Gi & no-gi Beginner
Gustavo Gasperin explains the difference between the Z guard (knee on the hip, feet connected) and the high knee shield, and why the connected feet make the Z guard harder to smash.
Control
Structure and Distance
Where the knee, feet and grips go so the shield cannot be smashed flat.
Knee Shield (Z-Guard) · Half Guard
The other side: Half Guard Top
Techniques in this topic
Resources
3 resources
YouTube videos
Gi & no-gi Intermediate
A reliable knee shield sweep built on wedging the thigh between your knees, pushing off the elbow and never letting your hip touch the mat; also shows how the forced reaction sets up loop chokes.
Gi & no-gi Beginner
Fundamentals of the Z guard: where the knee, foot and grips go so the structure holds, and the basic reactions when the top player pressures in.