Minding the Gap

Every jiu jitsu practitioner will get their moves countered and shut down throughout the journey. This is a normal thing and nothing to lose sleep about, but if there becomes a trend, it may be time to do a gap analysis. I've learned this method through my current line of work for problem solving and prevention for future work. These lessons learned serve as a way to teach newer mechanics of potential issues they may encounter and different ways to avoid them. By learning from past mistakes, an individual has a greater likely-hood of suceeding without the same number of trials.

The first step of a gap analysis is realizing what went wrong and then what should have happened. This even more simplified can be: the problem versus the ideal situation. For our first example, you have your full guard established and you attempt to attack for an arm bar. You set up your grips and put the move into motion, swiveling your legs and hips to cut the proper angle. Just before you go for the finish, your opponent takes advantage of the small space left from lack of squeeze with your knees and pulls their arm free. From here you are left contemplating how this happened and all of a sudden, they have passed your guard and have taken side control.

Now what went wrong? Obviously there was too much space, leaving a weak control on the attack. We always talk about position before submission, so try to ensure that you have established control before you start throwing up a move. Beyond the space, there was too much time wasted thinking about what to do next after the move failed. It is important to realize that your reactionary movements will be slow as you first start out but over time, you'll begin to familiarize your body and mind to perform these movements in unison. Mat time matures your game like a finely aged wine. The point here is that for every move you perform, you should have a mental flow chart of what to do if something doesn't work. Each roll is going to be different, so being prepared to adapt to a situation under pressure is a skill that needs to be constantly worked.

We have established that there was too much space during the attack and too much time thinking after the counter. We also know that we should have gotten a solid control of position before attacking and had a 'plan b' when the move failed. By comparing the ideal situation to what actually happened, we can find out the holes that need to be sewn shut.

Again, here is another possibility to help you with the troubleshooting process for a failed move/defense. In this scenario you are standing and your opponent shoots in for a single leg takedown but you are unprepared and grab onto anything you can to stay up. After a little bit of a struggle, your opponent finishes the single and establishes the dominate position.

What went wrong this time? Your opponent took advantage of your lack of defense; maybe you weren't low enough in a good stance, or  you weren't being aggressive enough. Regardless of what triggered the takedown attempt, the first reaction should have immediately been a sprawl. Eliminating the opportunity for your opponent to establish their grips, you could proceed to get a more advantageous position. Yet if the first line of defense doesn't work, there should be a back up plan just like in the first example and any other situation.

Now you missed the opportunity to sprawl and your opponent has secured a solid grip on your leg. You know that if you hang around for too long you're going to go to the ground, but why not on your own terms? Making your opponent plan in your game will always put you in a better position because your opponent is focusing less on attacking and more on defending leaving them more prone to making mistakes. Their grip is tight on your leg and you instinctively wrap around your opponent's head, locking up a guillotine, and they drive through to bring you to the mat. With a slight adjustment to your positioning you're in perfect terms to finish.

As you can see from the two examples, the idea is the same to either prevent the attack or counter the attack based on your reaction-time. Sometimes you may have to go to a 'plan c,' or 'plan d,' or 'plan e.' It all depends on the situation you're in; whether it is your reactionary time, your opponent's reaction time, positioning, fatigue levels, or any other possible variable that could affect the opportunities allowed. When push comes to shove, you have to be able to read your surroundings and react accordingly. It's that simple.

Closing the gaps in your game can take a lot of trial and error, but you must persevere! You must actively deconstruct the possibilities and find new approaches to overcome the obstacles that you find along the way. It can help to film your matches, keep a journal, or have your opponent or a third party
give you feedback after a match. Once you can realize your weaknesses, you can begin to make the your strengths, and then you can take your strengths and make them your second nature. As always, continue to keep rolling, because the next time you do may be the time that it all falls into place!