Is it a waste of time to start from the knees?
It seems that way, especially considering street fights, BJJ matches, and MMA rarely, if ever, take place on the knees.
But then, why do so many BJJ schools start from this position? Is it to save room? Is it to give students who haven’t learned to break fall a chance to roll.
Maybe, but if that’s the case, there is a far better way to make up for a lack of room or break falling ability: have the students start from a position. In other words, have a student start while her opponent is in guard, half guard, mount, side control, or any of the other positions in BJJ.
Starting from a position is better than starting from the knees because it allows students to work from positions they will actually encounter in a fight. It also forces students to start from positions they may rarely get into or use. You may not be a guard player, but if your instructor tells you to start from the guard position, you had better learn to be one.
In the video below, second-degree black belt Nick “Chewy” Albin answers a student’s question about starting from the knees. Like me, he sees numerous problems with starting from that position, but he still answers the student’s question.
Check out the video below.
