5 BJJ Positions Every Beginner Must Learn First
BJJ has hundreds of positions — but 5 foundational ones determine your development more than anything else. Here's what Kaizen Academy in Venice, CA teaches beginners to prioritize.
BJJ's technical universe is vast — hundreds of positions, transitions, and submissions. For beginners at Kaizen Academy in Venice, CA, knowing which positions to prioritize first makes the difference between an organized development path and years of unfocused training. This post identifies the 5 foundational positions that should be every beginner's primary focus and explains specifically what to develop in each one.
One of the most overwhelming things about starting BJJ at Kaizen Academy is the sheer volume of technique. Guards, passes, sweeps, submissions, transitions — the technical universe of BJJ is genuinely vast.
The good news: you don't need to learn everything. You need to learn the right things first, in the right order. Here are the five positions that should consume the majority of a beginner's focused attention in their first 6–12 months.
Position 1: Closed Guard (Bottom)
Why it's foundational: Closed guard is BJJ's signature position — the one that most clearly demonstrates the art's core principle that the bottom position can be offensive and advantageous. Learning to be active, controlled, and threatening from closed guard builds the fundamental offensive mindset that the entire art is built on.
What to develop in closed guard:
- Posture breaking — pulling your opponent's head down to prevent them from posturing up
- Hip movement and angle changes — shifting your hips to create submission setups
- The armbar, triangle, and kimura from closed guard — the three foundational submissions from this position
- Sweeps — particularly the scissor sweep and hip bump sweep as entry points to understanding weight transfer
Common beginner mistake: Being passive in closed guard. Closed guard is not a defensive position — it's an offensive one. If you're just holding on and hoping something happens, you're using it wrong.
Position 2: Guard Passing (Top)
Why it's foundational: Guard passing is the gateway to dominant top positions. Without functional guard passing, your offensive game from the top is severely limited. Developing at least two reliable guard passes in your first year gives your entire top game a foundation to build on.
What to develop:
- The torreando (bullfighter) pass — a simple, effective open guard pass
- The knee slice pass — fundamental for half guard and open guard
- Posture while passing — staying upright and base-heavy to prevent sweeps
Common beginner mistake: Rushing the pass. Guard passing requires patience and systematic pressure — not explosive speed that leaves you vulnerable to sweeps and submissions.
Position 3: Mount (Top)
Why it's foundational: Mount is one of BJJ's highest-scoring positions (4 points) and one of the most psychologically dominant. Learning to maintain mount against an escaping opponent, and to attack submissions from mount, develops the patience and positional sensitivity that defines advanced BJJ.
What to develop:
- Maintaining mount against bridges and shrimping — learning to flow with your opponent's escapes
- The armbar from mount — the most fundamental mount submission
- The ezekiel choke from mount — a strong gi option that doesn't require arm control
Common beginner mistake: Sitting statically in mount. Mount maintenance is active — you're constantly adjusting to your opponent's movement.
Position 4: Back Control (Top)
Why it's foundational: Back control is the most dominant position in BJJ — 4 points and the source of the most reliable submission in grappling, the rear naked choke. More importantly, back takes are available from almost every other position in BJJ — developing back control creates offensive opportunities from everywhere.
What to develop:
- Maintaining hooks (both heels inside opponent's hips) against escape attempts
- The seatbelt grip — the fundamental control grip from back
- The rear naked choke — the primary submission from back control
- Staying on the correct side (above the choking arm) during escape attempts
Position 5: Side Control Escape (Bottom)
Why it's foundational: You will spend a significant amount of your early BJJ career on the bottom of side control — it's where beginners get stuck most consistently. Developing reliable side control escapes is the most practical investment a white belt can make in their defensive game.
What to develop:
- The frame and shrimp to guard recovery — the most fundamental escape
- The bridge and roll — useful when your opponent is heavy on one side
- Inside position — keeping your inside arm framing rather than letting it get captured
How Kaizen Academy Structures These Fundamentals
At Kaizen Academy in Venice, CA, our beginner BJJ curriculum is organized around these foundational positions. Every technique we teach in the first months of training connects to one of these five positions. Students who master these fundamentals have a complete positional map — they know what to do from wherever they find themselves on the mat.
Kaizen Academy is at 2014 Lincoln Blvd, Venice, CA 90291. First class is free.