is Judo/Wrestling bad for your knees?

[Charlitos1988]

so I was reading posts about knee problems and that the more gentle grappling sport for knees is BJJ and people said they avoid the standing phase and go directly to ground so I'm understanding that stand up grappling Judo/Wrestling is bad for your knees?

and why is the exact reason?

I think it could be doing the squat for hip throws in Judo, maybe the leg pulling from single legs in Wrestling or... bad falling?

I ask these because I have a left bad knee.

 

[Einarr]

BJJ is great, but if you can't take the fight to the ground then it's next to useless. Bad for your knees or not Judo/wrestling is essential if you want to be a complete fighter/grappler.

 

[Rasha]

Well, most sports are bad for your knees. BJJ can be just as bad for your knees as Judoo or Wrestling, maybe even worse. Try it for a while and see how you do, there are people with knee problems that have trained for years and years you just have to be smart about it.

 

[Long Dark Blues]

For what it's worth: I did Judo for 5 years, never hurt my knees. I've been doing BJJ for 3 years, my knees hurt all the fucking time. Even tore my meniscus while passing someone's guard with the knee cut pass.

 

[ShinkanPo]

Thats what they say until they met Palhares in a BJJ tourney

 

[Charlitos1988]

For what it's worth: I did Judo for 5 years, never hurt my knees. I've been doing BJJ for 3 years, my knees hurt all the fucking time. Even tore my meniscus while passing someone's guard with the knee cut pass.

I read some people here claimed that they torn a knee because of bad falling, or it depends on the intensity of training? hmmm

 

[Kozbot]

I haven't seen many knee injuries in wrestling as compared to other sports. One kid I knew blew his ACL out bad though.

 

[sturmgeist]

It ain't square dancing...

 

[Shizzx]

your knees will hurt in everyhting depnding on how much you use them. dont really see it happening much in judo, since alot of its upperbody.. but in wrestling or BJJ. since there is alot of twisting and manipulations going on with teh body.. it prone to get injuries

 

[Andy Hug]

I have a sore back from judo. My sensei wobbles around like an old man but he is 80 years old and competed in Japan way back when so competition will obviously be harder on your body than just training

 

[Darwinist]

In Judo and wrestling both your opponent is constantly attempting to unbalance you. This puts a strain on your knees even if you don't dramatically blow something out, and when you zig when your opponent expected you to zag and he trips you up....things can go south very quickly. I think the reaps and inside/outside trips while in a bodylock are probably among the worst offenders when it comes to knee injuries.

 

[deev]

Knee injuries in Judo come from a few things, landing on your knees from a great height, twisting, bending them sideways, all sorts of things. Ive been doing Judo since I was 7 and at the age of 30 I've had cartilage removed from my left knee, torn it in my right the other wek so that'll need sorting, completely bent my right knee at 90 degrees, sideways, somehow nothing snapped but the ligaments are all horribly scarred and weakened and I partially tore my Lateral cruciate on my left knee.

Getting your cruciates reconstructed isnt rare in Judo, there were 5 guys on the mat the other night below 40 with rebuilt knees.

Judo is great fun though

 

[Jonah42]

I slightly hurt my knees before in BJJ rather than Judo.

Most serious injury I've ever had though was when I tore a few ligaments in my ankle at Judo training last April.

 

[catchwrestling]

It ain't square dancing...

Square dancing is hard on the knees!

 

[Im so Moldy]

Well, good ways to fuck up your knees are getting it twisted without your foot moving, and forcing to move out of its natural range of motion (imagine taking a leg kick with all your weight on your front leg, knee buckles.). Both of these things happen pretty often in standing martial arts, wrestling especially. you can probably find some kind of study on rates of ACL tears and the like in different sports. I think for most people a small risk of injury that can be reduced by awareness and technique is a risk that's OK to take in return for what you're getting out of the activity.

 

[Mooner]

I have been Judo for almost 8 years and I have never had strain on my knees in doing the drills or techniques. It's just you are prone to getting injured which is exactly what happened to my knee. The fluidity of your movement gets shot, but eventually you adapt to it.

The actual practice of Judo or any other grappling doesn't cause injuries, but you are at risk of accidents etc.

 

[Thrawn33]

I used to suffer from pain in my knees after sitting for more than 30 minutes, doc said it was a cartilage problem, possibly stemming from wrestling in HS 3 years before.

Several years later I did Judo and it stopped, so go figure.

 

[tk99]

BJJ is great, but if you can't take the fight to the ground then it's next to useless. Bad for your knees or not Judo/wrestling is essential if you want to be a complete fighter/grappler.

Very well said.

The relationship between takedowns and knee health has been getting discussed a lot lately. While my opinion will probably change in time, right now, my solution is the blast double. I can't be GSP, but it's a nice style to emulate. His knees stay off the deck beautifully. I don't think it's necessary to let the shooting knee touch down, and certainly not hit hard. That's also the beauty of judo, but dare I say, there's a higher learning curve to getting into a good throw position without eating strikes or giving up your back. I think a feint to a blast double is a really good option.

 

[tk99]

I used to suffer from pain in my knees after sitting for more than 30 minutes, doc said it was a cartilage problem, possibly stemming from wrestling in HS 3 years before.

Several years later I did Judo and it stopped, so go figure.

My knee hurts with too much rest. It stops hurting when I get active, including grappling. Completely counter intuitive. Go figure. I really think the increased blood flow is a healing mechanism.

 

[Anette Schol-Bermel]

I just injured my knee for the first time, after decades of Judo (did take large breaks). The main reasons were: a) pick your opponent carefully by age and weight, b) it is safer to fight a skillful opponent, rather than a beginner.
I did Randori with a 23 year old gymnast, new to Judo, white belt. He muscled me on almost all techniques. Then he threw me with a very fast 0-Soto-Gari, but his leg did not sweep through straight and knock me off my feet. Instead he stayed hooked around my knee, and twisted it to the right outward in a 90 degree angle, then I fell back on top of it. Since he was hooked around it, I was not able to get it free and fall properly. Heard a loud pop and thought it had twisted out of its socket. Grabbed it with my hands and arms and straightened it back out. Lots of pain, but no permanent damage. Iced it, and now my ligaments are tender, but no swelling. Not bad for an old lady!