It’s no secret that Tom Deblass’ favorite position is the half guard. It’s a position he has been using since he was a blue belt nearly 15 years ago. Since then he has been refining the position on the mats and in the competitive arena against some of the top competitors out there and on grappling’s highest stages. When he’s not on the mats at his own school, traveling around the world motivating students around the globe or competing on the top stages, he’s always thinking about half guard.
For DeBlass, the elements of a strong basic half guard are relatively simply. There is first and foremost the use of one’s legs to control the the leg and hip of the opponent to prevent the guard pass. Most often Tom DeBlass relies on the bottom leg to hook the opponent’s thigh and shin keeping tabs on their whereabouts and keeping them cinched in the half guard, while the top leg is utilized as a knee shield if he’s trying to control distance and keep their pressure and weight away from him.
In some cases that top leg is transformed from a protective knee shield to a more active and in some cases attacking leg. For DeBlass, the knee shield is primarily a defensive posture. When the knee shield is dropped or removed, the opponent can be enticed to come forward, committing their weight to your body and making them easier to sweep.
The arms play a huge role for both top and bottom half guard players as well. For the bottom player looking to be defensive or maintain distance and alleviate pressure, the arm frame across the throat and shoulders will keep them at a distance and at bay. While this top side arm is working as a frame, the bottom arm remains active and protecting against the cross face.
Conversely, when one in topside half guard, they need to be wary of the knee shield and the frames. The goal for the top player is to flatten the opponent’s body, securing under hooks and working to immobilize the hips to prevent them from working their way underneath and reversing you.
Tom DeBlass has shared a game changing half guard tip. In the same vein as his best selling Half Domination series, the clear and concise directives DeBlass shares can be implemented easily and have you dominating your classmates and opponents in no time.
In this video, DeBlass addresses one of the most troublesome spots in bottom half, when people try and collapse your knee shield by leg weaving their arm through your legs and controlling your bottom hip. DeBlass recommends to push their head down throwing off their balance and recover your top leg and possibly even exposing their back. Works for him nearly every time.
Having trouble with people leg lacing you from half guard? Check this out:
To get more of these easy to follow and extremely applicable half guard game changing techniques, you will want to check out Tom DeBlass‘ 4 volume, best-selling Half Domination series today. This series has been so popular that we wouldn’t be suprised if a Half Domination Part Two gets made in the very near future!
