Lucas Leite has one of the best half guards in the history of BJJ. His work with the position is nothing short of genius, and watching him masterfully employ it in a competition setting is pleasure to view. With the release of the...

It all seemed so simple starting out.  We had so few positions to learn and our opponents only knew similar ones as well.  It was either closed guard or nothing. As we developed these skills the world of Jiu Jitsu started to open...

When should you be crossing your feet and when should you not? It seems there are so many conflicting thoughts on this, enough in fact that Professor John Danaher has dedicated his time to create a short video to review the facts of...

Jiu Jitsu is a natural step for a lot of wrestlers, whether it be during middle school or high school that they start training Jiu Jitsu along side the wrestling they are training after school, or maybe they don’t find their way to...

As if it isn’t hard enough to guard against kimuras, now—thanks to Dean Lister—we need to look out for reverse kimuras, too!  Sheesh! But, on the bright side, the reverse kimura is a sneaky little attack that your opponent might not be expecting....

The argument continues to be fought on a daily basis even today. Is modern Sport Jiu Jitsu effective in a real fight? Has it maintained its original purpose? Or has it been watered down to the point of uselessness? This past weekend in...

Strength and power can improve your BJJ game if you gain the knowledge and skill of when to use them effectively. (Refer to Blog:  Why Strength Training IS important for the Serious BJJ Athlete). Next, you must understand that strength and power are...

One of the truths of any taxing physical activity is that you can’t do it non-stop.  Researchers say that muscle increase happens on rest days, not on the days you actively lift.  In fact, your weight regimen won’t work unless you allow your...

Popular techniques in Jiu Jitsu are often some of the most simple. They are able to be performed by white belts and black belts, smaller grapplers and bigger grapplers, men and women. The Arm Drag is an example of a technique that is...

Have you ever been working your guard and just wanted a consistent way to utilize the same grips instead of always switching? Spider guard might be THE guard for you. Spider guard is a combination of sleeve grip(s) and using your feet to...

Anyone who has rolled a few times as an inexperienced white belt has probably seen a podium picture from a competition and felt two contradicting emotions: desire and trepidation. A medal from even the most modest of competitions seems both unattainable and incredibly...

There is no disputing, whether you prefer sport Jiu Jitsu, Self Defense Jiu Jitsu, or simply feel, as many do that Jiu Jitsu is Jiu Jitsu and when trained properly the vast majority of techniques are transferable from the mats, to the streets,...

The single leg x guard is another one of those incredibly off balancing guards that we often deal with in training. Marcelo Garcia is one of the pioneers of the position and for years I remember getting all of the information on the...

What is the most important thing you should focus on in Jiu Jitsu?  As you can imagine, the answer to this can vary greatly depending on who you ask.  It may be the ability to pass guard, or the ability to maintain your...

The triangle choke or strangle, depending on your preferred terminology, is one of the newest submissions in Jiu Jitsu, or grappling in general.  Thought to be first developed in Japan in the early 1900’s slightly before World War One, the triangle strangle submission...