The seminar this Saturday was packed. One of the great things about seminars like this is how they give you a chance to see so many folks you never get to see except for the more stressful reunions of tournaments.
There were five different moves that Christiano and Fabiana showed us
1. Takedown counter to single leg
2. Lapel wrap choke from closed guard
3. Shoulder lock counter to mounted armlock escape
4. Side control roll choke (your lapel)
5. Side control switch choke (their lapel)
I remember #2 from the Marcio Feitosa/Kyra Gracie seminar awhile back. But I think the two that will stick with me, if I practice them, are #4 and #5. #5 was a particularly beautiful choke, a sort of brabo choke.
Both #4 and #5 start from side control. In #4, you feed your own gi lapel over the guy's neck (move a little into a scarf hold position if necessary to get better access) and reach under the neck with your north side grip to secure it. With your south grip, reach back and check the hip as you turn sideways, going completely parallel with the guy's body, holding the choking lapel all the while.
Depending on how tight the choke is, the pressure might already be enough to get a choke. To complete the attack, turn your head to look away from him and roll forward on your inside shoulder.
If you still don't get the choke, reach over with your outside grip and grab the back of the collar and pull down as you continue to pull on the choke.
#5 starts out in much the same way. Only instead of using your own lapel, you use your opponent's.
Pull out the opponent's gi lapel and feed it under his arm and under his neck. Get a hold of it with your north side grip.
You don't want the grip to be too deep because it will limit the amount of room you have to maneuver.
Check the hip with the south grip. Step up and over the head with your north side foot. From there, you switch up legs to go down on the north side knee and up on the south side knee.
Keep your weight down. Sometimes I had the arm trapped in and sometimes I didn't. The key was to keep your weight on the guy and work to bring the elbow of your choking arm to the mat.
#2 was also a nice move, something I need to remember to go to more often since I have a hard time breaking down posture in the closed guard - that, and the idea of more frequently going for chokes ...
A good time. I didn't get a chance to roll with anyone, thought I did stick around for a little while to help the guy I was working with do a few more of the moves from side control.
Weighed in at about 159.6 after the class. A good number going into the weekend, about 3% above my March limit.
