Lockdown on weak side?

[Eddie Bravo]

Gotta drill both sides or just get really good at switching to the strong side when caught on the weak side, that's my go2 weak side move

[Gustavo Firmino]

I've tried to drill lockdown on the weak side, but it never gets to a reasonable OK level that I can really rely on it So, my go-to game whenever the opponent starts to pass the guard on the weak side, is really to be able to switch to the good side, or at least scramble to reset

However, except from the Half Guard/Lockdown game, I actually developed a good rubber guard and truck game on my weak side, because of 3 injuries on my left knee, so I was forced to play on the weak side while it was not 100% recovered yet and even after, for not really trusting the left knee as much anymore. Kinda weird

[Tim Mohatt]

I've tried to drill lockdown on the weak side, but it never gets to a reasonable OK level that I can really rely on it So, my go-to game whenever the opponent starts to pass the guard on the weak side, is really to be able to switch to the good side, or at least scramble to reset

I think thats the natural evolution there. My advice would be to not avoid the weak side, sounds like you are trying to embrace it. I had to learn from things failing how to make them better. e.i., people passing my strong side half, people passing through my weak side half, me holding my lockdown too tight for too long on either side, ect. And I guess I'll throw in the always relevant advice from Einstein to roll with your eyes closed.

[Craig Murray]

And I guess I'll throw in the always relevant advice from Einstein to roll with your eyes closed.

I seem to do this naturally quite a bit. Even when my eyes are open I'm often sort of staring off into space, not really watching what I'm doing. I feel like when my eyes are closed I'm more in-tune with what's going on physically. There is just like this massive overload of sensory information coming at me, turning off my eyes seems to help me get in touch with my body more... i dunno, people are already mentioning it to me... they laugh sometimes, but I'm already "that 10p guy with the highguard" so what do i care.

Fuck em let em laugh.

I have been having a pretty significant ezcema outbreak on my feet. So I've been wearing these little jiu jitsu socks.. people tease me about those too... at first I was a little self-conscience but I fixed that by remembering that Eddie used to roll with a scuba hood on..... fuck it, if he can survive people laughing at him about his scuba gear i can tolerate getting teased about my socks.

Fuck em.

[Arman Fathi]

Multiple black belts on this forum suggest drilling. I'd go with that.

If you're absolutely positively hopeless there to begin with, don't underestimate the value of developing your weak-side Stomp game to recover your guard and/or to buy yourself a second to mentally prep your attack from lockdown. Overtime, there should be only reflex and no mental prep.
Remember, it's still jiu jitsu, there are still the same options on your weak side as there are on the strong side. The stomp has bailed me out of situations where I otherwise get passed on my weak side.

And the stomp doesn't require that much drilling to understand the concept. You're stomping on his calf and immobilizing his leg. There's also the super stomp, if I remember correctly that's attributed to using both your feet to stomping his calf, or even the crook of his knee which I've found annoys the hell out of opponents. My point being, look for ways to increase your ability to control a guy from your lockdown/half-guard/(insert any position here) and you will see the opportunities for chaining together attacks as you see him grow impatient and push forward, which invariably creates holes for you to exploit. How do you get better at exploiting that which is available? The great Zog and Master Eddie said it most eloquently. "drill"

[Arman Fathi]

I have been having a pretty significant ezcema outbreak on my feet.

I suggest Aveeno skin cream, available over-the-counter. Best thing for eczema, absolute best thing. Coming from a lifetime of experience

[Arman Fathi]

get really good at switching to the strong side when caught on the weak side, that's my go2 weak side move

If a guy feels in danger of splitting apart my weak side lockdown, I'll switch to the strong side by using my bottom hand to push away his far knee. It's a very specific grip, like a C-grip with your palm up and your thumb facing outward framing just above his kneecap. It's amazing, I've had discussions with teammates about the gi grip vs. the no-gi grip and the gi grip just doesn't have the same effect as the locked-in no-gi frame with the C-grip. I exclusively use the no-gi grip in gi now. There's too much room for his knee to maneuver and kick around if I grab the gi pant. The c-grip gets incredibly uncomfortable and annoying for the opponent if done properly. He can't push his knee forward because it's blocked off and framed by the leverage of your bone structure. If he switches his body weight and overcommits to the pass (specifically by switching his hip and taking his outside foot off the mat, not being on his toes, in other words his toenails are touching the mat, it doesn't work well if he's posting on that foot because he still has mobility) I look for a way to slide my bottom knee horizontally to the outside of his far hip. I THEN post that foot and square up my hip, using my other leg to curl and snatch up my half-guard on my strong side, at which point I'll snatch up the lockdown if available. The outside lockdown is usually readily available in this particular position, though I need more work on this. The whole move is basically a hip escape. Remember when playing guard, you're much stronger on your side than on your back, so if you can snatch up a strong side half guard or lockdown it behooves you to get to your side and not stop on your back once you square up with your foot. Keep the momentum going. It might recover to full guard sometimes. Some guys are fast on top in this transition and it might create a scramble (I'm still working out the kinks, though well on my way), but being highly aware of the underhook almost always gets me to some position of recovery. That underhook is yours to lose. You're framing the guys kneecap, so you should be able to conserve that underhook once you get to your strong side. It might even come out as a straight up single-leg takedown, if the timing's right. Hell, maybe even a double-leg. Keep in mind that dogfight, deep-half guard, reverse de la riva guard (aka spiral guard), mini-stomp (which can go to lockdown OR x-guard entries), and several other things are available in this transition. It's been money in the bank for me, especially on the rare timing that I take the guys back, but more than 90% of the time it's recovered for me some type of guard or position where I could be offensive from. The key to everything working though is controlling my opponent as I make the transition and the timing of the transition. And understand the value of that underhook. That underhook is your lifeline. When you're on your weak side, it helps to have both underhooks or at least, not letting him have underhooks on you (t-rex top arm). The move works best when he's focused on passing your lockdown and exposes himself, specifically his outside hip. Otherwise it can become a scramble, at which point it becomes more about instinct and mat time.

Though isn't that all Jits