Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu emphasizes ground fighting techniques and submission holds involving joint locks and chokeholds.
Some of the techniques start when you have your opponent in ‘the guard’.
This means you are on your back with your legs wrapped around your opponents waste, and your opponent is facing towards you.
Though to the untrained eye it may look like a disadvantageous position, there are many submissions available from within the guard the can break an opponents joint or choke them.
Other Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu techniques start from side control, where you are lying on top of your opponent and perpendicular to him.
And yet more submissions are available from ‘the mount’ where you are sitting on your knees on top of your opponents chest.
(For techniques, we are going to offer pictures soon!)
An important aspect of jiu-jitsu is that it emphasizes technique over strength.
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Technique:
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The following excerpt is from http://www.en.wikipedia.org The premise is that most of the advantage of a larger, stronger opponent comes from superior reach and more powerful strikes, both of which are largely negated if wrestling on the ground.
BJJ includes many techniques to throw or tackle opponents to the ground, these are notoriusly difficult to resist even for people who are trained in their countermeasures. Once the opponent is on the ground, a number of maneuvers (and counter-maneuvers) are available to manipulate the opponent into suitable position for the application of a submission hold. This system of maneuvering and manipulation can be likened to a form of kinetic chess when utilized by two experienced practitioners. A submission hold is the equivalent of checkmate.
Submission holds can be grouped into two broad categories: Joint locks and chokes. Joint locks typically involve isolating an opponent’s limb and creating a lever with your own body position which will force the joint to move past its normal range of motion. Pressure is increased in a controlled manner and if the opponent cannot escape the hold then they may signal defeat by submitting. The commonly accepted form of submission is to tap the opponent, gym mat, or even yourself three times (verbal submission is also acceptable but less common).
Alternatively, one could apply a chokehold, disrupting the blood supply to the brain, causing unconsciousness if the opponent refuses to tap out.
Most BJJ “chokes” involve constriction of the carotid artery (causing hypoxia). This differs from the more instinctive choking movements which generally involve constriction of the windpipe (causing asphyxia). Though this distinction may at first seem subtle it is in fact significant (commonly referred to as “blood” and “air” chokes respectively). Air chokes are highly inefficient and may result in damage to the opponent’s trachea, sometimes even resulting in death. In contrast, blood chokes directly cut the flow of blood off to the opponent’s brain causing a rapid shutdown of consciousness without damaging the internal structure. Being “choked-out” in this way is actually relatively safe as long as the choke is released soon after unconsciousness, letting blood (and therefore oxygen) back into the brain before the damages of oxygen deprivation begin.
The prevalence of the dangerous “air” chokes has actually led to the banning of chokeholds from some United States police departments. Because of the negative legal connotations of the words choke and even strangulation one is advised to use the term “lateral vascular restraint” when describing a blood choke used in a self-defense situation.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu’s emphasis on joint locks and maneuvering rather than strikes means that one’s technique can be practiced at full speed and almost full power, resembling the effort and technique used in a real fight. Training partners can resist and counter just as they would in an actual fight, providing valuable real-world experience should the techniques ever need to be applied in an actual fight. This practice of live training, officially called Randori but commonly known as “rolling” in BJJ circles, is considered by many BJJ practitioners to be the major factor differentiating combat sports (ex. BJJ, Judo, Boxing, Wrestling) from traditional martial arts (ex. Karate, Tae Kwon Do, Aikido).
In modern times, many forms of sport fighting have come into vogue. During competition, these styles award points for attacking with certain techniques. For example, a competitor may be awarded 2 points for kicking his or her opponent in the body and 3 points for kicks delivered to the head. Coinciding with Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu’s considerable surge in popularity, many tournaments now disallow striking in favor of grappling. The rules for these contests reward points to a competitor that has obtained a position considered to be advantageous. In the event that no combatant was submitted outright, the winner will be determined by these points.
The main emphasis in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is to dominate the opponent through skillful application of technique and force them to quit (submit). By using the techniques of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, a smaller practitioner, male or female, can control much larger and stronger opponents and actually force that larger opponent to submit.
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