Listing all the benefits of Women’s Jiu Jitsu would take a multi-volume encyclopedia. Of the many benefits that it offers, the art remains one of the best ways for women to get into great physical condition. At this point, some might be wondering how women’s jiu Jitsu can be an improvement over cardio kickboxing which is commonly the preferred martial fitness program for most women.
Cardio kickboxing does have value but many cardio kickboxing programs are great for burning calories but they are lacking in much practical martial arts training. Women’s jiu Jitsu is not a derivative of the martial arts. It is a martial art and easily in the top three of the most popular martial arts in the world. That means what you learn in a women’s Jiu Jitsu class will work in self defense scenarios. The same cannot be said of a lot of cardio kickboxing programs out there.
A partner conditioning drill used in our Women’s Jiu Jitsu classes in Portland:
Yet, this brings us back to the topic of BJJ for fitness. A common concern arises whether or not jiu Jitsu delivers on fitness goals as well as martial ability. Many women look towards physical fitness programs for their ability to burn fat, tone muscle, and enhance conditioning. Can Women’s Jiu Jitsu do that? The answer is yes. While many may look on the internet and see technique instruction, this may give them somewhat of a false impression of how the art is taught. Technique instruction is designed for learning and demonstration. It really is not intended to promote weight loss. However, there are two other very important components to women’s jiu Jitsu that are connected to learning the technique. These would be drilling and rolling.
Drilling entails performing the techniques in a repetitive (albeit never boring) manner for several minutes and repetitions. The prime goal here is to ingrain the movements so that you become more familiar with them. Also, cardio conditioning and muscular endurance – i.e. physical fitness — is improved through doing so.
Rolling is a nice way of saying “free sparring” and there is no striking or injurious moves involved. This reduces your potential for getting hurt while at the same time boosting your fitness levels.
How does all this contribute to fitness?
On the most basic of levels, a lot of physical movement is required to drill and roll. When you are moving for a half hour to an hour straight at a low to moderate intensity, you will be burning calories – a lot of calories! You could burn 500 – 750 calories in a moderate intensity class. A higher intensity class could burn far more than that.
Drilling and rolling in Women’s Jiu Jitsu also entails using every muscle in the human body. That alone contributes immensely to the ability to tone the body. Better yet, it tones the body without adding an unnecessary amount of mass to the body. For most women, this would be the perfect results to seek from a workout program which is why women’s Jiu Jitsu remains the perfect are for the fitness minded.
Try a Women’s Jiu Jitsu class in Portland