Stop Lying To Yourself | The Reality of Jiu-Jitsu

Jiu-jitsu is a physically and mentally demanding sport that carries risks.

The primary risk in jiu-jitsu is injuries.

Injuries in jiu-jitsu are high, with over 60% of grapplers expected to experience at least one two-week absence from jiu-jitsu due to injury.

Lifting weights is the number one way to reduce your risk of injury.

This article should end here, but unfortunately, it's not that simple.

Not lifting weights for jiu-jitsu injury prevention is like driving a car without a seatbelt. You could do it, but it's stupid and should be illegal.

So why don't more people lift weights? Why is it still a constant battle to convince people to try it?

I have helped thousands of grapplers worldwide get strong and reduce their risk of injury on the mats. Take it from my experience that these are some of the most common roadblocks:

• I don't have time.
• I don't enjoy lifting weights.
• I don't know what to do or where to start.

"I don't have time"

This excuse is not unique to jiu-jitsu (it's the most common reason people don't work out in general).

Here's my question: You make time to train jiu-jitsu, so why can't you make time to lift weights to support it?

You may only have so much time in the week for your hobbies, so you'd rather spend that time doing something you enjoy.

Removing jiu-jitsu from your schedule to lift weights to support the jiu-jitsu you're no longer doing seems redundant.

Here's the reality: Most people who say they have this problem use it as an excuse.

If you change your framing from "I don't have time" to "it's not a priority," it will hopefully help clarify that this is not a time issue but a priority issue. 

The easiest way to demonstrate this is to ask you to look at your phone screen time. How many hours are you clocking on average per day? Two hours? Three hours? More?

What if you took a fraction of that and dedicated it to a quick, practical strength session?

I will ruffle some feathers with this, but you're not special. You're not a unique little snowflake with a hectic life where you couldn't possibly lift weights for 90 minutes per week.

I have yet to meet someone like that.

If you don't want to lift weights, that's fine, but at least admit to yourself that you're making that conscious choice not because you lack the time but because you lack the willingness to invest it in yourself.

I'll leave the time argument with this quote:

"The definition of hell: At the end of your life, the person you became meets the person you could have become."

"I don't enjoy lifting weights."

For some, lifting weights is a crap experience and not at all enjoyable.

There are two main points I want you to consider:

1. You need to eat your vegetables
2. If it sucks, make it fun

Sometimes, you need to do things you don't enjoy that are good for you (brushing your teeth, visiting the doctor, eating your vegetables, lifting weights to support your jiu-jitsu).

Not everything you do in life will be 100% enjoyable 100% of the time.

Hell, some days I bet you don't really feel like going to jiu-jitsu to train, but afterwards, you're always glad you did.

Lifting weights is the same.

Trust me, if you stick it out, once you start to get results, it will become far more enjoyable.

Your problem may be that the program you're doing sucks, or maybe you don't have a program, so there is no structure to your training.

You need to make it fun. If your program is boring and stale, change things up. Set ambitious goals, shift your focus from strength to power, introduce mobility work to unlock and strengthen, try a different training structure, or add more advanced movement to challenge yourself.

To find the best program to suit your goals, click here.

"I don't know what to do or where to start"

The 'I don't know what I'm doing' excuse is the most legitimate reason not to lift weights for jiu-jitsu.

It can seem impossible to figure out what movements, reps and sets, program structure, frequency, exercise selection and focus area (to name a few) that will benefit you most and reduce your risk of injury.

When I first started training jiu-jitsu, I was already a professional fitness coach with years of experience, and I even made mistakes in my own programming.

It took me years to figure it out and be confident and experienced enough to start coaching other jiu-jitsu athletes.

Here's my recommendation to accelerate this process: Follow a professionally designed program from a coach you trust.

That way, you can see how the program is structured, what to prioritise, and start moving in the right direction. You gain the benefit of all those years of experience and study; you merely have to show up and put in the work.  

Think about it like this: Would you ever start training in jiu-jitsu without the guidance of a coach? Probably not. So why would you do the same for weight training?

I've got you covered. For the most effective, results-backed training programs trusted by grapplers all around the world, click here now.