Busted Knee

[Mike Dewitt Jr]

Who has actually hurt their knee while using RG? I know of a couple who have popped their knee in competition using RG, but I was curious how many have and have not. I for one have never had a knee injury from RG.

[Jason Morgan]

Using rubber guard actually helped my knee. When I first started 10P the back of my left knee (strong RG side) had been bothering me for a couple years so of course I was def. worried if my knee would hold up to 10P positions. It was sore starting out but eventually the pain I had for years was gone which coincided with the start of my increase in flexibility. Take that RG haters.

[Mike Dewitt Jr]

Using rubber guard actually helped my knee. When I first started 10P the back of my left knee (strong RG side) had been bothering me for a couple years so of course I was def. worried if my knee would hold up to 10P positions. It was sore starting out but eventually the pain I had for years was gone which coincided with the start of my increase in flexibility. Take that RG haters.

Boom!

[David Rosado]

I have inflexible knees in my opinion. When I stretch by putting an ankle on top of my opposite knee, I get a good deal of discomfort on the outside of my knees.

That being said, I worked a bit of rubber guard last night without a hitch. Worked basic path with no problem (failed the omoplata sweep, but that's not the point hehe). No pain. Not even a feeling like my knee was being stretched at all.

The way coach taught me, you don't need a whole lot of flexibility to do RG effectively. On top of that, he stressed the importance of hugging the knee. Now I'm a total noob when it comes to RG (and JJ in general), but I think it's worth considering that hugging the knee might be a big contributor to protecting your knee. Hug that knee tight and you should reduce its mobility and I'd assume you'd prevent injury, no?

[Brian Beaumont AKA Thor]

As someone held together with scar tissue and duct tape RG has worked very well for me. But you have to know your functional limits and work to increase them gradually. The problem for most people is not the knees but the hips. I warn my students about it all the time. People try to force their way past they're hip limits and the weakest joint the knees fail 1st. The danger increases during comp or even an intense roll when adrenaline kicks in. We know what's safe but if we can just pull that leg down a little farther we can finish the move. It's one of the advantages of having been in the arts 35+ years you pick up some dos and donts.

[Griffin Lambert]

I've never popped my knee using RG.

[Eddie.Jitsu]

Using rubber guard without proper training is bound to get you injured. Make sure you have a good angle and you're emphasizing on hugging your knee to prevent. Also make sure to get some really good stretching before and AFTER practice to prevent injury and improve flexibility.

At the end of the day most of the injuries I've seen personally are from people who've never been properly taught how the RG works. The more common injury I've seen is meatheads torquing the shit out of people's knees with the lockdown.

[Trez "Rat" Reyna]

I popped my knee working a straight jacket while being stacked hardcore. It was my fault though. I went in cold and didnt stretch enough. It was supposed to be a slow roll but it turned into a competition match I guess haha. Guy was a monster and he was mad that he went through 5 guys and only got swept once he got to me haha. Hes a baaad man Though!!! Cant wait till he learns the system with us. Fat Whip always saves my arse!!!!

[Jeremy Gould]

My knees are alright so far.

But I'll be stetching like crazy after reading this thread

[Brent Smith]

Both my legs fell off from ruber guard