Josh Barnett - Attacking The Guard I noticed from some older posts that some of you were interested in a review of this DVD. I haven't found one, so I'll give it a go. My apologies if it has been done already. This is a seminar DVD, so don't expect it to go in depth like a typical instructional, but Josh does a great job of being clear and to the point while still covering the technical aspects. Without a doubt there is some very good info here for anyone looking to improve their top game. 1. Warmup - Josh takes the group through a basic warmup of running, jumping jacks, hindu squats, pushups, crunches, etc. Basic stuff followed by a full stretch. Josh goes over the importance of warming up/stretching before rolling. 2. Posture/Head & Hand Control - Josh covers proper posture to maintain head/hand control, and the importance of this to avoid submissions from the bottom. Various techniques to free your head and hands from the guard player including wristrolls, 2-on-1's, etc. Also shows some good drilling techniques. 3. Bracing - Covers a technique Josh calls bracing, which he suggests as a tool to use to catch a breather while still controlling the bottom man, and maintain head/hand control. This is probably the only piece that is not useful for MMA, as it can leave your head free to be struck from the bottom man. 4. Tripoding/Pressure - Josh goes over ways to put hard pressure on the bottom man by tripoding and driving your weight down. Some good info here. The next two sections follow up on this with punishment to the face, throat, etc., and combinations, 'putting it all together' so to speak. 5. Guard Break - Josh shows a simple way to break open the guard which he calls ''Take off a Pair of Pants''. Very simple and effective. 6. Snapping the Rubber Guard - Josh goes through some techniques to deal with a rubber guard player. Basic ways to free your head/hands as well as a toe-hold counter. Highlight of the DVD for myself, as I have put these techniques to good use many times. Very good piece. 7. Punishment - Covers ways of punishing the bottom man in order to create a reaction from him, to break the guard/escape/improve position. 8. Debate - Pretty funny piece thrown in on a debate of Pancrase vs Shooto. Good for a laugh, Josh is funny shit. 9. Striking - Covers proper ways to strike from inside the guard. Josh again points out the importance of head/hand control as related to striking. Some good ways of mixing your strikes, and also goes over the pros/cons of striking with distance compared to working short strikes from in close. 10. Leg Locks. The following three chapters cover a few leg locks to catch from top position including standing achilles, half crab, straight achilles, and toe-holds. Josh goes through proper technique and setups, proper way to fall into an achilles lock and keep your opp. from sitting up. Good stuff. Definitely a good buy for anyone who likes to play top game. I probably left some things out as I don't have a copy here to follow, but I think I covered most of it. Josh seems to have a knack for instructing, he does a very good job of being clear and to the point. Very good humour throughout the set for those who appreciate that. You can also see Josh's catchwrestling roots in many of the techniques, which I thought was great. Once again, a good buy. For those interested in buying it, I believe the price has come way down to around $35. I think I paid twice that when I bought it. Hope this helps. D
Thanks for the review. I might buy this. Never been a book or dvd guy personally, but Josh Barnett is the kind of grappler that would throw in wrinkles and tricks I haven't learned/can't learn from bjj classes.
