Age survey

[paco99]

I'm going to be 40 in a couple months, and I just started BJJ in May of this year. I'm trying to convince some friends to join who are a couple years older, and they think it's crazy to even consider in their 40s.

However, I'm trying to convince them that they should look into it as long as they are in shape and don't have any major medical problems.

How old is everyone on here who practices Grappling/ BJJ/ or Wrestling?

When did you start?



Thanks,

paco

[MA-Caver]

I don't practice it but don't have any qualms about picking it up if I can find a qualified instructor in my area... and I'm 47 at this moment.

Tell your friends that you're never too old to pick up any type of MA. If they don't believe it... :idunno:.... their loss.

[PictonMA]

I've only been doing BJJ formally for a couple years, but I've been studying Ju Jutsu and Judo since 1992.

I have people join my club all the time well into their 30s, 40s and even 50s. Age never has to be a limiting factor.

[lklawson]

I started doing C&E at about 35 and segued from Aikido into Judo at about 38. My Judo club has just promoted a Brown Belt who is a grandfather (who started with his teenage grandson) and if he's a day under 60 I'll eat my hat.

Tell your friends to stop being scared little girls.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

[arnisador]

I started BJJ at about 38. I gave it up last year due to a knee injury.

[Dave Leverich]

I started MMA (& no-gi BJJ) about 2 years ago, 38 now.
One thing, if they train hard, they will hurt... all the time heh. Until their bodies get used to the duress that is (took me about 6-8 months to adapt). I use fish oil (2/meal) glucosamine/chondroitan 2/day, ibuprofen etc etc. The supplements really seem to help.

I don't hurt now, after a couple years at it, and I'm in better shape than I was 10 years ago. Tell them to nut up ;).

[morph4me]

I started aikido when I was 35 and I've been doing it ever since. Right now the average age of the people in my class, beginners included, is mid 40's. It's never too late to start.

[Nomad]

I'm doing karate, started when I was 31, and am now 39 and going strong.

That said, resign yourself that most of your friends are likely to consider you crazy for taking this on at this time in your life. Many will give excuses of one sort or another about why they "can't". The truth is that their priorities are just in a different place than those of us who frequent message boards like this, and they likely are a bit scared of this type of physical activity.

I think you've made a terrific choice to start training and hope you continue for many years to come. Don't expect to make converts of all your friends; it's very unlikely to happen. If some do decide to join, great; otherwise you'll make more friends who are already training.

[bekkilyn]

A lot of 40+ year old people might as well be 80+ the way they act. "Too old" for this, and "too old" for that...blah blah blah. Sure, if they think like that, they probably are "too old" and it would have nothing whatsoever to do with actual age. I've known 20-something year olds who are the same way.

Similarly, there are 70+ people who might as well be 30 because they aren't afraid or unmotivated to get out and do stuff.

The "too old" age thing is mostly just an excuse for people who really don't want to do something.

[lklawson]

That said, resign yourself that most of your friends are likely to consider you crazy for taking this on at this time in your life. Martial Artists are a minority at any age. And it's not exactly uncommon for non martial artists to think that you're crazy for wanting to engage in such violence, particularly if you eschew Eastern mysticism as part of your practice. I mean, folks seem to accept the idea of a Zen pacifist practicing a "martial" application that he would rather die than apply but if you want to wrestling, punch someone in the head, or learn to use knives and sticks and such... well, you're a nutbar.

<shrug>

You learn to ignore the martial ludites and pick out the folks who understand.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

[B'Dragon]

I have a friend who started Aikido with me when he was 54 and now he's in his 70's is a Sandan (third degree black belt) and still trains and teaches Aikido. Wonderful guy.

[Steve]

I started just after my 36th birthday and am pushing 39 now. I say go for it. You don't really even need to be in shape. BJJ x3 per week will get you into shape. I trained as often as I could, listened to my body and set goals that were realistic for me. I dropped 40 lbs in the first 6 months of training and feel much better now than I did at 25.

I'll be a little more cautious than others, though. Being 40 or 50 or however old isn't a reason to stop doing things you want to do, but do it smart. At 38, I'm not as resilient as I once was. I'd recommend that your friends get a check up and talk to their doctors about training. BJJ is an intense workout.

They should also listen to their bodies. The kids that train 6 days each week are to be commended, but I just can't do it. I'm good for 4 classes per week plus some open mat and light rolling outside of class. I get too beat up to take care of my family if I overtrain.

I would definitely suggest supplementing their diet with fish oil. The best thing my doctor recommended for me was to superdose on fish oil. He recommended between 8 and 10 grams per day. More than glucosamine/chondroiton or any other supplement, fish oil has been like WD-40 for my joints, particularly my gimpy hip. It's good for your heart, too.

Finally, if they do it, I'd recommend taht they just commit to 6 months. Depending upon their conditioning, it's going to take a while for them to even get their heads above water. I spent the first 3 months just struggling to make it through class. I'm confident that many of the guys at my school doubted I'd last... I was that guy who comes in, sweats like crazy, looks like he's about to keel over and often pukes in the bathroom after a 5 minute round. I was that guy.

Fortunately, in spite of the nausea induced haze, I was having so much fun I just had to go back. Eventually, my conditioning got better... still questionable, but better, and I was able to engage my brain enough to learn some jiu-jitsu.

I'm really not overstating the situation or just saying this. Barring any medical reason to the contrary, if I can do it, anyone can.

[paco99]

Thanks everyone for all of your replies. This was extremely helpful especially for me.

When you recommend Fish Oil, what is this for? Is it for your joints?
Is this the same as Omega 3 Fish Oil?


Thanks,


Paco

[Steve]

Yeah. Generally, the container will recommend ~3-4.5 grams per day. I usually take 8 grams. It's actually the only thing that's been scientifically shown to improve joint health, IIRC.

[paco99]

Thanks. I just bought a bottle. Each capsule has 1 gram of Omega 3 Fish Oil. I will start with the recommended amount and see how it goes. I need all the help I can get.


Paco



Yeah. Generally, the container will recommend ~3-4.5 grams per day. I usually take 8 grams. It's actually the only thing that's been scientifically shown to improve joint health, IIRC.

[Steve]

Thanks. I just bought a bottle. Each capsule has 1 gram of Omega 3 Fish Oil. I will start with the recommended amount and see how it goes. I need all the help I can get.


PacoGood luck with that. Here's an article I found doing a quick google search: http://www.totalhealthbreakthroughs.com/2009/01/if-i-had-to-pick-just-one%E2%80%A6/

I also posted about this on my blog. It's a great topic. I quoted your original post in this thread and used my first response as the core for my blog post. I hope you don't mind. If you do, let me know.

http://www.stevebjj.com/2009/08/dont-let-be-your-excuse.html

[Tomu]

Finally, if they do it, I'd recommend taht they just commit to 6 months. Depending upon their conditioning, it's going to take a while for them to even get their heads above water. I spent the first 3 months just struggling to make it through class. I'm confident that many of the guys at my school doubted I'd last... I was that guy who comes in, sweats like crazy, looks like he's about to keel over and often pukes in the bathroom after a 5 minute round. I was that guy.



^^^
I started at 35. Only been 4 months, so I'm still the sweaty/spaz whitebelt. In fact I almost blew chunks during defense drills monday morning. Funny thing is I can't wait until Thursday night so I can do it again. :ultracool

Definitely going to try the fishoil. Thanks SteveBJJ.

[seasoned]

Old guy here, age is what you make of it. Once we get to a certain age, late 50s or early 60s something within our mind clicks. It is a little voice that tells us, everyday, that we are getting old, and to slow down. If we slow down, we end up doing nothing, and die inside first, then, outside. If we approach it sensibly, these can actually be very productive years. We know we are at the other end of the spectrum of life, so we tend to focus on the important things in life, including our approach to self defense and the arts. I am 66, and look old, but, only when I look in the mirror. The secret is to not look in the mirror, and just do what you have been doing all your life. I have 43 years in the arts, and I rely on that drive and fortitude that was installed there many years ago. I can tell you from experience that you are only as old as you think you are. Take that from someone that is there. :)

[K-man]

As Seasoned says "age is what you make of it." Age wise I am following closely in his footsteps and although I don't formally train BJJ I am happy to get on the mat with anyone. The younger guys are, the more surprised they are to find that older martial artists may be old but they are not weak and feeble! I was 59 when I took up Aikido with all the rolls and falls. As the old adage states, " I may not be as good as I once was, but I'm as good once as I ever was." :asian:

[seasoned]

As Seasoned says "age is what you make of it." Age wise I am following closely in his footsteps and although I don't formally train BJJ I am happy to get on the mat with anyone. The younger guys are, the more surprised they are to find that older martial artists may be old but they are not weak and feeble! I was 59 when I took up Aikido with all the rolls and falls. As the old adage states, " I may not be as good as I once was, but I'm as good once as I ever was." :asian:
This I like, very much. http://www.martialtalk.com/forum/images/icons/icon7.gif

[Mike Hamer]

While not formal BJJ training, I started training in IRT (which does cover alot of groundwork) when I was 18.

[Tony Dismukes]

I'm 45 years old and practicing BJJ almost every day.

I've been doing some form of martial arts off-and-on for 20+ years. I officially started BJJ as my primary art about 5-6 years ago, but I had a couple of years off in the middle of that for health reasons.

Most of my classmates are about half my age and much more athletic. I have to compensate with patience and technique in order to keep up with them.

Things I find that help me, as an older practitioner:

1) Regular yoga practice helps keep my muscles supple and helps me avoid injury.
2) Staying calm and patient on the mat. Since I don't have the explosive speed and power that some of the young studs have, I need to take my time and look for my opportunities.
3) Leaving my ego at the door. Any time I have a break in my training for whatever reason (illness, injury, life emergencies), I know that my conditioning will fade quickly and I'm likely to take a beating when I start back on the mat. If I can let go of my embarassment at not performing up to par and just treat the whole thing as another learning experience, I can get myself back up to speed pretty quickly.
4) Constantly looking to refine my technique so as to require less effort.


Hope that helps!

[MattJ]

I started BJJ at age 37. Been out of training for the past few months, but looking to get back into it soon.

[paco99]

Steve,

That's fine. I don't mind at all. I appreciate the link to the article. it sounds like this is something everyone should be taking for better health.


I hope 4 grams a day is the right amount. That's what the directions said.


Frank


Good luck with that. Here's an article I found doing a quick google search: http://www.totalhealthbreakthroughs.com/2009/01/if-i-had-to-pick-just-one%E2%80%A6/

I also posted about this on my blog. It's a great topic. I quoted your original post in this thread and used my first response as the core for my blog post. I hope you don't mind. If you do, let me know.

http://www.stevebjj.com/2009/08/dont-let-be-your-excuse.html