In this article we’re going to go over a few positions that have to do with tangling and disentangling from realistic fighting positions that’d you see and encounter in any bjj match. Simply put tangling is to put you partner into a position from which it would be difficult to escape, whereas disentangling deals with escaping holds places upon you by opponents. By working on these skills you will be able to escape from just about any situation that you may find yourself in during the course of a match as well as being able to hold your opponents.

Essentially there are two ways you can deal with being swept, and if you’re facing another fighter your size (or smaller) you can almost guarantee that a sweeping scenario is going to happen.

Mixing It Up

Now there are smaller fighters that do tend to break the mold and will use more of a wrestling dynamic to their fighting and in doing are able to escape from legs sweeps. That in itself is inherently good because mixing up the styles you use makes it hard for your opponent to read you. Now there are some situations in which prevention methods are difficult to execute. So for example, you’re in an x- guard and your opponent kicks you out.

Conceptualization

Now you may be asking how you would get yourself out of this situation, and the key to this is conceptualization. With that in mind let’s go back to being kicked out of the x-guard, now instead taking the chance and trying to sprint out or you can think about how you can rearrange yourself out the scramble you’re in. From there you’d probably want take you right arm and scoop it underneath your opponent’s knees and roll forward.

Now, you’re in a position in which both of you are on bottom, from here it’s all aboutgetting your entangled leg out so you can be free from your opponents hold. Now with just a simple roll you have turned the tables on your opponent and change the circumstances of your position.

Now to escape this position you can push your opponent’s leg up and bring your free leg up through theirs and brace off your other leg is not on top of them and then push out. By doing that you are able to break free from the x-guard and take the top position once again. Always remember that the key to escaping most anything being able to conceptualize how to best shift your body in such a way that you  opponent will have trouble maintaining they’re hold over you and how to get the high ground.

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