Guard Retention and Recovery

What it is

Guard retention is keeping your legs between you and the passer while they try to get past them. Guard recovery is getting the legs back after they have got past. Both use the same three tools, hips, knees and frames, and the difference is only timing: the earlier you move, the less you have to recover.

Where it shows up

• Retention: they start a pass (a toreando, a knee slide, a stack) and you still have a leg in the way. Move the hips, bring a knee in, frame.
• Recovery: they are past the legs and settling into side control or knee on belly. Frame, shrimp, and bring the knee back between you.
• Half guard: they are halfway past. Get on your side, get the underhook (your arm under theirs) or a knee shield (your top knee across their body), and work the legs back.

Key details

• The hips lead. Guard is kept and recovered by moving the hips, never by reaching with the arms.
• A knee between you and them is a guard. One knee back in is enough to restart from.
• Frames hold the space while the hips move. Forearm on the neck or shoulder, hand on the hip, shin across the waist.
• Stay on your side. A flat back cannot shrimp, and a flat guard gets passed.
• Replace one connection with another: a foot on the hip, a hook, a grip. The guard ends when nothing connects you.

Common mistakes

• Mistake: lying flat with no connection. There is nothing to retain and they walk around.
• Mistake: chasing with the arms instead of the hips. They pin your arm and pass on the other side.
• Mistake: letting them control both hips. No hip movement means no guard and no recovery.
• Mistake: turning away once they are past. You give up the back instead of bringing the knee in.

What they will try

• The passer pins the hips or the near knee so you cannot shrimp or bring the knee in.
• They clear the frames with pressure or go to north-south, where the hips have nothing to push against.