The Butterfly Guard Examined

Over the next few posts, I'd like to focus on the Butterfly Guard as it is one of the most effective guard positions and one that is critical in all aspects of grappling be it Gi BJJ, no gi, or MMA.

Most all of the subscribers know of my views on the guard, for those who don't please refer to the Transitional Guard post.

The true beauty of the Butterfly guard is the many options and possibilities that it presents.

For those who don't know the position, here is an excellent video of a Butterfly guard sweep. Basically the butterfly guard involves both legs hooked with the ankles in between the opponents legs in a V shape, against the inside of the opponents thighs. It's important to note that the opponent is controlled using not only your legs but just as importantly your arms as well.
This guard lends itself beautifully to my strategy of the transitory nature of the guard as it forces you to act fast being that your opponent can free an arm and pass if you aren't very focused and busy at keeping him off balance.

The position itself will enable you to pull off fast and powerful sweeps as it lets you easily keep your opponent off balance and this is also one of the reasons why it is very useful in MMA as it makes it easy for you to take and keep your opponent off balance, preventing him from passing without having first to re-establish his posture as well as preventing him from hitting you with much power as he is off balance and will further sacrifice his balance and position if he attempts to strike.



The end of the video shows Rodrigo Gracie performing the sweep without the gi as well in competition. Watch for the slight variation he uses without the gi. As always you'll need to watch the video at the blog by clicking the link above.

Also due to the success of my free dvd promotion, I'd like to extend it for the Train Fight Win, Aggressive Guard DVD which covers the Butterfly guard extensively. Be aware though that the dvd covers no-gi technique.
It is an excellent training supplement that shows some great Guard work for developing an aggressive and dangerous Guard game. I highly recommend it!
And for a limited time while I discuss the Buttefly Guard I will offer everyone who purchases the DVD or download version of The Aggressive Guard from the Banner ad above, any DVD off of Jiujitsuuniverse.com of your choice absolutely free, (I'm even paying the shipping and handling!)
Just let me know which dvd you want with your mailing address by forwarding your email receipt to info @ jiujitsuuniverse.com (just remove the spaces).

I loved the emails about all the success everyone is having with the D'Arce choke DVD. Keep em coming!

Here's An Anaconda Choke Counter To A Takedown.

This week let's look at another excellent choke for countering the double leg takedown.

The Anaconda choke is an excellent alternative when your arm is catching your opponent over the top of his shoulder and crossing the front of his neck, grabbing underneath his arm pit.
Whereas the Brabo is applied from your arm catching your opponent underneath his arm across his neck with your hand coming over his opposite shoulder.

Great Response And Last Chance!

The offer for the free DVDs is almost over with 7 left. The response last weekend was amazing.
Anyone still thinking of picking up one of the free dvd's of their choice just has to order the Brabo choke dvd from the banner ad above and email me your receipt number along with which ever dvd you want, I'm even shipping them for free so get in now.
The last seven should be gone by tomorrow so email me first if you want.

Brabo Choke Used As A Counter To A Shoot.

Here is an excellent example of the brabo choke being used as a counter to a shoot. It occurs around 2:05
The video has music added to it that some find annoying but it's a great video of two champion level competitors, so check it out.
I'll be getting into some more detail in the next post.

Brabo = D'Arce Choke

Since I've received many inquiries on my new sponsor concerning the banner ad for the Brabo/D'Arce DVD above I'll answer the questions publicly here on the blog since many of you have the same questions.

I'll give a quick overview of the D'Arce DVD offered at www.trainfightwin.com/d'arce

As many of you know by now, my reviews are always as honest as can be and I always include the bad with the good and it has to be at least 80% good for me to even mention it.

The true value of this DVD are the clearly explained technical details for setting up the D'arce choke from many positions, including the open guard, side control, side control bottom reversal, the guard pass, as well as a really useful counter to a back attack to counter the rear naked choke.

The DVD is over an hour long and shows about 22 different strategies in technical detail for setting up the the D'Arce/Brabo choke clearly demonstrating the versatility I've been discussing and showing why this choke so often takes people completely by surprise when they least expect it if you know how to set it up properly.

It is definitely a high percentage choke.

That said the affordability of the video download version is great as you can watch the video right away and at $25.00 it can't be beat.

The one draw back of the video is that it lacks some of the basic detail of some of the positions making it not as useful for beginners and that's a shame because there are some very useful tactics for beginners to catch more advanced grapplers with.

The fact that's it's missing some positional details makes it ideal for Blue belts and above but I feel that with some more details on the positions involved, even white belts would have profited from the DVD. That's why anyone below a blue belt level should wait on this one.

So anyone who's above blue and wants to add a serious submission edge to their game, definitely pick this up!
Within weeks you can be landing the D'Arce choke unexpectedly.

Brabo Continued...

Continuing this week with another view of the Brabo Choke, (also known as D'Arce choke) this video shows an interesting and useful grip that can be applied to force your opponent onto his back.
Pay special attention to this and next post I'll be adding onto this demonstration with a video showing the Brabo applied as a counter to a shoot for a double leg.

Technique Analysis; The Brabo Choke Continued...

Now that we've seen a very basic variation of the Brabo Choke, let's take a look at the complete choke with the arm in.
I say complete because this is the full version of the choke and trapping the opponent's arm in makes the choke tighter.
It's not that the previous version doesn't work well, it's just that this is the full version of the choke and has a higher percentage of working because of the trapped arm.

You should experiment with both variations.

The true beauty of the Brabo is it's versatility. You can use this choke from many positions and it works well in taking your opponents by surprise.

Again, pay close attention to the trapped arm in this video.

Here white gi places it on blue gi while blue gi is passing white's guard and establishing side control.

Technique Analysis; The Brabo Choke From Inside Half Guard

Due to popular demand I'll be putting out a series of technique reviews on current video clips that are out there. It seems like alot of you miss these technique analysis type posts so I'll be returning to them over the next couple of weeks.

Over the next few posts I'll be looking at different possibilities and applications of the brabo choke, also known as the d'arce choke.

This first one goes over the basics of applying the choke from inside your opponents half guard. I chose this clip to start with because of it's simplicity as well as it's clear demonstration of proper arm placement for the choke.

The beauty of the brabo choke is it's applicability from a variety of positions and this is what makes it a very versatile choke as well as one of my favorites.

Pay attention to an important variation in the technique that I'll be discussing in a future post in that here they are demonstrating the choke without the arm in. I will more clearly be pointing out this difference in the next post.

The Importance Of Repetition In Training.

Repetition is a standard method of training in many martial arts and although many people will tell you that repetition will lead to the perfection of your techniques, this is only a half-truth.

Yes, repetition IS necessary to develop proper technique however it has it's limits.

The more accurate statement is that perfect and focused repetition is more productive than repetition alone.

Think about it.

Do you think 1000 reps of the same move will develop your skill as much as 100 reps where there is an effort to get all the details down perfectly as well as stay focused on the details as you're performing them?
I would go with the 100 focused reps anyday.

The point here is that although repetition is critical, you can fall into a trap where you waste time and do little for your advancement by aimlessly performing reps.
Staying focused on proper execution and paying close attention to the details will make every rep count.
This will take your skills further than doing 10 times the reps poorly.

Now, let's look at what makes repetitions a necessary part of training.

All champions share one thing in common regardless of their sport.

Simply put, they are able to pull off the technical moves necessary in their sport without thinking about them. This leaves them free to focus on strategy and pull off their techniques in the moment as they are needed.

By realizing the benefits and limits of repetition in your training, you can take your skills to higher levels regardless of the martial art or combat sport you practice.

Think There Are No "Secrets" In BJJ? Think Again...

It amazes me that people think there is nothing secret about performing at a higher level.
Just practice more and you'll figure it all out they'll say.

Well maybe it shouldn't amaze me because most people never excel or reach their potential, should I dare say that they are just lacking belief?
Or is it something more?

If you've only been practicing BJJ for under a year then you'll want to especially pay close attention to the post.

I hear many people new to BJJ say that improvement will come with more mat time. And although this is very true it isn't completely true.

What you do with your mat time is more important than just how much time you spend on the mat.
If you haven't heard this before then listen up as I reveal a "secret" that most people starting out in BJJ don't realise or weren't told enough.

Make the basics second nature.
My instructor once told me long ago, the basics are basic not because they are the easiest aspects of your training but because that is what you will use most in your training, without strong basics your game will never be what it can be. You'll always spend too much time to execute techniques that should be second nature to you and your game will suffer because of it.
Think about it, picture the best out there.
Whether Rickson Gracie, Marcelo Garcia, Xande Ribeiro, or anyone else. Do you think they execute any of the basics differently than anyone else? The difference isn't in how they execute the basics it's in their mastery of the basics.
It's in the fact that they don't have to "think" about applying the basics they just "do it" without any thought and that's one of the secrets to their mastery of their game.

So to make the most of your mat time identify all the basic moves you need to work on, shrimping, upa, the sit out, etc,... and dedicate mat time to perfecting these basics that you will use most of the time for the rest of your grappling years.

The secret of defense.
Although everyone knows that submissions are the most attractive part of BJJ, it's the part that leads up to the submission that eludes most beginners. The way to evolve past this stage is to develop a solid defense and this is where escapes are crucial. Being able to escape from bad positions and further yourself into a dominant position is what the game is all about so focus on developing an iron-clad defensive game early on.
Your long term success in BJJ depends on your ability to escape and better your position.

These are but two of the "secrets" in Jiujitsu but two of the most fundamental if you are ever to advance your game beyond your foundation.
Remember the strength of your bascis and escapes are what will allow you to advance your game to a higher level.