Small joint manipulation, in

grappling Grappling, in hand-to-hand combat, describes sports that consist of gripping or seizing the opponent. Grappling is used at close range to gain a physical advantage over an opponent, either by imposing a position or causing injury. Grappling i ...

, refers to twisting, pulling or bending

finger A finger is a limb of the body and a type of digit, an organ of manipulation and sensation found in the hands of most of the Tetrapods, so also with humans and other primates. Most land vertebrates have five fingers ( Pentadactyly). Chambers ...

toes Toes are the digits (fingers) of the foot of a tetrapod. Animal species such as cats that walk on their toes are described as being ''digitigrade''. Humans, and other animals that walk on the soles of their feet, are described as being ''plant ...

, wrists and

ankles The ankle, or the talocrural region, or the jumping bone (informal) is the area where the foot and the leg meet. The ankle includes three joints: the ankle joint proper or talocrural joint, the subtalar joint, and the inferior tibiofibular join ...

to cause joint locks in the various joints in those

appendage An appendage (or outgrowth) is an external body part, or natural prolongation, that protrudes from an organism's body. In arthropods, an appendage refers to any of the homologous body parts that may extend from a body segment, including anten ...

Technique

Most small joint manipulation is done on the hands or feet to hyperextend joints as part of a pain compliance strategy. The basic techniques of small-joint manipulation involve grabbing and bending back one or more fingers/toes and by applying pressure to the wrist/ankle joints that disrupt the interconnectivity of the system of smaller joints within. If pain compliance does not work, such hyperextension can tear tendons in the wrist or break the smaller bones in the hands and feet. The

lever A lever is a simple machine consisting of a beam or rigid rod pivoted at a fixed hinge, or ''fulcrum''. A lever is a rigid body capable of rotating on a point on itself. On the basis of the locations of fulcrum, load and effort, the lever is div ...

age needed for such joint manipulation is comparatively small and creates a distinct advantage over techniques in martial arts that require the exertion of large amounts of force, thus small joint manipulation can allow a weaker person, with the right training, to control a stronger one. Small joint manipulation is an illegal technique in most combat sports that feature joint locking such as

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ; pt, jiu-jitsu brasileiro ) is a self-defence martial art and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting (ne-waza) and submission holds. BJJ focuses on the skill of taking an opponent to the ground, control ...

judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponi ...

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, inc ...

and

Sambo , aka = Sombo (in English-speaking countries) , focus = Hybrid , country = Soviet Union , pioneers = Viktor Spiridonov, Vasili Oshchepkov, Anatoly Kharlampiev , famous_pract = List of Practitioners , oly ...

, since unlike standard joint locks, there is less of an opportunity to submit before the small joint breaks. Most combat sports post-2015 have identified and limited definitions of small joint locks to finger and toe locks. Although, wrist locks are also severely limited in most of these sports because of rules forbidding grabbing handguards or hands, forbidding the use of pressure points, and the protections provided from the handguards and taping of the wrists. Small Joint Locks are, however, taught as a

self-defense Self-defense (self-defence primarily in Commonwealth English) is a countermeasure that involves defending the health and well-being of oneself from harm. The use of the right of self-defense as a legal justification for the use of force in ...

and pain compliance technique, for instance in hapkido, Chin Na,

jujutsu Jujutsu ( ; ja, link=no, 柔術 , ), also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu, is a family of Japanese martial arts and a system of close combat (unarmed or with a minor weapon) that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subdu ...

, Krav Maga, and aikido, '.

References

Grappling positions Joint locks {{martialart-stub

Technique

See also

References