Top 5 BJJ Half Guard Sweeps You Must Try

The guard and all its variations, such as the half guard, are the most common techniques in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. There is probably a game in which the practitioners execute no guard against each other. One of the very first techniques a BJJ practitioner learns when they start training for the very first time in BJJ is the guard or half guard. But the guard does not end there. You should also focus on many other things you can do once you reach the half guard. You should know the sweeps you can make once you are in the half guard. So the article discusses the top five sweeps you can make from the half guard.

• The half guard is a very effective technique in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in which a grappler grabs one of the opponent’s legs with both legs of their own to control their opponent. It is a very versatile position, which means that you can do it from various positions in BJJ. It also serves as both a defensive and an offensive position.

• So you can use it for defending against various moves of your opponent and also for executing multiple attacks and taking them to submission. The technique is so effective that it creates a lot of opportunities for you. You can make sweeps, attacks, transition to any other dominant position, and also submit them by executing the submission technique.

There are a lot of opportunities you can avail yourself of once you are in a BJJ half guard, and so are the sweeps. But we will discuss only the best ones. The following discusses the top five BJJ half guard sweeps you should learn.

• The first of the best is the back take sweep. It is easy to do and requires only three steps: underhook, hip escape, spinning around, and then, finally, you will be taking the back of your opponent. So you are in a half guard position with your opponent and grabbing their one leg with both your legs. At first, try to do the underhooks on them so that you have more control over them.

• Then do the hip escape on one side and move your opponent to the other side. After this, the back of your opponent will become exposed to you. Now you can take them back easily. This is effective because when you are executing the half guard, your opponents will try to defend as much as they can, and in that attempt, they often expose their back.

• The second best sweep you can make from the BJJ half guard is the deep sweep. It is not a common technique, but a very powerful and effective technique. The best thing about this sweep is that you can do to get control of the bigger, stronger opponents.

• It is more like a complete position rather than a sweep from the guard. In this sweep or position, you get under your opponent a little bit more. You do this to control their one leg with the whole of your body, hence completing the control, making it more powerful.

• It is the same leg that you used for grabbing in the half guard. So once you are under your opponent, controlling their one leg, then you have the choice to do anything, such as roll, tilt, or spin, which will ultimately give you the top and dominant position against your opponent.

• The third best sweep you can make from the half guard in BJJ is the old school sweep. As the name indicates, it is the classic and traditional sweep. You can get the top position with it. To do this position, you have to first do the underhook on the legs of your opponent, and after this, you can move yourself into them.

• Now, with the underhook on the legs, you can lift them and then rotate them on the mat, getting them under you. So eventually, you have the top dominant position against your opponent.

• The one thing you have to make sure of is that you have to keep their leg grabbed and not let them go, which would otherwise give them the big opportunity to escape themselves.

• The fourth best sweep is the knee lever half guard sweep. It is also known as the lockdown sweep. In half guard, you have grabbed one leg of your opponent with both of your legs. Don’t you think you should make proper use of the grab? Yes, you should, and you can do that in the knee level sweep.

• For doing this sweep, you need to stretch the leg of your opponent, which you have already grabbed. This will help you to breach their base and unbalance them. They will further lose their posture, making it easier for you to make the sweep. After these two steps, it becomes easier for you to do the further steps.

• Now, shift the hips of your opponent sideways. Now you can easily roll over your opponent. So it is essentially a roll over sweep. You can only roll your opponent over if you have grabbed them properly. With proper grab, you are ensuring the proper control over them. So now, you are on top of your opponent with proper control and dominance.

• The fifth and the last sweep we will discuss out of the top five sweeps you should learn from, the half guard is the John Wayne sweep. This sweep is the simplest of all sweeps we have discussed so far, and therefore, it is very easy for you to do.

• For doing this sweep, you need to look for the arm of your opponent that they are using as a base or to support themselves. Once you find out that supporting arm, you need to grab it. Make sure you are trapping their arm with a solid grip.

• After this, move yourself or roll under your opponent, and now you can finish the sweep by gaining the dominant position over your opponent.

• So this sweep is perfect for the opponent who supports themselves with their arm on the mat. You can simply disrupt their posture by trapping and controlling their arm, which will make it even easier for you to make the next moves and shift them to an even more submissive position.

The half guard is a common position, and this makes it necessary for you to dive into the depths of this position so that you are at an advantage over your opponent. You should learn this technique in all dimensions or from every aspect. Learn about how you can defend against it and execute it against your opponent. Master the techniques or attacks you can make after this guard. Learn all the sweeps you can do from the BJJ half guard. The article discusses the top five in this category. You should start from this, and once you have mastered these five sweeps, you can go on for learning further sweeps.

The half guard is a very effective technique in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in which a grappler grabs one of the opponent’s legs with both legs of their own to control their opponent. It is a very versatile position, which means that you can do it from various positions in BJJ. It also serves as both a defensive and an offensive position.

The following are the top five sweeps from BJJ half guard:

• Back Take

• Deep Sweep

• Old School

• Knee Lever

• John Wayne Sweep