01 Jun Preventing hand injuries in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) is a rapidly growing sport and self-defense method practiced by millions of people around the world. It is primarily a grappling martial art which aims to submit the opponent using a variety of chokes, holds and joint locks.

The hands are used significantly to grip and control your opponent as well as to apply submission techniques. Due to the nature of the sport, the hand is a frequent site of injury. One of the most common injuries in BJJ is traumatic finger polyarthrosis, which is basically a wear and tear injury to the joints and ligaments in the fingers. It often occurs as a result of neglecting smaller injuries over time. It can cause deformity of the finger joints as well as pain and weakness in the hands.

How to prevent injuries from occurring?

There are many ways to try and prevent these injuries from occurring. The first is to get all finger injuries properly assessed and treated. This prevents them from developing into chronic conditions. The second is to use correct gripping technique. By learning correct grip technique and learning when to grip at full strength and when not to, can go a long way to preventing injury. Thirdly, taping your fingers can provide support and help prevent injury. Finally, strengthening the fingers improves the ability to deal with the stresses involved in the repetitive gripping in BJJ.

As the types of hand injuries in BJJ are quite specific to the sport it makes sense to be treated by someone who knows the sport. That way we can teach you the best ways to prevent or recover from injury, and get you back to training as quickly as possible. We can also provide you with ways to modify your training so that you can continue some form of BJJ, while still allowing your injury to heal. You also don’t have to waste valuable treatment time explaining what ‘deep half guard’ is or what position you were in when your injured occurred.

by Greg Usherwood

If you are experiencing finger, hand or wrist pain, don’t hesitate to get in touch. We’d love to help you.

For more information, call us directly on 03 9458 5166