How to do an inside turn

If you ask me - which you should, because this is one of those subjects I actually know something about - more people need to spend more time on escapes.

Let's take an inside turn to get out of something like kesa gatame (scarf hold) . This is one of the more basic escapes to one of the most basic pins . Even if you do grappling or mixed martial arts where you can't lose by a pin, you are in a bad position, because it is not too tough to do an arm bar from there.

Yet, I cannot tell you the number of times I have seen this exact thing, where the person on the bottom is trying to escape. How exactly am I supposed to get out like this? My opponent's head is in the way and unless it happens to pop off, which I don't think very likely, I am stuck.




First of all, the time to get out of a pin is before your opponent has really locked up tight. Another crazy thing people often do is start really fighting to get out AFTER they feel the opponent tighten up on the pin. By then,  it's usually too late.

What I want to do is as my opponent starts to get the pin slide my right hand between me and her (I'm just waving it in this picture so you look at it - this is not where your hand goes.) The next picture below is what you really want to do.

So, here we go, as your opponent starts to get close for the pin turn to your side and shove your hand in between the two of you. At the same time jerk your left hand as hard as you can trying to get it away from the opponent. It is a WHOLE BODY movement, jerking your left hand, turning your whole body on the side in toward your opponent (that's why we call it an inside turn.)

If you do the "shrimp crawl" exercise at your club, what some people call ebi (which is Japanese for shrimp - see how educational this blog is) that is the exact movement you are doing with your body.

Keep turning, keep pulling your left hand, shoving your right hand between the two of you. Notice something about both my arms - they are bent. I have seen people teach this move where they are shoving their whole arm through as if they are trying to swim out of the pin. That is a really bad idea, because if you extend a straight arm, an opponent who is good at arm bars is going to jump on it.

Once you get your head out, scoot backward, get up on your knees and come behind her. One of the dumber things I see people do in this position is turn out on their stomach and then lay there, giving the opponent the chance to turn them right back into the pin. No! Get out of there and now YOU attack your opponent!

Thank you to Mr. Gonzales and the students at Gompers Middle School for helping with this blog today. You are much appreciated.