Grasshopper Guard

What This Is

Grasshopper guard is a guard variant in which the bottom player turns to their side — hips perpendicular to the opponent — and uses one leg to control the opponent’s near leg from the outside, typically with the knee or shin on the outside of the opponent’s thigh or knee. The leg configuration resembles a grasshopper’s bent rear legs, which gives the position its name. The other leg may hook behind the opponent’s knee, post on the mat, or engage the opponent’s hip.

The position is a niche technique associated with 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu and submission-focused systems. Its primary value is as an entry point to leg entanglement positions — particularly outside ashi garami and back take sequences — that are harder to enter directly from a standard bottom position. The sideways hip orientation and outside leg control create a different geometric relationship between the players that opens entry paths not available from a standard guard.

Grasshopper guard is best understood as a transitional setup rather than a stable defensive position. An opponent who is simply standing or kneeling inside a grasshopper guard can step out relatively easily — the position’s value is in the moment of entry and the immediate transition to an entanglement or back take from that moment.

The Invariable in Action

Grasshopper guard entry is most effective when the opponent has committed their weight or movement in a specific direction — pressing into the guard player, stepping aggressively, or reacting to a sweep attempt. The sideways hip transition requires the guard player to move quickly; against a well-balanced, still opponent, the entry is telegraphed and can be countered by stepping out. The position is entered against movement, not against a base.

The grasshopper guard’s outside leg control creates an outside-space relationship rather than inside-space — the leg controls the outside of the opponent’s thigh. This is the opposite of the standard inside space control of ashi garami. Understanding which entanglement positions are accessible from outside control vs inside control determines the transitions available. Outside heel hook entries and outside ashi positions are the natural continuations from the grasshopper guard’s outside leg relationship.

Entering This Position

From Bottom — Hipping Out to the Side

From a standard bottom guard or recovery position, the guard player hips out sharply to one side — turning the hips perpendicular to the opponent while simultaneously placing the near leg on the outside of the opponent’s near thigh. This is done in one coordinated motion: hip out + leg placement. The guard player ends up on their side with the outside leg hooked on the opponent’s near thigh and the inside leg available for secondary control or posting.

From Guard Retention — Leg Insertion

When the opponent is in the process of passing and the guard player’s legs are being pushed aside, the guard player can hip out into the grasshopper position — going to their side and inserting the outside leg control as the legs are being passed. This is a guard retention application: rather than re-establishing a standard guard, the guard player transitions through grasshopper to a leg entanglement entry. The pass attempt creates the opening.

From This Position

Outside Ashi Garami Entry

The primary continuation. With the outside leg controlling the opponent’s near thigh from outside, the guard player can swing their inside leg over the opponent’s near leg to create outside ashi garami — both legs now engaged with the opponent’s near leg, one from outside. The outside heel hook or outside kneebar entries become available from this leg entanglement.

Back Take

From the grasshopper’s sideways hip position, the guard player can roll toward the opponent’s back — the sideways orientation means the guard player is already partially behind the opponent. A coordinated roll with leg engagement can produce a back take without the full berimbolo sequence required from a standard guard. This works best when the opponent has their back leg accessible.

Single Leg X Entry

The grasshopper guard’s leg positioning can transition to single leg X (ashi garami) by swinging the inside leg to an underhook on the opponent’s near leg. From SLX, standard heel hook and sweeping attacks are available. The grasshopper guard’s outside control is the entry; the SLX is the completion of the entanglement.

Common Errors — and Why They Fail

Error: Holding grasshopper guard statically rather than transitioning immediately. Why it fails: The grasshopper guard’s sideways hip position is not stable against a mobile opponent who can step out of the outside leg control. Holding the position gives the opponent time to extract their leg. Correction: Treat the grasshopper guard as a one-beat position — enter it and immediately transition to the entanglement or back take. Do not hold.

Error: Outside leg not controlling the thigh — only contacting the knee or below. Why it fails: Control at the knee allows the opponent to step around the control more easily than control at the thigh. The target is the outer thigh, not the knee. The thigh contact creates a higher, more controlling hook. Correction: Aim the outside leg for the opponent’s outer mid-thigh, not the knee joint.

Error: No hip displacement — attempting outside control with hips still square. Why it fails: Grasshopper guard requires the hips to be turned to the side. Attempting outside leg control with square hips produces neither the grasshopper guard’s geometry nor its entanglement access. The hip turn is the defining feature. Correction: Hip out completely before establishing the outside leg contact.

Drilling Notes

Ecological Approach

Game: bottom player starts in guard; top player attempts to pass. Bottom player’s task: establish outside leg control on the near thigh as the pass happens. No prescribed technique — the constraint forces discovery of the hip-out motion and timing.

Systematic Approach

Phase 1 — hip-out mechanics. From guard with cooperative partner kneeling, practise the hip-out motion and outside leg placement. Confirm the thigh contact. Ten reps each side, no resistance.

Phase 2 — transition to outside ashi. From established grasshopper, practise swinging the inside leg to create outside ashi garami. Feel the geometry change. No heel hook application.

Phase 3 — entry from passing. Partner light-pressure pass; guard player times the hip-out to the pass movement. Focus on recognising the window.

Ability Level Guidance

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