Brazilian jiu jitsu practitioner in a black gi and purple belt on the mats at Next Generation Martial Arts in Thibodaux, Louisiana

Home › BJJ Curriculum › Year 1 › Month 11 — Back Control Bottom › Week 44 — Turtle Bottom: Roll to Guard & Hook Guard Recovery

Week 44 of 96

Turtle Bottom — Roll to Guard & Hook Guard Recovery

Opponent to the side · Body lock problem · Use your weight · Wedge the shin · Shoot to guard

What To Think About This Week

The Lesson

Which side are they on? Do they have a body lock? Roll through it — dip the shoulder, push the hips into them, open the legs, lock closed guard. Can't roll? Wedge the shin across their hip, hook the outside, post the hand, lift the hips and shoot to guard.

Both paths end the same place — closed guard. Let their position and grip tell you which one to take.

Class Warm-Up

The Drills

Line Drills

Hip Escape (Shrimp)
Hip Escape to Sprawl (Wrestle Up / Thread)
Forward Shoulder Rolls
Break Fall Stand in Base
Back Shoulder Rolls

Movement Drill

Half Guard → Half Butterfly → Butterfly → Closed Guard

▸ Video · The Drill

Escape Drill

Back Control to Top Position

▸ Video · The Drill

Strike Defense

Striking Offense

▸ Video · The Drill

This Week's Techniques

The Material

Escape · Turtle Bottom · Opponent to the Side

Roll to Guard

▸ Video · The Technique

Recovery · Turtle Bottom · Opponent to the Side

Turtle Hook Guard Recovery

▸ Video · The Technique

Class Rolling & Takedown Rules

How We Roll

White vs White

Flow training by default unless the instructor specifies otherwise.

Upper vs Lower

Lower ranking student picks their top position. Blue through black vs white, or blue vs black — the lower rank decides where to start.

Purple / Brown / Black

Neutral start or request a specific position you want to work on.

Takedown Rounds

Same rules apply. White vs white — controlled and flowing. Upper vs lower — lower rank picks entry or tie-up. Purple / brown / black — neutral or requested start.