Does BJJ build character or expose weakness?

[Mojorisin99]

Do you feel like BJJ can make a person mentally stronger or are they already pre-disposed that way? Often you see people who think they are tough until they take a class and quit. Can a person with no mental toughness build it through BJJ?

 

[GuardGame]

I didnt have ANY mental toughness before BJJ. Now look at me, IM A KEYBOARD WARRIOR!!

 

[GuardGame]

Nah, but seriously I didnt have mental toughness before BJJ.

BJJ will change you forever and build up your personality

 

[xinster]

if your an egotistical you could either 1. injure someone else right off the bat 2. get discouraged from getting owned repeatedly and back away

 

[chdnny]

yea, if you got an ego im sure itll be broken or notched down

 

[SnowBlynd]

I find training BJJ to be very humbling. It's definatley good for one's character.

 

[Deleted member 87037]

if your an egotistical you could either 1. injure someone else right off the bat 2. get discouraged from getting owned repeatedly and back away

ego-, wicked word.

 

[Irrelevant]

i depends on the person differnt people will obviously react differntly so it is dependent on the kind of attitude you take into your training. BJJ is great for building confidence in a good environment but so are team sports or help groups. Its back to the cliche you get out of something what you put into it.

 

[kneecompression]

i'm still an asshole





i think its good for confidence though

 

[kneecompression]

i'm still an asshole





i think its good for confidence though

 

[batman69]

i think that really great moments when you grow are the times that you see parts of yourself you don't like and fix them. if bjj shows a side of you that you find unacceptable and you can change that, then you have the answer.

 

[randomg1t]

fighting period makes you mentally stronger.

"after fighting, everything else in your life gets the volume turned down. you can deal with anything." - fight club

god i love that movie.

 

[greedysob]

i'm still an asshole





i think its good for confidence though

Funny, I've become an asshole. It's great for confidence.

fighting period makes you mentally stronger.

"after fighting, everything else in your life gets the volume turned down. you can deal with anything." - fight club

god i love that movie.

Awesome movie.


I think any endeavor you commit to that makes you challenge yourself and expect more from your actions is great for building character. In fact, I think that it's in those moments in your life when you find out what you're really capable of. Wrestling did that for me. The sacrafices I made and limits I pushed myself to have shown me what I really have inside when I dig down deep. When there's something I want to acheive now nothing can stop me from doing it. Very few of the challenges I face in life now even compare to the boundries I've crossed, the volume has been turned down. And when I am really challenged I love it. It gives me a chance to prove that I still have it.

I can see the difference between myself and people who have never walked this road. They turn away when things get tough. They back down from the bigger challenges. They even expect less from themselves when they are willing to put it out on the line. They're the people that will look at you funny when you say things like, "my goal is to be a world champion in this sport." "You're beeing unrealistic," they'll tell you.

If you enjoy BJJ and it motivates you to leave your comfort zone and really push yourself I think it can do the same for you. If you're just an ego- (as likkuid put it) that wants to walk into a class and be an instant badass you're not going to make it.

 

[SpartanWarrior]

jiu-jitsu's awesome. just look what its done for ryan gracie. seriously though, it depends on the person.

 

[hayliks]

i think with people who are open-minded and willing to learn, it builds mental toughness. i had a student who used to tap to any and everything cuz of a LITTLE amount of pain. i mean if i held his wrist too hard it would hurt him. before i graduated at my university, he was probably the 2nd or 3rd best student i had, technically he was the best, but he didn't have the fighter's edge that would have enabled him to beat all the other students i had, but he had gone LEAPS and BOUNDS in the year and a half i taught him.

 

[Gsoares2***]

I think bjj teaches you alot of humility. Some days you walk in to class and have a feeling like your the toughest mother f'er around.. thinking no one can beat you.. and thats the day you get beat which knocks your "machismo" down a notch.. making you a little more humble, and alot more fun to be around.

No one cares if you act tough, if you dont preform on the mats.. who cares what you can talk.

 

[Rinksterk**]

I think a lot of sports, especially martial arts do that. I know I became tougher mentally and physically after I started Judo. I mean I used to be a pussy before I did judo. Boxing is also very challenging mentally.

Funny story about an ego-. There's a kid who started a few weeks ago at my boxing gym and he acted like he already knew how to box. The first class he came in started to hit the bags with bare knuckles with this tough guy expression on his face. When he started to play with the speed bag my instructor asked him if he wanted to learn how to use it, and he's like, "Nah I already know this shit." My instructor was like, "Uh... ok." The wannabe tough guy then goofed on during jump roping rounds and barely went through cross stepping before he was gasping for breath. He now barely comes to train.

 

[Tom Hishon]

bjj training or boxing or mma or any tough martial art that is going to break you down and humble you is character building. No body goes into a gym and starts owning people, it doesn't work that way. Champions are the ones that keep coming back and building their weaknesses to strengths.

 

[azjudoboxer**]

Any combat art will make strong people stronger, and make weak people weaker

 

[Resendiz]

It has given me a confident attitude not a tough attitude.