When you roll at 100% intensity, you force your partner to do the same. And if you’re less experienced, you may not know that you’re putting both of you at more risk than necessary.
When you force an escape by exploding out of a position, maybe you don’t know you’re setting yourself up for a submission. For example, in the bottom of the mount, you may push with both arms and bridge hard to one side. Your partner might allow some movement and go to a belly down armlock. But because you pushed and bridged so hard, your partner feels he must apply the submission with the same force and intensity in order to finish it. Before you have time to tap, you’re injured.
Who’s at fault here?
Is it fair that you can explode out of something, yet expect your partner not to “explode” into something else?
I witnessed some grace the other day. One person on the bottom did exactly as described above. But the top guy did not care about “winning.”1 Instead of rushing for a finish (because if he didn’t, he’d lose his dominant position), he allowed his partner to get out.
Be careful how you roll. You may be taking your safety for granted. And one day, you might run into someone that wants to “teach you a lesson.”
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Over the years, there’ve been countless times when I could’ve submitted someone but instead chose to keep my partner injury-free, and vice-versa. I’ve been lucky to have partners that care about me more than beating me. Don’t ever take for granted that your partner can literally paralyze you or do some other major damage. Take care of your partners so they take care of you. ↩︎