51 yr old 1st degree black belt here. Great vid. Old man BJJ is just whatever BJJ works for you and your body that is safe for you and is also effective, while allowing you to maintain your base, posture, and structure. That’s it. As long as you can be effective and avoid injury. Because as you get older injury is the enemy, not your grappling opponent.
I’m 46 and a white belt. I feel like I am not moving forward much and with the criticism I get because of my age is really hard but I love Jiu Jitsu and I go to sleep thinking about it so whatever Jiu Jitsu I am doing, I will keep doing because when I am rolling my world is better. Love so much.
Completely agree with all of this. To me 'old man BJJ' is not about eliminating technique from your vocabulary, its about learning to conserve your stamina, and play a game that doesn't degrade your body. But as with everything else, you find that through trial and error. The trial and error part is what makes BJJ special.
as a 43 year old blue belt with the injuries and other old guys tales to boot....at least in the 10th planet system....its definitely also about eliminating techniques. there is so much excessive stuff that we do in this system that looks great and its cool but depending on your goals at this age would not give a lot of the return. particularly a guy like me who trains for very pragmatic reasons.
Well said. I am a 55 year old black belt (3 stripe) and do whatever works. I just love being on the mat trying to improve. I am a standing outside passer.
42 year old brown belt, training 14 years. I’ve been doing construction since 18 years old (24 years). I’m only 135 lb and I mostly do standing passes because it suits my body type. I think staying away from “rules” that are absolute is key. I feel the biggest difference between grappling while young, and grappling while older, is recovery time. I can move like I’m 20 years old for 2 hours, but need more recovery time. Thanks for another great video!
Exactly! I’m 48 years old, also 135 lbs, brown belt, train 3 days a week. So do I play “old man” jiu jitsu or “small guy” jiu jitsu or what??? I’m definitely not smash passing very many guys haha! I play what I’ve figured out works for my game. And that even varies a bit depending on my opponent’s size, strength, age, experience, etc. We all just have to stay on the mats, have fun, and stick it out long enough to grow and develop our own game that works for who we are.
@@cecoleI hear you. I've only been training a little over 2 years, but I'm going to be 45 in about 3 weeks. At 5'10" and 143, I ain't smash passing too many people either. Even though I spent basically all of 2022 on my back because I wasn't satisfied with my guard game, and even though I'm basically an open-guard specialist moving toward a leg lock game, I still consider passing the best part of my game... And I've passed from standing for at least 14 or 15 of the 24ish months I've been training. Hell, just the other day I basically jumped over a butterfly sweep attempt by a blue belt training partner who's 20 years my junior... Both of us just looked over at my foot (which basically landed in the perfect place for a step-through pass), and were a little shocked at what just happened. Anyway, I guess the point is just that you don't have to be young to be agile.
same age here but blue belt. spot on. im 170 and five eleven. no construction so my ligaments are grand and i thrash young fucks quite often and they return the favor in kind. but the recovery is nuts. takes forever lol
I need to keep up better. I always assumed that "old man Jiu Jitsu" meant being as technical as possible, not trying to match the younger folks' athleticism, taking care of your body, and generally understanding your limitations.
Thank you so much for this and your other videos. I'm an old guy, 65. I trained for about 5 years in my mid 40s. Then my school closed and I had a 15 year layoff. I started again about a year and a half ago, when a new school opened nearby. I was never fast nor super athletic but I've learned good timing is the key to most everything. I do standing passes along with most everything else...well...except flying arm bars. I never could do them anyway. :) Thanks again for all you do. I have gleaned many good pieces of advice from your posts.
I’m a white belt and turning 52 next month. My Sensei just turned 45 this past week as I’m writing this today. What I will say is yes I do have some things to work out in Jits like hip flexibility & joint pains for starters but what I will say is that I still have more energy and vigor than guys 10 plus years younger than me. So for anyone who’s 50+ just get out there and do it. #RespectYourElders #YoureNeverTooOldToGetSpanked 😁😆👍🏼👍🏼👏🏼👏🏼 Thank you for the advice and great vids 😎👍🏼
That's the most beautiful part. As a 46-year-old new purple belt, I love it when the younger guys start to fade during a roll, often because they wasted a ton of energy in the beginning. After the roll while they're on their hands and knees huffing and puffing, I just look at them and smile. It feels great :)
Interesting. I remember some time ago you said that being a blue belt was like being at a buffet; you sample everything then take the bits that you enjoy/work for you. That stuck with me and seems to relate here; I'd never heard of "old man jiujitsu" and it does sound bogus. We all have some issue - maybe too light, too heavy, too stiff etc. Helio was too light, he compensated.. JJ Machado is missing a bunch of fingers, he compensates. Back to your analogy, jiujitsu is a buffet, take what works for you. Every roll someone puts a move on you that surprises you - find the solution that works for you (then smash them next roll...). I'm a 73 yo blue belt and I get annoyed when I get praised for losing a fight - cus old guys aren't expected to fight in the first place. That is the true bs, that is an excuse. Helio figured it out, JJ figured it out, it's up to each of us to figure our own problems out. Bottom line for me; I can't get any younger but I can get better. That to me is the true goal. Thanks for a great channel, mate, and some truly inspirational (and educational) lessons.
Love it! I'm 63 and the pre Covid tournaments I attended I was always bumped down at least one age group and many times up a weight class (192lb). Still I've only taken gold in gi and in nogi didn't get gold on one event because I competed expert as a blue belt. "Old Man" BJJ?? Well, I do stuff even some younger competitors don't, ie.. I cartwheeled out of a butterfly guard to take my opponent's back. I do have limitations due to injuries I've suffered in the military, but I have workarounds that have kept me in shape and competitive. IMHO, many older people simply lack the desire to do some things. Keep the fire burning and keep training.
Thanks for another interesting topic. I'm 57, and I don't think I play an 'old man's game". However, the younger guys, those who are fast and move around a lot, will give me a lot of trouble. So, I certainly understand the advice to put pressure on them to slow them down. But, the interesting part of BJJ is to learn to adapt by not confining yourself within narrow parameters. You certainly need the availability of many tools. What you say makes great sense. Always thank you for the content.
I agree with pukanger below. As as 51 yr old bjj student (just a blue belt), I know I can't move as fast as a 20 year old purple belt and I also know that I won't recover like a 20 year old purple belt either, so for me "old man" jiujitsu is really about learning and using techniques that are not only useful, but effectively slow my partner down to my pace with control, and help me mitigate my risk of injury.
I'm 53, going on 54, and back doing BJJ again after 14 years off. Now, what hinders me a bit are my injuries over the years. I am a retired Navy carrier pilot and a plane crash in 03, hurt my back for life. Other small injuries that are common add insult to injury. Now I studied Judo for two years in my 20's and BJJ for two years in my 30's, so that helps. I just have to listen to my body, suppress the ego, so I can continue to train. I generally only do three times a week, with a day break in between. It keeps my body functioning 😊
In our place there are 4 guys over 60 (70, 68,67 and I’m the kid at 65) 2 of us are brown. It’s more of an MMA gym so we do mostly nogi but none of us feel compelled to do “old man” bjj. We roll with the young guys and gals as peers tapping and getting tapped out accordingly. Our professor loves the examples we set and makes sure that no one gets away with the “I too old to do this” excuse.
I’m 55 and got my BB a few years ago. I used to do the low powerful pressure jiu jitsu all the time. It’s exhausting, wears down your hands and is frustrating. When I moved to Portugal my instructor who has a very good guard would never let me pass and would be able to catch submissions or the constant threat of. When I got up and moved more left to right and started trying different things my passing game opened way up. The first few times I tried different things I literally stepped right through because he didn’t expect it. Every once in a while I resort to pressure passing from the start and feel that I’m not threatening and then I disengage and start being more fluid and having more movement and suddenly things open up, I’m much more threatening and then I suddenly get the edge. You can feel that you got something, that little advantage, then you start using that gravity and pressure to open that fissure for the pass. That’s what had been helping me.
Good video. I’m 62. I try lots of things that end up being “my” Jiu Jitsu. No other label but mine. Keep trying different things and incorporate what works for your own game in and from various positions.
When you have people like Bernardo Faria, Stephen Whittier, John Danahar, and Tom Deblass develop instructionals that provide techniques and concepts that they believe will work for the physiology of older grapplers, I am grateful! It is about the learning curve. I went past a cemetery the other day, two guys started chasing me with shovels. Anything that helps me chase down the learning curve with the time I have left, I am grateful to those folks! Triangle System Instructionals likely focus on practitioners with longer legs, an attribute.
To me, it's all about using your strengths and working on your weaknesses. As a 73 yo white belt (a little over 1 yr training), I'm still working on breathing while rolling. Some techniques work better form me than others, but I still work on those weaker techniques. I doubt that I will ever try a "flying arm bar", but I do try to learn to arm bars from multiple positions. "Old" is always relative to the individual. My classmates say, "you're strong for an old guy" and I think, "so what, there are only young guys on the mat".
I am love this idea about old man bjj. I am 39 and former powerlifter. I have some bad joints. The fun part for me is when the coach is showing us the technique for the day and I go, 'I can't do that'. At first, the coach and younger guys would roll their eyes. Then they finally realized that my body physically can't do that anymore. Now, when I ask the dreaded, 'what if' question they don't roll their eyes, but help me find a variation that my body can handle. I am not an old man yet, but this does fall into the 'old man bjj' category. I am all for trying all techniques to see what my body can handle and what will work against different guard styles.
I gotta say, I’m impressed by this video. I’ve not had a lot of positive experiences with jujitsu folks, lot of ego and arrogant mixed with a “well I can kick your ass” mentality, especially after a back and forth about philosophy in martial arts yadda yadda. But what I found here was a real, thoughtful, and useful perspective for everyone to possess inside and outside of Jujitsu. Gives me hope for Jujitsu for sure. Thanks for the helpful reflections!
I turn 40 this year and am a 1 stripe white belt. I mix it up between gi and no gi. On my non grappling days I lift and do cardio in the gym. I do need to work on flexibility but I believe working on my strength really helps my joints and ligaments. I heard along time ago that strong muscles protect your ligaments and strong ligaments protect your joints. I still wake up sore when the blue belts at my gym catch me in an arm bar but as I learn and get better at protecting my self the soreness seems to fade faster than when I started.
58 Purple belt/165 lbs. I have found that the more I look to be effecient with my energy, the more I find I am moving with a purpose without trying to use too much strength. If you push against a brick wall its not going to move. Push harder and most likely the same. So, I now jog around it.
I'm a soon to be 52 year old white belt and I was just told this week to try to adopt "Old Man Jiu Jitsu" from a fellow mature guy . I'm almost 3 months in and I do "Me Jitsu", which means doing moves and techniques (ones I've learned so far) In a way that works for my flexibility and strength. Have no idea why this was suggested to me, other than purely because of my age. I just smiled and nodded and went back to wreaking havoc on younger white belts, by letting them get all spazzy then choking them. I'm the older mature chill white belt, lol.
I agree with you 1000% - things get oversimplified and we like that because it’s easy to follow, but not always the best approach - I’m a 56 year old purple belt and I move around a lot, jumping from front to back, racing around the legs, I think it’s because I was a striker and am used to that…anyway, I’m sure I couldn’t keep up with a 20 year old doing the same all day, but for 5-10 minute rolls I can…sometimes I’m the more mobile guy, but of course it’s going to wear on me sooner…just my 2 cents…
55 year old brown, i just go with the flow, i save as much energy as possible, defend alot and make the other person work harder then i have my game plan and i go for it when the opportunity arises. If it works great and if it doesn't then its no big deal.
Hey Hey, 3 stripe white belt, 52, 165lbs, 3-4 days a week at the gym, still trying to iron out the basics. Feeling way more comfortable now 6 months in. I just hope i can make it a black belt one day.
I'm 36, basically the old man at my gym. I've mostly abandoned smash passes except as set ups, and focus mostly on hip rotations, hip fakes, leg drags, and various standing passes. I chain them together, usually fairly slowly because I'm slowly. Thing is it works - chained feints even slowly performed work because if it's all the same speed you still don't know what's coming. It creates openings and gives me options. Smashing also got me hurt a lot for whatever reason where as I get hurt a lot less by gently feinting u til I find the true opening.
This old man (52) does whatever technique works. However, there are some positions that cause joints to hurt so I've had to learn how to slightly alter some techniques, or avoid/alter positions that aggravate my joints. It's generally not noticeable to my opponents, which let's me spar the same as everyone else. However, sometimes I am dealing with an injury that needs time to heal. And I'll choose sparing partners who know what's going on. Good partners help take care of you.
I don't get it... the way I interpret "old man Jitz" or "unathletic" jitz, is by sticking to tried and true BJJ techniques that don't require very loose hips and flexibility, as little bottom inversions as possible, and a game that isn't fast paced and more defensive until the right moment. As far as how to pass or escape positions... You burst when you have to, you stay heavy when you have to, you float when you have to, you stand when you have to, you transition when you have to, and you don't transition when you don't have to. These things have nothing to do with age. At some point, you also have to accept that younger and more athletic practitioners are going to be dominant, granted that they are a certain level. I generally don't like the term "old man jitz," as it doesn't mean anything. First of all, BJJ becomes more efficient as you get better, for everyone. Second, older men like Brian Glick are still decently flexible and play a lot of inversions, so what category are they in? Aside from quirky moves invented in the sport BJJ scene, almost none of the tried and true self-defense based techniques require specific athletic attributes, which is the whole point of BJJ. Average children, women, men can learn it and defend themselves. If they can't, it's not the martial art BJJ, it's the sport BJJ. As an old person, ignore the sport BJJ, and look at the likes of Rickson or Roger. You're not going to keep up with Gordon Ryan, I'm sorry. You're also not going to have to defend yourself against Gordon Ryan, but some rando at the bar, airport, street or at a family event.
You adapt your BJJ game to several factors that range so much from physical aspects from you and your opponent to personality traits and mindset. Thinking in one dimension creates a small box unable to solve the myriad of challenges BJJ brings to the mat.
I’m a 3rd degree school owner of 17 years I agree I think it should be trying to figure how not to destroy your body so you can train into an older age. Jiu Jitsu is Jiu Jitsu learn early to keep your self healthy
Old man jiu jitsu is the necessity of guys (and gals) who continue to train after their strength, speed and athleticism is no longer superior to the majority of their opponents. So we have to use these strategies and techniques because there is no choice for us. I have no choice but to use “small man” and “old man” jiu jitsu but chewy is so right- sometimes a totally different approach is necessary and works great on certain people. The main thing is if it uses natural body movements, is energy efficient, works against most opponents and does not require any specific physical abilities like length, flexibility, speed etc.
That's funny bro. I think about "white belt jiujitsu" where I sand-bag and pretend I know less than I actually know, which generally encourages others to chill a bit too. Then I suddenly turn it up by 1000% in random situations and catch a sub. That's what they get falling for some psy ops stuff
I am a 50 year old purple belt. I don’t see old man Jiu Jitsu as a specific style. When I say I am going to old man role all I mean is I am going to use techniques that slow my younger opponents down a bit, and allow me be more conservative with my energy draining bursts.
I think with age, it becomes even more important to acknowledge the complexity of the art, because what you could do with passable technique while you have strength and athleticism, you'll need to be more technical with once those attributes start dropping.
I am 53. Trained in the 90's till 2005ish. Started back up this past December. No technique is off limits to me. However, I do have multiple permanent injuries. So, I would invert to get to my next move, but generally I do not invert etc etc.
I say this jokingly I have developed my lazy man Jiu Jitsu style playing Deep Half Guard. Some tell me, that’s not a lazy game at all. But say, for me it is. I can sweep ultimately being on my back. lol. Either way, you have to find and adjust what you do. Great message.
In life we find something that defines us. We work to prove or disprove it until it is no longer relevant. We then find something that defines us ..wash, rinse, repeat.
At 73 and in my first two weeks of BJJ I assure you old man JJ will be part of my approach. Seriously though I have to laugh at what some people consider OLD. But being old and with some significant past injuries I feel one needs to be aware of that one or two students who are out to show their stuff and potentially hurt someone else. I've already identified one in my school.
Great advice, means that you have to have flexibility and varied options to your game instead of sticking to a couple of techniques that work for your physique, which in turn helps you to grow as an athlete!
As a judoka with 24 years as a brown and blackbelt division fighter and 35 years as a grappler this is so STUPID! You should always practice maximum efficiency minimum effort at all ages. The best submission is always the fastest.
To me at 52, old man Jiu Jitsu is going east most of the time to keep it in reserve when I need it, and to avoid injuries if for some reason I can't avoid the spazzy white belt.
Im 44 white belt doing juijitsu. A younger friend of mine said he does old man juijitsu. Yesterday I out grappled a slightly younger but much bigger man with a higher belt and he tapped out without trying to submit him. This video is the second time ive heard of old man juijitsu. 😅
Been there and done that. I’ve cardio tapped even though my opponent didn’t have anything close to a submission. There are other times where I’m practicing specific strategy and if my strategy doesn’t work then I’ll tap in order to reset so I can try my strategy again
As a black belt getting closer to 40, I think this is one of the best videos you've done, and one of the best videos ever on the topic of "old man bjj"
The thing is that each style of Jiu jitsu will work until it doesn't. Your friend just found someone which doesn't lose to his style, and he needed to adapt. It happens even with younger people.
That’s not my definition of “old man” jiujitsu. When you start jiujitsu at 50yrs old man jiujitsu is all about trying NOT to keep up with the explosive usually younger grapplers. 😅
People need to quit paying attention to numbers and just adapt to what's working for you. That will change over time and you should change with it, but you shouldn't expect that you need to change something if you haven't found the need to change.
I learned in Olympic style taekwondo that you should never put yourself in a box. Im a pretty tall guy, but i use a lot of stuff that people would call "sort person" fighting, and that stuff works really well for me.
"Old man" BJJ is BS. My gym has a couple older gentlemen (56 and 67) and they are beasts. The 67 year old has knee replacements and has a slightly limited range of motion but has Herculean strength and amazing technique. Both these guys are great to roll with and make me work 110%. It's great.
No one said a older guy couldn’t be a good roll or a tough training partner. But the realities of a body with decreasing athletic ability, declining v02 max, longer recovery times, etc are there. Older guys can still be bad mofos. If they want to roll forever, they just have to adjust. I’m learning that right now as I close in on 40.
Question: Does standing pass=old guy Jiu-Jitsu or young guy Jiu-Jitsu? I'm 53 and a chimp strong white belt with a judo background. When I was started in a Judo style of rolling we always started from our knees. This is some sort of remnant from that 77 year old judoka that trained me and my clan. Now, training mostly No-Gi I habitually attack guard from my knees, or maybe one foot on the mat. So, is it old guy Jiu-Jitsu to standing pass? I always feel like I'm cheating a bit. Like, if I have a strong desire to stand, should I unleash?
As a person who is getting older and have been studying since I was 12 when you can't do it it's time to change arts. No shame we are all mortal. You just have to change your approach.
Comeon Chewi. Usually i like your vids and highly respect you This one made little sense, incl the comments on nutrition If you want to talk about „old man bjj“ you first need to set a real definiton - which is not just „smash passing“ - otherwise we all talk about different things
sorry, I couldn't get which half guard game name you mentioned as incredible hard to pass, could you repeat the name please? I'm in a half guard kick right now and want to see different aspects, passing and keeping, especially retention
I’ll be 50 in November.. 2nd degree bb … I’m on the lighter size at under 160 pounds so for me “old man” Jiu Jitsu about efficiency .. energy expenditure ….
There may not be such a thing as old-man-BJJ, but to ignore the differences between how your body reactions, responds, flexibility, and the ability to heal from injuries is sticking your head in the sand. Your game needs to change as you get older, more inflexible, lose a bit of muscle tone, lose a bit of cardio level. A 50 year old that tries to roll like a 25 year old might (and I emphasis "might) be in for a very rude, very painful, and very expensive awakening. And that gym might lose that guy as a student prematurely. If you're over 50, try and not roll too much with people under 40. Your body will thank you.
My old teacher didn't want me to hold on to my GI when people try to submit me by armbar. My new teacher doesn't care and it's kind of funny because my previous teacher's teacher says it's okay on a video here on RU-vid. It has been a year and a half now since I left my old school and I'm going to say this nobody has submitted me from an arm bar except black belts. I've rolled with purple belts brown belts blue belts white belts and when they go for the arm bar I hold on to my GI and I turn into them and then I find myself having the top position either in their guard or half guard or even sometimes in their side control. So I guess everybody has their take on what is good Jiu-Jitsu what is bad jiu jitsu.
I dont get how standing passes arent "old guy bjj" im 46 and yeah i like smash passes but if someone has really good open or half guard i just stand up and drag their feet over thier head then push them all the way over to attack the back or throw the legs to the side and look for side control or north/south. Being older and havingna a bad back i just have keep my back kinda straight when i do it so its mostly my arms and hips doing the work. To me old guy bjj just means im not going to have the ability to recover as fast between rounds, against real fast and young people im going to have to play defensive a bit more and wear them down and modifying techniques to work with the joints i dont have as much flexibility in anymore.
I want you to watch this again when you are 50 Chewy. Then think about what it would be like if you didn't also have years of experience under your belt already.
I’ve had my guard destroyed by an 80 year old who I thought couldn’t walk so I don’t wanna here shit about old man Jiu Jitsu. What do you call a perfectly executed one handed RNC?…… a RNC!!!!
One size doesn’t not fit all. You need to take concepts and adopt the principles that fit you and your style and have the ability and mindset to make changes
