In class with Dave today we continued the lesson on the high guard sequence we’ve been working on. We reviewed how to establish the triangle.
Triangles have always been hard for me to apply because I have short stubby legs, and for some reason my calf is always against he back of my opponents leg and feels like its getting crushed, no matter how deep I have the lock in or what angle my body is. I’m starting to conclude that my body is just not made for triangles.
Which is really makes what we worked on today important. We went through the same set up for the high guard and instead of finishing with the triangle, I would attack his left shoulder with the omo plata. This submission is much easier for my fat stubby legs.
The main thing I have to always remember is to control his hips after establishing the omo plata to prevent him from escaping by rolling out.
In the free sparring part of training, Dave and I both noticed that my movements are getting better, but the thing that really hinders my progression is that in transitions, I pause until the position is established before working my game. This allows my opponent to get set up to attack me which immediately places me in a reactionary position.
I’m not sure why I pause… but that’s something I need to work on. Transitions are the time to explode for openings, to exploit better positions, and execute escapes.
The feedback Dave gave me was that I know what moves need to be done and my body is capable of these moves now… it’s just that my mind isn’t quite there yet and has to get past the stupid moments when it freezes.