10 Weird Exercises for BJJ That Actually Build Mat-Ready Strength
- May 29
- 4 min read
Most BJJ practitioners train hard on the mats. Fewer train smart off them.
The standard gym routine — bench press, bicep curls, generic core work — doesn't reflect what your body actually does during a roll. The positions are wrong. The muscle groups are wrong. The energy demands are wrong.
That's why a growing number of serious grapplers are turning to unconventional, sport-specific exercises that look strange in the gym but translate directly to better performance between the rounds. Here are 10 worth adding to your rotation.
1. Landmine Rotation
Forget crunches. The landmine rotation builds the kind of rotational core strength that actually matters for inversions, guard retention, and leg lock entries. By twisting your torso against a barbell anchored in a corner, you train the obliques and deep core stabilisers through a range of motion that sit-ups will never touch.
2. Hamstring Slider Curl
Your hamstrings do two jobs in BJJ: they flex the knee and extend the hip — often at the same time. The slider curl (using a furniture slider or gym disc under your heels) replicates this dual demand, making it one of the best accessory movements for explosive hip movement, sweeps, and takedown finishing.
3. Seated Neck Curl
The neck is one of the most frequently stressed and least trained structures in a grappler's body. A neck harness worn seated on a bench, curling forward and backward under load, builds genuine structural resilience — the kind that helps you survive a bad scramble or an unexpected guillotine attempt.
4. Neck Hinge
This takes neck training further by connecting the neck extensors to the entire posterior chain through a hip hinge pattern. With a loaded harness, you perform what looks like a deadlift — but the demand on your neck extensors is enormous. For no-gi practitioners defending snapdowns repeatedly over a long session, this is non-negotiable work.
5. Zottman Curls
Your arms are the first point of contact with every opponent. Zottman curls force pronation and supination through each rep, training your biceps, brachialis, and forearms through the varied wrist angles you encounter when fighting grips, setting up submissions, or defending collar ties.
6. Rope Rows
Performed for time rather than reps, rope rows build the kind of isometric muscular endurance that holding a static frame or a grip demands. The continuous tension mimics what your back and arms experience during a long, grinding round — which standard sets and reps simply don't replicate.
7. Fitball Pass
Pass a stability ball from your hands to your feet at the top of a combined sit-up and leg raise. The pause required at the handoff creates a brief but intense isometric contraction through the entire abdominal region. It's simple, equipment is cheap, and the core challenge is genuine.
8. Kettlebell Barbell Roller
Attach a kettlebell to a banded barbell and slowly roll it up and down. This torches both the flexor and extensor compartments of the forearm — the muscles responsible for your grip endurance. When your grips give out before your technique, this is the exercise you neglected.
9. Z Press
Seated on the floor, legs extended, pressing a single dumbbell overhead. The lack of back support means your spinal extensors work continuously throughout. The unilateral loading builds shoulder health, framing strength, and the specific stability needed if you play sit-up guard or spend time in turtle position.
10. Sissy Squat
The name doesn't reflect the difficulty. The sissy squat places the knee in deep flexion while keeping the hips extended — a demanding combination that isolates the quads and strengthens the connective tissue around the knee joint. Given the load BJJ places on the knees through deep guard positions and scrambles, this movement builds resilience that standard squats don't address.
The Bigger Picture
None of these exercises are random. They were selected because they mirror the specific movement patterns, energy demands, and structural stress points of Jiu-Jitsu. If your gym work doesn't reflect what your body does on the mat, you're leaving performance on the table.
At The Jiu-Jitsu Foundry, we believe that what you do off the mats shapes what you're capable of on them. Progressive, sport-specific conditioning is part of what we encourage across all our training groups — whether you're a hobbyist looking to roll injury-free or a competitor preparing for the next tournament.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do BJJ practitioners need to lift weights? Not necessarily — but resistance training that mirrors BJJ's demands significantly reduces injury risk and extends your training longevity. The goal isn't bodybuilding; it's building a more durable, more capable grappler.
How often should a BJJ practitioner do strength training? Two sessions per week is sufficient for most people who train BJJ three or more times weekly. Prioritise recovery and keep gym work supplementary, not competitive with mat time.
What muscles are most important to train for BJJ? The posterior chain (hamstrings, glutes, back), neck, forearms, and rotational core are most directly relevant to BJJ performance and injury prevention — all of which are addressed by the exercises above.
Are these exercises suitable for beginners? Most are accessible at low loads. The neck exercises in particular should be introduced gradually with light resistance before progressing. When in doubt, get coaching on form before loading.
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