Although not the most common submission used in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, slicers are still effective and dare we say it, underrated. Here, we’re specifically talking about the bicep and calf slicer submissions that are considered quite rare.
In this article, we shall look at how to set up and finish slicer submissions, as well as how to defend and escape them. We shall also clear up any myths or rumors surrounding the slicer and what actually happens to the body when someone is caught in one.
Table of Contents
What is a bicep or calf slicer?
As the name suggests, a bicep slicer is when someone puts pressure on your bicep or calf muscle. As these muscles are quite large and exposed, they are easier to target, compared to other muscles such as your quads.
In short, a slicer submission involves compressing the muscle, so a more accurate name would be a bicep or calf compression, as opposed to slicer. In some circles, it is also called a calf crusher too. Nonetheless, the term slicer sounds pretty cool and has stuck. Imagine getting your calf or bicep pinned down, with someone putting more and more pressure on the muscle. This is what happens with a calf or bicep slicer.
How do you do a bicep slicer?
There are a couple of ways to perform a bicep slicer. The first is by using a lasso on your opponent in the gi. As they are passing, you can quickly triangle your legs over the arm and then pull their elbow into the slicer. If done with enough force and control then you will get the submission. A similar slicer can be done from a failed armbar, which is commonly used in Sambo.
Another way of getting a bicep slicer is if you land in a top crucifix position in side control. If you manage to weave the opponent’s forearm between your shin then you can apply downward pressure which will once again compress the bicep muscle.
How do you do a calf slicer?
One way of getting a calf slicer is from the truck position. This involves rolling into a truck but instead of taking the back, you instead grab the opponent’s free foot and bring it over your shin. This will put pressure on their calf which may lead to a submission. If you use your other foot to kick off the leg applying the submission then this can add extra pressure.
Another way is from the matrix position. Here, if you spin to the back from the matrix, you can then grab at the opponent’s hips, almost in a top turtle position. From here, you should bring the opponent into you, whilst their leg is trapped in your shin. Like the previous example, it is your shin bone that causes the compression.
How to defend against a bicep slicer
In the first example, it is all about freeing your arm from the lasso. To do this, you need to remove the opponent’s arm from the back of your elbow as this is what holds you in and adds to the submission. With both hands, grab the arm on the elbow so you have a two vs one grip. Then, strip the grip. At this point, pass to the opposite side of the lasso and you should have also successfully passed the guard.
For the crucifix example, this is typically much harder, due to already starting in a bottom pin position. As a general rule, it’s not good to put an arm into someone’s legs whilst in bottom side control, so if you don’t do this in the first place then you should be ok.
How to defend against a calf slicer
The calf slicer is arguably easier to defend, purely because it can take longer to submit you compared to a bicep slicer. As your leg muscles are bigger, this means you usually have a bit longer to survive a calf slicer.
To defend against the truck entry, you’ll want to use your free foot to kick off your heel on the leg that is being attacked. This should hopefully lessen the pressure. From there, you can even give your back to avoid the submission if it’s that bad. An unknown counter to this is grabbing the opponent’s arm if it’s available and pulling them into an armbar. Although this looks fancy, it is possible.
Are slicers a pain submission?
One of the biggest misconceptions in BJJ is that slicers are pain submissions. This is particularly important when thinking about the bicep slicer. In short, some people can survive in a slicer for several minutes, such as Royler Gracie vs Eddie Bravo. However, there are some negative consequences that can follow this.
Firstly, you could seriously bruise your muscles. We’re on about deep tissue bruising here which literally takes weeks or months to heal. As a result, you could be off training for over a month from a slicer. In other words, it should be taken seriously as an injury, even if it doesn’t break bones.
Slicers can break bones
Sadly, it gets worse. Unbeknown to some, slicers can and do break bones, especially with the bicep. Although this may start as a muscular submission, it can end up putting immense pressure on the crux of the elbow joint. Imagine putting a peanut in the corner of a door and pushing the door against the peanut.
At some point, the peanut may explode. This is what can happen with your arm in a bicep slicer. So, even though you get a lot more time to tap compared to an armbar, a bicep slicer can still break bones and should be treated as a legitimate submission. You may even feel safer than you think before something goes badly wrong.
As for the calf slicer, this is a little different. The same deep tissue damage can also be applied – but generally speaking, it’s much harder to break the knee with a calf slicer. This may be due to the muscles and knee ligaments being bigger and harder to damage but regardless of the science, it’s much harder to do.
In theory if someone way strong enough, you could break someone’s leg with a calf slicer but this would be hard to do. At the same time, remember to be cautious as these aren’t just pain compliance moves.
Why are slicer submissions uncommon?
Honestly speaking, slicer submissions aren’t the easiest to get into. This is especially the case for the bicep slicer that only has a certain amount of entries. If you compare this to the kimura for instance, the bicep slicer really doesn’t have much depth or a variety of ways to be attacked.
This, coupled with some people arrogantly not tapping to them, makes slicer submissions quite obscure and out of the mainstream. Lastly, as slicers are often considered illegal and taboo in many BJJ settings, the result is that you won’t really see them attempted or taught much compared to regular BJJ submissions.
Are slicer submissions legal?
Under IBJJF rules, both calf and bicep slicers are not legal until brown belt. The reason for this is that they’re classed as compression submissions which means they’re taken more seriously compared to most regular submissions. This is quite debatable as arguably, you get a longer time to tap compared to other submissions which seemingly come on quicker.
Having said this, in certain other rule sets, slicers are legal. This includes most sub-only no-gi competitions as well. As for training in the gym, it really depends on each place and some will be fine with white belts doing it, whereas others will strictly forbid them. Ultimately, you’ll need to ask ahead if you want to do them in a new gym.
Conclusion
Overall, it’s fair to say that calf and bicep slicers are legitimate submissions and should be treated with respect. Whilst you’re unlikely to see them used in a street fight, they can still injure you whilst training BJJ which means they’re worth looking out for.
Another positive of learning to attack them is that they can often open up other, better submissions by acting as threats. At the same time, it’s probably best to learn other moves before slicers due to their unorthodox and uncommon nature.
