Roger Gracie plays X-guard against Xande Ribeiro at the 2006 Pan. (GRACIEMAG archive photo)

One of the most important parts of Jiu-Jitsu is posture, especially when you’re on top and your opponent’s a savvy sweeper.

And if he’s got a modern game, X-guard is certainly one of the weapons he’ll have up his sleeve to slap you with a reversal and land on top.

So what do you do when he traps your thigh between his crossed feet (hence the “X”) and gets under you? How do you keep from getting swept?

Keep cool, GRACIEMAG.com dug up a simple and well-explained position to help you out. See if the following video doesn’t do the trick.

When you’re playing open guard, the opponent’s path is clear to attack, take your legs out of play and pursue a position of advantage like side-control or the mount.

That’s why it’s always handy to have some weapons up your sleeve for when he opens your guard.

Today, GRACIEMAG dug up a choke by the black belt Eric Bordo, who demonstrates how to use an attack on the neck to disconcert the opponent and set up the counter-attack—a sweep topped with a mount.

Check out Eric’s tricks:

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Tanquinho celebrates win over JT Torres at No-Gi Worlds / Photo by Ivan Trindade/GRACIEMAG.com

Augusto “Tanquinho” Mendes seemed to just refuse to lose at the 2012 World No-Gi Championship last Saturday. He rallied back to beat Leandro Lo in the semifinal. And in the final, a match that set the Jiu-Jitsu world abuzz with controversy, he scored a decisive advantage in the final instants.

GRACIEMAG.com: What stands out to you as having been your strength at this No-Gi World Championship? What made the difference?

AUGUSTO TANQUINHO: I feel I fought with smarts and managed to stick to the strategies I’d put together. I faced great athletes, made few mistakes, and realized that I’m still in the process of evolving since having surgery. I’m getting better with every championship.

How, in your view, did the semifinal with Leandro Lo go?

Against Leandro I had a good strategy: I wanted to get on top and attack his foot or knee to score advantages or points for combativeness, or maybe even to get the finish. The plan worked out so well that towards the end I sunk that figure-four footlock and he had to roll out of the match area to defend. Thus I scored two points. The match was restarted standing, and again I had to face his guard, but that time I was ahead by 2 to 0. He had to go all or nothing, and I capitalized on the space left open, going straight to the mount and making it 7-0.

What did you make of Lo as an opponent?

Lo’s a great friend and has my respect for his posture, humility and Jiu-Jitsu. I’ve told him before, and I’ll repeat it here on GRACIEMAG.com: the guy is still the world number one. I’m going to work even harder to beat him and anyone else in the gi until I get my chance to be number one.

What was the trick to the mount?

We’d already fought twice last year, and it was one apiece—I beat him 4-0 at the Pan, and he beat me 4-2 at the Brazilian Nationals. I knew it was going to be tough but I had faith in my Jiu-Jitsu. This time around, I took advantage of a mistake of his: he tried tying the match with a Hail Mary sweep, and that opened up the opportunity I was waiting for. I landed straight in mount and stabilized the position. I was opportunistic and intelligent.

And what happened in the final against JT, where it came down to advantages?

The final with JT was a good match. I feel I showed more heart and desire to win—JT wanted to play it slick after taking the lead on advantages, but I felt like he’d gotten tired and thus wasn’t thinking too well. He forgot that he’d been issued a verbal penalty, and when he fled the ground fight, he got a second penalty, which cost him an advantage in my favor. Towards the end, he wanted to position himself for the stack pass, to stall from the top, but he got caught off guard with a choke that I feel a lot of people aren’t yet familiar with.

How does that move work, that triangle without the inside arm? Does it really work?

Some people think I just positioned my legs to squeeze on his head, but the truth is that it’s a choke that comes from judo, one Wellington Megaton and Mackenzie taught me. They adapted it to No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu, and Mackenzie has tapped a lot of people out with it. I used it to surprise JT. I guarantee that it was in really tight, and I even thought he was about to pass out, because I felt him going limp. Then I messed up by trying to improve my positioning and ended up losing it. But I’m certain the ref saw the danger I put him in with that choke. In the medium-heavyweight final Rômulo Barral used a similar choke and got an advantage for it too.

Were you irritated by him not going to the podium? What happened?

Yes, I felt it was a major lack of respect on JT’s part to not go receive the silver medal on the podium. Anyone who doesn’t go to the podium discredits his competitors. Less than two months ago, JT beat me at the Boston Open, also on advantages, and I was there on the podium. It saddens me when people lack respect like that.

What’s next for you?

I’m going to carry on training in the gi, and I’m hoping for a berth at the IBJJF Pro League on December 8. I’m in eighth in the IBJJF lightweight ranking, but only the first six in the standings get to go. I didn’t compete at the main IBJJF events in 2012 because of the surgery I underwent on my spine, and that set me back some on the ranking, but I still have hopes of competing at the Pro League event. If the two guys ahead of me can’t fight, I get their spot. I don’t want to root for one of them to get left out; still, if the chance lands on my lap, I’ll take it!

The Long Beach Pyramid, the venue for the No-Gi World Championship / Photo by Regis Chen/GRACIEMAG

No-Gi-Jiu-Jitsu hunting season is about to open. The European Championship is coming up this October 21 in London, while on the 3rd and 4th of November there’ll be the No-Gi World Championship at the Long Beach Pyramid in California.

To motivate you to stick your neck out in the IBJJF tournaments, check out the following lessons from Roberto Cuartero,  our GMA in Jacksonville, Florida. The Gracie Barra South Jax black belt teaches a series of Kimura-lock attacks from closed guard.

Take note of how the trick is to break the opponent’s posture with the help of your legs. Watch and comment: does the moves work with your game?

To get in on the European No-Gi Championship, click here. To test your game at the No-Gi Worlds, click here.

What’s your most common mistake in Jiu-Jitsu? Photo: Dan Rod/GRACIEMAG

Where do you think you make most mistakes in Jiu-Jitsu? Is it the posture? In laziness? Not following a diet with determination?

Today GRACIEMAG.com lists ten mistakes you shouldn’t make in Jiu-Jitsu. However, more then teaching, we want to learn from you. In your opinion, what is the most common mistake in Jiu-Jitsu? Share it with other readers and help everyone to improve.

1. ELBOWS AWAY FROM THE BODY

In Jiu-Jitsu, there is hardly any position in which the elbow should be away from the body. Keeping your elbows close to your body all the time means avoiding armbars, imbalances, mooring and something worse. Always stay safe and do not open gaps keeping the elbow to the body, in attack or defense.

2. BAD POSTURE

The greatest secret in Jiu-Jitsu is the posture, something all the white belts needs to pay attention since the start. Learn to keep your back straight when you are inside someone’s guard. Good posture will save you from being unbalanced, swept and submitted. Also remember to keep the toes bent and stuck in the dojo, not just with the instep lying on the floor. This prevents you from being pushed easily.

3.  IGNORING SELF-DEFENSE

Do not ignore self-defense techniques. The more basic, the most useful they will be. Or do you intend to become a black belt who gets all desperate to get out of a simple choke? Repeat the basics at the beginning of training, to warm up. Make 20, 50 moves for each side, and see your Jiu-Jitsu flowing much faster.

4. COMPETING IN TRAINING

The mats of your gym are not competition fighting areas. There you have to train, lose, tap and learn. Only by losing and working on your weaknesses you will become a complete fighter. Trying to “win at training” only limits your game. After all, you will just try what you already do well.

5. LOOKING AT YOUR COLLAR

When you are attacked with a choke, try to put your chin on your chest, but never look at your collar. You will end up turning to the direction of the choke, or making room for the kimono to enter more. Look at your opponent’s elbow, pull his shoulder and arm to relieve the pressure and rotate the hips to the right side to escape.

6. LEAVING YOUR ARM WITHIN THE GARD WHEN TRYING TO PASS

When trying to pass, be careful not to let your arm within the guard, which is half way to receive a triangle choke.

7. CROSSING YOUR FEET

When applying an armbar, do not cross your feet, which might help in its defense.

8. DISRESPECTING HIERARCHY

Invite a black-belt mate to practice can be seen as a lack of respect to hierarchy. Wait for the more experienced to invite you.

9. TRAINING LIKE A LION, EATING LIKE A BIRD

Try eating well before and after the Jiu-Jitsu practice. Preferably with professional help. Avoid training while hungry or with your stomach full, and not take the supplements without medical supervision. And drink a lot of water, before, during, and after Jiu-Jitsu.

10. LEARING ATTACKS AND FORGETING ABOUT DEFENSES

Learning good defenses is more important than learning 50 different submissions, mainly those you won’t be able to use. Memorize where your body needs to be to defend from each posture. Correct your mistakes immediately, with more experienced athletes.  

Renato Tavares (ATT) with Chicago Open medals / Photos: personal archive

Jiu-Jitsu black belt Renato Tavares, our GMA at ATT Vero Beach, Florida, dominated the senior age group at the Chicago Winter Open last weekend in Illinois, USA.

A student of late Grandmaster Carlson Gracie, Renato won both the featherweight division and the absolute, and spoke with GRACIEMAG.com about his conquest.

“This year I managed to take first at weight and open weight. I had three matches: the two at weight I won on points, and the one in the absolute I won by submission, closing out the brackets with Giulio Timóteo, my teammate at Carlson Gracie’s academy back in the 1990’s. It was a good test for the Pan. Now it’s all about ironing out the mistakes and going for another gold medal at the Pan. I won it last year, in 2009 and in 2001,” he recalled.

JIU-JITSU IS REPETITION, POSTURE AND ATTENTION TO DETAILS

“All competitions are a learning experience. Whether in preparing for an event, in warmup, mental preparations, strategy—everything counts and you always learn,” preaches Renato.

“Each championship has a level, and for this one I’d been training hard to get ready for the Pan. I’ve been working a lot on the open guard and de la Riva guard from bottom position, as well as guard passing from top. The most important part is to get good at a given position and do the position specific to your game a lot. Always do a lot of repetitions and pay close attention to the details and posture,” said the teacher in conclusion.

In the video below, Renato shows how to develop and effective guard. Check it out and do lots of repetitions, always under the supervision of a qualified Jiu-Jitsu instructor.

Ricardo Cachorrao practicing No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu / Personal archive photo

Nearly a decade teaching Jiu-Jitsu in New Jersey, retired UFC star Ricardo “Cachorrão” Almeida is big on training both in and out of the gi. According to his teachings, Gi Jiu-Jitsu training is ideal for smoothing out your guard and defenses, while No-Gi training is best for working on passes, control and submissions.

FOCUS ON BREAKING OPPONENT’S POSTURE IN JIU-JITSU

In this video, the teacher from Rio de Janeiro demonstrates how to sweep from butterfly-guard. The main detail is in breaking the opponent’s posture and controlling one of his shoulders, forcing his head down with your forearm. Enjoy your training!

Featherweight Dustin Pourier did a splendid job representing Jiu-Jitsu at UFC 143. Photo: Josh Hedges/ UFC publicity.

The “Submission of the Night” award at UFC 143 last Saturday in Las Vegas went to Dustin Poirier. With a snug triangle, the purple belt from Louisiana hyperextended the arm of Max Holloway 3:23 minutes into their bout. His Jiu-Jitsu savvy earned him an extra 65,000 dollars, not to mention his 12th win in 13 career fights.

The triangle, a move seen on the main stage ever since Royce Gracie and the very first UFC shows, is still a highly effective finishing move both with and without the gi—two legs and two arms against the enemy neck; but there’s often a way out.

USE YOUR WEIGHT BY STACKING OR FALLING BACKWARDS

You can defend by either going forward or backwards. The thing is to never let your opponent break your posture or trap your arm once and for all.

In the following exclusive video, brown belt Alvaro Fontes of SAS team demonstrates how to defend against the triangle by throwing yourself backwards; a handy escape without the gi as well, perfect for when you’re running out of steam.