Thank you and goodbye BJJ

Injuries are inevitable in BJJ. I don't think I have ever been 100%. However, even with all my injuries I will still continue BJJ. I am in it for life
 
You gotta find a school w/ old farts like me who roll like we absolutley have to go to work in the morning.

+1
TS your training enviroment doesn't sound like the best.... Perhaps some rest/recovery then a change in training enviroment/strategy would be best. (sounds like a dirty,rough place to train)

As a gimpy/scrony/weak 32yr old blue belt,self preservation is the key to success/longevity.
 
I didn't come here looking to be convinced to go back to training but its balanced advice like this, Yozigi and kintana's that makes me think longer term. Never say never (I know my original post said never), maybe I'll go back in a years time with a robo-ankle heavy duty support (although i wouldn't appeciate someone trying to push that under my chin for the gogoplata). Thanks to everyone that gave actual advice and support, even if some of it was harsh. Its good to know there are some tough dudes out there still training with recurrent injuries and finding ways to manage them.

Thanks

I took about 4 years off due to pretty serious back injuries, they still flare from time to time, but it's not worth not sleeping, walking well, being able to sit comfortably for long periods of time, etc. Unless you're a professional, don't screw up your body for BJJ. We all train with injuries, and IMHO anyone who grapples for fun over a long period of time is probably tough as hell and not making excuses (if you were going to make excuses, you would have done it after your first week, not after a few years), so don't second guess yourself too much.

I'm glad I can train again, but if I ever re-injured my back to the point where I couldn't sleep or walk well again, I'd have to walk away, as much as it would suck.

I would note however that I had dreams about Judo and BJJ the whole time I wasn't training, and I made my wife pretty mad with how much I talked about it and how much I missed training. It's not easy even if it's the right choice.
 
switch to striking and just concentrate on doing KATAS which is better than doing taichi
 
Look at it this way. You have one good leg and one bad leg. That's more than some grapplers have. (ripped off from marcio cruz seminar) Still...

 
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A black belt at age 78 - Daily Pilot

If he can do it so can you. Suck it up. Injuries happen and more often than not, they are your own fault. I know where you are dude, I may have to quit because of a brain condition and it kills me to even think about it. But you are more often than not in control of how you roll, roll slow and easy and don't roll with people you aren't comfortable with, no instructor will make you roll with someone you say you won't go with, and if they do, find a new gym.
 
A black belt at age 78 - Daily Pilot

If he can do it so can you. Suck it up. Injuries happen and more often than not, they are your own fault. I know where you are dude, I may have to quit because of a brain condition and it kills me to even think about it. But you are more often than not in control of how you roll, roll slow and easy and don't roll with people you aren't comfortable with, no instructor will make you roll with someone you say you won't go with, and if they do, find a new gym.

This is such a total oversimplification of the issue though.
 
I quit BJJ in early 2006 due to the permanent injuries i have sustained. Not saying i definitely got those injuries from BJJ; i was lifting weights and doing boxing for a little while during my BJJ years too. However, i reckon it probably was the BJJ because i lifted fairly infrequently and boxed only occasionally while i trained BJJ at least 3 times a week and sometimes as much as 6-8 times. Furthermore, i experienced no issues post-lifting or boxing, whilst there were many clear times during BJJ where my injuries would flair up or suddenly get worse.

My legs now are so screwed i can't do what i always wanted to do after leaving university... which is join the military. These days, exercising is pretty tough to do at all and i can never keep it up for more than a few weeks before i have to take an extended break. That's the case even considering my usual approach of training responsibly and 'taking it easy'.

I've seen consultant orthopaedic surgeons, rheumatologists and radiologists, i've had physiotherapy. I'm told nothing can be done and i'll be like this forever.

I have patelo-femural joint dysfunction, and lateral subluxation of the ilio-tibial band. What this means is i have problems with my knees and hips, on both sides but significantly worse on the right. When straightening my knee my patella rubs against my femur causing a click that is usually only mildly painful, though when the joint is weight bearing and i'm trying to straight my legs (say, for a butterfly guard sweep) the click (if it even happens at all before i gave up due to the pain) is so intensly painful that it is disabling. The problem with my hip is that when i move my leg outwards laterally (abduction) i have a rubbing/clicking sensation that feels as though my hip is partially dislocated, and this is the iliotibial band getting stuck on the outside of my femur. It's usually only mildly painful, but again, if it is weight bearing (in the case of me resisting someone pinning my leg against the mat during a knee-through guard pass) or if it is sudden and fast (such as your legs being controlled in any number of guard passes) then the pain is the worst pain i have ever felt and has in the past resulted in my needing to walk with crutches for a few weeks. Overall, i'm in a constant dull aching pain and even walking a long distance makes that pain become noticable.

Anyway, these injuries have already screwed up my hopes of my dream career, and ideally i'd like to at least be able to walk properly for the rest of my life... not to mention exercise at least a little in order to keep in fairly ok shape, and in the future if i have kids i'd like to be able to play sports with them and stuff. You know, we all take mobility for granted, but after having all this going on i've really come to the conclusion that my overall wellbeing is more important to me that BJJ.

At first, i missed BJJ so much. I was really obsessed with it. I used to think about it all the time, watch youtube videos, take private lessons with my instructor, try to get all my friends into it... you know the feeling. I took a week off at first, then a month, then a couple of months. Last time i went was around mid-2006, i went for about 2 sessions and was incapacitated. I decided i'd stay away from it until my joints were better, and at the time i was still seeing consultants at the hospital, having MRI scans and all that, so i was hopeful. I tried to do Judo for a while instead because i did find that the throws were less stressful for my joints... but as it happens the clubs 'round here do a lot of groundwork too and those judo guys are far less delicate in their guard passing! I did boxing for a while too but my joints were already so bad that it just wasn't happening. With BJJ, my months away turned to years and i haven't been there now in almost 6 years!

I'd been doing martial arts since i was 6 years old, and it was really a huge part of my life. But i don't miss it anymore. There is more to life than BJJ obviously, and i have other interests that don't cause me injuries. I still try to do physical activity too; i swim, jog (rarely), cycle (sometimes), and i do stretches and rehab exercises for my legs. These days my focus is on guitar playing, reading more books, scuba diving; i might take up skydiving this year. Gotta get my kicks.

In fact, it's kinda nice to be away from it in some respects. No more dealing with roider meatheads doing illegal moves to 'get the tap', no more having to hear how people are 'fighting' at a local BJJ competition next weekend, no more having to hear of people 'smashing' their opponents and all that other stupid macho talk, no more hearing BJJ guys criticise the belt-factory system of taekwondo/karate only to then be totally cool with the growing trend of 'stripes', no more hearing stupid debates about the effectiveness of BJJ versus trad-martial arts only to see everyone butt-scooting/playing x-guard/etc. There are many aspects of the sport that i don't miss, and it's refreshing to take a break from that.

Anyway, my point is just that you feel at first as those your life would be significantly more empty without BJJ... but that's just not true. BJJ is fairly pointless in the grand scheme of things, as is any hobby or sport really.

My brother also quit, in around 2007 i think. He was also obsessed with it, trained in brazil, went to the euros, etc. Some idiot in the club cranked an armlock on him and injured his arm... every time he went back to training and anyone tried to do something to that arm it would flair up and he'd be injured again. The prevalence of aggressive meatheads combined with this seemingly permanent arm injury caused by one, made him decide to quit. He's a software engineer who needs his hands/arms for his job, and he plays drums too, he doesn't want to be permanently disabled.

Cliffs:

- I quit BJJ due to injury too.
- So did my bro.
- It's no big deal, there's more to life.
 
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^Pretty much no one can say shit after this.
 
After Mattt's post, there really isn't much left to say. Congratulations to you guys that train through your myriad of injuries. The thing is that it doesn't make you any more of a man than him. Early on, while drilling some butterfly guard, I was dumped hard on my head. I kept on going to class while my left arm started to lose strength. Eventually, I had surgery on the herniated disc in my neck. Shortly after surgery, I was right back in the gym. It wasn't that I toughed it out, it was that I needed BJJ. It hurt, especially my hip, where some bone was removed to put in my neck. But I had been cleared by my doctor. When I have to miss class, I get pissed. This doesn't make the person that stops any more or less of a man than me.

On a side note, after tweaking my knee once, my wife remarked that she hoped I would be able to hike when we worked less (in 20 years). She'd be pretty stoked if I declared that I was quitting to avoid getting a serious injury. We each take the path that feels right to us. Domn8 may decide down the road that this was the wrong path and re-join classes. Or it will be the right path.
 
I dont understand quitting BJJ.

Injuries this injuries that blah blah. I have never taken more than 2 - 3 weeks off due to injury in my entire jiu jitsu career , torn UCL in my elbow (grade 3 blowout, tommy john style), broken arms (trained with cast on tied inside my gi), sprained ankles not an excuse to miss class, tired not an excuse to miss class, cracked ribs, broken noses.. etc ...

It sounds like you dont really like bjj (you like the idea of BJJ) but you want to come on here and make a thread about it to try to get some justification for quitting. IE: cry for attention.

your over 30 bro, your out of your jiu jitsu prime weather you want to admit it or not. I know there are plenty of over 30's that would kill me on the mats but they didnt quit when they woke up sore, or went to the hospital after class. I have never met a champion that was injury free EVER


No one cares if you quit BJJ, but there really is no need to make a thread about it unless your insecure and cant make decisions on your own.

Suck it up or shutup
 
I dont understand quitting BJJ.

Injuries this injuries that blah blah. I have never taken more than 2 - 3 weeks off due to injury in my entire jiu jitsu career , torn UCL in my elbow (grade 3 blowout, tommy john style), broken arms (trained with cast on tied inside my gi), sprained ankles not an excuse to miss class, tired not an excuse to miss class, cracked ribs, broken noses.. etc ...

It sounds like you dont really like bjj (you like the idea of BJJ) but you want to come on here and make a thread about it to try to get some justification for quitting. IE: cry for attention.

your over 30 bro, your out of your jiu jitsu prime weather you want to admit it or not. I know there are plenty of over 30's that would kill me on the mats but they didnt quit when they woke up sore, or went to the hospital after class. I have never met a champion that was injury free EVER


No one cares if you quit BJJ, but there really is no need to make a thread about it unless your insecure and cant make decisions on your own.

Suck it up or shutup

Did you even bother to read the thread before opening your trap? No one is talking about being injury free.
 
Its not a joke man. Its not funny. I'm trying not to whine about this situation because we all know injuries are a part of this game. truth is they've ended it for me though. bad luck, dry eyes, move on. I know.

Trying not to whine about it? You started the thread.

Take a year or so off if you have to, look into surgery if it could fix the problem. And if you do go back, don't go for gogoplatas (like you said in a previous post) and stay away from shit that could hurt your ankle, i screwed up a bone on the top of my foot with a triangle and pretty much abandoned triangles for about 6 months... Adapt if you can.
 
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I quit BJJ in early 2006 due to the permanent injuries i have sustained. Not saying i definitely got those injuries from BJJ; i was lifting weights and doing boxing for a little while during my BJJ years too. However, i reckon it probably was the BJJ because i lifted fairly infrequently and boxed only occasionally while i trained BJJ at least 3 times a week and sometimes as much as 6-8 times. Furthermore, i experienced no issues post-lifting or boxing, whilst there were many clear times during BJJ where my injuries would flair up or suddenly get worse.

My legs now are so screwed i can't do what i always wanted to do after leaving university... which is join the military. These days, exercising is pretty tough to do at all and i can never keep it up for more than a few weeks before i have to take an extended break. That's the case even considering my usual approach of training responsibly and 'taking it easy'.

I've seen consultant orthopaedic surgeons, rheumatologists and radiologists, i've had physiotherapy. I'm told nothing can be done and i'll be like this forever.

I have patelo-femural joint dysfunction, and lateral subluxation of the ilio-tibial band. What this means is i have problems with my knees and hips, on both sides but significantly worse on the right. When straightening my knee my patella rubs against my femur causing a click that is usually only mildly painful, though when the joint is weight bearing and i'm trying to straight my legs (say, for a butterfly guard sweep) the click (if it even happens at all before i gave up due to the pain) is so intensly painful that it is disabling. The problem with my hip is that when i move my leg outwards laterally (abduction) i have a rubbing/clicking sensation that feels as though my hip is partially dislocated, and this is the iliotibial band getting stuck on the outside of my femur. It's usually only mildly painful, but again, if it is weight bearing (in the case of me resisting someone pinning my leg against the mat during a knee-through guard pass) or if it is sudden and fast (such as your legs being controlled in any number of guard passes) then the pain is the worst pain i have ever felt and has in the past resulted in my needing to walk with crutches for a few weeks. Overall, i'm in a constant dull aching pain and even walking a long distance makes that pain become noticable.

Anyway, these injuries have already screwed up my hopes of my dream career, and ideally i'd like to at least be able to walk properly for the rest of my life... not to mention exercise at least a little in order to keep in fairly ok shape, and in the future if i have kids i'd like to be able to play sports with them and stuff. You know, we all take mobility for granted, but after having all this going on i've really come to the conclusion that my overall wellbeing is more important to me that BJJ.

At first, i missed BJJ so much. I was really obsessed with it. I used to think about it all the time, watch youtube videos, take private lessons with my instructor, try to get all my friends into it... you know the feeling. I took a week off at first, then a month, then a couple of months. Last time i went was around mid-2006, i went for about 2 sessions and was incapacitated. I decided i'd stay away from it until my joints were better, and at the time i was still seeing consultants at the hospital, having MRI scans and all that, so i was hopeful. I tried to do Judo for a while instead because i did find that the throws were less stressful for my joints... but as it happens the clubs 'round here do a lot of groundwork too and those judo guys are far less delicate in their guard passing! I did boxing for a while too but my joints were already so bad that it just wasn't happening. With BJJ, my months away turned to years and i haven't been there now in almost 6 years!

I'd been doing martial arts since i was 6 years old, and it was really a huge part of my life. But i don't miss it anymore. There is more to life than BJJ obviously, and i have other interests that don't cause me injuries. I still try to do physical activity too; i swim, jog (rarely), cycle (sometimes), and i do stretches and rehab exercises for my legs. These days my focus is on guitar playing, reading more books, scuba diving; i might take up skydiving this year. Gotta get my kicks.

In fact, it's kinda nice to be away from it in some respects. No more dealing with roider meatheads doing illegal moves to 'get the tap', no more having to hear how people are 'fighting' at a local BJJ competition next weekend, no more having to hear of people 'smashing' their opponents and all that other stupid macho talk, no more hearing BJJ guys criticise the belt-factory system of taekwondo/karate only to then be totally cool with the growing trend of 'stripes', no more hearing stupid debates about the effectiveness of BJJ versus trad-martial arts only to see everyone butt-scooting/playing x-guard/etc. There are many aspects of the sport that i don't miss, and it's refreshing to take a break from that.

Anyway, my point is just that you feel at first as those your life would be significantly more empty without BJJ... but that's just not true. BJJ is fairly pointless in the grand scheme of things, as is any hobby or sport really.

My brother also quit, in around 2007 i think. He was also obsessed with it, trained in brazil, went to the euros, etc. Some idiot in the club cranked an armlock on him and injured his arm... every time he went back to training and anyone tried to do something to that arm it would flair up and he'd be injured again. The prevalence of aggressive meatheads combined with this seemingly permanent arm injury caused by one, made him decide to quit. He's a software engineer who needs his hands/arms for his job, and he plays drums too, he doesn't want to be permanently disabled.

Cliffs:

- I quit BJJ due to injury too.
- So did my bro.
- It's no big deal, there's more to life.


sounds like BJJ saved you from getting your face blown off in a foreign country on the whim of the rich elite.


Is there anything bjj cant do?
 
You've given me warts, athletes foot, numerous tweaked elbows, staph, myriad cuts/bruises.....pride, confidence, a subdued but winking air of superiority and some odd clothing.

But you've f**ked my ankle too many times now and I'm afraid I'll never climb, snowboard, run and walk with any proficiency if i keep turning up to the mat.

Sad but true. I think I can keep the pride, confidence, a subdued but winking air of superiority though. Adeus.

Hey, it sucks but it happens. At the end of the day, we can only train and compete for as long as our bodies allow us to do so. Some people here will give you no end of grief about it, because they are living under the delusion that jiu-jitsu should be everyone's #1 priority in life. You have to do what is best for you, your health, and your family.

Best of luck.
 
Would hate to see what would happen to you if you did Judo. At least cleanliness wouldn't be an issue.
 
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