Links
Jul
1
The West Side Thumb Hold
Filed Under Uncategorized
I’m always trying to get people to try jiu-jitsu. Sometimes they come to a class, sometimes they don’t. So what I’ve been doing lately is to show people the power of jiu-jitsu with what I call the West Side Thumb Hold.
Even though this isn’t a real technique, I love to show it to people to let them see some of the principles of control. This is how it works:
1) you have someone sit down on a bench or chair (perferably something that can’t be easily moved. If you’re using a chair, put it against a wall.
2) you tell the person that you’re going to hold them down with just your thumb.
3) you also tell them they can’t use their hands in any way (i.e. to slap your hand away or push themselves up, and tell them they can’t shake their head to remove your thumb) and they must keep their knees in front of them.
4) tell the seated person to try and stand while you, with your arm extended and elbow locked, keep them from moving their head forward.
*secret: If you can stop their head from crossing their knees they will not be able to get up. When we stand from a seated position are head has to cross our knees, if it doesn’t we can’t stand.
So after I hold someone down with the the thumbhold, I explain why it works. Then I go on to explain that jiu-jitsu is like the thumb hold. It’s not strength or speed, but knowledge.
