Get on top, stay on top, and finish with a submission.

Other than survive as best you can, no other objective should be prioritized when you first start learning Jiu Jitsu. What if, though, you find yourself in the bottom of closed guard? What then?

In that case, sweeping has to be the focus initially.

And the simplest sweeps you can do in that situation are the ones that we will discuss in this post. Starting with the…

Xande Sweep

 This sweep has its name because it is popularized by Xande Ribeiro many years ago, and I learned it from Mike Fowler as a counter to opponent trying to open the closed guard from their knees. In many respects, though, it is a pendulum grip. It just uses a different grip configuration, and slightly different execution mechanics.

So if you’re ever experienced anyone posturing up in your closed guard, pinning your hips and stretching away to force the guard open, Xande sweep is made to punish them for that tactic.

If, however, you’re having great success pulling an arm across your centerline but either fail at or don’t want to risk the armbar, use the… 

Pendulum Sweep

This sweep was the first one that I had significant success with at tournaments.

Why?

Because it has clear and simple objectives. One, you must immobilize one arm, in some fashion, so that opponents can’t use it to base on the mat and stop the momentum of the sweep. Two, you must establish some control of their posture, so that you can rock their weight off their heels. Three, you must get some leverage on the side of the body opposite the arm you control.

Accomplish all those things, and the last bit (the sweep is easy).

What happens, though, if they put their hands on your chest, and push away to re-establish posture? That’s when you hit them with the…

Hip Bump Sweep

In that moment, when opponent is retreating from a posture break, they’re most vulnerable to the hip bump.

This means that you can easily combo this attack with other sweeps and close gaps in the offense of the position. Also it is another sweep that has clear guidelines.

One, build to base on your hand, so that your body is upright. Two, trap and immobilize their potential posting arm. And three, look behind you and spin them like a top.

Then if that doesn’t work, another option is the…

Scissor Sweep

 Oh, boy.

The scissor sweep is another foundational attack for the closed guard, and it has levels. There are so many different ways. Below, I’m going to show you a demonstration of all the sweeps we’ve discussed but nowadays, I’ve abandoned the traditional grip configuration for one that more effectively accomplishes the key objectives of the sweep.

You can discover exactly how my methodology has changed in micro adjustments, but for now, check out these sweep demonstrations: