The toe hold: how it works and how to do it
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By Scott Flear, founder of JitsAI.
A toe hold is an ankle lock: you trap your opponent’s leg, grip their foot in a figure-four (a kimura grip on the foot) and turn it so the toes point down and the sole turns in. That’s the same shape as a rolled ankle, so the ligaments on the outside of the ankle take the stretch (Hasegawa et al. 2026). Despite the name, the toes are fine. Finish slowly and tap early.
What is a toe hold?
The toe hold is a leg lock in Brazilian jiu-jitsu that attacks the ankle. In Brazil it’s also called the pé de vaca. You hold the outside edge of the foot with one hand, wrap your other arm under the Achilles to grip your own wrist, and turn.
In IBJJF competition the toe hold is legal only for adult brown and black belts. Pushing the foot outwards in a toe hold is allowed only for adult brown and black belts in no-gi (IBJJF Rule Book v6, 2024).
How does a toe hold work?
The foot is the handle. Pin the leg, turn the foot, and the ankle goes where a sprain takes it.
- Toes down, sole in. The toe hold points the foot and turns the sole inwards at the same time, over a pivot at the Achilles or the inside of the ankle (Hasegawa et al. 2026).
- The shape of a rolled ankle. That end position matches a common ankle sprain, so the ligaments on the outside of the ankle, the ATFL and the CFL, are the ones at risk (Hasegawa et al. 2026).
- It can reach the knee. Once the foot runs out of range, the turn can carry on up into the knee (Hasegawa et al. 2026). That’s one reason to trap the leg above the knee and turn slowly.
The figure-four grip and your whole body turning give a lot of force for a small joint, so the stretch comes on quickly.
How do you do a toe hold?
There are many entries. These steps are the finish once you’re holding the leg. Drill it only when your coach says you’re ready.
- Step 1: Trap the leg above the knee. Pin their leg with your legs above the knee, so it can’t spin out of the grip.
- Step 2: Grip the outside of the foot. With one hand, hold the outside edge of their foot, your little finger by their little toe.
- Step 3: Figure-four behind the Achilles. Thread your other arm under their Achilles and grip your own wrist, like a kimura on the foot.
- Step 4: Pin the foot to your chest. Pull the foot tight to your chest, with no gap.
- Step 5: Turn your whole body, slowly. Turn your body so their toes point down and the sole turns in. Go slowly, and let go the moment they tap.
Common toe hold mistakes
- Leaving the leg free. If their knee can turn, the leg spins with the grip and the lock disappears. Trap it above the knee first.
- A gap between the foot and your chest. Space lets the foot move. Pin it tight before you turn.
- Turning with your arms. Arm strength alone is slow and sloppy. Turn your whole body.
- Cranking it. The ankle is small and the grip is strong. Turn slowly and give your partner time to tap.
The straight foot lock attacks the same ankle without the twist, and it’s allowed at more levels.
What happens if you don’t tap to a toe hold?
You get a sprained ankle, delivered by hand. The ligaments on the outside of the ankle stretch, and they can tear. A 2026 review says repeated sprains like this can leave an unstable or chronically painful ankle, as they do in other sports (Hasegawa et al. 2026).
In a survey of 1,140 grapplers, 45 people reported 46 ankle sprains, and most of them happened in submissions. Toe holds caused more than any other: 14 people, ahead of straight foot locks (8) and heel hooks (6) (Hinz et al. 2021).
Ankle sprains usually aren’t long lay-offs, but they aren’t nothing. Of the people with an ankle sprain in that survey, 32% were back to sparring within a month and 68% within three months (Hinz et al. 2021). The same review notes that so little has been written about toe hold injuries most likely because they go unreported, not because they’re harmless (Hasegawa et al. 2026).
How to train the toe hold safely
- Tap early. Tap when your foot is pinned and turning, not when it hurts.
- Finish slowly and let go on the tap. Turn gradually so your partner has time to tap, and release the moment they do.
- Train under a qualified coach. Learn leg locks in a class, at the level your coach says you’re ready for.
- Get checked if something’s wrong. Seek medical care for ankle pain, swelling, or an ankle that keeps giving way after a toe hold.
Does your toe hold land on everyone, or only on beginners?
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Video transcripts
Transcript: What happens if you don’t tap to a toe hold
What happens if you don't tap to a toehold? You get the world's worst rolled ankle. Delivered by hand! Despite the name, your toes are fine. It's the ankle that pays. First, they trap your leg above the knee so it can't spin out. One hand grabs the outside edge of your foot. Pinky to pinky toe. The other arm goes under your Achilles and grabs their own wrist. A kimura for your foot. Your foot gets pinned to their chest. No gap. Then they turn their whole body. Toes point down, sole turns in. Slowly. That's the same shape as a rolled ankle. So the outside of your ankle takes all the stretch. Most likely first to go, the rolled ankle ligament. The ATFL. In the biggest jujitsu injury survey, toeholds caused more ankle sprains than any other submission. Most sprained ankles there were back sparring within three months. That's still three months. In IBJJF, it's brown and black belts only. Tap early. Train tomorrow.
Toe hold questions
Is the toe hold legal in IBJJF?
Only for adult brown and black belts, in the gi and no-gi. Pushing the foot outwards in a toe hold is allowed only for adult brown and black belts in no-gi (IBJJF Rule Book v6, 2024).
Does a toe hold hurt the toes?
No. Despite the name, it attacks the ankle. The grip is on the foot, and the ligaments on the outside of the ankle take the stretch (Hasegawa et al. 2026).
Is the toe hold the same as the mão de vaca?
No. In Brazil the mão de vaca (“cow’s hand”) is the wrist lock. The toe hold is sometimes called the pé de vaca (“cow’s foot”), the foot version of the same idea.
How long does a toe hold injury take to heal?
It depends on the injury, so see a professional. For scale, in one survey of grapplers with ankle sprains from all causes, 68% were back to sparring within three months (Hinz et al. 2021).
What’s the difference between a toe hold and a straight foot lock?
The straight foot lock bends the foot straight down over your wrist. The toe hold points it down and turns the sole in, which puts the outside of the ankle under more stretch (Hasegawa et al. 2026).
Sources
- Hasegawa et al. (2026), Common grappling submissions, Hawaiʻi Journal of Health & Social Welfare 85(6): 132–141. Toe hold: plantar flexion of the ankle with inversion and supination of the foot over a fulcrum at the Achilles or medial ankle; end position like a common ankle sprain, so the ATFL and CFL are at risk; can carry on into knee internal rotation; toe holds and straight ankle locks implicated as a major cause of ligamentous ankle injury; scant literature likely due to underreporting.
- Hinz et al. (2021), Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine 9(12). Survey of 1,140 athletes: 46 ligamentous ankle injuries in 45 athletes, 60.9% during submissions, mostly toe holds (14 athletes), straight ankle locks (8) and heel hooks (6). Table 2, all ankle sprains (n = 44): back to full-contact training within 1 month 32%, within 3 months 68%.
- IBJJF Rule Book v6 (June 2024), Technical fouls: illegal moves table, p. 29. “Toe hold” is illegal for every division except adult brown and black belts; “in toe hold, applying outward pressure on the foot” is legal only for adult brown and black belts in no-gi.
This page explains a sport technique. It isn’t medical advice.