Stretching for BJJ

Look at the best guard players in the world over the past 20 years. The Miyaos, Lachlan Giles, Levi Jones Leary, Lucas Kanard. Gordon hasn’t been known to cite stretching as a key part of his training regimen. However Craig Jones (who is notorious for claiming to do very little off the mats to physically improve) says he stretches. Most of these guys cite stretching as the number 1 variable that can be improved upon outside of technique that will improve your guard.

Why is it handy? Being more flexible increases the window where early stage retention techniques can be used to recover your guard. Therefore the window in which late stage retention techniques need to be used is decreased.

Offensively you’ll be open to whole new movement patterns. For example, anyone can invert from Reverse De La Riva. However improving your flexibility in your hamstrings and lower back will make this movement be plausible from many more scenarios.

There's a reason Lachlan cites stretching as the most important variable you can improve physiologically off the mats.

Here's a science based routine designed to improve your guard and make it unpassable. On this routine not only do you access the stretches the best in the world use to improve your guard. But you will also learn the science behind stretching, how often you need to stretch, and how each stretch will directly impact your BJJ performance.