Tunnel vision: One of the biggest detractors from performance improvement in grappling is tunnel vision. We all have a tendency to get fixated on one course of action and become blind to other possibilities that are right there in front of us – but as in life – if you can RECOGNIZE possibility you can ACT on it. This one important sense in which combat sports are a mental game – every action begins as an idea/possibility in the mind – when that is absent, no physical action will be taken. Make sure in all your major attacking positions you have three or four major options that you work with on a regular basis so that you don't become overly enamored of one and fall into a one track mind. Here, Gordon Ryan, master of strangles from the back, shows versatility in a switch that could lead into juji gatame arm bars and rear triangles (ushiro sankaku), or indeed, an entire shift of position into mount – so that an opponent has to defend against a much wider spectrum of attacks
