Last night during the Crossroads BJJ Competition class we covered how to move into an escapable position when you have been pinned with a crossface on the bottom of side control. This is one of the more difficult positions to escape since your head in completely controlled and the only way your body can move comfortably is away from your opponent which exposes your back. One of the most helpful ideas in escaping is to make sure you don’t make your position worse by panicking, more often then not panicking causes you to make a mistake that gets you submitted. In jiu-jitsu the name of the game is staying calm, even if somebodies shoulder is in your personal space.
In this jiu-jitsu class we covered a few ways to work our way out of the position while being focused on not creating any additional openings for the bjj player on top. this means keeping your elbows in close and not over exerting ourselves. By keeping our arms in tight on the bottom we force the top player to work to create openings instead of getting them for free. When the top BJJ player is forced to work for an opening this means he or she is expending more energy but also applying more force and creating more opinions or space. This makes it easier for the bottom player to take advantage of the top Jiu-jitsu player using to much force and creating an opening for a reversal or allows us to move into the open space they have created. We also briefly discussed some hand fighting concepts from the bottom and where to keep your hands in order to be ready to defend submissions and when to change your hand positions in order to escaped. If the top player can not submit you it is only a matter of time before you escape if you understand how to move and position your body correctly.
Understanding how to escape from somebody pinning you to the ground is a necessary skill to possess, not only in a jiu-jitsu class but also in a self defense situation. If you can not free yourself from a pin you leave yourself extremely vulnerable. If you are interested in learning realistic self defense in a safe enviorment check out our Getting Started page and set up a free trial lesson. See how learning Brazilian Jiu-jitsu can change your life.