How to Do the Sambo Achilles Ankle Lock

While the use of ankle locks has been generally discouraged in such grappling sports as judo and brazilian jiu-jitsu, this type of submission technique is making a comeback in sport sambo competition. Sambo, which is a Russian martial art similar to judo, emphasizes using leg and ankle locks and applying pressure to the Achilles tendon to force your opponent to surrender.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Sparring partner

1. Capture your opponent's leg. Trap your opponent's ankle in the crook of your arm, under your armpit or between the bicep of one arm and the forearm of the other arm.
2. Hyperextend your opponent's ankle. Wedge your forearm underneath your opponent's ankle and pushing his leg up against your opposing armpit or bicep. By driving your forearm into your opponent's Achilles tendon, you can bend the ankle upward to inflict excrutiating pain.
3. Fall to the ground to apply maximum pressure on your opponent's Achilles tendon while applying the ankle lock. This will allow you to stretch backwards toward the floor without fear of losing your balance and falling backward, possibly injuring both of you.
4. Wrap your legs around your opponent's leg and isolate his ankle from the rest of his body. By applying pressure with both of your legs, you can prevent your opponent from bending his knees and escaping from the ankle lock. Just be sure that you don't leave your groin area vulnerable to kicks or punches.
5. Roll over and shift your weight to your belly to apply more pressure to your opponent's leg. This spin move may be useful if your opponent attempts to squirm out of the initial take-down and reduce the pressure on his Achilles tendon. Rolling your body away from your opponent may allow you to twist the ankle and hasten your opponent's surrender.

Tips & Warnings

• You can cause injury to your opponent if you do an Achilles ankle lock in sambo practice and he tries to escape by flinging his leg wildly. It's better to let go of your opponent's leg than to cause permanent nerve damage or tear the cartilege in his knee.