Conditioning for Jiu-jitsu

[James III]

Hi everyone I'm curious as to how people work out to help their game. Do you just do Jiu-jitsu on it's own or do you also exercise using Machines at the Gym or do weights like Kettlebells, dumbells etc. Or do you do Low impact Body weight stuff like Yoga or Pilates to improve performance?

If you do work out to improve your Jiu-jitsu what have you found to be the most effective form of exercise to help you achieve this?

[Helge Båtstad]

wrestling :P (really tho)
I do alot of squats and alot of different stuff for quadriceps. for the arms I do mostly pulldowns, bicep curls and tricep press

[Griffin Lambert]

I run and I do dips, push ups, pull ups, squats, pistols which are one leg squats and some pylometrics. Actually BJJ is the most effective workout for BJJ though.

[Jack LaBarge]

p90x

[lates85]

i was wondering this too....with regards doing p90x, crossfit, weight lifting and things like that for conditioning...is it good to do these workouts say in the morning before doing jiu jitsu later on in the afternoon? won't it cause you to be burned out or have a weakened performance in class? or should it be an alternating thing like do jiu jitsu 2-3 times a week and the other 2-3 days in between each day of jiu jitsu do the conditioning? what works best for people to enhance their level of fitness...because i figure you have to be REALLY FIT and in excellent shape to work out and do jiu jitsu each day because jiu jitsu itself can be hard.

[Andrew Maxwell]

p90x

+ 1
I also use kettlebells and a total gym(nothing beats its range of motion)

[Arnaud Arross]

I have been doing the Insanity workout...and yes, it is not just a clever name. But it is purely cardio. It's done by the same company as the P90x. This workout seems to be very well planned, so if you start it perform the excersizes just as it says. 6 days a week. It totally blasts you, and yes I will initially effect your performance on the mat. I would suggest doing it after jiu-jitsu class and get plenty of water and rest.

[Mark Hax]

When I workout, I do circuits. I'll do 4-6 different exercises targeting the same muscle groups one after the other, a short break, and repeat. Not heavy, but a weight I fail at 10-15 reps. Gym time isn't talking time. Get the sets in and get the burn. When I jog, I go 2-3 miles at a moderate pace, then sprint full blast uphill 1/10th mile, jog back and repeat. I like going to class the same day I workout. When I'm a little weaker, I have to focus more on techniqe.

[Matt "Gumby" Glach]

lifting: barbell strength training - 3x5s with max weight
cardio: all i do is run, combination of running long distance (3-5 miles) and then you have to throw in some sprints and fartlek days

works for me, i'm 5'9 150lbs, pretty ripped

[Andrew Maxwell]

i was wondering this too....with regards doing p90x, crossfit, weight lifting and things like that for conditioning...is it good to do these workouts say in the morning before doing jiu jitsu later on in the afternoon? won't it cause you to be burned out or have a weakened performance in class? or should it be an alternating thing like do jiu jitsu 2-3 times a week and the other 2-3 days in between each day of jiu jitsu do the conditioning? what works best for people to enhance their level of fitness...because i figure you have to be REALLY FIT and in excellent shape to work out and do jiu jitsu each day because jiu jitsu itself can be hard.

I've always done both. I grew up doing youth then high school wrestling and we'd have two hours of strength and conditioning every morning before school then three hours of practice after school which consisted of more conditioning, stretching, drilling, and actual wrestling. I keep a simular schedule now, alternating cardio and weight training every other day in the mornings and then jits in the evenings. A schedule like this doen't require you to be REALLY FIT but it will make you REALLY FIT over time. The hard part is the first few weeks, those first few you will be dogging it in jiu-jitsu and exhausted, but after acclimating it won't negatively affect your evening training anymore, it will only make it better.