The triangle choke is one of the most common and most effective choke holds in the sport of Mixed Martial Arts today. It is a move often done in the sport of Jiu Jitsu to earn points or to win matches. This instructional demonstration will explain how to perform the triangle choke from open guard.

Steps

  1. 1
    Begin by laying on your back with your legs apart. Your opponent's torso is in between your legs. This is called open guard as his movement is restricted slightly by your legs but not as much as it would be if your legs were wrapped around his torso or in “closed” guard.
  2. 2
    Start positioning yourself. Once your opponent's attack has been deflected and his other arm pushed out of the way you start to position your own body. You do this by using your legs to push your body forward on the ground so your opponents is further away from your head. With some practice you should be able to position your own body at the same time you are protecting yourself from the attack and maneuvering the punches.
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  3. 3
    Pivot your hips forward. After the previous steps have been completed your opponent should be off balance. You then want to pivot your hips forward to send your opponents body further down yours.[1]
  4. 4
  5. 5
    You want to begin wrapping your one leg around your opponent's head and shoulders always making sure his own arm is trapped in front of his own neck and head while you bring your foot towards your other leg.[3]
  6. 6
    You now want to wrap your knee around the ankle of your other foot securing your opponent in place. You can grab your shin to pull the leg across your opponent's back to ease this step, but don't pull on your foot as this can break your ankle.[4]
  7. 7
    Using your legs you want to apply as much pressure as you can to the head and neck of your opponent. You will notice that his own arm being forced against the neck restricts the airflow of your opponent. You can use one of your hands to pull down on your own foot to apply even more pressure which tightens the choke.[5]
  8. 8
    Hold the choke until your opponent either taps out, or the referee jumps in to stop the fight.
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Community Q&A

  • Question
    What if the opponent catches my balls?
    Community Answer
    Community Answer
    They probably won't because your balls are sitting snugly against their neck. If they do, either use your free arm to do something about it, or curl up in ball, whimpering in agony, and accept defeat
  • Question
    How do I do a mount position?
    Pierce Koreniuk
    Pierce Koreniuk
    Community Answer
    Get your opponent on the ground. Next, place one leg on either side of the person. Press down on their shoulders with your hands and their hips with your whole body.
  • Question
    If this happens to me, how do I escape?
    Jonah
    Jonah
    Community Answer
    One of the better ways to escape a triangle choke is to keep control of your arm that is stuck inside the triangle and keep your bicep from coming across your throat. Then, use your shoulders to turn and pop your opponent's legs open. Once there is enough room, slide your trapped arm out or your other arm back into the guard.
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Warnings

  • This demonstration was done by a trained professional in a controlled environment. This is meant for instructional purposes only and should only be attempted by, or under the supervision of professionals or qualified instructors.
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About This Article

wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. To create this article, 16 people, some anonymous, worked to edit and improve it over time. This article has been viewed 172,436 times.
78 votes - 90%
Co-authors: 16
Updated: January 11, 2023
Views: 172,436
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