Fear The Lock Down Half Guard No More With Bernardo Faria

Posted by Fanatics Authors on January 22, 2019

Unlock The Lock Down by Bernardo Faria

Are you familiar with the lock down position? The lock down was most famously popularized by Eddie Bravo, who as a huge advocate of half guard, sought to make the position even more powerful and dynamic. If you have your opponent in standard half guard and you are controlling their right leg as they are on top of you, the lock down involves bringing your outside leg (left leg) over the opponent's right calf. You will then place this outside leg's instep behind the heel of your right leg and your right leg's instep against the opponent's trap leg (right leg's) instep.

This is a position that prevents the opponent from kicking out, stepping over, or advancing forward to pressure the person on bottom. This leg entanglement, along with double under hooks locks the body of your opponent to your own. It can be a very difficult position to deal with. We want to pass the guard, we want to move forward, smash and grind until we get the majority of our body past the opponent's hips and in a dominant position above the waist. But that difficult lock down will keep you stuck.

I am sure there is someone at your school who does the lock down. It can be one of the most annoying positions in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Besides the fact that it can hurt your knee, your opponent can also stall the game and completely stop your moves using this lock down from the bottom half guard. A really strong half guard player with utilize the lock down often. So it is worth knowing how to counter it.

You will often see old grapplers use the lock down to slow the game down and give themselves time to catch their breath, as they think about their next move and how to set up a technique. Nobody understands this better than 5 Time World Champion Bernardo Faria. Bernardo has faced this difficult position many times and has figured out the best way possible to escape from it. He has developed one way that works very well for his game. In his technique he tries to bend his leg and switch his base as fast as possible, which will unlock the lockdown when done correctly.

In the video below, Bernardo Faria will teach you his technique for unlocking the lock down. Bernardo Faria has long been one of the most dominant fighters in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Bernardo is infamous for implementing simplicity into every aspect of his Jiu Jitsu. This technique works well for everyone no matter what your skill level is, so be sure to check it out. Watch the video below of Bernardo Faria demonstrating how to unlock the lock down and then we will break down his technique. Check it out now!