Matt Edgington’s Bolo Roll: Granby Drills
Matt Edgington, AKA the Jiu Jitsu Ronin, shares his solo drills so you can get your bolo roll, or granby down.
One of the requests that Matt gets a lot is for the bolo roll, or berimbolo roll, or granby. A great number of Jiu Jitsu athletes have less than desirable neck and back flexibility. Matt shares his wisdom in how to drill and improve that weakness.
The bolo roll is a sideways roll over the neck that gets you from upright to inverted, allowing you to work another side of your game. The inability to invert is a problem for many that means they do not get the best out of their Jiu Jitsu.
Matt starts by tucking his right arm under his leg, so that he can roll to the right. This stops him from instinctively putting his arm out to post. He reaches out with his body forward and keeps his toes on the ground to grip. He takes his other leg and makes a half circle around the berimbolo to start the bolo roll. He turns, keeping his opposite leg as close to the ground as possible. He then does the inverse to come back the other direction.
Another technique for perfecting the bolo roll is to use a wall. Keep your feet on the wall at all times and don’t lean back. You then step around using the wall to get comfortable inverting onto your neck.
The next level up in the bolo roll is the octopus drill. Matt takes his arm and stretches it all the way through and then walks his feet around. He keeps his head on the ground and continues around before reversing the direction.
For more from Matt, follow the Jiu Jitsu Ronin on Instagram and subscribe to Revgear Sports.
