Day 76: Murderers' Row

Keeping a training log is no joke, especially when one is as ignorant as I. Every session is full of useful bits of new knowledge and refinements to old techniques, scarcely grasped or otherwise. In a perfect world I would commit every iota of wisdom to this digital diary, but by now I am convinced of the futility of that notion. Sparse updates will have to suffice, and here's to hoping that my memory can pick up the slack.

Recently I've begun to search for another submission from the mount. I have some confidence in my armbar, but I felt the need for more balance, more options. Jason suggested the "wrestler's choke", basically an arm triangle. From mount, get your opponent's left arm across his body, ideally with his shoulder compressed against his neck. You can use the "gift wrap" if you like to control the wrist from behind his head. Slide your left arm under uke's trapped arm, and lock in the triangle by grabbing your right bicep. Here, it pays not to shoot your left arm so deep behind uke's neck: the best choking is done by the blade of your forearm, so you want that on his carotid. With the triangle locked, unmount to your right and drop your weight down onto the trapped shoulder, squeezing for the tap.

This week Kahlil had us working another choke from the mount, the simple cross collar choke. It's pretty tough to sink in when your partner is expecting it, but understanding the biomechanics of the choke and mount stability are key. Get the first grip by crossing your right hand over to get a deep, palm-up grip. You want to be deep enough that the blade of your forearm is against your opponent's carotid. If you are performing the choke on a corpse, bring your left arm over your right to secure a palm-down grip on the opposite lapel. Drop your head and pull your elbows to your abdomen to finish. However, on anyone with a pulse, you are in imminent danger of being rolled as you pursue that second grip. Base hard to your left while you search for the handle. You can grapevine the legs, and stretch uke out as you drive your pelvis into his diaphragm. One way to get the grip is to hook your thumb into the collar on the left, then loop it over uke's head to sink the choke. Tough.

After drilling the choke dry and and against some resistance, I sparred with some gnarly grapplers in succession. Jack didn't sub me this time-- he transitioned to spider guard, I postured up (expecting the triangle), and instead he kicked me in the temple trying to get the triangle anyway. I begged off to collect my wits, and he moved on to healthier prey. Small victories, eh?

Cobwebs cleared, I rolled with Thomas next. It was our first time sparring, and I was a bit nervous. He is an intense purple belt who favors leglocks and is known for an absurd reluctance to tap. Great. I think I surprised him a bit, as he plowed forward with choke attempts with nary a setup, but I was able to defend adequately. He armbarred me once, and I think finished a choke as well. I was able to keep my head, however, and work escapes and defenses without panicking.

Finally Del asked to have a go. He pulled guard, and scissored his leg across. I had a feeling he was not really interested in the scissor sweep. I worked to pass back around the leg he pulled across my waist, but his hip movement was good, and he captured the far arm for the sweep to the opposite side from that position. I was able to get guard, but he neutralized my game by staying low and tight. I attempted the pendulum sweep a few times, but his base was too good. He baited me into a triangle attempt, stacked me, and passed to side control, and quickly, mount. He was putting the pressure on pretty hard, so I wound up giving up my back. I was almost able to turn into his guard, but he went for the armbar. I stacked him, but he was able to hip out for the belly-down armbar and the tap.

Rolling with such tough competitors is a huge resource for me. My submission defense and escapes are improving at a rapid rate. I don't feel threatened by submissions from anyone at my level of experience, at all. Now if I can just find some partners that I can work an offensive game on, I'll be all set.