Have you ever been on the mats with someone who had a Guard you just couldn’t pass?
I have. . . My original impassable Guard came from my friend and training partner Kyle.
When I came to Derby City (the gym I own now) back in 2007 I was a Purple Belt and Kyle was a Brown Belt (he would receive his Black Belt in 2008).
He was also about 210+ lbs and incredibly mobile off his back. That’s a nasty combo!
I would attack with every Guard passing option in my arsenal of techniques.
And for all of my efforts. . .
I’d be right back in front of his legs, more exhausted than I had started and a sitting duck for his next attacks.
His Guard became the Gold Standard for me.
If I could pass his Guard I was sure I could pass just about anyone’s in a competition.
Which has been true.
Very rarely have I felt anyone with a Guard that has matched his.
In my quest to pass his legs and to develop my own Guard passing game. . .
Help came from a very unexpected place.
In early 2009 our affiliation head at the time , Renato Tavares, came in for a seminar.
And during the seminar he showed some great techniques. . .
But what became more valuable for me were the solo movements he showed as a warm up.
Solo BJJ Drills
(Similar to the solo movements I show in my $9 mini course. )
They involved some twists and turns that I wasn’t used to.
It was a great way to warm up, I got a good sweat and so following the seminar I began drilling these movements a lot.
This was even more helpful because back then I didn’t always have training partners available.
So this was something I could do on my own.
I would do a lifting workout and then spend an hour of solo drills and movements.
A couple months after the start of these solo drills I found myself rolling with Kyle on a Saturday afternoon after everyone had left the gym.
He and I had not gotten our customary class roll in together.
So we stuck around and rolled with one another.
During the roll I used my normal guard passing attack. . .
The only different was that I found myself twisting and turning in different ways I had never done before.
Kyle would knock me off balance by my hips and feet would turn over to catch me before I completely lost position.
During this roll I was I was finally able to pass his guard.
I was tickled by the fact that I had something going with my passing game.
We would continue to go back and forth. . .even to this day we have some great battles.
But one of the additions to my training that helped make me top game more dangerous to his bottom attacks. . .
How Solo BJJ Drills Help My Guard Passing
Was the Solo movements.
By being able to move my hips in a better way. I was able to effectively fight back against his off balancing techniques. . .
I also found that I had more control in uncomfortable positions and awkward situations that often arise in BJJ.
I still use these movement abilities in my passing game to this day!
Watch some of my Double Under passing variations. There is a ton of hip movement going on there.
(Click here if you’d like to start unlocking your hips and increasing your movement abilities on the mat. )
I also include a 3 part Side Control escape series in the mini course as side control escapes are a huge problem for many people.
Whether you use my series or not.
Solo movements are a great addition to your training.
You can do them without training partners and they give you a fantastic mind body connection that allows you to find your footing in weird spots in BJJ.
Every technique in BJJ involves movements. . .
The better you can move, the more efficient you can move. . .
The more often your techniques will find their mark!
Hope the series helps!
-Chewy
P.S. I’ve tried to make this series somewhat small. I know it’s east to get overwhelmed with stuff. So I tried to make it something that would be easy to follow and not too much that will overwhelm you with information.
This Twitter message made my morning!