Getting good in the core skills will enable the student to add advanced techniques to their Jiu-Jitsu game.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Basics focus on grappling and ground fighting and will give you an understanding of how to control and manipulate a strong and aggressive opponent. Training the fundamental positions and attacks will help you to force an aggressor to abandon the idea of taking you to the ground.
BJJ techniques are a perfect complementary skill for virtually any martial artist with standup experience. Jiu-Jitsu enables the martial artist to put together a complete set of skills that will help in any situation, whether it is on the feet or on the ground.
The basic technique and positions will be the foundation in which the new student learns how to move properly and figures out the finer details of the positions. This basic skill set will be used by the BJJ student at the higher levels and will be something to build from and adapt as they progress.
Basic Jiu-Jitsu Techniques
The Guard – The new Jiu-Jitsu student will start out learning a few of the many types of guards. All the guards the new student will play involve the use of good leg and hip movement to maintain and replace the position. The only time the upper body is used in a guard is for grip control. Trying to control the opponent with upper body strength is not effective and will only make you tired.
Closed guard will most likely be the first type of guard that is taught at most Jiu-Jitsu academies. This is when the legs are wrapped around the waist of the opponent with the feet locked. Hand position will change depending on what type of grips are going to be used and the type of guard being played.
Half guard is used to control one leg of the individual with your two legs. this position is maintained by staying on the side and not flat on the back as in the closed guard. A half guard will never be as strong as any of the full guards because you are not using all your limbs to play the guard position.
The Hook guard (Butterfly guard) uses the foot as a hook and locks into the inner part of the opponent's thigh to off balance by lifting and pulling. You can use both feet or one to play the Hook guard and it will greatly depend on the movement and pressure being applied by the opponent.
There are a lot of Jiu-Jitsu techniques that can be applied with the basic Open guard. This provides the opportunity to transition into other guards with good leg and hip movement. Starting with both feet on the hips lets you keep the opponent from driving in and closing the space.
Passing the Guard is no easy task and is considered to be one of the harder positions to learn when first starting out. Getting by the legs and hips with good posture and balance is essential to becoming good at this position. Combining different types of passes will greatly increase the odds of getting around the legs of a good guard player.
The order or sequence of establishing good side control should be: control the position, look for a submission, and transition to get to a dominate position.
Maintaining the Mount position requires the knees to be pinched on the waist and hands free to base out or attack. Good control when in the Mount position will cause the person trying to escape to carry your weight the whole time.
Back control is considered another position of dominance and is an effective way to wear down your opponent and set up some of the best choke submissions. Once again you will be using your feet as hooks and your arms will be wrapped around the opponent upper body with your chest tight to their back.
Escapes - At first it will seem like you are in survival mode, but as a better understanding is gained from each of the positions your escapes improve. The main focus should be to keep your arms by your sides and use hip movement to make space to replace guard or go to your knees.
Submissions are what you should be striving for but not at first. To execute a submission on your opponent, you will need to train and understand the details just like any other position.
Learning the fundamental Jiu-Jitsu basics will give the new student a starting point to build from and provide the necessary skills to advance their Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu techniques to the next level.
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