Your cardio sucks... Here's how to fix it | BJJ Cardio Guide

Your cardio sucks... Here's how to fix it | BJJ Cardio Guide

Want to get better cardio for BJJ? Well... in this video, I'm going to show you exactly how to do it.

“Just Roll More” Is TERRIBLE advice when it comes to improving your cardio for jiujitsu.

Yes, doing more jiujitsu will make you more EFFICIENT at the jiujitsu movements and will therefore reduce the amount of energy you need to use when rolling but it will NOT improve your cardio fitness above a certain threshold.

There are two strategies you need to use to improve your overall cardiovascular fitness for BJJ. 1. Aerobic Base Training and…. 2. VO2 Max Training.

In this video, I explore both methods for getting better cardio for BJJ.

Timestamps:
0:00 2 Methods
0:32 Part 1 - Aerobic Base
1:30 Zone 2 Training
2:43 How to stay in Zone 2
3:16 How to do Zone 2 Training
3:43 Part 2 - VO2 Max
4:37 VO2 Max Training
5:35 How often should you train cardio?

🔥Download my FREE 2-Day 12 Week BJJ S&C Program here🔥

My Best Stuff:

🎙️ Podcast:

My Socials:

#bjj #bjjlife #jiujitsu #jiujitsulifestyle #bjjrolls

[anarchic_ramblings]

It's 90% hydration. Having water in a bottle on the edge of the mat does not equate to being hydrated. Having water sloshing around in your stomach doesn't either. You must drink about a litre of water in the hour or so leading up to training in order to be hydrated. When rolling begins that water should be fully absorbed into your system. You should need to urinate when you get to the gym, or a short while after training starts, and your urine should be clear. Do this and your endurance will sky-rocket. Moreover you won't feel horribly thirsty during training, and won't feel compelled to fill your stomach with water after your first roll.

[someguy-vkpl]

It's so refreshing to see somebody in the BJJ community who actually knows the difference between different types of cardio adaptations. 95% of the jiu jitsu community thinks that steady state cardio is useless because it's "not sport specific" and that "just roll more" is the way to go. These people are hindering the progress of scientific improvement in the sport. Other sports have known these fundamentals for a very long time, but modern jiu jitsu competition is still in its infancy and its participants refuse to learn the sports science that has been established outside of the sport.

[leggoego]

Now just to figure out how to fit all this in my already crazy schedule

[chuckduncan]

Excellent information. I'm 73 and just starting my journey in BJJ. Rolling has sucked for the first year. I started doing HIIT a couple of months ago and it is helping. I also lift 2 -3 Xs per week. Obviously I'm a hobbyist and only train BJJ 2xs per week. Plan to add a third session soon.

[saradenault]

I train jiu jitsu twice a week. Strength train four to five times a week and do two days of tabata cardio on a stationary bike. I started doing tabata sets about two months ago and my cardio has improved immensely.

[DanielStJohn-hcmh]

Excellent! Who am I? I am a 2 x NCAA Champion in Wrestling, a World Silver medalist World Cup and World Team. Now BJJ. You are spot on. Now 55 and still scraping hard in BJJ. Even when 25 we never did more than three max intensity wrestling practices. Sometime you get more with less. Consistency is the key. Our routine was lifting three/four days but focused on power, one day of LSD like 1-3 hr, two HIT workout, and two/three hard sparing days at your max. So yea like half the effort was off the mat. That was all we could handle as humans. BJJ is different then wrestling and definitely requires a long cardio. Wrestling is more explosive oriented were BJJ I am going to smoke you in the long run. Moving from wrestling to BJJ I had issues on pacing longer cardio. I would suggest two LSD workout (Mountain Bike Maybe), two HITS (any) and two max spar days BJJ. I enjoyed you presentation. Thanks You.

[benlevin]

Good video and I appreciate the schedule breakdown. As a 45-year-old, cardio seems to be particularly important; the strength is still there, but the gas tank is not. I am also surprised to see how much the addition of a Zone 2 workout really helps.

[Acrosurge]

I run twice a week. One day I run hills, the other day is sprint intervals. I run drills or shadowbox for 30 minutes on days when I am not running. I'm 42 years old, 165 lbs.

[timschmidt]

Great video! And timely for me, too. 52 and started BJJ about 4 months ago. I finally am up to 3 classes/week. Cardio is the #1 hurdle for me (quickly followed by flexibility, and weight). While I've been doing one hour walks on the non-bjj days, I'm about to start bumping that up to running. After watching this video, I'll probably throwing in some HIIT, now, too :) Thank you!

[shtanna]

Absolutely fantastic! This stuff really does work. I’m nearly 50 and it has made a world of difference for me.

[MattFive]

For years I’ve been training at my v02 max daily only to realize that’s the exact opposite of what you want. Thanks for the video.

[beneltonturkeyslap]

this is f@#$%ing gold. Very good job simplifying the key messages man

[RoguePoet]

Just doing stationary bike for 45 min twice a week has really helped my jitsu cardio. Don’t think just do

[jacko]

I'm a firm believer of having a good cardio base for BJJ. I'm only a blue belt, but I had about 18 months off, got overweight and my game really sucked when I came back. I gave up easily, etc. Since then, been training hard, working on the cardio and I've noticed an improvement in my game, particularly with guard retention and escaping pins.

[Jizzaprove]

Nice topic bro. Cardio always was my achilles heel and is not easy to find good content about it. Maybe now i can fix it at least a little bit...

[aaronstreet]

Nice video. I like the breakdown about how to fit it all together at the end. Having to work so many angles of fitness to improve JJ can be overwhelming at times especially when you just start out.

[FrMatthewharrington]

My conditioning seems to be one of my primary issues. I am going to implement your recommendations and see where I land.

[brendonreddy]

My cardio sucks, two five minutes rounds medium intensity and I’m smoked, need a round off then good to go. I will try this methodology, thank you.

[fookinlookup]

awesome video, where did you get that shirt taht says "chill or be chilled" with the skulls?

[JPMMA]

Thanks. I went to BJJ today after not training for like 8 years. I rolled for abput 10 - 15 minutes and I was DONE! Gonna try these tips! I hope my cardio improves!