I’ll preface this whole blog by saying that this is going to be a work in progress – expect mistakes. I’m going to update this particular blog many times (I hope) as my understanding of the mechanics solidifies. I’ll try to add and expand it. It MAY be incorrect at times – which is fine as I’ll be able to come back and really refine what I thought I understood.
BEGINNER’s Terminology of Leverage
A Lever can be described in 3 main parts. A “Load”, a “Fulcrum”, and a “Force”.
Fulcrum – it’s the immovable part, the part that the rest of the lever has to work around
Load – that’s the weight you are trying to move. Such as the opponent.
Force – That’s Acceleration multiplied by Mass. A small Mass can produce the same Force as a larger Mass if the small Mass is Accelerating faster.
In BJJ terms we care about leverage, which means we care about all 3 points as it’s applied to us and our opponent. The chief point we care about is the Fulcrum. So if you want to apply leverage (which we do if we use BJJ) always think about the Fulcrum. To get the Fulcrum though you need to have a connection. This is why connection is critical for BJJ.
No Connection = No Fulcrum = No Leverage = No BJJ.
3 Class Types of Levers
To easily think about what type of lever is being used I currently like to think about what part of the lever is in the middle.
If we considering each of the class levers above with the same load of 1KG. The Class1 lever requires the least amount of force to move it. The class 3 lever requires the most amount of force to move the load. Class1 levers are more efficient than Class 3 levers when it comes to moving something very heavy. However Class 3 can move the load faster and further.
This is why people say technique triumphs over strength in BJJ (excluding where you talk about both together). Strength relies a lot on Class 3 levers (your own muscle) to generate Force without considering using the leverage. While good technique will take advantage of Class 1 and Class 2 levers that can be used using less Force and effort to manipulate the opponent.
Examples of Class 1 Lever BJJ techniques
- Armbar from Mount
- Kneebar
- Kimura
- Americana
- Omaplata (sub or sweep)
Most limbs can easily be manipulated by class 1 levers for submissions. Force can be generated from your hips, or your legs, or just your body weight.
Examples of Class 2 Lever BJJ techniques
- Butterfly sweep
- Arm drag from guard to back attack.
- Upa from Mount
- Sitting Roll Over sweep
- Shrimp (Hip escape – upward and towards part of it) movement from Side Control
I think BJJ utilises class 2 levers mainly for sweeps and reversals. A lot of the force is generated through the hips (either from the feet and legs or from the core). Thus like a wheel barrow, it’s easier to lift a weight much more than you would be able to normally. So generally, we use this class of lever when underneath an opponent.
Examples of Class 3 Lever BJJ Techniques
- Bicep Crush
- Scissor Sweep
- Front Sweep against standing Guard
I’m not sure how accurate these ones are. I’m struggling to find many techniques that actually use class 3 levers.
Leverage is a core component of BJJ. Being able to move and manipulate using them is one thing. Being able to recognise the leverage an opponent has against you I think is even better. I’m struggling to find a good defence strategy that is easy to understand. With so many techniques it’s very hard to identify what my opponent is really doing. Instead I’m going to develop feel triggers based on the 3 leverage concepts. I’m going to try to set people up with a repeatable pattern so I can recognise what leverage the person has against me.
In terms of attacking, I’m already starting to think that an Armbar is an Armbar, no matter from where it’s put on. Understanding how to to anticipate my opponent based on the leverage he is trying to apply I think is key. That’s the end goal on why I blogged this. I want to be able to distil all these attack and defence “bjj techniques” down to core concepts only. For my brain, it’s easier to think about 3 things (Force, Fulcrum and Load) than 50.
That’s my very long term plan anyway – that seems like a galaxy far far away…
Happy rolling,
Dan
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