STRENGTH & CONDITIONING FOR BJJ

Rolling builds a lot of things: positional awareness, grip endurance, a tolerance for being uncomfortable. What it does not do is make you stronger in a controlled, measurable way, and it keeps loading the same joints in the same positions. Strength and conditioning for BJJ fills that gap.

The aim is not to turn you into a gym athlete. It is to get you to the mat better prepared and able to keep rolling for years. If you leave the gym too tired to train, the plan is wrong.

What BJJ asks of your body

• Grip and forearms. Collar grips, sleeve grips and wrist control add up over a long round.
• Hips. Bridging, shrimping, guard retention and passing all start at the hips, so they need strength and range you can control.
• Neck and upper back. Pressure on the bottom and constant posture work load the neck and upper back more than most people notice.
• Shoulders. Posting, framing and pulling on a grip put the shoulders through a wide range, often under load.
• Trunk. You spend whole rounds bracing and rotating while someone else tries to move you.
• Conditioning. Repeated hard efforts, with short recovery in between, for as long as the round lasts.

What to train

You do not need a long list of exercises. A handful of well-chosen movements, done consistently, covers most of it.

• Pulling. Rows, pull-ups and chin-ups, plus loaded carries for grip.
• Hinging and squatting. Deadlift and split squat variations for hips and legs that stay strong late in a round.
• Pushing. Presses and push-ups, kept in balance with the pulling you already do on the mat.
• Trunk. Carries and anti-rotation work, which teach the body to stay braced while being moved.
• Short, fast efforts. A few explosive reps while you are fresh, such as jumps or medicine ball throws, to keep your ability to produce force quickly.

Neck work is worth doing, but build it slowly and get it checked by a qualified coach or physiotherapist, especially if you have had neck trouble before.

How often, and where it goes in your week

For most people who roll two to four times a week, two gym sessions a week is a sensible place to start. Put them away from your hardest rolling days. Leg-heavy work the day before a hard session is rarely a good idea, and a short session beats a skipped one. Our guide on how often martial artists should lift weights covers the range in more detail.

Conditioning for BJJ

Rolling is already conditioning, and for many people it is enough of the hard stuff. Where extra work helps is the easy end: steady, low-intensity sessions build the base that helps you recover between rounds and between days. If you add hard intervals, treat them as part of your weekly load, not an extra on top of everything else.

Looking after the joints you load most

• Shoulders. Build strength through full ranges and keep pulling and pushing in balance. Shaan has had shoulder surgery himself, so he plans this part with care.
• Elbows and fingers. Grip volume is the usual culprit. Plan it like any other training, with easier weeks.
• Knees. Strong hips and good control going into and out of deep positions take pressure off them.
• Lower back. Hinge strength and trunk bracing do most of the work here.
• Neck. Gradual, controlled and supervised.

Training BJJ over 30

Recovery takes longer, life gets busier and old niggles start to speak up. None of that means you should stop. It means the gym has to earn its place in your week. Keep the plan short, repeatable and focused on the qualities you care about most, and read our guide on training martial arts with old injuries if something already hurts.

Common mistakes

• Training hard to failure before rolling.
• Copying a bodybuilding split and ignoring the pulling and carrying your game needs.
• Adding gym sessions on top of a full rolling week with nothing taken out.
• Never reducing volume, even when you are tired or sore.
• Following another athlete's programme without asking whether it suits your week.

An example week

This is an illustration for someone who rolls three times a week, not a prescription.

• Monday: rolling.
• Tuesday: strength session A (lower body, pulling, trunk).
• Wednesday: light drilling or a rest day.
• Thursday: rolling, your hardest session.
• Friday: a shorter strength session B (pushing, pulling, carries).
• Saturday: open mat.
• Sunday: rest.

Getting a plan built around your rolling

Shaan is a Judo black belt with a grappling background and works online with martial artists over 30. If you want a programme built around your rolling schedule and your injury history, apply for coaching, or see how the method works and our guide to strength training for martial artists over 30.