Wednesday 01/03 and Friday 01/05
Lots going on. I went to class on Wednesday looking forward to working out some of the kinks I picked up on Sunday. Before I talk about any of that, though, I want to be sure to mention that my daughter was promoted. She received the first stripe on her belt and is justifiably proud.
I've talked about the belt structure in BJJ before, at least for adults. Kids work a little differently. The kids have several colored belts in between White and Blue. For kids, there are four stripes on each belt, and the belt order is White, Yellow, Orange, Green, Blue. Promotions are handled the same way they're done for the adults, meaning there is no formalized testing and no schedule, per se, of when a student will be promoted. The other major difference is that the top level is a blue belt, which, based upon what I've read and heard, is not typically awarded to anyone under 16 years old. So, logically, as a dad, one of the first things I told my daughter is that she's not allowed to date until she's a Blue Belt. So, congratulations to my daughter for her first of what I hope are many promotions.
As a sidebar to the promotion, my son has decided after seeing how much fun my daughter is having that he might like to give it a go. He's asked a few times over a few days. We'll see in a few weeks if he's still interested, and if so I would be very proud to have both of them involved in this great sport. As we're driving along yesterday, my son said from the back seat, "Sooo... I'm still pretty excited about taking BJJ." Then, in a really bad impression of a Portuguese accent, "Hey! Zhoo Zhitsu!! Let's do it!" My daughter then gave him some very serious advice: "K, the one thing you need to know before you start. You'll be grappling with very... sweaty... people." Then she shuddered like Bart and Lisa when they were told they'd be buffing out their aunts' bunyuns.
I had a great time at class yesterday, although my elbows are a little sore. We worked on countering the basic Kimura from guard position. This is for when you're in someone's guard and either you get bumped forward and make the mistake of putting your hands on the ground next to your opponent, or if you're too loose and he's able to swim inside and push your hands out to the sides.
We actually learned two counters. The first is an "in time" counter for when he controls my wrist and I am able to react before he locks in the submission. The second was the "damn, this sucks" counter.
"In time" counter to Kimura from guard:
- Post with free arm on opponent's hip or on floor.
- Turn shoulders inside.
- Bend arm to free up elbow.
- Pull arm out in backstroke motion
- Reset, arms/elbows in and good posture.
2: Next thing I'm going to do is turn into him and take away his leverage. Continuing to post up on the left arm, I'm going to turn my shoulders so that he doesn't have the angle necessary to either break down my posture or crank the keylock.
3: I actually WANT to bend my arm, but I want to do it in such a way as to free up my elbow. If I do this correctly, I'll actually be creating space to free up my arm.
4: This is an explosive step. I should have space now to yank my arm out. If I can't get it out in one explosive move, a series of rapid, short pulls works very well. I need to continue all the way around in a backstroke type of motion. This will help me to reset. I can't just yank the arm out and then give up my back, which is what will happen if I don't sit back and reset.
5: I should be able to reset and regain a somewhat neutral position so that I can begin working to pass.
The "Oh Crap" counter goes like this:
- Step up with same side leg.
- Cup inside of that knee with trapped arm.
- Sit down, trapping hand in my own leg.
- From here, post up with other hand to regain posture.
- When ready, continue with Step 2 from "in time" counter.
2: This is where some people stop. They'll grab fabric or just reach deep behind their legs. You won't always have fabric to grab. In no-gi, you can't grab fabric, and what would happen if you're on the beaches of Brazil and you're fighting for your life while wearing a Speedo? It could happen! So, reach back deep and cup inside that knee.
3: Then sit down using your own bodyweight to help you defend the keylock. If I don't sit down, I might be able to defend for a while, but a knowledgeable opponent will be able to pry it loose and tear up my elbow or shoulder. I don't want that. So, I'm going to sit.
4: From the above position, I am relatively safe. At worst, we're in a stalemate and he'll eventually let go to work on something else. But if I want to control the match, I'll use my other arm to post up and regain good posture.
5: Once I have good posture, I should be able to continue with the "in time" counter.
I'm still working on putting together a game plan. It's a very simple concept, but I'm having a really hard time with it. I think I might be making it more complicated than it needs to be.
In sparring yesterday, I rolled with Crusher (a brown belt), Josh (blue belt) and Bill (Purple Belt). I got around guard a few times, had a few successful sweeps that I was really happy with. Rolling with Crusher, I managed to work a sweep technique that I really like. That was about it for that match. I pulled guard, worked initially to get an overhook and when he decided he'd had enough of that he pinned worked back and pinned my legs to move around guard. I controlled his arm, grabbed his belt and used his momentum to sweep him over. It wasn't an unqualified success, though. I didn't stay tight to him and retain control, so he continued to roll with the sweep and I had to abandon the position and move back to guard. I know he was going light.
I surprised Josh with a sweep at one point, too. Josh likes to stand up to pass guard. He's got several good techniques that he uses. So, I pulled guard and when he stood up I made sure to control his wrists and then waited to see which way he was going to go. I keep a foot on his hip and when he made his move, I was able to pick his other foot out and roll him over.
It was a good class, overall.
