People collect strangles the way some people collect stamps. Rear naked, triangle, guillotine, collar chokes, the list goes on. In this video lesson I explain why, once you understand the formula, there is really only one strangle. And once you see that, you will be amazed at how many variations you can come up with.

This is for grapplers, traditional martial artists and self-defence students who want to understand strangles properly rather than memorise a long list of them.

Principles Over Techniques

A strangle is a strangle because of what it does, not because of where your arms happen to be. The names describe the position. The principle describes why it works. When you understand the principle, every position becomes a chance to apply it.

That is the same way I look at locks, strikes and pressure points. Learn the principle once, then apply it in a hundred places. If you only learn techniques, you are stuck the moment the position is not exactly the one you practised.

Seeing the Variations

Once the formula clicks, you start to see strangle opportunities everywhere:

  • Standing, from the front, the side or behind
  • On the ground, on top or underneath
  • With your arms, your legs, or the clothing
  • Against a wall or in a confined space

They are all the same thing, applied from a different place. This is also a big part of how I look at kata. The same shape can appear in many situations, and each one is an application of the same idea.

Train Strangles With Care

Neck work is serious. Strangles can render a person unconscious very quickly, and careless training can cause real injury. Always train with control and a cooperative partner, agree a clear tap, apply slowly, and release the moment your partner taps. Never train strangles alone or without someone experienced supervising.

In self-defence, any force you use has to be reasonable for the situation. A strangle is a high level of force, and the law will look at whether it was justified. Your aim should always be to get safe, not to win.

How to Practise the Formula

Take a strangle you already know. Work out what it is actually doing. Then try to apply the same principle from a different position, slowly and with a cooperative partner. You will quickly find you know far more strangles than you thought.

Take It Further

Principle-based thinking runs through all of my courses. The Pressure Point Self Defense Course applies it to real self-defence, and Kata Unleashed shows how the same shapes appear in your kata.