[quote]theBird wrote:
So my question to you guys; will I benefit from practicing BJJ for only 4 months?? Or maybe I just should not bother? Thoughts?
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Yes you will. There’s no 100% carryover to soccer, obviously, but things you will improve are:
be better at going to and being on the ground (this includes falling) without hurting yourself
core strength
I imagine drilling takedowns would make you more explosive.
Also, if an opposing player wants to play rough, taking him to the floor and grappling with him until the referee wakes up sounds like a good plan. But the most important thing is: enjoy it. Nothing you will do for four months will turn you into a different player anyway.
[quote]nighthawkz wrote:
But the most important thing is: enjoy it. Nothing you will do for four months will turn you into a different player anyway.[/quote]
Thanks. that was the answer I was looking for. i was just concerned that I may be wasting my time as I am not 100% committed to learn the art for a longer period of time, although saying that if I like it enough it may be what I will do once my soccer is done.
Im thinking BJJ, as the tae kwon do and karate dojos lack intensity and have a McDojo feel to them.
[quote]nighthawkz wrote:
But the most important thing is: enjoy it. Nothing you will do for four months will turn you into a different player anyway.[/quote]
Thanks. that was the answer I was looking for. i was just concerned that I may be wasting my time as I am not 100% committed to learn the art for a longer period of time, although saying that if I like it enough it may be what I will do once my soccer is done.
Im thinking BJJ, as the tae kwon do and karate dojos lack intensity and have a McDojo feel to them.
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IMO, you’re never wasting your time practicing a Martial Art unless you aren’t paying attention/ trying while you are there, or are doing an art that is completely contradictory to your goals for doing MA in the first place (like if you really wanted to compete in board/brick breaking comps, BJJ would be a terrible choice). Since you were really just wanting to do something that you enjoy while staying active, I don’t really think you could have gone wrong with any of your choices as long as you trusted your gut (which you seem to have).
What you said about the Karate and TKD places is sadly fairly common place. There are still legitimate schools that teach those arts, but many (most actually that I’ve seen) are far less interested in the quality of what they teach and the black belts they produce, and far more about how much money they can suck out of every student that walks in the door.
BJJ has become far more widespread than it once was, and so the quality of the instruction may not always be as high as it was when only the Gracie’s or 1st generation Gracie Black Belts were the only ones teaching it, but for the most part it is still one of the universally most legit systems out there that is also fairly easy to find. They of course do make money as well (it’s a business after all), but those who sacrifice quality for profit are the exception, not the rule.
[quote]Sentoguy wrote:
BJJ has become far more widespread than it once was, and so the quality of the instruction may not always be as high as it was when only the Gracie’s or 1st generation Gracie Black Belts were the only ones teaching it, but for the most part it is still one of the universally most legit systems out there that is also fairly easy to find. They of course do make money as well (it’s a business after all), but those who sacrifice quality for profit are the exception, not the rule.[/quote]
Thanks for the info.
The BJJ dojo I visited was impressive. About 10 people training together, with about 3 white belts, 4 blue and 2 purples and the black belted teacher. They train for 2 hours total, with the last 30 minutes dedicated to 1 vs 1 grappling. Thy train 5 times a fortnight and often have guest speakers/teachers visiting the dojo.
[quote]Sentoguy wrote:
BJJ has become far more widespread than it once was, and so the quality of the instruction may not always be as high as it was when only the Gracie’s or 1st generation Gracie Black Belts were the only ones teaching it, but for the most part it is still one of the universally most legit systems out there that is also fairly easy to find. They of course do make money as well (it’s a business after all), but those who sacrifice quality for profit are the exception, not the rule.[/quote]
Thanks for the info.
The BJJ dojo I visited was impressive. About 10 people training together, with about 3 white belts, 4 blue and 2 purples and the black belted teacher. They train for 2 hours total, with the last 30 minutes dedicated to 1 vs 1 grappling. Thy train 5 times a fortnight and often have guest speakers/teachers visiting the dojo.
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That sounds like a good sized grappling class. I’ve seen some schools with 20+ on the floor, mostly white belts, and that’s a recipe for injury. I was there for a trial class and walked out. A good spread of abilities will also help you learn faster, a purple belt will let you know when you botch a move while rolling much better than another white belt.
So I never ended up joining a martial arts class and I have started pre-season for my soccer. Unfortunately, this year my soccer team is very un-organised and we still have not appointed a coach, and we are playing with lots of younger in-experienced players. To cut a long story short, training has been crap, we are going to lose most of our games and I am not enjoying playing/training.
So I am thinking that maybe I should retire from soccer while my body is in decent shape, and as I had previously intended on doing join a martial art.
So I will be once again checking out the dojos, and I will be choosing most probably between BJJ or tae kwon do or karate. I was previously most impressed by the BJJ due to the physical aspect of it all. Through my work I have met a few people that attend TWD and they are all “weird”.
Anyway, my latest question is regarding BJJ, I am wondering how much of a workout it is?? The thing I am going to miss from playing soccer is the feeling of been completely exhausted after a game due to the number of sprints and tackles I usually make. I am wondering if I will be getting the same physical satisfaction from BJJ??
Yeah, especially at the beginning when you do not know enough to rely on technique and instead have to rely primarily on your athleticism you will be destroyed by grappling (especially if you are grappling bigger stronger people or better grapplers. I have trained and trained with very accomplished Marathon runners, Triathletes, cyclists, football players, and all sorts of other athletes and they have all agreed that grappling was one of if not the most intense exercise that they had ever participated in. Now, granted all of these people eventually became more technically proficient and became conditioned to the specific demands imposed by grappling and thus it became slightly less exhausting, but trust us when we say that you will get the workout you are looking for in a good grappling class.