Deep half guard can be an extremely effective guard to help keep your opponent's weight off of you and to set up a variety of sweeps, such as the Homer Simpson or the Waiter Sweep.  For the person who finds themselves stuck in...

Our academy recently hosted Miguel Benitez, a Tom DeBlass black belt and Owner/Head Instructor at Montgomery BJJ in New Jersey for a no gi seminar.  The seminar was packed with highly implementable techniques and mindset tips.  Students learned new approaches to mount escapes,...

The clinch. It’s a highly recognizable term among the combative arts, and it’s a flagship concept of BJJ. When we clinch, we close the distance between ourselves and our opponent, or in some cases an assailant. The idea of forward motion in a...

The kimura from the closed guard is a powerful submission. It’s well known, it’s respected, and it’s undoubtedly an important part of any fundamental BJJ program. But as the years go by, and your training partners and opponents become savvy to your love...

The half guard is becoming one of the most popular guard games out there today.  In the world of high level competitors, people like Bernardo Faria and Tom DeBlass have made it the foundation of their competitive success and BJJ game plans.  For...

The 2003 ADCC world championship event in Sao Paulo was not Dean Lister's first taste of ADCC victory, having won a fight in 2001 before meeting up with Ricardo Almeida in the quarterfinals and in 2002, Dean won the ADCC North American Trials....

Do you ever feel inadequate at your current belt rank? I find this to be a common mindset among many BJJ players. Some would describe the feeling as undeserving. If you’re involved with a good academy and you’re a part of a solid...

You know the story. You show up at your Grandmother’s house for the annual Christmas dinner. As you browse the cookie table your uncle appears. Visibly inebriated, he proceeds to advance toward you making several chopping motions with his hands. And just like...

BJJ fundamentals are the building blocks that will set the stage for all growth in your BJJ game. Think of it in terms of musical practice. You must first learn the scales before you can play a symphony, right? Of course, there is...

Throughout the course of history, plenty of techniques have gotten a bad rap.  Look how long leg locks were frowned upon until OG grapplers like Dean Lister and systematic masterminds like John Danaher helped bring the leg lock out of the darkness and...

Today for his 137th episode of the wildly popular Jocko Willink Podcast, author, former Navy Seal and BJJ black belt Jocko Willink played host to long time friend and jiu jitsu mentor Dean Lister.  The two of them share tales of Dean's upbringing...

The back mount may just be the most dominant position you could hope to achieve in BJJ. Consider the perks. All of your opponent’s defenses are facing away from you, making escapes and counters difficult. From a self-defense perspective, it can be a...

You’re having your coffee and scrolling through your social media again. All the consistent posts pop up. The usual banter, images, and content. Maybe some pictures of food, a funny meme, that same guy complaining about the line at the post office again....

This past weekend, I got back on the competition mats after over 6 years away.  As a student of Professor Tom DeBlass, I've always been inspired by his no nonsense approach to competition for his students.  Do it, if you want to do...

A video recently surfaced of Renzo Gracie showing Brandon Vera a takedown at the airport. It’s always fun to see legends in their natural habitat. You can see the video here! The video was captured prior to the most recent One Fighting Championship...