Despite their numerous health advantages, all sports run the risk of overusing certain parts of the body, resulting in injuries. Due to their close contact nature, contact sports are notoriously high risk activities when it comes to injuries. Grappling arts, that involve or focus on controlling the opponent by grabs and weight tend to show a regular pattern of damage. To receive the right care...
5 taping methods for finger joint protection
Finger, hand, and wrist injuries are common in grappling arts such as Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Judo due to the nature of the sport, which involves intensive gripping and holding. Why taping? Taping the fingers is often done to support and protect the joints, tendons, muscles, and the skin against the repetitive gripping and twisting motions used in these combative art forms. Taping the fingers can...
The principles of body mechanics and their significance in grappling arts
Certain movements come naturally to human beings, for instance, walking, running, sitting and lifting. Yet, a large proportion of the population complains about having various pains in their backs and joints. It is estimated that globally, about 577 million people experience low back pain at a certain point in life (IASP, 2021), resulting from those movements being performed improperly. The...
The ‘pressure-pain-danger’ scale (in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu)
Grappling arts have a specific weapon in their arsenal that other martial arts don’t – the pressure of the fighter’s own body. When fine-tuned, it becomes most grapplers’ best tool. Pressure and causing pain are commonly used techniques in tournaments. Regular trainers know well that causing and taking pain are arts in themselves if one aims to do them mindfully and purposefully...