“Shrimp”

Last month we looked at the bridge. Today will be the “Shrimp” or Hip Escape movement.

This is one of the first movements a student will learn when beginning their Jiu Jitsu journey (and spend the rest of your life perfecting). It is usually worked in as part of a common pre-class warm-up routine. The problem is it may be glossed over without a detailed explanation of how or why we do it. The goal is not to mimmick what is seen but understand how to move the body correctly to overcome a problem an opponent presents. 

The shrimp is used to create movement and space. One of the biggest challenges of moving and space creation while laying down is the amount of body surface area we have in contact with the floor. This surface area creates friction which slows us down. Add an opponent and their weight on top of you, it only gets worse. The shrimp technique teaches how to decrease that surface area and incorporate the strong muscles of our legs in order to generate the movement we need to defend or escape when things seem at their worst. A better understanding of the shrimp technique will provide you with an important tool to progress in the art.

The three options we will view today are the standard 2-foot shrimp and also two one legged techniques utilizing the inside foot or the outside foot.