Posture

What it is

Posture is the shape of your spine and head: spine upright, head above your hips, elbows tight. Inside someone's closed guard, posture is your armor, because nearly every bottom attack starts by breaking it. That is why the bottom player pulls and the top player rebuilds, over and over.

Where it shows up

• Inside closed guard: sit up tall with your hands on their hips or chest before you try to open or pass.
• Standing: head up and hips back, so you cannot be snapped down or guillotined.
• Passing guard: keep your head above your hips and your elbows inside your knees, so grips find nothing to pull.
• After any attack from the bottom: your first job is to rebuild posture before you do anything else.

Key details

• Head above the hips. If your head falls forward, your weight is theirs to control.
• Elbows tight and inside your knees. Elbows out are handles.
• Hands on their body, not the mat. One hand on the chest or the belt keeps their hips down.
• Look up and forward, not down at them. Where the head goes, the spine follows.
• Rebuild with your legs and hips, not your arms. Sit your hips back and straighten the spine.

Common mistakes

• Mistake: leaning forward to reach for a grip. Your head is pulled down and the triangle, armbar or sweep follows.
• Mistake: putting both hands on the mat to hold yourself up. The arms are isolated and the kimura is there.
• Mistake: rounding your back when they pull. A rounded back has no strength, and you collapse onto their chest.

What they will try

• The bottom player breaks posture by pulling with the legs and a collar or head grip at the same time.
• Climbing the legs high on the back and pulling down the head when you lean.