Ugh….after weeks of neck pain and arm/hand numbness, I got news that several neck vertebra are not looking like they should. Exploring options for treatment and remaining optimistic, but also considering the impact it could have on future training.

I suspect it's probably a combination of aging, lots of hard training (multiple sports) and over relying on flexibility and inversions in BJJ as part of my guard game.

So just a PSA, take care of those necks and if you're a more 'mature' grappler watch those positions (like inverting, spider guard, etc).

Dang man we are sorry to hear that. Hopefully they get you on the right rehab path.


On a lighter note. Doing friendly mma rounds this week…vanilla jiu jitsu like arm bars and back takes from mount are way easier when you can punch people in the face.

I have some nagging stuff I need to address. I'd like to compete this summer but I'd like to be 90%.

shaynew1 said:

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Dang man we are sorry to hear that. Hopefully they get you on the right rehab path.


On a lighter note. Doing friendly mma rounds this week…vanilla jiu jitsu like arm bars and back takes from mount are way easier when you can punch people in the face.

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It's more fun after the fight starts and you're both in grappling mode then one of you remembers "oh, I can strike" then POW! Right in the kisser.

A couple weeks ago I got tripped and naturally rolled into slx.

And got tko punched in the face as soon as I got there.

We both had a good laugh after I recovered.

Sweep4-2 said:

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Ugh….after weeks of neck pain and arm/hand numbness, I got news that several neck vertebra are not looking like they should. Exploring options for treatment and remaining optimistic, but also considering the impact it could have on future training.

I suspect it's probably a combination of aging, lots of hard training (multiple sports) and over relying on flexibility and inversions in BJJ as part of my guard game.

So just a PSA, take care of those necks and if you're a more 'mature' grappler watch those positions (like inverting, spider guard, etc).

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Man, I am following this for sure.

My left arm has been tingling/numb for about a month now. My neck doesn't hurt and I have pretty fair mobility & I stretch a lot but I'm still concerned about it.

I was told that my posture while driving (left arm on the wheel, not sitting close enough to the steering wheel etc) could be contributing to it but I'm sure that murder yoga has contributed to it as well.

Best of luck to you Sweep & keep us posted for sure.

First time posting on this thread, and I have NOT looked at all 31 pages.....SHOULD I START BJJ?

My kids go to Carlos Machado gym in Lake Highlands (East Dallas). The lead guy is early 50s who is one step from coral. Gym has a ton of middleish aged guys, in addition to some younger guys. A few older guys, but I would definitely be on the older end, especially for white belts.

Me:
-47, 6'6", 225lbs
-Upper body strength has never been great
-I had a freak neck issue 2 years ago requiring a fusion of my C6-C7 vertebra...fully healed
-Several middle aged man issues, including a "not great not terrible" elbow and plantar fasciitis in one of my feet

So, why?
-Looks fun
-Really good community at this gym
-My kids are about to start moving up to the teen/adult classes and we could train at the same time.

Biggest concern:
-I don't want to get hurt while trying to be in better shape.

Edit….my elbow injury was from hyperextending it at 9Rounds kickboxing.

Ol Jock 99 said:

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First time posting on this thread, and I have NOT looked at all 31 pages.....SHOULD I START BJJ?

My kids go to Carlos Machado gym in Lake Highlands (East Dallas). The lead guy is early 50s who is one step from coral. Gym has a ton of middleish aged guys, in addition to some younger guys. A few older guys, but I would definitely be on the older end, especially for white belts.

Me:
-47, 6'6", 225lbs
-Upper body strength has never been great
-I had a freak neck issue 2 years ago requiring a fusion of my C6-C7 vertebra...fully healed
-Several middle aged man issues, including a "not great not terrible" elbow and plantar fasciitis in one of my feet

So, why?
-Looks fun
-Really good community at this gym
-My kids are about to start moving up to the teen/adult classes and we could train at the same time.

Biggest concern:
-I don't want to get hurt while trying to be in better shape.

Edit….my elbow injury was from hyperextending it at 9Rounds kickboxing.

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Go for it. It's one of the best things I've ever done. I'm your same height and weight and you will have some major advantages just from that. Your shorter, non lanky brethren will be jealous. I started at 44 and I'm now a 50 yo purple belt. Sounds like you have some older guys in the school which is very helpful as you will help each other out.

Also, for your frame, check out lankyfightgear.com for gi/nogi stuff. I don't shop anywhere else. OSS

Definitely go for it! You've got great reasons for starting it. And a quality school as well.

I started training at the age of 35, just to get a friend to stop pestering me to try it. And I've been training ever since (52 years old, black belt).

Give it a try and let us know how it goes!

Ol Jock 99 said:

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First time posting on this thread, and I have NOT looked at all 31 pages.....SHOULD I START BJJ?

My kids go to Carlos Machado gym in Lake Highlands (East Dallas). The lead guy is early 50s who is one step from coral. Gym has a ton of middleish aged guys, in addition to some younger guys. A few older guys, but I would definitely be on the older end, especially for white belts.

Me:
-47, 6'6", 225lbs
-Upper body strength has never been great
-I had a freak neck issue 2 years ago requiring a fusion of my C6-C7 vertebra...fully healed
-Several middle aged man issues, including a "not great not terrible" elbow and plantar fasciitis in one of my feet

So, why?
-Looks fun
-Really good community at this gym
-My kids are about to start moving up to the teen/adult classes and we could train at the same time.

Biggest concern:
-I don't want to get hurt while trying to be in better shape.

Edit….my elbow injury was from hyperextending it at 9Rounds kickboxing.

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Everyone will know that you're the new guy, and that's a good thing. The upper belts, especially the ones closer to your age are going to be respectful of your age etc, so don't worry about "being the new guy".

What this will do for your mental health will far outweight any tweaks/pains or issues that you may have. Welcome to it and enjoy yourself.

Edit: I started at 48.

I started at 46 and am now about 4-1/2 years in with a purple belt.

I can't imagine anything else I could have done that would have had such a broad impact across my life:

Cardio, strength & flexibility all improved.
Made new friends.
Learning self defense skills.
Confidence up.
Mood stabilized (more calm)
Know dozens of ways to kill or cripple most people in single combat.

Go for it.

Go try it.

As a 44 year old white belt I will reinforce what others have said and just do it. I walked into our gym about a year and a half ago, and I've been trying to go three times a week since then. I have no wrestling or martial arts experience, I won't lie, it's hard to learn but it's also extremely rewarding. I've never regretted going to a class. It helps bring balance in my experience, if I've had a bad day then I feel better after class. Also, if I had a good day and go into class confident, I get humbled, there's something about BJJ that helps bring you to equilibrium in my experience.

If you're family already goes then you don't have an excuse IMO. The first class is the hardest but everyone has had that day, then you just keep showing up. I've never been made to feel bad about poor performance or complete misunderstanding, it's the most positive environment I've been in. I certainly can't say that about any team sport I've ever played.

You'll get bumps and bruises, but I've been lucky enough to not suffer any significant injuries so far. Be cognizant of who you roll with, tap early and tap often. You learn through losing, a lot of people get turned off by that but BJJ is hard, period. I hate to be cliche and say "if I can do it, you can do it" but it's true.

I started when I was 39, never too late

I'm signing up later today after taking way too long to decide on which local gym to join. I'm 44 and zero relevant experience.

Good deal! Glad it went well. It's one of the best total body workouts there is, especially when you really get into rolling long rounds (definitely a 'work your way up to it' process).

bam02 said:

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Finally had my first official class tonight. Loved it! I was pleasantly surprised at what workout it was just between the warm-up and the drills.

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Starting out you tend to go all out more of the time, you learn when to use your energy and when to hold a frame. Well until you go against a higher belt that is toying with you

I am six classes in now. Really loving it. Definitely wish I had started much earlier in life as it's a little depressing. It's such a long journey to get really advanced. That's not a biggie and I know it's best to just enjoy the process and learn as much as I can.

Have truly done any rolling yet, but they've had me do some 2 1/2 minute "games" with a partner focused more on certain techniques we've learned in the class that's a lot of fun.

bam02 said:

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I am six classes in now. Really loving it. Definitely wish I had started much earlier in life as it's a little depressing. It's such a long journey to get really advanced. That's not a biggie and I know it's best to just enjoy the process and learn as much as I can.

Have truly done any rolling yet, but they've had me do some 2 1/2 minute "games" with a partner focused more on certain techniques we've learned in the class that's a lot of fun.

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Don't sweat worrying about not starting earlier. Every journey is different. You bring life experience to the table that the 19yr old doesnt have.

Good on you for showing up.

Thanks. I'll remember that as that 19 year old is whipping my ass.

Don't be afraid to roll and work on the stuff you learned that day/week. When I am rolling with higher belts they often ask what I want to do and its an opportunity to try the moves on somewhat that is fighting back and often knows how to counter it so you learn twice as much. When we are rolling at the end of class if someone does something that I want to know more about I will take the last 30 seconds and have them explain it to me. At first I thought I was being annoying but everyone so far seems more than happy to help...and also get a 30 second break.

One of the guys on the competition team got smoked and they told him he has to start coming to the morning classes since he needs more work with higher belts. Come to find out we have a retired SEAL and 2 green berets in that class, one that freaking taught combatives in the army. But I like attending that class since those guys will get you in positions where they could make you tap but let you work through it, sometimes telling you how to

Also found out that one of the women that attends the morning classes sometimes is only 17. She is a small blue belt that has textbook form. I am much stronger and faster than her but is almost impossible to make her tap.

My usual default training partner is a young woman who I probably have about 30 or 40 pounds on. She is quite strong and knows a lot more than me but it's still a white belt. She has been awesome and very helpful as as everyone else I have drilled with.

Whew this morning I did "games" for 2.5 minute rounds with another white belt. I am in pretty dang good shape for my age, but definitely not conditioned for rolling yet.

Assault Bike tabatas are in my future.

Extra cardio training never hurts. But the main reason people hit the 'wall' from a cardio standpoint is because they are over relying on strength, movement, cardio, etc. and using it at the wrong time.

But finding the 'how and when' to apply energy, force, etc is an ongoing learning and skill. And it just takes time on the mats. No secret to it, just lots of rolling (and long rounds really help).

That makes sense. My training partner this morning said something similar afterwards in regards to learning when to just kind of hold and resist rather than constantly actively fighting and how that can help conserve energy.

bam02 said:

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Whew this morning I did "games" for 2.5 minute rounds with another white belt. I am in pretty dang good shape for my age, but definitely not conditioned for rolling yet.

Assault Bike tabatas are in my future.

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In my experience the only thing that helps BJJ cardio is BJJ training. The only thing I can remember doing that gets close to the aerobic/anaerobic workout of BJJ is pushing a heavy sled for a pretty good distance. If you're gassing out earlier than you want then slow down and don't forget to control your breathing. For me that was the first hurdle I had to figure out, how to stop from panicking and slow myself down. That's when you can improve your defense as well IMO because if you slow down you can pick up on what your opponent trying to do and try to defend it more effectively. You make more mistakes when your tank is almost empty.

Oh man I've been itching to buy a sled as my next piece of equipment for a while now. I might conveniently use this as an excuse.

Quote:

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But the main reason people hit the 'wall' from a cardio standpoint is because they are over relying on strength, movement, cardio, etc. and using it at the wrong time.

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Doing some no-gi open mats at different places, you don't know what level guy you're about to roll with.
Could be a 3 stripe black belt, could be 1 stripe white belt. It's a Forrest Gump box of chocolates. Takes about 30 seconds and you KNOW if its a white belt, they are just so tense all the time.

bam02 said:

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Oh man I've been itching to buy a sled as my next piece of equipment for a while now. I might conveniently use this as an excuse.

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If I lived out in the country with some land I didn't care about tearing up the grass I'd have one. Sadly it just wouldn't work for where I live currently. Sleds are great tools for getting in a specific kind of exercise, they had some at the gym I used to go to before I started BJJ and that's the one thing I don't have at my gym at home.

Yeah, it's the one thing I've missed the most since switching to the home gym years ago. I love the sled.

I am only considering the one with wheels by torque fitness. It is expensive and kind of bulky, which is why I've been hesitant, but I do know I will use it so I will probably end up pulling the trigger. I kept hoping the one I want would pop up on marketplace for a good price.

Always good to supplement cardio/strength/flexibility, but the fastest way to get conditioned for BJJ is doing more BJJ (but not so much you burn out or get hurt).

Also, when you feel like sitting against the wall, sitting out one, finding an 'easy roll', etc……that's the time to stay in and keep going. That's where you learn the most.

I started Martial Arts while training for marathons & half marathons, so my running was pretty much on point.....and as good as my cardio is/was, I quickly learned that "normal" cardio has nothing to do with BJJ cardio.

My instructor said he's had Ironman level competitors come to class. and get winded quickly. It's just a whole other kind of cardio.

Embrace the journey and don't forget that there is a spiritual side to this as well.

Well, I will still probably use this as an excuse to buy a sled lol. But I definitely think Tabata on the assault bike will translate well. The assault bike is the closest thing to the pain you get from the sled that I have found.