Are you a 30 year-old BJJ practitioner? Or are you a bit older than that… Or just a tad younger? Be it as it may, you’re around 30 years old and you’re in love with Jiu-Jitsu and grappling in general. And you want to keep training for as long as possible.
But here’s the thing: your body hurts much more than it used to hurt just a couple of years ago. Injuries take a lot longer to heal up. And it’s making you feel frustrated, as you’re not as vital as when you were in your 20s.

There’s no need for frustration, though. You just need to change your approach to training a bit. It’s nothing too drastic and just 3 tips will do the trick.

3 TIPS FOR GRAPPLING AFTER 30

First of all, when your body needs rest, respect it. It’s so easy to get lost in the “no pain, no gain” mantra as a grappler… But if you side with the pain too much, without leaving space nor time for the body to pick itself up, you’ll soon find that what was supposed to be 1 or 2 days of rest is now a full month.
You’ll sense that your body needs rest. When you do, go for it.

Secondly, it’s time to stop ignoring stuff like when you were younger. Address the issues that pop up. Feel your back is too tight for far too long? Go to a doctor. Something snapped and hurts a bit? Go to the doctor. Something doesn’t feel right with the shoulder? Yup – go and get checked out at the doctor.
You get the point. Address the issue so you can overcome it as soon as possible. Ignoring it will only make it worse.

And finally, it’s a must for you to create maintenance the heart of your daily routine. It’s high time to start doing corrective exercises, stretching, mobility work (pro tip: read the “Becoming A Supple Leopard” book), and even to start going to massages.
And yes, it’s even better to start doing this long before stuff actually starts to hurt – while you’re young.

Nick “Chewy” Albin shares why this is so important in more details on the video below: