ANATOMY OF SUBMISSIONS
 
 
By Leith Darkin
Nov 2006
Abstract
 
In this article we are going to look at some of your popular and more effective submissions with the objective being to
1) Better understand the biomechanics of each submission.
2) Look at the objective of each submission and the damage that can occur when a submission is taken to its full extent.
 
 
Chokes & Strangles
 
Choke
 
A choke is where pressure is applied to the trachea (airway), to stop air from getting to the lungs.
When a choke is applied, the attacker uses one of their arms to apply direct pressure to their victims trachea in an attempt to close off their victims airway, in most instances the attacker will use their other hand to tilt their victims head forwards which also assists in closing off their victims airway. Once the airway is closed off, oxygen can no longer get to the lungs which results in victim passing out due to lack of oxygen to the brain.
 
Picture from
www.umn.edu
 
 
Rear naked choke
 
Pictures from
www.susumug.com
 
In photo on the left, the attacker has his left arm firmly under his victims chin with his arm positioned so his elbow is in alignment with his victims chin, once the rear naked choke is sunk in, the attacker pushes his victims head forwards with his right hand, while levering off his right bicep with the left hand to drive his left arm even tighter into his victims throat (at this point the muscles in the attackers left arm are flexed).
In the photo on the right, the same choke is applied using the opposite hands, as you can see, once the rear naked choke is sunk in properly it is almost impossible to escape.
 
Strangle
 
A strangle is where pressure is applied to both carotid arteries causing insufficient or no blood flow to the brain (the carotid arteries are responsible for transporting oxygenated blood directly from the heart to the brain).
Strangulation results in the victim passing out from lack of blood flow/oxygen to the brain. The key to a strangle is getting the alignment just right so there is pressure on “both” carotid arteries.
 
Picture from
www.wikipedia.org
 
 
Cross arm choke/ Arm triangle choke
 
Pictures from
www.susumug.com
 
Though often called a “cross arm choke” or an “arm triangle choke”, when performed correctly, this “choke” is actually a “strangle”.
In the photo on the left, the attacker uses his head to press his victims left shoulder into the left side of his victims neck (cutting off blood flow through the victims left carotid artery), while at the same time pressing his left bicep into the right side of his victims neck (cutting off blood flow through the victims right carotid artery).
In the photo on the right the head is again used to press the victims left shoulder into the left side of his neck (cutting of blood flow through the victims left carotid artery), while the attacker in this instance uses the upper portion of his forearm along with the lower portion of his bicep to apply pressure to the right side of their victims neck (cutting off blood flow through the victims right carotid artery).
The key to a cross arm choke/arm triangle choke is the alignment of the pressure that is applied to both carotid arteries, for optimal results the pressure should be applied perpendicular to the side of the neck. A common fault when performing this choke/strangle is pressure to the neck is often unsuccessful in closing down both carotid arteries.
 
Choke/strangle: This is a combination of no blood flow/restricted blood flow to the brain along with the airway being closed off from head tilt and pressure to the trachea.
 
Triangle choke
 
Pictures from
www.susumug.com
 
In the photo on the left, the attacker uses the inside of his left thigh to apply pressure to the right side of his victims neck, (slowing down/cutting off blood flow through the victims right carotid artery), while the attacker uses the inside of his right thigh to drive his victims left shoulder/left upper arm into the left side of his victims neck (slowing down/cutting off blood flow through the victims left carotid artery). In this instance the pressure to the carotid arteries is sufficient to render the victim unconscious.
In the photo on the left, the pressure applied to the victims carotid arteries is only enough to restrict the blood flow to the brain (as opposed to shutting down the blood flow to the brain), which is the case in the majority of triangle chokes, when this happens, the attacker needs to pull their victims head forwards to close off the victims airway which along with the restricted blood flow to the brain, is enough to render the victim unconscious.
 
Joint Submissions
 
Nearly all joint submissions fall into one or two categories.
1) Joint circumduction: Where a joint (shoulder or knee) is rotated beyond its natural range of motion.
2) Joint hyperextension: Where a joint (elbow or knee) whose primary movement is flexion and extension, is extended beyond its natural range of motion.
 
The injuries listed for each joint submission are a general over view and will vary from one instance to another depending on.
1) How quickly the victim taps out.
2) How long it takes the attacker to stop applying force.
3) How much force the attacker applies.
4) The alignment of the joints when the attacker applies force.
5) The mobility of the victims joints.
6) Previous injuries.
 
Damage that can occur from such submissions include
1) Fractures and bone chips.
2) Muscle tears.
3) Ligament tears.
4) Cartilage tears.
5) Vascular injuries.
6) Neurological injuries.
7) Sublaxations (partial dislocation where the joint goes back into place
by itself).
8) Dislocation (where the joint is fully separated).
 
Shoulder Submissions
 
The shoulder joint is a shallow ball and socket joint with the head of the humerus (ball) being more than twice the size of the glenoid cavity (socket), being a shallow ball and socket joint allows the shoulder to go through more variety of movements than any other joint in the human body, unfortunately being able to go through a large variety of movements compromises its stability.
 
The shoulder joint is held together by a capsule of ligaments that attach the head of the humerus to the glenoid cavity and a series of four muscles (called the rotator cuff) that surround the head of the humerus, attaching it to the scapula.
The rotator cuff consists of
1) Teres minor
2) Infraspinatus
3) Supraspinatus
4) Subscapularis
 
Muscle
Origin of
muscle
Insertion of muscle
Movement in isolation
Teres minor
Posteriorly on the upper and middle aspect of the lateral border of the scapula
Posteriorly on the greater tubercle of the humerus
External rotation
Infraspinatus
infraspinatus fossa just below the spine of the scapula
Posteriorly on the greater tubercle of the humerus
External rotation
Supraspinatus
Medial two-thirds of the supraspinatus fossa
Superiorly of the greater tubercle of the humerus
Abduction
Subscapularis
Entire anterior surface of the subscapular fossa
Lesser tubercle of the humerus
Internal rotation
 
 
Picture from
www.musom.marshall.edu
 
Picture from
www.musom.marshall.edu
 
 
Americana
Kimura
 
Pictures from
www.susumug.com
 
The photo on the left is a textbook “Americana”, here the humerus is abducted around 90-degrees, with an approximate 90-degree bend at the elbow joint. Here the attacker externally rotates the humerus, making sure the humerus rotates in the socket with no additional movement (e.g. abduction, adduction, horizontal flexion or horizontal extension). If the victim doesn’t tap out in time, the extreme external rotation that is forced onto the shoulder joint will tear
1) Tear the joint capsule.
2) Damage/tear the labrum.
3) Possibly tear sections of the rotator cuff (subscapularis).
4) Possibly sublaxate or dislocate the shoulder.
The photo on the right is a textbook “Kimura”, here the humerus is abducted around 90-degrees, with an approximate 90-degree bend at the elbow joint. Here the attacker internally rotates the humerus, making sure the humerus rotates in the socket with no additional movement (e.g. abduction, adduction, horizontal flexion or horizontal extension). If the victim doesn’t tap out in time, the extreme internal rotation that is forced onto the shoulder joint will
1) Tear the joint capsule.
2) Damage/tear the labrum.
3) Possibly tear sections of the rotator cuff (infraspinatus, teres minor & supraspinatus).
4) Possibly sublaxate or dislocate the shoulder.
 
Elbow Submissions
 
The elbow joint is quite a stable joint due the design of the bone surfaces and the joint capsule of ligaments that surround the elbow joint.
 
Picture from
www.wikipedia.org
 
Picture from
www.stjohns.com
 
 
The objective of an elbow submission is to hyperextend the elbow joint, which can ultimately cause the elbow to dislocate.
 
Straight arm bar
Straight arm bar inverted
 
Pictures from
www.susumug.com
 
In the picture on the left the attacker is executing a text book arm bar, the attacker has both legs around his victim (with one leg over his victims head to minimize the chances of his victim escaping) with his ankles crossed. In this position the attacker can pull his victim tightly towards him while immobilizing his victim at the same time. The attacker uses his groin region/upper inside thigh as a fulcrum, making sure the tricep region of his victim is firmly pressed against the fulcrum, the attacker raises his pelvis while pulling down on the wrist. If his victim doesn’t tap out in time, the elbow will hyper extend and in a worse case scenario dislocate.
In the picture on the right, the attacker doesn’t have his legs firmly wrapped around his opponent (this creates better opportunities for his victim to escape the submission attempt), fortunately the attacker has pulled his victims arm far enough through his groin region to align his victims tricep region with the fulcrum he has created from his groin region/upper inside thigh region, now the attacker has to drive the fulcrum into his victims tricep region while pulling his victims wrist into his chest. Once again, if the victim doesn’t tap out in time, the elbow will hyper extend and in a worse case scenario dislocate.
 
The following is a list of injuries that can occur as a result of the elbow being hyper extended or dislocated
1) Bone fractures (primarily the coronoid process).
2) Medial and lateral ligament disruption.
3) Capsular tears.
4) Muscle tears (primarily brachialis).
5) Vascular injuries.
6) Neurological injuries (ulnar nerve).
 
Knee Submissions
 
The knee contains two joints: the tibiofemoral joint with its associated collateral ligaments, cruciate ligaments and menisci; and the patellofemerol joint, which obtains stability from the medial retinaculum and the large patella tendon passing anteriorly over the patella.
It is important to understand the role of the different ligaments and menisci in the knee joint in order to understand better the mechanics of injury and the likely consequences of those injuries.
(R Cooper/K Crossley/H Morris 2002)
 
Picture from
"Clinical Sports Medicine"
 
 
There are generally two types of knee submissions
1) The “heel hook” which involves applying force to the heel to internally or externally rotate the lower leg beyond its normal range of motion.
2) The “knee bar” which involves hyperextension of the knee joint.
 
Regular heel hook
Inverted heel hook
 
Pictures from
www.susumug.com
 
In the picture on the left the attacker applies a regular heel hook. The attacker has his victims leg bent at the knee joint (which is important to help stop the victim from freeing their leg), while at the same time locking his legs around his victims thigh, the attacker then applies force to the heel to internally rotate the lower leg. If the victim doesn’t tap out in time, the extreme internal rotation that is placed on the knee joint can tear the anterior cruciate ligament and the lateral collateral ligament as well as tearing the medial section of the meniscus.
In the picture on the right the attacker applies an inverted heel hook. The attacker has his victims leg locked the same as in a regular heel hook, however in this submission the attacker applies force to the heel to externally rotate the lower leg. If the victim doesn’t tap out in time, the extreme external rotation that is placed on the knee joint can tear the posterior cruciate ligament and the medial collateral ligament as well as tearing the lateral section of the meniscus.
 
Knee bar
 
Pictures from
www.susumug.com
 
In the picture on the left the attacker has his legs wrapped around his victims thigh, the attacker uses his groin region/upper inside thigh as a fulcrum, making sure his opponents thigh (the section of thigh that is just above the knee cap) is firmly pressed against his fulcrum, the attacker then raises his pelvis while pulling down on the heel. If the victim doesn’t tap out in time, the attacker will hyper extend the knee joint, which can tear the anterior cruciate ligament (and in some instances the posterior cruciate ligament as well), tear the anterior section of the meniscus and cause bone bruising to the head of the tibia.
In the picture on the right, the same knee bar is applied, however in this occasion the attacker is positioned laterally to his victims leg, if the victim doesn’t tap out in time, the force the attacker is applying to the lateral section of his victims knee joint can tear the medial ligament and tear the lateral section of the meniscus.
 
Conclusion
 
I like to think of submission fighting as an intricate game of chess, however the consequences are quite sever when a submission is taken to it’s full extent. A smart fighter will assess the situation and if they feel they as though they are in immediate danger, will tap out before the submission is fully applied. A not so smart fighter will let pride get in the way and only tap out when they are in pain (which is often too late) and in some instances, while in pain they will still attempt to escape until the pain gets overwhelming.
Joint submissions can result in debilitating career ending joint injuries, chokes and strangles can result in the victim needing to be resuscitated or they will die, remember to always treat submissions with the respect they deserve.
 
References

(R Cooper/K Crossley/H Morris 2002)
Clinical Sports Medicine 2nd edition.
Chapter 23 Acute Knee Injuries
Mc Graw – Hill book company. ISBN 0 074 71108 3.
 
 
 
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