The toe hold. It is a classic foot lock attack, but oft forgotten about. It is prominent in the Catch Wrestling style and is also present in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. The toe hold is a gray area of grappling. In IBJJF tournaments, people tend to favor the straight foot lock, while in the submission only […]

While foot locks are to be respected, you do not have to fear them. While you need to be cautious and aware, a foot lock does not mean that your goose is cooked. Far from it. If you know the proper defense, then a foot lock will be no different than any other submission. The […]

There are very few moves in jiu jitsu that provide competent practitioners a true edge or advantage in competition.  The kimura, sometimes referred to as a double wrist lock, is one such move.  The kimura can be a method of doing jiu jitsu, but what makes it so special?  Why is this move such an […]

The De La Riva guard can be such a fantastic guard if you know how to work it. The bread and butter techniques of De La Riva guard are the sweeps. It is a guard where if you know how to control your opponent with it, that you’ll be easily able to complete any of […]

It blows my mind that people who have more than six months of training still do not know how to escape one of Jiu Jitsu’s most fundamental techniques…the armbar. While the armbar is a solid technique, there are some equally solid ways to escape the lock. The big reason people get submitted with it, is […]

The knee tap takedown is one of the easiest takedowns for people that don’t consider themselves proficient with takedowns. It does not take much to succeed with this takedown, and it can lead you to some good spots to work your ground game. The knee tap was a popular takedown with former UFC welterweight champion, […]

At the No Gi Worlds last weekend, BJJ extraordinaire, Luiz Panza won his championship match with a calf slicer. Calf slicers, also known as calf crushers are seen more rarely in competition, but are absolutely effective submissions. Calf slicers can cause an extreme amount of pain that is felt almost instantly.  The pain sounds exactly […]

This past weekend was a big one for professional Jiu Jitsu fans. Besides the No Gi Worlds happening in California, the Eddie Bravo Invitational was also holding its ninth event in Los Angeles. The ninth edition of Eddie Bravo’s fast paced, submission only tournament did not disappoint. As of normal, there were fantastic finishes and […]

The move of going from solely playing closed guard, to then playing open guard is a big one. Many people find it difficult to make that jump. The fear of once they open their guard is that their guard will be passed and put in a bad position. While that is a threat, the good […]

This past weekend, some of the best Brazilian Jiu Jitsu fighters in the world descended upon California to compete at the 2016 No Gi Worlds. There were exciting and dominant performances. There were some surprises and history was made as well. While there were some tough divisions and game competitors, there were some matches that […]

Have you ever heard the term, pulling the trigger? If you have been around combative sporting martial arts, it is probably something that you’ve heard at least once. Usually you will hear it in Muay Thai or Kickboxing. All it means is to not be so tentative. It means to go for your attacks when […]

A big part of what makes jiu jitsu so special is that it allows a smaller more technical practitioner to overcome a larger, stronger but less technical person.  While size not mattering is a myth, because generally between two people of similar skill level the larger, stronger person will tend to be victorious, jiu jitsu […]

The butterfly guard is a fantastic asset for anyone that likes to play the open guard game. And its use has been well documented by its effective use in high level competition. While it is known mainly for its effective sweeps to get on top of an opponent, or to set up X Guard, there […]

The X Guard is one of the most applicable and effective open guards in Jiu Jitsu. X Guard allows for a variety of simple sweeps, back takes and submissions. This particular open guard can change the momentum of a match in just a couple seconds. There are some great techniques you can use to dominate […]

Sparring (or rolling) in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is one of the reasons that the art is so effective. Unlike other styles of martial arts that perform their techniques in the air, with no real resistance, BJJ relies on actually proving its worth through sparring. BJJ students show their knowledge by using their techniques on fully […]