Key Takeaways
- A Gi BJJ DVD that goes over the full guard from a perspective of efficiency.
- Offers an in-depth look at a three-point guard system inspired by Daniel Gracie and tested at the highest levels.
- Features high guard submissions, flower sweeps, back takes, and closed guard passing.
- BJJ World Expert Rating: 8 out of 10.
FULL GUARD FORMULA JAMES BOOTH DVD HERE:
You’ll never be able to learn the closed guard in BJJ. It doesn’t matter if you’re top or bottom, there’s always going to be something that surprises you, even if you think you know everything the position offers.
There is something about the full guard that makes everyone susceptible to it, including elite-level world champions. The Full Guard Formula James Booth DVD offers a perspective on mastering the full guard that is inspired by a Gracie family member. It is definitely worth a look and today, I’ll tell you exactly why that is.
Guard Efficiency
If I could describe the role of the guard in one word it would be efficiency. This is particularly true in terms of the closed guard, a.k.a. the full guard. There is no point in trying to achieve something quickly from guard – you got the floor behind you and the opponent in front of you, so you’re not going anywhere in a hurry.
Instead, the guard is intended to help you stall the pace of the match or roll, providing you with plenty of opportunities to trap your opponent and force them into mistakes by making them struggle. Effective doesn’t mean fast in BJJ, but rather not tired as you emerge out of the guard with a sweep, tap, or a back take.
The Full Guard Formula James Booth DVD offers an interesting view of guard efficiency rooted in Old-school Gracie philosophies. If I’m completely honest, the Gracies’ were masters of using the guard to influence the pace and the outcome of a match, so if you want to become effective with your closed guard instead of trapping yourself, this DVD might be a good choice.
Grindhouse Professor James Booth
James Booth is a Daniel Gracie black belt, holding a second-degree rank. He has spent most of his grappling life competing, with big notches on his belt featuring victories over ADCC champions and UFC veterans. He has competed in all types of tournaments from INJJF to NAGA, including super fights.
A thing that sets James aside, though is his teaching. Not many people have the experience of learning and teaching simultaneously, but those that do, turn out to be exceptional teachers after they reach black belt.
Booth started teaching when he was a blue belt and has never looked back since. Now the owner of Booth BJJ and the grappling coach at Grindhouse MMA in Bucks County, he is demonstrating through his students that his Jiu-Jitsu is all about effectiveness. The Full Guard Formula James Booth DVD is a great example of his work.
Full Guard Formula James Booth DVD Review
OVer the course of an hour and a half, the Full Guard Formula James Booth DVD will provide plenty of information on playing the guard, and some on passing it to help you rethink your approach to the full guard. The instructional contains three volumes, the first two on guard attacks and the third covering passing:
Part 1 – The Holy Trinity of Full Guard
The Full Guard Formula James Booth DVD kicks off in a classic way, with an introduction of the coach and a quick overview of the material that follows. Booth starts the technical portion with a concept, explaining the three positions that, according to him, are behind all the success you’re to have with his full guard system.
They make sense from the get-go but really become clear as he proceeds to provide examples of sweeps, starting with the flower sweep. This sweep gets a very detailed breakdown in this instructional, including technical details, mechanics, troubleshooting, and submission follow-ups if it fails.
A few effective lapel control moves wrap this opening part of the DVD up, with the triangle entry and finish something that got me seriously curious.
Part 2 – Breaking Posture
Breaking posture is essential if you’re playing closed guard, but is also an aspect of guard that most people take for granted. As the second volume of the Full Guard Formula James Booth DVD unfolds, James ensures to dedicate lots of time and focus to this specific movement.
He calls the high guard variation he plays the Broken Posture Guard, and launches into submission attack chains from it, sparing no detail as he delivers the material. Most of the focus is on triangles and Omoplatas, but a few well-placed Gi chokes are also featured.
I liked the quick bridging solution to some attacks from the top person, as well as the double-trouble attacks that followed. Booth blends together sweeps and submissions in some classic (traingle/armbar) and some not-so-classic combos (Americana / Back Take) that are definitely effective!
Part 3 – Passing
In the final part of this James Booth Full Guard DVD, the focus shifts completely to the top person. Passing-wise, Booth’s system is all about pressure. He opens strong, demonstrating a quick wrist lock finish inside the guard, before moving on to different ways, most of them painful, to open up the closed guard.
He relies heavily on the punch choke, a.k.a. the Amassa Pao as he is opening and passing the guard. The one thing that really caught my eye was the part about passing from a broken posture situation.
At the tail end of the instructional, James covers specific grip training by talking about rows and drags, and offers the framework of his coach’s Daniel Gracie methodology to help you learn faster.
The Timeless Full Guard
The one thing that has survived all scrutiny of the modern grappling movement is the closed guard. People have claimed that almost every other move or position is either unstoppable or doesn’t work at one point in time or another.
The guard remains a steady and important constant in BJJ, meaning you need to pay attention to how you set it up. I always coach my competitors to be very aware of it and have ready solutions for both and top.
Let’s be honest – if you compete, you’re going to be inside the closed guard, playing or passing it, at least once per tournament. It is simply omnipresent and instinctive, and even if your game is all about the “inverted De La Lady Bug guard” or another Frankenstein guard, you’ll need to know what to do from or in the full guard.
Instructionals such as the Full Guard Formula James Booth DVD are not going to teach you how to play guard, but they will give you a roadmap on what you need to strive toward or fight against, depending on whether you’re top or bottom. The learning part happens on the mats.
DOWNLOAD HERE: FULL GUARD FORMULA JAMES BOOTH DVD
Follow the Formula!
I don’t particularly like the word formula for BJJ purposes, but in this sense, it kind of works. The Full Guard Formula James Booth DVD really is more of a framework/roadmap, using techniques to capture concepts, rather than a step-by-step instructional. I prefer this type of DVD over the standard technical ones, so I am glad I got to go through this one, and I’m certain it will help your full guard immensely.
