Tag: Half Guard Submission

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How To Do a Half Guard Lockdown Calf Slicer in BJJ

The half guard lockdown is a great BJJ position that secures half guard, preventing your opponent from passing while allowing you to work on submissions and sweeps. By simply wrapping your feet around your opponent’s shin, you can prevent their movement and they have to work on passing your lockdown before they can think about passing your half guard. That extra step gives you a chance to work on submissions from half guard lockdown. 

If you’re unsure of how to get the lockdown position in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, check out our writeup How To Do the Half Guard Lockdown in BJJ.

A calf slicer is a brutally painful submission in BJJ that put the shin of your leg into the calf muscle of your opponent, causing immense pressure. This move is illegal to use in gi BJJ competitions but is legal in nogi BJJ and MMA, but this submission can do serious damage so be careful training it in your gym.

Start: Halfguard with lockdown

Step 1: Dive inside hand under opponent’s opposite armpit and sit up so that they are on all fours and your top half is clear of their body on the side of their trapped leg

Step 2: Grab opponent’s trapped shin with your inside hand

Step 3: Abandon the lockdown and figure four your legs with the outside foot on your inside knee

Step 4: With both hands, pull opponent’s foot towards you

Finish: Submission via half guard lockdown calf slicer

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How To Do an Omoplata From Closed Guard

The omoplata is one of the coolest moves in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. With this submission you use your hips to attack your opponent’s shoulder, using one of the most powerful areas of your  body against a much weaker part of theirs. When executed perfectly, the Omoplata uses pure body mechanics and does not require you to be stronger than your opponent, which is one of the fundamentals of BJJ.

The omoplata from guard is also very fun because you spin around and look like a ninja.

Start: Closed guard

Step 1: Get an overhook with one arm over one of opponent’s arms

Step 2: Move onto opposite hip and step that foot onto opponent’s hip so that arm with overhook is higher

Step 3: Reach top-side leg up and grab it with free hand

Step 4: Slide top-side leg over and in front of opponent’s head

Step 5: Figure-four legs to trap shoulder and grab opponent’s belt to prevent them rolling out of the submission

Step 6: Use grip on belt to sit up and hug across opponent’s back/hips

Step 7: Stretch legs out to flatten opponent down to mat

Step 8:  Post outside free leg and push hips towards opponent

End: Submission via omoplata

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How To Do a D’Arce Choke in BJJ

The D’Arce choke or inverted arm triangle choke is named after American grappler Joe Darce, who made the choke famous in the early 2000’s thanks to its brutal and efficient effectiveness. 

The D’Arce choke, which like the arm triangle involves a figure four of your arms around your opponent’s neck and one of their arms, is a great submission from a common position in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. The D’Arce choke is a great addition to any BJJ practitioner’s arsenal since it is simple and effective and is a great answer to a takedown attempt. Even if you are unable to finish the D’Arce choke, the position allows you to stop your opponent’s takedown, allows you to pour your weight onto them and force them to turtle, and threatens them enough that they may hesitate or even decide not to attempt a takedown. 

Not just limited to a single position, the D’Arce choke is effective from half-guard top, side control, mount, turtle, or even knee-on-belly. It is a truly utilitarian submission.

Here is great teacher Stephan Kesting’s guide to landing the D’Arce choke submission from half guard top.

Start: Half guard top

Step 1: Get whizzer overhook on far-side arm

Step 2: Reach arm with whizzer overhook through until hand reaches past opponent’s neck

Step 3: Hold behind opponent’s head with both hands and clinch their head forward and in towards you

Step 4: Keeping opponent’s head clinched, figure four arms and reach near-side hand towards far-side shoulder

Step 5: Drive weight forward towards opponent

Finish: Submission by D’Arce Choke