Lesson 6 - Ways to Choke from the Mount and “The Second Hand Rule”

We saw on lessons 2 and 3 two ways to choke from the mount like with both hands with palms down and with palms up. But we can mix it and we can find two ways more like left hand palm up and right hand palm down, and left hand palm down and right hand palm up.


left hand palm up and right hand palm down














left hand palm down and right hand palm up













both hands with palms down













both hands with palms up














Some times when you are using these four ways to choke you will able to make both grips (left and right hands) at the same time, but most of the time you will make one grip first and later the other. So when it happens, the second hand must follow a rule. I like to call it “The Second Hand Rule”.

“The Second Hand Rule”
Doesn’t matter how you did your first grip (palm up or down) but to choke using less energy you must follow a simple rule to do your second grip. When your second hand is going to over your first hand’s forearm you must to do this grip with palm down. When your second hand is going to under your first hand’s forearm you must to do this grip with palm up. Following this rule your success when you are choking will increase a lot. And this rule is applicable when you are choking from the mount, when you are choking from the half-guard (on the button and on the top), and when you are choking doing guard.

Lesson 5 - Open Guard Standing Up and Controlling One Sleeve

You must to be with a good posture and stable to try stand up.



Grab both lapels with one hand. Use the other hand to reach your opponent’s sleeve. Set his forearm (the sleeve controlled) under your forearm (the same arm that is grabbing his lapels).



Put your foot on the ground at the same side that his controlled arm.



Stand up and get your base.



As soon as you will be standing up, put your back straight. At this moment forget his lapels and use both hand on his controlled arm (avoiding sweeps). Do a light arc with your back driving your head backward and your hip forward; it will help your balance. Don’t bend your body to forward keep your back arced. Sometimes to keep your balance walk forward and backward but never bend your body, keep the arc.



You are standing up with balance so take your time… If you are in right standing posture you will be able to stay like that “all day long”. Only if you are secure, keep one hand controlling his arm and with your other hand set in-between your butt and his locked ankles. Deep your arm with your palm facing your butt, don’t grab nothing let this hand free.



Now is the secret that few people are doing. Shake your hip up and down shortly (not forward and backward and not side to side) at the same time keep deepening your arm in-between his legs trying cupping his thigh with your free hand. With your other elbow (the same arm that controlling his sleeve) force a little bit against his knee. Keep your hip shaking UP and DOWN SHORTLY. His locked ankles will open.



When it’s happen finish a tide cup on his thigh pressing it against your biceps. Don’t let his thigh to go over your shoulder. And your hand that are controlling his sleeve, must to be close to your hip because at this moment you have a high risk to receive a triangle choke. Don’t let his hip slide to the ground keep it close to your hip let only his shoulders plates on the ground. Almost at the same time forget his sleeve and drive this hand in-between your hip and his hip, doing a grip on his pant close to his tailbone.



Only when you will be secure with this grip on his butt (avoiding triangle choke) forget your hand cupping his thigh and with this hand palming down reaching the opponent’s opposite collar doing a good grip and set your forearm on his neck.



Trap his leg using your shoulder and head. Drive his leg to his face like trying to put his knee in his face. At the same time lift his but with your hand over there and force your forearm on his neck (sometimes if he is not protect him self he will tap at this point). Put your knee on the ground at the same side of your forearm on his neck. Move slowly with this knee and your other foot to his side, keeping his leg trapped and pressing his knee against his face.



As soon as you will be on his side change the action on his butt. Instead of lifting his butt, push it to the ground keeping his leg trapped with your head and shoulder. He will be on a really uncomfortable situation and you just need give to him a gap on his leg driving your chin up and let it go to achieve the side control situation.



That is it!

Lesson 4 - Posture Inside the Opponent's Close Guard

You are inside your opponent’s close guard with your knees on the ground and the most important thing there is keep your posture for a good handwork to pass his guard. Don’t try passing his guard before acquire a good and stable posture. If you are felling without balance forget pass his guard. Focus in your own posture and balance.

To help you to do that try imagine a yellow rectangle. His 4 corners are opponent’s nipples and hipbones. You must to do handwork to pass his guard inside this rectangle. So you able to grab on opponent’s lapels, belt and pant (I prefer lapels). Don’t grab his collar because it is outside “The Rectangle”. Your hands must are grabbing something never let your hands open and free (I am talking about gi game). Never put your hands on the ground, if your opponent yank your lapels breaking your posture use your elbows on the ground to recover your posture, again never put your hands on the ground.

Now “The Rectangle” is tattooed in your mind lets go to another point.

Try imagining now a “Red Line” starts at opponent’s nose and finishing at his tailbone, passing in-between his chest, over his belly button and so. This line divides “The Rectangle” in two parts. Your hands must respect this line, don’t across it. Both hands working inside “The Rectangle” and each hand respecting their own side of “Red Line”. You will be able to set your grip over the line sometimes but never crossing the line.

Why I need respecting this “Red Line”? Because your opponent’s goal is put your arm on diagonal (crossing the line) to arm bar you, sweep you or just to break your posture and you need avoid it.

To increase this ability practice only this part of game like one guy doing posture and other one trying break it. All the time keep “The Yellow Rectangle” and “The Red line” on your mind. Start with no full power and speed. Remember both of you are getting confidence. You must cooperate instead of compete each other at the first time.