The sleeper choke hold, also known as the sleeper, sleeper hold, or rear-naked choke, is a submission move that is commonly used in martial arts as a submission technique. It is also often taught as a self-defense maneuver if you need to subdue an attacker. A sleeper choke hold slows blood supply to the brain and causes the person being choked to pass out. It is an incredibly dangerous move that should only be used in extreme situations or under the watch of a martial arts referee or expert. Always release someone the moment that they go limp and seek medical attention if they are unresponsive after you’ve put them down.
StepsPart 1Part 1 of 3:Grabbing and Getting Behind Your Opponent
1Grab your opponent’s shoulders or arm to anchor yourself. If your opponent is trying to fight you, grab their wrist with your nondominant hand and their upper shoulder with your dominant hand. If you’re wrestling your opponent, quickly grab your opponent’s shoulders and wrap your fingers around their shoulder blades to orient yourself.You can perform a choke hold while you’re squared up or standing off-center to your opponent.XApply firm pressure with your hands after you’ve grabbed them.You will not be able to steady them for long without resistance. The time that it takes to grab and rotate yourself should be less than 2 seconds.You can drag your opponent to the ground to perform this hold or you can do it while the both of you are standing.
2Pull them while rotating their shoulders to get behind them. If you’ve grabbed your opponent’s shoulders, push them with your dominant hand. At the same time, pull with your nondominant hand. This will spin your opponent around so that they’re facing away from you. Wrap your dominant arm around their chest or neck to hold them in place. If you grabbed their arm, pull their wrist towards you and shuffle to the side before sliding your dominant arm around their chest to spin them around.XIf you’re smaller or they’re resisting your hold, you can place your inside leg behind them and pivot to move behind them.If you’re actively being attacked and you’ve grabbed their wrist, twist their wrist inwards as you pull them to disarm them.
3Yank them towards you and wrap your dominant arm around their neck. Once you’re behind your opponent, your dominant arm should be wrapped around their chest. Pull your opponent close to you and adjust your dominant forearm so that it’s around their neck. Your opponent will raise their arms to protect their neck. This will give you the opening you need to place your nondominant hand behind their head.XWhen they reach up to protect their neck, your first instinct may be to reach your free hand out to swat their hands. Do not do this. You will lose your leverage if you don’t place your arm behind their head.If you’re being actively attacked, yank them from side to side while setting your grip up to disorient them and make it harder to fight back.When your opponent raises their arms to protect their neck, they’ll probably wrap their hands around your forearm and try to pull it off. Grab their shoulder and grip tightly to keep them from ripping your arm off.Part 2Part 2 of 3:Applying Pressure with Your Hold
1Slide your dominant forearm under their chin and wrap their neck. Adjust your dominant arm by raising it up until your forearm is lodged firmly between their chin and chest. Wrap your arm tightly around their neck to hold them in place. Grab their shoulder with your dominant hand to stabilize your grip.Do not yank them side to side once your arm is under their neck. You could damage your opponent’s spine permanently.
2Slide your nondominant hand behind their head. Run your nondominant hand behind the back of your opponent’s head, in between the neck and the center of their head. Bring your nondominant thumb up to your ear on the opposite side of your body.For example, if you are right-handed, you will lift your left arm behind their head and bring your left thumb up to your right ear.
3Loop your dominant hand under your arm to lock your grip. To stabilize your grip, thread your dominant hand inside the fold of your nondominant elbow. Wrap your fingers around your elbow to lock your dominant arm in place. This way, if your opponent tries to slide out, you can use the tension from your grip to easily increase pressure.This will give your dominant hand something to hold on to. If you don’t grip your arm, you’re relying on the strength of your arm alone to keep them grappled.
4Apply pressure to the sides of your opponent’s neck with your dominant arm. Bend your elbow and flex your dominant arm so that your forearm is applying pressure to one side of their neck and your bicep is applying pressure to the opposite side.XExpert SourceDerrek HofrichterSelf Defense SpecialistExpert Interview. 26 January 2021. Push your nondominant arm forward to tilt their neck forward towards their chest. This will press their chin into your forearm and provide additional pressure so that you can begin restricting blood flow to their brain.XLean back and spread your feet out as you’re applying pressure to brace for resistance.The goal of a sleeper hold is not to restrict air. If you’re pushing down on your opponent’s throat, you’re not doing it correctly.
5Turn your hips to shove your pelvis into your opponent’s back. Once you have a firm grip on your opponent and you’re applying pressure, rotate your trunk so that your hip is pressing into the small of your opponent’s back. This will keep them angled away from you and will make it harder for them to fight back or get out of the hold.Which hip you use to brace your opponent’s back depends on how big your opponent is. Do whatever feels natural to you. If your opponent is bigger, use your dominant hip. If they’re smaller, use your nondominant hip.Hold this position for 10 seconds or until your opponent goes limp or taps out.
6Perform a side-hold if you can only wrap around one side. You can perform a variation on the choke hold if your opponent misses a punch. With their arm extended, slide under their shoulder and wrap your dominant hand around the side of their neck on the opposite side. Lift up to keep their extended arm from lowering and grab your dominant hand with your free hand to wrap around them and squeeze.XTilt towards them to keep them off-balance.Hold them so their shoulder is being driven into the side of their neck on one side, then apply pressure on the other side with your arm.XExpert SourceDerrek HofrichterSelf Defense SpecialistExpert Interview. 26 January 2021.This move is not the preferred method since it doesn’t prevent your opponent from using their nondominant arm.Part 3Part 3 of 3:Performing the Choke Hold Safely
1Release your choke hold after 10 seconds unless you’re in immediate danger. Unless you’re actively being attacked, release your choke hold after 10 seconds. 15 seconds is the maximum amount of time that you can apply pressure to the neck without risking permanent damage.XIf you’ve correctly applied pressure to the neck’s major arteries, your opponent should go limp after 5-9 seconds.
2Don’t restrict your opponent’s airflow and only apply pressure to the arteries. If you apply too much pressure to your opponent’s throat, you run the risk of damaging their windpipe. The goal of a sleeper hold is to restrict blood flow, not air, so only use force on the sides of your opponent’s neck.X
3Stop choking your opponent if they tap on your forearm. The universal sign of surrender in martial combat is a light double-tap on an exposed section of your skin. This means that your opponent is giving up. Release your grip immediately if your opponent taps on your forearm while you’re choking them.XYou will see mixed martial artists do this when they’ve been placed in a submission hold that they can’t get out of.This is where the term “tap out” comes from.
4Avoid using the choke hold on someone with cardiovascular issues. The sleeper choke hold restricts blood flow to the brain. This means that individuals with heart or blood pressure problems can suffer a serious cardiac event if their blood flow is disrupted. Never perform this move on someone struggling with cardiovascular problems.Call emergency services immediately if someone suffers a cardiovascular attack while you’re choking them or they don’t wake up after 10-15 seconds.
