How do I know I was meant to train jiu jitsu? Just last night I was working on an "armdrag unplugged" idea, trying to break down the steps of the armdrag counter to the foot grab while in Cobra guard. I pretty much figured one out, and figured I'd get around to posting it a little later.
Tonight in training what does Rodrigo have us do? Arm drags.
This has happened before. I remember a weekend trying to figure out if there were any chokes from side control that I could start working on. At the time, I was finding myself on top in side control and know really knowing how to attack with a choke threat that might bring the arms into play. I come into class on the following Monday, and Mamazinho shows us three chokes from side control.
It may not be instant karma, but it's pretty damn close.
After a blistering warm-up (the regular running with jump sprawls and froggers, which I think are swiftly becoming part of the new "regular), we started on the arm drag. Rodrigo first had us just work on the drag from the guy standing and holding your knees. He emphasized kicking the drag side foot out and gripping behind the elbow. Another key point--one that runs through so much of jiu jitsu--is to keep the grip on the arm.
The next step was the move to the back. Here, as you drag the arm, you want to use that leverage to spin around the leg on that side, hooking it with your trailing leg. The emphasis in this step was to make sure you get behind the leg, and not to the side. If you stay to the side and don't commit your body to a full spin, then you make it easier for the guy to press down on you with his knee and put you in a bad position. And with that arm grip, you want to switch hands, pinning that arm to the leg, using your inside arm to wrap them both up and your outside arm to keep you propped up.
The last part of this arm drag series was the reversal. Once you get behind the leg in step two, in order to complete the reversal you need to press forward with your inside shoulder against the guy's thigh and bring your trapping knee from the inside to the outside.
The special bonus technique was a De La Riva esque sweep from the spider guard. There were at least three variations on this: a basic reversal takedown, a standing reversal takedown, and another reversal that I can't remember. There's also a bicep slicer in there, for the record. Rodrigo encouraged us not to use it.
Here's the move: from spider guard move one foot to the belly and kick the other foot wide to the side. Take your outside leg and hook it over the trapped arm on that side (remember we're in spider guard) and under the guy's leg on that side and hook it behind his knee.
From here, release the far side/inside grip. Bring your foot-in-belly leg back and shoot it between the guy's legs. You are going to dive and underhook the far side/inside leg as in X-guard or cross guard.
Pull on the sleeve, kick out with the hook and drive forward to complete the sweep. In order to keep from hitting the bicep slicer, let go of the sleeve as you come up on top in the reversal. If you do everything else right, you won't miss it.
