BJJ - What are you working on?

**JohnnyS** · Posted On: 1/18/2005 9:32pm

I'm bored at work and thought I'd try and create some discussion.
So, what part of your BJJ game are you working on?

For myself, I'm working on a few things including:
* My side control - I'm trying to make it more crushing not just on his chest but on his arms. I did a private lesson with David Meyer (3rd Degree Machado BB) a few weeks ago who flogged me and one of the things he did was crush my arms so much from side control that by the time I finally got them out they were exhausted. So I've been working this and it's going well.
* Taking the back - I'm working on letting the guy escape from side control to his knees where I can then take the back.
* My guard - I'm working on basic hooking sweep and getting back to my knees more.

So, let's hear what you're working on.

P.S If you're having any problems and want some answers let me know. I need something to kill the time here :)

**Aesopian** · Posted On: 1/18/2005 9:44pm

I have been working on my sweeps from the guard, guard passes and general "top game", like side control, north-south, and mount. Most of my success so far has come from fighting from the guard, but I want to have good ability on top, so I have been working on that a lot more.

**Shuma-Gorath** · Posted On: 1/18/2005 9:59pm

We've been drilling closed guard attacks a lot recently since there were a string of nights last week where only white belts and at most one blue belt came to class. Our school, instructor and professor inisist white belts only use the closed guard, and while I've become adept at keeping it my sweeps suck and my attacks were all based on mimicry until we formally drilled them last week. Last night I set up a sweet collar choke on a larger white belt but I didn't get it deep enough so stood out of it, and then I missed the arm bar (which he said was closer to making him tap). Usually if I'm fighting guys my size I can threaten the triangle, but now I can clear the arm and don't have to wait for them to put an arm back.

I'm also reading Passing the Guard and while I can now open the closed guard with high frequency the actual pass still remains a challenge. When I do get past I can usually get to knee ride against other white belts of similar size. Larger white belts and advanced students generally don't tolerate that kind of crap for long and I end up getting reversed or put back in guard.

**Te No Kage!** · Posted On: 1/18/2005 10:04pm

Personally I need to work on sweeps, getting off my back which is obviously one of my weaker points. Even though I'd like to be working on subs, I need to get better at mount escapes and passing the guard. That's pretty vague, but I'm getting caught a lot in the mount with my partners feet under my butt which is pretty hard to sweep.

**Gumby** · Posted On: 1/18/2005 10:23pm

Right now with my BJJ game (gi) Im working my cross side control as well. I've developed a good guard pass, so I figure next thing on the list is being able to end the fight from cross side. Right now, I usually look for the armlock from cross side (Hughes vs Pierre) or knee in the belly/mount. Im also trying to work on my collar chokes, since they're used from alot of positions (but my thumb is fucked up at the moment, making this rather difficult).

As far as no gi is concerned, Im very much working guillotine, kimura, and omoplata. omoplata is good, but i need to look for it more often. I've got a very good triangle and armlock, and fortunately I train with 2 wrestlers who've got GREAT submission defense from inside the guard. Im much more successful with submissions in no gi (from the guard anyways) and think the addition of these 3 moves would enhance my guard game even more.

Im also working rubber guard a little more intently, and Im trying to study up on some of its techniques.

**Judah Maccabee** · Posted On: 1/18/2005 11:33pm

Making Rickson Gracie cry.

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Learning basic principles/methods of the art, like don't push up against a guy past your guard, or else he'll armbar you.

**deus ex machina** · Posted On: 1/19/2005 1:01am

Originally Posted by PizDoff

More sweeps and reversals to better positions.
I have some 'anti-grapple' down, and I want to perfect it in a MMA environment.

My movement on top is better, my defense on the bottom is getting better.
I'm moving a lot better now, instead of waiting and going duh duh duh and getting my guard passed. I don't know how much my recovery from past injuries has helped, but it has helped a lot.

You don't do BJJ.

EDIT: LOL don't even say that ****. It makes me sick.

**SamHarber** · Posted On: 1/19/2005 1:33am

I need to work on keeping people from passing my guard. At the moment its laughably easy to get past me.

**philby909090** · Posted On: 1/19/2005 1:36am

Subs from guard

**PoleFighter** · Posted On: 1/19/2005 4:15am

Note: when I say "good" I mean "good compared to three to six month white belts."

I've been working on my guard game a lot the last two months, and I've gotten pretty good at sweeps now, so now I'm going to start working on my triangle (the submission I've easily had the most success with) and omplata (the submission I've easily had the least success with, but it's just to cool to pass up).

The most awful part of my game is probably my bottom game in the side mount. I just feel lost, and I just give my opponents the mount so I can go for the Upa. If anyone can give me some tips on how to escape the side mount I'd be one happy swede.

I've also found that I've become better att getting peoples backs, so I'm going to start working on chokes from that position.