S-Mount

12/26 - Downtown (Evening)

Second class of the day. Felt like I had decent energy. Worked out well, b/c it was a rather sedate class with lower ranking belts. It feels very weird when I'm the highest belted student. Especially when I don't dominate the lower belts like I think I should. I'm placing very high expectations on myself of late, and need to back off.

We worked on S-mount...achieving it from mount, arm-bars while maintaining S-mount and then how to break an opponent's grip if you move to the traditional arm-bar but they have their hands locked together.

1. Moving to s-mount: If opponent has forearms covering their face, push their tricep to the side and slide knee up past their head. Not level with their head. Past their head. Bring other leg across. If you can't push their arm across, try getting your hands under their biceps and walking your hands up toward their head and beyond, which will pull their arms up. Must keep contact with the mat the entire time with your hand.

2. Arm-bar from s-mount: If you have S-mount with your L knee on their R side and they are gripping their L bicep with their R hand to protect from arm-bar, slide your L arm under their R forearm and cup the outside of your thigh. Post toward their L hip with your R hand, bring your L shin across their face and ensure their face is angled to their L. Push down on your L shin and pull back with your L hand. This should pop their arm loose. Slide your L arm up, grip your R lapel and hip into their arm.

3. Same as above, but if you can't break their grip, use two hands to pull their R arm up, pinch their wrist to the R side of your neck and shoulder, use the base of your thumb to rotate their elbow to the L and arm-bar. If they pull away or you don't get it, you can get an americana by gripping their wrist with your L hand, grip your L wrist with your R and pull their elbow toward their body as you apply the lock.

4. Arm-bar from mount: Assuming you've fallen back for the arm-bar and they are defending with the hand on bicep. To keep them from rolling you up, keep the leg that is closest to their hips (in this case, the R) crossed over the L (if you decide to cross your legs). Slide your L arm through their R arm so that your R is free to post (if they try to dump you, it's going to be to your R). You can post the R and explosively twist your entire torso to the R to try to free the arm. If that doesn't work, relax a bit, and if/when they relax, punch their L elbow to their L, which should free the R. You can also work in an americana type grip that is impossible to explain, but very effective.

Rolled with Sara twice, did well the first time and only ok the next time. Rolled with Sonny, a white belt kid who explodes into transitions well. I didn't get top position much at all with him. Rolled with Olag (sp?), a new guy who was trying out a class. I think he had a fair amount of no gi experience. Not sure how much, but he really knew how to apply pressure but not so much with the submissions. Not pleased with my guard work AT ALL with these guys, with the exception of trying to keep my hips more square to my opponent. Meh.

Tomorrow is a new day...