I was helping teach a clubbell workshop to non-grapplers recently when we instructed the room to assume the shin box position.
I was amazed at how many people struggled to simply hold this position, let alone hold it comfortably.
It was a blaring issue that revealed itself instantly.
A few thoughts entered my mind when I saw this.
First, there is no way these people should load their movement before clearing up these obvious restrictions.
Aside from dysfunctional movement quality, it’s clear that an injury could be just around the corner.
Second, these people could never do effective jiu-jitsu in their current state.
The Shin Box is such an essential position for dynamic BJJ that being able to maintain it and transition easily from side to side should be a prerequisite.
Let’s look at the functional uses of the Shin Box for BJJ.
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Benefits Of The Shin Box
The primary benefit of practicing the Shin Box is improving hip internal and external rotation. More specifically, it’s the relationship of the femur to the pelvis, and the pelvis to the ribcage that is so useful.
When your femur can properly rotate within the hip socket, it allows for the muscles of the hips to do their job and force to pass through the system efficiently.
When this relationship is lost, the lower back must pick up the slack, potentially leading to compensation, pain, and injury.
A properly rotating hip means the structures above, like the ribcage and spine, can stack easily over top for optimal alignment.
Ideally, you should be able to hold the Shin Box effortlessly on both sides with a vertical spine and both glutes making contact with the ground.
The group I was watching were all sorts of contorted, with curved spines, hiked up hips, and the inability to maintain their posture.
If you were to add the dynamic and unpredictable nature of grappling to this type of structure, it’s not definite injury would be imminent, but it’s certainly likely.
So, aside from the Shin Box improving the relationship of the femur, hip, and pelvis, it also provides access to positions you’ll need to perform techniques on the mat..
Here are a few of those positions.
Sit Up Sweeps / Wrestle Ups
We see the Shin Box used most frequently when transitioning up for sweeps from the bottom. Many Sit Up Guards make use of a Shin Box to Hip Thrust to create leverage and power against a standing or kneeling opponent.
Two things are needed for this to be effective.
First, the ability to internally and externally rotate each hip at the same time. This needs to be performed by the rotator muscles of the hip, which is why it’s smart to practice Shin Box transitions and heists.
You can activate and strengthen these muscles while lubricating the hip joints at the same time with bodyweight Shin Box drills.
Second, you must develop the power of your glutes to push upward from this position to elevate your hips. You must also do this against a resisting opponent.
You can improve this by practicing loaded Shin Box variations.
Shin Box Hip Power is the best program on the market for improving this.
Attacking And Defending Leg Locks
Most leg lock positions consist of some form of hip internal an external rotation. Ashi Garami, aka, Single Leg X, is essentially an inverted or reclined Shin Box.
Having the hip dexterity to move through leg lock positions like Ashi Garami, Cross Ashi, Saddle, and 50/50 is critical for effective leg attacks. You can build this dexterity with dynamic Shin Box transitions.
From a defensive standpoint, most leg attacks are challenging the defender’s hip rotational range of motion. That’s why you must retain the knee line for effective leg locking. When you trap the femur you trap the hip.
Applying the rotational force to the heel is actually taking advantage of the limitation up the chain.
So, having full access to your hip internal and external rotation is also essential for defending leg attacks.
Finishing Omoplatas And S Mount
Finally, we see the Shin Box used in mounted positions when controlling an opponent.
The most obvious example is when finishing an omoplata. To apply pressure to your opponents shoulder you must transition your legs to the Shin Box then move your weight forward.
The Shin Box is literally the technique.
S Mount is a sort of hybrid Shin Box, with one leg up in a squat position. For an effective S Mount you must be able to transition easily through internal and external rotation while keeping your hips low to control your opponent.
That’s why the next programs from Order & Progress and Mark Wildman will explore squatted positions transitioning to Shin Box and other vital moves you need for optimal grappling movement.
For now, invest your time in exploring the Shin Box position, transitioning from side to side and thrusting up.
Once you can do that, adding load to these positions will deepen your mobility, improve your dexterity, and strengthen your hips for better BJJ.
WHENEVER YOU’RE READY, THERE ARE 4 WAYS I CAN HELP YOU:
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