Learning to use the North-South position in BJJ—is extremely valuable. This article will be entirely dedicated to this position, including everything you need to know to start using it in real fights. These are its basics, attacks you can use from it, and tips to perform it correctly.
Likewise, we’ll go over set-ups and ways to attain and retain it properly. We’ll finish the article by reviewing an escape I found most useful—if you ever find yourself on the other side of the boat.
Anyways, this article will allow you to start using the North-South position properly in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. It’s also an ideal position in MMA, so you don’t have to limit yourself if that’s the martial art you chose.
I hope you’re excited to start getting to know this position more thoroughly. I sure am eager to spill everything I know about this dominant position, including from personal experience and research I’ve conducted in preparation for this article.
Constant learning is the best thing you can do to progress faster in your BJJ journey. I want you to get on the mat already, so let’s dive in!
What Is the North-South Position in BJJ?
The first part is for those who don’t know or understand what the North-South position looks like. If you’re not, that’s totally fine. I’m confident you’ll be able to use it properly once you finish reading this article.
Not only will you know what it looks like, but you’ll also know how to attain, retain, submit, escape, and use it flawlessly. With enough practice, the sky’s the limit. So what does this position look like?
The North-South position, primarily taught in BJJ, is when you’re in line with the opponent while your heads are facing opposite directions. You want to place your head on the opponent’s belly while having chest-to-chest contact. The name derives from the different directions your heads face.
It’s also a form of Side Control position, so you can transition to the North-South position from there (more on that in the next part.) Eventually, you’ll be able to attain and keep it in many ways.
All in all, it’s a fantastic position you want to know about. And now, let’s move on to the next part of the article.
How to Attain the North-South Position
You can attain the North-South position in many ways. Before we describe them, however, you must understand that it’s a form of Side Control, which means that you can transition to the North-South from any Side Control variation.
You want to start in Side Control to attain the North-South position. You then isolate the opponent’s far arm by hooking and locking your hands around it. Next, you push the opponent’s head toward you, using your elbow. Finally, grab his belt (close side) to block his hips and start stepping toward his head.
You’re now in the North-South position. This is the best, simplest way to attain this dominant position. You’re going to be in Side Control a lot, or at least I hope you do.
The North-South is a type of Side Control, but you’re in line with the opponent instead of perpendicular. As a result, you give up lower body control in return for upper body control. That, I would say, is a fair trade.
So to recap, the best way to attain the North-South is by starting in Side Control, isolating the opponent’s far arm, pushing his head toward you, controlling his close hips, and stepping toward his head until you’re in line with him.
Here’s a visual aid of what that would look like:
North South Basics – How to Hold
We’re, in my opinion, in the most important section of this article. It can be quite difficult to start seeing results when using this position, and I know it. But knowing what to focus on in your training—is key to your progression rate.
So, for instance, if you focus on the things I’ll mention in this part of the article, you’ll be on the right path to start seeing more results quicker. Therefore, you’ll start controlling your opponents much better, which is what you want.
The more control you have over the opponent, the more likely you are to win. Maneuver the opponent as your will, and your grappling skills will improve.
Let’s dive into the 5 North-South basics you want to focus on when you’re starting out. These will also help you hold this position for longer, demotivating the opponent and giving you the upper hand in the fight.
Stay low
The first thing you want to focus on is staying low. Compared to all the following tips, this is the most important one. Staying low will give you more balance.
It also has other byproducts, which we’ll review in the following sections. For now, however, know that staying low will give you more balance, which in return equals more control and a higher likelihood of winning the fight.
Lock the opponent’s armpits with your elbows
The 2nd way to hold the North-South position for longer is to lock the opponent’s armpits (both of them) with your elbows (both of them.) So what will that look like?
Let’s assume you’re already in the North-South position. Great. Now, you want to get low and place your right elbow in front of the opponent’s right armpit. Then, you slide your elbow backward until the opponent’s arm is hyperextended.
This will give you plenty of control. By the way, you want to do the same on the other side, hence your left elbow to his left armpit.
Try it out. See for yourself how much control it gives you.
Pinch the opponent’s head
The next thing you want to do is trap the opponent’s head using your knees. You can do that by pinching your knees inward, applying pressure on the opponent’s head.
When will you be more likely to hold the North-South for longer, when your training partner can move his head or when he cannot? Of course, the answer is quite obvious here.
Grab his belt
Most of this position’s control comes from the fact that you have contact with the opponent’s upper body. You already know that his lower body is free to move. Therefore, you want to watch out for that.
How can you do that? By using your hands to attain more contact points and, eventually, more maneuverability. Different coaches teach different techniques for getting more upper body control. But the most optimal way you can use is to grab the opponent’s hips (in No-Gi) or belt (in Gi) for more control.
If you want to buy a high-quality GI that will last for years, follow the link!
Have chest-to-chest contact
And now, for the last tip you want to follow to retain the North-South position for longer; Are you ready? It’s to have chest-to-chest contact.
I’ve already talked plenty about you striving to get as much control as possible. We want to keep following this rule of thumb because if we do, we’ll find it easier to retain this position and win more fights.
The best way to remind yourself of the fact that you need to stay low is to have chest-to-chest contact. When you do that, you’ll be low 100% of the time, making you a much better user of the North-South position.
This is it. Good job for making it thus far. We’re now about to advance to the following part of this article, submissions. But before we do that, if you want to learn about the North-South Choke and how to use it properly from different positions, follow this link.
Reading about this choke before you enter the world of submissions—will give you a better fundamental understanding of this position. So you can read the guide about it if you want.
Anyways, it’s time we advance to the most satisfying part of BJJ: Submissions!
North-South Submissions
This is the most enjoyable part of this article, by far! I mean, what can be more satisfying than finishing the opponent using a submission you just learned? From my experience, nothing is more satisfying.
You don’t want to just attain the North-South position. Instead, you want to utilize it to gain the upper hand in the fight, either by transitioning to another dominant position, such as Back Mount and Full Mount, or going for a submission, such as Americana and Kneebar.
So without further introduction, let’s dive into the two primary submissions you want to learn from the North-South position. Here they are!
Toe Hold
The first submission we’ll review is one I’m a big fan of. It’s one of the most effective leg locks you can learn, which will help you win more fights. But it’s not just that. Remember, your opponent has free control over his lower body, which we consider a disadvantage.
However, what if we were to turn this disadvantage into an advantage? Can we do that? The answer is yes, and here’s how the Toe Hold will help us do that.
The opponent will not expect you to reach far and attain leg control. He will anticipate you going for an upper body submission, such as a choke, perhaps, or even a submission like the Straight Arm Lock.
Essentially, you’ll be more unexpected, making you a better grappler who’s willing to read the situation and take a calculated risk. That’s the beauty of martial arts like BJJ. Furthermore, it’s why BJJ is so alike Chess (although much less complicated.)
Anyways, here’s how to perform the Toe Hold from the North-South position.
- Start in North-South
- Place your hands on the mat
- Base on your hands
- Lean forward
- Grab the opponent’s right foot with your left hand
- Slide your right hand under the same leg
- Grab your left wrist (Kimura Grip)
- Lean to the side
- Hyperextend his toes
- Twist his heel
- Get the tap
Read more about the Toe Hold and how to master it quickly—by following this link.
Kimura
For the 2nd submission, we’ll focus on an upper-body finish, as you want to know both. There’s a reason why your opponent expects you to go for an upper-body submission, and that’s because that’s where you possess all control. So it’s a legitimate expectation.
Sometimes, we just want to utilize our current advantage and not try to be overly surprising. That’s when you want to go for the Kimura from North-South.
The Kimura is one of BJJ’s most basic and effective submissions you can learn. You should learn it as early on in your BJJ journey, preferably when you’re a white belt. It’s not likely that you won’t know how to use it if you’re a blue or purple belt (unless your BJJ coach is biased!)
So here’s the Kimura from North-South (read the steps even if you’re already familiar with this variation.)
- Start in North-South
- Hook the opponent’s right arm
- Slide his arm to the side
- Grab his right wrist with your left hand
- Slide your right arm under his
- Grab your left wrist (Kimura Grip)
- Pop it upward
- Rotate the opponent to the left
- Base your right foot on the mat
- Hyperextend his shoulder to his back
- Get the tap
And these are the two submissions you want to learn as early as possible. If you don’t know them already, it’s time to get comfortable with them, as they will help you get tons of taps!
Before moving on to the section that’s about tips to use the North-South position flawlessly, if you want to read about the Kimura and how to use it properly from different positions, follow this link!
North-South Tips
This section is going to be about tips for using the North-South position effectively. You already have more than a basic understanding of this position. That’s fantastic. Now, you want to start diving deeper into the little tweaks you can make to transform this position into a fierce one!
So let’s dive into the first one.
Tip #1 – Slide the opponent’s elbows backward
the first tip relates to one of the basics we discussed earlier. It’s to slide your elbows against the opponent’s elbows backward. The end result here is to force the opponent’s arms to be out of his control, which in return allows you to go for a submission.
This version is more extreme than the basic we mentioned earlier (placing our elbows next to the opponent’s armpits.) You want to slide the opponent’s shoulder as far away as possible, without pushing it to full extreme, of course.
Tip #2 – Attack the opponent’s lower body
The 2nd tip we’ll review is to attack the opponent’s lower body. This is more of an advanced tip, but I think you can handle it properly. You might think that the upper body is the best place to attack. That’s partially true, as you have more control there.
However, that’s exactly why you’ll be less expected if you go for a lower-body submission. I encourage you to follow the link to read about BJJ’s best leg locks you must learn to call yourself a grappler. This complete guide will help you understand what to focus on next, as I don’t want to get too off-topic here.
Tip #3 – Keep your head on the opponent’s belly
The last tip is to keep your head on the opponent’s belly. Imagine the following scenario: you’re against a violent opponent, whether it’s a street fight, MMA, or BJJ, and his entire goal is to beat you. Don’t you think he’ll use his lower body to damage your head?
This tip is especially practical for real self-defense situations, where you face violent opponents. You never know what your opponent might try or do. Remember, his lower body is free of control. Therefore, he can knee-strike your head if you keep it high enough. You can avoid that by keeping your head on the opponent’s belly.
How to Escape the North-South in BJJ?
But if you are on the other side of the coin? What if your opponent has a solid North-South hold on you? What do you do then?
So there’s one sweep I particularly like to use in this case: the Flower Sweep (or Pendulum Sweep.) This is a simple sweep to learn and execute properly. Here’s how you do it:
You want to sweep your lower body to the opponent’s weak side to escape the North-South position. Let’s assume your head is on the right side, you want to use your momentum (from your hips) to lean to the left side with your entire body. Finally, you push the opponent’s hips with your hands to escape fully.
Here’s a visual aid for you:
North-South Position Common Mistakes
The last section of this article will be about common mistakes you want to avoid when using the North-South position. I’ve already covered plenty of things about this position, which I believe are enough for you to start training.
However, the last thing I want is for you to develop bad habits in your training. Because training does not equal perfect execution. But perfect training does.
So here are the two mistakes you want to avoid, which I see most often in novice grapplers.
#1 – Being too high up
The first mistake is being too high up. Remember, you want to have chest-to-chest contact. Anything more than that, such as your chest on the opponent’s hips or belly—will give you less control.
So you want to avoid being too high up.
#2 – Not controlling the opponent’s arms
The second mistake is not controlling the opponent’s arms. Remember, like chess, you want to limit the opponent’s movements as much as possible. That’s why getting more control is something you must do.
So not controlling the opponent’s arms by using your elbows and placing them underneath the opponent’s armpits while sliding them backward, might lead to an escape.
Make sure to control the opponent’s arms.
Final Words
And that’s it for this article. We’ve covered plenty of information about the North-South position. I encourage you all to bookmark this article, so you can have easy access to it.
Learning everything we’ve covered here simultaneously—will be too difficult. As a result, learning each section and implementing it on its own, will develop muscle memory faster, allowing you to learn and progress faster.
Your next step is to get on the mat and implement what you just learned. Reading isn’t enough, but practice makes perfect. So go get it!
Here are other articles you’d enjoy reading:
BJJ 101: Knee on Belly (Basics & Attacks)
9 Knee on Belly Submissions – Attacking Manual (BJJ)
Turtle Position: Complete BJJ Technical Breakdown
Attacking the Turtle Position in BJJ – 7 Submissions
Mastering the Open Guard Position – BJJ Guide
13 Best Submissions From Closed & Open Guard (BJJ)