Jiu Jitsu is bad for your body.

Lmfaooo, so much true in this... we’ve been posting for a freaking decade... so much has changed in my mind... i remember someone said one time... I used to think there was no life without Bjj... now I see there’s much more... i was like “blasphemy!!!”

As you get older, yes there’s life after Bjj, i might start running a bike or something...
I've started triathlons
Went to Italy last september. Brutal. But loved it
Cardio through roof
 
I made a thread about how not allot of bjj guys lift weights or do strength and conditioning to help prevent injuries and imbalances and all the bjj hipsters got mad.
But what you posted above is the truth you don't need an intense lifting routine, guys who do nothing but bjj are injury prone I have been saying this since forever.
To be honest I used to be one of those BJJ hipsters because there is a certain pride one feels being a "small and weak" guy who can still beat people up, but it is not the right way to train if you want to be healthy as you age. You don't need to hulk out or become a power lifter but if all you do is BJJ, you need to do something else to to counter act it or you are going to ultimately suffer unless you are uniquely genetically gifted or lucky. I wrote an article just today about the bare minimum of mobility/joint health work someone should do everyday: https://www.invertedgear.com/blogs/...ractice-controlled-articular-rotations-part-3
 
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To be honest I used to be one of those BJJ hipsters because there is a certain pride one feels being a "small and weak" guy who can still beat people up, but it is not the right way to train if you want to be healthy as you age. You don't need to hulk out or become a power lifter but if all you do is BJJ, but if you do not do something to couter act it, you are going to ultimately suffer unless you are uniquely genetically gifted or lucky. I wrote an article just today about the bare minimum of mobility/joint health work someone should do everyday: https://www.invertedgear.com/blogs/...ractice-controlled-articular-rotations-part-3
Great read! couldn't agree more myself.
 
This thread is sort of a wakeup call. 15 years of bjj has really done a number on my back
 
10 Years of training

32 years old.

Surprisingly, no major injures. I think I dislocated a finger that eventually healed on its own, and pulled my calf muscle a few years ago.

I used to beat myself up for missing a class. However, now that my gym's grappling is split between gi and no gi, I only attend no gi practices because I prefer it. I don't have enough spare time to do something that isn't 100% enjoyable. The minimum I train is 2 days a week for wrestling or no gi. On my "off days" I do cardio and kettle bell work. If I for some reason miss a practice, I do 3 rounds of tabata exercises consisting of burpees/climbers/squats/ab work.

I have a good career and never had aspirations to be a pro, but I do very much like the grappling arts. I hope to do this into my 40s-50s. However, I have learned to listen to my body. It is definitely a balancing act. I make it a point to line up time off from work with time off from the gym. As noted in the article, it can just turn into a grind where you never have enough time to recover. It wears you down, so I try to take a week or two off after every 2 months of full training. It is almost like a fight camp schedule. You definitely gotta give yourself the proper rest if you want to do this long term. Proper diet is also a key component, I am trying my hardest to not be a pot belly 50 year old.
 
I was about to create a thread about this myself.....

30 years old here. I started Jiu jitsu ; Muay thai and boxing some years ago without proper conditioning and strenght, all which led me to two herniated lumbar disk plus sciatica.
First, i cut off Muay thai, because i thought the problem was the roundhouse kick. lol nope, another crisis happened soon
Then i cut off Boxing, which some doctors pointed out that it was deceptively the worst of three (spinal rotations, footwork impact, same stance all the time which leads to imbalances etc)
No dice!
The leftover, Jiu jitsu led me to worsen my sciatica a lot.

I figured out that i was not gifted by nature to do martial arts, too manlet, too prone to injuries.

Currently im 100% now only because of Pilates. Im not coming back to Martial Arts. Fighting is the only sport that i do with joy and happiness. You can imagine my frustration, but i DONT wanna go under the knife because of spinal disks, a very risky surgery that will impact me forever.
 
I was about to create a thread about this myself.....

30 years old here. I started Jiu jitsu ; Muay thai and boxing some years ago without proper conditioning and strenght, all which led me to two herniated lumbar disk plus sciatica.
First, i cut off Muay thai, because i thought the problem was the roundhouse kick. lol nope, another crisis happened soon
Then i cut off Boxing, which some doctors pointed out that it was deceptively the worst of three (spinal rotations, footwork impact, same stance all the time which leads to imbalances etc)
No dice!
The leftover, Jiu jitsu led me to worsen my sciatica a lot.

I figured out that i was not gifted by nature to do martial arts, too manlet, too prone to injuries.

Currently im 100% now only because of Pilates. Im not coming back to Martial Arts. Fighting is the only sport that i do with joy and happiness. You can imagine my frustration, but i DONT wanna go under the knife because of spinal disks, a very risky surgery that will impact me forever.


Punching (and/or kicking) a heavy bag is close to an ideal form of endurance exercise imotbhfam.

(I don't know if anyone makes (easily purchasable) targets that can stand up for hitting with a big stick, but that would be even better for working rotational velocity and core tension)

People who haven't been taught how to punch right will almost certainly be undergoing spinal dislocation when performing their movements; people who's hips are too tight will surely be undergoing spinal dislocation in an attempt to compensate; moving with the back, rather than the legs. Lack of mobility in one area of the body will be compensated for with hypermobility in another area (hence, increased wear, increased injury risk),
 
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48 4 stripe blue

ACL torn and fixed, out 8 months
Groin pull, 3-4 month recovery
Separated floater ribs x2. Out 2 months.
Sprained thumb x 4
Sprained ankle x 2
Hands always hurt
Elbow bursitis
Broken toe
Staph x 2
Ringworm x 20 plus lol


This sport wrecks your body no doubt.
 
I take at least a good 15-20 minutes after each class to stretch and do mobility drills. It doesn't take much effort or discipline, and it's actually quite fun. And... I'm always the only one to do it, even when there are 30+ people in the class. Training to prevent injuries is somehow inconceivable to most people*.

*It's not specific to BJJ, I work with other physed teachers and they all behave the same.

6a00d8341c72e153ef01b8d2d3dac4970c-800wi
I don´t want to fall into what americans call bro science but yoga helps a lot, I might not get much more explosivo at my 33 but I am naturally flexible and I am the only one that stretches a little bit at the end and feel great though some mornings is hard to get up anyway xD.
Recovery is an art form. I want to be a black belt in recovery. At 51, I still have a long way to go. Eventually I want a black belt in humility as well.
I believe that with years to come more and more people will look into recovery with yoga or other soft disciplines-
I've been thinking about taking some serious time off to do yoga and gymnastics stuff only, just stuff that will get me really strong and limber. I was thinking recently about having to quit completely, but there has to be a balance.
Pilates is good too but yoga is super nice at least twice a week or once at the end of the training week.
 
The spine stuff is wear and tear from years of training. I did a lot of striking arts ans team sports before grappling. Taking throws I feel is what really made things worse though. Having your body decelerate and your spine needs to stabilize everything, my fat head especially. lol. Judo and Aikido are bad for you, I blame them mostly for the spine issues. I also DH mountain bike, I've had my fair share of tumbles over the years and the contact beating your body takes from rough terrain aggravates all my issues.
I would judo for life but many injuries come from guys that don´t want to take the fall.
I'm 43, do yoga, weight train, along with my 3 days a week of BJJ. Been training 6 yrs now and know how to train, know the difference between an injury and pain, and in the best shape of my life.

I am a hobbyist and don't mind tapping to young lions who have technique along with greater athletic ability. What gets to my ego though is tapping to the young competitors in my gym who use steroids. When I began BJJ, you only heard of the very top competitors using PEDs but times have changed. A great number of blue belts who compete at the local level are now using PEDs.
Is one of the reasons I left those Cool Bro BJJ academies and even when those guys appear in judo I can of avoid them, I just can´t stand that oid thing.
 
Judo and Aikido are bad for you

People joke about Aikido, but this is true. I trained for 12 years, over which I estimate I took 100k-150k breakfalls. In retrospect, it's no surprise I have hip arthritis.
 
48 4 stripe blue

ACL torn and fixed, out 8 months
Groin pull, 3-4 month recovery
Separated floater ribs x2. Out 2 months.
Sprained thumb x 4
Sprained ankle x 2
Hands always hurt
Elbow bursitis
Broken toe
Staph x 2
Ringworm x 20 plus lol


This sport wrecks your body no doubt.
Holy chyt.
 
Holy chyt.

Pfft.

39, brown belt.

8 surgeries:
  • 6x lateral meniscus tears, 3 on each knee. 1 repair, 2 menisectomies on each knee.
  • 2x torn hip labrum, 1 each. 1 labral repair each.
  • Bilateral hip arthritis. Right hip - reshaping of the femoral neck and microfracture repair in the acetabulum.

Non-surgical:
  • MCL tear, left knee.
  • Herniated discs in lumbar and thoracic spine.
  • Sternoclavicular sprain
  • Torn ulnar ligament, left elbow.
  • Torn unlar & radial collateral ligaments, both wrists
  • Ruptured inferior extensor retinaculum, both ankles
  • Pulled groin
  • Dislocated big toe.
  • Uncountable finger sprains.
  • 2-3 cuts requiring stitches
  • Staph, ringworm.

Not all of this is from BJJ. I've been doing martial arts since 1999. I often seriously question my sanity in continuing.
 
been training since 17.
now 33.
im fucked.
everything hurts.
my lower back being the main thing
docs say due to manuel labour jobs and bjj mma training simultaniously for so long that the muscles in my lower back are so used to making static contractions that they are tight 24 7 and there fore get minimal blood flow and will always be stiff.
my left elbow is fucked and makes my whole arm so weak i can barely grip.
right knee is dodgey on the acl side.
both big toes. dont ask me how.
my neck is the only thing i have thats good.
 
This thread is still going? I must have hit a nerve...

It's a crossroads that many come to.

I made it this far because I had fun, learned some stuff, and made some friends. Really, it was almost all worth it just for the few good friends I made. I went to the wedding of one and will be at the other's wedding as well. For others it could mean much more.

What weighs me down are the injuries and (opportunity) costs. I paid a heavy price and ask myself a lot of questions:

1. Why did I begin? What do I want out of the sport now?
2. How much more am I willing to give of my health and money for diminishing returns? For others this could include potential time with kids and loved ones, an extra $125 towards the mortgage, etc.

If you're a "professional" bjj athlete or own a school, these questions are irrelevant. You're probably still fucked up but you are invested in a way that does not allow for backing out - you have accepted a certain quality of life and hope that it doesn't get any worse.

For people who have neither aspiration, the questions are more pressing.

If someone had told me when I first started that I could be a brown belt but told me that I would for sure have all the injuries that I have now, I probably would not have began. I only feel normal because I have become accustomed to living in a functionally impaired state.
 
If someone had told me when I first started that I could be a brown belt but told me that I would for sure have all the injuries that I have now, I probably would not have began. I only feel normal because I have become accustomed to living in a functionally impaired state.

Ouch. This one hits a little too close to home.
 
Let's start a Jiu Jitsu retirement home. We'll tell each other that we'll go light....
I just got a 1 1/2 hr massage. So good!!!
Now chillin at my friend's beach studio. 2 important parts of my recovery program.
 
been training since 17.
now 33.
im fucked.
everything hurts.
my lower back being the main thing
docs say due to manuel labour jobs and bjj mma training simultaniously for so long that the muscles in my lower back are so used to making static contractions that they are tight 24 7 and there fore get minimal blood flow and will always be stiff.
my left elbow is fucked and makes my whole arm so weak i can barely grip.
right knee is dodgey on the acl side.
both big toes. dont ask me how.
my neck is the only thing i have thats good.

I’m 33 and my injuries are virtually identical.

Lower back is fucked, right elbow is crooked and will never fully straighten, and my left knee is shit.

I understand your pain.
 
Pfft.

39, brown belt.

8 surgeries:
  • 6x lateral meniscus tears, 3 on each knee. 1 repair, 2 menisectomies on each knee.
  • 2x torn hip labrum, 1 each. 1 labral repair each.
  • Bilateral hip arthritis. Right hip - reshaping of the femoral neck and microfracture repair in the acetabulum.

Non-surgical:
  • MCL tear, left knee.
  • Herniated discs in lumbar and thoracic spine.
  • Sternoclavicular sprain
  • Torn ulnar ligament, left elbow.
  • Torn unlar & radial collateral ligaments, both wrists
  • Ruptured inferior extensor retinaculum, both ankles
  • Pulled groin
  • Dislocated big toe.
  • Uncountable finger sprains.
  • 2-3 cuts requiring stitches
  • Staph, ringworm.

Not all of this is from BJJ. I've been doing martial arts since 1999. I often seriously question my sanity in continuing.
HOLY CHYT!!!

You all keep the ortho docs in business!!
 
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