X-Guard Continued...

What a difference drilling makes. Last week we covered a basic X-Guard entry which felt like I was dragging an extra person with me on the mat. This weekend I figured out why I was having such a hard time with the entry - I was a sitting up while trying to scoot under my opponent. RA pointed out that I needed to transition to laying flight on my back - Not accustomed to this because I play open guard a lot by sitting up with a stiff arm in the neck as I scoot around hunting for the reversal. Not to mention in most cases it's not advisable to be flat on your back no matter the situation. Now I know why my hips felt so immobile. After about 15 minutes of drilling I finally got the timing down and started really committing to the entry. The X-Guard is starting to feel really natural. The cool thing is by sitting in the position I can "feel" about 3 reversals without RA showing me. It's all the basics right? Break the opponents posture down, eliminate the post and take the opponent over.

The choke I learned from 50/50 is going to be one of my favorites. I've been choked out via this submission and have seen it on you-tube a bunch. Anything doable from side control is sweet.

The steps as I remember them:

1. From side control leave the top arm floating underneath my opponents head.
2. Remove the floating hand and reach over lightly over-hooking my opponents head as I simultaneously hip switch using my rib area to force my opponent to look away from me.
3. Still maintaining light pressure and my head tucked to the opposite side I slide to 50/50 position still with only one hand around my opponent's head.
4. At this point my opponent feels an escape route is directly south and will typically start to squirm out.
5. As my opponent squirms south his neck is exposed at which time I go palm to palm squeezing for the choke.

Mat log:

Felt pretty good in spite of getting tapped out via ankle lock and a lapel choke from the back. I do remember getting a reversal using a technique Rob taught me years ago. I also remember being able to get to my knees and defending a few chokes from the turtle position, eventually sitting back to guard.

A side note on my cardio - the treadmill is working. I've been running a mile and working dumbbells and medicine ball drills several times a week.

 

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The power of fatigue

I remember having lunch with my first BJJ instructor Orlando Waugh (2nd degree black-belt) at a local Chili's about a year ago. We were talking about the importance of physical fitness and its relationship to my level of performance on the mat. The bottom line was that my physical fitness level would not support the performance level I was hoping for at the time. I'll never forget what he told me - "fatigue makes cowards of all men." Wow! What a revelation. A simple concept yet not so simple. I've always felt relatively mobile and sensitive on the mat but 4, 5, 10 minutes into a roll, my ability to perform escapes under a higher ranked student would go out the window. Being less skilled than the guy on top of you also adds to the helpless, exhausting and fearful feeling [fear is another post all together]

This will change over the next few months. To support my 2009 goals, I'm purchasing a treadmill to add some cardio to my training. In addition to rolling 3 times per week, I'll run and work basic lifts to help me survive a little longer while rolling with guys like my current instructor Chris Story. 

Mat Log - No mat time this week. Still in California visiting my kids. Planning.