightly across.

Your other hand is going to grab the gi material behind their same side elbow. Straighten your arm, so that you are driving their arm into the mat using your skeletal structure rather than muscle power. You don't want them to be able to post with that hand, or they will be able to prevent your back take. Finally, move off to the side slightly, pulling on that trapped lapel. This should yank them along in your wake, enabling you to swivel them right into back mount.

Berry raised a good point during drilling, which is what to do if you're really struggling to make space to get your hand through. Donal had two main tips for making space under half guard. The first was very simple: wait. Normally, they will eventually make a move, which is when you can react by exploiting any space they leave as a result, getting the arm into their neck.

Alternatively, you can use the Demian Maia approach to escaping side control. Reach up with the arm you have by their head so that your bicep whacks into the side of their head. You want to use that to bump their head to the side, in order to create some space. Make sure that you're pressing towards the top of their head: if you're too low, then there won't be enough leverage (so, the same principle as with a muay thai clinch: you grab higher up behind their head, or you won't be able to pull their head down effectively).

During specific sparring, I'm still avoiding using my head due to that neck injury, so again stayed on top. Instead of my head, I therefore relied on controlling the far arm from top half guard instead, getting a deep underhook to scoop the arm right up. To help that control, I kept a firm grip on their far armpit or the back of their gi with my other hand. When the opportunity presented itself, I moved that other arm around their head, so that my elbow was braced against their skull. That seemed to result in a relatively firm hold, and also helped stop them slipping down to deep half.

However, it doesn't give me many options for passing, and I'm sure there is also some sweep or other they can do when I attempt that hold. Still, it is useful having something to work on despite my neck not working properly. I also want to practice the 'inverted half guard' pass (or at least that's what Beneville calls it), which I was first taught by Roger Gracie. I didn't get a chance tonight, but will see if I can give that a go tomorrow during half guard sparring.

Gi Review - Padilla & Sons Ultra Light

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 12:09:00 +0000

Short Review: This gi is plain, well-built and affordable, further justifying Padilla & Sons long-standing reputation for quality. As you'd expect from the name, the Ultra Light also has the advantage of weighing less, due to the lightweight jacket and ripstop trousers. It's large out of the box, especially the trousers, so you'll need to shrink it. You might also want to chop down the drawstring, which dangled past my knee. Like the other Padilla & Sons I've owned, the fit is fairly baggy and some may not like the longer skirt, though that's something I'm used to from regularly wearing judogi to class. Available to buy direct from the Padilla & Sons website, here, for $100.

Full Review: In my ongoing hunt for plain, white and functional gis, Padilla & Sons was the opening entry. I bought my gold weave back in 2007, meaning it was the first specifically BJJ gi I had ever bought. I was convinced by reading a few reviews, particularly this one (still probably the best gi review ever written, given how many people bought a Padilla & Sons gi on the strength of that post) which spoke highly of the durability, price and excellent customer service. I found all three of those to be true after getting my gold weave, so ended up buying a single weave a little further down the line. It is now 2011, but both gis show no sign of wear and tear, except for some slight discolouration on the inside of the jacket.

Company founder Joe Padilla is a black belt under Rigan Machado. He has an extensive history in martial arts, as IIRC, Padilla has also done judo, boxing, arnis and kempo. Back in October 1998, he produced a double weave, sold locally in California. The following year, Padilla & Sons expanded into the rest of the USA and Europe, but still on a very small scale. The company took a hiatus for a few years in 2001, starting back up in 2003.

When Padilla & Sons were building a reputation for solid, affordable gis at the turn of the millenium, BJJers wanted a suit of cotton armour that could go the distance. That meant heavy double-weaves, built to last rather than for weight limits or hot weather training. Trends have changed considerably over the years: more recently, there has been a boom in lightweight weaves, the lightest of which is the ripstop.

Padilla & Sons have entered that market with their suitably named 'Ultra Light'. The jacket is one piece, constructed from 400 gram cotton, so there is no seam on the back. The collar is cotton under ply, of a comparable thickness and stiffness to my Padilla single weave, covered in ripstop material. The trousers are also ripstop, as are various areas of reinforcement, such as on the trouser and sleeve cuffs. As I would expect from Padilla, those reinforcements all look very solid, with plenty of stitching.

Joe Padilla is famous for his customer service and rightly so (although as I was sent this for review, it was a slightly different scenario to the previous two times). He provided a tracking ID for the parcel, so I could watch it travel from Los Angeles right through to Bristol, meaning I knew exactly when it was going to be arriving and whether or not I'd have to pay any customs charges. I did get hit slightly with VAT, but not as badly as I was expecting at just under £30 (around a third of which was a dubious 'handling fee' from Parcel Force). However, that potential cost is worth keeping in mind if you're buying from outside of the USA.

There is a broad range in the size chart, from A0 (4'5"-5' and 75-110 lbs) through to A6 (6'5"-6'9 and 290- 325lbs). I went for an A2, as my gold and single weaves are also A2, but I think in future I may go for an A1 instead. Either way, it would be wise to check with Joe Padilla before you put in your order: I can pretty much guarantee that he'll respond quickly with the advice you need. When I bought my first gi, he even offered to call me to discuss the right size, despite the fact I was living in the UK and he's in California.

This gi is not pre-shrunk, so it feels big out of the box. The trousers in particular are enormous, at 100cm in length. The jacket is pretty long too, at 82cm, while from cuff to cuff is 165cm: however, it didn't shrink as much as I expected. The length of the jacket didn't really shift at all. After the first 40 degree Celsius wash, the gi dropped down to 98cm long trousers and 160cm cuff to cuff. The second time, the trousers reduced to 96cm, while the jacket remained about the same. I would expect further shrinkage in future washes, going by my other two Padilla & Sons, or I may try throwing it in the tumble drier: I'll update the review if so.

A major attraction for me is that Padilla & Sons don't slather their gis with advertising. There are only two bits of embroidery, featuring the Padilla shark. On the trousers, there is a mercifully small patch (also on the jacket lapel), rather than the huge billboards common to many other gis. The design is slightly different to the single and gold weaves I own, as rather than a shark on the arm and then another encircled by text at the bottom of the jacket, the embroidery is on both arms.

The 'Padilla & Sons' logo has changed since the gold weave, with a new design which I think was first brought in for the lightweight weave. I prefer the earlier version, but it's easy enough to remove if I ever decide to do so. Another difference is a large inner label that sits just behind your neck, which I found slightly itchy. I would expect that to lessen over time, but if not, as with the embroidery I can just pull out the stitches. The information on the label is at least useful, as it gives washing instructions, which I haven't often seen on gis.

Ripstop trousers tend to become a stiff when wet, which you'll notice after you take them out of the wash. Nevertheless, I didn't experience any discomfort during training, which has also been the case with the other two sets of ripstop trousers I own (on the Predator and Gorilla ripstop, both of which feel a little softer than the Padilla & Sons trousers). I guess it depends how much you sweat. The drawstring is enormous, so you may find you need to cut that to a more convenient length. I often worry about ripstop tearing, as I'm still not that used to wearing it, but the Padilla & Sons trousers have held up fine so far. That includes two classes on passing the guard, meaning the material by the knees was getting scrunched up and yanked for about three hours.

If you're looking for a plain, well-made gi for a fair price, then Padilla & Sons are tough to beat. This gi is ideal for people who cross-train in judo, or who don't mind a looser fit, but you might be less keen if you're used to your gis clinging tightly to your body. Available to buy direct from the Padilla & Sons website, here, for $100.

17/11/2011 - Teaching (Maintaining Closed Guard)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 20:30:00 +0000

Teaching #028
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Can Sönmez, Bristol, UK - 17/11/2011

Last time, I think I tried to cram in way too much, so when I come to do the first and second cycle of my lesson plan again (in case you didn't realise, I'm on the second cycle at the moment), I'll split that out. So, tonight's lesson will probably end up being part of a third or even fourth cycle.

Before I got into the meat, I wanted to quickly emphasise a simple tip that is worth keeping in mind. When you're in closed guard, you don't have to put your hips on the floor. Try raising them up instead and scooting in closer to your opponent. Previously, the space was in front of them, and therefore potentially could help them open up your legs and pass. Now, it's behind them, which potentially helps your ability to create angles and lessens the pressure on your legs. There's good coverage of that on Andreh Anderson's excellent closed guard DVD.

The main topic I wanted to cover was again breaking posture and grips, but this time how that can effectively become a guard in itself. What I call either the armwrap or overhook guard has a whole bunch of submissions and sweeps, but I just wanted to show how to get there for the moment.

They will probably be grabbing your gi somewhere between your chest and stomach. Grab their sleeve with one hand, then reach your other hand underneath to hold your own wrist, making a figure-four. Wrench up with your figure-four to break their grip (you could also try raising your hips then dropping them as you wrench to increase the leverage, depending where they're holding you). Bring your knees to your chest and pull their sleeve behind your head.

At the same time, swim around their arm with your other hand, so that you end up overhooking that arm. With the overhooking hand, reach through and grasp their opposite collar (if you can't reach it, grab what you can, but for setting up submissions, much better to have the far collar). Keep the elbow of your overhooking arm locked to your body, so they can't free their arm. This is a good controlling position, where you have a number of attacks: omoplata, armbar, triangle, chokes etc.

There are also sweeps and at least one back take from here, which I'll probably show in a couple of weeks time. There are also various ways of manipulating their arm depending on how you break the grip. The overhook is what I would call the 'inside' grip break, because the hand grabbing the sleeve is 'inside'. You can also use what you might call an 'outside' figure 4 grip, because this time your sleeve grabbing hand is on the outside of their arm.

So, for that outside figure four, grab their sleeve on the outside. Wrap your other hand underneath from the inside, sliding their hand under to grab your sleeve grab wrist, which secures a figure four. This time, after you thrust upwards to break the grip, you aren't going to pull their arm behind your head. Instead, switch your bottom hand to their sleeve and yank it across your body. Your other hand can go to their elbow, or if you prefer you could move into some other technique. For example, you might bring your knees in and wrap over their back to trap the arm, then go for a flower sweep. Play around with it.

I thought those were fairly simple, so instead of the usual four minutes each followed by three minutes of progressive resistance, I had everyone drill each option for two minutes each, then two minutes of progressive resistance. Once we had covered both, I did a step up from progressive resistance, where the rules were the person on the bottom was only looking for that grip break and to break posture, while the person on top only wanted to stand up. My intention was that it would both help test the techniques against more resistance, and also give the person on top a chance to work their posture in guard without having to worry about sweeps and submissions. I'm not sure how well it worked, so as ever, feel free to leave me feedback. :)

Another way of using the arms is to overwrap your partner with both of them, which Saulo simply calls the closed guard overwrap in Jiu Jitsu University (p103, if you're interested). It is relatively simple: you just circle one hand under theirs, then sit up. At the same time, shoot that arm through, while also bringing your other arm around their head. Link your arms and drop back down. Saulo uses this to initiate a back take, which we'll cover later. For now, just step one foot the mat and shrimp to that side (being careful to still keep your knee tight to their body and the other foot controlling their hip: if either of those are too loose, your partner may simply push your leg down and pass).

You can use your legs in a similar way. Instead of wrapping around their upper back with your arms, walk your feet up their back, then re-cross your ankles. This puts you in what is called high guard, which again has various attacks associated with it. Again, there are dangers with that. A training partner of mine at RGA Bucks, Howard, used to immediately stand up and drive his knee into my tailbone whenever I went to high guard. So, watch out for that guard break, as the high guard can make you vulnerable.

Again, I split those into two minutes without resistance and two minutes with, before moving on to a few rounds of specific sparring from guard. I'm not sure how helpful the last three grips were, so may look to mix and match when I cycle round to this part of the curriculum next time. Still experimenting, so I may well split out the first cycle into the second in future.

15/11/2011 - Gracie Barra Bristol (Half Guard Back Take)

noreply@blogger.com (slideyfoot) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 20:30:00 +0000

Class #431
Gracie Barra Bristol, (BJJ), Donal Carmody, Bristol, UK - 15/11/2011

I finally got round to listening to Aesopian's excellent interview on new BJJ podcast, The Flow recently. If for some reason you don't know who Aesopian is, he is basically the Godfather of BJJ Blogging. I'm not sure if he was actually the first person to start typing systematically about BJJ training, but he was the first to do it really, really well. Without any doubt, Aesopian's blog was a big factor in inspiring my own.

Tonight, Donal shared an option for taking the back from half guard. They've flattened you out on your back, so you're exactly where you don't want to be. Start by swimming the arm you have by their head under their neck, circling your hand around. You can then brace your forearm into their throat, to prevent them driving their weight through their shoulder into your neck. Be aware that they may try to knock your arm sideways across your throat, so they can go for an arm triangle

You now want to get on your side. Kick your leg forwards to swing your body up. You can either have your knee by your elbow, to try and maintain that space, or you can stick your knee on their hip. As you pop up onto your side, slide in and sink right down, so that your ear is by their belly button. Switch your arm to grip around their back. Also turn your knee outwards to give yourself base. From there, go to their back.

If they overhook, clamp their arm in place, then yank it forwards (I think this is off Caio Terra's half guard DVD). Switch the sleeve of their arm to your other hand and push it to the mat. That means not only have you trapped their arm, you've also got additional base and you've created lots of space to being your ascent to the back.

In sparring, Donal as usual started off with specific sparring, splitting the class into groups of 1-2-3. I stayed on top, as my neck is still playing up: it becomes a problem if I get squished on the bottom, but I can avoid using it when I'm on top of mount, half guard, side control etc. However, it does limit me in half-guard, as I rely quite a lot on my head to maintain control. I like to shove it next to their head, then use that combined with shoulder pressure to pass. It is also handy for base, if they start trying to roll you over.

As I couldn't use my head, I instead had to rely on pressure from my hips and good grips with my arms. When grabbing under their head, I brought my hand all the way through and also gripped tightly onto their shoulder (or their armpit, if I could reach it). I also tried turning towards their legs, clamping my elbow to the far side and attempting to maximise hip pressure. Still, I definitely didn't feel anywhere near as secure as I normally do, so was getting rolled, particularly by the bigger guys.

In free sparring, I stuck with either smaller or controlled people, as I didn't want to mess up my neck again (with has happened twice in the last month or two, both times because I kept turtling against white belts who were staying active on top). This time, I stayed either in open guard, or I worked to get on top of either half guard, mount or side control. If I could get to a dominant position, I tried let them into the game a bit, as it isn't very helpful to just lie there.

Underneath was interesting, as on numerous occasions I had to stop myself rolling into the running escape or turtling. That means I was instead forced to stay on my back and use my knees and arms, trying to create a frame to then recover guard. If you can get your skeletal structure into the right alignment (e.g., framing your forearms or knees into their hips), that can be a useful start to guard recovery. Of course, much easier when people aren't going nuts, or if they're much less experienced than you.

A few people were going for footlocks too, which is unusual. Good practice for my defence on that front, which at the moment just consists of grabbing their gi and pulling them close to me, then driving forwards and stepping through. There is a free internal Gracie Barra Bristol submission only comp coming up on 3rd December (open to any Gracie Barra students, I think), so perhaps people are looking to improve their straight footlocks in preparation for that.