### Overview The Half Guard Recovery technique is vital in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) for a practitioner who finds themselves in the half guard and needs to regain a more advantageous position \\(ideally full guard\\). Half guard is when one of your opponent's legs is trapped between your legs. This technique is crucial to prevent your opponent from passing directly into side control. ### Position - **Half Guard** ### Top/Bottom - **Bottom** ### Japanese Name - **N/A** ### Technique Details #### Step 1: Establish a Strong Half Guard 1. **Keep Control of the Opponent's Leg:** - Once in half guard, use your inside knee and outer foot to lock in your opponent's trapped leg.\ - This helps create a barrier and restricts the opponent's mobility. 2. **Maintain a Defensive Frame:** - Use your inside arm to create a frame against your opponent’s upper body. Ideally, your elbow should be positioned against their neck or collarbone to maintain distance. - Use your outside hand to control their far arm, or, at the very least, to block an incoming cross-face attempt. #### Step 2: Use the Underhook 1. **Seek the Underhook:** - With your outside arm, look to slip under your opponent’s same-side arm and reach towards their opposite hip for an underhook.\ - Ensure you’re on your side rather than flat on your back. Your goal is to be on the edge closest to your opponent. 2. **Drive Your Head Underneath:** - Position your head underneath the opponent’s to keep them off balance and prevent them from applying forward pressure. #### Step 3: Escape the Hips and Regain Guard 1. **Create Space with Hips:** - With your underhook secured, scoot your hips out slightly away from the opponent, creating a pocket of space. - Try to reposition your bottom knee in line with the opponent’s torso. 2. **Regain Full Guard:** - Once your knee is through, angle your torso and hips towards your opponent, and bring your other leg around to meet. Use a "shrimp-like" motion if they resist. - Close the position by securing your opponent’s torso in a full guard. ### Tips and Considerations - **Maintain Fluid Movement:** The transition should feel like a fluid chain of motion rather than isolated steps. - **Be Aware of Weight Distribution:** Feel where your opponent's weight is to capitalize on their movements to help with your escape. - **Focus on Control and Timing:** Don't rush the recovery. Focus on maintaining control and timing your moves properly to maximize escape potential. By rehearse and employing the Half Guard Recovery, practitioners can efficiently safeguard themselves from potential threats and advance into a strategic defensive position in a BJJ match.