Professor Braulio Estima on Heelhook Safety
If you only attend the gi classes at your Jiu-Jitsu school, you likely have not had a lot of instruction in the Heelhook submission. The Heelhook is known to be one of the most dangerous leg locks due to the serious nature of a knee injury should it go wrong. And thus, it is prohibited in many GB classes.
Yet the sport of No-Gi submission grappling is exploding in popularity worldwide, and the game of leg locks and, more specifically - Heelhooks is near the top as far as winning strategies go. If you want to win in No-Gi competition, you are going to need to know the Heelhook game.
If the Heelhook game is so dangerous, how do we train the Heelhook safely so we can develop our knowledge in the leg lock game?
Top GB instructor Professor Braulio Estima tackles this very topic in his recent video instructional series on GB Online - Heel Hook Safety By Braulio Estima. Professor Braulio shows the mechanics of the Outside and Inside Heelhooks, how to safely attack the Heelhook on your training partners in a way that minimizes the possibility of injury, and, as importantly, how to react and defend when you are being attacked with a Heelhook submission. How to develop your leg lock game while being safe.
Attacking and escaping the Heelhook
The video series covers two main areas of training Heelhooks: How to safely apply the Heelhook and keep your training partners safe and how to defend the Heelhook and know when to tap and avoid injuries.
How to apply a Heelhook without injuring your training partners
Professor Braulio teaches the principle of the "Zero point." He says first to bring the joint that you are attacking to the zero point or the end of the natural range of motion, then gradually apply the force for the actual submission.
Professor Braulio illustrates this concept of controlling the joint with the straight Armbar in one of the videos. Instead of ballistically reaping on the opponent's arm, Professor Braulio looks to slowly and completely extend the joint to the zero point and only then apply pressure for the lock. This approach is all about full control of the opponent's joint and preventing their escape movement. The submission is a secondary, more efficient application of additional pressure once the joint is at the zero point.
In the video series, Professor Braulio goes into depth on the proper mechanics of the Inside Heelhook and Outside Heelhook and shows many advanced technical details.
When should I tap to a Heelhook?
How do we know when we should tap or continue to fight? Professor Braulio believes that what makes the Heelhook the most dangerous technique - if we do not accept our own physical limits - and continue to resist when the opponent has our limb at the zero point.
Professor Braulio says that our training partners have a responsibility to take care of their opponents; we also have a responsibility to take care of ourselves. Do not leave the opponent to choose for you - when the Heelhook has reached the zero point. We must recognize that we are caught and choose to tap to concede the submission and avoid potential damage.
"You need to understand when it is time to give up. During our training, we always have a second chance. Forever. With this movement (taps the mat), you are going to have a second chance." says Professor Braulio.
Professor Braulio reminds us of the fact that when you have arrived at the zero point of the opponent's joint lock, you are under their control. The control is key. If you can not even move to start to escape and are under complete control of the position - the zero point - you are at risk of getting injured if you don't tap.
"So if I want to be safe, and I'm not very confident about dealing with the Heelhook when I get to the zero point, and I have no motion - in this case, the knee can not move - is the time to tap," says Professor Braulio
Professor Braulio stresses thinking to recognize when we are caught, and any movement to escape is not possible, to simply tap and start again with another chance to train.
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