Rickson once said he admires Nino Schembri for “how he looks at positions in new ways”. (He also might not have said that. The quote is probably inaccurate since I read it years ago and can’t find the source any more.)

That idea stuck with me. As a beginner at the time it struck me, “How many ways can you think about a position? When is mount not just mount? When is guard not guard?” Those questions have become a kind of mind-clearing Zen koan. It opened me up to thinking…

This is a technique from Gracie Barra Clearwater’s website. My instructor Eduardo and I made this tutorial for the reverse omoplata. I’m putting it up here since I’m referencing it Rethinking Position.

If the crucifix is underused, then the reverse (or inverted) omoplata is almost unknown or at least considered an exotic novelty. Hopefully, this instruction will help change that.

A possible reason for this is that one of the hardest parts of the reverse omoplata is simply having faith in it. When most people are taught it, they blow it off as…

Check out the discussion of Three Rules for Good Jiu-Jitsu. This post stems from that discussion and others elsewhere on the internet.

The two main arguments are that “train smart” and “have fun” are more important than “train hard”. And there is truth to that, but it also depends on how you look at it.

If you don’t enjoy training, you’re not likely going to stick to it, but you have to be careful about how you define “fun” and how much priority you give “fun” things. When I see people who are…

Eduardo has three rules for good jiu-jitsu:

1. Train hard.
2. Eat right.
3. Sleep well.

That’s it.

Three techniques to counter the under-over pass from the bad “half butterfly guard” position.

My instructor Eduardo emphasizes the first two guard returns because they develop skills he considers among the most important for a good open guard: creating space by shrimping, creating space extending your body, and circling the hooks back in. You’ll see him use these over and over again every time he fights.

(Also available on Youtube and Revver.)

Extra Details

Shrimping hook return: You can grab your foot and pull it in front of their face if you need to. Keep your…

Jeff Rockwell is a brown belt under Ricardo de la Riva and runs a DLR affiliate school, teaching BJJ and MMA at LionHeart Fitness and Mixed Martial Arts in State College, PA. You can find the address and schedule at myspace.com/rockjitsu.

Jeff Rockwell and Ricardo de la Riva.

How did you get into BJJ?

I got into the martial arts the same way a lot of people my age did: I saw Bruce Lee and I wanted to be just like him. My parents never really wanted me to get into martial arts…