How to Perform a Double Leg Takedown in Wrestling

Last Update: September 18, 2008

Video By: LIVESTRONG.COM

The double leg takedown is an effective move for wrestlers. Learn basic wrestling moves, defenses, and attacks in this video from a wrestling coach.

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  • Keep head up
  • Back straight
  • Hips in
  • Get close to opponent
  • Lower your level
  • Explode up with knee pound

About this Author

Brandon Slay won the Gold Medal in Freestyle Wresting at the 2002 Olympic Games in Sydney.

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Video Transcript

BRANDON SLAY: Alright. Now that we understand what the five keys of wrestling are head up, back straight, hips in, off our knees, pressure. And you understand what it takes to penetrate low in our level, knee pound, shoot up, third thing is bring our trail leg up, fourth thing is pivoting, and the fifth step is stepping up, so it's stepping up and across. Once we understand those ten things, now we can move on to one of the most common but also one of the most successful moves in all of wrestling which is a double leg. I'm going to bring two guys up to help demonstrate this double leg, Robert and Steven. Okay, you shoot the double leg, you just kind of stand there. If you understand the five keys of wrestling, you understand how to penetrate, doing a double leg is pretty easy, double leg meaning two-two legs. Once you understand those keys to wrestling, to put this double leg in motion is pretty simple. To do a double leg, you have to be close enough to your opponent. If you can't touch him, if you can't touch your opponent, you're too far away. Once you can touch your opponent, then you're in a good space to do this. So the first thing that you always do before you take a shot, number one, as we said before, you always have to lower you level, lower you level, right here, to create power, step number one, and always head up, back straight, hips in. The second part to doing a double leg is penetrating, shooting up just like a plane up into the man. So Robert has lowered his level, number one. Number two, he's going to pound his knee in between his opponents leg with head up, back's straight, and hips in, exploding up hard. Go, just like that. That explosion, that knee pound is what's really important for this double leg because if you just barely hit your opponent, he's probably not going to move much. It has to be hard to get the double leg. So the first thing you need is he's lowered his level, number two, is he knee pound him. And again, focus on head up, back straight, hips in. Now the third thing he has to do is he has to bring this trail leg up. He brings this trail leg up, his whole foot's on the mat, his leg's bent for power like a squat, and he's in good position. Again, the definition of position is head up, back straight, hips in, off your knees, and pressure. This is good position. So third is bring his trail leg up but the fourth part to our double leg is we don't want to drive straight up like the letter I, we always want to pivot and drive across at this angle, drive across the tee. So to do that, Robert is going to pivot his foot. Again, this is just like a rudder on a boat, he pivots his foot so he can make this turn. Now he's in a perfect position to drive across at this tee, at this angle. So the fourth was pivot. Now the fifth step is he's going to step up and across at a tee. So he steps up, just like this. Now he's in a great position to pressure into his opponent, stay into the man, and to finish this shot. So Robert's just run him down to finish. Just like that.

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