Is Gracie Jiu Jitsu Good For Self Defence?
Posted: September 08, 2020
Gracie Jiu Jitsu is not specifically or only for self-defence, but once you begin to train in it, it will become a good self-defence skill.
You don’t want to find yourself involved in a physical conflict, but if you do, then Gracie Jiu Jitsu will help you to protect yourself, especially if your opponent is bigger and stronger than you are.
Another important aspect of Gracie Jiu Jitsu is that it can help build confidence, which is especially good for when children learn it.
What is Gracie Jiu Jitsu About?
The concept driving Gracie Jiu Jitsu is that a smaller opponent can defeat someone who appears stronger, bigger than they are, but who is less-skilled when it comes to using leverage.
The techniques you use in Jiu Jitsu can neutralise an attacker, which makes for good self-defence, obviously.
However, there is a difference between practicing Jiu Jitsu as a sport, and learning it as a technique that you can use in self-defence.
This distinction is a fairly fine one, especially for anyone not learning this martial art, but it is also important:
- When practicing Jiu Jitsu in competitions and tournaments, there are very defined rules and regulations that participants must follow
- Jiu Jitsu for defence, on the other hand, prepares you for a setting where rules will not apply.
This is not to say that learning Gracie Jiu Jitsu is in anyway less disciplined. It shares the same fundamental techniques and approaches as Jiu Jitsu for sport, but it has very different goals.
In sport, you are practicing Jiu Jitsu for points and advantages; but when learning it for possible real life uses, your goal is to minimise the physical threat to you.
Why is Controlling Distance Important?
Two of the main principles when practicing Jiu Jitsu for self-defence are to maintain control of distance between you and your attacker.
Distance works in two ways:
- Either you want enough of it to keep your attacker far enough away that they cannot harm you, or
- You want them close enough to you that you can use your Jiu Jitsu skills to neutralise them.
Controlling the distance of your opponent is the key to using Gracie Jiu Jitsu for self-defence. Typically, this involves you closing the distance in a controlled way and taking the fight to the ground.
What are the Benefits of Gracie Jiu Jitsu for Self-defence?
Gracie Jiu Jitsu is highly practical, and its training methods ensure that people who learn it can perform its techniques in situations against an opponent, even when an attacker isn’t following any rules of engagement.
Jiu Jitsu is about repeated, live training, not simply learning set positions. Most Jiu Jitsu techniques are safe to perform on training partners, so you learn to adapt in dealing with actual resistance.
By practicing actively, you develop muscle memory, so that, in a real world situation where you face an attacker, your body will respond instinctively. This muscle memory comes from constant repetition and application.
The fundamental techniques you learn in Gracie Jiu Jitsu become second nature to you.
How Can Jiu Jitsu Increase Your Confidence?
With Gracie Jiu Jitsu, not only do you learn a practical martial art, which can support self-defence, you can also build your confidence.
By learning Jiu Jitsu, you also experience its therapeutic qualities:
- It unlocks your capabilities, rewarding your tactical and strategic skills without you needing to depend on sheer physical strength
- It bolsters your problem-solving skills, so you to learn how to adapt while under pressure to make rapid, critical decisions and remain composed
- It also helps improve your health and wellbeing by encouraging you to exercise regularly and intensively through your training
- Learning Gracie Jiu Jitsu encourages you to face and embrace new challenges, transforming your outlook
- Finally, it is very much a social experience, where you meet new people, make new friends and join a like-minded community.
Why is Gracie Jiu Jitsu Good for Kids?
The way that learning Jiu Jitsu builds confidence is especially good for children.
Not only does it help to protect them from bullies or other potential attackers, but it also sets them on a different, more confident, disciplined and self-motivated path.
In fact, by learning Jiu Jitsu, they’re probably much less likely to get involved in fights in the first place.
Gracie Jiu Jitsu Training in Surrey
We’re based in Redhill, Surrey, and we teach Jiu Jitsu to children and adults. For more information, please contact us.