Key Takeaways
- A No-Gi instructional taught by three coaches, who are experts in different aspects of grappling.
- Covers fundamental wrestling engagement tactics from standing that can be replicated on the bottom.
- Includes passing, takedowns, grip fighting, submissions, sweeps and counters.
- BJJ World Expert Rating: 9 out of 10.
THE GRAPPLING CONTINUUM DVD GET IT HERE:
You need better wrestling for your BJJ. That’s a sentence I can freely share with 90% of BJJ practitioners and I would be correct. However, what is it exactly that you need to be focusing on from wrestling that would help your BJJ without overcomplicating things or having to learn a whole new combat sport?
That, right there, is one of the hardest questions to answer in this day and age of grappling. What is fundamental and what’s the stuff we absolutely can’t grapple without? The Grappling Continuum DVD, a very well-put-together collaborative effort between three standout coaches offers plenty of answers to these questions.
Fundamental Wrestling Techniques
I have no idea what’s fundamental in grappling at this point in time. I’ll go ahead and use the term for every move that seems to be inevitable when we engage, whether it is standing or on the ground. Actually, the moves that apply to both get my vote as fundamental over anything else.
This should make it easier for you to sift through the millennia of knowledge that’s contained in wrestling, as you attempt to figure out what to use in BJJ and what to leave. Given the usual reasons for people being different, both in body and mind, as well as the different goals, the fundamentals have to be stuff that would apply to all, and not be subject to individual influences.
So, what are the fundamentals of wrestling for BJJ then? Getting close to the opponent, attaching yourself to their neck, arm, or leg, stopping them from attaching, taking away balance, and preventing the bottom person from standing back up. These will do for now and are exactly what you can pick up quickly from the Grappling Continuum DVD.
A Standout Grappling Trio
Whoever thought of putting this dream team together for a specific grappling DVD is a genius, and I’d love for more work like this to start appearing. Instead of just the condensed idea of one coach, in this instructional, we get to enjoy the expertise of three coaches, each of them expert in a different field:
Zack Esposito is a wrestling coach at Oklahoma State, with several Big 12 titles to his name in that role. He has also guided many wrestlers to NCAA D1 All-American Titels and national championships, as well as being in the corner of UFC champions like Johnny Hendricks and Daniel Cormier. He is the wrestler in this deadly trio of grappling experts.
Shawn Williams represents BJJ as a Renzo Gracie black belt and one of the best innovators in the sport. The man behind the Williams Guard and a host of other incredibly effective systems, as well as one of the greatest coaching minds in Jiu-Jitsu in this century, is the glue that holds the material in this Grappling Continuum DVD together.
Warren Stout, a Lehigh wrestling legend and 3rd-degree BJJ black belt under Renzo Gracie is the final piece in this puzzle. He has been helping Renzo and Shawn Willimas with wrestling for two decades and has spent time training with Rolls Gracie, Mauro Sergio, and John Danaher. These days, he coaches MMA fighters and grapplers at multiple locations.
Grappling Continuum DVD Review: Zack Esposito, Shawn Williams, and Warren Stout
This three-person instructional dubbed the Grappling Continuum DVD is a very useful project that provides plenty of expert information from various perspectives about the same grappling exchanges. It has six volumes, each of them with a different length, and a total of 3 hours of material:
Part 1 – How to Engage
In one of the best DVDs I’ve seen about wrestling for Ji-Jitsu, the opening sections feature short intros by all the coaches involved in it. Given the combined knowledge of Shawn, Warren, and Zack I was wondering how the material delivery would flow at this point.
It turns out I had nothing to worry about, as the three know each other pretty well and already have a way to work together. most of the first volume of the Grappling Continuum DVD covers the basics nobody likes to learn (at least as a beginner).
There are lots of movement basics, stance details, and instructions on how to manage distance to engage, both on the feet and on the ground. I loved that all the material demonstrated stating, is then translated to direct use in BJJ by looking at guarded scenarios.
Part 2 – Grip Fighting
Another aspect most people hate to learn is grip fighting. Well, Shawn and Co. make it as fun as it can get in this part of the Grappling Continuum DVD, covering mostly how to keep your arms free of engagement.
The focus is first on the elbow and collar ties, with low-energy, high-efficiency ways of clearing them in No-Gi situations. A set of hand-fighting drills to help you figure out timing really helps with the point they’re making.
As the material progresses, the attention switches to the 2-on-1 grip, and how to approach wrist control, or rather how to clear wrist grips which, as it turns out, matter more than the upper arm one. I really enjoyed the portion on disrupting opponents, as it is something I’m focused on myself at the moment.
Part 3 – Butterfly Guard Applications
In part three of the Grappling Continuum DVD Shawn takes the steering wheel, focusing a lot on the butterfly guard and integrating everything shared so far into an easy-to-follow game, that seems to be just as uncomplicated to pull off in rolling.
Sticking to engaging with grips, he quickly explains how to use armdrags, head snaps, and elbow control to disrupt balance and sweep. His end-range sweeping move of choice here is the ankle pick, which works beautifully.
As this volume draws to its conclusion, we also get to see how to use the tie-clearing tactics from the previous one to easily brush off collar tie attempts from the person on top.
Part 4 – Getting the 2-on-1
Past the halfway point, Zack, Shawn, and Warren’s Grappling Continuum DVD introduces attacks from standing, with the 2-on-1 grip featuring in the main role. The way they present it is with the 2-on-1 as the main goal, with entries and takedowns representing branches that stem from it.
Attacks include takedowns, controlled scoring, establishing side control after taking the match to the mats, and a few turtle breakdowns, just to cover all bases. A key principle on how to use pushing, pulling, and shoveling makes all of the above possible, once again allowing you to exert the minimum possible amount of energy.
Part 5 – All About the Double Leg
Everyone’s favorite takedown to watch, but least favorite to do (at least for Jiu-Jitsu folks) is the center of attention in the penultimate portion of the Grappling Continuum DVD. The coaches start from the setup, looking at armdrags and collar ties as the starting points.
In fact, they go very far in detailing why shooting is a big risk in BJJ, and clinch-type setups are far more effective. They also offer instruction on recognizing guillotine dangers and maneuvering around them to finish the double in full control. Toward the end, the single leg also gets a mention, as a common follow-up or predecessor to the double leg takedown.
Part 6 – Snapdowns, Turtle and Extra Concepts
As we get to the final part of the instructional, the coaches use their time to finish up offering bits and pieces that maybe had no place in the previous content but definitely make it easier to figure out how to do the stuff they already presented.
From a look at the stiff arm turtle (a.k.a. referee’s position) to reverse Tae Otoshi straight into guard passing, this portion contains all the extra stuff you might be wondering about in terms of using the material. I liked the snap-down guillotine and also enjoyed the concept of feet-to-floor training and a high level of control from standing engagement to pin.
Training Jiu-Jitsu With A Purpose
The moment you start engaging with your opponent, which usually means you’re standing, you need to only move with a clear purpose of attacking, defending, or creating better angles and opportunities. Unfortunately, I often see people grappling without purpose, but rather for the sake of just ‘play fighting’.
You’ve heard that you need to have something you’re testing out in rolls, or else they only count as low-yield cardio at best. Well, testing something out, or specializing as BJJ grapplers like to say, means you are after a goal, which gives you purpose. That’s the easy part.
The hard part is to hone in on that purpose from the moment you start a roll or match, not just when you’re close to it. If passing is your area of research, then you should be thinking about how to stay past the legs after taking the opponent down as soon as you slap and bump, not after you engage.
This point, and lots of similar ones are at the core of the material that three of the best grappling coaches in the world present in the collaborative effort that is the Grappling Continuum DVD.
DOWNLOAD HERE: THE GRAPPLING CONTINUUM DVD
Finish Strong!
It’s all about the finish in BJJ, isn’t it? Sound familiar? Well, a strong finish is only going to be possible if you start effectively, give yourself every advantage, and have a clear idea of what you’re doing, why you’re doing it, and when to do it. It sounds very Danaher-y when I put it like this, so why not make things simple and learn from the Grappling Continuum DVD? Zack, Shwan, and Warren break things down so that even strikers can understand it.
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