Arguably, one of the most fundamentally sound moves you can perform in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is the Technical Stand Up. As its name suggests, this is based on standing up from a bottom position. It is mostly used to prevent guard passes and also sweep opponents. Furthermore, it can also be used in MMA to escape the floor and safely get back to your feet. This is a move that once learned will last forever whilst your train BJJ.
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How & When you should perform a Technical Stand Up
Imagine your opponent is hugging the bottom of your legs, below your knee line. If you panic or have no knowledge of escapes, you may get your guard passed within a few seconds. This is where the Technical Stand Up comes in and can reset your position. Without it, your guard would suffer in similar situations.
To perform a Technical Stand Up, you’ll want to post one arm forward whilst out straight. Often, this can be rested on the shoulder of the opponent, or simply into the air. With the same side leg, you’ll want to have it stuck out with your knee bent and the sole of your foot on the floor.
Then, your other leg should bend in, moving behind your forward leg. This should make your foot go under your buttocks whilst having your free hand planted on the floor to act as a base. After this, you’ll want to retract the leg under your buttocks backwards and begin to stand. The result is that you’ll have gone from the floor to your feet in an efficient fashion.
Why bringing your arm forward is important
Bringing your arm forward is important for two reasons. The first is that it acts as a balance and will aid you in standing. This is like walking a tight rope with your arms stretched out which will naturally help you. The second reason is distance management. If you’re in MMA then you don’t just want to stand without protecting your face. However, by pushing it out it can also act as a block against an oncoming opponent.
How to do the Technical Stand Up Sweep
The Technical Stand Up sweep is one of the easiest sweeps to use from the X-guard position, and can also be done from certain areas of the Deep half guard. Imagine you’re in X-guard and you begin kicking your opponents far leg away from you. Simultaneously, you also put their leg on your shoulder next to your head.
As you kick the opponent’s far leg away, it will force them to post on it and take their weight off the leg on your shoulder. As a result, you can easily begin to stand up. Often, you will come to a single leg takedown position. From here, if you pull the leg down from below the knee, the opponent will be forced to the floor. Dependent on their reaction, you can either take the back or sweep them.
How to use the Technical Stand Up as a collar drag
Another effective move from playing guard is the collar drag. This is when you drag the opponent’s collar forward onto you, whilst moving out the way. Obviously, you will need to move out of the way whilst performing the move otherwise you will bring the opponent onto your body.
To do this, you’ll want to perform a Technical Stand Up. This means holding the collar and moving your legs out from under you and your opponent and dragging their body into the empty space. Again, this will either result in a sweep or a back take. Typically, this form of collar drag is done from a Bottom half guard where there’s adequate space and time to do the move.
Weaknesses of the Technical Stand Up
It goes without saying that the Technical Stand Up can only be done in certain situations. Usually, this is when there’s enough physical space and distance between you and your opponent. Like everything in BJJ, there’s a time and place to use this move.
One of its biggest weaknesses is doing this against a quick, athletic opponent where you could even get submitted from there. For instance, if you’re in an open guard and leave your arm stretched out for too long then you could get punished.
This could result in the opponent jumping into a flying armbar or flying triangle. Although rare, it’s something you should still keep an eye on. Remember to always watch your opponent as you do this move so you can retract your arm if they threaten to jump.
Summary
Overall, the Technical Stand Up should be used by everyone. This is because at some point, you’re bound to use it. Imagine not being able to bridge or shrimp in BJJ – the result would be that you would put yourself at a big disadvantage when on the bottom. Like those techniques, the Technical Stand Up is a fundamental move in BJJ that is universal for all.
What’s also worth mentioning is that when you first learn to use the Technical Stand Up sweep, you may find it difficult to perform. It requires a lot of coordination and uses unorthodox movements which can feel awkward as a white belt. The good news is that after a while, it will become natural and you’ll do it without thinking.
