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Clarifying my views on Ari Bolden (Submissions101) I've gotten more than a fair share of emails regarding Ari Bolden, the young man who you know as the face of Submissions101, and now a 10thPlanet Affiliate, asking how I could defend such a fraud and whatnot by using his videos, and I'd like to just explain myself and explain to those of you who don't know what the issue was.
Now, why is Bolden hated by a good number of those in the Jiu Jitsu community? I'll go ahead and just bullet point the main issues:
He's a JJJ Black Belt (unsure of lineage) teaching BJJ.
Well, actually, when you press him, he doesn't say BJJ. He teaches "10thPlanetJJ."
His videos don't cover a lot of crucial details, and relatively often show techniques that will get you countered to hell and back.
Probably the funniest thing I've heard about Submissions101 before 10th Planet Victoria is this: "They have no rank in BJJ, but presume to teach grappling because: a) They put in a hell of a lot of time on JJJ knife-defence and b) they once shared a joint with Eddie Bravo." -PointyShinBurn, Bullshido Forums
Now, why do I not hate on the guy, despite being generally committed to taking out the trash when it comes to frauds? Well, because while I think he misrepresents himself, I do believe he knows the 10th Planet stuff fairly well, has pretty good students and people to learn from currently, he's fairly dedicated to learning it, and while his videos aren't top notch, it's still pretty good stuff to show to get the general gist of the techniques I'm trying to explain. I believe that for free, he's done a pretty good thing.
Would Eddie have been so supportive if Ari hadn't brought throngs of 10th Planet supporters together online? Probably not, but he has, and I am confident that he'll be just fine of a Jits teacher in the future once he puts his game together and patches the holes that are there.
So, hate him if you must, but don't expect me to blast him online. If you're a fan of his videos, just make sure you take some of them with a grain of salt, and review them with a proper instructor. If you're a hater, just don't watch his videos, and inform the ignorant so that they can make a decision for themselves.
Combination of these things to make your opponent's life miserable.
God damn Frank Shamrock is a goofball. Good at communicating his thoughts, but still a goofball.
For self defense purposes, hooking INTO the eye socket and nose are viable options as well, but I wouldn't recommend trying it during sparring, unless you want to make people very upset at you.
Oh, and another good way when you're attempting a RNC in MMA sparring, cover his mouth and nose with your glove-covered hand, and when he tries to move his head to avoid it, use that motion to sink the choke in.
If you're anything like me, I tend not to go for double legs because I'm always getting sprawled on. However, avoiding such an effective move altogether is not the best of ideas. Just like how you have to be good at the guard to have an effective offensive mount due to the assortment of sweeps you can encounter, you have to be able to recounter counters to a takedown attempt to be good and confident in your takedowns.
Often, when sprawled on, you end up in a turtle position, with your opponent taking an over-under control with his arms. If that's the case, the Wrestler's Sit Out is perfect for you. Keep in mind that having a good core is very important for this move.
1. You're turtling off your opponent's sprawl, and your opponent has over-under control.
2. Reach across to just outside of your opponent's knee with your trapped arm. Move on to the next step immediately or else you're going to find yourself in a much worse position.
3. Tripod, throw the leg of the trapped side out diagonally as well while turning away and back, grab the hand of the arm that's inside with your free hand as you're turning. Use your head and shoulders to push into your opponent.
4. Spin around immediately, and you will have effectively just switched positions with your opponent. Transition as you please from here.
Judo Throw Combinations and Set Ups Throws more often than not require strings of combinations and setups to successfully toss a skilled and resisting opponent on their head, much like how without knowing how to combo submissions in Jiu Jitsu, you won't get very far in your game.
The link above goes to a judoinfo.com page (a great resource overall, btw.) regarding Judo throw combinations, counters, and set up attacks. All the attacks are linked to illustrations regarding how to perform the throw, making it easier to visualize among those of you who can't always seem to remember what a specific throw is called (myself included).
So, here's your homework assignment: Pick 4-6 throws that you want to be able to perform and write down the corresponding row of moves. Turn that sheet into a map. On that map, take notes on important details regarding each and every move- everything from entry to grip. Then take that map and a willing partner and go through each series in a simple progression-
1. Successful set up throw 2. Countered set up into successful throw 3. Countered set up and throw into successful follow up throw.
I guarantee you that your ability to take people down will improve significantly.
Basic Hand Position and Posture for Top Guard
This is going to be a short and simple BJJ post without video, but it is something that all beginners need to know and keep in mind, because improper hand position is all a good jits guy needs to own your ass when you're in their guard. Also, it's very easy to forget these rules when you first start or after a long period of not sparring.
Let's look at the ideal proper posture for top guard:
1. Good back posture, not hunched over and looking down
This alone will give you more time and will force your opponent to work harder to do anything. Having your head down makes it easier to pull you down to work submissions and sweeps.
2. Hands on opponent, not on ground
Unless you really enjoy giving your arm up to your opponent to do as he wishes, likely in the the form of a Kimura, or at the very least, an overhook, don't put your goddamn hands on the mat. Be proactive in this, because it's likely the other person will be trying to force your hands there.
3.Each hands on respective side, not crossed over
Often I see shitty crossface attempts and guard opening attempts that make me cringe. Unless you know what you are going for and know what's coming, don't leave your arm dangling across your centerline. Otherwise you are going to be victim of a whole assortment of things such as armbars, triangles, arm triangles, and getting your back taken.
4. Hands palm down, right underneath the opponent's ribcage
This makes it much harder for your opponent to sit up and just grab you. This is a very integral part of the top game in terms of establishing position and helping you move on to passing the guard and preventing submissions. However, I'd suggest keeping your fingers together, unlike the picture above.Also, try to line up your elbows with just outside the center of your opponent's thighs.
5. Both arms over legs (Or both arms under when passing), not one in and one out
To top it off- not really shown in the picture, but remember, arms on the same side of the legs, always. Either they are both over or both under the legs, otherwise your opponent gets a triangle served on a silver platter.
Hope you guys keep these things in mind next time you roll, and if you're playing guard, look for the opportunity when your opponent doesn't follow one of these rules.
Most of you have seen a million and one armbar from guard defenses already, but this one in particular, shown by Dave Camarillo, is always a good escape to have in mind. I call this one the "RNC Escape," but there are many names for this one.
1. Opponent traps your arm and pivots to go for the armbar. Remember that this escape really only works well for the traditional armbar with both arms inside the guard.
2. Immediately go for a RNC position with your arms, arm that's being attacked grabbing the bicep of the other arm, and the hand of the other arm open, waiting.
3. The open hand is to catch the leg that will be coming over your head. You need to catch the leg to prevent your opponent from being able to extend his hips.
4. Push the leg off, and escape the position, either by stacking or yanking the elbow out, as shown in the video.
I've been meaning to write the review for some time now, and apologies to Mr. Kesting for not doing so sooner.
As many of you know, Stephan Kesting is a grappling expert who runs http://www.grapplearts.com, and he made a website aimed specifically at those of you just beginning or thinking about starting your BJJ journey.
You should go ahead and download the "Roadmap for Brazilian Jiu Jitsu," (free with just writing down your email address, which he won't sell to anyone.) I could go ahead and review this booklet for you, or I could just copy/paste the gleaming review I wrote that's already on his page:
"BJJ is an incredibly complex martial art, and at the beginning of one's training in it, learning even those basic positions can be a daunting task, not to mention the transitions and flow of one position to another. As a MMA and BJJ Blogger as well as a BJJ practitioner, I have seen failed attempts in many pricey instructional books and videos on breaking down the basic positions of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu for beginners.
Mr. Kesting's BJJ Roadmap is one of the best readings on jiu jitsu I have come across in a very long time, and not only does it break down the positions carefully and simply, it's free! I have already recommended it to many of my readers as well as my friends who are just starting out in BJJ, and I will definitely continue to do so."
Now, it would seem kind of silly for me to be writing all this for just a free ebook, and so, I'm going to try to sell those of you with a little spending cash who read the ebook and liked it on buying his beginner's package, which can be found here: http://www.beginningbjj.com/package/
As someone who's helped work on pricing for a home shopping network, I'd be lying if I said that the little thing about having the package be "worth $1075.90" wasn't a little bit of an exaggeration, but it's sure worth the actual $197 price tag in my humble opinion. Why? Basically, if you're a beginner, you're getting about 5-10 private session's worth of information for the price of 1 or 2. I've personally re-watched the DVDs about 4 times now and the poster that comes with it is proudly taped on my bedroom door.
I might actually also suggest that BJJ schools and clubs carry this on hand as "required study" for newcomers, because I know that in small clubs, it's often frustrating to reteach the basics over and over again every time someone new comes in.
So, please check it out. :)
-Y
PS- if you buy Stephan's stuff, feel free to leave me a donation as well :)
by Saulo Ribeiro
