Triangle Choke Guide [Video & Written Instructions]

The triangle choke is one of the most common submissions you will learn when you first start training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. This submission is commonly used in both BJJ and high levels of MMA. For some, this is their favorite and go-to submission in the sport for others, it is just another tool in the toolkit. Nonetheless, understanding how to do a triangle choke is going to a fundamental that any new white belt is going to need to know how to do.

The blue belt requirements we have laid out do call for all white belt testing to be able to do a handful of submissions from closed guard. The triangle choke can be done in both gi or nogi. This is a freebie if you test and use this as one of your submissions from Guard. For those who are super green to the sport and have taken the time to Google this here is how you do a triangle choke.

How to Do a Triangle Choke

There are many variations to the triangle. To be completely honest, doing a triangle choke happens 50% of the time from closed guard or when you have an opponent in mount. I personally will not take the time to go through all the possible variations of the triangle because I would be in the grave by the time that is done.

In this post, you will find the most common ways to pull off a triangle choke. Here are 6 Key Points to successfully pulling off the triangle.

1. Wrist Control

2. Push & Pull Motion With Wrist Control

3. Thrust Hips Up and Wrap Legs Around

4. Control Position and Put Wrist In Your Pocket

5. Get to 90-Degrees

6. Complete the Submission

Pulling off a triangle is a routine that you will pick up. The best part about BJJ is the strategy that comes along with it. When you see an opening for a triangle choke it is blatantly obvious. The majority of people at the white belt stage will not be masters at this choke so getting out of a triangle is not a daunting task but as you roll with higher belts you will notice that getting into this position in the first place is horrible news.

The 6 pointers above may not be a high in-depth breakdown of each step but they give you key points to remember when trying to pull off a triangle choke. Watch the video demonstration below to get a step-by-step breakdown by our resident Black belt Keirnan.

Video Demonstration

Step By Step Breakdown

1. Control the opponent’s wrist

2. Push one wrist toward your opponent’s body and pull the other wrist up toward your head

3. While doing the push/pull motion, shoot your hips up and wrap your legs around the opponent’s body/neck area. [You should throw your leg on top of the shoulder on the same side you pushed the wrist]

4. Wrap your feet and settle control. Start to angle your calf 90° across the back of your opponent’s neck. Shinch the tightness by getting the back of your knee on top of the foot

5. When control is established, move the arm that you have control of [opposite of the one under your leg] to the pocket (opposite side hip)

6. When their arm is in your pocket control your opponent’s head and hip up

Putting this all together, the triangle choke is an essential move that you will need to know when training BJJ. There are many ways to escape this choke (which we will cover in another post). I hope you enjoyed this simple breakdown. If you are completely new to the sport, we welcome you from wherever you are in the world!