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What is turf toe?
Turf toe is an injury commonly associated with grappling and is most common amongst wrestlers in particular. However, it can also be found amongst Judokas and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu practitioners. In brief, turf toe is a result of takedowns and typically happens when training double and single legs.
In shooting these takedowns, the practitioner’s toe gets bent into the mat which can damage the bone and joints in the toe. Because of this, turf toe usually occurs on the big toe, however it can also happen with your smaller toes if they also get caught.
BJJ Training with turf toe
In most cases with BJJ, turf toe isn’t severe. This means most people can train with the condition, as long as they avoid certain positions. To avoid agitating your turf toe you may want to avoid takedowns altogether. As these are the main culprit of creating turf toe, pulling guard is a safer option to allow your toe to heal.
However, if you are a big fan of takedowns then there are a few methods to avoid it during stand up. The obvious one is to avoid single and double leg takedowns which are the biggest causes of turf toe. Here, you may want to opt for more Judo-based throws such as trips and throws. As long as these takedowns don’t involve your toes rubbing backward on the mat then you should be ok.
Another thing that is worth mentioning is that turf toe can be caused by toe hold submissions, albeit this is very rare. The idea of a toe hold is to attack the ball of your ankle. However, in doing this the attacker should hold your smaller toes to control the foot. In some rare cases, people can bend the tips of the pinky toe backward whilst hitting this submission which can cause turf toe. If this happens, then you may want to avoid toe holds and Estima locks whilst training by telling your partner beforehand; or tapping to them quicker than usual.
How long does turf toe take to heal and will it stop me from training?
The answer to this question is dependent on how bad the toe is damaged. For instance, if it’s a minor sprain then you can continue training when you feel ready. This could often mean you don’t miss training at all, or a few days off.
However, if it’s a horrible sprain or break then you may have weeks off. In some rare cases, the condition can require surgery. We interviewed grappler Lloyd Cooper who had surgery on his toes and has lost a lot of range of motion in his toes as a result. He even said this changed the way he passed guard due to the pain.
In short, if it’s that bad then you will feel it and may need an X-ray or even surgery to see if it’s bad. Having said this, most people get off with minor sprains which means they can continue training. Because of this being a case to case issue, turf toe can take weeks to go away or months. In some bad cases, it may ruin your toes forever if not treated, however.
Turf toe taping and solutions in BJJ
Like many things in BJJ, tape is often the answer! You will often see practitioners tape their hands to protect them from injuries and sprains. The same applies to your toes which like fingers are still digits. There are several methods of taping your toes that are designed to limit the movement of the toe. In doing this, it’s less likely to get injured which should help the recovery process. For those wondering, Fuji have a number of tape rolls available at a reasonable price too.
Alternatively, some people can opt for a turf toe brace. This is like a finger brace for your toe and is relatively cheap and isn’t invasive. In wearing this, you can still continue to train whilst your toe has a layer of protection from knocks and bumps. Similarly, foot wraps can also give protection if applied correctly.
Alternatively, you can use this toe brace which is useful on and off the mat.
Below is a good video that shows to apply tape effectively onto your toes
