The Turtle Position is more popular and effective than many grapplers think. Judo, wrestling, and BJJ are the primary martial arts that teach it. It’s more of a defensive position to go to when you want to escape side control and many others to transition into a more aggressive position.
You can do that in many ways, and we’ll review some of them in this article. So, what exactly is the Turtle Position, and why is it so popular?
The Turtle Position is when you expose your back and are on your knees and elbows. You want your limbs to be close together, to the point where your elbows are very close to your hips. As a result, you’ll be balanced and capable of escaping to transition into a more aggressive position eventually.
You can get side control, closed guard, and even go for the Triangle choke if you learn the basics properly. Nonetheless, most novice grapplers make the same mistakes. And you want to fix them to ensure you perform them flawlessly.
This article will point out these mistakes and offer practical solutions, so make sure to stay tuned to understand the Turtle Position better and fix these mistakes (you probably make them.)
But now, let’s dive into its basics.
Turtle Position Basics
This first part will examine and break down the basics of the Turtle Position. After that, you want to carefully go over them to grasp this position better.
You’ll see more results when implementing these small changes into your game. So, you’ll win more fights and gain more confidence as a grappler.
I think it’s a win-win situation!
Keep your elbows inside your knees
The first basic is to keep your elbows inside your knees. Different coaches teach different variations (and we’ll examine some of those later.)
And still, you want to keep your elbows inside your knees to ensure you’re entirely protected. Of course, you’ll want to change that when you escape, but focus on this small change for now.
Watch the video below for a more in-depth breakdown of the first guideline.
Remember that your back is exposed
The second Turtle basic is always to remember that your back is exposed. This can be especially critical if you’re wrestling. However, we’re currently doing BJJ.
The immediate result you want to avoid is the opponent gaining back mount on you. He’ll be able to easily submit you from this extremely prevailing position, using the Rear Naked Choke, for example.
So, always keep in mind that your back is exposed. You want to understand that it’s your main disadvantage in this position. Then, you’ll plan out your escape route better.
Understand the 3 primary variations
The Turtle Position has 3 primary variations. You want to understand and use them all when planning your escape route.
We already understand the variation where your elbows are between your knees (tight variation.) Now, let’s focus on the two other ones.
The first one is the Open Turtle Position. This is when you extend your arms and lean on your forearm (elbows touching the mat.)
The second one is the Closed Turtle Position. This is when your elbows are on the side of your knees.
Now, each variation has its pros and cons. So you want to experiment with them to grasp what they do and when you should use them.
For now, understand that the Turtle has 3-primary variations: closed, open, and tight.
Alright, let’s dive into the last basic guideline.
You must escape the Turtle
Some grapplers claim that the Turtle is a defensive position. Well, that’s partly true. However, it’s best used to allow you to avoid the opponent’s guard pass and attain side control from there.
But, it would be best if you continued the fight after turtling up. So, the best way to do that is by escaping. But remember that you can’t stay in it forever. You have to remain active even while in this defensive position.
This is critical to understand since many novice grapplers don’t know what to do after turtling. As a result, they avoid acting and escaping this position You want to transition into a more aggressive position, such as closed guard or side control.
I’ll cover various escapes in this article, so stay tuned for that.
Alright, these were the basic guidelines of how to turtle up. Now, let’s dive into the second part.
Turtle Position Tips
Now for the second part of the article, tips on how to have a better turtle while allowing yourself to escape smoothly.
I recommend reading each basic and tip, as even the most obvious ones likely have something new for you to learn. For instance, you can read the basic about “you must escape the Turtle” and think you already know it, so there’s no point in reading it.
But it holds more information than what the title says. So, make sure to read it to perform it flawlessly.
Turtle up when the opponent is about to get side control
The first tip talks about when you should use the Turtle. The primary thing that must happen before you use it is the opponent’s about to attain side control, especially after a guard pass.
Use the Turtle Position aggressively
Alright, so the 2nd tip is not to use the Turtle Position solely defensively. You want to use it to attack the opponent as well.
This might be counterintuitive for some of you, as you’ve heard that the Turtle is all about defense. That’s true in the sense that you shouldn’t use it when you want to attack.
But you’re already in it. So, you really only have one option if you want to win the fight smoothly. And that is to surprise the opponent by going for an effective escape, such as a roll, and transitioning to a more dominant position, such as the closed guard or side control.
Here’s an example of an effective escape from Turtle.
Turn your exposed back to an advantage
Exposing your back will give your opponent an advantage if he knows how to use it properly. But, you can also turn it into an advantage on your part if you learn to escape properly.
I know it might be challenging, but pay careful attention to how to do it yourself.
You want to push the opponent off of you and then roll forward. This will allow you to transition into the closed guard and even go for the Triangle choke. This is an advanced BJJ technique, so learning might take a lot of practice. Keep yourself open to learning and practicing this excellent technique.
We’ll review this rolling technique in the last part of the article in greater depth. Stay tuned for that!
When standing up, twist your back to the opponent
The last tip is a common mistake many novice grapplers make when in the Turtle Position. You might want to start standing up when you want to escape this defensive position. But, you want to avoid standing up facing your opponent.
Instead, it’ll be better if you keep your back in the direction of your opponent, as that’ll give you better balance and allow you to escape the Turtle more smoothly.
This is the easiest way to escape the Turtle, especially if you still don’t completely understand the basic concepts and have little experience with it. Standing up should be the escape you learn first.
So, these are the tips you want to implement into your game to start seeing more results with this defensive position. Now, let’s examine the other side of the coin: how to deal with the Turtle Position effectively.
How to Deal With the Turtle Position
This section will discuss the primary way you want to master if you wish to deal with the Turtle Position in BJJ. However, how you do that will be different if you want to counter it in wrestling. So, to clarify before we dive in, this is a Jiu-Jitsu solution.
Wrapping the opponent’s upper body and knocking him off-balance is the best way to deal with the Turtle Position. Then, you have his back mount and can go for many submissions, such as the Rear Naked Choke. Likewise, you can transition to more dominant positions using different entries.
Different coaches will teach you different approaches to dealing with this defensive position. But mostly, your goal is to get into back mount if you’re practicing BJJ. It’s not as effective to try and go for any other position, as getting the back mount is the most straightforward and most effective approach.
I’d like you to experiment with this attack. You might be able to ensure the opponent isn’t capable of using his Turtle to his advantage. Try and experiment to see what’s easiest for you.
And if you want a more in-depth guide on dealing with the Turtle Position, watch the video below.
Now, let’s dive into your essential attacking move when you’re in Turtle. Understanding the next part is critical to your ability to use it properly.
Attacking With the Turtle Position
The last part of the article will break down a highly effective attack from the Turtle. You want to use it when your opponent doesn’t push you as far down.
But you’ll see that you can reduce the force your opponent applies on you by applying one single move. So, let’s see how this will play out.
To perform the rolling escape, you must first be in the turtle position. Then, you want to roll forward if the opponent doesn’t apply a lot of pressure on your hip. But, if he does, you want to first push upward with your toes and then roll forward. This will minimize the amount of pressure the opponent applies on you.
This is what it looks like:
Eventually, this article has only covered a few escapes from the Turtle Position. You want to keep your eyes open to learning as much as possible to widen your knowledge and become a better grappler.
Final Words
Understanding the Turtle can be a cornerstone in your BJJ journey. You’ll have another viable option to go to when the opponent pressures you.
Hopefully, you could take one thing or two from this article. If you have, this is what Blinklift is about. It’s about taking action and seeing results. We’re the type of people to read an article, understand it, and implement it into our game.
So, I’m confident that you’re one of these people, as you’ve gotten thus far. You’re probably more eager to learn and understand this fighting style than you think. And therefore, you should appreciate yourself more than what you currently do.
The Turtle Position is a highly effective position to be in. However, there are others you must know to dominate your opponents in BJJ. Follow this link to learn about the most dominant and effective positions BJJ has to offer.
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