Side Control: Understanding Escapes Dynamically
Dynamic Problem Solving for the Side Control position
Hey there, hope you’re crushing your training week.
This week we’re diving deep into side control. Truth be told, this was going to be a free video but then I realized, after filming for nearly 17 minutes that there were a lot of moving parts that I talk about primarily in my paid newsletter.
Those “moving parts” mean understanding side control as an entirely dynamic position.
This is why, in my eyes, it can be harder to escape side control. There are simply more dynamics involved. Mount and back, in contrast, can be a little easier because the field of choices is narrower.
Moving forward with understanding side control defense, you need to understand the position from a dynamic perspective, not static.
In other words, your side control escapes will only work if you can learn how to chain them together. And you can only chain your defenses together if you understand how probabilities work in jiu-jitsu. [I wrote about this in another paid post here]
If you can reduce actions to what’s most likely to happen, then you can start sequencing your defense together. The first major part of this letter [17 min watch time] shows HOW to understand the first, default side control escape + three very likely transitions from there.
Next up, I’m posting two more videos.
Continuing with the dynamics of the position, I’m showing two escapes for when you JUST get your guard passed.
Keep in mind, you have approximately 3 seconds to get out of side control before most competition formats award points. With this fact, you can surmise that 3 seconds is that “magic number” where you have the opportunity to get out before your opponent stabilizes.
The last video in this series will focus on framing.
I like to think about guard retention as a deconstruction of side control. Side control escapes usually start with frames and end up with the creation of space.
In this video, I’ll talk about frames and how they serve two purposes: Maintenance of distance AND redirection. Most people get the first but always miss the second.
And last, a little bonus:
This will get posted to the free channel but you can catch it here since it has to do with more side control stuff.
In this video [5 minutes], you’ll find how you can use the incline/decline press (NEVER BENCH!) to help your escapes.
Let’s DIVE IN!
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