The Side Control position is one of BJJ’s most popular and effective ones. That’s why more and more grapplers keep learning it, even outside Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. For example, many MMA fighters are familiar with it and the countless possibilities it opens up (which we’ll also review later.)
However, once you obtain it, you might find it more than difficult to maintain. Therefore, I’ve decided to write this article, as I struggled with the same issue. I assure you that this will be the only guide you’ll need to read to start getting results with maintaining the Side Control position.
To get to the point, we’ll review 9 tips you want to start implementing into your BJJ game to begin seeing results. Before we dive into the first one, however, I want to cover a critical point.
You must begin practicing as soon as you’re done reading this article. That means that you want to either bookmark this article, so you’ll be able to return to it whenever you want to implement one of the tips or you get on the mat and begin implementing each one.
All in all, it’ll be worth it to bookmark this article, as it’ll allow you to implement each of the tips alone, and not all of them simultaneously. That’ll provide you with the fastest learning and progression rate. So keep that in mind.
And let’s dive into the article itself:
#9 – Use Shoulder Pressure
The first tip we’ll review is something you can start doing the next time you’re in Side Control and see immediate results. That thing is pressuring your shoulder against your opponent’s chest or face.
This does a few things. The primary thing it does is make them uncomfortable and force them to make a move. This also relates to the next tip we’ll review, but more on that later.
However, it brings another benefit to your BJJ game, more control. Controlling your opponent is the key to winning more fights in BJJ. Many grapplers give up control for non-important results, such as gaining points in a competition.
But you have to focus on getting as much control as possible over your opponent. If you control your opponent, you’ll be able to attack more often and get more wins.
So pressure your shoulder on your opponent to force them to react and keep threatening them.
And let’s move on to the next tip.
#8 – Stay Active
And now, let’s move on to #8, which is to stay active. Now what does that exactly mean? To be concise, you must always do something to ensure your opponent doesn’t feel comfortable. This can be in many forms of actions, such as grip fighting or even faking submissions.
Whatever you do, it’s critical you make the opponent as uncomfortable as possible. By you grip fighting, you’ll be able to force the opponent to react, and thus, ensure he doesn’t make any offensive moves.
Another example is going for a submission. However, once your opponent reacts by defending himself, you return to your standard Side Control position.
As you can see, you have endless options. Here are some submissions you can learn (by following each link) to expand your skill set and become a more threatening grappler:
- Loop Choke
- Baseball Choke
- Americana
- Bread Cutter Choke
- Lapel Choke
- Triangle Choke
- Wrist Lock
- Guillotine Choke
- Armbar
- Straight Arm Lock
- Kimura
Remember, the primary point here is to keep on moving. The more you force your opponent to react, the better off you’d be.
#7 – Control the Arm That’s Close to You
The next tip we’ll review is to control the arm that’s closer to you. Let’s review a common situation when you’re in your standard Side Control and want to ensure your opponent cannot escape.
In that case, we know that your opponent’s best shot is to turn toward you, so he’s on his side. He’s likely to avoid turning to the other side, as that will leave his back vulnerable, which he’ll avoid at all costs. If he does, you can initiate a back take to attain the Back Mount position and finish the fight from there.
Anyways, to ensure your opponent can’t turn toward you, you want to control the arm that’s closer to you. For example, if you’re on the right side, it’s his right arm you want to maintain control over. That’ll provide a barrier for him to turn effectively.
The best move you can make is to lift his arm. Once you lift his arm, you’ll confiscate him from all the momentum he has, making it much, much harder to escape.
#6 – Have a Game Plan
The 6th point we’ll review is to have a game plan. Now, this sound obvious, but it’s important to discuss and understand. When you know what your next step is, you’re more capable of acting smoothly and effectively.
Once you act with greater effectiveness, you’re able to reserve your energy supplies and threaten your opponent. Now the best thing you can do in your situation is to threaten your opponent. When you do that, your opponent will be forced to stay in defensive mode, allowing you to keep your position better.
An example of a game plan I like to use is transitioning to the Full Mount position, which is easier to do than you think. Here’s how to do that:
You first want to start in Side Control. You want to ensure maximum control by blocking your opponent’s hips. Then, you want to hook your right arm across the opponent’s chest and grab his elbow. Finally, you want to kick your left leg over his belly and attain the Full Mount.
#5 – Attack Constantly
#5 is to attack constantly. I know what you think, we’ve already covered this point. Not really. We’ve covered the fact that you have to keep on moving all the time, which is slightly different than this one. It’s a subtle difference, but still.
Anyways, you want to learn as many attacks as possible, which can be in the form of submissions and transitioning into more dominant positions. Whatever you do, you want to force your opponent to be as defensive as possible.
For instance, you can initiate a back take to attain the Back Mount position. Not only will it give you more control, but it’ll also force your opponent to react by being defensive. Oh, and not only that, but you’ll also gain 4 points in an official IBJJF competition!
So keep learning attacks. The worst thing you can do is to stop learning. You want to constantly strive to learn new things and new submissions, even if you’re a black belt, coral belt, or even Grandmaster!
Here’s one of the best attacks you can learn:
#4 – Avoid Overcommitting
The 4th tip we’ll review is to avoid overcommitting. Now this might sound obvious, but you’ll be surprised as to how many grapplers make the mistake of overcommitting. And you want to avoid that to ensure your opponent doesn’t attack you after you make the mistake.
Overcommitting can be done in many ways, primarily, however, when you go for a submission or try to attain another superior position, such as Back Mount and Full Mount. Also, when you transition to the Knee on Belly position, you’ll be vulnerable to the same mistake.
When you overcommit, you usually lean forward, back, or to the side too much. That’s when you’re most vulnerable to the common attacks and submissions from your opponent.
So avoid overcommitting to maintain your Side Control position for longer.
#3 – Always Block the Hip
#3 is going to be a critical point to understand, so pay attention. When you’re in Side Control, you want to constantly be blocking your opponent’s hips.
Why? Because if you don’t, your opponent will find it easy to transition into the Closed Guard position. All he needs to do is twist his hips and lock his legs; fairly simple stuff.
And once your opponent transitions into the Closed Guard position, he’ll be able to start attacking you. I have another article on the best attacks from Closed Guard, which you definitely want to read to ensure you’re ready to (1) attack and (2) defend if you ever need to.
Anyways, once your opponent is in Closed Guard, you’ll need to start all over again, perhaps by passing your opponent’s guard and going for a submission like the Americana.
The point is, you want to always block your opponent’s hips when in Side Control, regardless of the variation. You can be in the Kesa-Gatame position and this will still apply. So make sure to do that with any body part you have available, perhaps it’s your hand, hip, or knee. Simply block it all the time.
#2 – Maintain a Solid Base
We’re almost at the end of the article. Hopefully, you’ve been able to learn and you already have a list of things you want to practice. If you wrote the tips down, you’ll gain results much quicker than if you haven’t. So if you want to go back to the article and write all the tips down, it’ll quicken your results.
I’m waiting…
Alright! #2 is to maintain a solid base. Imagine you’re standing up, in which body position will you be most balanced? You probably know the answer. It’s when you’re slightly leaned forward and are in your fighting stance. That should make sense.
Well, standing and being in Side Control are essentially the same things. You want to be as balanced as possible. The fact that you’re not standing doesn’t change this fact. So you want to be as balanced as possible even when you’re in Side Control.
You can do that by spreading your legs wide and spreading your weight evenly. This is the best stance you can be in if you’re looking to maintain this position for longer periods.
So the next time you’re in Side Control, maintain a solid base by not over-leaning to one side and spreading your legs wider. Experiment to see in which position you’re most balanced.
#1 – Be Aggressive, But Smooth
The last tip we’ll review is going to be an unconventional one. So why did I decide to list it as #1? Frankly, I think it’s the most important one of them all! This is the case because it applies to everything in BJJ. No, it actually applies to everything in life. So let’s get straight into it.
When you’re in Side Control, you want to be aggressive, but smooth. There’s a popular saying: Slow is smooth and smooth is fast. The same applies to BJJ. If you’re rushing and being disorganized with your movements, you’ll be clumsy, which you want to avoid.
On the other hand, if you’re organized and smooth in your actions, you’ll be able to think more vividly while performing fewer actions. And performing fewer actions means being more effective and having more energy to fight longer.
So you have to be as smooth as possible. When you’re in Side Control, you want to observe your opponent and come up with a plan. This will help you organize your thoughts and come up with a better action plan.
But, you have to be aggressive. You’ll face opponents who are bigger, stronger, and have more fighting experience than you. As a result, you have to bring something else to the table. Something that many fighters don’t have. I encourage you to adopt aggressiveness as this solution.
Eventually, if you’re not aggressive, you won’t be able to threaten your opponent nearly as much or as effectively.
Final Words
Maintaining the Side Control position can be quite difficult for novice grapplers. So if you’re currently a white belt, you might find it difficult to maintain your positions once you attain them.
The tips I’ve reviewed in this article are perfect for all grapplers. Your next step is to implement them as soon as possible, to ensure you begin seeing results.
Nothing worthwhile comes without any effort or practice. So get on the mat and get to work!
Here are other articles you’ll enjoy reading:
Side Control 101 – From BJJ Beginner to Pro
How to Finish From Side Control in BJJ – 11 Submissions
7 Ways to Take the Opponent’s Back in BJJ (Back Mount)
7 Ways to Obtain Full Mount in BJJ (BJJ Walkthrough)