Obviously the best way to learn the leg lock schemes is in the gym. In my area, the BJJ gyms don't really teach them so I realize I'm going to have to do some self-learning. Are there any good seminars I can go to in order to learn this stuff? I know once in a blue moon John Danaher does seminars in singapore but a) that's too far and expensive and b) I think I would need some basics before doing something like that would be worth my time. Suggestions? At some point, I'd like to open my own gym and would hate to not have this to show students simply b/c I didn't have this shown to me during my years of training.
I went to a gym that didn't teach it to belts under purple I believe it was, I think they feared newbies cranking on people's shit.
You're going to have to invest in instructionals. Whether online or DVD.
Just as important, you need to find some like-minded individuals who are committed to learning leg locks with you. Good training partners are worth their weight in gold.
If you want to go to the source of the leg lock revolution: John Danaher's leg lock instructional is on BJJ Fanatics. Be advised, it is not cheap. Also, Danaher talks A LOT and has an intellectual speaking style that can be hard to listen to. However, this is the real stuff, the inside sankaku control system that has changed the leg lock game.
If you really can't stand Danaher or can't afford his stuff, the Modern Leg Lock Formula by Rob Biernacki and Stephan Kesting (Grapple Arts) is the next way to go. Very comprehensive and reiterates a lot of Danaher's material. It will take you from total beginner to good knowledge when it comes to leg locks. Also available on multiple platforms. The down side? You are getting the Danaher system second hand. Biernacki is not a big name pro competitor, he is just a guy who is really into studying jiu jitsu.
An instructional by a guy who IS a big name competitor is Craig Jones's Down Under Leg Attacks, also on BJJ Fanatics. It is a bit different from Danaher, Craig does a lot of inverting entries from the Z guard. But Craig's record ande efficiency speaks for itself, he has leg locked guys like Nathan Orchard, Chael Sonnen, Jake Shields, Boogie Martinez, Tim Spriggs, Jackson Sousa. He recently leg locked Rumble Johnson in a grappling match, it wasn't even close. So you know Craig's stuff is battle tested.
What else? Lachlan Giles had incredible success at ADCC absolute this year, heel hooked three heavyweignts in a row. He has recently released his leg lock instructional, focused on heel hooks from the 50/50 guard. I have not seen it yet, but he promises it shows all his secrets. To me, this is the cutting edge stuff, because for quite a while, everyone assumed 50/50 was an inferior position to go for leg locks. But you can't argue against performance.
^ great post!
Right now, bjj fanatics that sell John Danaher, Craig Jones, Lachlan Giles Leglock DVD's are 40% off. If you want to learn from three of the best, then you have the perfect opportunity to buy them. I agree you first need to learn the fundamentals yourself using instructionals and hopefully you have training partners that are like minded and you can work together. Eddie Cummings was interviewed by a budovideos and it's on YouTube. Eddie discusses how to approach learning leglocks in a safe way.
Rob Biernicki’s Modern Leglock Formula DVD is very good for the money and covers the fundamentals very well and he hosted seminars by Danaher at his academy. His instructional covers also ankle locks and counters.
Danaher instruction is extremely thorough but I don’t recall him covering counters or ankle locks but mainly heel hooks. You’ll need to do your own research. There’s plenty of free YouTube videos and Eddie Cummings who was part of a Danaher’s team and some claim was the one who learned from others at Renzo’s academy to focus on loeglocks.
It’s Black Friday and many of the DVD instructional companies have large discounts.
Good luck.