Last week we understood that a major battle in half guard is the battle for head positioning. If the bottom player wins this battle, she is in a more advantageous position than her opponent. This advantage reduces the amount of effort she needs to use to successfully sweep her opponent. Winning the battle for head […]
Thursdays at 80/20 is the day in which we focus in detail on a single area for a period of about three month. We’ve just started a new cycle and our topic of study is half guard bottom. Each week, I’ll be posting my personal notes as we go. For this topic, I’ll consistently refer […]
What does a BJJ belt signify? Is it ability? Seniority? A reflection of one’s character? There is no set definition and opinion is definitely divided. A BJJ belt is awarded by a practitioner of higher rank. A purple can award a blue, a brown can award a purple, and a black can award a brown. […]
I recently read Valerie Worthington’s article on her initial experiences with BJJ. It’s a heart rending read of isolation and neglect. When I was first starting out in Brazilian jiu jitsu, I experienced an internal struggle every day I went to train. On one hand, I was stupid crazy about training. I loved what I […]
When most of us think about good posture, we think of images like this: These images imply that posture is a fixed and static arrangement of the body. The above postures, while ideal for standing upright or sitting at a computer desk, don’t necessarily apply to the movements we make while doing BJJ. Todd Hargrove […]