BJJ LINE DRILLS
BJJ Line Drills
Line drills, similar to solo drills, can be an integral part of a BJJ students progress. They can be untilised as a pre-technique to help students with the technique taught in class but can also be used in strength and conditioning aspect of a class.
Below are a list of line drills with both written explanations and video references that can be referred to.
Bear Crawl Forwards and Backwards
Video: Forward Bear Crawls
Video: Backwards Bear Crawl
Bear Crawl forwards and backwards
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Have your class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- Stand facing the direction that you wish to move with your feet twice as wide as your shoulders.
- Bend at the hips and place your hands firmly on the floor in front of you.
- Keep your bottom in the air.
- Begin to walk like a bear down the mat space. The motion is opposite hand to leg. (Left hand forward, right foot forward, right hand forward, left foot forward).
- Once you have completed one length of the mat space, conduct the drill again. As you do so this time, walk backwards whilst still following the opposite hand to leg motion (Left foot back, right hand back, right foot back, left hand back).
Belly Down Shrimp
Video: Belly Down Shrimp
Belly Down Shrimp
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Begin this drill by having your class lined up in rows at one end of the mat space.
- Start on your back facing your students and pull your heels as close to your bottom as you can with your knees pointing towards the ceiling. Next, tuck your arms tight to your sides with your hands near your face.
- To begin the shrimp, begin to roll onto one side, as if you were in bed.
- At the same time as you roll, grip the floor with your feet and use them to raise your hips slightly off of the mats and push your bottom backwards.
- At the same time as you’re pushing your bottom backwards, leave your shoulders where they are and bend at the hips to try and touch your own toes.
- You should end up looking like an ‘L’.
- It’s important that as you shrimp, your shoulders stay where they are – You are NOTtrying to shift your whole body up the mats with this movement.
- Instead of regaining your original position, conduct another shrimp so that you have spun almost 180 degrees on the mats.
- After completing the second shrimp, kick your bottom leg straight back to accommodate rolling onto your stomach.
- Lastly, bring your knees to your elbows so that you finish in the turtle position (NOT elbows to knees – this is important for later techniques).
- Sit back down and repeat the exercise until you cover the length of the mat space.
- REMEMBER – Shrimps are difficult to master, so maintain patience as your students struggle through learning it the first few times.
Bump and Shrimp
Video: Bump and Shrimp
Bump and Shrimp
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Have your class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- Lie down facing your class and pull your heels as close to your bottom as you can with your knees pointing towards the ceiling. Next, tuck your arms tight to your sides with your hands near your face or grab hold of your lapels near your collar bones.
- Using your feet to push off the mats, raise your hips as far as you can before slowly lowering them again.
- As your hips touch the mat, rock slightly on to one side.
- At the same time as you roll, grip the floor with your feet and use them to raise your hips slightly off of the mats and push your bottom backwards.
- At the same time as you’re pushing your bottom backwards, leave your shoulders where they are and bend at the hips to try and touch your own toes.
- You should end up looking like an ‘L’.
- It’s important that as you shrimp, your shoulders stay where they are – You are NOTtrying to shift your whole body up the mats with this movement.
- Lastly, regain your original position by throwing your shoulders backwards until your back is once more flat on the ground. Redraw your feet to your bottom and complete the exercise on your other side.
- Repeat the exercise until you cover the length of the mat space.
- REMEMBER – Shrimps are difficult to master, so maintain patience as your students struggle through learning it the first few times. Remember to also raise your hips as far as your flexibility will allow as this lays good foundational patterns for later more complex movements (Bridges/Bridge and Turns etc.).
Chicken
Video: Chicken
Chicken
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Have your class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- Stand facing the direction that you wish to move.
- When ready, squat down on your haunches.
- Keep your back straight and tuck your arms into your body, holding onto your lapels – you should now resemble a chicken.
- Without raising from your squatting position, walk down the length of the mat space.
- REMEMBER – Your knees should never touch the mats when conducting this exercise. You may also need to include a rotational pivot off each foot to accommodate the walk, depending on your body type and flexibility.
Chimp
Video: Chimp
Chimp
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Have your class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- Stand facing the direction you wish to move.
- When ready, squat down onto your haunches with your knees splayed to the sides and your hands on the floor in front of you.
- Place your hands on the mat as far as your reach will allow.
- Take your weight through your hands as you hop your feet forwards to meet them.
- Repeat the motion of the exercise until you reach the end of the mat space.
Crab Walk
Video: Crab Walks
Crab Walk
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Have your class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- Sit facing the direction which you wish to move.
- Have both feet flat on the floor with both knees pointing towards the ceiling.
- Have both hands flat on the floor behind you.
- Taking your weight through all four extremities, lift your bottom into the air.
- Begin to ‘crab walk’ down the mat space until you reach the half-way mark.
- Once you reach the half-way point, spin 180 degrees and continue to ‘crab walk’ backwards until you reach the end of the mat space.
Forward Shrimp
Video: Forward Shrimps
Forward Shrimp
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Have your class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- Lie down facing the direction that you wish to move.
- Rock onto your right side and tuck your elbows tightly to your body as you bring your hands up near your face.
- Extend your right leg flat on the mats in front of you.
- At the same time, bend at the hips and try to touch your own toes, keeping your elbows tucked tightly.
- Take your weight in your feet and shoulder that’s on the ground. As you do so, use your feet to pull your hips forwards and down towards your toes.
- Rock onto your other side and repeat the motion.
- Repeat the exercise for the length of the mat space.
Forward Roll with Breakfall
Video: Forward Roll with Breakfall
Forwards Roll with Breakfall
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Have your class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- Start standing upright, facing the direction you wish to move.
- Step forwards with your left leg.
- Place your left hand on the floor next to your left leg.
- Keep your head looking to the right.
- At the same time, push forwards with your feet and roll over your left shoulder.
- As you roll onto your back, slap the ground with your right arm 45 degrees from your body, keeping your head off the mats.
- It is important here that your right leg is extended and flat on the mats whilst your left leg is bent, with the foot flat on the mats and the knee pointing towards the ceiling.
- Stand back up and complete the drill on your opposite side.
- Repeat the exercise for the length of the mat space.
Frog
Video: Frog
Frog
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Have your class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- Start by placing your feet shoulder width apart
- Bend at the hips until you can place both hands on the mats.
- Place your hands as far in front of you as your arm reach will allow.
- Take the weight in your arms as you drive off your legs, performing a slight hop movement.
- Repeat this slight hop motion twice. On the third, perform a larger hopping motion, kicking your legs up into the air.
- Repeat this exercise for the length of the mat space.
Galvao Drill
Video: Galvao Drill
Galvao Drill
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Have your class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- Start by placing your feet about twice as wide as your shoulders.
- Bend at the hips until you can place both hands on the mats.
- Drum your hands on the mat as you move them forwards, progressively taking your weight through them.
- Once your body is fully extended, perform a push-up.
- Once you have completed the push-up, use your hands to push your bottom backwards, so that it is over your feet again.
- Leaving your hands where they are on the mats, use the power in your legs to leap-frog your feet forwards so that you regain your original position.
- Repeat the exercise for the length of the mat space.
Gorilla
Video: Gorilla
Gorilla
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Have your class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- Face the direction you wish to move.
- Bend at the hips and place both hands near your feet (as close as your flexibility will allow).
- Extend your left hand as far as your reach will allow and place it firmly on the mats.
- Immediately follow with your left foot, placing it behind your left hand.
- Extend your right hand as far as your reach will allow and place it firmly on the mats.
- Immediately follow with your right foot, placing it behind your right hand.
- Repeat this motion of left hand, left foot, right hand, right foot, for the length of the mat space.
Handstands
Video: Handstand
Handstands
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Have your class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- Walk forwards a few paces to build momentum.
- When ready, place both hands on the floor slightly wider than shoulder width apart.
- Keep the momentum going – as soon as your hands touch the mats, take your body weight in your arms and ‘throw’ your legs into the air.
- Straighten your legs above your head and try to maintain your balance for as long as possible.
- Bring your legs back down and stand up again.
- Walk forwards a few paces and repeat the exercise.
- Repeat the exercise for the length of the mat space.
Kangaroo
Video: Kangaroo
Kangaroo
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Have your class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- Face the direction that you wish to move.
- Bend at the knees and swing your arms behind you.
- Explode forwards with your legs, jumping as far as you can as you swing your arms back in front of you for balance.
- Repeat the exercise for the length of the mat space.
- REMEMBER – Bend your knees as you land to absorb the impact of the jump.
Open Guard Shrimps
Video: Open Guard Shrimps
Open Guard Shrimps
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Have the class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- Position yourself so that you are seated on the mats facing the class. Your left foot should be flat on the mats with your knee pointing towards the ceiling. Your right leg should be laid flat on the mats, with your right foot tucked behind your left.
- A good point of reference is to imagine that your legs are hands on an analogue clock. Your knees want to be pointing at 12 and 3.
- Place your right hand at a diagonal angle behind you. Your left hand wants to be out straight with your palm up, as if you’re pushing on a wall.
- Bring your feet close to your bottom and grip them on the mats.
- Using the strength in your legs, and leaving your feet where they are, push your bottom backwards.
- Bring your feet back towards your bottom and shrimp again on the same side.
- As you bring your feet back again, alternate your feet and hands (right foot flat on the mats with the right knee pointing towards the sky and the left leg flat on the floor with your left foot tucked behind the right. Your left hand should also now be down with your right hand up).
- Shrimp twice more.
- Continue to alternate sides as you repeat this exercise down the length of the mats space.
Penetration Steps
Video: Penetration Steps
Penetration Steps
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Have your class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- To begin this exercise, get down on one knee as if you were proposing to someone. Have your elbows tucked into your body.
- Driving off the leg that’s flat on the floor, push the knee that’s up to the ground.
- As you push your knee to the ground, use the momentum to swing your other leg around from behind you and step it up in front of you.
- This will cause you to look as if you were proposing on the opposite leg.
- Drive off the new back foot and repeat the exercise.
- Continue for the length of the mat space.
Technical Stand
Video: Technical Stand
Technical Stand
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Start by having your class lined up at one end of the mat space and conduct a break fall.
- To break fall, turn to face your class and wrap your arms around your chest, as if you were giving yourself a hug. At the same time, tuck your chin into your chest to avoid hitting your head on the ground.
- Bend at the knees and sit down.
- As you sit down, let momentum carry you and rock onto your back.
- As your back hits the mats, unfold your arms and slap the mats palm down.
- It is important that you slap the ground at no more than 45 degree angles from your body to avoid injuring yourself.
- Once you have finished the break fall sit up into a seated position.
- Your left foot should be flat on the mats with your knee pointing towards the ceiling. Your right leg should be laid flat on the mats, with your right foot tucked behind your left.
- A good point of reference is to imagine that your legs are hands on an analogue clock. Your knees want to be pointing at 12 and 3.
- Place your right hand at a diagonal angle behind you. Your left hand wants to be out straight with your palm up, as if you’re pushing on a wall.
- Using the strength in your right arm and left leg, raise your hips off of the mats.
- Turn your whole body so that your chest is facing your right hand. This will make it easier to draw your bottom leg back through the space created.
- Draw your right foot back and place it directly behind your right arm.
- Keeping a straight back, bend at the hips and stand up tall and shuffle back a few paces.
- Repeat the exercise, except use your opposite side this time as you rear stand.
- Continue to alternate sides for the length of the mat space.
Rope Pulls
Video: Rope Pulls
Rope Pulls
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Have your class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- Start seated facing the direction you wish to move (away from the class).
- Have your legs shaped like a ‘V’ with your feet together and your knees apart, pointing towards the ceiling.
- Reach your hands out in front of you as if you were grabbing onto a rope.
- Extend your feet in front of you and grip them against the mats.
- Use your feet to drag yourself forwards as you ‘pull’ on the rope.
- You may choose to walk your feet one at a time or you may choose to use both at the same time to drag yourself forward.
Seals
Video: Seals
Seals
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Have your class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- To begin, lie belly down on the mats facing away from the class.
- Cross your feet and bend your legs at the knees so that your calves are at 90 degree angles from your thighs.
- Tuck your elbows into your sides and bend your elbows so that you look as if you were doing a push up. Your hands should be flat on the floor, with your fingers pointing towards your toes.
- Using the strength in your triceps, lift your chest off the mats and propel your body forward until your arms are fully extended.
- Place your chest on the floor again. Bring your hands back up, bending at the elbows, to regain your original position.
- Repeat the exercise for the length of the mat space.
Seated Roll
Video: Seated Roll
Seated Rolls
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Start by having your class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- Sit down facing the class with your knees splayed apart and your feet extended from your body (the same position as the butterfly stretch).
- Rock onto your back to gain momentum to complete the roll.
- As your back hits the mats, look to the left (as if you were trying to look over your left shoulder).
- Use the momentum of falling backwards to ‘throw’ your legs over your left shoulder.
- As you come to your knees, sweep your legs to one side and sit onto your bottom again to regain your original position.
- Complete another roll, except this time look to the right and ‘throw’ your legs over your right shoulder.
- Continue to alternate sides as you conduct the exercise for the length of the mat space.
Backwards Roll with Breakfall
Video: Backwards Roll with Breakfall
Backwards Roll with Breakfall
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Start by having your class lined up at one end of the mat space.
- Turn to face your class and wrap your arms around your chest, as if you were giving yourself a hug. At the same time, tuck your chin into your chest to avoid hitting your head on the ground.
- Bend at the knees and sit down.
- As you sit down, let momentum carry you and rock onto your back.
- As your back hits the mats, unfold your arms and slap the mats palm down.
- It is important that you slap the ground at no more than 45 degree angles from your body to avoid injuring yourself.
- Once you have completed the break fall, look to the left and ‘throw’ your legs over your left shoulder to come back to your feet.
- Complete the exercise again, except as you get up, look to the right and throw your legs over your right shoulder.
- Continue to alternate sides as you complete this exercise for the length of the mat space.
Compass Roll
Crawl and Circle
Crocodile Walk forwards and backwards
Video: Crocodile Walk Forwards
Video: Crocodile Walk Backwards
Crocodile Walk forwards and backwards
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- To begin the Crocodile walk, you must have a long side and a short side.
- Position yourself as if you were doing a push up at the top of the mat space and then reach one hand out and stretch the leg on that same side back, so that you look like superman flying. This is the long side.
- On the other side, pull your knee up and flare it out to the side and then bring your elbow down, so that your arm forms a 90 degree angle. Your elbow should rest on the inside of your knee. This is the short side.
- Your arms should be locked straight at the beginning of the movement.
- To change sides, stretch the short side arm forward as you drive off of the short foot to extend yourself. Leave the long side hand where it is, and as you drive forward, bend your arm at the elbow to 90 degrees. Bring your knee up and flare it out to complete the transition.
- Keep using the above transition to complete the exercise, as it will push you forwards down the mat.
- To crocodile walk backwards, simply follow the above steps in reverse.
- Drive off of your short side hand as you extend your leg backwards. Leave your long side leg where it is and bend at the knee as you push yourself back. Lastly, bend your new short side arm back to complete the transition.
- REMEMBER – To correctly perform the crocodile walk, no body parts except for your hands and feet should be touching the ground for the entire duration of the movement.
Kneeling Rolls
Video: Kneeling Rolls
Kneeling Rolls
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Begin this drill by having your class lined up in rows at one end of the mat space.
- Start by resting on your knees with your feet tucked behind you. Once ready, place your right foot flat on the floor with your knee pointing towards the ceiling. You should now look as if you were proposing to someone.
- Place your right hand flat on the floor slightly in front of your right foot.
- Look at your right foot and with your left hand, reach between your legs as if you were trying to grab your own belt as far as you can.
- This will lower your left shoulder to the mats and accommodate an easier roll.
- Push with your feet and roll over your left shoulder.
- As you regain your original position, alternate sides (step your left foot up and place your left hand on the floor) before repeating the exercise.
- Repeat the drill for the length of the mat space.
Monkey
Video: Monkey
Monkey
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Begin this drill by having your class lined up in rows at one end of the mat space.
- Start by standing perpendicular (side-on) to the rest of the class with your feet shoulder width apart. When ready, bend down and place your hands firmly on the floor in front of you. You may also place closed fists on the floor.
- Reach both hands in the direction you wish to move (to the right or left of your body) and replant them on the floor.
- Taking your weight in your hands, hop both feet until they realign with your hands – you should now be in your original position.
- Continue to reach your hands out and hop to realign until you are halfway down the mat space.
- Once you reach the halfway mark, turn 180 degrees so that you are facing the opposite direction and continue the drill until you reach the end of the mat space.
Shrimps
Video: Shrimp
Shrimps
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Begin this drill by having your class lined up in rows at one end of the mat space.
- Start on your back facing your students and pull your heels as close to your bottom as you can with your knees pointing towards the ceiling. Next, tuck your arms tight to your sides with your hands near your face.
- To begin the shrimp, begin to roll onto one side, as if you were in bed.
- At the same time as you roll, grip the floor with your feet and use them to raise your hips slightly off of the mats and push your bottom backwards.
- At the same time as you’re pushing your bottom backwards, leave your shoulders where they are and bend at the hips to try and touch your own toes.
- You should end up looking like an ‘L’.
- It’s important that as you shrimp, your shoulders stay where they are – You are NOTtrying to shift your whole body up the mats with this movement.
- Lastly, regain your original position by throwing your shoulders backwards until your back is once more flat on the ground. Redraw your feet to your bottom and complete the exercise on your other side.
- Repeat the exercise until you cover the length of the mat space.
- REMEMBER – Shrimps are difficult to master, so maintain patience as your students struggle through learning it the first few times. It is imperative that you DO NOT PURPOSELY SKIP OVER THIS DRILL because of this. Next to Break Falls, Shrimping is arguably one of the most important drills for any BJJ practitioner to learn as, when done properly, they are the key to multitudes of escape techniques and distance creation.
Scorpion
Video: Scorpions
Scorpion
Teaching Tips and Terminology
- Begin this drill by having your class lined up in rows at one end of the mat space.
- Start by standing with your feet shoulder width apart. When ready, bend down and place your hands firmly on the floor at slightly wider than shoulder width apart. At the same time, raise one of your legs into the air as high as your flexibility will allow. You should now resemble a scorpion and its stinger.
- Take your body weight in the leg on the floor and hop both of your hands forward.
- After this, rock your weight into your hands to make your leg light and hop your leg forward to complete the transition.
- Repeat this rocking and hopping motion until you reach the end of the mat space.
- Line up again and repeat the exercise with your legs alternated (if you hand your right foot in the air, make sure that your left foot is in the air now).