On the Mat Day 252: A Good Mix

F-sensei taught us butterfly guard sweeps last night. I really like butterfly guard but find it hard to pull the opponent into me. They usually stand up then I transition to a sitting guard hook, which I am also weak at playing. I do like the buttefly guard to x-guard switch though. The thing is with butterfly guard, the control has to be very precise. I tend to let my underhooking elbow rise up which means I get pummeled into and lose the control. It was a good lesson but I want to drill more.

Last week a guy came to watch the class and said he would come for a trial lesson last night. He never showed. This doesn't suprise me. I think many people believe jiu-jitsu to be a mix of Aikido like drill and self-defence with set scenarios. Not many seem to realize it involves live sparring. Our club has gained a few new members recently but F-sensei says that they usually fill the ranks of the people who leave so it evens out. I'd like to see the school grow. F-sensei said his goal was for all of us to some day teach BJJ. I think he likes the idea of everyone getting a piece of what he believes is a great art/sport.

There was a good mix of people training. Three white belts, 1 blue, 1 brown and 1 black. This made sure that I got my arse kicked as well as got to work on weak areas with the white belts. One of the white belts seemed to avoid me for some reason. I went really easy on him last time we sparred but he hasn't been for a while. He is smaller than me so I wanted to use him to work escapes I am weak at. I asked Tete to show me what he did for North-south escape. He uses his elbows to make space inside the opponent's arms while I tend to frame over the biceps. I think his way is better and I will try to use it. I watched him caught in Fuji-san's side control and suffer as much as I do until he finally escaped. Fuji has got some really powerful pressure from that position. I also escaped eventually but it was to eventually turtle then gramby roll out. Tete also had a grappling competition this weekend and won his category although he lost in the absolute. I dug up a few of his matches including his one in Thailand last year. He's always interesting to watch.


Sparring time: 6 x 6 mins = 36 mins

Notable moments: Couple of good triangle setups. I still need to get better at locking it in and making it tighter. Letting white belts take my back so I can work escapes.

Technique to research: De la Riva hook attacks on opponent with combat base