Effective Methods for Improving Your Guard

When training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu , it is imperative that you place a lot of emphasis on improving your guard game. After all, this is where you will likely achieve most of your submissions. Having a good guard can provide you with the edge that you need to take on larger, stronger, and more skilled opponents. Here are some Jiu-Jitsu strategies to keep in mind when improving your guard.

 

Working on Defensive and Guard Passing Techniques

One of the best ways to improve your guard is to work from both sides of the court. Basically, spend some time working on your defensive abilities while spending a little time working on your guard passing abilities. Putting yourself in reverse situations like this will ultimately allow you to see your own mistakes when you have an opponent in your guard.

Focus on Guard Sweeps and Submissions

One of the main problems with grapplers today is that they spend far too long attempting a submission when there is a clear opening for an easy sweep. As far as Jiu-Jitsu strategies are concerned, this one is ranked quite high. If you feel as though a particular submission isn’t working, switch your grip, change your position, or try something entirely different. The same goes true with sweeps- if you attempt one and it doesn’t work, there will usually be a small but presentable window to attempt a submission.

Master the Fundamentals First

As with any martial art, you need to develop a strong technical foundation in order to better your skills, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu isn’t any different. Improving your guard is all about muscle memory. You need to be drilling specific movies and situations over and over again so that you can execute them during live sparring sessions.

Increase Your Flexibility

You’d be surprised by how many opportunities for sweeps and submissions present themselves once you become more flexible. Flexibility is even more important if you are a smaller grappler. Be sure to work just as hard on your flexibility as you are actual techniques. There are many different Jiu-Jitsu strategies in this sport, but becoming limber and flexible tends to be one of the more overlooked ones.

 

Portland Jiu Jitsu Technique: Cross Choke from Guard, “C” Variation

Explore Different Guards

There are many different types of guards that you could utilize while on the bottom. These include:
– Butterfly Guard
– Half-Guard
– Spider Guard
– Rubber Guard
– Closed Guard
– Open Guard

And the combinations go on and on. A taller person may prefer to work from the rubber or closed guard while shorter grapplers may prefer the spider guard. Either way, it is important that you spend time learning each one. Developing better angles of attack and more efficient hip movement should be something that you are comfortable doing in all guards. And if you love sweeps, the open guard might be the best option for you.