Ever heard of Rickson Gracie? If not you’re probably living under a rock far away from the BJJ world. Rickson was one of nine kids, who were all as ambitious and driven as he was. However, he managed to rise above them all to become one of the most celebrated BJJ fighters of all time. How did he do it? His tenacity and relentless spirit had people clamoring to know the secret ingredient. Well, perhaps one of his most powerful weapons was his use of Yoga. Yoga for BJJ has become a staple in many conditioning regimens of the world’s best fighters. So, how did Rickson Gracie manage to unlock one art using another? How does yoga improve his Jiu Jitsu so much?
Quick Overview of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is an art that focuses mainly on grappling, submission holds, and ground fighting techniques. The art is widely recognized as a sport and is on TV screens across the world. Despite its ancient roots, the principles and skills remain somewhat the same.
BJJ is useful in real-life situations
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is helpful in real-life situations: it gives the fighter an advantage in many different situations and to subdue their opponent very quickly. Most of the time, the opponent is incapacitated without any injuries. If you don’t believe me, ask a Jiu Jitsu instructor to put you in any submission hold. You will be completely helpless – there is no doubt about that. Moreover, these submissions are incredibly painful and uncomfortable.
Jiu Jitsu maximizes your body’s leverage
Jiu Jitsu is a mixture of strength, flexibility, technique, and practice. Interestingly, the art also borrows heavily from the mathematical concept of leverage. It allows less athletic fighters to defeat heavier counterparts by taking advantage of how their opponent’s center of gravity changes throughout a fight…I knew finding the missing value of x would pay off one day!
The ultimate goal of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is to dominate your opponent. The techniques you learn help you force the other fighter into positions he does not want to be in. Constant practice helps you get good at it.
The Demands of Jiu Jitsu on the Body and Mind (and how Yoga for BJJ helps)
A yoga for BJJ routine is necessary, as it conditions your body and mind to the required levels. Throwing yourself into the art of Jiu Jitsu without knowing what its exercises entail is a bad idea. Athletes need to be in top physical condition to even stand a chance to compete. Let me provide a quick overview of the demands:
Aerobic Power
Many professionals have cited aerobic power as being absolutely critical. It enables you to maintain a high intensity throughout the whole duration of the match. Without it, you will be frustratingly fatigued in no time. It also enables you to recover faster after a match.
Strength
Strength is vital too. Some of the throws and grapples used in Jiu Jitsu demand brute strength to execute. Examples include the sweep and guard pass. Strength is essential in defense as well. A frail competitor is more likely to be swept clean off his feet.
Reaction time
Quick reactions are paramount. You need to be able to dodge your opponent’s attacks as fast as he can throw them. With quick reactions, you will be able to take advantage of windows of opportunity which may avail themselves. These are usually rather small, and hence, you should make them count.
Flexibility
Flexibility comes in handy too. It allows you to be fluid in your movements and anticipate your opponent’s attacks better.
Endurance
Endurance helps you maintain your muscle power, despite being tired, therefore dominating the entire match.
Yoga and BJJ: Overall Benefits
Before we go into the overall benefits of yoga for BJJ, let us put some things in perspective. By that, I want us to delve into yoga and see what it really does for us. Only then can we truly appreciate it. Yoga originated from India, where it is still very popular up to date. It has been proven to have a profound effect on the body and mind of those who practice it. This intricate balance between the mental and physical aspect is what has really contributed to its success.
The form of yoga that we practice today in gyms, fitness centers, and clubs descends from Hatha yoga. It employs the use of various postures, which are maintained repeatedly over intervals of time. Each session is mostly specialized, with the positions targeting certain aspects or body areas. Some of the general benefits of yoga are:
Flexibility (again)
Yoga, of course, improves flexibility. Most of you have parts of your bodies that you should be able to touch, but just can’t. Yoga fixes all that. You are gradually eased into the poses, and with time, the aches disappear as well.
Strength
It builds your muscle strength. If you simply went to the gym and lifted weights, you would be gaining strength, but at the expense of flexibility. Yoga lets you keep both.
Posture
It improves your body posture. Our days consist of activities that have us slouching, which strain our spines. Yoga helps to correct this before it is too late.
Injury Prevention
Yoga helps to prevent the breakage of joints when you are rolling or grappling. Every time you go through your yoga poses, the joints are fully stretched. This prevents them from wearing out.
Blood Flow
Regular yoga practice can significantly boost the blood flow in your body. Yoga helps the circulation of blood in your body, which aids the transportation of oxygen and nutrients to your cells. The cells function better as a result.
Heart Rate
It increases your heart rate. Your heart, just like any other muscle, requires regular exercise. Yoga dramatically reduces the chance of suffering from cardiac arrest. A high heart rate has also been linked to reduced depression.
Relaxation
There is no doubt that yoga can reduce anxiety. Yoga takes on both anxiety and depression at a go. The art has been found to release hormones, such as serotonin, which are associated with happiness.
Immunoresponse
The hormones released when practicing yoga have been found to significantly boost the immune system.
Now that we’ve established how yoga and BJJ go so well together, let us take a look at why you may need a Jiu Jitsu yoga routine.
How Yoga and Muscle Flexibility Improve Jiu Jitsu Skills
To be an excellent Brazilian Jiu Jitsu fighter, you need to be as flexible as you are strong. This goes without saying. Ignore the importance of flexibility, and you will never be able to reach the greatest heights. It is what separates good fighters from elite fighters.
Many of the positions and postures in yoga help test your flexibility and push it to the limit. Some of these postures are very dynamic, like hip rolls and leg wraps. What happens when you hold these positions is that your body gets slowly stretched. This includes every component required in movement, including ligaments, tendons, and the actual muscles. The more these parts are stretched, the more they grow accustomed to it. Your body will be able to stretch further for longer and without the related pains and aches. The result is high flexibility and mobility on the mats. You will be able to move your hips quickly and literally dance around your opponents.
How Yoga and Balance Improve Your BJJ Skills
Physical strength and balance go in tandem when it comes to BJJ. Do you have any recollection of ever being swept off your feet by someone smaller than you? If the answer is yes, then you know what I mean. Without balance, your opponents will always be putting you in horrible positions no matter how strong you are. That is when you learn that you simply cannot outmuscle your way out of every situation. In fact, a big part of the game is avoiding getting yourself in those compromising positions in the first place.
Yoga forces you to focus on individual muscle groups with every posture. This synchronizes your mind and body with regard to that particular position. You will have complete mental and physical command of your body at all times. The result is that your body becomes able to adjust to any situation, making it very hard to throw you off your feet.
Other BJJ conditioning routines are not able to simultaneously train your body and mind in this fashion. That is why you need to learn yoga if you are interested in becoming a solid BJJ fighter.
How Yoga and Breathing Improve Jiu Jitsu Skills
Controlling the manner in which you breathe is perhaps the most underrated skill in both yoga and Jiu Jitsu. I can tell you, without a doubt, that most beginners cannot even last a full match, let alone spar for a whole day. The only way to get better is by improving your breathing techniques. A good technique helps you last for longer because you get a steady supply of air. In addition, your lungs become accustomed to your pace and get stronger. You will be able to take fuller and deeper breaths on the go.
Improving your breathing technique is not for the faint of heart: it takes commitment. Most people will start seeing results within a few weeks, but those are often short-lived. To completely transform yourself, you will need to be in it for the long run. This could take months, years or even a lifetime.
Just ask Rickson Gracie.
The meditative nature of yoga allows you to have better command over your breathing. Rickson Gracie, in particular, taught the art of exhaling rather than inhaling. He reasoned that animals were more in tune with their breathing because they focused on exhaling. Gracie taught his students to exhale during matches, because when they do, the lungs become empty. What follows is that air fills up the vacuum left automatically and with little effort on your part. His method was found to greatly increase breath efficiency – up to threefold. It is certainly much better than gasping for air. Gracie understood how this simple trick proved that yoga and BJJ are suited for each other.
Yoga also tunes your mindset, allowing you to become conscious of your breathing rate. Simple biology tells us that the more you breathe, the more energy you burn. Yoga teaches you how to be aware of your breathing pace and adjust it to accommodate your needs. The best fighters are known to start slow and reserve pockets of energy for when their opponents are out of breath.
What is the Best Yoga for BJJ? Here’s a Simple Yoga Routine Any BJJ Fighter Can Use
Stretching
It may not sound like much, but stretching is top of the list of things you can do. It is a simple enough exercise and can be done throughout the day. To maintain your current flexibility, stretch twice per day. To improve on your flexibility, the minimum number of times is three. Stretching also reduces potential injuries and soothes sore muscles.
Slow Squats
This routine is great for your back, as well as your ankles and knees. It incorporates postures that are found in real life Jiu Jitsu grappling. Becoming proficient in this routine immensely strengthens parts of your body that are normally weak.
Lying Spinal Twist
Finally, a routine that you will actually enjoy doing. The lying spinal twist is as simple as they come but also as effective. It touches the back, spine and hips in ways a masseuse can only dream of.
This routine should not be taken lightly, however. It calms both the lower and upper body and is quite advanced, despite its simple nature. It helps improve your breathing, muscle recovery and balance, all at once!
Conclusion
As you can see, yoga and BJJ are a match made in fighter’s heaven. Great legends of the sport can (and will) testify to the impact yoga for BJJ has had on their careers. It nourishes your health while conditioning your body and mind. Consistently practicing yoga helps you bring out the best of your body and your BJJ skills
So, if you are serious about Jiu Jitsu, you should have no problem enrolling in a yoga class. One thing is for sure – yoga for Jiu Jitsu is a thing and it will be for a long, long time.
Sources and Resources:
https://www.yogajournal.com/lifestyle/count-yoga-38-ways-yoga-keeps-fit