The Anaconda Choke, AKA Gator Roll, is an extremely effective technique you want to learn. It’ll be worth the time you invest in learning it, as it’ll skyrocket your grappling abilities and force your opponent to tap quickly. And eventually, isn’t it what BJJ is about?
After reading this article without skipping a section, you’ll be able to perform the Anaconda Choke well. However, know that there isn’t an alternative to real-life, on-the-mat, experience. While reading this will definitely benefit you, it’s more often than not—insufficient.
So this is my intention with this instructional post; I intend to allow you to perform the Anaconda Choke exceptionally well. I’m confident that’ll be the case if you follow my recommendations while following my technique breakdowns.
And if you’re reading this article, this is what you likely want. So if you want to boost your grappling skills by adding another submission to your submission toolbox, keep reading!
Let’s now define what the Anaconda Choke is and why it’ll be worthwhile to learn:
What Is the Anaconda Choke?
The Anaconda Choke is named interestingly, and you might wonder where its name comes from. In short, the way the Anaconda isolates and hunts its prey—is the same as the execution of this technique, as you’ll see soon when we break this choke down.
But first, let’s see what it is.
The Anaconda Choke is a submission that’s primarily taught in BJJ, but it’s also used in MMA environments. It utilizes trapping the opponent’s head and arm to apply neck pressure and force him to tap. It’s typically used in no-Gi BJJ, as it doesn’t require any cloth grip.
It’s pretty much a variant of an Arm Triangle Choke. You’ll first start in the Sprawl position, which is similar to the front headlock while on your knees. Then, you’ll lock your arms and control the opponent’s head and arm in them.
Lastly, you’ll grip your biceps, roll to your side, and finish this move by walking toward the opponent and squeezing your arms.
It’s relatively uncomplicated, which means that you want to learn it when you’re still a white belt, as it doesn’t require you to know any advanced move or position.
Anaconda Choke Variants
So now you’re familiar with the basic definition of the Anaconda Choke. You also know what it is and what are the fundamental steps to perform it from the Sprawl position.
If you still don’t understand how it works, don’t worry. We’re now going to review 4 variations of this excruciating, unbearable choke. By reading the following step-by-step breakdowns, you’ll be able to perform these variants with ease.
But you will need to practice each step until you develop a sufficient level of muscle memory. Nonetheless, after you repeat the same variation enough, you’ll be able to execute them in spars and competitions, making you a more threatening grappler.
The primary takeaway from this section will be to learn from the Anaconda. Truly, it’s a magnificent animal we can all learn from. It first isolates its prey beautifully. Then, in one sudden movement, it chokes its prey and gets to feast.
You’ll be able to feast real soon! 🙂
Half Guard Anaconda Choke
The first submission we’ll review is going to be from the Half Guard position. If unfamiliar with it, follow this link to learn to use the Half Guard position properly.
Anyways, this variation allows you plenty of control. You’ll begin in the Half Guard position and continue to choke the opponent out. You’ve got plenty of options to go for from this position. If you want to learn to finish from Half Guard, both from top and bottom, follow this link.
And now, let’s break this variation into steps:
- Start in top Half Guard
- Attain a front headlock
- Lean forward
- Bring your head to the mat
- Slide your left knee forward
- Roll forward
- Maintain a head and arm lock
- Grab your left biceps
- Squeeze
- Walk toward the opponent’s feet
- Wait for the tap
As you can see, this variant isn’t hard to learn. You’ll be able to start executing it after practicing and repeating the steps a few times. Once you begin performing it in real-time, you’ll start to notice that you can use this choke to threaten your opponent using it, broadening your toolbox and boosting your grappling skills.
Here’s a visual aid of this variation. Do watch the video to further grasp what this variant looks like in real-time.
Anaconda Choke From Cradle Side Control
The Side Control is one of BJJ’s most dominant positions you must learn to call yourself a grappler. There’s just no way you’ll be learning Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu without learning it. So I’m assuming you know how to use it properly.
But many grapplers aren’t actually aware of ways to finish from this position. If you want to boost your finishing abilities from the Side Control position, follow the link to read about the best submissions from Side Control and how to perform them properly.
Anyways, this variation will be from the Cradle Side Control, which is an awesome position you want to familiarize yourself with. Here’s how to perform it:
- Start in Cradle Side Control
- The opponent extends his arm
- Drop your elbow to his face
- Lean to the side
- Tighten your forearm to his neck
- Grab your biceps with your other hand
- Squeeze your hands
- Rotate back
- Wait for the tap
Once again, this submission isn’t difficult to learn and start getting results with. You want to follow the steps one by one to hasten your learning process.
There’s also one more thing you need to know before we move on. I encourage you to bookmark this article right now if you want to shorten your learning time and start seeing results sooner using this submission.
Listen. You might want to take on the world of BJJ by learning as much as possible. That’s great! I’m a fan of constant learning. However, you want to practice as few moves as possible at once. Oh, and by the way, I consider two variations of the same move – two different moves.
So bookmark this article to learn each variation on its own, and, as a result, shorten your learning time.
Anaconda Choke From Sprawl
The 3rd variation we’ll review in this article is the Anaconda Choke from Sprawl. It’s more likely you’ll be unfamiliar with it, as you might have never learned or seen it since it’s not as popular as the other position.
But still, familiarizing yourself both with this move and position and make you a more competent grappler. So what is the Sprawl position?
The Sprawl position is a defense against takedowns, especially in wrestling and MMA. It’s when you’re on your knees and are facing the opponent head to head. Typically, the opponent’s head will be aligned with your chest. You’ll also have your arm wrapped around his head.
So that’s the Sprawl position. And now, let’s see how to finish using the Anaconda Choke from Sprawl:
- Start in the Sprawl position
- Slide your right arm under the opponent’s chin
- Cup his far biceps with the same hand
- Grab his back with your left hand
- Lock a bicep grip (right locks left biceps)
- Lean on his shoulder
- Tuck in your elbow to gain more control
- Slide your head to the side of his shoulder
- Roll to the side
- Place his head on your chest, to gain more leverage
- Squeeze your arms
- Walk toward his feet
- Wait for the tap
An awesome variation that you want to learn as soon as possible. I’m confident you’ll be able to start seeing opportunities to use it, even if you’re not a Sprawl fan. You might be able to use it on an opponent that’s inside the Turtle Position. In that case, this variation works the same!
Standing Anaconda Choke
The last variation is one you’ll see most often in MMA, and not in BJJ. That’s because it works better in the first environment compared to the latter. In my eyes, it’ll be worth learning regardless if you’re doing one or the other. You want to learn as much as you can about this submission.
The Standing Anaconda allows you to transition from the standing position to a Gator Roll, which is the roll you use to get into choking position. Then, all that’s left is to place his head on your chest, walk toward his feet, and squeeze your arms.
Let’s break it down:
- Start standing
- Your opponent tries to take you down
- Slide your right arm under his arm
- Slide your left hand across his neck and to his belly
- Lock your hands, trapping his head and arm
- Lean back
- Get into Guard
- Shoulder roll backward
- Grab your biceps
- Place his head on your chest
- Squeeze you arms
- Walk toward the opponent
- Wait for the tap
There’s one unique train this variant possesses, and that is the fact that you’re almost in a Closed Guard position. But you don’t stop to hesitate or to recalibrate. Instead, you roll backward as quickly as possible while minimizing the amount of time between you leaning back and sitting to rolling backward.
It can be tempting to enter the Closed Guard, as it’s a position that gives you a lot of options as well. And you’ll get into it with an advantage, as you have the upper hand in the fight. Although finishing from Closed Guard isn’t as difficult, it’ll be better to keep up with the Anaconda Choke.
Regardless, it’s a win-win situation.
These are all the variations we’ll discuss today. Let’s now review 3 tips you want to ensure you implement into your BJJ game to boost it and become a much more competent grappler.
Anaconda Choke Tips
So as I’ve mentioned, you now can learn the variations of the Anaconda I presented in this article. It’ll be worth it to review and learn them one at a time, which will ensure you boost your muscle memory development process and shorten your learning time.
That’s why I recommend you bookmark this article. It’ll serve as the source of information you need to have in order to follow up with all 4 variations. Once you finish learning one, you’ll be able to advance to the next one. And so on.
This section will nonetheless be one you want to pay attention to. these tips will boost your success rate using the Anaconda Submission. They’ll also allow you to learn the different variants faster.
So let’s dive into the first one!
Tip #1 – Place the opponent’s head against your chest for leverage
The first tip will be to place the opponent’s head against your chest once you’ve rolled over. The difficult part of executing this submission might arrive not when you set up your hands in the beginning, but when you desire to finish and get the tap.
It can be critical to follow the steps exactly as they are, especially if you want to finish more effectively.
One thing you must do is place the opponent’s head against your chest. This will give you more neck pressure to play around with once you squeeze your arms. Once you imagine the contrary scenario, it makes sense as to why you would want to do that.
If the opponent’s head is on the floor, you’ll have less pressure. That’s the way it works.
Tip #2 – Use a figure-four hand lock
The 2nd tip we’ll review is the type of grip you want to use when you lock your hands, trapping the opponent’s head and arm.
The type of grip you want to use is figure-four. This will give you more control and more maneuverability against the opponent, increasing your success chances.
Tip #3 – Learn all the variations
Lastly, you want to, eventually, learn all the variations I presented in this article. I know it can be tempting to learn one and move on with your life. But you’re not the average grappler. How can I say that with such confidence? If you’re reading this sentence, you’ve read the entire article, which is a sign of your willingness to learn and improve.
Learning all the variations, one by one, will skyrocket your grappling skills. They’ll give you a much broader set of tools, especially if you repeat that with most submissions and techniques you learn.
Remember, knowledge is power, especially in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
How to Escape the Anaconda Choke?
Once the opponent has an Anaconda Lock on you (if he trapped your head and arm already), there’s one move you can go for. This move is surprisingly effective, so you might want to use it often (when your training partner executes this choke on you.)
The best way to escape the Anaconda Choke is to place your left hand on the opponent’s thigh, pop up on your feet to post, bring your legs to the side (walk to the side), step over the opponent, lean forward, and bring your legs to be perpendicular to the opponent to attain Side Control.
It’s a pretty simple move and one you want to execute quickly. The last thing you need in your inferior position is hesitation. So when you spot the opponent trapping your head and arm, looking for the Anaconda, utilize this move.
Final Words
And that’s it. This is the Anaconda Choke in all its glory. You’re now a much better grappler. Yes, just by reading this article you’ve boosted your grappling skills.
There’s one thing left, though. You want to start practicing this choke as soon as you get the opportunity to. The information is fresh on your mind; utilize that to start learning as soon and as often as possible, developing muscle memory faster than your peers.
The Anaconda Choke is worth your time and effort. It can be difficult to invest a lot into learning and mastering a single technique – and especially when you’re a white or blue belt. The world of BJJ is vast and you might feel like you want to learn everything before diving deeply into a single technique.
But, that might be a mistake, as not diving into a few particular techniques and getting really comfortable with them—will harm your long-term grappling skills.
This choke, however, isn’t the most effective one BJJ has to offer. Follow this link to learn about BJJ’s most effective chokes you must learn to consider yourself a grappler.
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