Review - Leglock Anthology 50/50 (Lachlan Giles)



 Info

This instructional focuses on heelhooks from the 50/50 position. It goes in depth about finishing and setups. If you've seen Lachlan's run at ADCC 2019 you'll understand what this instructional contains. Also if you're interested in K-guard and RDLR there is a lot of information about that also. 


Organization

This, like all Lachlan instructionals, is extremely well put together. Everything you want is labeled clearly and the chapters are set in a logical order. He starts with how to finish heelhooks, then goes into the defense and finally the setups for them. Afterwards he shows how he used them in competition and training. Whenever I've tried something in class and it didn't work I was able to go back to this instructional and find the solution to the problem in a few minutes. I can tell that he spent a lot of time planning each section because each part is like its own mini-lesson which is great for re-watchablity.


Instruction

Lachlan's instruction is detailed, but concise. He tries to answer all questions you might have on this topic and he does a really good job with the troubleshooting aspect. Unlike some other instructionals, he goes over what could go wrong and how you can fix it. What if I start losing the knee line? What if they spin out? What if they cross their legs? What if I can't knock them down from 50/50? He has answers to all of these things and more. If you're wondering what his instruction is like, you can check out his Youtube channel to get a feel for how he teaches. I've never heard any complaints about his teaching style and his instructionals are praised for their detailed, but watchable teaching style. 

Another thing I loved is the rolling/competition footage. It's great and it helps to see what he actually does. He even talks about his mistakes and where he went wrong. This adds a lot of value to any instructional and I'm happy he seems to always include this.  Something that he does in this that others don't is actual instruction. He teaches his students the moves he shows and then corrects them. This exposes common problems people face when trying these moves and highlights the important parts of the move.


Value

Although it isn't the cheapest instructional it is over 10 hours of high quality technique. It is a comprehensive guide to what he used to heel hook several high level opponents. If you're interested in that, he shows everything he used and much more. Not only is it useful for heelhooks, but it also has very good sections on K-Guard, 50/50 and RDLR. Its also shows many modern techniques such as how to enter and finish from backside 50/50 and catching the heel before entangling the legs. Despite the price this might be one of the best values out there. I've found myself coming back to it and learning something new each time. IMO this is one of the best instructionals ever made and it is over 10 hours of useful material. Unless you have no interest in this material, you'll get a lot out of this. Also as of right now(August 2021) much of this information isn't available on the internet or any other instructional AFAIK. I've seen more and more people using this style of attack and this is by far the best source of information on it. 

Personal experience 

I've had this for a while now and I've been able to integrate a lot of the stuff from this into my game. The K-guard stuff and the heelhook entries are unique and don't follow the "leg locking rules" that people previously used. This for me opened up new opportunities and I found by using this approach along with the DDS approach I could get to my training partners legs no matter what they did. The 50/50 section helped me with my escapes from this position as well as with sweeps and attacks. When 50/50 first appeared I hated it, then I learned more about it and I thought it was a somewhat useful tool. After watching this instructional I love 50/50. It also has a great info on heel hook defense. This is an instructional I've found myself coming back to over and over again to learn something new. This has really added to my game and gave me some strong tools that I didn't have before.


Conclusion

This instructional goes over pretty much everything about 50/50 and inside heelhooks. If you're looking for kneebars, outside heelhooks, anklelocks, etc, you won't find much, but if you've seen Lachlan's ADCC performances or just want to learn new leg attacks, this is a must have. This might be the best instructional I've ever bought and I'd recommend it to anyone that wants to learn the modern heelhook game. 



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