Anaconda Choke
The anaconda choke: the arm threads under the neck first, exiting through the far armpit — the mirror of the D'arce's arm-first thread.
Adapted from InGrappling, Anaconda Choke. System Games did not invent this curriculum.
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The anaconda choke is a no-gi arm-in triangle applied from the front headlock family of positions. The thread order is the reverse of the D’arce: where the D’arce threads arm-first (under the near arm, then across the front of the neck), the anaconda threads neck-first — the choking arm goes under the neck first, crosses the front of the throat, and exits through the far armpit. The hand grips the attacker’s own opposite bicep in a figure-four, and the lock finishes beside the opponent’s shoulder rather than beside the neck.
The anaconda is most commonly finished with a forward roll over the opponent. The roll takes the opponent to their back and compresses the choke simultaneously — the roll mechanics and the finish mechanics are the same motion. Without the roll, the anaconda is difficult to finish against a resisting opponent who retains their base.
The anaconda is most accessible from the turtle top and front headlock ground positions when the opponent’s near arm is inside and forward, and when the attacking player’s position is more forward (toward the opponent’s head-side) rather than lateral.
INV-S01Invariant "All strangles require compression on both sides of the neck simultaneously. Compression on one side only creates discomfort; compression on both sides interrupts blood flow."
Why it works hereThe anaconda closes the same figure-four as the D'arce, mirrored. The choking forearm crosses the front of the throat and loads one carotid, while the trapped arm — pinned across its own neck by the thread exiting the far armpit — loads the other as the figure-four tightens during the roll. The compression is bilateral, and the thread order is the defining feature: a thread that starts under the arm produces a D'arce with the lock beside the neck; a thread that starts under the neck produces an anaconda with the lock beside the shoulder.
See full invariant page → The anaconda’s bilateral compression comes from the choking forearm across the front of the throat on one side and the trapped arm pressed against its own carotid on the other. The triangle closes the same way as the D’arce — the opponent’s arm and the attacker’s arm encircle the neck — but the thread runs in the opposite order and the lock sits beside the shoulder.
INV-S02Invariant "The target limb must be isolated from the body's defensive system before the submission can be completed. Isolation means the limb cannot be supplemented by the core or the opposite limb."