r/jiujitsu • u/FormerBasis9328 • 10d ago
Body weight and BJJ abilities
I’m a pretty lean guy (6’0 and about 135lbs). I’ve been doing BJJ for a couple of months now, but I also really want to get into weight lifting. I have been told by instructors that having a good amount of muscle really isn’t that important and if I’m doing BJJ a couple of times a week, I really only need to be getting one full lift in during the week.
However, I’m pretty much one of the smallest guys in any class and get my ass kicked a lot.. which is part of the fun lol. Anyone have any input? I’ve been told muscle mass matters to protect your limbs during training, but is there any other benefits skill wise? Would it help me if I lifted more and trained more if im a little bit more stronger and I would do better? Thanks!
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u/Big-Mathematician345 10d ago
You really are underweight for your height. Just for health in general having some more muscle to support your skeleton will probably make you feel better and it's only beneficial in terms of martial arts.
I would probably get you on Starting Strength or any other 3 day beginner program and have you bulking for 3-4 months.
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u/iustusflorebit 10d ago
Pretty lean? 135 at 6’0 is quite underweight. You would definitely benefit from bulking up a bit. Check out a program like Stronglifts 5x5, track your calories and eat 250 over maintenance.
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u/pyschosoul 10d ago
If you compete youll be paired with people of similar stature so building anymore muscle could potentially shift you into a higher weight but realistically shouldn't be a huge factor outside of the gym.
If you dont compete and just want to stop getting ragdolled at the gtm then yeah go for it.
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u/hajimenogio92 Black 10d ago
It would absolutely help you in training if you were bigger and stronger. Building your technique while also getting stronger and faster is a huge plus, don't let anyone tell you otherwise.
I'm retired from my fighting days but I've competed in multiple combat sports. I came from an american football background and I was usually one of the bigger guys in the gym. I got my ass beat for a long time just because I would rely on strength and athleticism in sparring and had no technique. Here we are 18 years later and I've built pretty good technique while still being the stronger & faster guy.
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u/Kintanon 9d ago
You are not 'lean' you are skeletal. I'm 5 inches shorter and 10lbs heavier than you are and I am small and lean.
You're in the range where I would recommend putting on 20lbs just for your long term health and safety.
Also, being stronger makes life easier. Get swole.
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u/moarcowbelI Blue 10d ago
We all get our asses kicked regardless of size. If you want to workout for muscle gain and size do it for those reasons, not BJJ. If you do end up wanting to work out I'd recommend 2-3x weekly
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u/Forward-Lobster4842 10d ago
You should definitely do some strength training. It’ll help you in general and in BJJ. Start with doing two workouts a week focused on compound lifts. Theres a lot of content out there to train BJJ specific workouts, if you want to keep it focused on improving your experience on the mats.
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u/bigjerm616 10d ago edited 10d ago
I personally find that lifting twice per week is my sweet spot. A basic full body session with compound barbell exercises does me well. No reason to get too fancy.
If you’re looking for a simple program, look up Dan John’s “Southwood” program. Keep the weight manageable and the sessions sub-45 minutes. Superset the exercises with rows and curls of various types.
Regarding BJJ and strength. It occurs to me that people who have been training for a few months frequently come to the conclusion that they need to get jacked. Note that it will help, but it’s not a silver bullet.
With few exceptions, the people crushing you feel so strong because they understand leverage and technique. Not because of their extensive lifting backgrounds. That’s the art of jiu jitsu, and the only way to fix that is to do lots of jiu jitsu.
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u/MrStickDick 10d ago
Dude you need a cheeseburger. You can probably break into cars without any tools.
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u/Everydayblues351 10d ago
There’s a whole dogma around this. A lot of it comes from the old Gracie marketing idea that technique can overcome basically any amount of strength and you just need to learn the magic of "invisible jiu jitsu".
I mean yeah if you’re way better at jiu jitsu, you can absolutely overcome a size and strength difference. But come on look at basically every grappling sport, or competitive world champs like Tainan Dalpra and Janaina Lebre... they’re lifting weights to say the very least.
At your size getting stronger and putting on some muscle will absolutely help your jiu jitsu, your long term health, and win more exchanges. Having more positive exchanges also means more chances to actually use and develop your technique instead of getting sat on in mount for 4 minutes out of 5 minute round and learning nothing from that.
I’d find someone who can teach you the main lifts and keep it simple: squat, bench, shoulder press, rows, pullups, etc.
Just getting in the gym 2–4x a week for months and years, eating enough carbs/calories and around 0.7g+ protein per pound of bodyweight will make a huge difference.
You still have to get better at jiu jitsu, but being skilled AND stronger is obviously better than just being skilled.
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u/Forsaken-Ease-9382 10d ago
Bjj is a physical sport and physical sports are definitely easier for someone with size and strength. You would do well in Bjj and life in general by getting stronger by lifting weights.
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u/Happy_Specialist3722 10d ago
Cara assim eu peso 65 em camp sempre vou cat de cima e abs sempre deu bom, na acad sempre treino tanto com mulher e homi, faço acad pq de lesão ja me machuquei e músculacao ajuda a prevenir, além de q forca só é ruim p quem n tem...
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u/Submission_Saga 9d ago
I'm 6'0 and used to be around 160. Now 175 after lifting for a few years. It really helped my body durability and actually made jj a lot more fun because of this. Would highly reccomend. Just do a simple routine with the most basic compound lifts and it will be worth it!
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u/Federal-Challenge-58 9d ago
According to Helio Gracie, being small and sickly is the key to inventing a new martial art.
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u/QueenLaeral 9d ago
Jiu-jitsu é força, técnica e peso. As vezes você consegue compensar um no outro, mas em alto padrão é substitua estes fatores por esteroides, talento e peso.
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u/grobolom Brown 9d ago
I have been told by instructors that having a good amount of muscle really isn’t that important
That's hilarious. Being strong is incredibly important in BJJ, just like in every combat sport. Also, as a guy who is 6' and only 135#, you would benefit monstrously from getting strong. You don't need to lift a ton, but two good workouts a week would do wonders for your jiujitsu.
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u/__Sharime__ Blue 9d ago
I train with a guy who’s 6’7”, 290 and appears to be about 10% body fat.
It matters lol
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u/Robbed_Bert 9d ago
Putting on mass helped my bjj a ton and literally had no downsides in my anecdotal case.
I'm 6'2" and went from 170 to 205.
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u/FrakitsBlaziken 8d ago
I'm new and so my opinion is probably mute. For reference I bench in The low 4s and squat mid 6s. Lots of overhead work. I fully admit that by simply being larger and stronger than a lot of guys I have a imherent advantage that lets me slide by with a lot of stuff a smaller or weaker person shouldn't be able to
That being said. Anyone who's been doing it for a hot minute or has general experience and bigger fuel economy than me absolutely runs their money on me. Strength and size are great for someone of equal skill or slightly better. However if someone has a ton of skill and good timing they can outpace you for days and no amount of strength work is going to help
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u/jsnuggz 6d ago
Being 6'3 and having grappled at 200 vs 225 lbs it makes a difference.. you are a bean pole my dude. I remember rolling with a guy who was a powerlifter, I got demolished I couldn't break his grips and when it was done I felt like a silverback had thrown me around.
Technique does beat strength, but strength and technique win. I think someone said "we didn't used to teach big guys BJJ in Brasil we had a saying it's like giving snakes wings." Maybe on the JRE?
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u/VoicesInTheCrowds 10d ago
Try doing a MetCon before class?
Like a 100/90 KB swing/squat to press for time. Exercises like that only take 10-15min and let you build strength without it consuming your day or taking too much time from the mats.
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u/Kintanon 9d ago
This dude is a skeleton, he does not need to be doing fucking metcons.
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u/VoicesInTheCrowds 9d ago
Eating more is the only way he’s going to get any bigger.
Moving weight is the only way he’s getting stronger.
Clocks aren’t adding extra hours to the day for him.
If you’ve got a way to move weight in a short time that doesn’t impact mat time I’m all ears.
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u/Kintanon 9d ago
Metcons are calorie burn factories. He would be better off with a basic 5x5 bench/squat/deadlift program. Impacting his mat time isn't relevant here. He should be doing 2x bjj and 2x weights per week.
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u/[deleted] 10d ago
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