North-South

What it is

North-south is a top position where you are chest on chest with your head toward your opponent's hips and theirs toward your feet. Your weight sits on their sternum, both of their arms are up by your hips where they are easy to attack, and the north-south choke and the kimura are right there. On the bottom, keep your hands together and elbows in so the arms are not isolated, frame on the hips to make space, then spin to your knees or shrimp back to guard.

What you want from here

• On top: when the bottom player turns into you from side control, you rotate around their head to stay on top.
• On top: when you want to attack the kimura, the north-south choke, or an armbar on an arm that drifts away from their body.
• On bottom: keep your elbows in, make a frame on the hips, and work back to guard or to your knees.
• On bottom: do not stay flat; the longer you are here, the more the weight on your chest tires you out.

Key details

• Chest on their chest, hips low, weight pointing down through your sternum into theirs.
• Knees wide or one leg posted, so a bridge or a turn does not tip you.
• Hands by their hips or under their shoulders, ready to grab an arm that comes loose.
• Head low and to one side of their hips, so your weight stays on them when they move.
• On bottom, hands together on your own chest or neck, elbows in, and move with the hips first.

Common mistakes

• Mistake: sitting up with your hips high. They slide out underneath and recover guard or your back.
• Mistake: hugging the head with no control of the hips. They spin out and come up to their knees.
• Mistake: on the bottom, reaching up to push them off. The arm is isolated and the kimura or armbar follows.

How it is escaped or passed

• Framing on the hips, shrimping back and bringing the knees in to recover guard.
• Spinning to the knees and getting to turtle, then back to the feet or to guard.
• Bridging to one side and turning in when the top player is light.