Future Proof Your Knees for BJJ
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is notoriously hard on the knee joints. As a participant I have heard many a blood curdling scream echo across the mat as some poor soul clutches their knee, writhing in pain as if just taken out by a snipers bullet. I’ll admit this is a little dramatic as not all knee injuries from BJJ are of such an acute nature, but as any seasoned practitioner will know it does happen with some regularity.
First of all you should assess the area to find out what sort of injury you may have. Most injuries could be classified as being acute or chronic in nature.
Acute injuries are usually caused by an immediate trauma to the area resulting in damage. It could be a mistimed takedown or getting your leg caught underneath you during a sweep. Whatever the mechanism, the outcome is usually accompanied by pain, swelling and a limited ability to move the joint. The structures involved could be damage to bone (fracture), muscle, ligaments (attach bone to bone), tendon (attach muscle to bone, or cartilage (joint surface). This type of injury can vary in severity but are almost always extremely uncomfortable.
Chronic injuries are usually less immediate in their nature and can be an accumulation of minor damage over a period of time. These could be a result of weakness, poor rehab from a previous injury or constant use of improper technique. Over time small amounts of damage can accumulate to really weaken the area and causing something more sinister.
So how do we combat the evils of injury and keep ourselves healthy on the mat? ASSISTANCE EXERCISES! Man cannot live on jits alone. If you’re a hardcore mat savage it will definitely be taking up the majority of your training time, which isn’t a problem. As long as you’re supplementing your BJJ with some strength work on those problem areas. You know, the ones that complain the most the day after a hard session. If it’s your knees that are giving you a torrid time, then I suggest the following.
Barbell Back Squats
Get some weight on a bar, put it on your shoulders and squat slow and deep. A catch all exercise that not only strengthens the legs but pretty much everything else as well. Keep your head and chest up, back straight and feet just wider than shoulder width apart. For optimum knee development, make sure they track over the toes as you perform the movement. To achieve this, push your knees outward. Now before the lifting police jump all over me, this is a complex exercise to perform properly and some initial guidance from an experienced professional may be required to get the correct technique. It will be worth the investment.
VMO Step Ups
Find one of those fitness step things that some inconsiderate f****r always seems to leave round the gym for me to fall over. Raise one end so it’s on a slope. Stand at the downward end of the slope. Put one leg out in front and gently lower it to the floor so your heel lightly touches the floor then bring it back to your original standing position. Repeat until the teardrop muscle on the inside of your knee is feeling a nice warm burning sensation. This is the VMO which is an important stabiliser of the knee. Keeping it strong and happy puts you at an advantage.
Nordic Curls
The reason I put this challenging exercise on the list is so the hamstring muscles don’t get neglected. It’s no good having brutally powerful quads if the hamstrings are lagging behind. Not a good recipe for a stable knee. I like to do this exercise with my knees resting on a rolled up yoga mat for protection. Get a friend to hold your ankles or hook your legs under a stable object. You then need to fall forward in as controlled a manner as possible. To regress this exercise you can walk yourself down using your hands on a fit ball or attach a resistance band to a solid object behind you. This will slow your descent.
Try these exercises out to help decrease the likelihood of your knees ending up like a rusty gate hinge. They may not prevent the resident leg lock specialist from working their evil sorcery on your lower limbs but they might let you get off the mat without crutches.
RB