SLC MMAExploring MMA and Jujitsu in Salt Lake City Utah

Half Guard KimuraFiled Under: Instruction

So … I’ve been sick for the last six weeks or so (non-communicable lung infection) which makes me cry, because jujitsu justice is not being performed at full throttle.  However, the lockdown of illness has been ebbing and I’ve rebounded with a counter submission of my own  – suck monkey turd, disease! – my immune system.

In that spirit, we spend last night’s class on only one submission, the KIMURA.  While we used the kimura in several different circumstances (breaking the grip of a back-to-belly hold, from the guard, etc) we spend a good deal of time with the half guard kimura.  Not only do I love the half guard kimura, but so does Krzysztof Soszynski.

Thankfully, the submission is much easier than spelling his name.

First, we over the basic points of the kimura, nicely summarized by Steven Kesting, of grapple arts renown.

To add to this, we discussed some variations.  If your opponent tries to pass to you back underneath your leg, you can use it to sweep or transition to an armbar.  Or if you’re wily enough,  sometimes get your outside leg rapped around the back and into the arm space your attacking, without them trying to pass underneath it.  Kinda like rubber guard … ish.  I love to try it because it baits people to pass under it, which leads to the aforementioned armbar.  Below, a video that explains that pretty darn well (check the last half, it’s 8 minute vid).

So to recap, here are the basic pointers of finishing the half guard kimura.

Keep tight on his arm, otherwise they’ll worm out of it.

After you slap on the kimura, get the wrist beyond (behind) their ribcage fast. Don’t slow down until they can’t grab onto something.  Being slow on the upward motion begs a block.

Keep the hand away from his thighs – even beginning grapplers will block you with the “scratch the groin” defense.  Prevent this in the first place.

After you get the arm on its way behind the back, to painville, get out from underneath the guy and get to the side.  Seeing the videos will make this clear.

Anyway, while rolling with one of the guys post instruction, I get caught in a solid kimura from half guard and was pleased to remember how much it hurts. However, with Christmas right around the corner, remember that it is far more blessed to give, than receive.

Tags: half guard, kimura, submissions

Z GuardFiled Under: Instruction, Local

Okay, I’d like to come clean from the get go. I don’t play Z Guard, I’m not good at Z Guard, heck, I don’t know how to break down the Z Guard. (I’ve recently been getting submitted by some z guard moves ) .

Which is why I needed some help.

I asked Eddie Edmunds of Team Fusion Academy to show me some passes and principles of Z guard.

Another to keep in mind is that there are a bunch of “versions” of the z guard.  Steven Kesting defines the z guard as the knee-in half guard, with the knee either drawn across the belly (like a half guard scissor sweep) or the knee tilted up on the chest and shoulder ( the variation I use – akin to a half spider guard, shin on bicep sort of thing). I’ve also seen Gene Simco show the “zig zag” guard with the gi – it’s like s-mount but from the guard,  if that makes any sense.

Anyway… the point is that the legs make a Z formation of some kind, and the knees and the hooks help create distance and control your opponent.

The above videos come from a longer shoot Eddie and I did together – I’ll release more of them in a future post with an interview with Sensei Edmunds. Also, the full quality version of the videos will be available for direct download at that point as well.

Tags: Eddie Edmunds, Fusion BJJ, half guard, z guard