Back into Jiu Jitsu at 50 ? | FerrariChat

Back into Jiu Jitsu at 50 ?

Discussion in 'Health & Fitness' started by WILLIAM H, Oct 24, 2013.

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  1. WILLIAM H

    WILLIAM H Three Time F1 World Champ

    Nov 1, 2003
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    I've been training w my 4 yr old son who just became a yellow belt in JJ

    I'm a Brown myself and thinking of joining his Dojo in the adult class. He's gaining on me LOL

    I'm most worried about my back as an old ski injury could flare up like it did last time I tried to get back into JJ in my 30s but since then I've done a lot of rehab & my back & abs feels very strong

    Have no problem w strength though my aerobic health, speed, & flexibility could use a lot of improvement

    Any suggestions or advice ? Thanks
     
  2. wax

    wax Five Time F1 World Champ
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    You only live once.

    Wait . . .

    You're Buddhist . . .
     
  3. ag512bbi

    ag512bbi F1 Veteran
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    Nov 8, 2003
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    I'm in the SAME boat as you. I'm 46 Brown Belt in BJJ. haven't trained since my son was born at least 6 years ago. I'm looking into signing him up. If I do, I THINK i'm gonna get back into it again (for HIS sake). I think at mine and your age, It's more about:
    1: Getting into GREAT shape
    2: Enjoying the workout and the bond with our son.
    My outlook has changed SO MUCH from 12 years ago. Before I wanted to smash everyone. these days, there are bigger and better guys out there. WHO CARES at this point!!! I'd leave my pride at the door. It's all about me and my son these days. Take it as a fun workout and tap QUICK. there are a bunch of up and coming guys out there that want to be MMA fighters. Stay away from them OR let them know to go easy on you and your situation. Tell them your a quick tap'er. You have too much to lose! BEST WORKOUT EVER!!!!!
    Do it only for your personal achievement don't worry about how you look as a Brown Belt! They should respect your age!
     
  4. Edward 96GTS

    Edward 96GTS F1 Veteran
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    Nov 1, 2003
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    train and "fight" only with your trainer. he knows youre his meal ticket and wants you healthy for the long run.
    ed
     
  5. fatbillybob

    fatbillybob Two Time F1 World Champ
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    30+ years MMA before it was MMA. Thai boxing core, various silat, Kali, escrima, JKD, western boxing, gotch submission wrestling, BBJ at the end. I just started back 3 months ago. I feel better than I have in a long time. One of the cool things about being older is that you might be smarter. That can result in boredom and you stop training. Then later you go back and wonder why you stopped. It is pretty tough to out cardio a young guy but they tend to lack timing, experience, knowledge, cunning and deviousness. Sometimes it is not easy to get the ground rules across or someone isn't listening. You can usually get the attention of a young guy by popping him good and early to tone down the exuberance that a young guy can maintain but you don't have the cardio for. Young guys also can't pace themselves while older and smart know how to conserve energy. I'm also an early tapper but don't like to stop rolling but tap and transition to the next move. I think that is an old habit from philipino martial arts their whole flowing concept. The side effect of that is you preserve your joints. Then I stretch before and after and my total stretch time is pretty close to my workout time.
     
  6. WILLIAM H

    WILLIAM H Three Time F1 World Champ

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    Good ideas, thanks
     
  7. WILLIAM H

    WILLIAM H Three Time F1 World Champ

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    Signed up @ Dojo today

    Start Weds or Th

    Need to knock off lots of rust but I've done lots of that training w my son this last year

    He's a yellow belt now so he outranks me in Brz JJ cus Sensei says its very different from Japanese JJ I studied

    I should surprise the H out of the other white belts LOL :)
     
  8. WILLIAM H

    WILLIAM H Three Time F1 World Champ

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    Just finished my 1st class in about 15 years & did great. Exhausted & a little achey but my back is ok & everything else is good.

    They had me wear a white belt since Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is different from
    Japanese Jiu Jitsu that I did.

    Sensei stopped me just before I started doing rolls & told me I could take a break if I wanted to. So then everybody is watching me & I started doing perfect rolls.

    I think they were quite impressed w this "White Belt's" skills LOL
     
  9. rdefabri

    rdefabri Three Time F1 World Champ

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    You guys are awesome and an inspiration. I started rolling Jiu-Jitsu at 40, and was nearly a purple when I ruptured my distal bicep tendon at 43. Had surgery to repair, and have been meaning to go back (I just turned 45).

    The question of what belt to wear has haunted me a little - if/when I go back, do I wear my blue or do I revert to white?
     
  10. WILLIAM H

    WILLIAM H Three Time F1 World Champ

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    I think the belt you wear depends on whether or not you return to same style.

    Of course I am about the most awesome white belt you'll ever see LOL
     
  11. fatbillybob

    fatbillybob Two Time F1 World Champ
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    Go white. Some bjj places do a strict progression and if you go white I can guarantee you will hone or pick up skills that will make you better by the time you get back to near purple.

    However, some bjj places mix in their rolling with multiple belts. Under those conditions it really doesn't matter. Cardio is where you will fall short. Mechanics will come back fast.

    I don't know what you guys think but IMO one of the most important ways to prevent injury is always have something left in the gas tank. There are certainly benefits to training to near exhaustion but much much less so as you age. One of the things I tell myself before I start training and let new partners know is that I have to go to work on Monday...
     
  12. FerMaz

    FerMaz Formula Junior

    Feb 11, 2007
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    What do you guys think about starting BJJ at age 79 purely for conditioning.
     
  13. WILLIAM H

    WILLIAM H Three Time F1 World Champ

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    I don't know about 79 but cardio is definitely my weakness.

    I'm one of the bigger guys in the class at 230 so rolling the smaller guys is easy using power & weight

    I need to remember to work slow so my heart isn't at 140bpm. Definitely helped me regain some confidence in my abilities
     
  14. Bullitt1

    Bullitt1 Formula Junior

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    It depends.........talk to an instructor

    Aikido might be a better choice at 79..........
     
  15. fatbillybob

    fatbillybob Two Time F1 World Champ
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    Awesome choice. Bjj offers great flexibility, superior mental chess game, the ultimate in appreciation of distance, and activity in real time. I have spent 30 years in mixed and comparative martial arts. If I had to pick two which gets you closest to being a complete fighter the most efficiently it would be Bjj and Thai kickboxing.
     
  16. WILLIAM H

    WILLIAM H Three Time F1 World Champ

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    I'm exhausted after JJ. Have to throttle back on energy used. Started riding my bike or walking 2 hrs a day for cardio for JJ & skiing.

    Tough on shoulders, lower back & my inner thigh is always tight after
     
  17. Huskerbill

    Huskerbill F1 Rookie

    Sep 6, 2004
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    I think it's appropriate to drop down a belt (or two) if you've taken some time off and your skills are more in alignment with that belt after accumulating rust over the time off.

    Regarding a different style I am in full agreement about wearing a white belt in their gym/dojo. We had a friend of one of our purple belts (arguably the best purple belt in the state with "open" wins to prove it - and a guy who beats me every roll even though i have 60lbs on him) come into our school who was a black belt in Japanese Jiu Jitsu. He was about 215. Im still a white belt in our school who has been doing BJJ for a few years (our school promotes SLOW) but have won every tournament I've been in as an UHW. After drills my instructor paired us up first when it came time to roll. I was admittedly nervous but pulled guard immediately and pulled an arm bar within thirty seconds. We got up and 30 seconds later I had side control and got a good keylock for another tap. A minute later I got his back for a bow and arrow and he was done for the day with an "injury". After he left our instructor called us over and talked to us about the importance of not wearing our color in another styles school. He said it is a bit "arrogant" to do it and then brought up how I demonstrated that an experienced white belt in BJJ should destroy a black belt from any other discipline and vice versa. He knew their school and paired us up because he knew what would happen and he could teach us what not to do if we went into a judo dojo or a Japanese JJ school. Good learning.
     
  18. Huskerbill

    Huskerbill F1 Rookie

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    I think it depends on your physical ability. My dad was benching 200lbs at 80 and uses testosterone therapy at 87 to "keep in shape". I think he could do okay but he'd probably get injured. Some sort of shoulder injury would probably happen.

    If you weight train regularly and can run for 15 mons straight you could probably get through a 5 min roll (typical practice duration for a single live roll with a partner), you could try it. It's not like you will die trying.

    I seriously think if you are using testosterone therapy it could help mitigate the age difference by providing the strength you will need to overcome the skill deficiency from never having done it (strength will be your best friend as a white belt and the BIGGEST enemy to you learning - while I do very well in tournaments and against higher belts I am probably technically less advanced than I would be if I could only bench 200 instead of 400. Testosterone therapy would also increase your red blood cell count which would help greatly in the stamina dept which is another issue as you age.
     
  19. WILLIAM H

    WILLIAM H Three Time F1 World Champ

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    Testosterone is your friend. I can probably bench around 300 on a good day but I cap it at 80# dumbells to preserve my shoulders & ligaments.

    In Japanese JJ we focused a lot on take downs where BJJ focuses a lot on ground work so they compliment each other well.
     
  20. Smiles

    Smiles F1 World Champ
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    What kind of testosterone therapy?

    Matt
     
  21. rdefabri

    rdefabri Three Time F1 World Champ

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    Like Axiron. I would love to try it.
     
  22. WILLIAM H

    WILLIAM H Three Time F1 World Champ

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    There is Androgel then there is stronger stuff

    I've packed on a lot of muscle & the ladies are real happy :)
     
  23. fatbillybob

    fatbillybob Two Time F1 World Champ
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    Dang! Just hurt the shoulder.
     
  24. DonJuan348

    DonJuan348 F1 Rookie
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    What's legally stronger
     
  25. WILLIAM H

    WILLIAM H Three Time F1 World Champ

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    I'm not an expert on it so you'll have to find that answer yourself
     

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