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THE GEAR LAB IS OPEN – LET THE GI TESTS BEGIN. Cover6.indd 1

$6.99 US/CAN

AN INFECTION!

FEB/MAR 2012 / ISSUE 06 • JIUJITSUMAG.COM

Sting Like A Butterfly?

COULD BE

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CONTENTS February-March 2012 // Issue 06 :::::::::::::::::::::::

008 EDITORIAL 010 NEWS AND MORE 014 QUICK TIPS 024 DIET Don’t hate!

Who’s your pick?

They’re tips, they’re quick

4 Super foods you need to eat today

028 SUPPLEMENTS 068 SPOTLIGHT 092 MIND GAMES Beta-Alanine

030 SINGLE LEG TAKEDOWN 036 BREAK DOWN: GLOVER 052 JEFF DEEP HALF GUARD There is an art to it

Kimura

Go Deep!

073

LEGAL LEG LOCKS With Joao Silva

086

MEDIC Skin infections

Michael Westbrook

BJJ for little guys

24 20 16

DRILL IT Butterfly Drills

WARM UP THE GROIN Definitely don’t want it pulled

082 GEAR LAB 046 NABJJF NO-GI CHAMPS Tatami Estilo 3.0

“You’ve got a little something there on your chin. Yeah, right there, no, it’s still there.”

Master Aloisio shows you how to finish

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Jeff “The Pipelayer” Glover shows us his very versatile deep half guard. It’s the type of guard that DVDs are made of.

JEFF GLOVER

SECRETS OF DEEP HALF

GAURD 25 You might think he’s comfortable there, but it’s a trick!

30 SPOTLIGHT Michael Westbook

Foot Locks

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REsLtiloAB GTaEtaA miy

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MMA

GOOD

L

ET ME PUT THIS OUT THERE FIRST OF ALL. JIU-JITSU MAGAZINE IS A MAGAZINE FOCUSED ON BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU AND SUBMISSION GRAPPLING (NO-GI). We’re not going to become a MMA magazine, there are plenty of those out there. With that said, it’s important to include MMA-related stories and information in our content from time to time because Jiu-Jitsu is one of the main foundations of MMA. As MMA grows (it is considered the fastest growing sport in the world right now) and it gains international exposure, it shines a light on the gentle art of Jiu-Jitsu and that benefits all of us Jiu-Jitsu players. The world would be a better place if everyone did Jiu-Jitsu. Think of all the benefits this sport offers to all of us, on the mats and off, in both our professional and personal lives. It’s come to my attention that some Jiu-Jitsu geeks on the web bad mouth MMA when given the chance to become keyboard warriors online. This makes absolutely no sense to me. When the average Joe watches a UFC fight on FOX, or Pay Per View down at the local tavern, he’s probably not thinking to himself that he’d like to get clocked in the head one day. What he’s probably more likely thinking is that he’d like to try something like that someday. What’s the closest thing to full on competitive brawling that doesn’t include hammer fists to the head? Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, of course. And like I said before, the more exposure our sport gets, the more professional it becomes, and with that comes more financially viability for Jiu-Jitsu athletes, and most importantly, the more confident, secure, and evolved people in our world have the opportunity to become.

Jiu-Jitsu chanes people for the better. So don’t hate on MMA. Embrace it and appreciate it for what it does for our sport (but feel free to skip the t-shirts with fire breathing dragon skulls). See it just as the Gracie family did years ago, as the perfect vehicle to show the world the virtues of our gentle art.

Ossss!

MIKE VELEZ Editor & Publisher

Editor & Publisher Mike Velez Copy Editor Deb Blyth Contributing Authors Seymour Yang, Jeremy Reid, Mark de Grasse, Dr. John Park, Dan Faggella, Kenny Johnson, David Levy-Booth Art Directors Dave Palacios, Mike McMahon Photographers Carl Hyndman Jason Boulanger John Cooper Production Director Paula Fountain Advertising Sales Mike Velez Circulation Manager Tom Ferruggia

Phone: 1.877.834.3552 ext. 227 Web: jiujitsumag.com Available upon request, Contact: Jiu-Jitsu Magazine PO Box 2405 Chino Hills, CA 91709 ph: 1.877.834.3552 ext. 221 fax: 909.517.1601

The Curtis Circulation Company Jiu-Jitsu Magazine (ISSN 2157-6173) is a publication of Recon Media Inc., PO Box 2405 Chino Hills, CA 91709; Phone: 877.834.3552; Fax: 909.517.1601email: info@jiujitsumag.com. Subscription rates are $27.99 for 6 issues (1 year), $42.99 per year Canada, and $67.99 per year for foreign airmail. All rights reserved, The entire contents are copyright 2012 Recon Media Inc, and may not be reproduced in any manner in whole or in part without written permission from the publisher.

The views and the opinions of the writers and advertisers are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Recon Media Inc., the Publisher, or the editorial staff. The Publisher assumes no responsibilities for advertising claims, errors, and omissions.

Some of the techniques described in this magazine can be dangerous. Always practice safe procedures and use common sense. Recon Media Inc., and the Publisher can not be held responsible from any injuries or damage caused by these techniques. Perform at your own risk.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

Jiu-Jitsu magazine is published bi-monthly.

Application to mail at Periodicals Postage rate is pending at Chino, CA and at additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to Jiu-Jitsu Magazine PO Box 2405, Chino HIlls, CA 91709.

100% Recyclable.

Save the Planet.

Roll Frequently, Read Jiu-Jitsu Magazine Printed in the U.S.A

6 | Jiu-Jitsu Magazine

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IDOL?

Not to take anything away from Ralek, but we score this round for Eddie. But you decide for yourself.

o you want to be a rap superstar and live large, with a big house, and five cars… Well turns out a couple well know black belts have been listening to some Cypress Hill lately. Within just a few days of each other 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu Godfather Eddie Bravo and jiu-jitsu royalty Ralek Gracie released music videos each with a jiu-jitsu theme. Ralek’s is off his debut album titled “Ginagi” (G in a Gi) and is available on iTunes. Eddie’s is from his band Smoke Serpent and features Rap artist Rakaa, titled Jiu Jitsu and is available at Amazon Music. Give both videos a look and tell us what you think on our facebook page.

LOOKING TO COMPETE?

T

he United Grappling Federation (UGF) is a relatively new federation that has released their 2012 tournament schedule. The UGF will be hosting State Championships all across the west: CA, NM, NV, UT, CO, ID, OR, WA, and AZ. All State Champions will receive free entry into the Western States Grappling Championships hosted in Salt Lake City, UT at the end of the year. The UGF will be offering divisions in both Jiu Jitsu and Submission Grappling for Kids, Youth, Juvenile, Men, and Women. To get more information and view their detailed schedule, visit www.unitedgrapplingfederation.com or find them on facebook www.facebook.com/ unitedgrapplingfederation. We’ll be providing some coverage in the magazine for each event along with coverage of the Championships from Utah.

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The Best DEFENSE

You know what they say, “the best defense is a good offense.” Wait, that doesn’t work here.

We’re talking about Defense Fight Soap. This stuff has been around for years in Collegiate and high school wrestling circles, it’s now the official soap of USA Judo, and it’s becoming more and more popular in jiu-jitsu academies around the world. We came across Defense in working on this issue’s Medic column…be sure to read on an empty stomach. Defense helps to fight both fungus and bacteria, their newest product is Defense Soap Shower Gel that uses coconut oil to fight bacteria while adding antioxidant benefits.

Check out their full product line at their website.

www.defensesoap.com

Extra Strength

MONSTE R

Energy drinks aren’t the best way to get your caloric intake, but every now and then you need a pick-me-up. Not necessarily for training, but maybe late at night. Well, Monster Energy Extra Strength has powered some recent late nights around the JJM offices.

Monster says their new concoction is infused with nitrogenated water. The result is a smooth drinkable mouth-feel that packs a punch with Ginseng, Taurine, L-Carnitine, Caffeine, and other ingredients that will keep you up until the wee hours of the night.

Available in four flavors.

www.monsterenergy.com

WE R DU M

Returns To The

U FC

J

iu-jitsu black belt world champion and two times ADCC champ is back in the big show. He’s lined up to fight fellow BJJ black belt Roy “Big Country” Nelson at the upcoming UFC 143 on February 4th in Las Vegas over Superbowl weekend.

Fabricio “Vai Cavalo” Werdum has racked up an impressive MMA and BJJ career over the years and is renowned for handing Fedor “The Last Emporer” Emelianenko a decisive first round, 69 seconds loss by armbar/ triangle submission. He’ll be fighting Nelson who’s also got some BJJ cred being a former ADCC quarter finalist and current black belt under Renzo Gracie. Speaking of the UFC, jiu-jitsu might get its largest American audience yet with the second installment of the “UFC on Fox” set to air a few days after this issue goes on sale (Airs January 28th). Demian Maia will square up with Michael “The Count” Bisping, who recently took out Jason “Mayhem” Miller to win the The Ultimate Fighter 14 middleweight bout, on the main card to be televised on FOX. Maia’s style typically showcases his jiu-jitsu pedigree (ADCC Champion, Brazilian National BJJ Champion) in the octagon and he has widely been thought of as one of the best grapplers in the UFC.

Photo courtesy of Strikeforce.

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FE E DBAC K When you roll against training partners that you›re clearly better than how do you treat them? Do you knock out the submissions, work on positions, or try out new techniques? How do you like to roll in these situations?

John Bucaria Position always position, before submission.

Abner Jared Gomez Treat every training partner with the same respect I give everyone else. If I see that one person lacks on proper position and doesn’t know how to properly execute a submission, I correct him or her by teaching them the proper way.

Teamwork is what it’s all about, everyone helping each other and learning from each other as well. Keeps you humble in more ways than you can think of!

Jeremy Holmes I get to positions I need to work on and give them chances to escape and give them tips to 1) help me hold the position and 2) help give them an idea of what to do when put in that position.

Jess Fraser My comp game is a top game and my guard sucks comparatively, so I tend to pull guard and try to work from there.

Regaining is easier and then we both get something out of it.

Kevin Pimentel Work on letting them have fun. Everyone’s been in the position where someone is just smashing them and it gets frustrating. I want to encourage people to do Jiu Jitsu not rage quit.

23,500 facebook fans and counting.

Michael Oxendine if I have a sub I might loosen up to let them escape, so they will learn how they react when rolling. However, I do roll with them at medium level. It’s important to not water down your game too much then neither of you will learn.

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VISUALIZE THIS!

Anxious for spring?

URING OUR INTERVIEW WITH MULTI-TIME CHAMPION ANDRE GALVAO HE TOUCHED ON HIS RITUAL OF VISUALIZING HIS MATCHES BEFOREHAND AND GOING THROUGH EVERY POSSIBLE SCENARIO INCLUDING HIS HAND RAISING AFTER THE WIN. In case you missed it, this is a technique that professional athletes in all sports routinely use to properly prepare for competition. The idea of visualization is not new, and not exclusive to sports. It’s a topic that many books have been written about and will make a great article in a future issue. Until we properly address that subject, here are some tips you can use today to improve your game.

Don’t just wait for competition to visualize. During class, immediately after your instructor goes over a technique, close your eyes for a moment and picture yourself perfectly going through the technique. Use this technique again and again during your specific training. Imagine drilling the technique over and over again. If when doing the specific technique you have particular points of difficulty, take a time out and visualize the mistake and correcting it.

When you’re hitting the gym for some strength or conditioning work, visualize the entire routine, have a game plan played out in your mind before you even walk on the gym floor.

Learn to relax. Visualize dealing with adrenaline and calming down after intense situations.

Through your visualization, imagine coming down from that high, controlling your breathing, and being ready for the next go around.

Imagine adversity. It’s important to go through and imagine victory, but it’s equally important to benefit from visualizing adversity: an opponent’s got your back, hooks in, about to sink the choke, or someone with an excellent base mounted on top of you. Imagine your sweep or defense over and over until you hit it every time in your mind.

Use visualization, not only for your jiu-jitsu training, but throughout your daily life. For example, if you’re having difficulties with your diet, visualize the perfect meal and fighting off the need to indulge yourself with foods you know you should avoid. Imagine how good that broccoli tastes and how horrible you’d feel afterwards if you did have that piece of “death by chocolate.”

Get to Your E LBOWS This tip comes to us from Jeff Glover, this month’s cover man. During our photo shoot he was giving some advise on avoiding injury. Jeff explains that having your arms out stretched is an invitation to an inadvertent arm bar with some dire consequences. With arms out straight your elbows are locked in position where hyperextension is just a few inches or degrees of rotation away. Body weight rolling around can come down on an elbow and cause serious injury if not careful. So, if you find yourself on your hands and knees with your opponent looking for an opportunity to take your back, get down to your elbows as quickly as you can. Don’t stay in the “arms extended” position.

With the weather cold outside, you could be rolling inside with some cold winter-like conditions as well. If your gym isn’t heated, or your professor is cheap, here are a few tips to keep in mind when rolling in the winter. 1. Extend your warm-up time or intensity when it’s cold. It’s important to get your core temperature up before rolling or competing. In the cold, this might mean adding a few minutes to your usual warmup routine to get a sweat going to increase the intensity. 2. Just because you’re not thirsty doesn’t mean you don’t need more water to stay properly hydrated. In the cold, your body is working harder to keep your temperature up. This can hasten dehydration when not properly paid attention to. So even if you’re not thirsty, drink plenty of water or a sports drink before, during, and after your cold climate training sessions. 3. Find the heat. This is especially important if you’re competing in an unheated gymnasium. If competition is on the line, do whatever you need to, to find some heat prior to your matches. If need be, head out to the car and crank up the heat. Have a buddy phone you before your match is up.

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THE

GROIN words: Staff

| photos: Jason Boulanger

heck out the Injury Report for almost any pro sport in the morning newspaper and you’ll no doubt see “groin pull” as a reason for a millionaire athlete being sidelined for some length of time. A pulled groin is a very common injury for athletes who have to suddenly change direction on their feet, such as a football running back or hockey goalie. But groin pulls can also happen to jiu-jitsu athletes just as well.

We’ll go over some simple warm-ups and stretches you can drop into your routine to help keep your groin healthy and in action.

The groin is a collection of six adductor muscles that run from your inner pelvis to the inner part of the thigh bone (femur). These muscles are responsible for just about all the movement between your legs and your torso. As you can imagine, these muscles are vital for a jiu-jitsu athlete given all the movements that involve hip rotation, leg movement, and overall mobility.

You can also save the static stretches for after you roll.

Why Warm Up and Stretch

It’s important to properly warm up before practicing jiu-jitsu or any strenuous activity. Warming up gives your body a period of adjustment between rest and activity, gets blood flowing to the active muscles, decreases muscular tension, and increases the ability for connective tissues to elongate, and lastly gets your nerve impulses firing to quicken your reaction time. Once you’re properly warmed up it’s safe to stretch. Stretching is intended to increase your range of motion, progressively and permanently.

Routinely stretching your muscles lessens their sensitivity to your tension receptors that tell your muscles to contract when they reach the end of their range.

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groin pull, or strain, occurs when the groin muscles are tensed too tightly or too suddenly. When this occurs the muscles can be torn or over-stretched. When this occurs, you’ll feel pain and tenderness in the inside thigh, or groin. This pain can be felt when you bring your legs together and raise your knees. There are varying degrees of strain from slight pain and little loss of strength or movement to severe pain and total loss of movement in the affected area.

Warming Up

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he point of this article is to prevent groin injury and increase mobility. We’ll save the injury part for Dr. Park in a future “Medic” column.

For this one we’ll go over some basic groin warm ups and stretches you can immediately work into your preroll routine to reduce the risk of injury and improve your game. The beauty of warming up prior to stretching the groin is that you’re probably warming it up already during your normal warm-up routine. The groin is such a vital group of muscles, you can’t help but exercise it from most full-body movements. But just in case, here are two very simple exercises that will specifically warm up the groin:

Stand with your arms down at your sides, feet together.

Bend your knees slightly and jump out to the side with each foot while swinging your arms over your head at the same time.

At the top of the movement, quickly jump back into place with your feet while bringing your arms back down at your sides.

Continue jumping in and out repeating the steps.

These should be done as part of a complete warm-up. With that in mind, two rounds of 30 seconds each will help warm up your groin muscles.

Bend at your hips and push your butt outward behind you while bending your knees and lowering your body. Keep your weight on your heels to help keep your knees over your toes during the movement. To help keep your balance, bring your arms out in front of you on the way down.

Continue down until your thighs are past parallel so that your hips go below your knees. At this point your arms should be out stretched directly in front of you.

Perform this warm up for two rounds of 30 seconds each.

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Who doesn’t know how to do jumping jacks?

Start standing with arms at your sides, feet shoulder width apart and your toes pointing slightly outward.

Keep your back posture nice and straight throughout the entire movement. At the bottom of the movement pop back up bringing your arms back down as you force yourself back up keeping the driving force on your heels all the way through.

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Groin Stretches

T

he groin muscles are demanded upon every day, not only during jiu-jitsu, but also in daily life. So, it’s important to follow some basic tips in order to prevent injury and get the most from your time stretching. Be sure that you’re warmed up properly before beginning any of these techniques. Move slowly and smoothly into each stretch to resist the impulse for your muscles to contract near the end of each stretch. Remember to breath smoothly and normally through each stretch. Exhale when moving deeper into the stretch. Don’t push beyond your range of motion to the point of pain. Discomfort is normal, but don’t forget to concentrate on feeling the stretch.

Kneel down on the mat on your feet and knees.

Perform this stretch for 30

Extend one leg outward all the way to your side so that you’re resting on the mat with one knee and foot on the mat and the other foot extended to your side, foot facing forward.

seconds on each side, don’t bounce at the bottom of each movement, instead hold for 5 seconds at the bottom each time.

Bend at the hip so that you must bring your hands to the mat to keep from falling.

Bend your knee to sink your hips and buttocks down as low as possible, touching your butt to your feet, but don’t rest there. Keep your back neutral, try not to round it off.

Once you’re all the way at the bottom, straighten out your bent knee so that your entire body comes forward.

Go through a complete range of motion.

Hold the stretch for about 5 seconds at each end of the range of motion.

Feel the stretch in your groin at the bottom of each movement.

Lie flat on your back with your body straight.

Bend your knees and bring your heels and the bottoms of your feet together as you pull them in toward your groin.

This Workout is Powered

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o workout is ever complete without proper hygiene. Be prepared before and after hitting the mats with the Athletic Body Care line of performance skincare products designed to provide the athlete with a level of hygiene and protection better than any other today. www.athleticbodycare.com

Hold the stretch for between 15 and 30 seconds.

You’re ready for the NHL!

Exhale, and straddle your knees as wide as possible with the bottom of your feet keeping in contact.

Hold the stretch and relax. If your arms are long enough, without bending your back, use your hands to put pressure on your knees to bring them as close to the floor as possible. You can also use a partner to help spread your knees without causing pain.

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Take a squat position with your feet about 12 to 15 inches apart and your toes pointed slightly outward.

Place your elbows on the inside portions of your upper legs near your knees.

Exhale, and slowly push your legs outward with your elbows. Don’t forget to keep your feet flat on the floor to help reduce strain on the knees.

Hold the stretch, putting as much pressure on your knees as possible without pain.

Hold the stretch for between 15 and 30 seconds.

T

his is a dynamic stretch that also acts as a warm-up.

Perform for 30 to 45 seconds to each side.

Lie on the floor in a plank position resting on your pelvis and your elbows.

Extend the target thigh and place a foam roller in the groin region between you and the floor.

In a continuous and smooth motion swing your leg back and forth across the front of your body.

Swing through the entire range of motion, but keep your upper body stable with good posture during the movement.

Repeat through the prescribed duration and repeat with the other leg.

When the tender spot is located, stop rolling and rest on that

point until the pain decreases by 75%.

Once you feel the pain decrease, remove and place the roller on the other side and repeat.

This stretch is sort of a self massage, and more often associated with pain relief rather than increased flexibility. However, even without acute pain this technique can help to increase blood flow to the groin area and relieve muscle tension. Perform occasionally as described in the previous steps. Rather than setting a time frame for how long you perform it, instead pay attention to your tender spot and relieving any pain you experience at that point.

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Save the release for after you roll. Seriously.

Stand and hold onto a secure object such as a pole or wall. Raise your outside leg out to the side.

Rest your weight on the roller and move your body slightly so that you feel the roller hit that “tender” spot.

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BUTTERFLY

DRILLS Words: MIKE VELEZ Photos: CARL HYNDMAN

UTTERFLY GUARD IS SOMETHING YOU CAN USE TO REALLY ADD A NEW DYNAMIC TO YOUR GAME. Developing your butterfly guard allows you to get into a comfortable position to strike even when you don’t have the comfort of your legs entrapping your opponent. But as you start developing your butterfly guard you’ll find yourself in a very vulnerable position. You’ll get passed before you know what happened. Andre shows us a few drills you can use to get yourself more familiar with butterfly guard. They will help your mobility and agility when working on it.

T

his is a great drill to help loosen up your hips and work on your ability to recover butterfly guard. For your partner he can look at it as an opportunity to work on his Toriano pass.

“strike” as in offense.

Xxxxxx

Start by lying on your back in front of your partner. Your partner should be standing, but bent down so he’s got a grip of your pants at the knees as if he’s preparing for a Toriano pass.

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Once your partner passes your legs he drops to his knees and reaches with his left arm to get behind your neck to control you.

Your partner passes both of your legs to his left and goes to your right.

For practical purposes during a match you wouldn’t want your opponent to get his hand behind your head. So, for this drill prevent your partner from getting that advantage. Use both your hands, cupped, to control that reaching arm at his bicep.

Once he gets his arm behind your head it will be much more difficult to recover the guard. At this point don’t worry about his hip, block the arm as shown in the next step.

Escape your hips out away from your partner then escape your shoulder away.

After you’ve created distance, bring your right foot back between your partner’s knees and bring your hips flat to the mat.

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Blcok the Xxxxxx arm.

Bring your left foot between his knees to recover the butterfly guard.

Have your partner alternate his pass between your left side and right side. Perform for two rounds of 30 seconds per round, or one 1-minute round as part of your drill routine.

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Start with your partner on his knees in your butterfly guard.

T

his is tandem drill so you and your partner will end up taking turns doing each of the steps. As each of you performs the drill the other will be ready to perform.

Tuck your right foot in between his legs and drop to your right side.

Lift up with your left leg to shift his weight over to his left side, on to you. When you feel his weight shift, use your left hand to push your partner over and continue the motion.

Control his right arm at his forearm with your right hand, and under hook your left arm around his back grabbing his belt.

At this point, you won’t be sitting up completely, base out with your right hand on the mat. Have your partner put both hands on your right bicep and hip out to escape his hips out from under you.

Perform this drill with each of you on the bottom 10 times to each side.

Andre’s book is a winner.

After he hips out he needs to recover the butterfly guard by scooting in between your knees, placing his left hand under your arm and grabbing your belt and grabbing your left forearm with his right hand. At this point he’s ready to start the drill beginning at Step 1.

For more drills like these and a ton you’ve never seen before, check out Andre’s book “Drill to Win: 12 Months to Better Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu,” on-sale now through book stores like Amazon.com or victorybelt.com

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FOUR SUPER FOODS YOU NEED NOW Words: JEREMY REID M.S.ED, CSCS, CISSN

here is a growing number of “super foods” out there now, with seemingly a new fad every week or so. So, I’m going to do my best to help you guys sort through it. I’m going to give you a look into some foods that you may not have heard about before and some you have, but don’t know just how good they are for you. I try to focus on the ones that show the most promise with solid science behind them. Now, I know you guys trust me and I would like to just come out and give you a list of foods with some basics on what they do and tell you to eat them, but by now you should know that’s not my style. I’ll explain the science behind these foods, so you know exactly why they’re great for you. Like I’ve said before, until we understand the “why” behind something we can’t truly appreciate it. So here are some foods and the science as to why they are “super.”

Well clearly beets can’t be beat.

I

Beets

know beets may not exactly get you excited or get your mouth watering, but they are actually an extremely nutrientdense food with numerous health benefits that many people are aware of. Beets are a root vegetable of the same plant family as the chard. While most people think of beets as only the reddish purple root of the plant, they actually come in a variety of colors including white/yellow and the leaves are edible and very nutritious. Now, we all know vegetables are good for us and we should eat more. This is because vegetables are our main dietary sources of fiber, vitamins, minerals and other phytonutrients necessary for optimal health. While beets contain all of the benefits of vegetables, they contain a few special compounds that give them additional health benefits.

They include heart disease protection, high antioxidant ability, anti-inflammatory benefits, detoxification support, as well as supporting oxygen transport in the blood.

Due to these properties, beets exhibit cancer risk reduction abilities. These “secret” benefits are mainly due to betalains.

Betalains are the pigments that give beets their color. There are two types of betalains, betacyanins (red-violet pigments) and betaxanthins (yellow pigments); however, since reddish-purple beets are most prevalent, betacyanins are more abundant

and subsequently more researched. These betalains, specifically the betacyanins, are the compounds that give beets their amazing health benefits including their unique antioxidant properties. What gives beets their great antioxidant properties isn’t so much that they are antioxidant rich but rather their unusual mix of antioxidants.

Most vegetables get their antioxidant properties from beta-carotene, however, beets get their antioxidant properties from betalains which are very rare in vegetables as a group. Coupled with high sources of the antioxidants vitamin C and manganese, the phytonutrients in beets provide antioxidant support in a different way than other vegetables. This shows how beets stand out from other vegetables. Another benefit of beets’ special phytonutrients is their ability to inhibit inflammation. Chronic inflammation has been linked to multiple conditions and diseases in humans, specifically heart disease and type II diabetes. Inflammation also accompanies almost all injuries, especially those nagging ones. Beets’ antiinflammatory activity is from betalains acting as inhibitors to cyclooxygenase enzymes.

These COX enzymes produce messenger molecules that trigger inflammation.

Presence of betalains in dietary intake has been associated with decreased levels of inflammatory markers inside the body.

Think of beets as your natural healthy version of ibuprophen. Betalains also may have detoxification properties inside the body, aiding in the neutralization and excretion of toxins inside the body. All of these processes are critical in maintaining the body’s homeostasis and especially important for jiu-jitsu athletes. In case, you didn’t know, training causes a large buildup of free radicals and can cause serious inflammation. Overtime these can continue to build up and intefere with our bodies leading to decreased performance and health. Adding beets to your diet can be a great way to counteract this and ensure yourself optimal health and recovery.

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Apples

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es, apples. I know everyone knows what apples are and have heard that old adage “an apple a day keeps the doctor away,” but there may actually be more truth to that than you think. Not many people realize just how good apples really are for you and the benefits of consuming them. I find we generally overlook the common things in search of the latest and greatest “superfruits” from half way around the world. We often think things that are so readily available can’t be that beneficial.

Well, we should realize we have some of our own “superfruits” and apples are one of them. Apples are among one of the highest fruits in antioxidant capacity, and in fact, one medium apple actually has a greater ORAC (measurement of antioxidant content) value then a “shot” of some popular acai products. Now, I am not condemning acai products or other “superfruits.” I am simply saying that there are other, easier ways to get antioxidants and apples are one of them. Apples’ high antioxidant content and capacity come from polyphenols.

Polyphenols are a type of phytonutrient found in high quantities in apples and

are responsible for their numerous health benefits. Apples contain a very unique array and balance of multiple polyphenols including flavonals, catechins, anthocyanins, and chlorogenic acid among others. I know, more fancy big words, but I just want to ensure you understand the great assortment of complex and highly valuable nutrients contained in apples. These polyphenols play numerous roles inside the body. A lot of the benefits from apples are due to their antioxidant capacity, specifically their ability to decrease oxidation of cell membrane fats, a primary risk factor for cardiovascular problems and disease. Quercetin in apples also has an anti-inflammatory effect on our cardiovascular systems. Recently, research has shifted to apples’ effects on insulin levels. Although the research is still in the beginning stages, it seems that the polyphenols in apples improve blood sugar regulation. It does this by altering carbohydrate digestion and absorption into the blood stream. It appears polyphenols inhibit carbohydratedigestion

enzymes slowing the digestion of carbohydrates. They also reduce the amount of glucose (carbs) that are absorbed by the digestive tract further reducing the sugar load in the blood stream. Think complex carbohydrates; they essentially help shift simple carbohydrates towards complex carbohydrates, leading to steady long lasting energy and avoiding excess blood sugar from being converted to fat. This is a very good thing. Apples are very beneficial with many positive health and performance benefits. They are and should be considered a “superfruit.” So remember, “an apple a day will keep the doctor away” and next time you’re in the grocery store, don’t just walk past the apples. Stop and pick some up! And the best part is they are cheap! But ensure that you eat the skin, as a good portion of the polyphenols and other phytonutrients are concentrated in the skin of the apple.

So no peeling!

“Well, I got her number. How do you like them apples?”

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Quinoa

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nce referred to as the “gold of the Incas,” quinoa is a recently rediscovered “ancient grain.” It is relatively new and therefore isn’t found in many households. However, it is growing in popularity with almost a cult like following in many health food stores. While quinoa exhibits many grain like attributes and is often referred to as a grain, it is not a member of the grass family. Quinoa is a seed and is actually a relative of leafy vegetables such as spinach and beets.

Now that being said, for all intents and purposes, it is generally classified as a grain due to its grain-like properties. Its prevalence is growing and with good reason.

Quinoa has a light fluffy creamy texture when cooked with a slight nutty flavor, making a natural substitute for white rice.

However, unlike white rice, quinoa is very nutrient dense with many health benefits.

Quinoa’s biggest “claim to fame” is its protein content. Unlike other grains and plant-based foods, quinoa sports a very high protein content, roughly 17%. But it’s not just the protein content that makes quinoa special, it’s the amino acid profile of the protein. While most plant-based proteins are considered incomplete, quinoa is considered a complete protein since it contains all nine essential amino acids.

This makes it a great choice for vegetarians and vegans worried about adequate protein intake. It can also be a great addition of extra protein for athletes, especially jiu-jitsu athletes. If we remember from the protein article, training puts significant stress on our bodies and thus, we have increased protein requirements. While meeting these requirements can be hard and expensive due to the necessity to eat large amounts of meat, quinoa can be a great addition to either add extra protein to a meal, or a replacement for meat in a meal. A one

cup serving supplies about 8-10 grams of protein. Also since quinoa is technically not a grain, it is gluten and wheat free. This makes it a great choice for those with food allergies or on a gluten-free diet. Quinoa is surprisingly low in total calories despite its high nutrient content. This makes it a great replacement for other grains and starch sources while dieting or cutting weight.

Quinoa is also very high in phytonutrients and antioxidant content leading to numerous health benefits such as reducing risk of heart disease and insulin resistance. Quinoa has also been shown to significantly help with migraines. This is largely due to its magnesium content.

Magnesium helps relax blood vessels in the body and prevent vasoconstriction and subsequent rapid dilation associated with migraines. These properties give quinoa great cardiovascular benefits as well. Relaxing the blood vessels helps with numerous cardiovascular problems including hypertension and arrhythmias.

Couple these unique benefits of quinoa with the already well documented benefits of “whole grains” and “fiber rich” foods and you have yourself quite the “superfood.”

Buffalo or Bison

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That’s a mighty fine looking Bison.

ow for you meat lovers; I didn’t forget about you guys. One of the most common things I hear when working with my athletes for weight cuts is “but what about steaks and burgers?” I know, I know, it is very hard to get away from steaks and burgers; and most of us don’t want to. I understand, neither do I! Well, luckily for you guys I have a little secret for you. Buffalo or bison meat is a great alternative to beef. While

bison is very similar to beef in almost all aspects, it is significantly more nutrient dense. Bison meat is considerably lower in fat and cholesterol when compared to beef.

Now, you can find lean cuts of beef that are similar to bison, but generally bison is still lower in fat and cholesterol and better for you. Also, since bison are grass fed, they contain higher amounts of omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids are very healthy fats that are necessary for numerous processes inside the body. I will discuss omega-3 fatty acids separately in another article, but just know that this is a really good

thing. Bison is also rich in zinc and iron.

Bison provides 4.4mg of zinc, which is 29% of the RDA, per 3oz serving. Zinc is critical for immune system support, tissue repair, and hormone support. As far as meats are concerned, bison is surprisingly rich in the B-complex vitamins, especially B-12, vital for energy production, metabolism, and nerve function. Another great note about bison meat is that they are naturally raised with no added hormones. This can prevent a lot of excess toxicity build up in the body.

Now, I am not saying you can go out and over indulge on bison steaks and burgers.

What I am saying is that bison is a great lean protein to incorporate into your diet and can be a great replacement for beef.

Use bison to meet your steak and burger needs, without the guilt!

Conclusion:

I

don’t know about you guys, but a bison steak with quinoa and beets on the side sounds pretty good for dinner, with an apple for desert.

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BETA-ALANINE? Words: JEREMY REID M.S.ED, CSCS, CISSN

ETA-ALANINE IS RELATIVELY NEW WHEN IT COMES TO SUPPLEMENTS, AND THEREFORE, YOU MIGHT NOT HAVE HEARD ABOUT IT. However, its popularity has been growing swiftly and with good reason. Now, I know you guys trust me, but just in case I brought research! In fact, there is a growing body of scientific research that continually demonstrates its effectiveness. After this article beta-alanine will become a staple in your supplement regimen.

Thanks to Jeremy we’ll all be PH.D.’s soon.

WHAT IT DOES

eta-alanine supplementation increases work capacity and decreases time to fatigue.

Both are absolutely crucial to jiu-jitsu athletes. Think about this, and I know it’s happened to all of us; you’re in the middle of a hard match and all of a sudden your body doesn’t seem to want to listen to your mind. You see moves, but your body doesn’t seem to react in time or do the movements properly. You just sit and watch as your opponent takes control of the match. You have “hit the wall” or in my language you have reached your fatigue threshold. This means you can no longer maintain efficient and effective movement and require rest.

Well what if that wall never came? Or it took a lot longer to hit the wall? Or what if you could recover faster when this happens? Well this is where betaalanine comes into play.

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TH E SC IE NC E B E H IN D IT

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ou guys should know by now, but I like to get a little scientific and use fancy words. It makes me feel like all that time I spent in school was worth it, so bear with me for a quick science lesson. Beta-alanine works due to its relationship with carnosine in skeletal muscle. Carnosine is one of the primary buffering substances available in skeletal muscle. It is responsible for clearing excess hydrogen ions in skeletal muscle; hence, its nickname is the body’s “fatigue fighter.” For those of you who don’t know, fatigue occurs as a result of a build up of lactic acid or hydrogen ions from repetitive muscle contractions (training). Hydrogen ions in the muscle interfere with numerous processes inside the muscle. As they build up throughout training, this interference also increases, leading to slower and weaker muscle contractions (fatigue).The greater your ability to buffer these hydrogen ions, the longer it will take for this buildup to occur and the sooner you recover. Simply,

you can go longer and harder before fatiguing and you can recover faster, leading to longer and more intense rolling/drilling.

“Wow sounds 2 great, but where does betaalanine fit into this?” Carnosine is formed in skeletal muscle from two substances, beta-alanine and histidine. However, Betaalanine is considered the rate-limiting substance for carnosine synthesis. This means that the amount of carnosine your body can produce relies directly on the amount of beta-alanine available. So an increase in beta-alanine availability leads to an increase in carnosine production and thus, your buffering capacity. But how do we increase the availability of beta-alanine?

Easy, we can ingest it orally. Research has shown oral beta-alanine supplementation to be the best way to increase muscle carnosine concentrations in muscle. A

HO

OH study by Dr. Harris (a leading researcher on beta-alanine) showed that 4-6 grams of oral beta-alanine supplementation increased muscle carnosine synthesis by 64%. That is a substantial amount.

What is more impressive is that Dr. Harris and colleagues also showed oral beta-alanine supplementation to be as effective as muscle carnosine infusion, a process of injecting carnosine directly into the muscle. That’s right, beta-alanine supplementation is as effective as directly injecting carnosine into your muscles! A similar study showed increases in muscle carnosine levels by 58% after 4-6.4 grams of beta-alanine supplementation over 4 weeks. So simply, it works!

How To Use It

Now you know all about beta-alanine supplementation. And if you’re not on your way to the store right now to pick up some beta-alanine, you should be.

So, now that you got some beta-alanine, how much should you take? While research has shown improvements with as little as 2-3g of beta-alanine, optimum results are seen with dosages of 4-6g per day. I should also let you in on the secret, which will be out soon, but some of the research that is being conducted right now is showing greater absorption and retention by splitting total daily amount into 2-3 small doses instead of one large dose. So, I recommend taking 3 doses of 2 grams. Since beta-alanine works by directly increasing muscle buffering capacity, it aids everyone in all areas. This means it helps strength, power, endurance and cardio. It also means it benefits all types of jiu-jitsu athletes. Beta-alanine supplementation has been proven effective in numerous studies, and the pile of research behind it is growing daily. Pick up some betaalanine and start reaping the benefits of increased “fatigue fighting.”

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“Everybody was fatigue fighting, those cats were fast as lightening.”

Ok, so we know it increases muscle carnosine levels, but what about performance? How is it gonna help your training? Well, I got some research for that, too. One study showed a 16% increase in total work capacity from beta-alanine supplementation. And if you’re wondering, increasing total work capacity is a big deal. Think of it as increasing intensity and duration of your training session or your match. Creatine has long been the “go to” supplement for increasing power and performance. You may remember me talking about the benefits of creatine in former issues; however a recent study showed beta-alanine increased work capacity at fatigue threshold 29% while creatine only increased it by 11%.

Yes, 29% more work at fatigue threshold. What does this mean? That means you will be able to perform almost a third more work and effort when you “hit that wall” during training or a match. There’s no wonder beta-alanine seems to be the new “go to” supplement for performance. But wait, there’s more! Combining beta-alanine and creatine has demonstrated a synergistic effect, further increasing performance.

Another study measured ventilatory threshold during beta-alanine supplementation.

I know, another big word but ventilatory threshold is just a measure of endurance performance and cardiopulmonary (“cardio”) function. Once you’ve reached your ventilatory threshold, your ability to maintain an aerobic workout rapidly declines. You enter anaerobic training, which for a jiu-jitsu athlete, means you need to take a break or end training. Clearly, if you can increase this threshold, you have immediately become a better jiu-jitsu competitor or your training sessions just became a lot more productive. So what were the results? Subjects increased ventilatory threshold by an average of 14%. Keep in mind this was not a training study. The subjects simply ingested beta-alanine with no type of training. This means these results were solely the result of beta-alanine supplementation.

Imagine the results when combined with your new, harder training sessions!

O

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TAKE DOWN

THE ART OF

THE SINGLE

LEG He might just take that leg with him.

Words: MIKE VELEZ | Photos: CARL HYNDMAN

he single leg take down lends itself perfectly from Kenny’s wrestling background to jiu-jitsu because it’s one takedown that you can use some pure wrestling technique with jiu-jitsu either in the gi, or out of it. Not all single legs are created equal. There is an inside and outside single leg. What determines which one you’re working with is whether you are on the “outside” of his leg, or on the “inside” of it. Between the two, Kenny likes to shoot in for the outside single leg, putting his body on the outside of his opponent’s leg. One huge advantage of the outside single is that when done correctly, you’re not as exposed to a guillotine, or to being sprawled out on. The secret to this technique is keeping your head up and in the right position. The beauty of this is if you don’t get it at first you just stand back up and you’re not in trouble. In this article Kenny’s going to show us how to get the outside single, how to finish the take down from there, and how to work with an inside single in case that’s what you come up with.

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GETTING THE LEG The Setup

The basic setup for shooting the outside single is to get into a basic Judo tie up. Rather than control the arm at the elbow it’s important to control your opponent’s wrist, either with a tight grip of the cuff or to physically control the wrist itself. The side of your opponent that you control the wrist will be the side you’ll be attacking. With your other hand, control either the collar (high up) or the back of the neck on your opponent. If you bounce between gi and no gi you’ll be best served attacking the back of the neck and the wrist rather than the gi. If you or your opponent play it close, be sure that you keep your forehead squared up against their forehead or temple, don’t let them get to your temple (to brush up on this check out The Wrestler’s Tool Box in Issue 4). Don’t get in a situation where you’re ear-to-ear with your opponent, or you’ll be unable to make the necessary movements.

Step 1

Your lead leg should be on the same side as the arm you’re controlling. Give your opponent a tug so he steps in towards you, but don’t step back with that lead leg. As you pull him, keep your ground. What you’re doing here is closing the gap between the two of you.

KEY POINTS THE MECHANICS of this move

require you to use your head to put pressure on his upper body. As you drive forward you’ll be pushing with your head against his upper torso. As you do this his posture will be off balance forcing him to put more weight on his back leg, making it easier for you to control his front leg.

Step 2

As soon as he steps in on you that’s when you let go of his wrist and sweep around with your right arm so that your forearm hits the back of his knee. At this point it’s very important that your back is straight and your head is up at his chest. If your head is down or your back is hunched, that’s when you can get sprawled on.

IF YOU DON’T STEP BACK as

you stand him up you’ll allow him the opportunity to get his hips back for a sprawl, so don’t forget this

Step 3

important step.

WHEN YOU DRAG HIM back towards you don’t step back. If you step back you haven’t closed the distance.

Step 4

When you reach the top of the movement, you’re upright, and you’ve got control of his leg with your left arm, immediately take a step backward. This will help to keep him off balance and you’ll be in complete control.

ONE GREAT THING about shooting in for the leg and getting a hold of it is that even if your opponent happens to get a hold of your collar and pulls you into guard you’re going to be awarded the two points for the takedown because you initiated the motions to the ground.

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The phrase “keep him on his toes” has real meaning here.

With your posture and head correctly positioned, as soon as you feel you have a nice hook behind his leg, release the collar or neck and drive up and towards him using your legs to power through.

With one motion, as you’re driving up and forward one step, switch off control of his leg between your right arm and youre left arm.

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TAKING DOWN K

enny just showed you how to take the leg so you’re on the outside and your opponent’s leg is across your body. From here he’s going to show us some takedowns from the outside, along with a few from the inside.

Step 2

Cup your right hand, like a “cobra,” and place it firmly on his thigh, just above the knee.

Step 1

Controlling his leg keep it up high.

This helps to keep him off balance and ensures that your posture is correct.

Also, continue stepping backward so that the other guy is hopping around.

Continually moving backwards will keep him off balance and less likely to work his grips on you.

Step 3

With firm control of the leg, quickly walk backward, lower your level, and rotate to your left so that you’re pulling him down with you to your right side.

Use force on that leg so he’s forced to the ground.

KEY POINTS

Step 4

At this point you’ve finished the takedown on your feet so-to-speak. You can decide which option best suits your game.

If you’re good with foot locks, fall back into a foot lock, or do what Kenny likes, and let go of the leg, under hook the other and finish in side control. Doing this gives you two points and a strong position.

BE CAREFUL WHEN YOU KICK to

the knee that you stay within the rules and that your kick isn’t considered a strike. The IBJJF rules here are a little vague and there’s a lot of room for interpretation that could be left up to the referee. The rules state that if you intentionally seek to injure or gain unfair advantage with your feet it’s considered a serious foul that could lead to disqualification. So, kick with the intent of forcing his knee to collapse within its range of motion and you should be okay.

Step 2

This one has a Judo feel to it, thanks to a kicking motion to the back of the knee that crumbles your opponent to the ground.

Kenny was a big G.I. Joe fan growing up.

Step 1

With outside control of the leg use the same cobra motion to control the top of his leg just above the knee.

With a kicking motion use your right foot to buckle his leg behind the knee. At the same time use that right hand of yours to drive downward on his leg. The combination of the two will cause him to crumble to the ground.

Step 3

Once he’s on the ground you’ll be at the same “finishing on your feet” position as in the cobra so you can drop into side control, or attempt a foot lock.

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Step 2

With your left arm still over his leg you’re going to have to switch from over to under.

To do this it’s very important you don’t give him an opportunity to break your grip of his leg. So, as you switch your left arm from over to under, bring your left knee up high enough to prevent him from driving his leg down. This movement has to be done very quickly; you don’t want to stay in this position for any extended length of time.

This move is going to test your opponent’s flexibility.

Step 1

Starting from the outside single leg position rather than controlling the leg by the top, as in the two previous take downs, you’re going to use your right hand to “cradle” your opponent’s leg. Bring your right arm around and get a firm cradling hold of his leg just below the knee.

This motion will force you to step off to the side of your opponent a bit.

Step 3

As soon as you have his leg “cradled,” lower your level and make a punching motion up and towards his head (but don’t hit him).

Using this punching motion will drive his leg up on your shoulder.

Once it’s on his shoulder bring both hands to the top of the leg to control and raise your level back up.

TAKING DOWN FROM THE INSIDE N

Just don’t drop the baby.

ow, let’s say during your initial taking of his leg he manages to get his leg to your outside, giving you an “inside” single leg (you’re on the inside and his leg is on the outside) then you’ll have to use a couple different take downs to score the points.

Step 4

With his leg up high on your shoulder you have a couple options. You can use both hands and drive him to your side like you did with the cobra. Or, you can continue pushing up on that leg driving towards him.

He’ll lose balance and fall to the ground giving you either side control, or possibly his back.

Starting with his leg up under your armpit, you on the inside of his leg, keep his leg tight to your body up high, posturing up. Continue stepping backwards just as you did with the outside control.

Step 1

Now that you’re all set up, with your left arm cup your hand and bring your hand and arm up to the side of his neck, reaching so that your hand cups behind his head.

You’ll need to be careful that you’re not striking or slapping your opponent, aim to bring your forearm against his neck and head to keep within the rules.

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Step 2

Once you have control of his head bring his upper body down towards his knee.

Step 3

Changing

At the same time you’re bringing his upper body down to his knee, step off behind and to your left, dragging his body to the ground.

Step 4

be able From this point you’ll ol. ntr side co

L

to fall into

Let’s say that he’s postured up really well and is too far back for you to reach and get control of his head, in this case you need to go for the Heisman.

Step 1

With control of his leg from the inside use your left arm to stiff-arm him between his left shoulder and chest.

SI DES

et’s say you went for an inside, but you got an outside, or vise versa, but you like the other side better to finish the take down. No worries, you can change the side.

Just cradle both arms around the leg, pull your hips out and swing the leg to the other side.

Make it quick and posture back up as quickly as you can as to not give your opponent any opportunity to establish grips or sprawl out.

Step 2

As you’re using your arm to make contact with his upper body, drive in that direction. Do the two simultaneously (like the Heisman trophy pose) he’ll have no post and will drop to the mat. Once again you’ll be in the perfect position to work a foot lock (see the article in this issue on legal leg locks) or move to side control.

COUNTERING THE SINGLE LEG S

Don’t fall for it, it’s a trick.

O, THE OTHER GUY GOT THE JUMP ON YOU AND YOU FIND YOURSELF WITH ONE OF YOUR DRUMSTICKS UP IN THE AIR. The first thing to do before he can start pulling you around the mat is to immediately control his head. You can grasp at his collar, but getting control of his head by the neck is the best option. At the same time, move to control his far arm. Once you control those two points pull him into you and at the same time thrust your leg towards him, then down, as if you’re stepping through your opponent. Once your foot is free, step back and to the mat. You’ll be back in a starting position and you can go for it again.

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KIMURA Words: MIKE VELEZ | Photos: JASON BOULANGER

N WRESTLING IT’S CALLED A CHICKEN WING OR A DOUBLE WRIST LOCK, but in Brazilian jiu-jitsu it’s known as a Kimura or Kimura Arm Lock named after Masahiko Kimura who used the technique to submit Helio Gracie during a match between the two in 1951. Helio did not tap and the technique resulted in two broken bones along with a dislocated elbow.

Break Down - back by popular demand.

Today the Kimura is a popular submission in all ranks of jiu-jitsu. In fact, just recently at UFC 140, Frank Mir used a Kimura to defeat “Big Nog” (Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira). And like Helio, this Kimura resulted in dislocation along with a broken twig. The Kimura is very similar to the Americana we broke down in Issue 4. In fact, it’s often times referred to as a reverse Americana.

A figure four is formed while controlling your opponent’s wrist behind his back. Once you have control of his body, pulling his arm away from the body puts pressure on the shoulder joint as well as the elbow. The result is a submission that doesn’t require much strength at all with the proper technique.

To help us break down the Kimura we got together with Joao “Jon” Silva, 3rd degree black belt under his father coral belt Aloisio Silva. Joao has been training jiu-jitsu since the age of three and has built a respectable jiu-jitsu career along with amassing a winning professional MMA record.

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The GRIP T

he basic Kimura is performed with the subject’s arm down at his side, with the elbow bent greater than a 90º angle towards the back with the aggressor controlling the wrist with a figure four lock. If the subject’s arm is against his back he will have a greater range of motion and will survive the technique. In order for the Kimura to submit, the wrist must be cranked away from the body to place pressure on the shoulder and elbow joints. Initially, when controlling the wrist, it’s fine to use a thumb to finger grip to get a hold of the wrist, but once you have it switch to a four-finger grip.

Control THE BODY I

n all the set ups you see that your opponent’s body is somehow in control and not being permitted to escape.

This is by design. In order to finish the Kimura you must have control of your opponent’s body so he cannot roll with the torque being applied.

The FINISH W

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Don’t forget to control the body.

ith proper grips it’s time to finish. Bring his wrist as close to his body as possible. This will dictate that you have the elbow bent at less than a 90º angle. If he’s able to extend his arm it will be impossible to finish. Now that you have the wrist in towards the body it’s time to crank the wrist away from the body.

Yes, that’s right, after you’ve bent the elbow so that the wrist is towards his body it’s time to change planes and crank the wrist away from his body pivoting on that shoulder being punished. Continue cranking that wrist away to finish. If you’re in a position to pressure down on his shoulder while cranking, do it for more leverage and pressure on that shoulder. Always remember that you want to take his hand up to his head, with the more distance between his hand and back the better.

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LEVERAGE

Having to extend your arms to finish reduces your leverage and power.

If you’re having difficulty finishing, and everything else seems correct, leverage the control you have of his body to improve the position. So, if can’t crank any further, move his body, or your body relative to his to continue cranking. Also pay attention to whether you’re arms are extended or close when finishing. If you find that your arms are fully extended and you haven’t submitted, then you’re probably at the end of your range.

In that case, reposition your body so you can get your arms closer into yourself so you have more distance to go for the finish.

Instead have your opponent closer to you so that you have more leverage to finish.

DRAWING THE ARM

In almost any guard, butterfly, open, spider, etc. be on the look out for your opponent to post against your body. Once he does, there’s an opportunity to work the Kimura. It’s even easier to grab it when he posts to the mat with his hands. You can also fake with an armbar. Give the appearance of going for the armbar all the while thinking Kimura. He’ll tense to defend the armbar, but usually that requires different muscles so he won’t be ready for you to attack with the Kimura.

FROM CLOSED GUARD

T

he Kimura is extremely effective and relatively easy to get from many guard positions and from side control.

Step 2

Control the arm at the wrist and quickly pull off to your side a bit. At the same time sit up and reach over his shoulder and upper arm with your right arm.

Unless of course they’re very flexible.

Step 4

Bring your hips back towards your left side, towards the arm under assault, and drop back down looking towards your right side.

Step 1

Pick your target arm; in this case it’s your opponent’s right arm. Pivot your body to the right to open up space and grab the target arm at the wrist with your left hand.

Step 3

Pass your right arm over the back of his arm, then under to grab your own left wrist.

Step 5

The motion of dropping back down while controlling his arm will place your right arm over the back of his shoulder as a pivot point.

With control of his wrist, and a solid lock on your own, you’ll be in a position to finish the Kimura.

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CLOSED GUARD FORCE THE POST Step 1

From closed guard your opponent’s not giving you anything and keeping his arms tight and under control. Sit up and reach for the back of his neck, or collar to pull him down into you. Strike when you see his posture broken or he’s looking down at you to strike.

Step 3

Once he’s posted a hand to the mat, grab his wrist with your hand that’s on that same side.

Step 2

As he’s coming down, use your other hand to grab the back of his upper arm at the triceps and pull it away from him towards the mat so he must post his hand to the mat.

Step 4

Once you have control of the wrist, sit up and reach over with your other hand to control your own wrist to lock up the figure four.

Step 5

Sit back, control the wrist and get in position to finish.

ONE ARM KIMURA FROM SIDE CONTROL Step 1

From a solid side control you’ll want to first isolate the target arm, which will be the far arm.

Step 2t arm under his far arm

Bring your lef near the shoulder.

You’ve got to try that one armed bandit.

Step 3

Use your right arm to grab his far arm at the wrist and feed that wrist to your left hand that’s under his arm.

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Step 4

After the hand off, bring your right hand around to his near hip to control his movements, grab his pants or belt if needed.

FROM SIDE CONTROL

Step 5

Move your hips to your left so you’re in more of a north/south position to your opponent.

Step 6

Now drag his arm across the mat towards his head, angle your forearm up against his shoulder, lifting it up, to help the finish.

Step 2

Step 1

From a tight side control position, reach under the target arm with your right arm, under hooking it at the shoulder.

Pull the target arm towards you, posturing up slightly and basing on the mat near his head with your left arm.

Step 3

Once again, control the body.

Continue pulling him towards you by the far arm and swing your left knee over his head.

As you’re getting him on his side, switch control arms.

Bring your left arm between his target arm and body as you move your right grip to his wrist.

Step 4

Continue pinching your knees together to control his head, and therefore his body. While doing this, grab your right wrist with your left hand.

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KEY POINTS

Step 5

Bring your body and your opponent’s left upper arm together and hold tight to your body. Once the two are connected, posture up with your entire body, not just your arms to pull his arm towards you. Doing it this way, rather than relying solely on arm strength, will help to break any grip of his belt or other defense he’s employing.

IT’S VERY IMPORTANT that you bring your chest and your opponent’s arm together and hold them together tightly. Use your core muscles to break that arm loose and execute the finish. Relying on arm strength alone will make it

more difficult.

YOU CAN FAKE AN ARMBAR

Step 6

It’s now time to finish. After pulling his arm away from his body, gripping the wrist, pivot your body at the waist and torque his arm behind and away from his torso.

It’s important to maintain control of him by continually pinching your knees together, otherwise he can move with you and negate the torque.

FROM HALF GUARD TOP Step 1

With you on top trapped in his half guard, go high so you can get your left elbow over to the far side of his head.

Bring your left arm across his shoulder blade with pressure to control.

at step 5. If you lift your left knee off the mat as if to swing around for an armbar, your opponent may tighten up and roll towards his belly. This will only make the angle better for you when you drop the knee back down to control and go for the Kimura.

Step 2

Use your right hand to attack his left arm at the wrist. If possible, push his wrist up bending his arm at the elbow to lead it to your waiting left hand. If he resists too much, bring your left arm under his arm to find your own right wrist. If you can’t reach your wrist, grab the top of your own hand instead for now.

Don’t allow them time enough to grab their belt to defend.

Step 4

Step 3

With the power generated from both of your arms, push his arm back. As soon as you feel you can readjust and grab your wrist, do that.

Now it’s time to execute, but just don’t push forward. Doing this will cause your weight to fall over and you could possibly be swept. Instead, get your body attached to his arm and posture up, taking his arm with you and driving his hand towards his head to finish.

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Step 2

HALF GUARD FROM BOTTOM

Position your body so you’re squared up with the arm being attacked. Grab that wrist with your right hand.

Step 1

Being on the bottom in half guard isn’t much different than getting the Kimura from full guard. The main difference is when on bottom you have to hip towards the side he has free.

So, if your half guard has his right leg tied up, then his left leg is free and that’s the side that his arm is on which you’re going to attack. Hip out so you’re facing this arm.

Step 4

Step 5

Bring your left foot around and inside his right knee as an inside hook.

Pull him back just a bit and escape your hips just slightly. This will allow you enough room to finish the Kimura bringing his hand to his head.

KEY POINTS IF, AT STEP 5, he leans back and doesn’t allow you to pull him towards you, he might lean back far enough that you’ll be able to roll him back for a sweep. If this happens continue the roll until he’s on the bottom. If you kept a hold of his arm, you’ll still be in a good position to finish the Kimura.

FROM TURTLE ON BOTTOM Step 1

Pick the side that your opponent is off to.

You’re turtled up and he’s attacking your back. Pick a side you’re comfortable to sit out to. In this case, Joao picks his left side.

Reach back with your left arm looking to feed your arm between his elbow and armpit.

Step 2

Once you have your arm between his arm and body posture up slightly and reach for that left wrist of his with your right hand.

IF YOUR OPPONENT DOES just the opposite at step 5, and he leans too far forward, but isn’t allowing you to take the arm, use your left foot that you planted between his knees to roll him over your head. Continue rolling with him and you’ll end up with him between your knees and in a position to finish.

Step 3

Once you have a hold of his wrist, grab your own right wrist with your left hand.

Step 5

As he’s rolling, hip out to bring your right leg out and over his left leg. Quickly bring your leg down on his to stop him from rolling.

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Step 3

Once you have the wrist locked with your hand, reach over with your left and grab your own wrist, going under his arm. Wait to reach over until you have his wrist controlled with your right.

Reaching over before will cause him to get defensive and fight your attempt.

T

he best defense for the Kimura is recognizing when it’s coming and then don’t let yourself get caught in it. Other than that, try defending it as you would an armbar. Rather than simply grabbing your pants or belt (very common defense), reach for your vulnerable arm with your other hand. Get a grip and pull the vulnerable arm in front of you. Doing this with strong intent can actually capture your opponent’s arm in a reversal.

If you can’t get the reversal, dig your free hand underneath his armpit and drive forward with force, at the same time pull your vulnerable arm out to escape. This will put pressure on his shoulder and not allow him to get the move.

Step 4

Sit back rolling to your left.

Use your left foot at his left knee to help roll him over.

T U O D E P P A T T

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Breakdown - Kimura.indd 8

Keep reading these and you’ll be a BB in no time.

Step 6

With his lower body under control and unable to escape, finish the Kimura by bringing his hand to his head.

Let’s say he went for it from side control and you’re already on your side, with him having control of the arm, and your head. Use your feet on the mat and bridge to your back. If he doesn’t have very firm control of you then you’ll take him with you as you roll to your back. The result will be your opponent on his back and you in a position to escape.

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Peter s

Peter Sutton and Stable Jiu-Jitsu

the reason why he’s in Jiu-Jitsu today.

“It’s so much more rewarding watching your guys go out and compete and win and then come back and thank you for your help and give you their medals,” he humbly says, “It’s the greatest feeling.”

Ali Saleh and his A-Team Kids Tear Up the Competition Ali Saleh wasn’t even planning on bringing a team to the NABJJF’s No Gi Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournament. At this time of year he’s more focused on belt testing and belt ceremonies than he is on competitions, but Ali and his A-Team Kids are all about “team,” so when a bunch of his kids said they wanted to compete at the event, he stopped what he was doing and brought a team to compete. Creating and nurturing a team is what Ali does best. “When any of our

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guard

Look for more info on Kids Jiu-Jitsu in our next issue.

Thirty-eight year old Peter Sutton has been training in Jiu-Jitsu for 13 years. He loves competing at NABJJF tournaments and the North American No Gi Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Tournament was no exception.

Peter says he brings a big team to the no gi tournament every year, but they always end up losing to Aloisio Silva BJJ, who has won the tournament repeatedly. This year, though, it was all Stable Jiu-Jitsu.

“It’s always an awesome experience at this tournament,” Peter says, “Sam (Aschidamini, VP of NABJJF) is really good to us. We keep bringing a bigger team each year to try to knock off Aloisio Silva. This time I brought 17 guys here to compete. We finally won!” Peter himself battled tirelessly throughout the day, competing in both the adult and the masters black belt, light weight divisions.

In his adult division he had two matches, winning the first, but losing the second by

points, awarding him a silver medal for the day. His ribs popped out in his second adult match causing him some pain, but he forged on regardless. “I fought through it and lost by two points,” he says slowly, trying to catch his breath, “I just try to come here and do as many matches as I can…adult, masters, seniors…I will do them all.” At the same time that Peter was competing in the adult division, he was also fighting in the masters division, giving him no time to rest in between contests. Even so, the warrior won two matches in the masters division, taking gold for the day. He won with a keylock against “Budo” Jake of budovideos and GB America and won via points against Toby “Tigerheart” Grear of True Warrior Fitness, who tried out for The Ultimate Fighter: Team GSP vs. Team Koscheck, but was eliminated before the entry round. Although Peter loves the competition side of Jiu-Jitsu more than just about anything, he’s also extremely addicted to teaching and says that’s truly

oby's its in T

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A-Team Kids take 1st place team trophy

If you haven’t competed in a tournament yet make it a goal this year.

kids are competing, we try to bring the whole school to support them,” he says, “All the kids want to help each other. I tell them they have more power when they’re all together.” This was a good year for the A-Team Kids. They won the Kids Worlds for the third straight year, the Samurai Pro, the North American Gi and No Gi tournaments, and the All Americans. But Ali teaches his kids that Jiu-Jitsu is not about winning or losing. He says, “I tell my kids to think about how hard they’ve trained and how they’re repping our team. It’s all about the team. We go together. If they give their best, I’m happy.” At the North American No Gi Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Tournament Ali was happiest with his young student Jackie O’Donnell who lost, but who really laid it all out there on the mats. “His match was my favorite of the day,” Ali says, “His performance was incredible. He was nervous, but he still showed how hard he trained for this tournament. My hope is that, win or lose, people will say, ‘I hope we don’t have to fight those A-Team kids again!’” A-Team currently has more kids than adults training at the school. One reason for that is the quality of training the kids get directly from Ali. He gets on the mats and rolls with each one of them, teaching them everything he knows. He’s

a 1st degree black belt who has sacrificed his own personal competitive desires for the sake of his young team, but he finds more fulfillment in his role as a professor.

Many of the kids who train with A-Team are not there just to enjoy Jiu-Jitsu as a hobby. They want to become future world champions, so Ali feels compelled to put in the time required to make that happen. “I’m on the mats with the kids every single day, putting time in for the future,” he says, “I’m one of those guys who wants America to pass Brazil in this sport. So, I take it really seriously. These kids want to be future black belt champions. They’re there to be with me, so I’m going to be there for them.”

The Difference In The NABJJF Tournament Series Sam Aschidamini, VP of the NABJJF, was happy with the turnout at the 2011 North American No Gi Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Tournament. The NABJJF puts on four tournaments a year: the North American Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Tournament, the All Americas Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Tournament, the Los Angeles International Brazilian

Jiu-Jitsu Open, and the North American No Gi Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournament, which closes out their tournament series and season. NABJJF tournaments are operated on a digital system that involves no paperwork. “All of the brackets are on the computer,” Sam says, “We were the first to introduce this system to the JiuJitsu community.” NABJJF staff place the score keeping tables on the inside of the mats, facing the crowd, so the fans can see the points at any given time. When a winner of a match is determined, every other computer is updated on every table so the crowd can see the updated results.

When the bracket ends, the computer automatically calculates the points so everyone knows which academy is ahead on points at any given time during the tournament. Sam says the fans and competitors really appreciate the fact that they are constantly updated on the status of the event. The NABJJF also prides itself on being an organized, on-time event. “You don’t lose a whole day of your life at our tournaments,” Sam laughs, “You’re there for two to three hours, you compete, and then you’re out of there. We’re all busy; we all have families. You shouldn’t have to wait too long to fight.”

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IF THE

GLOVE

FITS We don’t believe there’s any relation to Danny.

Words: MIKE VELEZ

|

Photos: JASON BOULANGER

EFF GLOVER IS A RARE BREED. He’s an American born grappler who managed to work his way into the limelight early in his jiu-jitsu career. If you only got to know Jeff through his videos you might think he’s a funny guy.

And you’d be right. Jeff’s a one of a kind personality who’s become known for his use and development of deep half guard. For this month’s cover feature we hung out with Jeff and got see how valuable his deep half guard game can be for any jiu-jitsu player at any level.

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How did you find jiu-jitsu or did

What’s your training schedule like

Have you ever had to use your jiu-

it find you?

these days?

jitsu on the street?

Jiu-jitsu found me for sure. I wasn’t seeking out jiu-jitsu, but my neighbor turned out to be Franjinha, the founder of Paragon. We became friends and he brought me into the academy. From day one I knew this was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

It’s pretty relaxed. I train about three days a week, a couple sessions a day. Working up to the ADCC I was pretty fit. I had a nutrition plan, and I worked with a strength and conditioning coach. That was my primary training and I just supplemented it with some rolling. We were doing everything, sprints, jumps, weights, squats, deadlifts, pull ups, rope work, 10-minute circuits that killed me.

Yes, did I hurt anybody? No. And that’s the great thing about jiu-jitsu, it’s not about punching them in the face. You choke them until they stop. Then when they wake up and realize what happened. Half the time they end up wanting to give you a hug and make friends with you because they’re not bleeding.

And choking a guy gives you time to run.

Have you always trained like that for

I want to keep making my DVDs, I know people enjoy them. And it allows me to help the jiu-jitsu community the best I can. It allows me to let people know about my jiujitsu and my views on it. I want to open a gym soon, my own Jeff Glover Academy. I’m just waiting for the time to be right, finding the right place, the right people, the right feel, the right energy. Currently I have a part-time jiu-jitsu job so I have a lot of freedom, time to travel. There’s no rush for me to open a gym. I have a lot of seminars, I really enjoy that. But you never know what will happen.

When you started training what type of schedule did you keep?

It was pretty intense, we were training every day, twice a day. We’d supplement the training with workouts, going to the gym, going on hikes, stuff like that. I had just turned 16 at the time.

What type of shape where you in when you started?

I was in terrible shape. I had never done anything athletic in my entire life. The only thing I was good at was wrestling, and I don’t mean collegiate wrestling, I mean WWE type.

Jumping off the top ropes, putting guys in “sharp shooters.” The whole getting into shape thing was all new to me.

What was the first tournament you entered?

It was a Jean Jacque Machado tournament in LA. I think I lost, got choked out in 30-seconds.

I had been doing jiu-jitsu for 3 months. It was discouraging. I remember questioning myself, whether or not this was something I really wanted to do. But I knew in my heart that I did and I got over it pretty quickly.

How long ago did you get your black belt?

I got it in April of 2006, I’ll be coming up on my second degree soon.

How did reaching that accomplishment affect your mental state towards jiu-jitsu?

I’ve never trained that hard in my life! I usually go out and do tournaments and just rely on my talent. For this one I didn’t rely on just that. I went out there with strength, a gas tank, and the mental stability of knowing that I wouldn’t get gassed out. I’ve never had that in a tournament. But for this Abu Dhabi tournament I knew that I trained for it and I wouldn’t gas out.

What made this year different?

I’m not sure what it was that motivated me so much, but it was the difference maker for me this year. Eating right was a big part of it.

It gave me the energy to train properly and be prepared.

In your first match you were up against Tom Barlow from the UK. You kept baiting him by showing him your back. That seems pretty cocky, did you get a lot of crap for doing that?

There are a few reasons I did that, first my back defense is the best in the world. I’ve had Cobrinha, and some of the best in the world on my back and they couldn’t get their hooks in or get the finish. So I’m very confident there.

Also, I have a lot of counters from there, some I showed you for this article. So, I have a lot of moves that I do from there that I’m confident I can use. Three, I wanted to entertain the crowd, there were roughly 2,000 people there and they paid good money to see something good.

I wanted to be a showman, to put on a good show. And I did, they loved it. Whether they booed or cheered, noise was being made and all eyes were on me, and that’s all I could ask for.

Do you see yourself going to MMA at any point?

The talk of going to MMA only comes up when I’ve had a few beers and I’m being a tough guy. After I sober up I realize that’s not my gig, I’m a jiu-jitsu guy. I love watching MMA, I love supporting my friend Bill Cooper who’s got an MMA career going on right now. But me getting into MMA, you probably won’t see that.

What’s been your best experiences so far in the last 14 years?

Besides getting my black belt and all the emotion that comes with that, especially from my master and father figure, Franjinha, aside from that, which is obviously number one, but being involved in the Abu Dhabi tournaments and being around all those legends, amazing grapplers, fighters. I’ve been in a lot of tournaments and being there with a lot of matches I don’t particularly care about. But being part of the Abu Dhabi is amazing, not only as a competitor, but as a fan. Being there front row for all those matches is worth its weight in gold. I can’t tell you how much I’ve learned from being there, first hand, with guys like Galvao against Toquinho, or Roger Gracie versus Jacare. I’ve been at the last four Abu Dhabi’s and I’ve had a front row seat for all of them. They’ve been amazing for me.

What does the world not know about you that they should?

(Jeff repeats the question to himself and ponders it for a while) I don’t take myself too seriously, I have fun with life, I have fun with jiu-jitsu, and I love jiu-jitsu. But you probably knew that already. I love video games, I can kill it on the drums, and I’ve been known to cut a rug pretty good on the dance floor.

Feature_Deep Half Guard.indd 2

“Zombiegloves” on xbox live.

I remember thinking to myself, “be careful what you wish for because you just might get it.” Getting your black belt comes with tons of responsibility. You have to be the toughest guy in the gym, nobody taps you. When you speak about jiu-jitsu you have to make sure you’re speaking correctly about things, you’re not a fool, you’re not making up nonsense.

The biggest thing was having to fight against other black belts. That was intimidating, scary, tough. What’s great about jiu-jitsu is that you can fight the legends in our sport. You just have to get your black belt, that’s the hard part. When I was fighting as a black belt the first few years I would remind myself that I got what I asked for having to fight these guys.

It was scary.

a tournament?

What are your goals?

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The Escapes

D

eep Half Guard (DHG) is a relatively safe position you can transition into to escape from a position that has you at a distinct disadvantage; being mounted, in side control, or having someone on your back just to name a few. Because DHG isn’t a very common position, Jeff likes to move into it to stage an attack. He’s going to go over three common escapes to DHG:

Step 1

Keep your arms low so you don’t expose them for an armbar, but bring them to your opponent’s waist.

You need them there to help bring your opponent forward as you bridge with your hips, and force him to base with his hands to the mat above you.

Step 2

Step 4

Once his hands hit the mat, use your right hand to grab a hold of his left ankle.

With your right side flat on the mat, take your opponent’s left ankle and tuck it up above your thigh.

Step 3

You’ll notice that Jeff is still in a bridge, but half of it is going to disappear, and it’s the side of his bridge that’s on the same side of the ankle he’s controlling.

Step 5

As soon as your opponent’s leg is above your thigh, pivot your hips to that side and bring your left leg down to trap your opponent’s foot between your legs.

He looks cozy there, just resting his head.

Step 7

Step 6

This is the key step that puts you in position to get to DHG: Take your left hand and dig it between your opponent’s legs and your torso. Being in someone’s mount will make this no easy task, so to make things easier, bring your right knee up slightly while at the same time using your left leg to push down on the heel of your opponent’s trapped leg. This will give you a nice lever on his leg and force him to give you enough space to get your left arm between the two of you.

Wrap your left arm around your opponent’s left thigh and bring it against your ear, just above your shoulder, keeping your legs locked to trap his foot. As your opponent sits back, your head will be resting on his right thigh. This is Deep Half Guard.

KEY POINTS The leverage you place on your opponent’s leg at the heel is huge. Once you learn this point in the technique you’ll find yourself being able to get into DHG from many different positions.

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T

ypically having someone on your back is a scary proposition. It’s where your first, and sometimes only, instinct is to survive; but having the ability to get to DHG from here has allowed Jeff to use his back as bait for others to bite onto.

Step 2

With his left hand defending the choke, Jeff uses his right arm to control the bottom hook. He only needs to hold it long enough to quickly bring his own right leg up and around the hook. It’s important to note that Jeff’s not prying or forcing the hook off, but just holding it in place so he can use his leg to “quickly” escape the hook.

Step 1

Your opponent has your back, hooks in, and has an over/under around your neck. Jeff uses his left hand to defend the choke by keeping pressure on his opponent’s forearm. For the purposes of this article, Jeff chooses to fall to his opponent’s strong side; the side that presents a rear naked choke. However, Jeff says that you can fall to either side for this escape.

Step 3

As soon as you clear that hook, pinch your knees together to trap his left leg between yours. If you don’t keep control of that leg, he can just swing it over you and transition into full mount.

Step 4

With the first hook off, Jeff turns his attention to the choke and tucks his left elbow in tight to his body to work it beneath his opponent’s under hooked arm. Your opponent will more than likely fight hard to keep the under hook as well as get the choke. So continue to pay attention to the threat of the choke with your hand and use a quick explosive motion to sneak that elbow out from under his arm.

Step 5

Don’t forget to protect the neck.

Once you get your left arm free, it’s going to become apparent to your opponent that he’s lost the position and he will naturally shift his weight to get on top of you. As he does this he exposes his left leg for you to get your left arm around and move into the DHG position.

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Y

ou’re in a bad spot here, your opponent’s on top of you with side control. No worries, just use the following steps:

Step 1

Shift your hips towards your opponent. If he’s got his knee tight against you, slip your hips away from him just prior to shifting them in one movement so you can escape them before he can just pull you back in and apply pressure.

Step 3

Once you have your leg behind his, make contact and apply pressure pulling his leg over you as quickly as you can. If you don’t make and maintain pressure, your opponent will have an opportunity to escape his leg. So, as you’re pulling his leg to your right he’ll have two choices. The first is to do nothing and let you take it, in which case you’ll be able to pull him over you and perform a sweep, but in the more likely case, he’ll look to pull up on that leg to escape his knee and avoid the sweep.

Step 2

As you shift your hips towards your opponent, use your right leg to hook behind his left leg below his knee.

Got to stretch for this one.

Step 4

When your opponent escapes his knee, it will create space between the two of you. This is when you reach with your left arm and grab onto his left thigh, pulling yourself into the DHG.

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Step 1

From half guard with Jeff on the bottom, he works to bring his inside leg to the mat, and his outside leg up higher near his opponent’s hip.

Step 2

Now, as if to perform a scissor sweep, pull your opponent’s right leg down across your left knee and down to your ankle. Bring your heel to your butt so you know his leg will have to extend. At the same time, extend your left leg against his hip so he’s forced to post out with his left arm to the mat. If he doesn’t post, you will have swept him.

Step 3

When he posts out, his weight will be shifted off of you and his right leg will be extended out. This is when you sink your right arm in underneath his extended right thigh.

Step 4

Move in quick once he’s off to the side.

Once you have a hold of that leg, bring your knees together to trap his leg and rotate your hips and legs to your left so his thigh is rested between your shoulder and ear and he’s in your DHG.

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S

o you’ve found yourself with your opponent in your deep half guard, be it by circumstance or by design, so now what? Well, there are plenty of submissions you can hit from DHG, but for now Jeff’s going to show us a few sweeps that will put you in a better position, and with some points gained to boot.

Step 1

Your opponent is in your DHG, his weight is settled on top of you.

Move your left hand to get a hold of his leg around his thigh.

Step 2

If you’re leaning to your right and your head is resting on his left thigh, step your legs to your right to drag his left leg towards his right. This will pinch your head between his legs and narrow up his base.

Step 3

Once you’ve narrowed his base and his legs are now closer together, pull his left leg to your left side using his kneecap as your handle.

Step two is crucial here, you have to get the angle correct.

Step 4

KEY POINTS

Continue the motion so he falls to his back. Now, quickly transition so you’re on top, in his half guard.

Attempt to step over and clear his leg if you can.

When you feel his legs pinching your face, that’s when you know his base is narrowed and it’s safe to roll him over.

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Step 1

A

common stall or defense to your DHG is for your opponent to bring the knee (of the leg you’re controlling) over and across your body to the mat.

You can sweep him if he tries this technique.

As you feel your opponent drive his weight to that knee, allow him to take it to the mat, but continue holding on to his leg above the knee with your left hand. Bring your right forearm to the mat and post on your right elbow.

Step 3

Put your shoulder into it.

As you drive forward with your shoulder and anchor against his knee, his weight will topple over. At this point you can continue to play it close and be on top in his half guard, or you can pop to your feet and look to pass his guard all together.

Step 2

With your left hand still firmly wrapped around his thigh, pull the bottom of his thigh, near the knee, toward you as you push the upper part of his thigh forward with your shoulder.

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Step 2

A

nother very common defense for someone caught in DHG is to push those knees off so you’ve got less control of their sprawled out leg. Use the following sweep when this happens to you:

Immediately pull that arm in hard against his own leg so his arm and leg are pinned together.

Step 1

As your opponent makes any contact with your knees, the trap is sprung. The moment his arm is stretched across your body, let go of the leg with your hands and reach over to grab onto that arm, one hand above the elbow, and one hand below.

Step 3

As soon as you have firm control of his arm and leg together, you need to decide which way to go, either to your left or right. Rolling to your left in the situation pictured will roll your opponent to his back, allowing you to easily fall into his half guard, or to attempt to pass to side control. Rolling to your right will take him forward and allow you to escape between his legs, leaving his back completely exposed.

KEY POINTS In step 3 get a sense of which direction their weight is naturally going. Help them along in that direction. Use your feet on the mat to help push in the direction you decide to go.

Whichever way you go, look to that direction first as you begin the motion. This is a rule in jiu-jitsu - you will go in the direction you look to.

Now you have the keys.

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The SUBS

M

ost jiu-jitsu players think of going to DHG as an escape from a bad spot, or as a stepping stone to a top position to gain some points or to work towards a submission. However, Jeff’s developed some pretty sick submissions from DHG.

I

t’s pretty common for your opponent to look to get an under hook on your far arm when he’s trapped in your DHG. Doing this will give him some extra leverage as he looks to escape. When he does this a great opportunity presents itself.

Step 1

Your opponent goes for the under hook on your far arm, let him take it and pull up on that arm so he feels like he’s in control. When he does this, grasp his triceps and pry that left arm of his away from your body so you can pop your head out between his armpit and thigh.

Step 3

Step 2

Take your left hand and slip it between your side and the crook of his knee, as soon as your hand is through kick up with your foot and push his leg away to your left with your left arm.

Now that you’ve popped your head out like Ace Ventura being birthed, release your legs from pinching his leg and bring your left foot behind his just above his heel.

Step 4

Step 5

Once you’re clear of his leg, bring your right hand from his tricep to reach over and grasp the back of his neck.

Reach across with your left hand to control the back of his head and to help keep him down tight against you for the remaining steps.

Step 6

Agility is key on this one.

When your head has cleared his shoulder, reach over with your left arm across his head bringing your elbow up to your right hand. Let go over his neck and grab on to your bicep just above your elbow.

As you’re grabbing his neck, pull it down towards you while quickly and simultaneously scrimping your legs to your right, pivoting on your back so that you maintain control of the back of his neck.

Step 7

Here’s the finish, once you have your right hand over your bicep, your arms trapping his neck and left arm in between, curl your left arm and plant your left hand on his left shoulder blade. Squeeze your arms together to finish with a clean D’Arce choke to finish.

Slarce With

W

ith the Gi on Jeff calls this finish the “Slarce.” Instead of finishing with a rear naked type grasp of the hand, bring your right hand to grab your left cuff. Now extend and straighten out your arms to sandwich his neck between your forearms to finish.

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Step 1

From DHG let go of the leg and reach up over your opponent’s right thigh and back behind him to bring your hands together. Once your hands are locked, pull yourself up and pass your head behind your opponent’s thigh to clear it from behind.

Step 2

Once your head is clear, release his legs and do a “crunch” like movement to bring both legs up high.

Your left leg must clear your opponent’s back, your right leg must clear the front of your opponent, and you must get your right leg underneath his right arm.

Step 3

As soon as your right leg has cleared the arm, the direction of leg force changes and you need to flatten your opponent by pushing your legs down and taking him with you. He will fall to his back, yet his right leg will be directly in front of you.

Step 4A (The Heel Hook)

For those of you in submission grappling tournaments, you’ll go for this one. Once your opponent’s on his back, sit up slightly and bring your right bicep on top of your opponent’s foot, but get your forearm below his heel as shown. Cup your hands together in a Gable grip and apply downward force to his foot with your upper arm, while torquing his heel in the same direction for the finish.

Heel hooks are illegal in BJJ, okay in submission grappling.

Step 4B (Ankle Lock)

This one’s legal for blue belts and up. After your opponent’s on his back, sit up and bring your left arm underneath the back of his lower calf muscle.

Place your right arm over his ankle so it’s near your armpit. Grab your right bicep with your left hand. Lock everything up and sit back with that armpit on his foot to finish the straight ankle lock.

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I

f your opponent fears being brought to his back, he’ll often times sit down on you yet base out with his hands to the mat at the same time.

Thanks to the pressure he’s able to bring down on you, he’s not thinking that you’re able to escape let alone submit from here.

Step 1

As mentioned in the setup for this one, your opponent’s based out with both hands on the mat in front of him. Shoot your left leg out and down with force then immediately after do the same thing with your left arm placing pressure on his buttocks so that you can use it as leverage to drag your shoulder out behind him.

Step 2

Once you’ve made your half-Superman pose drag your right elbow out from under and post to your right hand as quickly as possible.

Step 3

Clear your right leg from his left leg so there’s nothing holding you to him, at the same time keep your left arm extended reaching around his body, below his arm pit and over to his neck. Now, unless your name is “Stretch Armstrong” you’ll need to “jump” your body up and over him to make your hand go where it needs to go – around his neck.

Step 4

Step 5

You’ll want do drill this one about a thousand or so times.

At this point, your body will be literally going up and over his as your feet cross over and eventually fall to the mat with you landing on your back off to his right side. During this entire time you should be keeping your left arm reaching so your forearm is against the left side of his neck.

Now you’re on your back, your left arm is almost completely around his neck and your right hand has been helping you guide your body across his back. If necessary, use your right hand to pull his head into you, allowing you to get your left arm in deeper around his neck.

Step 6

Shrimp your hips closer to your opponent, pivoting on your back, so you’re almost perpendicular to your opponent.

Step 7

Bring your right arm up so you can easily grab your left bicep with your right hand. Once making contact curl your right arm, and place your right hand on the back of his right shoulder blade to squeeze and finish.

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Step 2

Move your left leg so you can hook the back of his left ankle with the top of your left foot. Because you’re keeping lots of pressure above his knee, as soon as you get this hook, you’ll have that leg trapped thanks to the high pressure you’re putting on that knee.

Step 1

Firmly grab onto the top of his left thigh with your right hand above the knee. Keep lots of pressure on this hold.

Step 3

Quickly bring your right foot behind your left creating a cross with your legs.

Step 4

Reach for his toes with your right hand, move your left hand from just above the knee to his kneecap.

Step 5

Pull his kneecap to your left while pulling his toes to your right.

At the same time keep pressure on the back of his ankle with both your legs. The result of all this pressure will be a submission via toehold.

Did you see the light stand? It’s like getting a peek behind the curtain.

OPTIONAL SWEEP

During this technique there’s a nice opportunity for a sweep that shows up. In Step 2 take your right foot and get it behind his left ankle. Then take your left foot and with the back of your ankle apply pressure to the inside of his left foot, twisting his foot outward.

To avoid injury he’ll have to roll in that direction and you’ll have a nice little sweep.

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Step 1

Like in the toehold we just showed you, get your left foot behind his ankle and your right foot behind your own ankle. All the while keeping a firm hold of his upper leg.

Step 2

Step 4

Once you have those hooks in at the bottom of his leg, wrap your left arm around his thigh just above the knee.

To finish, lift your feet up and pull your hands down putting tremendous pressure on his knee to execute the knee bar.

Step 3

Bring your right hand to your left and grip them together nice and strong. Maybe with a Gable grip. Position your clasped hands so the blade of your forearm, just below your wrist, is directly above his knee joint.

Countering the DHG

We’ll call “The Grill” to get more on the counters.

Jeff says the most important thing you should do to counter the deep half guard, and what you should do to defend if you’re using DHG, is to clear the knees. If you find yourself on the top side of DHG, push those knees down and sit back so your butt hits the mat. Don’t allow the guy on the bottom to keep control of that leg. Once his legs are too low to pinch your leg then he’s no longer got the deep half guard.

For More

A

s you can see, the Deep Half Guard is a very dynamic position with lots of opportunities. If you’ve been wanting to add an unconventional guard to your game, consider DHG. For more information on Jeff and his techniques on this subject, check out his popular video “Jeff Glover’s Deep Half Guard” from Budo Videos. You can also pre-order his upcoming video, “Darcepedia” that focuses on the D’ Arce choke.

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MICHAEL WESTBROOK’S Words: DEB BLYTH

Who is M I C H A E L K? WESTB ROO

It’s good.

he old adage, “What you see is what you get” does not apply to former college Espy winner and NFL star, Michael Westbrook. This Bully Beatdown MMA celebrity and current Jiu-Jitsu black belt holds the reputation of an arrogant football player who didn’t reach his full potential in the NFL and who now dabbles in martial arts.

In reality, Michael, who is 39 years old and resides in Arizona, has found his true path in life on the Jiu-Jitsu mats, far from the AstroTurf of old, as a successful JiuJitsu school owner, instructor and competitor. He couldn’t be more fulfilled or happier in his life. And once that welldeveloped guard comes down, what you find is not what you expect: a very competitive, but highly caring, deep, and philosophical person.

Michael’s crazy, beautiful upbringing

Michael grew up in Detroit, Michigan. His upbringing is something that movies are made of. Michael grew up in the ‘hood.’ He was surrounded by his extended family and lived with 24 of them in his small home. His uncle was an eccentric genius, a mechanic… and a pimp…and turned their three-bedroom home into a seven-bedroom maze to fit everyone. Half the family in his house had jobs and the other half didn’t. Money was short, but food and Christmases were abundant. His dad was an ex-football college

scholarship athlete who blew his knee out and never met his potential. He and Michael’s uncle ended up with serious drug issues, but even though his dad was often under the influence, he still played catch with Michael regularly. Michael saw far more than he should have in his young life, but regardless, he looks back fondly on his flawed, but loving home life and says, “As a child, you don’t know anything other than what you see. You don’t know life outside of that. However bad things were around me, I had a wonderful, fun childhood.” Fortunately for Michael he had two saving graces that helped influence him in life: his mom, Mercy, who inspired him to live a wholesome life, and football.

Michael catapults into football stardom and the Michael, who has never touched a drink or a drug in his life, says his mom, Mercy, kept him on the straight and narrow path.

“My mom told me every day, ‘don’t smoke, don’t drink, don’t do drugs,’ constantly in my face and in my ear.” Michael played football, basketball, and baseball from sun up to sundown, from elementary school through high school and was as competitive as they come.

As a stand out football star, he earned a fullride football scholarship

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regardless of the harm to him. He became so injured so often, it was near impossible to be effective. In 1998, Michael broke his neck during a play that required a plate and four screws to fix. He missed part of the season and took the rest of the year off.

He came back and had the biggest year of his life in 1999, when he achieved three career highs, 65 receptions for 1,191 yards, and nine touchdowns.

Overall, Michael played seven years with the Redskins and one year with the Bengals. In 2002 he asked to be released from the team so he could retire. “I was exhausted,” he says, “I gave up my body for the team. I’d sustained multiple injuries every year just to gain that extra yard.”

Michael started training in Jiu-Jitsu while he was still playing for the Redskins, but didn’t have the time to devote to it. But like a loyal and loving girlfriend, it waited in the wings for him while he finished up You’re probably feeling pretty lazy right about now.

to the University of Colorado under Bill McCartney. “They were the best memories for me,” Michael smiles. Looking back, it’s easy to see why. In 1994, Michael was the star receiver in the play known as “The Miracle at Michigan.” Colorado was playing Michigan and as time was expiring in the game, QB Kordell Stewart threw a 64yard Hail Mary pass to Michael to win the game 27-26 Colorado. The play became so infamous, he won an Espy award for his participation in it. In 1995 Michael became the 1st round draft pick, 4th overall, by the Washington Redskins. What should have been the most glorious time of his life was soured by his continual injuries, the inescapable politics and huge egos in the sport, and the media’s portrayal of him as the “bad guy.” He felt like he had a target on his back and he was frustrated. “The major issues I had in football stemmed from respect,” he says, “I didn’t like to be cussed out by the coaches. If they would have said, ‘hey, we love you…please go smash your head into that wall’ I would have done it. Because of the way I was treated, I watch how I treat people. I teach my kids and students to stay positive, and not let others bring them down because of their negativity.” Unfortunately for Michael, that’s now how it went down in the NFL. “If I was quiet, they said I was arrogant…I showed up to practice late one time in eight years and it was in the paper the next day that I was late all the time,” he laughs, “Seriously?” Then there was the Stephen Davis incident. Again, it was a matter of principle. “He was a bully and he was in my face all the time,” Michael says, “One day I’d had enough. I punched him and we fought and that was the end of it.

We actually became friends after that.”

But once again, the media had a field day vilifying Michael in the press. However, all the good he did was never published.

While he was playing for the Redskins a friend introduced him to a family whose little girl had AIDS. The whole time he was in Washington, he paid for her medical bills. He donated to homeless shelters, worked in soup kitchens, and did whatever he could to help others.

He felt like that was the least he could do to give back to a community that he understood and related to. And although he didn’t cave to pressure, there were some serious expectations placed on him for being a 1st round draft pick. He worked so hard to meet them, he laid his body on the line,

Michael finds Jiu-Jitsu

Leaving football and starting JiuJitsu was an easy transition for Michael. He didn’t have any of that usual separation anxiety that many professional athletes experience leaving the “big time” for the mundane.

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his football career. “I felt like I broke up with an old girlfriend for a super model,” he laughs, describing his experience leaving football, “Jiu-Jitsu was my super model.

She didn’t judge me or care about my past. She’s been nothing but good to me.

I never look back.” In 2001 Michael began training with Ralph and Crosley Gracie in Northern California, and received his blue belt. He then moved back to Detroit where James Lee taught him no gi for a year. In 2004 Michael moved to Arizona and joined Gustavo Dantas’ Nova Uniao team. The rest, as they say, is history. He moved up steadily from belt to belt, competing at all the big tournaments and perfecting his game. Michael’s biggest accomplishment was winning the Worlds as a purple belt in the super heavy adult division in 2008.

Additionally, he’s won his weight and the absolute at the Pan American’s three times, twice as a blue belt and once as a purple belt. Amazingly, he’s won his division at the American Nationals every year from 2004 through 2009. Just like in football, though, he doesn’t really care about the winning or losing, he just loves to compete. “I thrive on it,” he says, “I have to be the best.” In

MMA and beating up bullies offers Michael some fun on the side

While Michael has been fully immersed in the art of Jiu-Jitsu, his curiosity in MMA found him once again in the limelight.

“That dude side of me always gets pulled into these things,” he laughs. When his friend, Jason “Mayhem” Miller called him in for a couple of episodes of MTV’s Bully Beatdown, Michael was more than happy to oblige. He says it was more comedy for him than anything else, but after his appearances he was suddenly thrown back into the spotlight as “the former NFL star, now MMA Bully Beatdown fighter.” Michael just laughs and shakes his head in wonder at how his life has evolved over time.

Michael Westbrook Self Defense Academy is born

That had to be fun.

November 2010, Michael was promoted to black belt. Now at 39, Michael still wants to become a world champion black belt in the adult division. “I’m running out of time,” he says, “I don’t know if it’s already passed, but I will work my butt off and see if it happens. I know what I have to do to reach my goal. There have only been two Americans who’ve done it – BJ Penn and Rafael Lovato. I want to be #3. I want to be the best black belt on the planet.”

Michael found his true home when he opened his Nova Uniao affiliate school two years ago. The quiet and thoughtful

black belt expected to build a solid adult program, but it’s the kids who have flocked to him and his academy, looking for discipline and direction through his caring leadership. Now, teaching them and nurturing his kids’ team has become his biggest passion, next to raising his own children. “I will do this for the rest of my life,” he says, “I treat these kids like they are my own. We are a family here. My goal is to teach them all the way to black belt. I want to have an army full of students.”

B EYON D TH E MATS eyond his life in Jiu-Jitsu, Michael’s been working on a project called, “Life beyond the League.” It’s a new TV show, produced by Gallery Road, and hosted by Corine Lewis and cohosted by Michael. “We interview hall of fame athletes of all sports,” Michael says, “It’s the life and times of these superstars. We share what their lives were like while they were playing their sport and what’s it’s like now that they’re out of it.” Michael can relate.

Filming starts in January and he’s very excited to be a part of this groundbreaking new show.

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e v o b nd A

A Bra

t. s e R the

MKIMONOS KIMONOS-BELTS-RASHGUARDS-FIGHT SHORTS-CLOTHING

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Legal

LOCKS Words: MIKE VELEZ Photos: JASON BOULANGER

Words: MIKE VELEZ | Photos: JASON BOULANGER

EG LOCKS CAN BE CONFUSING TO UNDERSTAND. THERE ARE SOME INTRICACIES THAT DIFFERENTIATE WHAT IS LEGAL AND WHAT ISN’T THAT CAN EVEN CATCH THE WORLD’S BEST BLACK BELTS OFF GUARD WITH A DISQUALIFYING CALL AT THE HIGHEST LEVELS OF GRAPPLING. Back in Issue 4 Brandon Quick showed us a number of leg locks that, for the most part, were only legal in submission grappling (Grappler’s Quest, NAGA, etc), so for this reason we got together with Joao “Jon” Silva, 3rd degree black belt and professional MMA fighter to show us some simple and not so simple leg locks that are all legal in jiu-jitsu tournaments sanctioned by the IBJJF and NABJJF.

Cross your fingers.

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Step 2

STANDING OVER OPEN GUARD

Pick a side and step to that side while putting pressure down on that leg. The natural reaction is for your opponent to extend the opposite leg.

Step 1

Your opponent is on his back and you’re standing over him.

Maybe he’s looking to get you in Spider Guard, or waiting for you to attempt a pass.

Step 3

Turning the foot out like that is okay, turning in towards the other foot is a no-no.

For this example Joao stepped to his right, and his opponent extended his right leg, so that’s the target. Once that leg gets stretched out, attack it.

Over hook the extended leg, in this example it’s with your right arm. Aim to get his foot just behind your armpit while wrapping your arm around his shin bone (tibia) so that your forearm is just below his calf.

Stepco4ntrol of your opponent’s leg and

htly With a firm e forward slig ur armpit, driv yo t ns ai p. ag hi ot fo his right right knee over then drive your base with d an at m ee to the re Bring your kn nward pressu . Maintain dow your right hand h. ig th ht e top of his rig on his hip at th

Step 5

Once your knee and right hand are on the mat, extend your hips outward so you place backward pressure on the top of his foot and your forearm digs against his Achilles tendon. Continue flexing backward, hipping forward, until he taps.

KEY POINTS THE BACK OF HIS FOOT

must be against your armpit.

If it isn’t, loosen up slightly, move backward on the leg, then tighten back up and attempt the finish.

MAKE SURE your left arm is

in front of your hip as leverage to apply pressure, pull up harder on your left arm as if to do a guillotine to finish.

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Step 1

FROM 50/50

5

0/50 guard is becoming more and more popular these days thanks to guys like Rafael and Guilherme Mendes.

Here’s a quick foot lock to use from the 50/50 guard. (Look for an article soon on the 50/50 guard.)

In the 50/50 guard, when you and your opponent have your legs locked down, focus on the leg that’s crossed over, not the extended leg. Squeeze your right arm between your right thigh and the gap right at the point that his locked legs come together.

Step 2

ht Reach your rig d get an h ug arm thro so gh ou en it deep arm is re fo ht rig ur yo leg. under his right

Step 3

Lean to your left side and grab the crook of your left elbow with your right hand. Bring your left hand over his right shin.

Step 4

Bring your right foot over his right hip, and place your left foot over your right foot to protect it from a toehold, or heel hook.

Not sure about a rule? http://www.ibjjf.org/docs/rulesibjjf1stedition.pdf

Step 5

With all the pieces of the puzzle in place, hip out to posture back with your shoulders and pull up hard on your right forearm to finish.

KEY POINTS BE SURE NOT TO CROSS your

outside leg over their leg, this could result in a DQ.

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FROM OPEN GUARD

Step 1

Step 2

Starting from an open guard, you on your back and your opponent in front of you, control his arms at the cuffs of his sleeves. Or, if you’re going no-gi, control the wrists with your feet on his hips.

Drop your left leg to th e mat between yo ur oppone nt’s legs.

Pivoting on your butto cks swing your left le g slightly b e hind your opponent to allow yo ur hips to get closer between h is feet.

Step 4

Step 3

He’ll quickly drop to the mat, waste no time and quickly wrap your left arm over and around his right leg near his foot so the top of his foot is just behind your armpit.

Once you have your hips a little closer to your opponent, use the momentum from swinging your leg to bring your left knee up against the back of his right foot. At the “exact” same time bring your right leg over his right hip so the back of your tibia pressures down on his hip just as your knee is sweeping his foot.

KEY POINTS

Somebody’s quick to tap there.

DRILL STEPS 2 THROUGH 4 regularly

to get the motions down before attempting in a match. You should always be drilling the techniques we show you - you are, aren’t you? Get your timing down. The three steps must be done quickly in order to strike without telegraphing your intentions.

Step 5

Hook your left hand over your right forearm and bring your right hand over his right chin.

Lean back extending your hips to finish with the foot lock.

THIS IS A GREAT TECHNIQUE because

even if you don’t get the finish you’ve gathered two points for the sweep.

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COUNTER Step 1

You’re on your back and your opponent is using a toriano pass.

As he gets to your side and is about to put a knee on your belly bring your right knee up and get your left foot on his right hip.

Step 2

ntact with you make co As soon as h for his ac his hip, re your foot on m around ar ur pping yo right leg, wra e time, . At the sam near the foot your left his hip with push back on knee. ht rig ising your foot while ra

Step 3

Your op ponent will fall you’ll h back to ave con the ma trol of h t; is right foot.

I wonder if heaven has all white mats also?

Step 4

Crank back on his ankle and hip out to finish the foot lock. Be careful that your left foot doesn’t cross over his hip towards his groin. Doing this would be considered illegal and potentially get you disqualified in a match.

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FROM STANDING

Step 1

Standing over your opponent, him on his back with an open guard, control his left leg and shove it behind you so you’ve cleared it.

Step 2

Curl your left hand underneath the back of his right leg near the ankle.

Step 3

Once you have partial control of that right leg it’s safe to drive your right knee toward the mat over his right hip. As you’re falling, rotate your hips and direction to your left so that when you hit the mat you’re actually landing on your butt and his foot is pointed toward you.

Step 4

Mike has to knock off the knee bars in class.

Once you’re on the mat and controlling his right leg, his knee should be above your groin. If it’s not, drill step 3 until you get it right. Pinch your knees together and pull back on his ankle to complete the knee bar. You might think that you must have both knees bent when pinching together, but if need be you can extend your left leg to help keep stable.

You can still squeeze your knees together when extending one leg.

KEY POINTS IF YOU DON’T get the knee

bar, his foot will be right there for a toe hold(legal) or heel hook (illegal).

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FROM CLOSED GUARD

Step 1

With your opponent in your closed guard he looks to stand and post one foot to the mat.

Steaps h2e posts

As soon k over hoo that foot, d his n u ro a your arm use your tibia, and d to grab other han a collar.

Step 3

At this point, you can bring your hands together to tighten up your over hook of his leg, or grab on to his hand if that’s an option. Now “Upa” or bridge up at the hips. This will force your opponent back onto the mat and will bring the top of his foot behind your arm where it needs to be.

Step 4

Bring your left hand to the crook of your right elbow, and fold your right hand over his shin.

Step 6

Somebody once said, “if you’re not cheating you’re not trying.”

Once on your side, thrust yo ur hips outward pulli ng your uppe r body back while looking over your le ft shoulder, th direction you e want to pull him, to finish the foot lock .

Step 5

Use your right foot against the mat to roll him to your left side.

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Step 2

Reach your right arm over and around both of his legs where they cross.

Position your forearm directly underneath the lower leg’s Achilles tendon.

Step 1

Start with your opponent on his back with an open guard and you on top. Control both legs and cross them over at the shins. In this case, Joao is bringing the left leg under the right while stepping off slightly to his own left side.

Step 3

About

Bring your hands together with a Gable grip and arch your back up and to your right side. If you attempt to arch straight back you’ll end up hurting yourself.

Instead, it’s important that you twist slightly as you arch backward.

J

Step 4

Finish by continuing the motion and squeezing that forearm against the Achilles tighter until he taps.

KEY POINTS IT DOESN’T MATTER which leg

Looks simple enough.

goes on the bottom or top, when you finish your opponent will feel pain in both legs.

oao has been grappling since the age of three and was competing in Judo at the age of five. Joao was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. At the young age of 10 he began teaching jiu-jitsu to other children, including (who?) the grandson of Helio Gracie. At 17 he moved with his father, Master Aloisio Silva, to the United States and continued teaching. In 2005 Joao, along with his sister Patricia Silva and her husband Sam Aschidamini, founded the North American Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Federation (NABJJF) to host events and promote Brazilian Jiu Jitsu around the United States and Canada. Joao continues to compete regularly and just a few years ago began a successful professional MMA fighting career. Today he teaches jiu-jitsu full time at Silva Jiu-Jitsu in Lawndale, California.

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PREMIER 3.0

TATAMI FIGHTWEAR Words: STAFF

n each issue of Jiu-Jitsu Magazine we’re going to examine a BJJ gi in extreme detail. We’re calling it our JJM Gear Lab where we lift the hood and road test a new gi under the watchful eyes of our team of resident gi inspectors.

Kicking off this month, we’re looking at a British brand, Tatami Fightwear, and their newly released model, the Estilo Premier 3.0.

TATAMI WHO?

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Hey Mike, nice ‘secret’ identity!

F YOU ASKED SOMEONE A YEAR AGO WHO TATAMI FIGHTWEAR WAS YOU WOULD PROBABLY GET A BLANK FACE. While the brand is pretty big in the UK, where they’ve been established since 2009, it hasn’t been so easy to get a hold of their products here in the States. Things have changed very quickly recently, with celebrity endorsements from the likes of Robson Moura, Fernando ‘Tererê’ Augusto and Jonathan ‘JT’ Torres. Tatami Fightwear products are now stocked in many leading online MMA stores and it looks like the little British company has big ambitions. The upshot for Jiu Jitsu Magazine readers is that you should easily be able to find a seller who stocks this gi and avoid the hefty shipping and customs charges when buying an overseas product.

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THIRD SON FROM THE ROCK

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he Estilo model was first introduced in 2010. At the time, it was considered Tatami’s first high level premium gi. Now in its third incarnation (hence the 3.0 tag), it is touted as a model “designed for the BJJ athlete looking for the highest quality and craftsmanship...with cutting edge, style and detailing.”

We’ve been playing with the 3.0 for a couple of weeks now and we have to say, we’re very impressed. Why? Well let’s take a closer look...

SIZE AND SHRINKAGE

Tatami Fightwear‘s website displays a handy gi size reference chart. We like how the chart includes more than just the usual height/weight ratio (see issue #1 for advice on how to choose the right gi); the chart also includes wingspan, jacket height, and pant length measurements.

Our sample was an A1. The table below details the sizes when new, and after several warm temperature washes. The result is that neither the jacket nor pants showed any degree of shrinkage. Pre-shrunk really means preshrunk, which is fantastic, unless you actually prefer the “busting out,” tight fitted Frankenstein’s Monster look of an excessively shrunken gi!

Looking at the figures in the table, it is evident that the shrinkage is fairly minimal across all zones. The wingspan did shrink a few inches, but this is normal in all gis.

In fact, the Estilo showed only around 4% loss of length in wingspan, which is impressive. We’ve seen gis that have

shrunk double or more than that in the past! Pre-shrunk, in this case, really does mean pre-shrunk!

Comparing the Estilo 3.0 jacket to our regular rotation of gis of various brands, we found that it was a little bit bigger than the average A1. The pants were also longer than most others. Bear in mind, however, that our rotation of gis are a little older and have been washed and worn a lot more, so it’s probably not fair to present a side by side exact size comparison. It’s probably safe to say that the Estilo 3.0 fits a little larger than the average gi out there. Couple this with the minimal level of shrinkage and it means readers need to consult the Tatami size chart carefully.

Our advice would be that, if in doubt, order the size you think should fit, even if it is too big for you rather than too small.

A good tailor should be able to shorten sleeve length and pant length without much problem, but a too small gi will be illegal at IBJJF tournaments. Another solution would be to request separate jacket and pant sizes - this depends a lot on the retailer, however. We don’t advise the high heat, high drying method for

The Details PRICE: The Estilo 3.0 retails for around $135 (slightly more for the colored versions) and you can find it in several leading online MMA stores in the US. Elsewhere, it is available through local resellers or through the Tatami Fightwear website directly. www.tatamifightwear.com JACKET MATERIAL: 500gsm cotton pearl-weave pre-shrunk PANT MATERIAL: 12oz canvas

cotton WEIGHT: Our A1 sample weighed 3.5 lbs, our A2 weighed 3.95lbs.

ADDITIONAL EXTRAS: comes with its own gi bag and stickers

shrinking this gi - it could warp the collar (the core is made from synthetic material) and weaken the fibers, plus it probably wouldn’t shrink much more anyway.

Shrink Me?

TRY IT! 62.2”

B 30.3

30.3”

C 22”

21.7”

D 20.9”

20.9”

E 40”

38.2”

This gi don’t shrink much at all!

A 65”

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QUALITY

Mental note: white gi against white backdrop, hmmm.

The Estilo 3.0 is an example of what we think a very well made BJJ uniform should be. It has triple stitching in the important stress zones and in areas that join the jacket panels together. There is the standard double layer of material added to armpits and side vents and additional tape covering the inside sleeve cuffs and ankle openings. The sleeves are really important, it’s the area on your gi where a lot of your open guard playing opponents will spend their time tugging and pulling with all their might. We feel the Estilo 3.0 construction covers all the important areas needed for toughness.

Another zone of great stress is around the chest lapels. The Estilo’s collar is made from core synthetic material, which showed good level of stiffness, enough to thwart an opponent’s solid gripping. It’s not the thickest collar in the pack; we’ve definitely seen thicker collars. The canvas covering is a good choice of material as it is a bit harder wearing than other coverings.

Inside the lapels is a line of branded tape that runs vertically all the way down where the lapel joins the main body of the gi jacket. As far as we can tell, it serves no physical reinforcing function, but it looks nice.

Overall, the jacket was very light and comfortable. The pearl-weave fabric started off slightly stiff, but softened a lot after several washes. There were no visible signs of warping or stretching out

of shape after half a dozen washes. We only had white color gi samples to work with, so we can’t say if there are any color fade problems.

The pants also felt very light - the 12oz canvas cotton were a pleasure to wear. Our heavier grade pants can feel a bit too thick for warmer weather or during those incredibly sweaty workouts, but these 12oz pants seem to be a good compromise between strength and weight. They do look very wrinkled after washing, however.

The pants zones that suffer the greatest degree of stress are the crotch area, the knees, and the lower leg around the ankle. If you have ever come across an enthusiastic open guard player who grips your lower pants like a vice, you will soon see how this area can get ripped a lot. The Estilo covers all the stress areas very well. Within the crotch, the panels are triple stitched with an additional triangle of extra material where all the panels meet together. The knees are covered with a generous length of double lined material and the ankle cuff is taped over and double stitched. We’ve seen gis with a lot more reinforcing than this, but the Estilo has a pretty good level so should be tough enough to last a long time.

A final word on the pants: we liked the rope drawstring a lot. It’s just the right length and is of a very good quality.

It did not ride up above the hem line

when sparring, nor did it get lost within the pants cord housing. Crucially, it did the job of tying up a pair of pants AND loosening them much better than flat cotton drawstrings, especially after a very tough session when the material is loaded with sweat.

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Style and

DESIGN

This gi is pretty patched up. Tatami Fightwear has placed an advertisement on every conceivable area on the gi that is IBJJF regulation legal. Thankfully, the back of the jacket is left blank, room for your school patch at least. Despite this, the cool, clean lines of the red, white, and black colored patch designs are nicely designed and the little ‘E’ surrounded by laurel leaves makes us think ‘Olympian’ for some reason. It’s a neat design.

So, if you really don’t like the patches, why not just remove the patches with a seam ripper? Well, here’s the thing – the patches are sewn into and under the gi collar. It makes removing the patches very difficult, and comes at the cost of losing the inside jacket tape (the pretty one with no obvious function). We know because we tried it with an older model of the Estilo. It’s messy and not worth bothering. Basically you are gonna have to wear the Estilo 3.0, patches and all. Luckily, Tatami offers the same gi in a completely patchless version. They call it their ‘Estilo Classic’ model. But somehow, we think the Classic looks a little too plain! I guess you can’t win them all.

CONCLUSIONS

Traditional types look away!

everal members of the Gear Lab team have rolled in the Estilo 3.0 for a couple weeks now and we all agree that it’s a great gi to wear, both in looks and comfort. At 3.5 lbs, it’s very light, but not like ‘ultra’ light, you still want to know you are wearing a uniform! Some of the members found it just a little too roomy compared to their regular gis. Most everyone liked the gi patches which we felt were sharp, bold, and flashy, although the more traditional types might want to go for the Classic patchless model of the Estilo 3.0. Priced at around $135, the Estilo 3.0 is very good value if you consider the high construction and material quality of the uniform. We think it will still look and perform well after many hundreds of hours of training.

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IDENTIFYING & AVOIDING

DANGER ON

S T A M TH E

Words: BRIAN S SORRENTINO, PA-C

EFORE YOU BEGAN YOUR JIU-JITSU CAREER, if someone told you there would come a point in your life when you couldn’t wait to smother your sweaty body all over some strange dude and that getting sweat dripped into your eye sockets, or in your ears would become routine, you’d probably think they were crazy. Initially when I started rolling, I would get a little grossed out by the amount of sweat, sometimes blood, and saliva that gets exchanged during a long rolling session.

As time wore on all that just became part of the deal and now I pay little attention to it. But with that lack of attention becomes a blind trust that the other guy has proper hygiene and is suitably taking care of himself.

Also, we trust that the mats we roll on are clean, and that our school owners are following best practices when it comes to their facility. If any party violates that trust, yourself included, the results could be sickening, literally, to everyone who shares the mats at your school.

I

n this article I’m going to go over some of the more common jiu-jitsu and grappling related illnesses that can befall us from improper hygiene or having certain skin conditions. I’ll show you how to diagnose, treat, and prevent them so you can help keep your mats safe and stay training, rather than having to sit out weeks from an infection.

THE DISEASES

T

Brian looks at these all day long for a living.

he most common diseases contracted from rolling are skin infections; these will be the focus of the article. But also simple illnesses like the common cold, or flu can be contracted during a rolling session. For this reason use common sense, don’t be selfish and head to the mats when you’re not feeling quite right. Sit it out or else you run the risk of giving your teammates what you have.

Herpes Simplex

Herpes Simplex virus is a viral infection that’s classified into two categories. The first is Type I. This is the one you have to worry about from rolling and is associated with contact sports or gym locker rooms however it’s most commonly found around the mouth. The other is Type II, which is most often associated with genital herpes. These are very rare in contact sports, so you’re going to have to come up with a different excuse for your girlfriend, you can’t blame it on jiu-jitsu, sorry. Both types are very contagious and can infect any part of your body. Focusing on Type I, there are many types, but the most common in grappling sports is Herpes Gladiatorum. It’s most commonly spread through contact with the infected area. Typically, it takes some type of fluid that’s originating from the infected area to come in contact with you in order for you to contract it. However, it is possible for the virus to be transmitted with no visible sores or other symptoms and can also live on the mats or on a gi, or other fabric.

How do you know if you have it?

Typically, a herpes case will start with small, usually grouped blisters on the infected area and will cause skin irritation and tenderness.

Fluid filled blisters are also a sign of the herpes virus. A few days after the infection these blisters will often form into brownish yellow

scabs. Some people can come down with flu-like symptoms before showing signs of an outbreak, like fever, chills, and swollen glands, just before a localized rash, which is a sure sign of herpes.

It also tends to return to the same location over time. Also, it’s important to note that herpes symptoms can sometimes take days or weeks after contraction to manifest.

How do you get rid of it? Here’s the really crappy part, you can’t get rid of herpes. As of today there’s no cure for it. Look on the bright side; you can only get it once . Once you’re infected, the virus is always in your body in an inactive or remissive state. But, at any point in time you can have an outbreak and it can return in multiple or different locations each time. Outbreaks are more common when your immune system is stressed or weak.

Any other illness can beset an outbreak as well. Your doctor can prescribe medication to help reduce or prevent the symptoms of an outbreak; this helps reduce the risk of transmission to others. If you experience an outbreak, don’t roll. Don’t risk spreading the infection to others. See your doctor for medication that might help reduce the symptoms and shorten the length of the outbreak. The rest will also help your immune system recuperate correctly.

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Impetigo & Staph

Impetigo is a bacterial infection that can present itself anywhere on the body. It’s caused by one of two types of bacteria; staphylococcus (staph) or streptococcus (strep). Impetigo is highly contagious and can be contracted from simple contact with the bacteria either from another person or from the mats. However, the most common form of transmission is from the bacteria entering the body through a cut, open sore, or insect bite.

How do you know if you have it? Sometimes infection can cause flu-like symptoms, but most often your first sign will be a cluster of bumps that have honey colored crusts that can be itchy Eventually the bumps pop and you’re left with red sores on the skin. A doctor can easily identify most cases of impetigo.

How do I get rid of it? Go to a doctor and get a prescription for a topical antibiotic. In severe cases a doctor might prescribe oral antibiotic along with a topical treatment. After a few days of treatment, the infection becomes non-contagious with sores clearing up within a week of beginning treatment. As with any of the infections discussed in this article, if you see unhealthy signs of something, don’t roll until it’s properly diagnosed, treatment has begun, and your doctor has cleared you.

Severe Staph

T

HIS IS THE ONE THAT CAN GET SCARY, HOWEVER IS INCREDIBLY COMMON AND USUALLY NONPATHOLOGIC –NOT A PROBLEM. Staph (staphylococcus aureus) is a type of bacteria that can cause many different types of infections.

Staph typically enters the body through an open sore, cut, or even through hair follicles. In very rare instances it can cause infection without a break in the skin. In very severe cases staph can end up in the blood stream and spread infection to other parts of the body causing severe complications like pneumonia, bone infections, and sometimes even death.

How do I get rid of it? Staph can be. If you think you might have it don’t hesitate to see a doctor and immediately discontinue your use of the mats. If left untreated this could get ugly fast. Your doctor might take skin samples, blood, and urine to make a proper diagnosis.

Depending on the severity and how early it’s caught will dictate the type of treatment. Usually it can be properly treated with oral and topical antibiotics. If you do indeed have staph, DO NOT roll until your doctor has cleared you.

Getting hungry?

How do you know if you have it? Staph can show up in one of many different forms, but most commonly it shows up at the point of contraction, an open wound or sore that begins to show signs of infection. In some cases it can become present without an open wound and might manifest in a hair follicle, and since our bodies

are covered with those that could mean anywhere. Aside from the open wound, the most common areas of contraction are behind the neck, underarms, groin, and the facial beard area. Once infected, the area will become tender, sometimes swell and show signs of redness. Pus and fluid drainage are also common. The infected area can spread quickly and can also come with some good old flu-like symptoms. Boils are usually staph or strep related.

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Ringworm

Ringworm is a contagious fungus infection that can affect the scalp, body (particularly the groin), feet (athlete’s foot), and nails. The name comes from the red ring that can appear at the edge of infection.

It’s also referred to as Tinea. Ringworm is sourced to a group of fungal organisms called “Dermatophytes.” Ringworm is spread by either direct or indirect contact. Ringworm is often contracted from interaction with pets, and the surfaces they come in contact with. It’s also very common in young kids who like to play with dirty things. So, you play with your dog, your kid, then go for a roll and guess what, you’re patient zero at your school. You’re not going to land in the hospital from ringworm, but if untreated the infection will not clear up.

I

How do you know if you have Ringworm? Because ringworm is a fungus, it likes to grow in non-hostile environments. The best environments are moist or dark areas of the body, scalp, feet, under your nails, armpits, and groin. On the scalp, ringworm usually begins with a small pimple that becomes larger, leaving scaly patches of temporary baldness. On the body, ringworm shows up as a flat, round patch anywhere on the skin except for the scalp and feet. On the groin, the rash gradually expands; the center clears to produce a ring. Ringworm on the foot is called “athlete’s foot,” and it appears as scaling or cracking of the skin, especially between the toes. Ringworm of the nails causes the affected nails to become thicker, discolored, brittle, and chalky. On the scalp, ringworm usually appears 10 to 14 days after contact; on the skin that time is 4 to 10 days. Ringworm patches may blister and ooze pus, they’re often itchy. A doctor can diagnose this for sure.

How do I get rid of it? Ringworm can be treated with anti-fungal medications. These medicines can be prescribed by a doctor and can be taken orally or as a topical ointment. Over the counter medications to cure athlete’s foot, for example, may work on some strains of the fungus, but not all. Over the counter medications may suppress a cutaneous –skin- infection, prescription strength medicines may be needed to eradicate a fungal infection. On the scalp, dandruff shampoos can be effective against most ringworm.

Though using oral medication to treat scalp fungus is usually needed. It’s always best to consult your physician if you believe you’ve contracted ringworm and over the counter medications haven’t worked when used as directed.

Prevention

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Mix in a Doctor if you’ve got a bulls eye anywhere on your body.

OW THAT WE’VE TALKED ABOUT ALL THE FUN STUFF YOU MIGHT CATCH OR SPREAD ON THE MATS, LET’S TALK ABOUT ALL THE STEPS YOU CAN TAKE TO KEEP YOU AND YOUR SPARRING PARTNERS SAFE. No matter how careful you are, there really is no way to eliminate the risk of a skin infection considering the close contact associated with jiu-jitsu. Infection prevention can be broken down into important steps; before, during, and after your roll.

n the past few years overuse of some antibiotics has caused mutated forms of staph bacteria. These mutated forms are known as Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA). MRSA’s are most commonly found in hospitals, but have recently been found in the general public. They’re no joke since they’re resistant to many common antibiotics. Contraction of MRSA may put you in the hospital, but is very treatable on an outpatient basis. MRSA is simply staph that is resistant to some antibiotics. It is not unusual to have a culture and sensitivity report that shows resistance to penicillin antibiotics but a susceptibility to other commonly prescribed antibiotics like doxycycline.

Before

• Diet is very important to maintaining a strong immune system, which will guard you from infection. Drink lots of water for proper hydration (see Issue 1), and eat whole grains, fresh fruits, vegetables, and lean protein.

Avoid sugary or fatty foods.

Following these tips will not only boost your immune system, but promote overall health and performance on and off the mats as well.

• Rest, and get your eight hours of sleep in as often as possible.

Burning the candle at both ends with late nights and little sleep can end up taking its toll on your immune system and energy level.

In our quest to get as much time on the mats as possible or to hit the gym daily, it’s easy to overlook this super important factor.

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• Regularly wash your gi or shorts between training sessions. Some people think it’s okay to just dry out their gi’s and then go train again the next day, but that’s gross. Follow your manufacturer’s recommendations on proper technique on garment care. For an extra bit of protection, you can add laundry disinfectant (search on-line) to each laundry load.

• Don’t shower just before rolling. Yes, you read that right. Your skin is covered with bacteria, fungus, and virus’ that make up our normal “flora.” During the day, between cleanings, our own flora builds a “barrier” from other flora. Showering, especially with an anti-bacterial soap immediately before

rolling, will only make us more susceptible to infection from an outside source.

Instead, just practice normal, proper hygiene before rolling.

your friends can pick up all kinds of bad stuff. Yup, it’s gross, so only go barefoot on the mats. Whatever you do, NEVER go to the restroom barefoot.

• Wear sandals or shoes before entering the mats, and immediately after exiting. Going barefoot between your changing area and the mats means lots of dirty stuff that could work its way onto the mats. Imagine just one guy stepping in a “Canine Land Mine” and then tracking it onto the mats, so you and

When you ROLL • WEAR A GI. Those of you who train in the gi have a lot less skin-to-skin contact than a no-gi grappler. That means a lot less opportunity to pick up something nasty from a training partner. If you already train in the gi, throw on a rash guard. That’s an additional layer of protection from picking something up. And a rash guard is not a t-shirt. Wearing a t-shirt does add some protection, but as soon as it becomes soaked in sweat, it becomes a permeable barrier. Sweat becomes a vehicle for infections to pass through onto your skin. A rash guard is made of synthetic fibers that often “wick” sweat away from your body, helping to keep your skin dry.

Probably just a good idea to remind your instructor to clean the walls.

• DON’T LEAN AGAINST THE WALL MATS BETWEEN ROUNDS OR ROLLS. These often become sweat soaked from the guy that leaned on them just a few minutes ago. Most schools overlook cleaning these as regularly as they do the mats. Speaking of which, hand this article over to your instructor and ask them about the cleaning schedule, or offer to clean the mats yourself occasionally.

Mats should at least be cleaned daily with a complete disinfectant solution.

Along with the wall mats, other items that get overlooked are takedown dummies (wash the clothing or wipe down the vinyl), throw dummies, crash pads, gloves, or anything else fighters regularly come in contact with.

• IF YOU HAVE ANY SORT OF INFECTION OR EVEN SOMETHING YOU’RE UNSURE OF, DON’T TRAIN. See a doctor and get it treated if you are infected. If everyone followed this advice, the mats would be a much safer place. However, not everyone is this courteous. So if you spot something on a partner, point it out, “Hey bro, that looks like herpes, I’m going to sit this one out.” Ask him to show your instructor, and avoid rolling with him if you’re uncertain. If there’s any question, your instructor should have him sit out until he gets it looked at and resolved.

time out and bandage it up, and apply some Neosporin or astringent to the area if you have some on hand. If you do have an infection, don’t think that covering it up is all you need to do. You still could be infectious, so see a doctor!

• USE A TOWEL. If you’re a sweaty fella it’s a great idea to have your own towel handy to wipe down your sweat between rolls. If everybody did this the dojo would be a better place. Don’t use your personal towel to wipe up the mats for any reason. If this is required, use a disposable towel or wipe.

• THE SKIN IS A PRETTY AMAZING BARRIER; it works hard to keep you safe, but sometimes there are chinks in the armor. Cuts, scrapes, burns, abrasions, and especially new tattoos should always be covered up with a proper bandage. If you happen to get a cut or mat burn during your roll, take a

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• Imagine yourself as contaminated after you’re done rolling. What’s the first thing you see them doing in the movies when someone accidently touches the nuclear reactor? They give them a shower, so also should you. But don’t use an antibacterial soap only. It’s important that you use something that kills bacteria, fungus, and virus’. That’s where soaps designed for fighters come in very handy.

For the most part they’re complete solutions. Companies like Athletic Body Care, Defense Soap, Fight Soap, and others all offer products that hit bacteria, fungi, and viruses’.

• When showering, don’t lather up underneath the water stream, step aside, lather yourself up and allow the soap to remain on the skin for a little while before rinsing off. A soft loofa comes in handy, but don’t scrub too vigorously. Scrubbing like a madman will cause small abrasions in the skin that could allow infection to penetrate.

• If you’re using a communal shower wear shower shoes. Athlete’s foot is the Tinea fungus that thrives in moist environments, like the shower, and is easily spreadable. This is the same fungus that causes ringworm.

• Don’t share towels with anyone, and be sure to wash your towels between each use. Also, allow your body to dry completely before putting your clothes on.

• If you use a gym bag allow it to dry out completely after transporting your sweaty gi. Wash it from time to time and wipe it down, or spray out the inside of the bag with disinfectant between uses.

• If you can’t make it to a shower soon after rolling use a purpose made solution like these shown from Defense Soap and Athletic Body Care to hit the areas mentioned in this article. Doing this will help kill the bad stuff until you can hit a proper shower.

• Use skin lotion to keep your skin from drying and cracking. This will help to keep your skin healthy and will allow a strong defense against infections.

We’re whores, but the stuff really works.

Wrap Up

There you are, you’re now armed with all the information you need to keep yourself and your training partners safe from the invisible enemies that we can’t help but come across from enjoying our passion for jiu-jitsu. As the old adage goes, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, so preventing an outbreak at your school is key to keeping everyone, yourself included, healthy and training on the mats rather than being tapped out by an infection.

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M IC RO BJJ The Game of Small Man Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Words: DANIEL FAGGELLA

ecently I had the good fortune of interviewing Joe Capizzi, one of the original little guys on the Jiu Jitsu circuit under Renzo Gracie. We caught up about the early days of grappling competitions (when 160 pounds was the lowest weight class, haha!), and the “lawless” kind of brutality that once was allowed on the mats in those days.

The major topic of conversation, however, was the unique dynamics of the “little guy BJJ” game. For guys like Joe and myself, who graduated high school at 115 lbs (I was 111 lbs, I think), the game is significantly different than it is for people who walked around at 160 lbs. The trends in positions, techniques, and movements are, in fact, so different that they deserve some explaining (which I can luckily do even better, thanks to insights from Joe himself)!

What is the “Small Man BJJ” Dynamic?

T

he trends and tendencies that separate highlevel, small-man BJJ from the middle or heavy weights are as follows: Sweeps are much more likely than passes (in one of my statistical analyses, eight times more likely) When passes do occur, they are more likely to be to top turtle or the back mount Side control, mount, and even knee-on-belly are relatively rare occurrences, and happen much less often than in heavier weight classes The closed guard and back mount are the only “consolidated” positions where movement generally becomes more limited

Spinner weight?

There are other differences, but most of them likely stem from the dynamics listed above. The question begging to be asked is, “Why?”

Today, like never before, I’m going to go into detail as to why the lightweight game MUST play out differently, and in the process, hopefully explain not only the “why,” but look at the insights that all grapplers can learn from this difference in dynamics.

The Clash of

TECHNICAL STRENGTHS Little guys might get the short end of the stick (no pun intended) when it comes to injuries and getting beaten up by bigger guys, but on the other hand, this reality distinctly impacts their games and develops subsequent strengths from it.

Almost every high-level smaller grappler has an excellent guard as a standout part of their game. Why? Because they’ve been shoved to bottom positions constantly, and forced to pull guard on larger opponents the majority of the time. They get bumped off of mount, thrown off of side mount, and tossed off of knee-on-belly (especially during their earlier years in BJJ). Hence, little guys need to develop an excellent guard early. This could mean closed guard, it could mean butterfly guard, it could mean half guard, but no matter what, they are literally forced to develop some kind of strong bottom game because they end up there so often.

Also, most expert, small-guy grapplers also develop excellent Fighting at Rooster and Light Feather weight, Caio escapes from inferior positions Terra has managed to take down some much larger (particularly side control and mount) opponents with major Open Class wins.

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because they end up there so often. The get their legs squashed and guards passed, and they are forced to spend a lot of their time in these positions, and so, they get very good at escaping them.

The last general trend that I’ll touch on is the little man’s propensity towards the back mount.

Why? Well, when they can’t hold opponents flat in side control and other dominant positions, it often opens up opportunities for back takes.

Not to mention, holding back mount doesn’t require as much weight or strength as side control and other positions. It also requires much less strength to finish a rear naked choke or gi choke, generally, than a kimura or keylock, especially on someone much larger.

So what does this add up to? It builds little guys to naturally excel in guard, be great at escapes, and have killer back attacks (generally). Also, most little guys don’t get to spend a ton of time in top side control or mount (at least not against very skilled opponents and training partners), and so those often don’t become their best positions. Most bigger guys in a BJJ academy (lets say 185 lbs) spend less time on their backs, generally, and more time in top side control and mount, and so their skill development gets molded by the situations they are in most often, too.

Rafael Freitas (left) battles with Felipe Costa at the 2011 Pan Am.

When two high level little guys roll, this contributes to the dynamic you see. A lot of guard pulling (or double guard pulling, which is cool to watch), sweeping, and closed guard / back mount are the only places where

action slows down and anything close to a “consolidated position” comes into the picture.

Joe calls these matches “insect wars,” because they look like two bugs flailing their limbs and tumbling about.

THE REALITY OF PHYSICAL STRENGTH

I

n the Olympic lift known as the “snatch,” athletes of all sizes aim to lift a bar off the ground and overhead, dropping into an overhead squat and coming up to a standing position before dropping the weight. Let’s look at how much weight people of different weight classes can lift (this data pulled from www.wikipedia.com, in their article on Olympic lifting world records):

ATHLETE: 120lbs, LIFT: 300lbs (Ratio: 2.5 times body weight) ATHLETE: 140lbs, LIFT: 340lbs (Ratio: 2.43 times body weight) ATHLETE: 150lbs, Lift: 360lbs (Ratio: 2.4 times body weight)

ATHLETE: 190lbs, LIFT: 410lbs (Ratio: 2.16 times body weight) ATHLETE: 210lbs, LIFT: 410lbs (Ratio: 1.95 times body weight) ATHLETE: 230lbs, LIFT: 440lbs (Ratio: 1.91 times body weight)

ATHLETE: 123lbs, LIFT: 639lbs (Ratio: 5.20 times body weight) (Need I mention all the middle categories? The tend is identical with the snatch) ATHLETE: 308lbs, LIFT: 992lbs (Ratio: 3.22 times body weight)

Okay, okay, what about the bench press?

Surely the big guys have to do just as well in that one?

ATHLETE: 123lbs, LIFT: 392lbs (Ratio: 3.18 times body weight) (Same trend...)

ATHLETE: 308lbs, LIFT: 701lbs (Ratio: 2.28 times body weight)

So, now we see the trend, but what does this mean when it is “translated” to the world of grappling? Well, first of all it makes settling into dominant top positions (like side mount, mount, and knee-on-belly) that much harder, because the little-guy grappler on bottom can create greater pound-for-pound force to create space from the guy on top, both by pushing himself away and pushing the opponent. This greater generation of force in a smaller area makes it exceptionally tough to get the chest-on-chest snugness that might be more common at other weights.

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Reading this makes me want to drop 50lbs.

ATHLETE: 170lbs, LIFT: 380lbs (Ratio: 2.24 times body weight)

Anybody notice a trend? As the athlete weights go higher, the pound-for-pound amount they can snatch goes...down. Some people might argue that the snatch is suited for smaller guys because it involves speed, and maybe this provides an unfair advantage.

Let’s instead look at a pure power lift... something simple and one-dimensional, the squat (statistics taken from www. powerliftingwatch.com/records/raw/world):

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SMALL MAN BJJ PHYSICS Joe Capizzi brought up one of the most amazing points I’ve ever heard when it comes to smallman Brazilian jiu jitsu. When Joe decided to get into BJJ full time, he began learning about nutrition, fitness, and...physics! He explained to me that physics plays out differently in the “small” world than in a “big” one. A fly, for example, can zip around in all directions and travel quickly through the air. If you were to take that same fly and make him 100 times larger (a frightening thought indeed), he would, unfortunately, not be able to move even remotely the same way as he did when he was smaller. In fact, he might not be able to fly at all.

Check out this research from www. physicsbuzz.com, based on research at Cornell University on the flight of insects: “BIRDS AND AIRPLANES USE LIFT - the pressure difference between the top and bottom of a wing - to fly through the air. Most animals going through water, though, use the force of drag to propel themselves along: they reach out and push the water behind them.

To small animals, like tiny flying insects, the air that makes up Earth’s atmosphere can feel thick and heavy like water feels to humans. They need more of a push than lift alone to move through the thick atmosphere.”

And the examples go on and on. Think about an eye dropper (you know, those little glass pipettes with the squeezy end on one side to let out individual water droplets). If you took an eye dropper and made it 100 times larger, do you think you could have it release individual water droplets 100 times the size of “regular” water droplets? Of course not, the behavior of water molecules and the laws of physics (in this case, “surface tension”) dictate that droplets can only be so large. A gigantic eye dropper

wouldn’t hold water at all. As soon as it was pointed downward, all of the water would simply dump out (unlike with a small eye dropper where the water wouldn’t lever the small glass chamber).

Okay, okay we’re getting a little bit nerdy here, so I’ll bring us back down to earth.

The essential point that I’m aiming to drive home is that physics is different at smaller or larger scales. A rooster weight grappler might not be 100 times smaller than a heavyweight, but he may be half the size of the heavyweight, making his world of movement potential significantly different (a fly and eye dropper would also have noticeable differences if they were enlarged by only two times).

(left to right): Gianni Grippo, Joe Capizzi, and me (Dan Faggella)

These are big in Japan.

For more check out www.microbjj.com

Conclusion and TAKE-HOME POINTS

I

n conclusion, the dynamics of lightweight grappling will never be the same as the dynamics of heavyweight grappling. Because of the factors listed above (and the empirical evidence from real grappling matches), it would be illogical for a 130-pound competitor to decide upon playing Roger Gracie’s game. It doesn’t “click” with the smaller reality. Failing to recognize this is turning your back on a ton of facts (and great statistical / empirical evidence) of their being a “smaller man’s game” (implying a different pace, different frequencies of specific positions and techniques, etc...).

I write a ton about this topic on my main blogs (ScienceofSkill.com and MicroBJJ.com), but a lot of the core ideas were laid out here with the help and insight of Mr. Capizzi.

Of course, it’s not like jiu jitsu is a different sport for the smaller guys, but the game is certainly played differently, especially at the high level, and it’s important to know if you’re trying to improve and do what’s going to work!

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FUJI

SPORTS Words: STAFF

CROSS DISCIPLINES, MARTIAL ARTISTS REGULARLY FACE TESTS OF SKILL, CHARACTER AND STRENGTH. TO STAND THROUGH THESE TESTS, THEY RELY ON TRUSTED TRAINING AND QUALITY GEAR. Without both, a martial artist can’t succeed. Fifty years ago, Frank Hatashita started a company based on these principles: Work hard with trusted masters, and use the best gear you can afford. A leader in Judo throughout Canada beginning in the 1960s, Mr. Hatashita needed to provide his growing group of Judo affiliates – roughly 100 affiliate clubs across the nation – with the best uniforms available. He did this, not as a salesman, but as a black belt and a leader who helped Judo gain Olympic sport status at the Tokyo Summer Games in 1964. That ethic became the Fuji brand, and it continues today through his daughter Lia Hatashita, President of Fuji Sports and Hatashita Sports, and a well-known supporter of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Art and ATHLETES

Ronda Rousey, Fuji athlete and Judo Olympian will be showing us some Judo take downs very soon.

A

s the world of martial arts has grown through renewed participation in both traditional forms and evolving styles, Fuji Sports has kept close ties to athletes and the arts. Doing so, the company is building a broad line of gear to help affiliates and athletes grow with the sport.

Fuji expanded its product line south of the Canadian border beginning in the late 1980s, to serve the booming Judo and Karate markets in the 50 states.

As Jiu-Jitsu participation grew, more coaches and school owners began looking for a Gi that would suit the specific needs of their athletes. Some were happy with a traditional Judo Gi, but as the sport developed and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu gained its strength in North America, these athletes wanted Gis with features such as a thicker neckline and tapered sleeves, or even lighter weight material. Beginning around 2006, Fuji started making Jiu-Jitsu Gis with the same goals of delivering the product demanded by Brazilian Jiu Jitsu athletes and others at a price they could afford.

Hatashita Sports also worked closely with Mizuno for many years, helping the company develop its high-quality martial arts uniforms. Through this relationship, both companies continue to grow in the martial arts industry – Hatashita through exposure to the legendary Japanese sporting goods maker’s exacting quality standards, and Mizuno through insight gained about the evolving martial arts lifestyle in North America.

Today, Fuji is on top of the continuing evolution that has Judo and Jiu-Jitsu athletes cross-training into Mixed Martial Arts. Fuji Sport’s product line now includes MMA shorts along with Judo and Jiu-Jitsu uniforms, and is expanding to include rash guards, fight gloves, shin guards, Thai pads, and more. The growth comes from the company’s knowledge of trends, as well as requests from athletes and martial artists familiar with Fuji’s history.

One of the first organizations that came to Fuji Sports looking for support was the RGDA (Royler Gracie & David Adiv Association). The company is also aligned with the Gracie Humaita academy located in Brazil and founded by Helio Gracie.

Fuji works with the RGDA, as well as many other top name athletes in BJJ and MMA to produce their gis, rashguards, and to support their athletes. Fuji is also the official Gi supplier of the Abu Dhabi Combat Club (ADCC). This revered organization is known for its relationships with top trainers, athletes, and partners.

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A Gi with A CAUSE Fuji looks beyond the martial arts world, too, supporting causes important to the lifestyles of these athletes. Hatashita recently launched a pink Fuji Gi for women to support breast cancer. “The pink Gi is not new to the market,” said Lia Hatashita, (pictured below right) but with a new cut for women, and sales that support Breast Cancer research, we’re thrilled to provide a unique level of support for a worthy cause, and we’re proud to be the first and only in martial arts to provide this support.”

During the first weeks of Pink Gi sales, Lia Hatashita reported an academy calling her excitedly to order the new Gis for three of its members who were breast cancer survivors.

U

p next, Fuji is creating the Nippon Gi, and is in the process of becoming the first American company in martial arts to utilize Japanese manufacturing.

Success for Fuji means delivering the complete package, according to Hatashita, not just an affordable price, or simply the right fit. “Just like my father, Fuji is very particular about the selection of cotton, the cut and fit of the Gi, and the overall attention to detail,” said Lia, “We make sure our shipments are consistent; there is no deviation in cut or color. We need to have good quality control all the time. Like a serious athlete, you can’t compete well just some of the time.”

It’s great to see companies like Fuji committed to our sport in so many facets. Product innovation and development are good things for all of us.

Old school values.

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