Jiu Jitsu in Hot Springs: Is There Such Thing As A Bad Position?

Jiu Jitsu in Hot Springs : Is There Such Thing As A Bad Position? 

If you train Jiu Jitsu in Hot Springs or anywhere else for that matter, in particular if you’ve just started, you probably find yourself in a lot of “bad” positions. It’s common to get stuck in the bottom of mount. This is not a place you want to be. Your opponent is smothering you, dripping sweat in your face and attempting to lock up one of your limbs or choke you.  You might feel claustrophobic and even panic. You can’t get them off no matter how much you try. Equally it’s not fun to be stuck in the bottom of side control, with someone smashing your face and head like a pimple.  While training Jiu Jitsu in Hot Springs , there’s a lot of positions we don’t want to be in. Are they bad positions? You might think so now, but my response might make you do a complete 180 in your current beliefs and strategies about Jiu Jitsu.

I’m going to start off by showing you a video of one of our students at the Pan No Gi.  Bobby trains Jiu Jitsu in Hot Springs and Benton.

Now, let’s analyze what happened, step by step: In this match, Bobby locks in a Kimura from the guard.  The guard is a great place to do a kimura, as your legs and body give you the positioning and leverage to finish. Bobby’s opponent then does correct to pass the guard. He moves to side control and then mount. By advancing his position, Bobby’s opponent moves to a spot of superior mechanical leverage. Bobby makes several attempts to sweep the opponent over using the submission, but he is in a position of inferior mechanical leverage, so it’s difficult.  In fact, Bobby actually puts himself at risk of being submitted. His opponent’s failure was not capitalizing on his own advancement. His opponent should have used his position of superior leverage (mount, side mount) to free his own arm and submit Bobby.

As to not let his mistake cost him, Bobby listened to proper coaching: As long as he held the submission, his opponent would not get the 3 points for a guard pass and 4 points for the mount.  To correct his initial mistake, he was instructed to not let go, and he didn’t. While training Jiu Jitsu in Hot Springs and Benton, Bobby trains to listen to instruction during his match.  He excelled at this in his match. He was a robot!

In our classes for Jiu Jitsu in Hot Springs and Benton, did we teach Bobby to go for submissions from the bottom of mount? No. In fact during our Jiu Jitsu in Hot Springs , we teach the students how to submit from positions of superior mechanical leverage.  We teach him to do what his opponent should have done in our classes for Jiu Jitsu in Hot Springs and Benton.

Now, this match brings to light an interesting question:

“Is there such thing as a bad position?”

As you can see, Bobby won his match decisively via arm break, from the bottom of side control.  Bobby was in a lot of “bad” positions in his match, yet he still prevailed. How did he do this from such a bad position?

Jiu Jitsu in Hot Springs

Well, here’s the answer:

“In reality, there is no such thing as a bad position in Jiu Jitsu!” 

In fact, the word “bad” position is poor terminology. In fact what people should be saying is “less efficient positions”, “positions of inferior leverage”, “positions that cause you to generate less force”.

When it comes to finishing a submission in Jiu Jitsu, it comes down to who can produce the most force.

What is force?

In physics, a force is any influence that causes an object to undergo a change in speed, a change in direction, or a change in shape. In other words, a force is that which can cause an object with mass to change its velocity (which includes to begin moving from a state of rest), i.e., to accelerate, or which can cause a flexible object to deform. Force can also be described by intuitive concepts such as a push or pull.  Forces which do not act uniformly on all parts of a body will also cause mechanical stresses,^[2] a technical term for influences which cause deformation of matter.

Now, what in Jiu Jitsu contributes to the production of force?  Well, there are several things, but the one you will most likely learn first are the concepts of Mechanical Leverage and Efficiency:

Mechanical leverage: You have already heard me reference this a few times. As you begin your training in Jiu Jitsu in Hot Springs , it’s important to learn that the fundamental rules that make  Jiu Jitsu and Martial Arts effective are those of body mechanics.  All of us have 2 arms, 2 legs, 1 neck, and all of our arms, legs, neck, etc move in the same manner.  There are certain ways to lock a joint, there are certain ways to secure a choke, and there are certain ways to secure positional control using these fundamentals of body mechanics. Jiu Jitsu is generally taught from a perspective of mechanical leverage. It is always a good idea to try to advance your position to a position of superior mechanical leverage, and do your submissions from positions of superior mechanical leverage. This allows you to generate the most force, and that allows you to win and stay safe.  You may have started training Jiu Jitsu in Hot Springs because you heard the saying: “Jiu Jitsu allows a smaller person to defeat a larger person using proper technique and leverage.”

Efficiency: Efficient positions are those that work, and allow you to conserve energy. When you have conserved energy, you can generate force though muscle contractions, leverage, etc. Inefficient positions don’t allow you to generate force. It could be for a number of reasons, such as the position doesn’t allow you to properly push or pull, rotate, or move in the manner needed to produce force. It could also just require too much effort that by the time you are finished with your escape, you don’t have anything left to generate force for a submission. Regardless, the more efficient a position is, and the more efficient place you are when executing a submission, the higher your chances for success.  It was not efficient for Bobby to attempt to sweep his opponent in that manner from the bottom of mount. He expended a lot of energy that could have cost him.

“So What Contributed To Bobby’s Success, Despite His Giving Up Mechanical Leverage and Efficiency?”

Strength:  Strength produces force through a system of levers.  Strength is dependent on a number of things such as musculature, size of the levers, and the nervous system.   You will often hear that strength doesnt matter in BJJ. In fact that might be true for a self defense scenario: A 125 lb girl might be able to escape the attack of a 200 lb man by using the skills she learned training Jiu Jitsu in Hot Springs, provided the man doesn’t know Jiu Jitsu . However, Strength does matter, especially in competition. In competition, people are paired near equally on size, age, and skill level. A number of factors determine who wins, but strength matters. While Bobby was in a position of inferior mechanical leverage, the force generated from the strength of his muscles, bones and nervous system on his opponent’s joint proved superior to his opponent’s position of superior mechanical leverage.

In other words, You can override the basic concepts in Jiu Jitsu of superior mechanical leverage and efficiency via other means such as strength, speed, timing, flexibility, etc.

(Today we only discussed strength, we’ll save the rest for another day)

“Now, here’s the most important thing: It’s all about your mindset:”

Mindset: A lot of people lose or get defeated in class due to negative mentality. When put in  any position you don’t want to be in, don’t freak out. Don’t panic. Don’t quit! Calm yourself and plan your next move. As you can see, Bobby didn’t just give up his position and accept defeat. He didn’t let his opponent trap his head, and smash him and get those 7 points. If Bobby had a negative thought about getting his guard passed, being in the bottom of side control or being mounted, he might have given up. Instead he believed in his submission. He never quit and that is why he was triumphant.

Here is some advice for training Jiu Jitsu in Hot Springs , or anywhere else:

• 1.  Do not view positions as “good” or “bad”.
• 2. When training Jiu Jitsu in Hot Springs , Benton or anywhere else I would highly recommend that you first learn techniques from the position of mechanical leverage.
• 3. As you progress in your training in Jiu Jitsu in Hot Springs , you will soon realize that more factors in to winning a match, finishing a submission, etc, such as: strength, speed, flexibility, etc. While we only discussed a few here, but keep in mind that there are no absolute rules in terms of positions, submissions, escapes, etc.
• 4. Believe in yourself and your techniques. When a mistake happens in competition or in class training, don’t let negative thoughts stop you from following through. I’m not saying go for some crazy submission and give up position, but believe in yourself, believe in your ability to escape, if nothing else.  And always believe in your ability to finish a submission.

Wanna try Jiu Jitsu in Hot Springs ?

Click here for 30 Days Free!

Mixed Martial Arts In Benton AR : You Are Always Improving!