Jiu Jitsu Diary - 12

Went down to World Team today. Lucio Muramatsu taught class. 

We did a lot of things, but what was really cool for me was his technique to get to Back Mount when your opponent is curled up in Turtle Guard. Mostly I try to plant a knee in the small of the back (got that from Jorge) or grab a leg and steam roll them into Side Control (also Jorge) or even roll them in to a Loop Choke, though I never get the Loop Choke. So close! And yet, so far.

Lucio, though, showed us this really easy variation where you, once they've turtled up into Turtle Guard and you have the Seatbelt hold, you use your shoulder to apply pressure to the head and neck and then just, bam, roll. It's super simple and once you roll, you can sink in your hooks and then go right from there into a Rear Naked Choke. Lucio's variations are so subtle and kinda idiosyncratic, I can't always find them on Youtube, or find the right search terms, but I found this video below. It's pretty much exactly on point, but this guy walks around his opponent a bit before he rolls. Lucio's works fine, but I see the wisdom of the clock walk. Might try it. Either way, this is it and it's so simple!

After that we did controlled sparring. Two guys sat in the middle while the opponents took their back and got Seatbelt and that's how the round started. Whoever won, stayed in the middle. Who would want to stay in the middle!?!?!? And yet...

Was tough. Went with Oscar, Harry, Rick, Adrian, Conrad, and Lucio. I stayed active with Conrad, but his back was a bit tender so I think he went easy. I got Oscar in a Bow-And-Arrow Choke, which is a bully move I learned from Ricky, but Harry, the new white belt, he just kept me in control the whole time! I got him in Half-Guard, but this dude stayed low, kept his hips near the mat and just worked the position until he got his leg out and took Full Mount! After that, went with Lucio and that guy just slid out, like a ninja, every time, made it look like child's play. And that's why he's a Third Degree Black-Belt. Great class!

Jiu Jitsu Diary - 10

Man, after Diego 2 yesterday where all we did was fundamentals and Armbar from Guard over and over and over again, my body was sore this morning. But I had to go. Hadn't seen Diego Herzog, our head instructor, for almost a month, holidays and all, so it was time to get in there and get back to training.

Lotta white belts today, which is not a bad thing, always good to go over the basics. Haven, Harry, Regina, and myself wearing Whites along with Oscar (Blue), Mike Kazan (Purple), and Conrad (Brown), so it was a nice sized class. Plump.

After warm ups we drilled a Mount Escape into Side-Control and then Mount Escape into Scissors-Sweep.

Later on we sparred. I went with Oscar and he submitted me twice right off the bat with two chokes that I didn't think he had the proper leg position for (a Guillotine and a Collar Choke from the back), but he worked his angles and used his athleticism as a weapon and just forced them through. One was more crank than choke, but one was definitely a choke. Nearly passed out. It's a good lesson: just cause someone's not in proper position or doesn't have the right hooks, that doesn't mean you're safe. I got him with a sweet Kimura, but it's kinda a basic move and I need to get a better offensive arsenal. I then got him in an Arm Triangle from Half-Guard and held it and worked it and I think had it been anyone else, I would've neck cranked them to a tap, but it's Oscar we're talking about here. He's tough and strong and doesn't give up. He just kept my leg tied up in Half-Guard (can't finish that choke until you free your leg and get on the opposite side of the choke and get your hips to the mat for the proper angle) and my arms started to tire out. I kept the position and squeezed like an anaconda, but he stayed calm. The sad thing for me was that as I worked my leg out from the Half-Guard tie up, I kneed him in the groin. Yikes. The rest of the round it was back and forth, with him dictating most of the pace. 

We switched partners and I worked with Haven, a new white-belt. He's got good instincts, but just doesn't know the positions yet. I tried not to bully him, but show him what was open. One thing I went over is that you have to stay on top, but play the same level. It's all about Level Change. This is my own insight, so might be way off, but it goes something like this: if we're both standing and one guy shoots low, now the game is low, the guy in the higher position, he no longer has control. He can sprawl, get to his knees, or he can get low at the same time, but the point is, the game is now low, levels have changed. And it can go right back. If I shoot low but then change and come back high, now the game is back to high. One guy who's found a way to play both positions, to effectively find the middle between high and low is Lucio Muramatsu. It's hard to find that middle, but right now I think it has a lot to do with getting your elbows to your knees. Or something like that. I'm still learning. But you gotta know what level you're fighting and react. Being in top position is what you want, but if the game changes, you need to reassess. 

I didn't bully him, but did sink in some chokes when I found them, then talked it over what I did and my thoughts on how he could protect more. One thing to always keep in mind is there is never a perfect position. In BJJ there is a counter for everything and an escape for everything and a variation for everything. Nothing is perfect. Gotta stay alert, read your partner, react, and keep your mind open. The best part though, is Haven's a cop. So I got to choke out a cop, like three times in a row, and I didn't even get arrested! My daytime work out is great!

Jiu Jitsu Diary - 8

So, today, besides being a great class, was pretty much a seminar on BJJ as an art as well as a martial art and a sport. Class was taught by Lucio Muramatsu and we started drilling with partners by choosing one pass to do ten times, one sweep ten times, and one submission ten times. I chose the Toreando Pass or Bullfighter Pass, Pendulum Sweep from Closed Guard (which has a Brazilian name that I can't pronounce, something like Bombalagamba, but that's totally wrong), and then Armbar from Closed Guard. Drilling was great, but one of the best things I learned from Lucio is that every pass has three parts: The Advance, the In Between, and the Establishment of Control. You make your move, you have a spot in the middle where you've passed but haven't established control, and then you do. So for the Toreando it's: move the legs (Advance), knee on belly (In Between), and then into Side-Control. It's not enough just to make it pass someone's legs/guard (passing means you pass the legs which is also known as the Guard cause if your opponent can keep their legs between you and them, there's no submission or control there), you have to establish control. I know, doesn't sound profound, but for me it really made sense. 

After that we rolled and I did a pretty good job of staying out of submissions, though of course, I did get submitted, by Mike Kazan and by Conrad. An Armbar and a Bow-and-Arrow choke, respectively. I did manage to get Adrian in Arm Triangle, but that's just cause he held onto a bad Guillotine too long, gotta give that up the moment you figure you can't close it. Oscar, of course, kept the action high. Almost got him in a Kimura, but really, he's so flexible that he let me have it while he set up his legs for an escape. But I did get a Judo throw on Mike! It was crappy, but I got him to the mat with a double collar throw and ended up in Side Control!

But the best stuff came after class. Lucio kinda went over his philosophy of minimum energy for maximum return. Also, discussed how it's easier to move yourself than your opponent. It's hard to put it all into words, mostly cause it is his approach and I'm still trying to understand it. I get it in theory, look for openings, think of it as chess, don't advance, move to the sides, but when I try it, I just get steamrolled by the likes of Mike and Oscar and everyone else. Still, it was nice to hear about his Algorithm as he calls it (yes, he's here in SF cause he has a start-up...). Anyhow, today was great, both physically and mentally. I hope to advance my game by staying calm and expending the minimum amount of energy for the maximum amount of return. Here's one of Lucio's matches, you can see how me moves so calm and methodical. He makes it look easy.

Jiu Jitsu Diary - 7

What a day. Exhausted. Lucio Muramatsu taught today and it seemed like everybody showed up for their new years resolution. Conrad, Ricky, Mike Kazan, Chester, Oscar, Robert, Henry, and myself, as well as Lucio. We went over the Spinning Armbar from Side Control and some variations. This is more or less what it looks like:

After that we did about a half hour of rolling where one guy is on the bottom and the guy coming in calls the guard: open, closed, half, De La Riva, etc. Whoever passes guard, sweeps, or gets a submission, that guy stays in and the other guy rotates out. It was rough. Somehow I got Conrad in a Kimura and managed to get Ricky off my back and take Side Control, but I think that was more of them giving it to me than me actually getting it, and nine times out of ten, I got swept or submitted. In the end, the question really is, who they hell wants to win and stay in the middle?