Butterfly Sweeps & Triangle Entries from Chris Griffin

Chris Griffin "Captain Asian America"

In the recent past I had the opportunity to learn some very effective moves from Chris Griffin aka "Captain Asian America" or "Kentucky Ninja" while he visited a couple of local Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu training centers.

Chris is the founder of Griffin's Submission Academy (Louisville, Ky.) and a very good Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu player. In September Chris visited Lawrenceburg Martial Arts (Lawrenceburg, Ky.) and demonstrated a series of butterfly sweeps. In October he visited Valhalla Academy (Frankfort, Ky.) and showed a series of triangle choke entries.

I never really paid much attention to butterfly sweeps because I never really had much success with them. Chris really opened my eyes and made me realize that there are several other types of butterfly sweeps and there are many common entries from which to execute the sweeps. Now, nearly every time I roll I find myself trying to set up some form/version of the butterfly sweep - this is happening easily now that I know what to look for.

About 6-8 months after I first started training in BJJ I started going for triangle chokes from any which way possible. It didn't matter what position I was in, if there was one arm in and one arm out I went for it. But as I learned other moves the triangle choke fell to the way side and didn't get much attention. Chris reopened my eyes, he showed several different entry possibilities that I hadn't considered before.

Thank you Chris Griffin! Both the butterfly sweep series and triangle choke entries have opened my eyes and improved my game significantly. Also, a big Thanks to Tim Hurt (Lawrenceburg Martial Arts) and Brian Jones (Valhalla Academy) for hosting the "Kentucky Ninja" and inviting all Carlson Gracie Kentucky Affiliates to participate.

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Basics - Closed Guard Defense

A few weeks ago was the Bluegrass Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Tournament again and was the first time I competed as a blue belt. I went into the tournament feeling very confident - like I was going to walk out of the with a gold medal around my neck and I was going to make my school proud. Wrong!! Didn't happen. I got my but kicked. I thought I had made all of the necessary preparations (cut weight naturally, improved my cardio, improved my explosiveness, had new sweeps in my arsenal, etc., etc.) but non of that mattered because I didn't have my BASICS down like I should have.

In two out of the four matches I was submitted by an armbar and a triangle after my opponents broke down my posture from within their guard. There is no way I should be a blue belt if they can break my posture down that easily. Not only were they able to break me down but they were very quick & decisive, they new exactly what the wanted to do and flowed from move to move without hesitation. Are these guys that good or do I have a lot of work to do? Pretty sure it is a combination of both.

Before my next Jui-Jitsu class after the tournament the instructor asked what I had the most difficulty with; so, I explained that they kept breaking me down from within their guard. As a result he decided to cover that in class that day - not only did I learn that I had been making subtle mistakes that compounded each other which added to the ease of my opponents ability to break me down, but also noticed that the higher ranking belts had the same problems. This reconfirms that no matter what level you are at everyone needs to continue working on the basics!

After re-evaluating my technique and making adjustments were needed I noticed a HUGE difference. Since then I've rolled with 2 different black belts and several other upper belts under black and they had a hard time breaking me down while I was in their guard. Most of the time they resorted to opening their guard and trying a sweep instead. This was a huge wake up call for me. It doesn't matter how many moves you know - if you don't have the basics down you'll never get to use them!

Living up to Blue Belt

Since my last post I went from being a 3 stripe white belt to a blue belt in a rather short period of time. The transition from day one to day blue was about 15 months - much quicker than I had anticipated (I was expecting closer to the two year mark). The feeling of having to hurry up and learn more in order to actually feel like a blue belt set in very quickly and still remains.

The Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt that promoted me must have seen something he liked - however, I don't feel like I have the mental aspect down nor do I have the physical muscle memory required to represent this level in Jiu-Jitsu. The more I think about this the more I realize that being promoted a little ahead of the curve can be a good thing. If you are serious about Jiu Jitsu and feel like you aren't at the level in which you represent then it makes you work that much harder to get there - playing catch up. This is exactly what I am going through and still feel like I have a long way to go!

Guillotine Choke - Defense/Prevent a Broken Neck

There has been some buzz in the Jiu-Jitsu and MMA circuits recently about Guillotine Choke Safety. Not too long ago an MMA fighter broke his neck from a guillotine choke while going for a takedown. In this particular case the fighter decided to continue with the takedown instead defending the guillotine. I don't know any other specifics about this particular case but it was enough for me to start thinking about my safety when I get caught in the guillotine from standing.

Bellow are a couple of videos that provide some good info on what to do when you get caught in the guillotine from standing. 

Safety/Technique on MMA style takedowns while in the guillotine choke.

 

This is the defense I learned when I first started Jiu-Jitsu. I had since forgotten about it until I revisited this subject and came across this video.

Ezekiel Choke

In follow up to my last post on 07/02/12 about loosing a match at NAGA to an Ezekiel Choke from within my opponent's guard I decided to research the choke. I found that there are several different versions of the Ezekiel Choke but I couldn't find the exact version that was used on me - the first video is the closest version.

1. Similar to the Ezekiel from guard that my opponent used on me except the hand gripping the collar was a deep under hand grip. After he had the underhand grip set he pulled me down towards his chest and then reached his arm around my head and grabbed his sleeve for the choke. 

2. Ezekiel Choke using your opponent's gi

3. Popular version of the Ezekiel Choke

4. Arm In Ezekiel Choke & Defense

NAGA Columbus - 1rst Place

On Father's day weekend I had the opportunity to compete in my first NAGA event in Columbus, OH. I took home the Gold in the Adult Gi 150-159.9lbs division. I also placed 2nd in the Masters division but can't claim any credit for it since there were only two people in the division and I lost due to an Ezekiel Choke from within my opponent's guard.

I hadn't learned the Ezekiel Choke yet and as such I didn't recognize what was going on when it was being applied. I just thought he had one hand deep in my collar and that I wasn't in any danger unless he went for the other collar to perform a traditional cross collar choke. It felt like it was just a controlling ploy until he reached around my head, grabbed his own gi at his arm, and then squeezed. No biggie, I'll just stack him and apply pressure at his neck until he lets go - nope, didn't happen that way! While stacking him I was reaching for his collar to pull myself in tight over his head - but before I could finish executing I passed out on top of the guy. So yes, you can bet your @$$ that I'll be learning what Mr. Ezekiel Choke can do for me in the future and how to defend against it!!!

Being my first NAGA event and didn't really know what to expect. I was impressed with the overall logistics of the event and had a great time. It was another great learning experience and plan to compete again in the near future!!

Submission Master Grappling Dummy - Clock Choke

So you want to practice the traditional clock choke from turtle or the tornado clock choke but you don't have a partner to practice on. Here's is where using the Submission Master Grappling Dummy gets creative.

This particular jiu jitsu grappling dummy is great for working with it on its back or postured up to work on grappling techniques from your guard. However, when it comes to techniques from the turtle position it doesn't want to stay in turtle by itself because the arms aren't stiff enough to hold it's weight up. The solution? - simply put something under the grappling dummy's stomach while it's on all fours. You could use a step stool, make a box out of plywood, use an upside down small trash can, etc. I use a small ottoman from Wal-Mart that fits perfectly and will support the abuse.

Tornado Clock Choke

After recently rolling with someone who's gi was super tight I truly see the value in the tornado clock choke. I haven't had a chance to try this out yet but am looking forward to it. We were taught to hook the inside of the thigh/leg but I can see where sometimes that may not work. So, if hooking the thigh doesn't work and grabbing the gi pants doesn't work then I say go F5 tornado on them!!

Clock Choke

During my year of Jiu Jitsu training I've heard of the clock choke but haven't learned it in class or looked it up. Last week my instructor showed it to us and I think I will end up using this a lot. It seems very effective as long as you can keep your opponent from defending.

This video does a good job of showing and explaining the basics of the clock choke.The version we learned in class was starting with one leg behind and one leg beside your opponent (opponent in turtle) and you didn't have a hold of the collar yet. I like how this video shows the transition into the clock choke starting from your back with your opponent in your guard.

Grappling Dummy - Breaking In the Legs

Before Saturday's Jiu Jitsu class I worked technique on the Submission Master Grappling Dummy for about 20 minutes. I had trouble getting it to stay upright because I hadn't used it in a while and the legs went back to their original position. The legs are stiff when you first get the grappling dummy and it takes some time working with it to break the legs in right. I didn't want to overdue it and rip the stitches in the crotch area so I've been taking easy on the legs; as a result, the legs tend to go back to default position if you go a while without using the dummy.

There are two solutions to keeping the grappling dummy's legs trained to stay in a good position when you're not using it. The first is to store the dummy with a push-up bar wedged between the thighs. This will work the stitches and material in the crotch area. Second is to store the dummy postured up with the feet pulled out with it's butt sitting on the floor between it's feet. This will work the stitches and material at the knees and legs.

1. Push-up bar wedged between the thighs.

2. Grappling Dummy postured up with it's feet pulled out and it's butt on the floor.

Al Bundy is a Black Belt!!!

Al Bundy a Black Belt? That's awesome!!

Grappling Dummy - Spider Guard Sweep

In today's Jiu-Jitsu session I had the opportunity to roll with new people at a different school. It was the perfect opportunity to try a new sweep from spider guard I saw earlier today.

I had to slowly fish my legs into position to execute the sweep but it worked twice on an opponent who was about 60lbs heavier than me (and a white belt). When I tried it against a purple belt it didn't work so well because I didn't get my legs set up quick enough before he started to defend. This move will be easy to practice on the martial arts dummy, so with a little practice I think I'll be able to use it against the higher belts. The Submission Master Grappling Dummy only weighs about 80lbs. Although 80lbs isn't much - it is dead weight, so practicing this particular spider guard sweep with the Jiu-Jitsu dummy will be good training.

Jiu Jitsu Grappling Dummy

There is a NAGA (North American Grappling Association) tournament coming up that I really want to attend. I don't feel as if I'm ready as my conditioning and mental strength isn't where I want it to be. So tonight, with only 1hr to train, I had to decide what would be the most effective use of my time.

I decided to work with the Submission Master Grappling Dummy. Out came the Jiu-Jitsu notes from class and we went to work. Most of my concentration was on what to do once I achieved side control since my mind tends to go blank when I get to this point during live rolling. Once I did one move I tried to transition into what I thought would be the next logical move from that position. Rolling with the jiu jitsu grappling dummy didn't really work my conditioning but I figured that working technique and knowing what to do in different situations was more important. Hopefully I'll get some good roll time in this week to help improve my conditioning.

iGrapple - Butterfly Guard

Yesterday's class was a good eye opener to some serious work needed when it comes to no gi.

I've been down this road before but haven't addressed the issue because most of my Jiu-Jitsu training is with the gi. In gi Jiu-Jitsu it is so easy to control your opponent just by simply grabbing the gi and working your way into your next move, whereas in no gi there is nothing to grab onto.

The few gi butterfly sweeps that I know didn't work well yesterday because of a combination of my training partners being more experienced (they know how to defend) and poor execution on my part. In addition to trying the sweeps I also tried some submissions from the butterfly guard but they didn't work either.

This morning I looked at iGrapple to see what additional options it shows from butterfly guard. It turns out iGrapple has a lot of different options and has the moves broken down from the position of your arms on your opponent (Double Underhook, Under & Overhook, Double Overhook, Arms Across Body). Rather than trying to look at all of these I decided to think about what position my arms are usually in (naturally) and came to the conclusion that I usually go for the "Under & Overhook" of my opponent's arms. From here there are three moves that I've decide to concentrate on, (elbow lock, omoplata - when executing the elbow lock you are already in position to go into the omoplata, & taking his back). With a little practice on the grappling dummy these techniques should be simple to apply the next time I roll no gi - I'll let you know how it goes.

Breathing - Conserving Energy

Proper breathing and conserving energy is something that many beginners probably don't think about.

During my last tournament the announcer calls my name for my first match - so I put on my headgear, don my mouthpiece, and stand there waiting for the match to start when I hear Sensei say, "Darren, slow down your breathing, relax". I was breathing hard and was all tensed up before the match had even started.

I definitely need to work on this as I'm sure most beginners do. This video captures the concept of creating space so you can breathe while also concentrating on physically conserving your energy.

Kettlebells for Grapplers

Hope everyone had a good holiday weekend. I was out for 4 days and it felt like I hadn't trained for 2 weeks. Speaking of training, I saw this article today about training with kettlebells. I haven't trained with kettlebells before but after reading this article I am now considering it. The author, Brian Jones, is now a Black Belt in Carlson Gracie Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Click here to read the Kettlebells for Grapplers Article

Grip - Gi Pull-Ups

Whether you just started Jiu-Jitsu or you've been doing it a while your hands and forearms usually reach muscle failure relatively quick from holding on to your opponent's gi. Gi pull-ups are a great way to improve your overall grip strength.

There are two grip variations to the gi pull-up - thumb inside the collar and fingers inside the collar. Grab the gi with the preferred grip and do as many pull-ups as you can. Try to alternate grips and move you elbows in and out to utilize different forearm muscles.

If you aren't able to do the pull-ups then use a chair. Put the chair on the floor under the gi, put your feet on the chair and use your legs to assist you in the pull-up.

First grip - thumb inside the collar.

Second grip - fingers inside the collar.

Jiu Jitsu Tournament Performance

During the Bluegrass Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Open last weekend I noticed a few people get really upset when they lost their match. I can see being disappointed in your performance but getting down right upset - really? - grow up folks!! When you go into these tournaments you have to go in with the right attitude. Go to the tournament and treat it as a learning experience. If you win every match that's great but how much did you really learn? When you loose a match you end up thinking about what you need to work on so you don't make the same mistake the next time. This is an excellent tool for improving your Jiu-Jitsu.

When you tap out to your training partner you don't take it as seriously as when you tap out in a tournament. I lost one of my matches by being arm barred within a triangle hold - yes, I was disappointed that I lost but that loss made me more determined to practice triangle defense.

Check out this video, this guy competed often throughout his entire Jiu Jitsu career but didn't win a medal until his second competition match as black belt!

Jiu-Jitsu Drills

Here is a good set of Jiu-Jitsu drills you can do at home. Enjoy!

Grappling Dummy & Side Control / Scarf Hold

Before class I had an hour to work drills with the Submission Master Grappling Dummy. I was kind of lazy and didn't go at it full bore but I did work some new technique. The legs are starting to loosen up a little as the grappling dummy is slowly getting broken in.

In today's Jiu Jitsu class we worked more on the side control/inverted scarf hold position that I talked about yesterday. A lot of emphasis was put on not having your chest down on top of your opponent but rather your hip and side the side of your torso. It feels more like scarf hold this way (your legs are still in opposite positions as they would be in scarf hold - a.k.a. kesa gatame) and you have a lot of control.

We also worked a submission from the side control/inverted scarf hold position (really wish I new the name for this position/technique). The submission was a collar/forearm choke from the side control/inverted scarf hold position: take your hand that is closest to his head and reach over the top side of his neck and then down deep into his collar on the far side of his neck with an overhand grip, with your other hand reach under your chest and grab his elbow (this should be easy as he will probably be trying to defend by pushing up on you), now pull your forearm down across his throat while pulling his elbow towards his chest, as you perform the choke be sure to move/switch your hips up towards his shoulder (this puts a lot of your body weight into the choke).