BJJ is notoriously tough for newcomers. This is displayed by the sheer amount of people who quit whilst still new to the martial art. As a general rule, roughly 1 in 10 beginners make it to blue belt. However, when you factor in the number of trialists who only stay for one or two classes, this number probably goes down considerably and is closer to 1 in 15 making it to blue.
With this in mind, the statistics speak for themselves. This prompts the question, why is BJJ so tough for newcomers?
Table of Contents
Physical issues and injuries
BJJ is undeniably physically tough. It is a full body workout that tests muscles most people never knew existed before training. Because of this, these new aches and pains can be off-putting for a newbie. Whilst everyone has played sports at some point in their life, BJJ is completely unique in this sense. For instance, you may have muscular arms but a weak core. BJJ will test this and some people don’t respond well to the constant soreness of training.
Linked to this, injuries can also put people off the sport. As mentioned, you may be in physically good shape prior to training BJJ. However, BJJ doesn’t care about this. If you fall badly you could pop your knee, if you tap late, you could rip tendons in your elbow. This is because newcomers may not understand the correct movements to keep their bodies safe.
With this considered, the most common time to get injured in BJJ is at the beginning. It is completely reasonable for people to quit if they get a big injury, especially if it threatens their livelihood or quality of life. Generally speaking those older or physically out of shape are more likely to fall into this category for obvious reasons.
To summarise, if you are not physically fit and reasonably conditioned by the time it comes to spar properly, you may get injured. BJJ is not tennis, neither is it a round of golf. It’s not too likely that you will be injured by your training partner, it will be your own lack of conditioning that hurts you in the beginning.
Ego issues
Some people believe they are naturally good at things or they are mentally tougher than the average person. However, BJJ will truly test the ego and see if you are who you think you are. For instance, a tough guy may walk into a gym and get brutally tapped out by a woman half his size. For some people, this may be a bitter pill to swallow. Whilst there’s nothing wrong with this and it’s a chance to learn, others may dislike the experience and quit.
If you’re not able to feel ok about losing to people who are weaker than you, younger than you, older than you or a different sex. The chances are you will not last very long in BJJ no matter how naturally talented you are.
This can sometimes be seen with physically strong beginners. They may enjoy dominating equally unskilled opponents due to size with submissions such as the Americana. However, if they spar higher belts then their size is nullified by technique. If you are attacking a higher belt very hard, then they are far more likely to go hard back against you.
This is where the ego is tested and instead of confronting the idea that you’re not actually that good, for some it’s too much to handle. Maybe the person will make up an excuse about how they didn’t like BJJ, it isn’t effective, or they simply found something else to do instead. The reason doesn’t really matter, but the result is that they quit.
Lack of progression
BJJ has a visually slow level of progression. For instance, if you compare it to a video game where you can clearly see the progression in the game. This can be via leveling up, unlocking new items and becoming stronger. BJJ doesn’t work like this. You can have plateaus which last months, you can get beaten by an athletic newcomer and the progress is far less visible.
Most of BJJ is a day-to-day mundane grind. If you don’t enjoy the aspect of training itself, then promotions are few are far between. Maybe you will turn up to class 350 times before receiving your blue belt. If you don’t like training in itself, it is easy to see why you would be disheartened by the slow promotion.
Due to this, progression in BJJ is a long-term gain that takes great patience. Some people may sign up expecting quick results which don’t materialize. The lure of the black belt is also too long for some, generally taking 10 years to achieve. In other martial arts such as Karate and Judo this can take 3 years which is significantly less. Due to the lack of visible progress and goals, it’s understandable why some people leave.
Genuine lack of interest
There’s a saying ‘Jiu Jitsu for everyone’. However, this saying is somewhat untrue. Whilst there’s confirmation bias with veteran BJJ practitioners that BJJ is awesome and saves peoples lives, the truth is that some people just don’t like it. Not everyone has had an addictive traumatic life, so they will not need or enjoy BJJ in the same way that other people wil.
It shouldn’t be assumed that whilst BJJ is popular in some circles it doesn’t mean everyone else will enjoy it. Again, using video games can be given as an example. Amongst gamers, it may be hard to understand why someone else dislikes playing video games. This is the same for BJJ. It doesn’t mean the quitter is weak or soft, it just means they don’t find the activity of BJJ enjoyable.
It may sound strange to everyone involved in BJJ, but recreational strangling is not a popular hobby for the average man or woman.
Monetary cost
Compared to most martial arts or sporting activities, BJJ is expensive. If you look at a regular gym the monthly cost maybe $40 per month. An average BJJ gym maybe triple this amount, costing $120 per month. Obviously, the instructor is far more skilled than someone supervising people running on treadmills. But people don’t really take this into account when first signing up.
Similarly, other sports such as Judo and Boxing are significantly cheaper. From a self-defense perspective, there are less costly options too. In these two sports, a good proportion of gyms are run as non-profit entities. Without needing to pay an instructor’s bills, the sport can be made a lot more accessible.
Another issue with BJJ is the cost for the clothing. Especially with branded gyms such as Gracie Barra and ATOS, the uniform may cost almost $300 when kimonos, rash guards and other accessories are accounted for.
Another costly experience linked with BJJ are the contract lengths. Some gyms have 12 month contracts which can have an up front cost of over $1000. This is a tough decision to make if you are a new student. The payments may not even get frozen if you get injured. With this in mind, it’s true that BJJ is an expensive martial art and can be too expensive for working class people with cheaper alternatives at hand.
Nothing In Life Prepares You For BJJ
Whilst there may be exceptions such as those who have wrestled throughout high school or had experience in another tough combat sport. The average westerner has done nothing before like BJJ, as there is not much to compare it with.
BJJ launches a full scale assault on your mind and body. After your first class you will be wondering how it was so physically tough, along with how you had no idea just what you were doing. In addition to this, you most likely will have lost to people who were a lot smaller than you.
You begin BJJ wondering how you knew just so little about grappling on the ground as well as how much detail there is to the sport. As you progress, you also begin to understand more about BJJ, but still keep having epiphanies about just how little you know.
Summary
As outlined, there are a large variety of reasons as to why people quit BJJ early on. These generally include injuries, ego problems, lack of progress, finances and a genuine lack of interest. Because of this, it’s not unusual to see most people last a couple of months in BJJ and then never to be seen again.
BJJ could be made easier for beginners but this obviously comes at a cost. By making things easier and “nicer” for newcomers to the sport, you risk watering down the curriculum and venturing in to McDojo territory.
Overall, modern day BJJ is nicely balanced between too tough and too easy. It would be bad for the sport to go the opposite way and start losing practitioners due to being too tough and macho.
