Common Mistakes

[GracieStudent]

hey i just started not too long ago training bjj. of course i'm soaking it all in. i was wondering if could get any tips and things to look out for as a newcomer. maybe experiences that helped improve your game. thanks

 

[RetiredWisFighter]

when going for the american sweep, make damn sure you situp on your hand and plant it. dont try to go for the sweep off of your elbow you will never have enough force. i still do that from time to time. also dont go for leglocks

 

[GracieStudent]

why no leglocks?

 

[Guards]

Because there's a very strong chance as a beginner that if you DO catch a leg lock, you could SERIOUSLY injure your partner. And if you fail to get a leglock, but your opponent lands one while you're both trying for one, YOU could get seriously injured. The knee-bar for example often doesn't hurt much until it's too late.

 

[GracieStudent]

damn i hope they have good defenses for those. the whole not hurting till it's too late sucks

 

[Ghostrider]

Remember tapping can be your friend as a beginner. Tapping is not a bad thing when you know you are caught. If you are not careful and try to tough it out when rolling, you can get hurt very quickly.

 

[VTJas81]

Some tips:


Practice your base. If your trying to pass someone's guard and they try to sweep you or submit you then stop and defend. Don't continue trying to go for it.

Know when a position is lost. If say you have someone's back and they are slowly turning toward you, its better to mount him then be put into your guard. Also true for submissions. Don't keep holding on if your going to be put in a bad position. Position before submission.

Keep elbows always tucked

 

[johil d'o]

Common mistakes in BJJ???

Trying to improve by following some third rate advice on the internet in lieu of training regularly.

 

[demonx]

Everytime I get armbarred I tell myself "don't leave your arms out"

Its something that will come with practice.

 

[Waxwingslain]

Don't spaz. Don't quit.

 

[triso]

Always have Posture, in every position. It should be the first thing you look to establish.

Grips: Whether you

 

[Brad]

my tips for beginners:

Underhooks win fights

Do shrimp drills until you want to vomit, every day. There is not a single thing in Brazilian Jiujitsu that is more important than learning how to move your hips, and how to move them properly. Good shrimping will help immensely with this.

Don't even think about submissions right now. You won't sink them because you don't know how to do them properly and you'll look stupid trying.

"When you are in a superior position, you want to take space from your opponent. When you are in an inferior position, you want to make space between yourself and your opponent."

"A straight arm is a broken one."

Posture and positioning are the most important things you can learn right now.

When in someone's closed guard, your instinct will be to reach back and try and uncross their ankles to open it. Please do not do this, everyone will laugh at you.

 

[colinm]

just a couple:

no thumbs in kimura/americana grips and most grips for that matter.

don't try to break the guard while you're "squared up" - angling your body will make it easier.

don't forget to squeeze your knees together for the armbar.

 

[Sherdog_Mutt]

Some tips:

1) posture posture posture

2) As a beginner, work hard at learning escapes and submission defenses. This will be your backbone in the future.

3) The hips are key. Submissions, sweeps, and controlling your opponent are all related (to a certain degree) to your hips.

4) Remember BJJ is a thinking man's game. The superior tactician/strategist has a big advantage. Try and map out a basic strategy/plan when rolling. There are going to be holes in any plan you come up with as a beginner but even a bad plan is better than no plan. In addition, this will help you realize exactly what areas you need to work on.

 

[GracieStudent]

that is all good advice... thanks so much

 

[Moving Shadow]

try and move yourself instead of trying to move your opponent ie it's a lot easier to push off a wall than move the building.

move your hips before you try and do anything from the bottom, especially escapes from mount/sidemount

passing guard - posture, keep elbows in (or u get dragged forward), and work to pin a leg to the ground

 

[ClubberLange]

experiment, experiment, experiment!
Don't be afraid to take risks, remember it's training, not the mundials.

 

[ClubberLange]

passing guard (even more)
- 1st step open the legs, once open try to keep a knee up, to prevent them closing it again
- 1 arm in, 1 arm out, or triangle, armbar, tap, tap, tap
- over or under the right, over or under the left
- never overcommit your weight to any side, UNLESS you have something to stop you being swept that way, ie- an arm, a leg, or even your head
- with your elbows stopping you from being pulled forward, one will have to be higher up
- don't extend arms
- learn to be aware of how what your doing leaves you vulnerable (normally comes from being swept and subbed over and over
- try to control the movement of their hips
- try to find 2 or 3 passes that work really well together, and use these as your bread and butter
- each time you get subbed or swept ask how and why it happened
- like someone said, posture, and keep a good base

OK, that's my ramble for the day