Bulletproof For BJJ Podcast
Discussions on improving your BJJ, navigating mat-politics and all aspects of the jiu jitsu lifestyle. Multiple weekly episodes for grapplers of any level. Hosted by JT and Joey - Australian jiu jitsu black belts, strength coaches, and creators of Bulletproof For BJJ App. Based out of Sydney, Australia
Bulletproof For BJJ Podcast
QNA: Should Kids Lift Heavy, Which Weight Class, & Gi Or Nogi
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A good martial artist does not become tense, but ready.
Speaker 1:Essentially, at this point, the fight is over.
Speaker 2:So you pretty much flow with the goal.
Speaker 3:Who is worthy to be trusted with the secret to limitless power.
Speaker 4:I'm ready a question. Go to bulletproofforbjjcom, hit the podcast tab and record us a voicemail. Guys, we fucking love hearing from you. We know it takes a little bit of time to get back to y'alls, but please go and leave us a voicemail because we absolutely love it and it generates some epic discussion. The first question today is coming in from the ginger ninja Do it?
Speaker 5:Hey guys, hope you're well. I'm just after your opinion on kids' heavy weightlifting. I've seen an increase of kids' weightlifting recently and, in particular, deadlifts. Just after your opinions do we think it's beneficial, detrimental, et cetera? I've sent through some reference videos in a bulletproof Instagram page. She has, but just after your thoughts, thank you. Oh, but just after your thoughts, thank you.
Speaker 4:Oh, what a fucking great question and how interesting, being that the last question we covered on a recent Q&A was about a fella, a lovely bloke, also an Aussie, who wants to get his kids into some extra strength training. That's right. Look first thing we've got to say is we are not an authority on kids and strength training. However, it has never stopped us sharing our opinion, so let us proceed with that.
Speaker 1:What references? Well, no, I, I would say well, I've trained kids, so this is from ebony, ebony, strafford, from, uh, queensland.
Speaker 4:She came to the you, I recognize the fucking. Yeah, you knew, you know so shout out ebony um.
Speaker 1:She may not want it to be named. She sent me a video of Eddie Hall's son, who I think is like 14 big kid, right strong kid, lifting with terrible form. Now Eddie Hall is a legendary lifter one of the greatest deadlifter of all time.
Speaker 1:Like right up there until recently, his deadlift record stood for a long time first guy to break like do 500 kilos. But of all time like right up there Until recently, his deadlift record stood for a long time right, the first guy to break a like do 500 kilos. But this video is his son with the belt on round back all the way.
Speaker 1:And you're like is that what he's meant to be doing? Because don't get me wrong there's a lot of discussion around if having a rounded upper back is bad in deadlifting and actually you know, eddie cone and a bunch of other top top all the big strong guys are using a flex thoracic thoracic, but not lumber. No, no a flex.
Speaker 1:I'm trying to keep it yeah because you it's really not set up to take load at those top, top, top levels, right. And so evany said she's like what do you think of this? I'm'm like that's garbage technique and I'm sure you can have Eddie Hall co-signing it, but that's terrible, right. And yes, I actually am a big fan of getting young men and women to lift weights, but with good technique and this is something we said before If your technique holds up, then you're good, right, like it's. Yeah, please continue up until the point that you don't. And I keep that rule for everybody. So I don't think it doesn't matter if it's a young person or an older person. You really can't make excuses for techniques that are going to lead to injury because we're not in the gym to get fucking injured, we're not trying to be heroes and really, really I think it's irresponsible for adults to promote kids to go heavier and heavier if their technique looks like shit yeah, I think, um, like kids have a, like kids are fucking malleable.
Speaker 4:They are kids. But like you, can you see it? Like you like that kind of video? Right, a kid can do this incredible feat lift this obscene amount of weight with the most fucked up posture that an adult couldn't do, because they would just blow their disc out or they or they'd have some other kind of um security mechanism in their body. Go, no, stop compensate. Yeah, you know, and so I think the thing is that we can't, like kids should be strength training. They should be lifting heavy relative to their level of strength and ability, but it doesn't mean that we should be like grossly overloading things and putting them into shit positions just because they can. Yeah, right, and this is this is the dilemma, right With a for a lot of kids is that their coordination can be a little bit funky, right, as they, as they're growing. I don't think I'm ever going to want him to be lifting at that upper end for a long time, but I'm absolutely happy for him to be lifting well, at a moderate kind of intensity.
Speaker 1:You know what I mean. But I mean you can see clips of like young Chinese girls who are doing Olympic weightlifting, lifting with immaculate form and their body weight is like whatever 35 kilos, and they're lifting their body weight.
Speaker 4:But are they grinding in that kind of?
Speaker 1:1RM thing that we no, no, but they're working at a very top end, but their technique is fucking crisp. And this is where I think we've got to be really clear that even though a guy like Eddie Hall, who's got one of the greatest deadlifts of all time I'm not sure what kind of a coach he is when he's standing there on the sideline going go on, son, go on. You know, and it's clearly anyone outside I was like is that wrong? Cause even Ebony's like that looks wrong to me. And I'm like, yes, yeah, because it's. It's whatever you say. His son's been lifting for a little while. His son's been lifting probably as long as his dad's encouraged him to do it. Ultimately, if it could be injurious, it is irresponsible for the adult to promote it. That's my take on it. So if you've got a kid with amazing technique and they can do it safely, then you want to encourage different types of load-bearing activity. But dangerous techniques, dangerous techniques.
Speaker 4:I mean, this is the beauty of like Olympic lifting for kids. Is that the technicality puts a handbrake?
Speaker 5:on the intensity On the load yeah.
Speaker 4:Yeah, you know, and, and you can just drill the fuck out and kid will get strong, Right? Yeah, Um, like like the Chinese weightlifters that we say, like I would say that I've observed in gym culture and you would have seen this too is that deadlifting, like heavy barbell work, has become really popular among kids? It has, and there's this and I see kids, and not kids like that age, but like 15-year-olds, 16-year-olds, Teenagers, young teenagers.
Speaker 4:Fucking awful form, going super heavy, and I'm like, well, we never did this. I mean we never deadlifted right, not in my scene, it was all just upper body bodybuilding shit Depends, yeah, yeah. Yeah, but there's a trend going on right. They're seeing it and of course, some kids are doing that really well, but a lot of them are just doing it dog, shit, yeah, and so, yeah, it's problematic, poor coaching.
Speaker 1:Good question and like, based off those videos, you're spot on in saying that I don't think it's a problem with weights.
Speaker 1:I think it's a problem with technique and not learning it right. Agreed, the number one thing you can do to improve your BJJ training is develop a strength and mobility routine, and we have the routine for you the Bulletproof for BJJ app. Myself and Joey have put this together with our over 30 years of experience in the health and fitness industry, as well as over 30 years of BJJ training. It is the culmination of everything we know to help you unlock your athleticism for BJJ the perfect mix of strength and mobility training, as well as the perfect amount of advice to keep you on track, minimize your injuries and have you performing like a weapon. Take the 14-day free trial. Just go to the App Store or the Play Store, download the app and you can get in there, use it, benefit and also join our community where you can get advice, get coaching and get your training better. Today, go to the App Store, download the app and we'll see you on the inside.
Speaker 3:Next one, frederick, download the app and we'll see you on the inside. Next one, frederick. Hi guys, frederick from Norway here. I'm 22 years old, I've been doing B2J for about seven months white belt and I've been doing powerlifting for seven years. I'm enjoying BJJ a lot, but I'm noticing that the powerlifting clashes a bit with my BJJ, especially when it comes to weight groups, because I'm 183, roughly 150, 120 kilos, depending on the day and if I'm trying to get up my numbers and stuff like that in powerlifting. I recently had my first bdj tournament, uh, where I noticed that the heavyweight classes were too big for me, uh. So I'm wondering how do I figure out what weight bracket is best for me and what weight should I cut down to? What kind of process do I use to figure that out? Because I'm not the tallest guy in the world and I feel like that. The weight issue I'm not tall enough to weigh what I'm weighing, I guess after experiencing my first tournament.
Speaker 1:So how do I decide my weight class?
Speaker 3:I guess.
Speaker 4:Okay, I got it. How tall did he say what's?
Speaker 5:183 by 120?.
Speaker 1:Fuck. So is my height 120 kilos, Power lifter. Unit 22 solid Unit Hench bra.
Speaker 4:Hey, norway, love to hear it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, dude, visit the country, once Beautiful, strong, of the North. Look, I'm going to say this Because it's your first comp. I don't think that's reflective, right Like I think you can be your weight and your height and do well, but no, there's some big motherfuckers out there and when you're in that super heavyweight category.
Speaker 1:It's open. Right, you're now in the opens, you? What is it like? 110 plus huffthor could show up, yeah, yeah, I think it's 99 to 110, and then it's like 110 above, depending on what comp you're in. And generally when you're doing local comps you're weighing in on the day.
Speaker 1:So there's cutting weight kind of doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Yes, could you maybe be lighter? But here's my question for you, my solid friend how much are you prioritizing jiu-jitsu and how much are you prioritizing powerlifting? Because when you drop that weight, you're going to notice that your max strength does go down a little bit. Right, and that's you've got to work out what you're optimizing for. You will be more efficient, move better, you know, feel lighter, have more energy if you're lighter. Right, it's just that simple. It doesn't matter who you are, but you're going to notice your top-end lifts for SBD it will be harder to keep them as heavy as they might be now. So I think you've got to make a little bit of a choice of like well, if I'm prioritizing jiu-jitsu, I have to accept my strength might go down a little bit if I am going to try and lose a bit of weight here.
Speaker 1:An important thing to understand, and I don't know because I've never seen you right, but there's a guy called Honório. You may have seen him. He's a GFT guy. He's a fucking unit. I think he's one of the special police in Brazil. This guy is not tall, he fights in the heavyweights and he regularly wins the absolute, and he is significantly shorter than people. So I don't think being shorter and being solid is necessarily your biggest problem. But, that said, as you gain more experience, I would recommend maybe checking out your body composition, like how much is muscle, how much is fat? It will be more efficient for you to be a fraction lighter and what I'd say is just work out what is your composition. If you've got a little bit more body weight, that's, a bit more adipose tissue, then maybe you're getting light as there. But if you've got the densest bones and you're just like you know, just a nugget of a human, maybe it's getting better at what you already got.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I mean, yeah, I agree in that you've only done one comp, so you can't go off really the data, because it's not enough exposure to know. But, man, if you've been powerlifting for seven years, you are going to have a distinct strength advantage on everybody. And I would think like I remember competing against guys who were shorter and nuggetier than me, and I actually hated competing. I'd prefer a bigger guy because it just felt like I could control a bigger guy because I just felt like I could control a bigger guy easier.
Speaker 4:So I actually think you should be able to like it, shouldn't? None of this should be a disadvantage for you. You got to just find how to make it an advantage. That's right. And look, if you're 120 and you're competing against someone who's 140, you are smaller and faster and more agile than they are.
Speaker 4:And that's going to be your advantage against them. All things being more or less equal, so I would not change anything drastically. I'd just stick with it and fucking see how you go, because you sound like you could be a real nightmare.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it sounds like your athletic potential is huge in jiu-jitsu, but I would just say, maybe do a DEXA scan and find out what is the composition here, because maybe there's not a bunch of weight for you to lose and play with it right? You're early in the journey. You're young Mate, fuck around and find out. I think you're going to become a monster, he's like oh. I'm 2% body fat Fuck a monster.
Speaker 4:He's like I'm two percent body fat. Wow, you're like damn. What's that like bro? Third one for the day coming in anonymous people is hiding their identity strange hey blue belt here.
Speaker 2:Uh, my question is should I go back to training in the gi? Um, yes, for context, I've been doing jiu-jitsu for about four years now and I originally started off in the gi, but um got kind of pulled into the whole like no gi allure and uh started training exclusively in no gi and kind of got obsessed with no gi and I haven't trained in the gi in like such a long time. Right. Um, now, uh, after university, I moved back with my folks and I've been training at a 10th planet gym, which is really cool. The only problem is is that the hours really don't align with mine and so I can't get as much training as I want to um, since I have to, unfortunately, go to work.
Speaker 2:But a other gym opened up nearby me, but it's a gi exclusive gym, and so I've been debating whether or not I want to spend the money to do cross training, just so. You know I can improve my jujitsu. So I wanted to know if you think it's a worthwhile investment for me to um start training Gi, even though I know I exclusively just wanted to like compete in no Gi tournaments and such. Uh. Thank you Also. I love this podcast. It's very swag uh thank you also.
Speaker 4:I love this podcast. It's very swag, great. Thank you, man. Blue belt, the man who identifies as blue belt.
Speaker 1:I like it. Look, I'm gonna say yes, but that comes with its own bunch of hard right, I think what?
Speaker 4:yes to going and training go train the geek.
Speaker 1:But it's playing on hard mode in the sense that if you haven't trained the game in a while and, like you know, I haven't trained the gi in a while and, like you know, I hadn't trained the gi in a while I did an open mat a little while ago in the gi. Immediately got like gi graze on my face, Knuckles like straight away. Oh my God, the fingers hurt. You know there's all these things. And also I got twisted up because someone had my pants leg and I was like trying to get and they're twisting me and I'm, you know, framing and it contorts you in a way that usually in no gi you just you know you can slip out, yeah. And so I believe that, even though there are these kind of negative side effects of training in the gi, the good thing about it is it does slow the game down a little bit and it makes you think and in that way that is helpful for jujitsu.
Speaker 1:I'm not saying gi jujitsu directly translates to no gi, no, I am not saying that. But if it means you get to train more, even though you've trained for a while and you're a blue belt, I think it will still help you develop. Because, if I, if you're only training once a week, if that at the 10th plant gym, even if you love it, your progression will stall. You're a blue belt. We want to see you get to purple Like I think. If whatever enables you to get a bit more training in, I think that's the choice.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I would agree. I think, just getting it in, if it's choice of like in the gate or just not doing jits, do it man, the. Yeah, I mean I guess, like you know, you're at blue belt now, so you, you know you're at a time where you might want to start to specialize, but I would think that taking time off the mats because it doesn't have the exact flavor that you want doesn't really make sense and, to be honest, like you can just work your no-gi game in the gate. Yeah.
Speaker 4:Of course you've, and to be honest, like you can just work your no-gi game in the gi. Yeah, of course you got to deal with the fuckery of someone that's putting you in a reverse de la worm or a yeah using your lapel, yeah, like, and then that all. Yeah, we all hate that, but you know you can just be doing your same shit and getting better so that you're keeping the blade sharp when you're back on the no-gi mats yeah, no, I think the option that allows you to train and stay on the mats is the option.
Speaker 4:Yeah, for sure, and and you know what actually there's, back when we started, it was just you just did both, yeah, and it just didn't matter. And in my mind it still doesn't matter, it's more. It's more divided now and we've spoken about this a lot and they're kind of separating as worlds, but this a lot, and they're kind of separating as worlds, but you can also just look at it as the same shit, it's all grappling.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you know what I mean. Yeah, it's just like different parameters. This is like you know if you're playing a game when you're a kid and then you just include like a new rule. So I feel the same way. If I'm doing judo, I know certain grips I can't take, but it's like okay, all I have to do is put this guy on the ground. Seems kind of easy, like not easy, but it's. It's easier than I put him on the ground and now I gotta pass his guard, now I gotta. If I can just put this motherfucker on the ground, I win. That feels like an easier game to me because it's it. But it's just a different rule set and same thing with wrestling, same thing. Any kind of grappling you do. You just look at us like oh, it's just a slightly different take on a similar game, yeah, and, and just make it more fun for yourself. Don't get like hard-baked into the ideology of just no gear, just gear, whatever the fuck yeah, I um appreciate the questions today.
Speaker 4:if you want to leave a question for us, go to the bulletproof web web page bulletproof for bjjcom. Go to the podcast tab, hit the red button, record us one and we'll feature you on an upcoming Q&A episode. Peace, yes, indeed.
