IGX "...overflowing with foulmouthed ignorance."

Wade Schalles - a wrestling great; His DVD "Legal Pain" is a classic for mat (not standup) work. His "clock" explanation for breaking down & pinning an opponent is very simple and VERY useful. Every time I'm trying to sweep and having trouble, my mind clicks to Schalles' Clock.

On the other hand, Schalles' "Pinishing" is good, but much more sparse with information. You could get much of it on YouTube.
Schalles also has a "Killer Cradles" DVD that is good. It's an encyclopedia of cradles, taught by a great thinking wrestler.

With almost all of the wrestling videos, you have to craft your own finishes to submission.

Right now I'm slowly working through Bernardo Faria's "The No Gi Half Guard." (The slowness is due to my chaotic life, not that the DVD isn't good.) I have a feeling that I will incorporate a lot of his work into my game...certainly his Over/Under Pass has been helpful.

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The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.

W.B. Yeats

He's got a "fundamentals" or "foundations" DVD that I was considering getting. I'm interested in a good intro vid.

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“War is the remedy our enemies have chosen. Other simple remedies were within their choice. You know it and they know it, but they wanted war, and I say let us give them all they want.”
― William Tecumseh Sherman

I just got my hands on the 6-disc Foundations of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu but I have not reviewed it yet. I will post a review once I have.

https://bjjfanatics.com/products/founda ... ardo-faria

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"One's actions alone define whether one belongs to a good family or a bad family, valiant or arrogant, and disciplined or undisciplined." -Lord Rāma, Rāmāyaṇa

Bernardo Faria. Escapes from anywhere.

4 DVD set. Very detailed. Escapes from mount, side control, back attacks, triangles, arm bars etc. From what I have been taught so far his techniques are different. I understand he likes playing deep half guard, and a lot of his escapes end up there. In any case, very systematic.

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Yes, Faria is known for half guard: deep half, knee shield, and what he calls "single leg half guard" which refers to it finishing like a single leg takedown, not that it is done with only one leg. He's been very successful with it, and because he considers himself to be non-athletic, he recommends half guard as a good "everyman's" guard.

Interestingly, he's also known for his over-under pass, and if you look at the over-under pass position, it's identical to the deep half position inverted. So many of his positions repeat themselves in various orientations, providing the same advantages and familiarity.

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"One's actions alone define whether one belongs to a good family or a bad family, valiant or arrogant, and disciplined or undisciplined." -Lord Rāma, Rāmāyaṇa

I also have a bunch of Ryan Hall's DVDs. He is very, very systematic. He is also a smaller guy, so his style is appealing to me. Being small one has to pay more attention to the technical detail: if I want to arm triangle a 90 kg guy the technique has to me impeccable (so far my arm triangles don't work even on small people )

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You may progress faster because you can't Big Guy your techniques.

_________________
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.

W.B. Yeats

PS - My "secret" to killer Arm Triangles was rib pressure, then sinking back toward my 6:00.

_________________
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.

W.B. Yeats

Arm triangles are gay.

_________________
"One's actions alone define whether one belongs to a good family or a bad family, valiant or arrogant, and disciplined or undisciplined." -Lord Rāma, Rāmāyaṇa

I must say, first time I found my head near someone's crotch "gay" did cross my mind...

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Arm triangles are gay because they are impure. I swear I talked about this even before I absented myself for 5 years.

Look, there's only three chokes that matter for real fighting: rear naked choke, guillotine, and north south choke. Everything else is, at best, a gamble. Any choke which: (i) involves clothing; (ii) allows for an arm--or anything else--inside; or (iii) can only be done from the bottom is bogus. In a real fight, when people don't care about rules or safety or no slams or any such bullshit, you want chokes that let you have "pure" access to the neck. This is the origin of the old school phrase when it's giddy up time, "Go for the throat."

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"One's actions alone define whether one belongs to a good family or a bad family, valiant or arrogant, and disciplined or undisciplined." -Lord Rāma, Rāmāyaṇa

You did say this years ago. Apparently, Marcelo Garcia has a similar view.

But I've seen too many contests (UFC and elsewhere) ended by Arm Triangle to agree. Seems to me, even if your Arm Triangle is ineffective, you sacrifice little in control/position; but I suspect that a sunk Arm Triangle will usually work. Especially on the street, where your opponent is unlikely to be a student of the art.

_________________
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.

W.B. Yeats

To each their own (even if they're wrong). But I think that most people will be surprised, and disappointed, with the effectiveness of a lot of common grappling techniques if they try and use them in a fight against an athletic, even if untrained, person. When you include an arm, as in triangles, arm triangles, or arm in guillotines, you introduce a whole new dimension to the technique--a moving part--which can malfunction when you need it most. It's much better, in my opinion, to train the attacks for which there is no defense: pure chokes.

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"One's actions alone define whether one belongs to a good family or a bad family, valiant or arrogant, and disciplined or undisciplined." -Lord Rāma, Rāmāyaṇa

I'm one that needs to work on my chokes more. I've just lost position going for them so many times that I mostly just stick to a super heavy pressure game and grind them until I get some type of arm entanglement. In a real ordeal on the street, I'd most likely neck crank the hell out of them first to soften them up for the choke.

I agree that arm-in chokes introduce a different moving part. Of course, with both hands free, your opponent has two hands with which to hand fight. But I respect your perspective and will further ponder it.

_________________
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.

W.B. Yeats

Of course it's up to you, but a properly applied choke will knock a person out in a matter of a few seconds. Too brief a time for a proper defense.

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"One's actions alone define whether one belongs to a good family or a bad family, valiant or arrogant, and disciplined or undisciplined." -Lord Rāma, Rāmāyaṇa