Simple grappling tips??

[Latani6]

I started training grappling, kickboxing and beginner MMA a few weeks ago and I am loving it. Been learning a lot and everyone has been really helpful.

However, a lot of the time I feel my physical strength is the only reason I'm not constantly getting trounced in open mat. I get my fair share of submissions but I can tell I am missing small incremental steps and such that are hindering me from using my strength to really continue my progress.

I am just asking for basic tips you guys all received early in your training that were easy to remember when you were going rounds and ultimately helped you learn on your feet a lot more efficiently. I don't expect a cure all thread, I just want some good little tips to have on my mind when I'm in top position or in rubber guard or on bottom, etc.

My instructor has been awesome and he's helping me step by step but I've always been a big advocate of showing up to each session, regardless of sport, with something new to experiment with.

Any replies will be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

[Chinaboxer]

for MMA grappling, keep practicing the "pummeling" drill and learn to get double underhooks. This is a vital drill for not only learning to establish good position for a takedown but also to stuff an opponent when he shoots in on you.

 

[Protegejoe296]

I know these are kind of cliched pieces of advice, but we've always trained with the mentality of establish quality position, then work for submissions. Also, master the basics first, then expand to more complex manuevers.

 

[Latani6]

Thanks guys. I find myself getting kind of stubborn with trying for a submission and that's definitely hindering me but I'm improving that. Hopefully I'll just find myself finding a more natural flow between sub attempts and gaining quality position.

 

[D Train]

Two in or two out.

 

[HEAVY GRAPPLER]

This is super-basic, but you said you just started...

When you are in someone's guard either keep both your arms are inside their guard or both your arms are outside their guard. Never one in and one out.

Also, when in guard never put your hands down on the mat.

EDIT: D-train beat me by less than a minute!!

 

[Latani6]

Last week I got caught in an armbar that was pretty tight because I left an arm in his guard and had a hand planted. I snaked my way out and got side control. I then proceeded to get off quite possibly the ugliest kimura imaginable

well, it worked at least.

 

[TheGambler13]

The first thing I learned was how to breathe, and keep breathing. Keep a consistent inhale and exhale cycle going. In through the nose and out through the mouth. Your muscles don't fatigue, and you don't panic. Eventually, you stop thinking about it and it becomes second nature. You could have the top cardio in the world, but if you don't know how to breathe your dead.

 

[Q mystic]

I started training grappling, kickboxing and beginner MMA a few weeks ago and I am loving it. Been learning a lot and everyone has been really helpful.

However, a lot of the time I feel my physical strength is the only reason I'm not constantly getting trounced in open mat. I get my fair share of submissions but I can tell I am missing small incremental steps and such that are hindering me from using my strength to really continue my progress.

I am just asking for basic tips you guys all received early in your training that were easy to remember when you were going rounds and ultimately helped you learn on your feet a lot more efficiently. I don't expect a cure all thread, I just want some good little tips to have on my mind when I'm in top position or in rubber guard or on bottom, etc.

My instructor has been awesome and he's helping me step by step but I've always been a big advocate of showing up to each session, regardless of sport, with something new to experiment with.

Any replies will be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Keep an eye on better fighters. The best there is and will reward you for more difficult work.

Mimicking those you relate to. And hard work of course. Wild imagination. You're prolly doin fine.

 

[HEAVY GRAPPLER]

Here is one more. I heard it from Jorge Gurgel.

"If you're lying flat on your back, you're not doing jiu jitsu."

 

[BlastBeats]

Something Tom Murphy said during a seminar that I've always kept with me:

"Anyone can learn an arm bar. In jiu jitsu it's not about the moves, its about the little movements."

 

[SuperSuperRambo]

Thanks guys. I find myself getting kind of stubborn with trying for a submission and that's definitely hindering me but I'm improving that. Hopefully I'll just find myself finding a more natural flow between sub attempts and gaining quality position.

If you're a beginner in the grappling world, and you worry that you're using too much strength, it at least shows that you have the right mentality to improve.

One way to avoid forcing things and submitting opponents with strength is to focus only on techniques you have been taught. A lot of times the submissions or techniques you force are the ones you don't know well enough to finish properly, and maybe you haven't learned the right way to do them yet. So keep it simple and go with what you know. Do things by the book, the way your instructor shows you, and you may find yourself using less strength without even thinking about it.

 

[Chris H]

Drill hip movement and work your guard often.

 

[Shemhazai]

Get the underhook. If you can't get it, use a whizzer to keep your opponent from taking your back when he has the underhook.