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Hey guys, I've only just started BJJ but came into it with a better than average flexibility capacity. I am an inch of being able to do a full split but still find it difficult to lock up the rubber guard.
With this in mind, I was wondering which areas of my body I should be focusing on stretching and which stretches are the besstrt.
You want to be stretching your groin, hip flexors, psoas and the rotators of your hips. As such, the following will help. I find this order also works pretty well, but make sure to warm up with some dynamic stretching a bit before doing static stretching.
- Couch Stretch
- Frog Stretch
- Pigeon Pose
- Gluteal Stretch
- Cradle Stretch
- Lunge Stretch
- Groin Stretch
- Horse Stance Stretch
- Tailor's Stretch
- Hamstring Stretch
Finally, the butterly stretch. I do four variations 1) Dynamic, fluttering my knees to gain range of motion 2) Static active, holding the position statically without any pressure or resistance and 3) Static passive, pushing down on my knees with my elbows or hands and 4) Isometric, basically static passive with cycles of 5-10 seconds of tensing the muscles as hard as possible.
I can no static passively get my knees to the floor when against a wall but am looking for a harder variation of the butterfly to really free up the flexibility for lotus position and rubber guard.
I know a lot of people say it should'nt hurt, but if you want to make quick gains in your flexibility you may experiences some muscle soreness but no more than you would experience recovering from mild weightlifting.
im going to add my own advice, but the list of stretches that Sean gave is really good.
1. Doing weighted stretches will allow you to see results faster. (I wouldn't do this with Hip Rotation like the Pigeon or Tailor/Buttergly pose though, as the risk of the stretch going into the Knee Ligaments isn't worth it. But for exercises like the Couch Stretch, Frog Pose, Horse Stance (Which is more of a strengthening pose used for the Middle Splts) these become money)
2. For the Tailor Pose (Butterfly), do it against a wall (place for feet in the butterslt positions, squat down into it against the wall, and then wiggle around so it's comfortable), as it will allow you to keep your back straight. Do contractions by placing your forearms against the inside of your knees and use your legs to press imto them. The second contraction is to push your heels together. I usually do both of these simultaneously. Long contractions really benefit here, don't just do the 5 seconds, I usually do 15-30 seconds contractions. Use your hips to actively press your knees down to the floor.
3. Instead of the Pigeon Pose (which I don't find to be that much of a stretch), I use one where I sit against the wall, with my legs out straight. Then I put one of my legs on top of the others knee (right above it, ok the Quad), and then I use my arms to push my body up, and slide my feet up, then lower myself down. There are 3 contractions I use. The first is to just press your foot against the quad. The second is to put your hand on the inside of your knee and have your knee press inwards against your hand. The third is to put your hand on the quad of your leg, and use your leg to press against your hand. These work the Imternal/External Rotators, and the Hip Flexors. After that I raise my body with my hands and slide my foot in closer and repeat. Really focus on keeping your back flat against the wall, and keeping your chest out (your back won't be flat against it, but just attempting to have good posture will increase the stretch)
4. Strength and Mobility go hand in hand (which is why weighted stretching and contractions are dope, because they strengthen the muscles in their end range). Just stretching and not strengthening that end ROM, your body is not going to feel safe in that end ROM, and won't keep that end ROM, and you'll just be playing a game of cat-mouse with your own body, trying to gain more ROM, and then your body tightening up more. This is also why Lifting to get stronger will help too. I reccomend Olympic Lifting- as compared to just your basic Bodybuilder, or Powerlifting. You'll be strong, explosive, and it has a focus on Mobility (Ankles, Hips, Thoracic Extension, Shoulder Flexion, etc.) Don't do so much that you can't train BJJ, this is secondary- slow progress is still progress, and it's better than no progress. 2 days a week is probably enough to not take away from BJJ, but still able to see some progress
5. Foam Roll- get a Foam Roller, and a couple lacrosse balls (3). Tape 2 of the lacross balls together (for your Thoracic Spine). Now you have 3 mobility tools- a Foam Roller, Lacrosse Ball, and a T-Spine Roller. (Eventually you'll need better equipment, but for starting this is good. If you want the best equipment, go to Roguefitness.com)
6. Heat- taking a hot shower or bath before stretching will loosen up your muscles and allow you to go deeper. But make sure to retain that heat by wearing some spats and sweatpants (otherwise your muscles won't be hot anymore and you just wasted water)
7. Compression- Using Voodoo Floss (or the ghetto version by using the Inner Tube of a bike tire) can help you gain more ROM (It's also good for when you injure yourself, as it will help recovery. Using it on the Wrist/Elbow/Shoulder/Ankle/Knee is where it's best).
Hope this helps
#1. angles > flexibility. (although of course having great flexibility will be very helpful regardless of how you play your game, but when it comes to jits learning to leverage your hips in the right direction is key).
#2. practice yoga. you don't have to join a class, find some basic flows on youtube that focus on hip openings and back twists (helped me tremendously with leg locks and single x attacks... not to mention my old ass injuries).
#3. look into ido poratl's movement based training, but with that research gynastica natural and some of scott sonnen's vids on dynamic stretching and movement.
in my semi-educated opinion (and seeing transition from break dancing and dynamic stretching from various top level grapplers) it simply makes sense. static stretching without movement could be detrimental to jiu jitsu training, or flexibility in general.
in order of evolution :) ... i guess the "proper" term nowadays is "locomotive training/exercise".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDG8HacqGx4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t776I1J6Y1E
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0Wr7HsylE0
All the stretches listed below work great. What I have also found is that by rolling on a foam roller and a lacrosse ball will loosen up all the knots in your muscles, making everything very lose. Take a lacrosse ball and stick it right underneath your hip and search for any tender spots. Once you find the tender spot, roll on the tight area for around a minute. Repeat this a couple of times and you will notice a huge difference. Lacrosse balls and foam rollers really help.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jacob Kelly
Thanks so much guys. Amazing advice. Can't wait to implement this into my training schedule!
It's not about flexibility, the angles are fundamental, at least to start. Helpful video by Einstein.
https://www.facebook.com/10thplanetE...4130165883224/
There is a great book out there for mobility and flexibility called Becoming a Supple Leopard by Kelly Starrett. It breaks down the different areas of the body and gives great stretches in each. Also good for everyday functional movements too.
Good thread.
I think Kelly Starrett's books and videos are fantastic
thats some excellent stuff , beautifully explained.Quote:
Originally Posted by Greg Pavlik
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9pWgXwwxvUQuote:
Originally Posted by Jonathan7B
I've been doing butterfly pose, pigeon, and attempted single lotus. I'm going to add all these other stretches now. Thanks!
This makes no sense to me. It seems your flexibility may not be the issue. There are plenty of non flexible rubber guard players. Maybe share a vid so we can see what's going on.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jacob Kelly