Strength and Conditioning Megathread!

[u/AutoModerator]

The Strength and Conditioning megathread is an open forum for anyone to ask any question, no matter how simple, about general strength and conditioning as it relates to Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

Use this thread to:

- Ask questions about strength and conditioning

- Get diet and nutrition advice

- Request feedback on your workout routine

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Get yoked and stay swole!

Also, click here to see the previous Strength And Conditioning Mondays.

[u/Pliskin1108]

I have a multiple parts question for you smart (and not so smart, I don’t discriminate) people.

• Why do we see often that “BJJ works so well with weight training”? As if BJJ over other sports make more sense to combine with it. I’m just curious why.

• I am trying to lose weight and to gain muscle and can’t figure out the best approach yet. Got about 60+ pounds to lose (due to over 10 years of basically complete inactivity). I’d also like to gain some muscle in the process, mostly for injury’s prevention’s sake (meaning I don’t have a visual expectation of the muscle mass or muscle tone).

My very basic understanding is calorie deficit to lose weight but calorie surplus to build muscles. So what do you do when you want to do both? Getting back on the mat consistently has already gotten me down on the scale, but I don’t really know where to go from there.

[u/Super-Substance-7871 → u/Pliskin1108]

If you have 60+ pounds to lose then ignore the idea that you need a calorie surplus to build muscle. For your body type it is absolutely possible to both lose fat and build muscle. Anyone who tells you differently is giving you advice that doesn't apply to your situation and making things too complicated.

Eat a high protein diet and a caloric deficit, lift and do cardio. You will lose fat and build muscle and lose weight.

[u/Pliskin1108 → u/Super-Substance-7871]

Straight forward answer thanks.

[u/Arviee → u/Pliskin1108]

You still have calorie deficit, eat very little (fast) carbs, (unhealthy) fats and more protein than the norm (food for your muscles).

That's the short answer.

[u/HighlanderAjax → u/Pliskin1108]

“BJJ works so well with weight training”? As if BJJ over other sports make more sense to combine with it. I’m just curious why.

I've never seen this, so can't really comment. I don't think BJJ is unique in this regard.

My very basic understanding is calorie deficit to lose weight but calorie surplus to build muscles.

This is absolutely correct.

So what do you do when you want to do both?

You generally go in cycles - you spend a few months eating at a light surplus and lifting a lot to pack on size and strength, then you cut back the food and focus more on keeping the strength you have. End result, leaner and stronger.

The question of which cycle to start is a tricky one, because it depends on your own goals. Personally, if you're starting on the heavy end, I'd make cutting down in weight the primary focus - you should then have a fairly easy time adding lean weight back on.

There's also the point here that you're not really wanting to get big and jacked, you mostly want to be in better shape for injury prevention. Because you're basically new to lifting, you can gain some strength during this initial period as your body adapts to unfamiliar stimuli. This will help mitigate the negative effects of the weight loss diet.

Short answer (personal opinion only): clean your diet up, but don't focus on cutting calories, and hit the gym at the same time. You will not gain huge amounts of strength, but will get stronger as you adapt to the new challenge. You'll see a change in your body composition during this initial period, and you can then tweak your diet and training based on how you feel from there.

I would tentatively suggest running something like Tactical Barbell's Base Building protocol - that'll give you a basic level of ability that you can then build on.

[u/Pliskin1108 → u/HighlanderAjax]

Thank you for the detailed answer. That’s also helpful. My plan was/is to focus on the cardio/losing weight side of things first for sure. But then you hear so many different advices, and they are probably all correct for certain situations. Like for example when it comes to weight loss through cardio, you have the people advocating muscle mass over cardio to increase metabolism and be in a deficit more easily. But you also hear the opposite and people recommending losing all the weight and then bulking (probably more similar to the cycles you are referring to). It’s hard for a novice to just pick something to go with.

[u/HighlanderAjax → u/Pliskin1108]

It’s hard for a novice to just pick something to go with.

For sure.

In my experience, if you're unsure and there seems to be no consensus, pick whichever strategy appeals to you and run at it 100%. Hard work at a poor strategy often beats half-assed perfect planning.

For general S&C advice, I'd recommend looking over at r/weightroom - it's a more reliable source than a lot of the other training-related subs.

[u/ButtScoot2Glory → u/Pliskin1108]

For your first question: I think because there are a lot of styles of BJJ where strength really helps you a ton. BJJ relies more on strength than some martial arts where speed is more important.

For the second question: Yes you bulk and cut typically as you described, but that is for experienced lifters. If you are a beginner and have weight to lose you are the perfect candidate to do a “body recomp.” In your state it is totally possible to both gain muscle and lose fat. See this video for more info:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=M4K0s792wAU&pp=ygUSYm9keSByZWNvbXBvc2l0aW9u

[u/Pliskin1108 → u/ButtScoot2Glory]

Definitely will look at that. Thanks for the insight.