techniques – Joshua Clements Writes

A Philosophy for Passing Guard

One of the major facets of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is the guard. That also means knowing how to pass the guard is equally as important. There are numerous guard passes, each with its own utility for the given guard you are trying to pass. But having so many tools in your arsenal can also make itContinue reading “A Philosophy for Passing Guard”

A Judoka walks into a Wrestling room…

In my last post, I discussed several elements and techniques that translated from Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu into Wrestling. I would be remiss if I didn’t also discuss some of the similarities between Wrestling and Judo. These two arts share similar rule-sets and have arguably borrowed from each other through the last century. The parallels between themContinue reading “A Judoka walks into a Wrestling room…”

A Jiu-Jiteiro walks into a Wrestling room…

While helping coach wrestling at my local high school for five seasons, I also trained Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in the off-season. It was a whirlwind of techniques and rule-sets, with each system using various leverage points. There were similarities and differences between the systems, but I tried to focus on what united them. They were bothContinue reading “A Jiu-Jiteiro walks into a Wrestling room…”

Winning: It’s all in his head.

In one of my Judo matches several years ago, I was in an intense struggle for grips, and I was losing the battle. I heard my coach yelling, “You’re not moving him, Josh. He’s moving you.” My coach was right. I was letting my opponent lead the dance. In the famed Japanese swordsman and martialContinue reading “Winning: It’s all in his head.”

Passing Guard: Pressure is Persuasion

“Pressure is persuasion,” I yelled to one of my students as he tried to pass his opponent’s guard. The tournament official next to me looked at me funny and smiled. “I like that,” he said. Afterward, the official and I had a conversation about persuasion and martial arts. Part of my professional background is inContinue reading “Passing Guard: Pressure is Persuasion”