I noticed something Disturbing about judo...

[bassaiguy]

It's probably true that a lot of injuries occur as a result of improper warm-up and stretching. Some undoubtedly come with contact either from being hit or hitting or being thrown and throwing. In my case lately it seems that I'm just sort of wearing out. I'm tweaking an injured nerve in my neck more frequently and experiencing more pain from old ankle and knee injuries. This occurs on workout days and off days, sadly.

I just turned 42 and while I'm not in the best shape of my life I'm probably fitter than the average guy my age. I just think that too many kicks and twists has worn out some cartilage and made certain joints kind of wonky.

I'm not sure that this is avoidable if you're in martial arts for the long haul.

[ShoriKid]

As martial artists we are constantly colliding with bodies, the earth (padding only helps so much) and putting torque on joints. Stretching and warming up will help to an extent, as well as building muscle to surround those joints, but there are limits. As martial artists we also tend to continue on long after other athletes have quit the field. Pro football, basketball, baseball, hockey or boxing all are done by their mid to late 30's. Rare exception exist, but they are very notably exceptions and not the rule. Pick any professional sports team, list the major injuries of the players and then track them all for a year. You will be shocked at the injuries that pile up. When injuries have forced others in a physical activity to quit, we stick at it and the injuries show/add up.

[bushido_man96]

As with any athletic endeavor, the body is bound to wear down and have injuries over time. My knees bother me after every TKD class and workout. What has helped my knees over time has been doing heavy barbell squats. My knees don't usually ache after them, and they helped my knees to feel less pain over time.

At any rate, the Martial Arts being athletic endeavors involving some kind of contact for the most part, can cause injuries to occur over time. Its also part of the risk/reward of studying a Martial Art. The only way to not get injured, would be to not do it, I think.

[evergrey]

Well it seems to me that many people who live sedentary lives end up with crippling injuries as well. I figure I'll live my life to the hilt, doing what I love.

My knee injury that required surgery was a result of my leg getting grabbed and twisted, and me losing my balance, and somewhere in there, my ACL snapped. If we didn't practice catching kicks at my dojo, I probably would not have sustained this injury... and kick catching isn't quite so common in modern Kyokushin dojos. We just tend to have a more expanded arsenal of techniques that we learn here, separate from training for knockdown tournaments.

Sosai used to teach some judo stuff, in the 60s- I've seen video. :}

Some of the stuff we do here probably comes from elsewhere though. I'm okay with that- we have a lot of officers learning stuff to survive on the street with.

We also have unusually soft mats here, as we often practice throws and breakfalls. They were great three years ago when I started, but they badly need replacing now. WAY too soft and unstable. Even kata leaves my knees sore these days.

But yeah, martial arts, especially when applied with contact, and with noncompliant partners, certainly carries a lot of risk of injury. I still love it!

[Himokiri Karate]

I am a bit confused!??

Do martial arts school, negate foundation excercises and training due to it being considered boring among the popular demographic of students??

Ever since I restarted my boxing training from the very beginning, I found out that I lacked a good solid jab and proper footwork. Once I learned that, there was no more me clashing and getting shoulder checked by local brawlers, thus eleminating getting headbutted,hyperextending rotator cuffs....

When I cross trained in traditional martial arts hand conditioning my wrist improved and I didnt hurt my wrist in boxing that much again...

I wonder if perhaps you guys who practice judo/kyokushin can benefit from yoga,ballet and boxing. Because it sounds like the nature of judo/kyokushin is a bit too rough for the human body.

[Zaine]

I am a bit confused!??

Do martial arts school, negate foundation excercises and training due to it being considered boring among the popular demographic of students??

Ever since I restarted my boxing training from the very beginning, I found out that I lacked a good solid jab and proper footwork. Once I learned that, there was no more me clashing and getting shoulder checked by local brawlers, thus eleminating getting headbutted,hyperextending rotator cuffs....

When I cross trained in traditional martial arts hand conditioning my wrist improved and I didnt hurt my wrist in boxing that much again...

I wonder if perhaps you guys who practice judo/kyokushin can benefit from yoga,ballet and boxing. Because it sounds like the nature of judo/kyokushin is a bit too rough for the human body.

Martial Arts in general is rough on the human body.

I'm not a fan of negating foundational basics. Sure, it's boring, but important enough to bust out every class. It's also surprising how much farther you can go in a shorter period of time because of basics.

[Himokiri Karate]

I am a bit confused!??

Do martial arts school, negate foundation excercises and training due to it being considered boring among the popular demographic of students??

Ever since I restarted my boxing training from the very beginning, I found out that I lacked a good solid jab and proper footwork. Once I learned that, there was no more me clashing and getting shoulder checked by local brawlers, thus eleminating getting headbutted,hyperextending rotator cuffs....

When I cross trained in traditional martial arts hand conditioning my wrist improved and I didnt hurt my wrist in boxing that much again...

I wonder if perhaps you guys who practice judo/kyokushin can benefit from yoga,ballet and boxing. Because it sounds like the nature of judo/kyokushin is a bit too rough for the human body.

Martial Arts in general is rough on the human body.

I'm not a fan of negating foundational basics. Sure, it's boring, but important enough to bust out every class. It's also surprising how much farther you can go in a shorter period of time because of basics.

I learned this the hardway, my first boxing coach bragged about unknown Techniques. Which basicly consist of some fancy modified version of ali shuffle and other stuff

When I met my current coach, I had to restart from the beginning, learning pivots,lateral movements,jabbing from every direction and the secret...Repeat it a million times for 2 and a half hours a day and ofcourse running stairs and hills.

It maybe boring but to truly understand it, I think sometimes you need the injury and bad coaching to later understand fundemental training!

[sensei8]

Injuries that you speak about in your OP are going to happen when the MA requires one to spend a lot of time on the ground or getting up from the ground or taking someone down to the ground.

[evergrey]

Oh, we do a lot of stretching. We do a lot of basics. A number of us are dancers and some do yoga as well.

[DWx]

As martial artists we also tend to continue on long after other athletes have quit the field. Pro football, basketball, baseball, hockey or boxing all are done by their mid to late 30's.

That's a really good point. Not many athletes go into their 40's and 50's still doing hard contact sports. Martial artists are different in that respect. I'm also willing to bet that a lot of pro football, basketball, etc. players would have similar problems if they continued on the same level of activity.