A BJJ fighter’s or practitioner’s life is not easy. You have to do some drills every day to remain fit and to improve your skills too.
In the past 7 years of BJJ experience, I have been constantly updating myself with many highly specialized movements to improve my overall fighting skills. In most cases, you’ll need a training partner to train with which isn’t as easy as it seems.
To fill the void, you can either order yourself a grappling dummy (you can find my top picks here) or try solo drills. In this article, I’m sharing my favorite top 10 BJJ solo drills that you can do at home by yourself.
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Let’s get started!
Top 10 BJJ Solo Drills That Will Improve Your Jiu-Jitsu
Here, I am giving the top 10 BJJ solo drills that will improve your Jiu-Jitsu. You can do them every day.
1. Shrimp
Shrimp or Hip Escape is the most important drill for BJJ learners. It is the first drill that they have to do to improve their Jiu-Jitsu. Besides, its movements are the base for the other BJJ movements.
How To Do It
To start the Shrimp drill, lie down on your back and bend your knees. You have to bring your knees and your heels near your hips. Turn a little on your left shoulder. Lift your hips only.
Now you have to move your hips in the direction of the right shoulder and keep pressing your feet on the ground. When your hips come back, stretch your hand towards your feet.
After completing the movement, return to the starting position. You can repeat it as many times as you wish.
2. Technical Stand Up
The technical stand up is another essential BJJ drill that BJJ beginners have to practice daily from the beginning. It is an excellent and safe movement to get up from the fallen position.
How To Do It
Sit on the ground with your knees bending and keep your feet flat on the ground. Tilt to one side and put your hip and leg on the floor.
Keep the same side hand flat on the floor, a little backward, and at the side of your hip. Press your other foot flat on the floor with a bending knee. Keep your weight on the grounded foot and hand and move your free hand a little outside.
Now lift your non grounded hand and leg along with hips from the ground.
3. Reverse Shrimp
It is also a fundamental drill of BJJ. It is done in the reverse mode of the Shrimp. Though it is more rigorous than the Shrimp, it is useful when you are facing a strong opponent.
It helps you to save yourself from various attacks and strikes. Besides, it keeps you at a safe distance from the opponent.
How To Do It
Lay on the floor with your legs extended and keep your hands up.
Turn slightly to one side and head your shoulder towards your waist. Balance your body on one shoulder and make your body move towards your feet with the help of your heels.
Now stretch your legs and turn to another side to repeat the movement.
4. Granby Roll
Granby roll is a defense movement of BJJ. The BJJ fighters use it when they are in an inferior position, and they have to defend themselves.
How To Do It
Begin from your knees by keeping your one arm between your legs till your shoulder reaches the ground level. Look away from the shoulder on the lower side. Lift your body by putting body weight on your toes to bring your knees slightly up from the floor.
Start crab walking in the facing direction until your other shoulder touches the floor. Look at the ceiling while your feet and shoulder remain on the floor. Keep crab-walking in the same direction for some time. Do it by crab-walking to the other side too.
5. Bridging
Bridging is a drill that gives the capability to disengage the mounted opponent in Jiu-Jitsu combat. It is practiced in other martial arts activities like Wrestling, Kung Fu, Judo, and Capoeira, which also require a strong and supple body.
How To Do It
Lay on the floor on your back, keeping the face-up. Bring your heels near your hips by bending the knees. Bring your hands at the sides of your head. Keep the palms downward and firmly on the floor.
Now lift the middle portion of your body upwards, simultaneously pressing the ground by palms and feet. Your body will take the shape of a bridge.
Keep moving upwards until your hands and legs become straight.
Also Read: Gi Size Chart Guide for Beginners
6. Bridge and Hip Escape Combo
The Bridge and hip escape combo is an essential drill of BJJ. It improves self-defense capability to escape from the various movements of the opponents. This drill involves techniques of hip escape and bridging both.
How To Do It
Lie down on the floor. Bring your heel near your hips. Bring your hand near your head but keep these free. Now raise your hips upward until your hips and thighs make an angle of 90 degrees with the knees. Your shoulders and feet should remain firmly on the ground.
Now turn swiftly on the right side, pivoting your body on the right shoulder with the help of your heels. You can repeat this movement towards your left side.
7. Bridge and Mount Escape Combo
The bridge and mount escape combo is an extension of the bridge and hip escape drill. It not only makes your body stout and agile but also makes you capable of dislodging a mounted superior opponent.
How To Do It
Lie down on the floor with face up. Touch your hips with your heels by bending your knees. You have to bring your hands to the sides of your head. Place the palms and feet on the floor.
Start to raise your torso upwards till it makes a 90-degree angle with the knees by pressing the floor by your feet and palms.
Pivot your body on the right palm and turn rightward with the help of your heels. Repeat it on the left side too.
8. Sprawls
Sprawls are the defensive movement in BJJ combat. These are performed when you have to counter some takedown strikes of the opponent. As its name denotes, it is an act of extending your body to pounce upon the opponents to dominate them.
How To Do It
Stand erect. Bend a little and stretch your hands outward. Now come down flat on the floor swiftly with your palms supporting your body weight and your legs extending backward.
The right leg should be straight, while the left leg should be bent on the knee. Raise your middle body quickly.
And squat walk to the right with pivoting your body on the palms. Repeat this action on your left side too.
9. Pillow Jump
In a BJJ combat, you have to cross over the opponent and simultaneously hold him under you.
Pillow Jump BJJ solo drill enhances your expertise in this technique. It will make your body more synchronized and flexible.
How To Do It
Take a pillow and place it on the floor. Place your knees on the floor. Put your head and right palm on the floor firmly. And hold the pillow by the left hand.
Now jump over the pillow to the left side using one leg and quickly bring another leg to this side. Now the pillow is on your left side.
Repeat the whole drill by holding the pillow by the right hand, and jump to the left. Practice it for 10 to 15 times.
10. Inversions with Side Rolls
Inversions or becoming upside down is an important technique of BJJ. This drill makes your whole body fit and agile, and you become more coordinated. Your movements become swifter.
If you are an expert in it, you can defend yourself against the fastest attacks of the opponent.
How To Do It
Sit on the floor on your hips. Bend backward so that your head and shoulders touch the floor and stretch out your legs. Subsequently, bring your legs over your head.
Pivoting on your right shoulder and lifting your hips turn to the right side. Now, return to the initial position and repeat this action on your left side. Repeat the whole drill for 10 to 15 times.
What Is BJJ and How It Started?
BJJ or Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is a Latin American form of martial art or fighting sport, with its origin in Brazil. BJJ involves grappling, submission holding, and ground fighting. The participant fighters use their skill to judge opponents’ strengths and weaknesses.
Subsequently, they concentrate on attaining a position to prevail upon the opponents. Now, they apply different fighting methods to bring them under submission.
Brazilian jiu-jitsu came into the present form in 1920, thanks to the Brazilian brothers Carlos Oswaldo, Carlos Gastão Jr., Carlos George, and Carlos Gracie. Carlos Gracie learned traditional Kodokan judo from the Japanese Judo fighter-Mitsuyo Maeda-in 1917.
He later developed the martial art form Gracie jiu-jitsu. After having undergone many modifications and innovations Gracie jiu-jitsu transformed into BJJ. At present, it is a popular martial art sport across the world.
It keeps on expanding into new forms such as Combat Jiu-Jitsu, started by Eddie Bravo.
Final Words
I have described the Top 10 BJJ Solo Drills that will for sure improve your Jiu-Jitsu and you can do them every day. These drills will make you an excellent BJJ combatant.
Moreover, you can do these drills at the convenience of your home, without any extra BJJ gear or expenses.
So, all the best! Start doing these BJJ solo drills and become an expert BJJ combatant.
