Spine Preparation for Jiu Jitsu
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Spine mobility is essential for jiu jitsu. Not only does the spine need the flexibility to move in a variety of positions but must also be able to become rigid an stable at end-ranges as well. .
A popular transition in modern Jiu jitsu is the act of inverting. Some people feel that inverting is too dangerous for the spine and not good for long-term practice. Inverting is not necessarily more dangerous than other positions IF your spine:
1️⃣Has the capacity to perform the movement
2️⃣You can equally load the spine, avoiding overloading an area
The problem with inverting occurs when people attempt it without adequate spine capacity and resiliency to perform correctly and force their spine in positions it cannot go or cannot tolerant.
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“You can’t move where you can’t move”- @drmchivers .
Often specific segments of the spine do not move well so the segments above and below have to compensate for the lack of movement from its neighbor. The areas that have to compensate often are the areas where spine buckling may occur.
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Movement is the key to a healthy joint. My good friend @cbinghambjj warms up his Thursday class at @precisionjjacademy with various yoga positions and asked me to show some joint-specific training to warm up the class for jiu jitsu. Here I am teaching the importance of spine segmentation.