After watching the The Twister I was very intrigued by Eddie’s success with lockdown and old school (his favorite sweep). I started trying it out and wasn’t having much success, other than stalling with the lockdown.

Reading his first book, Jiu-jitsu Unleashed, helped a little but I still found myself just being smashed from half guard while desperately holding on to the lockdown.

I spoke to many others who were studying Eddie Bravo’s half guard and almost all of them had arrived at the same point: all his moves seemed like they should…

While training this Saturday, somewhere in all of the twisting and turning of sparring, I pulled a muscle midway down my back.

I didn’t think much of it while I was warm, but as I cooled down after class, I realized just how badly I’d got it. It hurt to stand or walk, raise or lower my arms, turn to either side. I had trouble finding a position I could sleep in, and it was an endeavor to get out of bed the the next morning. Even breathing wrong made me…

Last week, a reader of the journal commented on my holiday wish list, disagreeing with my recommendation of Guerrilla Jiu-Jitsu by Dave Camarillo to those wanting to improve their stand-up game.

He bet me (quite literally) that I would prefer Judo Unleashed by Neil Ohlenkamp as the book for jiu-jitieros wanting to get better on their feet, and even laid down the cash for me to check it out.

Having had a chance to work through Judo Unleashed, I’m going to offer my opinion of it in a head-to-head review with Guerrilla Jiu-Jitsu, specifically…

One of the main lessons I took away from Eddie Bravo’s seminar is how you can develop a game that always has an intelligent “next step”.

From every position (rubber guard included, of course) Eddies start with a primary attack and systematically advances, gaining better and better grips and positions, each offering greater control than the last, as he works towards sweeps or submissions.

Each step dovetails nicely into the next, with the grip from one position being used to improve the next grip.

The importance of this can be easily overlooked…

Not sure what to put on your Christmas wish list?

Does your obsession with choking men leave your family unsure how to shop for you?

My holiday shopping guide will make finding the right gift easy.

Books

This year has seen a marked jump in the quality of BJJ books, both in terms of books themselves, and the depth and detail of instruction.

On the publishing end, the books getting bigger and longer; publishers are allowing the authors show the techniques with more pictures (even from multiple angles); and the glossy paper and full color…

I recently received my copy of Eddie Bravo’s new book, Mastering the Rubber Guard: Jiu-jitsu for Mixed Martial Arts Competition.

While I have read the entire book and my initial impressions are positive, I don’t plan on writing a review until I’ve had a chance to try out more of the new material. I want to see how well the moves stand up over time, and I know my feelings about the worth of a book change with time and experience (for the better and worse).

That said, Bravo’s book does have…