Start with the head: People always talk about good posture when opening a closed guard. It's important to actually define what good posture consists of. There are different postures you can use to open a closed guard, but the standard methods that work well in a wide array of situations almost always begin with FREEING YOUR HEAD. Most of your opponents will always try to subvert your posture by controlling your head. It is crucial that you begin the process by freeing your head so that YOUR HEAD CAN LEAD THE WAY TO STRONG POSTURE THAT CAN ENABLE YOU TO OPEN YOUR OPPONENTS GUARD. Look how Gordon Ryan has taken inside position with his hands so that he can free his head from the tenacious grip of Georges St-Pierre. Mr St-Pierre has to settle for an arm grip (still very useful) and you can see Mr Ryan's head beginning to rise – highly desirable if you wish to stand up and open the closed guard. This is something you can practice every day. Have a partner grip your head and fight to get your hands inside and head free – your first step in learning to get up to your feet and open your opponents closed guard.
