Armbar: Complete BJJ Technique Guide

# Armbar: Complete BJJ Technique Guide

## What is the Armbar?

The Armbar is a fundamental Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu technique that every practitioner should master. Whether you're a white belt just starting out or an experienced grappler refining your game, understanding the mechanics and timing of this technique will elevate your BJJ.

## How to Perform the Armbar

Here's a detailed breakdown based on expert instruction:

# Armbar

Hello guys, let's talk about the armbar, okay? Arm bar is such a good technique and

the cool aspect of the arm bar is that you can do the arm bar from many different

places, but what creates the leverage on the person's elbow?

So basically, imagine that my hip is this hand. So My hip is going to be

underneath his elbow. And then I'm pushing up with my hip. And then I force the

wrist down towards the other side. So this hyper -extend his arm and creates the arm

bar. Let's first go down here, man, lay down on her back. So let's understand,

move back a little bit. So let's understand the most basic arm bar. So imagine I'm

in the mount, mount position, of course, is a supreme position in a fight. And a

lot of people when they don't know Jiu -Zitsu, they're going to push you. Once he

pushed me, he extends his arms so he's actually helping me. What I have to do

here, I have to post my hands on his chest, leaving one of his arms between my

arms. So this arm is that one that's between my arms, means I'm going to attack

this arm. The opposite leg I put up, and I'm going to change the angle here.

So I'm like 90 degree angle. And then I can just throw my leg,

fall seated on the floor, and start holding his wrist, and now I have the arm bar.

So Basically, as I said before, my hip is underneath his elbow. And this bridge,

once I raise, once I raise my hip, is one of the biggest leverage I have on my

body. Because I can really use all my bone structure to lift my hip.

His thumb, it's actually guiding me of the line of his elbow okay so if his thumb

is out of place I have to actually turn his thumb this way once I close I'm going

to start lifting my hip and pulling his his wrist down against my chest okay also

important I should keep my knees close don't do not open your knees. Why? Because

the guy can push your leg and end up getting on top of you. Okay, so always make

sure you close your knees together. And now I have the arm bar. So,

as I said before,

the cool aspect of the arm bar, that you can do this from many different places,

many different situations, okay? Of course, that is more advanced arm bars that you

can practice, that your opponent is in different angles, okay? So this one that I

just showed to you guys is from the mount, okay? Which is the most basic one. And

then, since we did from the mount,

the opposite side of the mount is the close guard, right? Because if I have close

guard on him, As we explained it before, it's like I'm mounted on him,

but just upside down. And same thing, if he extend his arms here,

I can very easy grab one arm,

change the angle of my hip, and then I have an arm bar here as well.

So, Of course, that is more details, that is more things that I can do from there.

But I'm not really focused on this. I just want to give you the big view about

the arm bar, right? Sometimes for self -defense, maybe the guy's choking me.

And I can hold his arm, I can start climbing my legs, and then arm bar him from

close guard, right? Right?

Also, imagine I'm in side control.

If I'm in side control and his arm is above my shoulder like this kind of exposed,

I actually can take advantage from this. Turn a little bit here. So I can pull him

sideways and now I just go over

And now I land in an arm bar the same way. But notice how I don't have the leg

above his ribs. Okay? Why?

Because once I have my knees close, I already have his elbow catch on place.

All right. Could be that I don't have this leg. That is some arm bars also that I

don't have the leg above the head. I have just the leg like this. Okay?

So that is many different types of arm bars. The whole idea of this video is to

help you guys to understand that from many different places, you can do arm bars.

For example, I'm on his back,

right? And I'm trying to choke him and he's sliding down he's lighting down and I'm

losing him but his arm is hanging out here I can very easy just turn my legs and

end up in an armbar here as well right so again it's my hip underneath his elbow

right always creating leverage by reaching,

lifting my hip, and his thumb will guide the direction.

And this I can perform an arm around him.

Hope you guys understand. See you next lesson.

## Key Points to Remember

When drilling the Armbar, focus on these essential details:

1. **Positioning** — Your body position determines your success rate

2. **Timing** — Wait for the right moment, don't force it

3. **Grip** — Secure proper grips before committing to the technique

4. **Finish** — Follow through completely once you initiate

## Common Mistakes to Avoid

Many practitioners struggle with the Armbar because they:

- Rush the technique without proper setup

- Neglect the importance of base and balance

- Forget to control their opponent's reactions

- Don't drill both sides equally

## When to Use the Armbar

The Armbar works best when:

- Your opponent's weight distribution creates an opening

- You've set up the technique with proper grips

- You can commit fully to the movement

- You have a follow-up ready if the initial attempt fails

## Track Your Armbar Progress

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*This technique guide is based on instruction from Professor Henrique, covering the Armbar as part of the JitsAI Fundamentals Course.*