Alias · Armbar
Arm crush
Also known as Inverted Armbar — the canonical term used on this site.
Training background: Informal term — emphasises the compressive element in the chest-fulcrum variant
Informal — chest-fulcrum compression of the inverted armbar
Arm crush is an informal name for the inverted armbar — emphasising the compressive feel of the chest-fulcrum variant in which the attacker drives weight through the opponent’s loaded arm using torso pressure rather than hip-axis rotation alone.
Etymology. “Crush” captures the proprioceptive experience of being on the receiving end of the inverted armbar — the compressive load through the chest contact registers as crushing pressure on the joint and surrounding tissue. The label is colloquial and informal; precise vocabulary uses “inverted armbar” or “reverse armbar” to specify the joint axis and loading direction. The crush label is more common in spoken gym vocabulary than in written instructional material.
Mechanics. The configuration loads the elbow against its natural range while driving the opponent’s arm against the attacker’s chest as the fulcrum — combining joint hyperextension with surrounding-tissue compression.
Cross-reference. “Inverted armbar” is the canonical site label; “reverse armbar” appears in similar descriptive vocabularies. Full mechanical coverage on Inverted Armbar.