The Gentle Art Of Choking

Beloved of a growing tribe of A-list actors, athletes and top trainers, Brazilian jiu-jitsu has the fitness community in its stranglehold. Grappling to see the appeal? Our writer donned his white belt to discover whether this intimate martial art is a fight club worth joining

- Jamie Millar

Dave, whom I’ve only known for a few minutes, is kneeling between my thighs as I lie with my back on the floor, his hands on my hips. This might seem compromising, but in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, this is “the guard”: an ostensibly defensive position that, in reality, presents an array of offensive options. It is also – as my first lesson at martial arts gym Fightzone is teaching me – a great icebreaker.

From here, I can dislodge one of Dave’s hands and tug on the lapel of his gi while bringing him forward with my hips, so that his weight traps his arm against my chest. I can then reach around to grab his back, while getting hold of his trouser leg on the same side. From here, I can lift my own leg up as a lever and “sweep” him, so that I’m on top (“the mount”). Then I can grip his other lapel and, bringing my hands together like a pair of scissors, cut off his air supply. That is, if I can remember the sequence of moves that was demonstrated to our class moments before, never mind execute them.

“It’s like chess,” says Dave, a 26-year-old computer programmer who’s shorter and slighter than I am, but sweeps me with surprising ease. We’re not sparring or “rolling”; we’re just practising moves. He encourages me to choke him harder by pushing my wrist bone into his throat.