Guest post by Henry Akins, the third American to receive a Brazilian Jiu-jitsu black belt from legendary fighter Rickson Gracie. Akins trained under Rickson Gracie for 15 years. Akins became the head instructor or “Professor” at the Rickson Gracie Academy from 2005 to 2008 before resigning due to a back injury. 

1. You squeeze and strain to finish your chokes. If you’re using any more muscular effort to choke someone than you would use to turn a doorknob, your technique is sloppy.

2. You use The Seatbelt grip to control the back.

3. You have specific guard passes memorized to pass different guards.

4. You lift your hips to finish the triangle choke.

5. You can’t break grips and posture at the same time from closed guard.

6. People are able to sit up in your closed guard.

7. When you use the knee shield, your opponent can reach your face to strike you.

8. When someone takes your back, you can’t escape with only your legs.

9. You can’t scissor sweep someone who has perfect posture. (If you do the scissor sweep right, posture, weight… none of it matters. You can sweep them all.)

10. You don’t know what to do when strikes are involved.

11. You’re worried about people passing your guard, because you get stuck in side control. (Hint: when you learn the true power of the underhook, you can bait people to pass your guard).

12. You don’t know how to have unbreakable posture from inside closed guard.

13. You can’t shut the D’arce down with a single adjustment of your inside elbow.

14. You don’t know the teepee defense for Guillotine from the closed guard.

15. You get Swept from Half-guard.

16. When you’ve taken someone’s back, and your opponent defends your choke, you start over and try something else because you don’t know how to fight for grips and win every time.

17. You have to pull the head down and drag the arm across to finish the Triangle choke.

18. You’re worried about where you grip the gi for collar chokes of any kind.

19.Your opponent can shut down your Bow and arrow Choke by pulling your Choking arm.

20. You have your knees on the ground when you’re in side control.

21. You start rolling from your knees.

Learn from Rickson Gracie black belt Henry Akins. He will teach you battle tested small details and concepts to common positions that will transform your game. He covers all positions in Jiu-Jitsu: