Gripping is one of the most important skills that you can develop to improve your guard play and your passing. When working with a new student. I will first ask them what position(s) they are working on followed immediately by what grips they are looking for, and how do they get to that position. And this serves a few purposes. Chief among which, is to see their understanding of a position because no technique can exist in a vacuum by itself. Every technique is connected to a

Lots of beginner students want to develop a berimbolo or a spider guard or a De la Riva guard right from the start. It’s a classic example of wanting the shiny object. Or wanting dessert before dinner. You see that a move is very effective or a position is very common and of course you want to practice those moves or those positions. But I believe for beginners especially, you should focus on learning how to retain your guard first. Guard retention is such an under appreciat

Developing a good guard game is no easy task. The guard is the foundational position in Jiu Jitsu. It’s what sets us apart from the other grappling arts. You get points in a tournament for sweeping from your guard. As well as your opponent — if they manage to pass your guard. So it’s a very important position. While there are no shortages of guard techniques online with resources like YouTube and other online training sites gaining in popularity. Putting it all together is th

Playing guard for a beginning student isn’t easy. In fact, starting a new activity or study comes with a lot of trial and error. In Jiu Jitsu, that means a lot of tapping. From Giving feedback: Getting feedback from training partners and instructors is an important aspect in the life of a martial artist. Feedback is how we correct holes in our games. Feedback is how we help our training partners get better. Feedback keeps us honest and humble. I think that’s why it’s importan

I was watching my friend Jon Thomas teach a class while training at his academy in Gothenburg, Sweden. For those of you who don’t know Jon. He has one of the best spider guards in all of Jiu Jitsu. So much so that he got the nickname “macarrao” which means spaghetti in Portuguese. Partly because of his red hair but mostly because of his awesome ability to recompose his guard by utilizing his feet in even the smallest of spaces. So I’m just observing the class. It was a small