One of the most important factors in creating space on bottom is how well you can use your hips. Sure, you need to have good frames and basic position but when it comes time to move and make the space you need to escape then the hips are where it’s at.
One of my favorite images from history is when the Persian king Xerxes faces off with the famous 300 Spartans at Thermopylae…but it isn’t any of the battles or famous one liners that I think of.
As I drove across the dark desert staring at the small patch of ground lit up by my headlights I started to get excited. Sure, I still had 9 hours of driving ahead of me but at the other end of the drive was a chance to learn some more about my two favorite training tools – the steel mace and bodyweight training.
A few months ago I ordered a steel mace. Now, if you have never seen a steel mace it is exactly what it sounds like – a long steel handle with a ball on the end of it. In fact, it wouldn’t look out of place on a medieval battlefield.
It didn’t take me long to realize that having a strong Closed Guard is one of the first things you want to develop in BJJ. Like one of my BJJ mentors told me “if you have your legs around them they can’t pass your guard”.