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The Basics of the Arm Bar Submission
An Intro To The Arm Bar
Many grapplers are introduced to the arm bar as their first submission. Even fans of MMA will be familiar with this commonly used grappling technique. It is a tried and true jiu jitsu submission, with a long history of use in UFC fights. It’s an excellent submission for a variety of reasons. You can attack the arm bar from many different positions in both gi and no gi. For that reason it is commonly taught as a method for self defense.
Traditionally Brazilian Jiu Jitsu schools teach students how to get the arm bar from mount or closed guard. This is most likely where you’ll be exposed to an arm bar first. Once a practitioner learns the mechanics of the arm bar it can be applied from many different positions. Let’s explore how to implement the arm bar while from the bottom position.
The arm bar is available from pretty much any guard: Spider Guard, X Guard, De La Riva, Closed Guard, Lasso guard and more. Having the arm bar in your arsenal is like having an amazingly lethal weapon. If you can secure one tightly from guard you will have a strong chance of submitting your opponent.
The arm bar is also an incredibly dangerous submission from side control, knee on belly, back control, and while transitioning. Often times your opponents arms will be exposed as they pass your guard. This is a great opportunity to attack the arm bar.
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