BJJ Drills You Can Do Solo: A Real Training Block, Not a Filler Routine

Solo BJJ drills get a bad reputation because most of them are filler, shrimps and bridges as a warm-up that no one programs into the actual training week. Programmed properly, solo drills build the three things that limit most BJJ players: hip mobility, base, and the ability to recover guard under pressure.

This is the solo BJJ drill block I prescribe. It is 20 minutes, three times a week. Done consistently for eight weeks, it changes how you move on the mat.

Why solo drills matter more than people think

You roll for an hour, twice a week. That is 120 minutes of live mat time. Even at a serious gym, only a fraction of that is spent on your weakest position. Solo drilling is the only way to put 60+ extra reps a week on the mechanics that hold you back, without needing a partner, an open mat, or a competition camp.

The drills below are not warm-up filler. They are mechanic builders.

The 20-minute solo drill block

Three rounds of work, each round split into three drills.

Round 1, Hips and base (6 minutes)

• Shrimp / hip escape, 1 minute each side. Slow, full extension, return.
• Technical stand-up, 2 minutes. From seated guard, post on the hand and lead foot, swing the trailing leg through, stand. Both sides.
• Granby roll, 2 minutes. From all fours, drop the shoulder, roll through, end in a knee-up position.

Focus: clean mechanics, no rushed reps. If your shrimp is sloppy, your guard recovery is sloppy.

Round 2, Guard retention (7 minutes)

• Solo inversion, 2 minutes. From back on the mat, hips up, legs come over the head, return. If inversion is not safe for your neck or back, sub in shoulder-roll mobility.
• Knee shield to guard, 2 minutes. Lie on your side, build a knee shield, retract it, sit up to combat base, return.
• Get-up sequence, 3 minutes. Seated guard → frame → shrimp → technical stand-up → reset. Two reps per side per round.

Focus: smooth transitions. The pause between movements is the leak.

Round 3, Standing movement and posture (7 minutes)

• Penetration step drill, 2 minutes. Drop step into a low single posture, return to stance. Both sides.
• Sprawl to base, 2 minutes. From stance, sprawl, return to combat base, stand. Repeat.
• Posture drill, 3 minutes. From knees in closed-guard posture, hands on imagined hips, drive posture up, break grip lines, stand.

Focus: posture and base. Guard players who never train posture are easy to break down.

How to actually use this

• Three sessions a week. Do not skip weeks.
• Film one round per week from a side angle. Look at hip extension, shoulder position, and recovery.
• Pick one correction per week. Just one.

If you want a second opinion on the mechanics, upload a 60-second clip to the BJJ app for a frame-level breakdown.

The drills I do not recommend

• Random YouTube "30 BJJ solo drills." Volume without programming is just cardio. Pick a block, run it consistently.
• Solo guard pass drills without a body to read. You cannot drill timing solo. Drill mechanics solo, drill timing live.
• Solo submission drills. Submissions are timing and grip-dependent, solo reps build false confidence.

Learning BJJ at home: the five movements to own

If you are starting BJJ at home, these five solo movements are the base everything else sits on:

• Shrimp (hip escape). Turn on your side, push off the mat with the foot, move the hips away. The movement behind nearly every guard recovery. See the shrimping breakdown.
• Bridge (upa). Feet close to the hips, drive the hips up and over one shoulder, not straight up.
• Technical stand-up. Post a hand behind you, lift the hips, swing the leg back, stand up facing forward with your guard up.
• Sit-out. From all fours, thread one leg under your body and turn to face the other way. Used to escape the turtle and to scramble.
• Granby roll. Drop the shoulder, roll across the upper back, finish on your knees facing the same way.

A 4-week home plan

Week 1. Shrimp and bridge only, 3 rounds of 2 minutes each, slow and full range.

Week 2. Add technical stand-up and sit-out. Run the 20-minute block above twice.

Week 3. Add the granby roll. Chain movements: shrimp, shrimp, technical stand-up.

Week 4. Full 20-minute block three times. Film one round.

Safety: train on mats or carpet, not tile. Tuck your chin on rolls, never roll onto your neck, and stop if a joint hurts.

What you can't skip: live rolling

Solo drills are the easy part. BJJ is learned against a resisting partner: grips, pressure, timing and the moment someone is trying to pass your guard. You cannot drill that alone, and you should not try submissions on a partner without a coach in the room. Use home work to arrive at class with better hips, then roll.

How to get feedback when you train alone

Film a round and get it reviewed by mmaGPT first. Upload a 20 to 60 second clip in your phone browser and in about 30 to 45 seconds you get timestamped notes on your hips, posture and frames plus one drill for each mistake. Nothing to download on iPhone or Android. Then bring it to class and ask your coach to check the same fix. mmaGPT supplements a coach, it does not replace one.

Get your first BJJ review free

FAQ

Can I get better at BJJ with only solo drills? No, solo drills build mechanics, not timing. They make your mat time more productive, but they do not replace rolling.

How long should a solo BJJ session be? 20 to 30 minutes, three times a week. Longer sessions diminish in return. Shorter sessions diminish in carryover.

Are solo BJJ drills useful for beginners? Especially for beginners. The hip mobility and base mechanics built in the first six months of solo drilling pay off for years.

Should I do solo drills on rest days or training days? Either. Many fighters use them as a 20-minute morning routine on non-training days, and as part of the warm-up on training days.

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