How Often Should You Train BJJ? This can only be answered once you ask yourself two other equally important questions. Asking yourself what your goals are and how much time you can commit to the sport is the key to finding the answer.
Goals
What are your goals for training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu? Are you just wanting to try this out for a year? Maybe you want to be a professional athlete? Who knows, whatever your goal is with the sport it is important to iron that one out first.
Once you have ironed out what you are looking to get out of jiu-jitsu it is time to evaluate how much time you can dedicate to achieving said goal.
Time Commitment
How much time can you dedicate to Jiu-Jitsu? At the end of the day, this is not something you will get good at overnight. It takes about 6 months to get the training wheels off and to feel like you somewhat know what you are doing. Jiu-jitsu very quickly becomes a lifestyle. It is important to look at what you are currently balancing and ask yourself if you could at least get 3 – 4 days a week. We don’t know if it is worth it if you end up only being able to train 1 time per week. Although we would love to see more people join those that cannot commit would just end up wasting money.
We get it, life happens, but it is important to understand what you are signing up for. The road to getting your black belt is a long one. Every instructor has a different philosophy on how they will promote their students but the two things that always underline a promotion are time training and dedication to the craft.
So, How Often Should You Train BJJ?
Answering this question comes down to answering the previous ones in this article. If you have narrowed down what you are looking to get out of the sport both individually and in a competitive sense then the answer should be pretty clear.
Competitors
If you are a competitor you should be at least training 3 – 4 times a week minimum. This will not be getting you to high levels though. The best in the world are usually training jiu-jitsu gym 2 times a day normally 5 – 6 days a week. This amount of training will get you exponentially better but also calls for an extreme level of time commitment that not all people have.
Getting to the point where you are paid to compete in this sport takes true commitment and sacrifice. If you are not constantly training your competition is.
Hobbyist
If you are more of a hobbyist and looking to just stay in excellent shape you should be at your jiu-jitsu gym getting some time in at least 2 – 4 times per week. If you go at this pace your blackbelt is in reach within the next 5 – 8 years.
Once you have ironed out your goals and ability to commit you will then find the answer to ‘how often you should train BJJ?. Now, if you concluded that you want to compete at a high level just training technique is not going to be enough. You will need to balance a healthy mix of strength training into your routine as well as have a structured nutritional guide that you follow!
Happy Rolling!