Can Yoga help my Jiu Jitsu?

Coffs Harbour Jiu Jitsu Yoga

Yoga and Jiu Jitsu are two practices that complement each other exceptionally well, each offering benefits that enhance the performance and experience of the other. 

In recent years, elite BJJ practitioners have shown a growing interest in yoga for enhancing their physical conditioning. Those who practice both yoga and BJJ often highlight the strong connection between the two disciplines and how they complement each other effectively. BJJ is known for its physical demands and injury risks, and since flexibility plays a crucial role in injury prevention, integrating yoga into training can greatly enhance flexibility and reduce the risk of injuries. Injuries are a common aspect of BJJ, making them almost inevitable. However, by listening to your body and focusing on vulnerable areas, you can speed up recovery and even avoid certain injuries.

​As you advance in BJJ, you will find physical and mental limitations, these areas may require specific support and work. Yoga complements various aspects of BJJ. For instance, if hip flexibility is a challenge, specific exercises can boost your mobility. Similarly, for issues with concentration or breathing, yoga proves to be incredibly beneficial.

First a little bit about YOGA

Yoga is a physical, mental, and spiritual practice that originated in ancient India. The word "yoga" comes from the Sanskrit root yuj, which means "to join" or "to yoke" and often refers to the union of body, mind, and spirit. While the roots of yoga are spiritual, today it is practiced in various forms around the world primarily as a means of physical exercise and stress relief.

Yoga is an ancient system that offers wisdom, techniques and practices to support physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing. From the physical postures (asana) and breathing techniques (pranayama), to guidance on living (yama & niyama) and meditation, the aim of different yoga processes is to help a person achieve harmony and greater understanding of themselves and life.

Some of the commonly known benefits of practising yoga:
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• Improves flexibility and balance: Yoga poses and stretches help to increase mobility and enhance the range of motion in various joints in the body.
• Reduces stress and anxiety: Yoga practices such as deep breathing, meditation, and certain poses help to calm the mind and reduce stress.
• Improves overall health: Yoga has been linked to reducing high blood pressure, improving heart health, easing chronic pain, and strengthening the immune system.
• Enhances mental clarity and concentration: Yoga practices promote mindfulness and focus, leading to improved clarity and concentration.
• Promotes better sleep: Yoga practices can help to reduce anxiety, stress, and physical tension, leading to improved sleep quality.
• Increases strength and tone: Yoga poses and sequences challenge various muscle groups, leading to improved strength and muscle tone.
• Boosts self-awareness and self-esteem: Yoga practices help to increase self-awareness and self-esteem by promoting self-reflection and self-acceptance.
• It is important to note that the benefits of yoga vary from person to person and depend on various factors such as the type of yoga practice, frequency of practice, and individual health conditions.

Yoga Australia, 2024.

The Gracie connection

I have watched many BJJ videos, one that stood out was ‘Choke’, the documentary about Rickson Gracie. I was truly amazed by Rickson's remarkable grace, balance, and strength in his jiu-jitsu practice. His demonstrations of breath control and balance during training sessions were truly impressive. Later, I discovered that many of these were advanced yoga techniques, which highlighted Rickson's incredible yoga skills. This revelation sparked an interest in me, and though it was years later I started to practice Yoga, I knew then there was something special about it.

Why is Yoga good for Jiu Jitsu?

3rd-degree Roger Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt said that,

​“Of all the additional systems and methods I’ve used to improve my jiu jitsu ability, I consider yoga to be by far the most effective. So much so, that I’ve eliminated almost all other supplemental training from my regime. This includes, kettle-bell training, Olympic lifting, swimming and rock climbing. I’m not claiming these aren’t great ways to improve your jiu-jitsu. I’m saying that, at this point, I get a far bigger return investing my limited time into the practice of yoga.”
​Source: Jiu Jitsu Brotherhood 

It appears that jiu jitsu and yoga are crafted to complement each other, with numerous shared similarities and truths. Their intertwined origins in Buddhism and ancient India add to their connection. Apart from known health benefits like reducing depression and high blood pressure, yoga can also enhance your BJJ practice in numerous ways.

1 - Correct imbalances

Jiu jitsu can lead to poor posture and musculoskeletal imbalances. In sports science, there's a concept known as 'SAID', which stands for Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands. Essentially, it means that the body adapts to the positions or activities it encounters most frequently. In jiu jitsu, one of the primary demands imposed on the body is contraction. Whether you're in guard, side mount, back control, or various other positions, your body tends to be in a contracted state. This can result in rounded upper back due to holding onto opponents, tightened hip flexors and from knees being tucked up, and tension in the neck and shoulders.

This excessive contraction is especially noticeable in defensive postures like the turtle position. Interestingly, the aging process also involves contraction, which contributes to the characteristic hunched posture in older individuals. To counteract these imbalances, regular practice of yoga asanas and vinyasas proves to be highly effective. Yoga helps by both lengthening and opening the body, thereby restoring balance.
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Moreover, practicing yoga can enhance your jiu-jitsu performance. Many jiu-jitsu submissions require an expansive movement away from the body's center, such as in a straight armbar where you arch your back and drive your hips forward for leverage. However, these movements can be hindered by existing imbalances. By addressing these imbalances through yoga, you can generate more power and improve the effectiveness of your submissions. Additionally, consistent yoga practice can alleviate back pain associated with jiu-jitsu training.

2 - Improved Flexibility

​Those who know me, know I'm not very flexible... Whenever I see those nimble jiu jitsu practitioners effortlessly contorting their bodies, I can't help but feel a mix of admiration and envy. I see my students wrap their legs around their opponents from the bottom of the mount and swiftly turn the tables. 

Getting older, I knew I had to ensure i stayed flexible, I developed a stretching routine, but it was yoga my accidental exposure to that truly made the difference. Its impact on my flexibility was remarkable and rapid.

​While it's true that flexibility isn't an absolute requirement in jiu jitsu, it undeniably offers a significant advantage. The wider range of motion in your joints opens up a plethora of options in every position. Some techniques, like the elusive rubber guard, remain out of reach until you attain the necessary suppleness.

3 - Increased Strength and Balance

The kind of strength developed through yoga practice is unlike anything else. Over the past couple of decades the phrase ‘core strength’ has become popular in sports training but yoga goes beyond that.

Not only does yoga train the central nervous system to fire muscles in the correct sequence, but it also teaches you which muscles to engage to maintain postural alignment and efficiently move your anatomy through space. Good posture and moving efficiently are hallmarks of superior jiu-jitsu.

Although yoga tones and strengthens, it does not produce excessive muscle hypertrophy. Too much muscle mass is not good for jiu jitsu because it burns oxygen quickly and inhibits movement. Consistent practise (combined with a good diet) will reset your body to its optimum tissue composition.

Yoga is exceptional for developing balance, a must for jiu jitsu practitioners. Many of the standing asanas are done unilaterally (on one leg), which not only improves stability but sport-specific strength as well. Mastering them will massively improve your top game by making you far harder to sweep. It’ll also improve throws and takedowns.

4 - Body Awareness and Breath Control

Your body serves as the tool for your jiu jitsu practice, and the deeper your understanding and better your control of it, the more skilled you will be on the mat. The heightened body awareness from practicing yoga is incredibly beneficial. A key aspect of this is mastering breath control.

Engaging in vinyasas not only helps synchronise your movements and breath but also allows you to harness your diaphragm and optimise lung function through yogic practices like pranayama. This will significantly enhance your endurance while rolling.

There are many more benefits of yoga and you might be thinking... where do I start? The first point is to ensure your yoga instructor is qualified and insured, that they have done the required hours. Yoga instructing, like jiu jitsu is a life long journey. The next point is finding a yoga instructor who can apply their yoga teachings specifically to jiu jitsu.

At Cris Hisa BJJ Team we are so very lucky to have Dan, who is an qualified and approved yoga instructor. Dan is masterful at adapting his classes to the jiu jitsu technique of the week, working with our students ensuring strength and agility, using balance and breathing techniques to help you 'control the panic'.

Namaste!

Image: Cris and Yoga teacher Dan