It’s pretty nice to see a security guard who’s obviously trained in grappling martial arts without using excessive force.
In the video, you’ll see a security guard easily taking down a guy who tried to punch him. No punches, no kicks, just take down and control. Beautiful!
Even when we wrestled as kids, knowing absolutely nothing about grappling, we always have the tendency to be on top. The human instinct dictates that the top position is far more preferable than the bottom. Most grappling martial arts, like wrestling or Judo, are also based on this concept.
When you take someone down, the winning points come from holding them while on top. In that sense, BJJ is not very different. Despite having the option of fighting off your back, unlike other martial arts, Jiu-Jitsu still emphasizes the top position. One look at the point system of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and it is clear that everything leads to the top position. There’s a great reason behind this, other than our primal instinct. That reason is that from a top position new can exert pressure that can debilitate an opponent. And from the many kinds of pressure, none is more devastating than the BJJ Crossface.
The Crossface in Jiu-Jitsu is one of the fundamental concepts of top position pressure. It allows a grappler to pin the opponent by controlling their head. In Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, the Crossface is the primary mechanism behind the success of plenty of top positions. Side control, full mount, top half guard, and plenty of other positions rely heavily on the BJJ Crossface. Knowing how to control the head of an opponent with extreme pressure is an extremely important aspect of passing any guard in Jiu-Jitsu. In certain instances, the BJJ Crossface might even elicit a tap out of an unrespecting opponent. In that sense, it is only a few details away from a very powerful choke that’ll put people to sleep in no time.
The Crushing Pressure Of The BJJ CrossFace
The BJJ Crossface position is one of the fundamental characteristics of the pressure game from the top position in grappling. The most prevalent use is when you’re holding down someone in side control. However, this is no the full extent of this powerful pressure move.
The mechanics of the Crossface are based on pressure and head control, two major Jiu-Jitsu principles. A properly structured Jiu Jitsu Crossface starts by placing your hand under your opponent’s neck, going as deep as you can. For the purpose of explaining it, let’s say you’re in top side control. From there, the goal is to turn your opponent’s head away from you. In order to do this, and keep the head there without overcommitting you’ll have to use proper weight distribution and pressure placement. What this means is putting your shoulder down on their jaw at a specific angle that elicits maximal pressure.
In terms of keeping a safe position while going for a BJJ Cross face, remember that pushing forward with the shoulder is likely going to help your opponent reverse the situation. So when you have the arm deep and shoulder in place, pull the opponent inside towards you instead of only projecting your weight forward. This is when you feel the true power of the Cross face.
Controlling the head means that you easily control the body. The body’s movement is severely limited when the spine is not aligned. it is \, put simply, a way to break your opponent’s posture. , As you should know by now, controlling posture very often means you control where an opponent can go. A solid BJJ Crossface is a crucial piece in applying pressure on your opponent from the top.
Crossface Torture From The Top
The Crossface is also one of the staples of mount control. The mount is a tricky position to control in the first place, with complex mechanics. Usually, beginners are not able to maintain it for long due to incorrect weight distribution and balance. What happens is they get rolled back to guard, or pushed back into half guard. One of the key components to maintaining mount is having a brutally painful Crossface pressure.
Just like in side control, the focus is on head and neck control. The BJJ Crossface completely neutralizes one of your opponent’s sides, making escapes impossible. From a solid chest to chest pressure, you need to go under their neck and turn their head in one direction, just like in side control. Once again the goal is a misalignment of the spine. From the mount, you could also use the Crossface to set up submissions. Namely, it can be used to distract your opponent while you work on a submission.
When you’re passing the half guard you’ll need to employ the Crossface once again. It is a crucial concept in passing the half guard. When passing the goal is to flatten your opponent, both their shoulders firmly on the mat. There are two ways to do this. First, use a BJJ Cross face to force their head and neck in one direction. Secondly, you could utilize an underhook. For the best control, however, you go for both an underhook and Cross face pressure. There are various ways to apply the Cross face from passing the half guard.
BJJ CrossFace To Von Flue Choke
Have you ever heard of the Von Flue choke? This choke is the perfect guillotine counter. At least that’s how it came to be. Lately, UFC vet Ovince St.Preux has become hugely popular due to using it in MMA fights. Whenever someone stubbornly holds onto a guillotine choke even when you have passed their guard, it’s time to teach them an unforgettable lesson. The Von Flue choke It’s a highly effective and unorthodox technique. Even better, it doesn’t have to be set up from a guillotine defense. Instead, you could go for it straight off a Crossface.
The mechanism of the choke is similar to a triangle choke. On one side, you force the shoulder of the opponent’s far arm to block the arteries on one side. This is done by forcing the opponent to angle towards the ground. This puts their shoulder straight up against the side of their neck. To complete the choke, you need to drive your shoulder into the top side of their neck. From a strong Crossface, the shoulder is already there. All it takes is some pressure and you get the tap.
The Von Flue choke is a really fast one so be advised that your opponent might go to sleep before they get the option to tap. As such be careful both in training and competition and especially while rolling. In competition, there is a referee to monitor the situation. In rolling, you need to be careful not to hurt someone with the power of your Crossface!
Carlos Condit was sucker punched by US Special Forces soldier and that was enough for Carlos Condit to Knock him out.
The story came from Michael Bisping and now here is footage of it. Something that was supposed to be soft sparring turned out in a huge knockout. As Bisping explains it, the soldier was the cool guy but suddenly he went pretty hard on Carlos Condit. Carlos was suddenly sucker punched by a soldier and when he recovered he went had on the soldier. Carlos had clear attention to drop him down and he did it.
In the footage of that sparring, you’ll see that Carlos was first light rolling with US soldier and after that, they went into light kickboxing sparring. The footage clearly shows everything that Michael Bisping said in a podcast.
“We did some very cool stuff. And one of the things we did was go to an out-base where there was a very small camp set up, very little people and it was where some special force — badasses basically — a small group of hardcore special forces guys and they had a tiny little gym set up.
“In that gym was a boxing ring and we went in there and we were meeting these guys and just shooting the shit, talking to them, and then one of them says ‘would you like to spar?’ I was like ‘alright cool. I’ll spar with you.’ So we put the gloves on and I’m just messing with the guy throwing out a couple of light jabs.
“To be fair, the guy was cool. We had a nice friendly spar and I threw a few jabs and I took it easy and that was that we finished. One guy then says to Carlos Condit — another one of the special forces guys — ‘do you want to spar’ and Carlos Condit says ‘yeah, sure, no problem’. Oh, and by the way, they call him the Natural Born Killer, that guy is cool as fuck. He never raises his voice and he’s super mellow. They put the gloves on and the special forces guy says ‘how hard do you want to spar?’
“Carlos replies ‘I’ll hit you, as hard as you hit me,’ which is a fair answer, but it was a very cool answer because he was [saying] ‘if you want to go hard motherfucker, we will go hard, but if you want to keep it light and friendly then we can go light and friendly, the ball is in your court’.
“So the guy says ‘cool’ but then all of a sudden, right then and there the special forces guy: bang … he suckers punches [Condit] as hard as he can. And I mean a fucking hard shot. And Carlos goes down to the floor.
“It was a big heavy shot, but Carlos gets up, shakes his head, gets his shit together, and then just goes at the guy. Jab, the right hand, left head kick, boom, knocks the special forces guy straight through the ropes onto the floor, unconscious, out cold. Everyone in the room was looking around like holy shit.
“I was like ‘oh Carlos, I’m not sure that was the best thing to do,’ but fair play, ever since I saw that I was like he’s a bad motherfucker man. He’s a great guy.”
Carlos Condit actually said one very interesting sentence to a soldier, “it’s up to you man, hit me as hard as you want to get hit”.
Well, the soldier got what he was looking for.
Check out the video of Carlos Condit knocking out soldier.
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Fighting off the back is Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu’s one characteristic trait that has prolled the art to stardom. Okay, it is not the only one but it is a major aspect of BJJ that amazes people to this day. Understandably, everyone wants to be on top, as it makes the opponent work against gravity as well as yourself. However, when you’re on the bottom, having great attacking options is a must. While the closed guard is the safest position there is, there’s one position that comes to people instinctively, even if they’ve never done grappling martial arts before. It is the half guard position and hardly anybody does it better than Jake Mackenzie. If you want to be as proficient as him in it, picking up a copy of the High Precision Half Guard 2.0 Jake Mackenzie DVD is a no-brainer.
Whenever you’re up against a skilled passer, most open and closed guard variations tend to fail at a certain point. When that happens a new version of a closed guard comes into play, one arguably even more effective than the original. The half guard’s efficiency has been proven over and over again by the top grapplers of all time. However, due to its popularity, the half guard is not one of those mysterious BJJ positions. People have solved the best ways to neutralize the position until they can pass. This means that you’ll need to be really experienced and proficient with it in order to use it to its maximal potential. This, however, requires time. What the High Precision Half Guard 2.0 Jake Mackenzie DVD delivers is a shortcut to learning the best version of the half guard in a sliver of the time it takes to master it.
The Half Guard Position In BJJ
The half guard is by far one of the most versatile positions in Jiu-Jitsu. It is the go-to position for many distinct world champions, the likes of Caio Terra, Craig Jones, Tom DeBlass, Bernardo Faria and of course, Jake Mackenzie.
The versatility of the half guard comes from the many positional variations that are available. The basic half guard is when you have one of your opponent’s legs trapped with both of yours. Basically, the goal is being on your side while having your top leg on the outside of the opponent’s body. From there, the first thing you learn is going for an underhook, which consequently opens up plenty of attacking opportunities.
This half guard classic is known as the underhook half guard. Among other variations of the position, there are the deep half, Z guard, half-butterfly, seated half, lockdown and many more. All of these are very valuable weapons for every grappler. However, understanding of the classic half guard is the foundation for exploring other variations.
As far as half guard basic go there are a few things you need to remember when playing it. First, keep your back off the mat. This means that both your shoulder blades should never touch the mat, no matter which variation you’re playing. Secondly, never (or hardly ever) allow your opponent to control your head. Furthermore, the best way to stay safe in half guard while opening up attacks is framing. Using frames to keep your opponent at bay means you’re not wasting energy while you’re creating much-needed space. Finally, remember that you need to stay active. The half guard is a dynamic position the requires you to constantly be on the move. It is all covered in the High Precision Half Guard 2.0 Jake Mackenzie DVD.
Why Is Jake Mackenzie So Good At The Half Guard?
Jake Mackenzie is considered to be one of the most prominent grappling figures that come out of Canada. He is a Roberto “Cyborg” Abreu black belt, which is a huge accomplishment in itself. He has medaled in all big IBJJF tournaments in Brazil and has an outstanding offensive game from the bottom. For the better part of a decade, he lived in Brazil, perfecting his Jiu-Jitsu right at the source.
Brazil is where Mackenzie discovered the half guard and decide to make it his favorite. Of course, working with Cyborg helped his cause immensely. After all, Cyborg is a half guard magician himself, famous for the creation of the Tornado guard. The Tornado guard is essentially an inverted half guard. No wonder Jake Mackenzie turned out to be even better than his professor at the half guard. All that competing across Brazil also helped.
Nowadays, Mackenzie is a regular teacher at Cyborg’s Florida based gym. He still competes to this day and is relentless at going to the deepest ends of the half guard. As such, his High Precision Half Guard Jake Mackenzie DVD was a real hit. Now, the 2.0 version offers even better insight into this essential BJJ position.
Jake Mackenzie DVD: High Precision Half Guard 2.0
The best thing about this High Precision Half Guard 2.0 Jake Mackenzie DVD is that it is the second edition. This outlines how dedicated Jake is to the position. He could’ve come up with an entirely different subject, given how successful his last DVD was. However, Jake chooses to continue disclosing his amazing half guard tips and has once again excelled at it.
The information presented in this Jake Mackenzie DVD is very similarly structured as in his previous release. Jake primarily deals with all the details of his half guard position before moving on to attacks. Two whole volumes are dedicated to the offensive half guard game. Keep in mind that all his techniques are very appropriately dubbed “advanced half guard” While he takes it to step by step, there is some pretty high-level technique in this release.
The second part of the instructional is all about countering one of the most common passing systems in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. During the past 6 or 7 years, the knee cut pass has become the norm, especially against the half guard. Jake shows his take on dealing with it and eventually countering. All in all, you get very specific instructions from a person who simply excels at this versatile BJJ position.
Advanced Attacking Concepts
The High Precision Half Guard 2.0 Jake Mackenzie DVD begins like any instructional should – with the very basics. He begins with tips about basic positioning and staying off your back. The underhook battle is the focus here, and with Jake’s tips, you’ll be able to win it 99% of the time. What I think really hits the spot is the grip fighting strategy. This pertains to both sleeve and pants grips that offer unbelievable control love the opponent.
In terms of submissions, I am a guillotine and front headlock guy, so for me, there’s one clear winner in these departments. Jake shows a very cool variation of the guillotine, one that he calls the Pretzeltine. And that name is thoroughly deserved. The Palmieri lock is another move that demonstrates the creativity of Jake Mackenzie. There’s also a very nice Oomoplata finish available. Although the setup is nothing new, there are essential details included.
From a point-based offense, there are two main avenues of attacks. First up are back takes, which hare truly covered in depth. From the very basic underhook entries all the way to butt-drags, Jake opens up clear and decisive paths to the back. Continuing forward, Jake’s other method of attacking are sweeps. When submissions and/or taking the back is not an option, there’\s always the opportunity to sweep. From Lucas Leite’s sweep all the way to some Ryan Hall specials, Jake covers it all.
Countering The Knee Cut
The second part of the High Precision Half Guard 2.0 Jake Mackenzie DVD is all about dealing with the knee cut pass. As this is the most utilized pass gainst half guards, the need to address it so profoundly is clear. Mackenzie offers an understanding of the pass itself, before moving on to defensive options, to begin with.
Defensively speaking, Mackenzie’s concept is to redirect the pressure of the knee. As simple as it sounds, it is quite complicated and no one can clear it up better than Jake. Again, the focus is on the back takes and sweeps, with the Jedi Mind trick standing out of the bunch. Jake spends a lot of time explaining every concept here, so there are fewer moves per chapter, but they’re longer.
Finally, he ends with a few transitional options when battling the knee cut. Instead of only sweeping Jake offers paths to common attacking open guards like the X guard and the De La Riva. It wouldn’t e complete without a submission though, so there’s another Omoplata setup which completely nullifies the threat of the knee cut pass.
When people in the Jiu-Jitsu world hear the name Eddie Bravo there are usually two very different reactions. People either love him or can’t stand him. Admittedly he is a polarizing figure. That said, nobody can dispute the fact that he has greatly contributed to the evolution of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, especially in No-Gi. Eddie has been challenging certain established BJJ beliefs ever since he walked into Jean Jacques Machado’s gym as a beginner. Even before he founded 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu, he had invented positions like the Twister and the Truck that turned out to be extremely effective. Since then his innovation has been relentless, although not always as effective in a general sense. However, his latest exploits seem to be the best of it all. I’m talking about the much-debated 10th Planet warm-ups system.
It is important to understand that the 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu system is unlike any other you’re going to see. A big reason why this is so is Eddie’s approach. As opposed to Danaher, Ryan Hall, and other science-based BJJ wizards, Eddie is first and foremost an artist. So his approach is the complete opposite to the methodical and through one employed by the previously mentioned grapplers. So when he came up with his 10th Planet warm-ups system people had the usual frowning reaction. For those that have heard his reasoning behind it might make more sense. And for those that might’ve attempted it, the benefits are apparent and can be game-changing!
What Are 10th Planet Warm-ups?
First of all, let me make something clear. I am not a member of 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu or any other affiliate academy. Actually, I train at a Gracie Barra academy which should tell you plenty. That said, about a year ago I came across Eddie Bravos’s 10th Planet warm-ups.
The 10th Planet warm-ups are a series of techniques, done in a drill-like fashion in which both participants need to work. Unlike everyday repetitive drills that focus on just one movement, these scenarios focus on a niche area of Jiu-Jitsu. For example, there’s one sequence that focuses on everything to do with the butterfly guard. However, instead of simply restarting once a butterfly sweep is done, now the other person has the opportunity to train specific mount escapes and so on.
As Eddie Bravo puts it, these warm-up series are as close to shadow boxing, or bag work as you can get with a grappling martial art. After all, you rarely train jabs only for an hour when you train striking right? The basic concept is that since you can’t train BJJ on your own, you grab a partner. Once you do that though, don’t just do butterfly sweeps, for the duration of a session. It is much better to drill combinations, and that is exactly what you get with these warm-ups.
As far as the 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu system goes, they focus on the areas they work the most. So they have sequence scenarios that start and/or end in their top positions, many of whom tend to be the same with the most dominant positions in BJJ in general. So when the subject of the class is in one of these areas, 10th Planet practitioners warm up with the appropriate sequence of techniques.
A Different Approach To Drilling
The 10th PLanet warm-ups are organized in a very specific fashion so that they make a lot of sense. Basically here are eight scenarios according to specific areas of BJJ. They are organized by letters so that they’re easy to be assigned to a specific day. The letters so far range from A to H and there are 4 specific sequences within a letter. That puts the total of drill sequences at 32, which is a lot. It took me the better part of a year to memorize them all, and that is without constant changes Bravo’s making.
In terms of areas of focus, the 10th Planet warm-ups pretty much encompass everything. While it might not be apparent from their designated description name, they do go in every possible direction. So, for example when you train The “G” series or “Half Guard Passes” you do not just pass the half guard. Once you pass, you do transitions to the mount or Ashi Garami positions. Once there, you get the opportunity to go for submission before allowing your partner to train an escape and, in most cases, a counter. Some sequences even end with an escape or re-counter on your part.
What these drill sequences bring to the table is first and foremost transitional prowess. While we tend to focus very much on the muscle memory in regard to specific movements in BJJ, we often overlook the need to do so in a transitional sense. The 10th PLanet JIu-Jitsu system is based very much on fluidity, hence the focus on connecting various most often seen situations into complete sequences with multiple possible follow-ups.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eg1g0XeCBJ4
You Don’t Have to Be 10th Planet Jiu-JItsu
For more than a year now, I’ve been drilling a specific 10th Planet sequence at the end of every class. Unlike Bravo, I do not utilize them as warm-ups, but rather as competition-oriented drills. A bunch of purple belts and above competitors gather at the end of class for about 30 additional minutes of drills, based on the 10th Planet warm-ups.
At first, we were pretty much lost. However, with time, we got into it and started building up our efficiency. Suddenly, stuff that we are drilling at the end of the class started working seamlessly during rolls. Mainly, it was in a defensive manner, from tough positions against more skilled training partners. That only made us work more until we realized that even the attacking sequences are easily introduced to any grappler’s style. Furthermore, the sequences can be cut short, or they can be connected so that you go straight to a different one.
The fascination with the 10th Planet warm-ups grew even more after a few of the guys managed to use sequences or parts of them under the pressure of competition. Classical drills never seemed to do the trick before we started connecting everything into logical sequences. That heavy bag for BJJ theory seems to be spot on!
In all honesty, there are parts of the drills and even complete sequences that make no sense at all. Following the 10th Planet, warm-ups don’t mean we do them by the book, beginning to end. We threw some stuff out, replaced other and even added something of our own. What we really learned was the power of connecting everything and begin aware that transitions in and out of positions can also be drilled to great effectiveness.
Delvin Genchi executed “his” guillotine choke on a Black Belt in competition in less than a minute.
We can say that Delvin patented it with this submission on a Black Belt. This powerful submission is a mix between theGuillotine choke and the dreaded Crucifix – creating two types of excruciating pressure that will force your opponent to submit.
When I started BJJ I loved playing the guard game. The closed guard was my first love, after which I discovered open guards and built a whole game around it. Much like most of the people that roll do. During that time though, I never really paid attention to passing the guard. Despite having a strong top position game, my passing, in particular, was horrible. Basically, I did not enjoy passing the guard as much as I did playing it. Until I discovered pressure passing. Seeing Bernardo Faria dominate high-level black belt opposition by slowly destroying their guards with pressure changed the way I see BJJ forever. Finally, I had a passing style that really suited me. Now, all it took was learning it. And there’s no better resource than the “Battle-tested pressure passing” Bernardo Faria DVD.
Needless to say, Faria is a black belt that knows what he is talking about. He has multiple world title to his name and a very specific grappling style. He is a half guard magician, particularly from the deep half. Faria is also an impressive pressure passer, the over-under pass being his favorite tool to dismantle people’s guards. Bernardo is basically unstoppable from the top. He has a methodical approach that is now available for everyone to learn. This Bernardo Faria DVD is a true masterpiece that includes all of his latest guard passing tactics and techniques.
What To Expect From A Bernardo Faria DVD Battle Tested Pressure Passing
Bernardo Faria is not one that releases the odd DVD every now and then. He is a regular in the department of creating digital content. What is even more amazing is that he manages to retain a very high quality of content with the high frequency of releasing material.So far he has content on all of his favorite positions, meaning you can develop a very effective grappling style by picking up his products.
For me, the Battle Tested Pressure Passing Bernardo Faria DVD is the one that anybody that grapples need to have. Faria’s approach is as unique as his teaching style. When he passes the guard Bernardo looks to stay completely safe while exerting intolerable pressure on the opponent. Before watching his material I never connected pressure passing with being on your knees.
Bernardo offers a lot of information but everything is easily understandable due to his teaching style. Faria is very easy to listen to and likes to base things on concepts. When he’s explaining the techniques, his immense grappling experience is immediately apparent. He anticipates the questions you might have while watching the material and covers every subject. All little details, from grips to body positioning are covered so that you end up with a complete system.
Be prepared to spend a considerable amount of time, however, on simply going through the material. The material is spread across four discs, each filled to the rims with content. Faria likes to include as much information as possible, as he does, so you can expect a very wide variety of guards. The material is chronologically structured, so jumping straight onto the third volume won’t do you much good. Start at the very beginning and as you get to the end everything is going to be crystal clear.
Technical Specifics Of The Battle Tested Pressure Passing DVD
From a technical standpoint, this Bernardo Faria DVD starts by treating everyone watching it as a white belt. Faria explains how weight distribution works in terms of passing the guard. Passing pressure is more dynamic than pressure from mount or side control, as Bernardo explains. From there on, he teaches the over-under pass like nobody else in the world. Honestly, I expected as much, seeing as this is his favorite move to use in competition. When performed correctly, this pressure pass is unstoppable. Even in cases when an opponent might look to escape and re-guard from a distance, Faria has options. I really loved the prevention of escapes concept, because you take away every opportunity from the bottom person.
Furthermore, Bernardo goes over every guard variation you might come up against while rolling or competing. Lapel guards, spider guard, BUtterfly guard, you name it. Whatever guard your opponents decide to play you will have answers based on pressure. Even the dreaded worm guard has a weak point that Bernardo identifies and exploits with his over-under pressure pass. Once again, the focus is as much on counterattacks, or more specifically, preventing them. Faria offers ground-breaking concepts to deal with every escape or counter an opponent might use.
The real value of this Bernardo Faria DVD is in the final volume. In typical Faria fashion, he doesn’t just settle for demonstrating techniques but presents them in real situations. The final volume contains more than 20 rolls with the high-level opposition. During the rolls, Faria focuses on using the material he presents in the release. The rolls are narrated by him as he analyzes every situation that comes up and how to use his pressure passing concepts to deal with it.
It turns out that Japenese Jiu-Jitsu and Judo didn’t give birth to just Judo Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. These ancient Japanese grappling styles also played a huge role in the development of another famous grappling martial art. Russian Sambo has it’s origins in Judo, just like BJJ. Also like BJJ, Sambo developed into a grappling art of its own by merging Japanese techniques with local ones. Today, Sambo is a really effective martial art that is popular worldwide. One great representative of this art is multiple times world champion Vladislav Koulikov. He is not just proficient in Sambo but a highly accomplished grappler overall. AS such, he is the perfect person to teach chosen Sambo principles that are a perfect fit for BJJ. And he has the perfect platform to do so – the Vladislav Koulikov DVD – Sambo For BJJ.
Sambo is a very distinct art that has rules of competition very different from those of BJJ. As such, not every Sambo concept is practical for jIu-Jitsu and vice versa. However, some moves, like the 4/11 and Inside Ashi positions, for example, fit BJJ perfectly. This Vladislav Koulikov DVD brings only the best of the best, taught by a Sambo expert, for the need of BJJ competitors. It is the perfect way to spice up your BJJ game and learn to think in a different grappling direction.
Sambo For BJJ
Sambo stands for self-defense without weapons in Russian. AS mentioned, the roots of Sambo are in Japanese Jiu-Jitsu and Judo, with some Soviet-style wrestling added in between. The conception of Sambo is due to the needs of the Red Army. It was designed to be the best martial art for soldiers in situations of hand to hand combat. Today, Sambo is a recognized Olympic sport that is taught across the globe.
The military application of Sambo is not one suited for sports environments, which prompted the art to further develop into several sub-styles. Nowadays, self-defense Sambo is the closest to the military version, while practitioners can also choose Combat Sambo, Freestyle Sambo, and Sport Sambo. Sambo practitioners wear a Gi jacket that is red or blue, shorts and distinct shoes. It is a very submission-oriented art that especially favors leg locks.
Vladislav Koulikov was born in Russia where he first discovered martial arts. After moving to the USA in the 90s he found a distinct lack of Sambo in the states. So he took it upon his own to spread the art of Sambo. He is a multiple times representative of the USA at the World Sambo Championship. Currently, he runs several academies in the New York area where the teaches a signature hybrid style of Sambo and BJJ. Now, the Vladislav Koulikov DVD is available to everyone in the world, bringing Vlad’s unique grappling blend to everyone.
What Is In This Vladislav Koulikov DVD Sambo For BJJ?
The Sambo For BJJ Vladislav Koulikov DVD is the perfect source of Sambo techniques that work really well for BJJ. Despite not having formal BJJ training, Koulikov spends a lot of time training wrestling and grappling after moving to the USA. He even has a few MMA bouts under his belt, making him more than qualified to know which moves are worth your time.
In terms of cross-training, it is often said that catch wrestling is the perfect art to compliment JIu-Jitsu. Well, you can think of Sambo as catch wrestling on steroids. It is all about finishing a fight in as little time as possible. This DVD is aimed first and foremost about submission artists. People that like to go for the finish are going to benefit immensely from this release. Not that every other grappler won’t learn something new, but do not expect much positional mumbo-jumbo here. What you get in this Vladislav Koulikov DVD are numerous submission options from positions that you already know. It is the perfect tool to take your submission rate in training and competition to a whole different level.
Throws And Takedowns
To begin with, you’ll learn takedowns and lots of them. However, most of these are not your usual takedowns. Due to the Gi and shorts apparel, Sambo has a very specific system of highly efficient takedowns that always end in submissions. A lot of the takedown elements are very similar to Judo, but with an added twist. This makes them perfect for BJJ, seeing as how everything in regards to the standup is borrowed from other arts. Fireman carries, Tai Otoshi, Kouchi Gari and a bunch of other takedowns are covered in-depth and linked with submissions.
True to Sambo’s style, Vlad demonstrates how to land in the perfect position for a leg lock after you execute a throw or takedown. Ankle locks and kneebars are the focus of this volume, but they’re unlike anything you’ve ever seen before. Koulikov’s details on finishing the moves clearly show why Sambo is the premier leg locking art in the world. Furthermore, he stays the course of IBJJF legal submissions, meaning that everything you learn in this DVD you can use on a daily basis.
Submissions, submissions and more submissions!
In BJJ tournaments, people often try to roll through into a kneebar. Well, this move is actually a Sambo move, known as the Victor roll. This Vladislav Koulikov DVD teaches you how to perfectly execute it as a takedown or even from the bottom. Instead of just rolling about, Koulikov outlines the perfect pointers to keep you in control during every moment of the motion.
Next, it’s leg lock galore. Koulikov explores the Single-leg X guard from a Sambo perspective, meaning with extra leg locking options. Of course, the focus is on ankle locks and kneebars, albeit form positions you never considered before. The Vlad is probably the one move you won’t be able to wait to try out. It is brutal, effective and one of Koulikovs own making, so most of your opponents won’t be expecting it. After a few calf slicers, it’s all about escapes, and how to deal with armbars. Koulikov offers a couple of high percentage armbar escapes that’ll leave your opponents confused.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is a sport with lots of categories of competition. People that decide to put their skill to the test on the mats are divided according to multiple factors. First and foremost is the level of experience, which is determined by the belt rank. Next, competitors are assigned to a kids, juvenile, adult or master division according to age. The male and female distinction is futile to point out as it is more than obvious. The last parameter of grappling competition are weight classes. When someone wants to compete in BJJ, apart from age, sex, and experience, they need to fall within the bounds of a BJJ weight class as well.
Under IBJJF rules, there are 9 weight classes, without counting the absolute, in which competitors can grapple. Most of these are 10-20 lbs apart, meaning there is not much of a weight difference between neighboring weight classes. Most people, however, look for the advantage of being as heavy as they can within a BJJ weight class, so they very often resort to cutting weight before competing. However, this practice is a very difficult one and can have major health implications when done incorrectly. For those that are in between weight classes, especially those in the Masters’ divisions, are much better off looking to go up a BJJ weight class than constantly cut weight before competing. Just like with cutting weight, nutrition plays the crucial role in “bulking up” for a higher weight class.
Calorie Requirements For Moving Up A BJJ Weight Class
The fuel for any athletic endeavor is food. When we’re talking about grappling martial arts, nutrition is even more important. For a better understanding of nutrition and the energy balance in our bodies, we need to break food down into it’s building blocks. The main building blocks f any diet are macronutrients that come in the form of protein, fat, and carbohydrates. These macronutrients are aided by a host of micronutrients like vitamins, minerals, fiber etc.
The ways in which our bodies process macronutrients are different but the goal is the same. While in a biochemical sense all these macronutrients are broken down int very different compounds, energetically they all come down to calories. Calories are a unit measure of energy that food provides for our metabolism to burn. Intake of calories is essential for our bodies daily functions and vary in accordance. When we’re laying around in bed our bodies require much less energy than we’re at work followed by a BJJ class.
The intake of calories determines metabolism. In that sense, less caloric intake than what the body spends means that you’re going to lose weight. More calories than the body can spend activate the body’s mechanisms for reserves, and the likely outcome is gaining weight. The math is simple in theory. In practice, however, the quality of calories, along with macronutrient ratio is very important.
Energy intake plays a crucial role in maintaining or gaining muscle mass. When looking to go up a BJJ weight class by gaining lean and functional weight, energy balance must be in the surplus. A positive energy balance is more important than the amount of ingested protein. In order to discover your optimal calorie needs, you can use this free calculator.
Optimal Protein intake
After a suitable energy intake has been established, protein intake needs to be determined. As such total protein intake is the most important nutritional factor for muscle hypertrophy. When looking to go up a BJJ weight class, grapplers should aim for an intake between 1.8-2.5g/kg per day. This, however, is only a rule of thumb and does not factor in individual needs. Leaner individuals require a higher intake of protein while in a calorie deficit and vice versa. These intakes are in line with what most people looking to build muscle already consume.
Once you establish your suitable energy and protein intakes, it is time to do some fine tuning to your nutritional plan. The quality, distribution, timing, and type of protein are all important in balancing a muscle-building diet. Remember, that as a grapplers, we’re not just looking to bulk up, but build functional muscle that’s only going to take you up in BJJ weight class, not four. The goal is to maximize the hypertrophic response to training not get bloated.
How Much Protein You Really Need
On top of the factors above maximizing muscle protein synthesis has by far the greatest benefit for improving muscle gain. Keeping protein synthesis in the muscles high revolves around the leucine content in meals. Also, important is the frequency of which protein meals are eaten.
When ingesting protein, a threshold amount of leucine of 2-3 g total is enough to result in increased muscle protein synthesis. This roughly equates to 25-35g of leucine-rich protein sources like whey, eggs, and meat. As an example, 35 grams of egg protein provide roughly 3g of leucine, which is on the upper end of the recommended threshold. This quantity is likely to maximally stimulate protein synthesis. Furthermore, protein intake of 25-35g at every meal is advised. The lower quantity is more appropriate for smaller and/or female grapplers, while the larger is for bigger individuals.
From a timing standpoint, eating meals spaced every 3-4 hours would optimize protein synthesis in the muscles in a 24-hour period. Spacing meals like this allow blood amino acid levels to drop. This results in repeated stimulation of protein synthesis by subsequent meals. Therefore, the optimal meal frequency is 4-5 protein-rich meals per day, at even intervals.
Protein Quality And Timing
Protein quality generally refers to how good (or poorly) our bodies make use of a certain protein source. Moreover, protein quality refers to how well the essential amino acid profile matches the requirements of the body. The digestibility of the protein and bioavailability of the amino acids also playing a role.
For non-vegetarian/vegan grapplers, protein quality is generally not a concern due to the relatively large daily availability. As such, the timing and frequency of intake are the most important factors in regard to protein consumption.
Within the meal frequency advised above, consumption of two maximal doses of protein appears to be best for muscle growth. Ingestion should be around the training time, separated by no more than five hours. For example, you ate a meal an hour before a two-hour long training session. This leaves a two-hour window to ingest 25-35g of protein after training. There’s no need to slam a protein shake immediately after training. You can take your time and build up to the next BJJ weight class by eating real high-quality food.
Having trouble dealing with opponents that get into a turtle? Well pick up a number and get in line, s you’re not the only one. As we can see from Judo, the turtle position is defensive heaven if your idea of defense is doing nothing. In Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu there are some effective options for breaking down the turtle, but most of them take time to master. Furthermore, if the opponent is experienced in defending from the turtle, chances are they’re going to escape to guard leaving you frustrated. Luckily, one BJJ coach recognized the troubles that the turtle position causes and decided to do something about it. Thanks to the latest Mike Palladino DVD, you can now learn Killer Turtle Attacks that’ll solve all your trouble.
Mike Palladino is a BJJ coach that got his black belt from Rafael “Formiga” Barbosa. He is the head coach at the Evolution Grappling Academy and extremely well versed in grappling martial arts. Not only does he have a black belt in BJJ but he is also highly skilled in Sambo under none other than Vladislav Koulikov. Some of Mike’s accolades are gold at the Combat Wrestling Championship, 2x Pan American medalist and a host of other titles. So, when a grappler of his pedigree comes out with a digital release on breaking one of the toughest defensive positions in grappling, you should pay attention. This Mike Palladino DVD is one that is going to change the way you see BJJ forever!
Turtle Trouble
Before we get into the meat and potatoes of Palladino’s latest release, let’s see why the turtle position is so tough to break. The turtle position is one very often utilized by Judo Players. By preventing positional transitions, you can prevent losing points to the opponent as well. In short, it is a position to keep you safe from almost anything.
When in turtle, grapplers are essentially on all fours, face facing the floor. The shins and head are the main points of contact with the ground, forming a strong tripod-shaped base. Furthermore, the head is tucked in as far as possible towards the knees. Elbows are placed in the hip folds and the palms are used to cover the neck. The turtle position turns you into a rock-like structure that’s very hard to move because of the strong base. Getting to a neck arm or a leg is also notoriously difficult since everything is so tight. The defensive power of the turtle is that every structure is protected by other surrounding ones, seeing how close and tight everything is.
The downside of the turtle position is that there’s nothing a defending grappler can do from there. Those that have experience in the position know exactly when to get out of it. itis precise timing that makes the position ultimately effective. IF a grappler decides to open up in a specific manner at a specific moment, they’ll get to the guard or half guard position with ease. At the same time, opening up the position also leads to attacking opportunities for the opponent. The beauty of the Killer Turtle Attacks Mike Palladino DVD is that it deals with both the closed and open turtle position.
“Killer Turtle Attacks” Mike Palladino DVD Review
What makes this Mike Palladino DVD different from other similar instructionals you might ask? Well, first of all, it is a No-Gi instructional. That means that all the techniques you’re going to see work in every situation. Battling the turtle with a Gi allows for more leverage thanks to grips on the material. Opening up a turtled up opponent in No-Gi takes much more effort (or strategy) and the skills are transferable to the Gi.
Furthermore, Mike presents a submission-based approached by defeating the turtle. The reason this works is that it’s a double attack. Attacking with submissions can end in one of two ways. First, the opponent can tap due to the submission, which is the best-case scenario. Second, the opponent might focus on defending so much that they open up other opportunities. This means you can either switch the submission or transition into a dominant position. Whatever the outcome, you’re going to achieve your goal of beating the turtle position.
The release is divided into two chapters, each on a separate DVD. The first one is mostly oriented on direct turtle submissions. The second one goes over transitional options to improve your positioning before going for the kill. All information is clear, precise and works as a complete system.
Mike Palladino starts off things by precisely defining the turtle position. After going through its mechanics and structure, he covers the most common entries. In that sense, he goes over entering the turtle from both standing and grounded positions. What follows is the one thing you need to learn from this Mike Palladino DVD – multiple threat attacks. He has a system in place based on a triple threat. One attack is rarely going to work against the turtle. Going for multiple threats is going to ensure you get into a position to catch a submission perfectly.
After the detailed introduction, its time for some submissions! Mike Palladino explains such a wide array of submissions that you won’t be able to choose which one to try first! Front headlock attacks are the quickest way to deal with a turtled up opponent if you can get to the neck. As the triple threat system opens the neck, the first attacks are guillotine variations and D’arce/Anaconda chokes. Leaving no stone unturned, Mike also fills the gap between these two choke categories with neckties. Neckties are some of the most vicious attacks you can do and are very diverse. This makes them the perfect weapon to battle the turtle.
But why stop there? Palladino stitches his attention to attacking by trapping one arm into the Crucifix position. From there, he offers a huge collection of armbars, biceps slicers, and chokes to finish even the most stubborn of opponents. Keep your eyes open for the X armbar from the Crucifix, as it is one of the most effective submissions in BJJ!
Transitional Options
Don’t get me wrong, when I write about transitional options I don’t mean that MIke gives up on submissions. All it means is that he likes to improve his positioning in relation to the turtle before finishing. And the best way to do so is going for either the back or the truck.
Transitioning to the back is the most widely used method to deal with the turtle. However, without understanding the position and how it works you’ll most probably fail more than you’ll succeed. Mike’s triple threat method ensures that you’ll leave your opponent no chance to defend. Multiple backs taking options are presented, each specific to a certain situation. Of course, finishing options along the way, as well as from the back are covered in detail!
My personal favorite is the truck transitions. The truck is a highly underutilized position that is incredibly effective. As such it is my preferred spot to go against a turtle. Furthermore, it still offers the opportunity to get to the back, but not before having multiple submission options. Mike explains the truck mechanics and how to get there before switching over to submissions. Calf slicers, the banana split, twister, Kimura and many more complete this incredible Mike Palladino DVD. One thing is for sure. You’ll never get angry again when an opponent turtles upon you.