Under the Brown Fog of Autumn Dusk

Comrades!

Congratulations to Dan Greene for putting it on the line this past Saturday.  Dan competed under the SlatkinBjj banner in the White Belt Masters division.  Although he lost in the first round, Dan acquitted himself quite nicely.  Check out the SlatkinBjj page on Facebook to see the match.  

On to the moves! (I’ll take on all the gi moves in this posting.)

Takedowns

• Ogoshi (Hip Roll): Your opponent grips your right lapel. Raise your right elbow high and drop it down to break his grip.  Use the break, also, to close distance and to lower your level.   Bend both knees and lower your hips as you grip snugly around his waist with your right hand.  Your legs are between his, your right hip protruding slightly beyond his right side.  Pull the opponent in close to your hip and, as if lifting him from below, straighten your knees and throw him with a twist of your hip.
• Ko soto gake (Small Outside Hook): You attempt Ogoshi and your opponent thwarts it by blasting his hips forward.  Step your right leg behind his left leg, hook and drive him down with your forward momentum. 
• Obitori Gaeshi (belt-grab reversal): Start with a right-hand grip on your opponent’s lapel and a  left-hand grip on his sleeve.  Step back with the right leg while snapping him down with the right lapel grip.  Remove the right lapel grip and replace it with an over-the-back grip on his belt.  You can under-hook his right arm or scoop his right leg, outside in; your choice.  Keep your body weight on him to prevent his regaining posture and place your cheek along the right side of his ribcage.  Hop deep between his legs with your left,  place the instep of your right foot on his left inner thigh and throw him by pulling him into you and rolling backward.  Follow him over so that you land in mount.

Strangulations:

1. Kataha jime (Wing Strangle): Throw ko soto gake.  Scissor your legs and finish in across-side position.  Reach under his head with your right arm and grab his left lapel, thumb-in.  If you can’t get good depth, no worries, you can make adjustments once you’ve put him in rear mount.  The left hand scoops under his left armpit as if going for a quarter nelson.  Step up on your left foot and slide your right shin along his spine.  Make sure your chest is touching the back of his left shoulder.  If done correctly, you can pull him into your rear mount with minimal effort.  Pull the lapel across his neck and apply your left arm at the nape of his neck to execute the strangle hold.
2. Gyaku juji gatame (cross-collar strangle, both palms up): You are controlling your opponent in closed guard.  Open his right lapel with your left hand and quickly secure a deep grip with your right hand — four fingers inside his lapel, your thumb outside.  The deeper the grip, the better your odds of succeeding with the strangle.   Break his posture forward by tugging smartly on the lapel and drawing him in with your legs.  Slide your left hand under your right arm and secure the same palm-up grip on his left lapel.  Draw his face close to your chest, saw the blade of your thumb-side wrists into his carotid arteries and pull your elbows down (not out!) so that they trace the rib cage.
3. Kata juji gatame (cross-collar strangle, one palm up, one down): Begin as above.  This time your opponent blocks the path to his left lapel.  Position your torso to your right so you have a clear  sight line to his left lapel.  Stab your left hand, palm-down into his lapel.  Thumb is in deep, four fingers are out.  Draw him in as before, twist the blade-side of your hands into his neck as before, and finish the strangle by tracing the elbows across your ribcage.
4. Kata juji gatame (Version deux): Your opponent has good posture and is not allowing you to gain the cross-collar grip.  Twist your torso to the right and heist up on your right forearm in order to secure a palm-up grip on his left lapel.  Break his posture with a smart tug of the lapel and the action of drawing in your legs.  His head is close to your chest, affording a clear view of the back of his lapel.  Place your right thumb into his lapel, at the nape of his neck, and start tracing along the front.  Use the blade-side of your right forearm to drive his head away and better expose the right side of his neck.  Finish strangle exactly as above. 
5. Kata juji gatame from mount: Throw obitori gaeshi and land in mount.  Secure a deep cross-collar grip, palm-up, with your right hand.  Crush your forearm to his body to prevent his hand fighting.  Shift your upper body to your left side and base out wide with your left hand.  This is what stands between you and your opponent’s upa escape.  Keeping your weight balanced to your left, sweep your left arm over his head in a wide arching motion, until your left triceps are next to his jaw line.  Now for a wee bit of nastiness: Drive your triceps across the jaw line to turn his head to his right and better expose the left lapel.  Secure a palm-down grip, thumb in.  Put your head on the mat above his and strangle by sliding your elbows down and across your ribcage.

Cheers!

Blue becomes you

Comrades!

A hearty congratulations goes out to Michael Leverone and Robbie Renfrow for receiving their blue belts last night.  No doubt about it, a gi looks much smarter with a colored belt.  

On to the moves!  (I’ll catch the blog up on gi moves in the next day or two.)

11/3

Takedowns:

• knee block: You and your opponent are in an over-under clinch.  Lower your level and bring your over-hooking elbow tight to your  ribs.  The idea is to buckle his hips.  If you’re able to do so, the success rate for your takedown goes up considerably.  Stab your right hand just past his knee cap — creating an axis off of which his body can spin — simultaneously stepping back with your left leg so that he has a place to fall.  Maintain your over-hook.   Place your right hand on his left biceps to prevent his turning into you.  Slide your left shin under his right shoulder-blade and slide your right shin over the top of his shoulder to create a clamp.  Fix your left elbow to your side and drive your pelvis toward his head to finish the near-arm juji. 
• snatch single-leg: If the knee-block fails (because you didn’t buckle his hip, your over-hook was loose, or too much space developed between the two of you), the snatch single-leg is often a good follow-up option.  Your level is low and you’re staring at his juicy right leg.  Stack your hands behind his knee cap and hike his leg through yours for the takedown. Use the high-leg pass to knee-on-belly.  Your opponent posts on your left hip.  Pop your left hand under his elbow to release the post.  Now for version two of the near-arm juji.  Place your right hand on his left biceps to keep him from turning into you.  Slide your right shin into his armpit, inside portion up to fortify your base.  You must do now do three things to prevent him from sitting up and spoiling your submission attempt: 1)Clamp your legs together before falling back; 2)don’t fall away from your opponent — fall next to him; 3)secure a hold on the left side of his waist with your right arm.   Hold his triceps and tuck your elbow firmly to your side for a powerful near-arm juji gatame.

Ground work:

Top lock: You have your opponent in closed guard.  Take the middle position so that you can grab his head with both hands and break his posture.  Open your guard and re-lock high on his back, one leg under the armpit, the other directly on top of the shoulder-blade.  Another alternative is to open the guard and “walk” the legs up to top lock.  Either way, you are now a human fulcrum, and your opponent a human lever.  A couple of details: your head is on the side of your shoulder-locking leg.  Legs are slightly splayed; and the foot of your armpit-locking leg is crossed on top.  How many finishes do we have?  Let us count the ways.

1. Juji from the top lock
2. Conventional juji: If your opponent stays back, scoop under his left leg with your right arm and bring your left leg around his face to finish.
3. Americana: grab his right wrist with both hands and push into your left thigh for Americana.
4. Wrist lock/juji: If your opponent crosses his arms to avoid juji, plunge under his forearm with one hand and cup the top of his hand with the other.  You can finish the wrist lock or merely threaten it to elicit a reaction.  Often you’ll soften him up for juji.
5. Kimura: Grab his left wrist with both hands, pushing it down and along the outside of your thigh for a kimura lock.  You can even double up, executing kimura on his left while hitting juji on his right.
6. Pendulum sweep to juji: If your opponent stacks you to prevent arm bars, scoop under his left leg with your right arm.  Kick your right leg into his left armpit, driving him over at a diagonal.   Maintain the hold on his right arm and the scoop on his leg so that you come out of the sweep in excellent position to lie back for juji. 

Cheers!

And the rotten apple goes to…

Comrades!

I used to play a little parlor game with new girlfriends called “Let’s see if we hate the same actors.”  It was fun, and revealing.  Why don’t we play a shorter, albeit less interesting version of it?   Simply, “Who is the worst actor?”

A poster at Penn Station just reminded me that one our most intolerable movie stars is still giving putrid performances at the age of 68.   I’ll give you a hint: he has the emotional range of a statue.  Got it?  Not yet?  He has all the charisma of a toilet plunger.  Still don’t have it?  He fouled the screen with two other worst-actor candidates — Melanie Griffith and Sigourney Weaver – in the  insipid 80′s film “Working Girl.”  That’s right: Harrison Ford!

On to the moves.

Groundwork:

Preventing the double-under-hook pass:

• Your opponent dives under both legs in order to pass.  Timing is crucial.  If you allow him to pull you in, the move won’t work.  Just as he’s diving under, shrimp out to one side and put downward pressure on his arm.  There are a couple of ways to exert pressure: pointing your toes down works well; so does sliding your shin across his chest.  If you do the latter, grab his top-hand (right) wrist, egg-beater the left leg and kick it straight through as you pull him in.  Grab his head with your right hand and fold your right leg over his neck.  Finish with a triangle choke.  Practice both sides.
• Butterfly to Americana: This time he dives under your legs and you’re slow to react, allowing him to pull you into his lap.  Grab the back of his head with both hands and pull him forward.  If he locks palm-to-palm across your abdomen,  pull down on the head and drive your pelvis up to release his grip.  Maintaining the two-handed hold on his head, place both feet on his hips and shimmy back enough that you can set up butterfly hooks.   Remove one of your hooks and place the shin across his stomach; flex your foot and hook it in the crease of his hip.  The hooked arm is now deeply entangled.  Grab his wrist and push it into your leg as you extend it.  Result: Americana lock.
• Over-the-shoulder reversal: Your opponent gets double under-hooks and attempts to pass.  Use a shearing motion to thwart him.  Kick your right leg into him and bring your left leg back so that you can roll over your right shoulder. Just as with the “star sweep,” the resistance of his body allows you to elevate your hips and roll over.  You land on your knees, on his left side.  Drive into him for the takedown and pass.
• Heisting elbow reversal: Your opponent is passing on your right side with double under-hooks and, because he’s stacking you, or because his hips are well back, you’re unable to perform the above moves.  You’re in luck – this one’s the easiest to get.  Place your right hand under the point of his left elbow and push it toward 10:00.  As you push, heist up on your forearm, and then hand, to release your hips and send him flying.

Cheers!

The mourning after

Comrades!

Don’t let the customary exclamation point fool you.  There’s no reason to feel chipper today.  None at all.  Having medicated myself for the last eight Sunday evenings with a dose of Madmen, the prescription is up.  I will have to — just as I did after the close of The Sopranos and The Wire — find new coping mechanisms for the naseous and hateful realities of Monday morning.  Long live John Danaher!

On to the moves!

(Starting with last week)

Takedowns:

Ouchi Gari (Big Inside Clip): You and your opponent are locked in the over-under position.  Tug with your under-hooking arm (the right arm in this case) to draw his left leg forward.  Lower your level and hook his left leg with your right.  Do not rely on the clipping action alone.  Your right arm shotputs his armpit, bringing him down to the back left corner.  Prepare yourself to step up with the left leg as soon as you hit the ground with your opponent.  A slow reaction and he’ll catch you in full guard.  If done properly, you’ll land in his half guard.

Groundwork:

Half-guard Escapes:

1. Gain a cross-face grip with your left arm and drive your shoulder into his jawline.  Immediately pop up to a tripod position.  Your right hand is out far enough to elude his over-hook, your head is planted on the ground, and your legs are spread wide enough to provide solid base.  If done correctly, the position is flat-out immobilizing: your opponent’s jaw is bearing tremendous downward pressure.  The goal is now to free your knee from his half-guard wrap.  Shaking your lower body while maintaining the tripod should do the trick.  Once free, angle the knee toward your left side.  Sit through to complete the pass.  His right arm often gets swept up in the pass.   Take advantage of his compromised defenses, finishing with the “boltcutter,” or the “north-south arm-in guillotine.”
2. Again you land in your opponent’s half-guard, but instead of clutching your leg, he opens and plants his left leg as a hook.  Hooks, as we’ve discussed, are effective when the point of the knee faces skyward, much less so when the knee is flattened to either side.  Knowing that, we walk our hooked leg (the right) in a wide circle, until his knee is mostly flattened.  Now we can transition rather easily to mount, though you may need to assist your right hand.  From mounted position, walk his elbow up and finish with juji gatame.

Lesson from October 17th:

I have, in a previous post, expounded on the principles of maintaining guard position, so I’ll keep it brief this time.

• Parallelism: Your body must be parallel to your opponent’s in order to prevent him from passing guard.  The converse: your opponent must get to perpendicular to defeat your guard.  First things first: Do not accept the cross-face.  Whichever side he passes to, your same-side arm should be there to block the cross-face. 
• Head control: Prevent your opponent from passing by blocking his cross-face and pushing his head to the floor (i.e. parallel to you).  If you block the cross-face, push his head toward parallel and hip out, you’ll be tough to pass.
• Single-under-hook pass defense: Using the above elements, prevent your oppponent from executing the over-under pass.  As he begins his turn toward perpendicularity, your right arm is tucked and ready to block the cross-face.  Do not make the finger-in-the-dike mistake of stiff-arming his hip.   Your left hand and underside of the forearm force his head to your right side as you hip out to the left.  Use a pendulum kick to get to your knees.  You’re now in excellent attacking position.  If he maintains the hold on your right leg, go straight to crucifix attacks.

Cheers! 

•  

 

 

Get thee a gi!

Comrades!

I mentioned on Sunday that I would like to begin gi classes in November.  I trust all are fine with that.  Yes, a gi costs money and, yes, it can turn your hamper into a biohazard — but it’s an important part of Bjj and should be given serious study.  Please consult me if you have questions about brand or size. 

On to the moves:

Takedowns:

Russian #1 (The “Boris”): Your opponent grips a collar-tie.  Peel it with the Russian.  Grip a figure-of-4 on your own arm, right hand palm up.  Lunge forward, stretching his arm straight and driving him to the ground.  Release the left hand and place it around his waist in a seatbelt hold.  Your right hand keeps his arm outstretched in order to start the crucifix series.

Russian #2 (The “Natasha” ) : Your opponent grabs your left wrist.  Swing your left to your right and grab her hand.  Turn your shoulder and grab an over-hook to the Russian.  This time when you lock a figure-of-4, your right hand is palm down.  Step back with the right foot and hike her captured arm between your legs.  As with the previous move, your left goes to a seatbelt grip and your right keeps her arm outstretched for the impending doom.

Crucifix Submissions:

One-armed rear naked choke: Picking up where we left off: Drive your left knee into your opponent’s armpit, preventing him from retracting his elbow.  Extend the arm as much as you can with your knee so that you can step up with your right foot and hook the arm at the wrist.  Your left arm migrates from his waist to the inside of his left wrist and the weight of your chest is heavy on his right shoulder.  Put your legs in a figure-of-4 and shift your body until perpendicular.  Lie back.  His right arm is trapped in your figure-of-4 hold (above the elbow) and his left is being held by your left hand.  Your right hand is free to reach around his neck and cup his shoulder.  Place your head close to his and turn his head to the right for a powerful finish.

Ude gatame: Instead of falling back to the crucifix (belly up), you’re going to apply the crucifix belly down.  Do as above, but do not lie back.  Maintain pressure on the outside of his elbow by extending your figure-of-4 hold and pushing on the back of his triceps with your pelvis.

Rolling counter to Kimura: Your opponent bends her arm and turns it in when you attempt the figure-of-4 leg hold.  With your left hand, trace the right side of her body and grab her right wrist, holding it in place.  Push off your right foot and SLOWLY roll over your left shoulder.  Your opponent, if she knows what’s good for the structural health of her shoulder, will roll with you.  As soon as the roll is complete, sit up, scoot your hips back and place your left arm across her face.  Now you can keep her torso pinned to the mat as you raise your right hip for a frighteningly powerful Kimura.

Cheers!

The Showstopper

Comrades!

Our very own Sacha “The Showstopper” is competing in the PanAms this weekend.  His first match begins at 2:20.  I hope some club members will turn out in support.

On to the moves:

Stand-up: Russian variations

1. Collar-tie: Your opponent grips with a collar-tie.  Reach across with your right hand and grab his right wrist.  Twist your torso to break his hold.  Maintain your grip on his wrist and seize his right biceps muscle with your left hand.
2. Wrist-grab: Your opponent grips your left wrist.  Swing his arm to your right hand and take hold of his wrist.  Wrap your left arm around his right and grip at the biceps.
3. Biceps-control: Your opponent has inside position on your biceps.  Squeeze the bony part of his right elbow with your left hand.  Bring your right hand under his left grip, reach across your body and grab his right wrist.  Pull his arm across your body and lock up your Russian.

• Seize the Russian from any of the above set-ups.  Push into your opponent and use your left foot to chop at his right.  When he’s sufficiently off-balanced, grab the leg.  Place it between your own, head on the outside of his hip.  Tap the back of his left knee with your right hand while driving your right shoulder to the inside of his right thigh.  Go to the high-leg pass and finish with knee-on-belly.
• Seize the Russian from any of the above set-ups.  Once you have it, lock a figure-of-four with your hands.  Your right hand grips his wrist (thumb facing his palm), your left hand grips your right.  Drive his arm directly forward so that he’s in a quasi-turtle position.  Switch to the arm-in grip and go to victory roll.

Groundwork:

Omo plata (a.k.a. kata garami): Break your opponent’s posture using the “prayer.” Go to the “clamp,” making sure to maintain good pressure on his near shoulder.  Adjust the angle of your hips to maximize control and squeezing pressure.  The more you inch toward perpendicularity, the easier it is to do this.  Heist on your right forearm, chamber your left leg and trace his jaw with it.  Keep your hips and butt down to maintain shoulder pressure.  Turn your legs out and lean forward as if whispering in his ear to finish the submission hold.

If your opponent postures up, return to the perpendicular position, put legs in the figure-of-four (left leg under right knee) and tuck your right foot into his left armpit.  Straighten your legs to pressure his shoulder and extend his arm.  If you do it well, you have a straight arm bar.  If the arm bar fails, bend his hand towards his inner forearm for a powerful wrist lock.  Note, if you can’t get to his armpit, tuck under his chin.

Cheers!

Half belongs in the past

Comrades!

This week your intermittently faithful blogger begins his fifth decade.  I’m not sure how to feel about that.  Should I be thankful for past fortune and resolute about the future? (Getting older beats the alternative…Think of all you have…Your best years are ahead)  Should I accept it with grace and good humor?   (At my age, I don’t even buy green bananas…My grey beard and twaddle make me look distinctive…By gum, shrinking testicles and an extended scrotum are attractive!)  I don’t know, good people.  Let’s just say I’m darkly agnostic about it.   I’ll let Thomas Hardy have his say.

Life may be sad past saying,

Its green forever graying,

Its faiths to dust decaying;

And youth may have foreknown it,

And riper seasons shown it,

But custom cries: “Disown it!”:

Say ye rejoice, though grieving,

Believe, while unbelieving,

Behold, without perceiving!”

On to the moves:

Takedowns: Sumi gaeshi from two set-ups.

1) Sumi gaeshi off of failed armdrag.  You attempt an armdrag, but your opponent is able to keep you in front of him by squaring himself.  Keep a firm hold of his right triceps, pinning his arm to your chest.  Drop your level and work for a left-hand grip on his far lat muscle, leaning on him to prevent his regaining posture.  Maintain pressure as you circle to the front.  Angle it so that the top of your head is closer to his nose than ear.  Hop in deeply with your right foot and hook the inside of his left knee with your left foot.  Throw him to the back left corner, using the hold on his lat to steer him.  Land as you were: left arm on his far lat muscle, right hand holding his right triceps muscle.  Drape your left leg over his right and  keep his arm tightly fastened across your sternum.  Close your right elbow on his wrist and raise your hips to secure an Americana lock.

2) Sumi gaeshi counter to single-leg takedown: Your opponent seizes your left leg; his head is on the inside of your body.  Alleviate his drive by doing one, two, or all of the following: sprawl back with your right leg; push his head down with your right hand; place your captured foot on the outside of his right knee.  Reach around his back and weave through his left armpit.  Catch his wrist, and then lock it in a figure-of-four.  Circle slightly to the front to optimize your entry angle.  Hop in with your right and hook with your left.  Throw sumi gaeshi.  If your opponent lands with his hands locked around your leg, place your legs in a figure-of-four and kick straight out.  Maintain the figure-of-four hold with your hands and force his wrist to his waist.  Either way he turns is trouble for him.  If he walks his legs clockwise, it’s easy to take his back.  If he walks counter-clockwise, walk with him until you’re practically spooning.  Put on a choking grip with your right arm, cupping his shoulder for control.  Spin your body to north-south position without raising your hips.  End in a palm-to-palm grip with your right shoulder driving into the back of his head.  The compression results in a choke/neck crank submission.

Cheers!

Withered stumps of time

Comrades!

Some months ago I watched Quintin Tarantino’s revenge fantasy, Inglorious Basterds.   Those who have seen it will surely remember the debonaire Jew hunter played by Chritoph Waltz.  He stole the show with his upper-crust depravity.  In one particular scene, he is interrogating a German actress he knows is a traiter.  He probes and she squirms.  Then he leaps on her, lands in full mount, wraps both hands around her throat and chokes her to death.

That scene really jolted me.  I couldn’t stop thinking about how vulnerable Waltz was to an upa sweep.  If only this woman knew a modicum of jiu-jitsu…  it would have been enough.  That week I ordered a gi, size 000, for my then-4-yr.-old daughter.  She’s learning.  Watch out!

On to the moves:

Takedowns:

• Ankle pick: Your opponent locks a collar-tie on your right side.  Strike the inside of his elbow with your left hand, driving it up, not out.  Immediately seize a deep under-hook, cupping his shoulder and pulling him down and into you; no daylight should pass between your shoulder and his.  Do not shuffle your feet.  Accomplish the above steps by turning your torso from straight on to bladed, otherwise your footwork will become unnecessarily complicated.  After breaking his hold and securing your own, your feet are shoulder-width apart and your legs are aligned with the under-hook.  Shuffle your left foot to your right and knock him back by striking the inside of his left thigh with your right hamstring.  Take it easy.  If you overdo the impact, you’ll leave yourself poorly for the actual takedown.  Go from off-balancing strike to ankle pick.  Immediately after banging his leg, place your right foot behind his right foot.  Point your toes up to create an effective block.  Lower your level and grab his ankle.  Drive him down on a diagonal, shot-putting your under-hook  to complete the throw.
• Knee-pick: Use the above set-up.  Instead of thrusting your leg to off-balance him, lower your level and place your left hand on the outside of his right knee.  Stride across his body at a diagonal, shot- putting your arm to complete the throw. 

High-leg pass: Finish both throws with the high-leg pass.  As soon as your opponent  lands, place your right hand in the crease of his left hip and your left hand on the inside of his knee.  Your right foot is between his open legs; your left foot is outside.  Push down with your hands and transfer your weight to your left foot.  Bring your right leg back, donkey-kick style, to prevent him from attaining hooks.  Use your grip on his knee to throw it straight.   Land in knee-on-belly position.  If he squirms, grab a two-handed can opener.  Once he’s docile, base out wide with both hands above his head.  Slide your right knee to the ground and bring your left leg to his ribcage.  Once it reaches his ribcage, fan out your right leg, flopping it down so that you’re in full mount.  It’s crucial that you keep your hips down on the last two pieces of this move.  You mustn’t give him the elbow escape.

Groundwork:

Kick-over guard pass: Your opponent has you in closed guard.  Rock onto the balls of your feet and lean forward, placing your right hand on his neck, your left thumb-up (like a handshake) under his armpit.  Pop up at angle.  Turn your torso so it’s bladed and drive your right knee into the crease of his left hip.  The torque should release his guard. Return your torso to straight on and jut your hips forward to keep his legs straight and in front.  If you need to use your hands to accomplish this, that’s fine.  Lower your level.  Put your weight on your left foot and sweep your right leg over and across his body on an even plane.  The action pins his hips to the ground.  Do not crash-land on your opponent.  As soon as you complete the sweep, step over with your left leg so that you land in across-side.

Cheers!

Thunderstruck

Comrades!

When did you first encounter Brazilian jiu-jitsu?   For me it was October 17, 1995.  I was living in Louisville, Kentucky and I had invited some friends over to watch the World Combat Championship on pay-per-view.  My friends had seen the early UFC events and had told me about Royce Gracie and how he “looked like a python” doing something called Gracie jiu-jitsu.  Royce’s cousin Renzo was headlining the WCC, and I couldn’t wait to see him in action.  But before he even stepped into the ring, I fell in love with his art. 

The producers had put together a highlight reel of Bjj, showing a young Renzo competing on a gym floor.  In one sequence, a  jittery camera showed Renzo slamming someone to the mat.  In another, Renzo was locking a guillotine.  I wanted to do that! 

In the post-tournament interview, Renzo dedicated his victory to his students in New York, and I remember turning to my friends and saying, “How cool would it be to study with that guy?”  Fourteen years later “that guy” tied a black belt around my waist. 

On to the moves.

Takedowns:

• Sliding arm-drag.   Capture your opponent’s right wrist with your left hand and quickly grab his right triceps before he can pull free.  Step to the outside with your left foot to create space.  Drag his arm as you lower your butt and penetrate his stance with your right foot, instep facing up.  Be sure to end your slide on your right hip.  Keep his arm as you reach around for a seatbelt grip.  Use the seatbelt sling to put him in your rear mount.
• Sliding arm-drag (version II).  You attempt the sliding arm-drag and your opponent is able to maintain his footing.  Keep hold of his left arm and make sure the penetrating leg (right) encircles his.  Wrap your right arm around his right leg and place the top of your head in his armpit, giving you a modified cradle.  Drive towards 11:00 to finish the takedown.

Groundwork:

• Front triangle strangle (omote sankaku jime): You have your opponent in closed guard.  The first step is to break his posture.  Place your hands together – as you would in prayer – and take the inside position between his arms.  Using the outside blades of your forearms, smash his arms to the outside as you pull him forward with your legs.  He will place both hands on the mat to recover his balance.  Don’t delay your attack.  Grab the back of his head with your left hand to prevent his posturing up.  At the same time, place your right hand at the crook of his left elbow to prevent his cross-face hold.  Open your guard and place your left foot on the mat; shrimp out to the left and put your foot on his hip.  You now have excellent attacking balance: your hand on his head prevents his posturing up; your right hand at the crook of his elbow prevents his cross-face; your left foot on his hip prevents him from stacking; and your hip position (the perpendicularity that makes many attacks possible) allows you to chamber your right leg and bring it down across his neck.  Lock the leg triangle and raise your hips to take his trapped arm across your mid-section.  Pull down on his head and drive your hips up to finish the choke.
• Side triangle choke (yoko sankaku jime): Your opponent has you in across-side position with his left arm under your neck and his right arm under your left leg.  This broken position sometimes occurs when you attempt to hip escape and your opponent tries to re-secure side control.  A cagey opponent will stiffen his neck and point his head toward your chin, but if he drops his guard for a second, this is an excellent attack.  Using the blade of your left forearm, push his neck down and quickly throw your left leg around his neck.  Lock the figure-of-4 — left foot tucked behind your right knee.  Reach under his midsection with your right arm and over with your left; lock a ten-finger grip.  Your head rests against his left hip.  Squeeze your legs to choke.
• Rear triangle choke (ura sankaku jime): You have your opponent in rear mount with an over-under grip.  Grab his left wrist with your right hand and your right hand with your left.  Release your right hook and bring your left hook across his midsection.  Flex your foot and hook your toes on his right hip.  This prevents him from circling out of the hold.   Scoot your hips back slightly so that you can chamber your right leg.  Use the right leg to break his right-hand grip.  Maintain your right-hand hold, but release your left hand and grab your right shin.  Pull it across his chest and tuck your foot under your left knee.  He’s in a world of trouble.  To finish the triangle choke, scoot your butt back before leaning forward.  (Try to plant his chin on his chest; this gives the compression you need for the choke.)  Alternatively, you can finish with Kimura on his left arm, or tuck his left arm under your left for a straight arm-bar or a modified Americana, or go for a wrist lock.   

Cheers!

Are you still doing that…?

Comrades!

I recently read a book called “Falling Hard” by a British journalist named Mark Law.  Law started practicing  judo at the age of fifty and, as the double-entendre title suggests, he really took to it.  Much of the book focuses on the history of judo, its greatest matches and its most colorful personalities, but Law also writes amusingly about his own experiences, including the reactions of friends and coworkers when he tells them what he’s up to.  One anecdote – or more precisely, one recurrent anecdote — made me cringe.  It’s something I encounter almost weekly now that I teach jiu-jitsu.  Picture this exchange:

I’m making small talk with some jackass who plays golf or runs on a fucking treadmill and he says, with his arms extended and hands open as if he’s about to chop something, “So, are you still doing that karate/tae kwan do/kung fu thing?”  Me: “It’s called jiu-jitsu.” Jackass: “Yeah, right.  That. Are you still doing it?”

On to the moves:

Snap-downs:

• Snap-down to neck crank: Secure inside position, right hand slightly behind your opponent’s head, left hand cupping his biceps.  Make sure you are not too close to him; for the move to work, you must leave space for him to fill.  Step back with your right leg as you snap his head down.  Lock on a front-head-and-arm grip and keep his posture broken.   Adjust the grip so that your right hand is under his chin.  Quickly stab under his right armpit and across his back with your left hand, driving at a diagonal, as you take a 180 degree step back with your right leg.  The motion causes a powerful twisting effect.  Keep both grips as you follow him down.  Make sure his back is flat and that your hips are on the ground.  Drive your hips forward and rotate your right hand (I like to touch my left pectoral muscle) to complete a neck-crank submission.
• Snap-down to Anaconda choke: This time the snap-down doesn’t quite do the trick and your opponent is bowed but unbroken.  No worries: just snap him down again.  Now you have him in turtle position in front of you.  As before, grab a front headlock.  Be sure to pin your head to his lat muscle (the same side you’re going to attack).   Use the frame you’ve created to collapse his right arm; as you do, rise up to the balls of your feet and kick your left leg through so that your opponent rolls over you.  You and he are  now side by side with your feet pointing in opposite directions.  Adjust your grip so that your right hand is in the crook of your elbow and the left is cupping his lat muscle, and adjust your shoulder so that both of you are on your sides.  Walk your feet clockwise as you squeeze the choke.  You are cranking his neck and choking him at once.  Isn’t that lovely?
• Arm-in guillotine –>Anaconda choke: Your opponent is in the turtle position and you have him in a front headlock.  Collapse his right arm as before, and slide your right knee forward to prevent him from recovering his base.  Place your right shin across his belt line and swing your left leg high across his shoulder blades.  Your hips are out to the side as if in mid-hip-escape.  Switch to a five-finger grip and squeeze to finish the guillotine choke.  If unsuccessful, do a quick diagnostic test: Is my hip out enough? Check.  Is my left leg up high enough? Check.  Is his head sufficiently compressed under my armpit?  Aha! This last detail is crucial.  If his neck is straight, he can hold out.

             If the choke still isn’t working, opt for the anaconda.  Maintain your grip and use your right shin to tump him over.  Finish with the anaconda.

Cheers!