Is it crazy to try 3 MA's at once?

Ninja This

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If you don't care about my little journey of getting excited about finally training then skip the next 3 paragraphs.

Originally I was just interested in Judo while BJJ was a minor interest. That's because when I would get into fooling around scraps with friends my first instinct was to use my "I-watched-a-guy-on-youtube" level grappling to get leverage and toss them to the ground. After looking up the philosophy behind Judo I was like huzzah I do a very crude version of this already so this should be a perfect fit.

Then I discovered the Grappling Forum (a lovely change of pace from the heavies) and I read up on a ton of people's experiences with BJJ and over time I became even more interested in BJJ than Judo even though I think it's going to substantially more difficult for me to learn. I can't tell you how many hours of this summer I spent watching people roll at skill levels ranging from Jacare Souza to random teenagers on youtube.

And finally after watching so many fights and hearing all of the Wrestling vs BJJ shit storms I have concluded that it's better to be good at both than to only be good at one. I've seen wrestlers get tapped and BJJ guys get controlled. (I've even seen it the other way around) I live in the United States so naturally Wrestling is popular at my school and there are resources available. Apparently Frankie Edgar is(or used to be?) assistant coach for the RU wrestling team. I don't intend to tryout for the team because that would mean a huge commitment to just wrestling as opposed to the aforementioned MA's so the club is a better fit. (Also I've never wrestled on a team before so I would almost certainly get raped but let's not dwell on that :p )


And now to the main topic here
My school offers BJJ, Judo, and there's a wrestling club. Each club meets twice a week and sometimes one day on the weekend. They all use the same facility so obviously they can't overlap hours however wrestling and judo can overlap days which is where I wonder if I'm nuts for thinking I can do wrestling for 2 hours and then be back in an hour for judo.

The schedules aren't finalized but on average I'd be doing each one twice a week and on one day (monday probably) I'd have wrestling and Judo on the same day within an hour of each other

About six days of grappling per week every day would be different.

I just want to do grapple as much as I can and use what I learn to my advantage everywhere else.

Anybody ever do something like this? Am I crazy for wanting to just start training 3 martial arts at the same time?

Discusssssss
 
There was a time when I was taking Muay Thai, Hapkido, Kali and BJJ...

Now it's pretty much just BJJ with MMA classes thrown in. I wasnt able to really focus on a single one and was getting a cloudy learning experience. Luckily I got strong muay thai experience, and I practice that regularly, but I'm only training in BJJ now - it's more fulfilling for me.

I still pick up the sticks every now and then though.
 
Absolutely not. I train Kali, JKD and Grappling at the same time. Granted I learn them all at the same place.
 
you are lucky to have such options under one roof. most people have to train at different sites.
 
No, with the caveat that you should ignore the temptation to blend styles and techniques. While it may be frustrating and certain things your instructors teach you may seem fallacious in respect to the theory of another MA, stick to each MA's philosophy and don't mix until you're very adept at each one.
 
Awesome opportunity, but Wrestling and Judo in the same afternoon would be insanely taxing on your body, especially if you don't have experience with either one of the two. It kind of depends how hardcore your school's clubs are though.
 
you run the risk of being worn down and diminishing your learning abilities. But hey if you can find time to properly train and rest then go for it
 
No, with the caveat that you should ignore the temptation to blend styles and techniques. While it may be frustrating and certain things your instructors teach you may seem fallacious in respect to the theory of another MA, stick to each MA's philosophy and don't mix until you're very adept at each one.

That advice makes sense. I've heard some BJJ guys talk about how wrestling can help with maintaining top control so that aspect in particular made me go "hmmm"


Awesome opportunity, but Wrestling and Judo in the same afternoon would be insanely taxing on your body, especially if you don't have experience with either one of the two. It kind of depends how hardcore your school's clubs are though.

I don't know enough about wrestling to say too much but it seems to be an awfully big deal at Rutgers. Supposedly the club is made up of people who were doing it in high school but stopped and want to get back into it.

Well Judo is the newest club but to my current understanding the instructor is a legit BB and the experience should be similar to any other class. I haven't met/gotten his/her name yet though.

BJJ is taught by Ademir Oliveira. It's not private training with the Gracies but everything I've read suggests that he should be a great instructor. If anyone has heard of him or knows anything interesting about him I'd be interested.
 
if your just starting out, 6 days a week of grappling will certainly burn you the fuck out, making everyday a chore rather than enjoyable..

start with one, then after a month add another, then another.. that way you can get to feel out your limit rather than start right at your limit, you know what i mean?

But to a nswer your question, its not crazy. Its all grappling, its not like one is standup and one is groundwork with a slight changes in all. All 3 would correlate with each other helping each other get better imo, but thast only if your body can handle it. If i could train all 3 i would certainly be doing so..
 
Well unfortunately thanks to scheduling I can't do Judo at all unless I wanted to go once a week.

Looks like I'm going to try wrestling with BJJ (double down on mondays)
5 days of training

Both of them have a trial period before I have to pay/really commit so if it's too much wrestling will probably take a hike
 
I shall consult the Zen dictionary.

A martial arts student approached his teacher with a question.

"I'd like to improve my knowledge of the martial arts. In addition to learning from you, I'd like to study with another teacher in order to learn another style. What do you think of this idea?"

"The hunter who chases two rabbits," answered the master, "catches neither one."
 
I shall consult the Zen dictionary.

A martial arts student approached his teacher with a question.

"I'd like to improve my knowledge of the martial arts. In addition to learning from you, I'd like to study with another teacher in order to learn another style. What do you think of this idea?"

"The hunter who chases two rabbits," answered the master, "catches neither one."

I don't think 2 at once is being unreasonable although the chances of me dropping wrestling are fairly decent.
 
Sounds awesome... just remember to get plenty of rest or your body will just give up on you.
 
too much, besides judo and wrestling? some ppl may like it, I rather stick with bjj and wrestling if I could... though we are force to take judo lessons at least once a week....
 
I was also thinking of the same thing as the OP, I'm just beginning and wanted to study MT and BJJ together but not sure how my body would withstand and how much my brain would retain. After some thought though I figured I would just be doing BJJ this month until I could catch up physically and mentally before adding on another discipline. I guess it all really depends on what kind of time you're willing to dedicate yourself to training in the end.
 
It'd be pretty hard on your body to train that much right off the bat (been there, done that). Try doing two for now, I'd say. BJJ and then pick either wrestling or judo. Both would be great, and both wrestling and judo teach mastering take downs and top control.

I do BJJ and judo, and I think it's a good fit. They compliment each other well.
 
Well unfortunately thanks to scheduling I can't do Judo at all unless I wanted to go once a week.

Looks like I'm going to try wrestling with BJJ (double down on mondays)
5 days of training

Both of them have a trial period before I have to pay/really commit so if it's too much wrestling will probably take a hike

I'd say that's a good combination. Given the crossover I don't think that learning two (or even all three) at the same time is really going to be detrimental once your body can handle going five or six days a week. But if you think you can hop in off the street and handle that kind of load you're either a) in a world of hurt, or b) have Navy Seal level conditioning.

That said, I think that starting out BJJ/Wrestling is a better pair than BJJ/Judo or Judo/Wrestling. BJJ and Judo are both very taxing on your grips, and Judo and Wrestling are just too physically damaging (BJJ is rough in a "I feel like I ran a marathon" kind of way, but is less prone to injury).
 
i've done bjj and wrestling at once. sure as hell didn't hurt one bit (metaphorically, of course).
the part i'm most pleased with is that you're going from internet mma fan to real grappler.
fuckin a
 
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