Drillear para ganar, un artículo de Paul Greenhill OG

Ask The Wise Grappler: 
"I bought the last product you had out [21 Mat Laws of Grappling] and you talk about drilling being very important. Can you explain drilling to me?  I know it sounds like a dumb question but another proverb says, 'A wise man can learn more from a dumb question than a fool can learn from a wiseanswer.'  Do you drill a move, a position, a series?"

Well, there's a long and short answer to that question and I'll give them both to you:

The short answer is yes, you drill a move, position, and technique until the moves become mechanical and can be executed without thinking about it, like you tie your shoelaces or even breathe.  You've been doing both of those activities for so long that you're no longer aware of the fact that you do them without thought, especially the breathing part!

The long answer on how you drill the moves, techniques, and positions until they become mechanical and reflexive have been captured and broken down in the following 5 key points:

1. Drilling the Technique Right - This mean having the mechanical motion, grips, body position, correct breathing pattern, and proper visual alignment so that you can see the "mat battlefield" to know when your opponent is vulnerable and susceptible to the technique.

2. Drilling to Execute the Technique Quickly - Now that you know how to do the technique right, you have to master doing the technique quickly before the window of opportunity closes on you.  Just because you can do the technique on a willing partner, that won't guarantee that you'll execute it with the same sense of urgency during a live match.

3. Drilling the Technique under Stress - Just because you can do the technique right and fast, that doesn't mean that you'll do it under a "live" (stress) situation and you have to account for that as well.  You need to apply your techniques at different stages of successfully locking in the technique (etc. 30% applied, 50% applied, 70% applied, etc.) and have your partner fight out of it at different levels of resistance (30%, 50%, 70%, etc.).

4. Drilling under Common and Uncommon Scenarios - Every technique should work under ideal conditions, but will your technique hold up when you're tired, your opponent's sweaty, your opponent is (or isn't) wearing a gi, you're injured, you develop a cramp in your  arm or leg, etc.?  That's why you need to drill those techniques in  common or uncommon scenarios that are likely to occur, especially  if you're competing.  You should RARELY encounter a situation for  the first time during a competition.  If you do, your training plan has holes in it that need to be closed.

5. Drilling with the Technique Failing - This mean that we're expecting to execute the technique in such a way that it's not effective enough to submit or gain a dominant position on our partners and we've thought out the common "mat tendencies" on what the opponent will do to resist.  Once you're able to determine the tendencies and integrate that into the drilling, that will allow you to account for your opponent's ability to counter and fight off  your triangle attack... but walk right into your armbar attack.