How often do you spar hard?

One of my main reasons for training BJJ and kickboxing is self protection and having unarmed skills in the tool box.

I've talked to my training partners, and one of the things we have noticed is that the guys who are at a very high level (purple/brown belts in BJJ and an equivalent experience base in striking) don't really go very hard when they spar. When they do stand-up, they are going maybe just a smidge harder than touch sparring. But they aren't the kinda guys and gals to bite into their mouthpiece and start swinging hard.

Similarly, when they do BJJ sparring, they're mostly just playing with the new guys, letting them work and then maybe catch a sub a little later. Sometimes when they spar with each other you'll see them turn up the intensity though.

So, quick question...how often are you all sparring hard in BJJ or striking?


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Originally Posted by 45dotACP

One of my main reasons for training BJJ and kickboxing is self protection and having unarmed skills in the tool box.

I've talked to my training partners, and one of the things we have noticed is that the guys who are at a very high level (purple/brown belts in BJJ and an equivalent experience base in striking) don't really go very hard when they spar. When they do stand-up, they are going maybe just a smidge harder than touch sparring. But they aren't the kinda guys and gals to bite into their mouthpiece and start swinging hard.

Similarly, when they do BJJ sparring, they're mostly just playing with the new guys, letting them work and then maybe catch a sub a little later. Sometimes when they spar with each other you'll see them turn up the intensity though.

So, quick question...how often are you all sparring hard in BJJ or striking?


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For BJJ, I may go hard in specific rounds depending on the situation and the partner, but for the most part the only day I truly go all out is the Friday lunch time competition class. The rest of the time I am somewhere between 50% and 80%.

For any kind of striking/FoF type stuff, I limit it to no more than 1-2 hours per month. Anymore is just wearing the body out and taking needless damage/trauma. Thai Boxers figured it out decades ago, as did BJJers - you only need a bit of the hard stuff, and most of your training is in that middle realm of intensity/effort. That goes for the elite professional fighters, so it certainly should apply to us.

I had heard something similar from guys referencing the Russian wrestlers mentioning that they placed more value on consistency and training volume as opposed to cranking up the training intensity fewer times a week.

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It depends on what you are trying to accomplish.

If you are training to fight in MMA or boxing you have to spar pretty regularly. I put in 20+ rounds a week when I competed. The boxing rounds were heavier, maybe 80%, but we wore headgear and 16 oz gloves. The MMA rounds were about 50% to the head and 80% to the body/legs. My BJJ training was mostly me starting in a terrible position and working from there. My opponent would have top, rear, or side mount from the start. My other days would focus on wrestling or Muay Thai drills depending on my opponent and fight strategy.

If you are training purely for self defense I wouldn’t spar as much. I’m not much of a fan of play sparring either, I think it screws up your timing. I’d do a million BJJ rolls and work wrestling takedowns, mostly. You can take any human on Earth to the ground with a good enough double/single-leg combo.

Ah man, I need to work on my double leg. Keep leading with my neck and every time I wind up getting stuck in a guillotine. I like a good single leg though. And a good Judo throw if I can set it up.

I'm not really planning to do any amateur fights at this point. Some of our guys do BJJ tournaments, Pankration, MMA or Kickboxing fights and I like to help out as a sparring partner but I probably don't have the time to devote to even the train up for a BJJ competition, let alone a MMA fight camp. Too much work stuff, some big changes coming to my personal life (in a good way) and the shooting hobby. If I did it, I'd want to do it right.

So then it's probably best to keep on with light contact sparring with a few heavier rounds a month.

With the BJJ I've always been the little guy, so I typically find myself working off my back a lot, but I'm getting to the point now where I'm trying to be more aggressive to try to get to the top mount.



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Originally Posted by 45dotACP

Ah man, I need to work on my double leg. Keep leading with my neck and every time I wind up getting stuck in a guillotine. I like a good single leg though. And a good Judo throw if I can set it up.

I'm not really planning to do any amateur fights at this point. Some of our guys do BJJ tournaments, Pankration, MMA or Kickboxing fights and I like to help out as a sparring partner but I probably don't have the time to devote to even the train up for a BJJ competition, let alone a MMA fight camp. Too much work stuff, some big changes coming to my personal life (in a good way) and the shooting hobby. If I did it, I'd want to do it right.

So then it's probably best to keep on with light contact sparring with a few heavier rounds a month.

With the BJJ I've always been the little guy, so I typically find myself working off my back a lot, but I'm getting to the point now where I'm trying to be more aggressive to try to get to the top mount.

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If you aren’t all in, don’t fight it’s not worth it. I’d recommend just continuing to spar a little per month and rolling as much as possible.

Judo is great for self defense, but I didn’t use it much in MMA because most of the throws can be countered by shooting a double-leg. You have to drive through them with your shoulder and an upright head position, don’t lead with the crown of your head forward and your neck exposed. My main strategy for doubles was to work them close enough to the cage or wall to trap them.

That’s what is great about BJJ, each body shape/size has its share of advantages and disadvantages. If you are generally smaller than your sparring partner you should focus on scrambles to tire them and using leverage underneath their hips to work deep sweeps. When on top think position over submission. Wear them down slowly and work towards chokes.. If they get in the dominate position use your smaller size to scramble and force them to work. Big guys tend to fall into your guard or another top position and use it as an opportunity to rest, don’t let them.

Fires Zahabi did a podcast with Joe Rogan about this. His point is consistency over intensity.

Vary the intensity and select your training partners accordingly.

There are some people who don't know the meaning of "slow and technical" and your training partners will dictate what kind of roll it is going to be. If you are on the ragged edge, running your A-game trying to keep up, you aren't going to be experimenting much. Going hard is necessary, but as Cecil said, it's going to beat you up. As you get older, you don't bounce back as quickly from hard training and it sucks getting sidelined with injuries... especially when you are new.

I’m not sure if you’re looking for a specific answer in time or percentage but for me it’s all done by feel. I usually pick 1 or 2 matches to train aggressively but the rest I am allowing myself to be put in bad positions so I can practice working out of them. I think it’s a matter of what you feel you need. No different than going to the range with a plan in mind. Choose a focus for the night, then train it. Be disciplined and try not to get off track. Aggressive submissions or striking is just one piece of the puzzle and training is just that, training.

When doing BJJ, and mind you I am barely a novice, I normally am at about 50%. Some rounds the intensity is up, others we are just going light and easy and I'm looking for pointers when I'm stuck in a position. Stand up is light, just enough contact to keep honest folks honest. I remind everyone that we all have to go to work the next day. High levels of contact have a lot of risk of injury, or being hurt (they are different in my book), and can side track your training.

Anyone telling you they are going hard in their stand up all the time is one of three things: telling a lie, hits like a 6y/o child, both 1 and 2. At least this has been my experience Going hard very occasionally with good protective gear is a good experience. But, it shouldn't make up the bulk of your training. Aside from the injury issue, I feel it stunts your technical development. Or it very much can. If every time you try something new you get hammered, you very quickly quit trying new things. Your technical range never developes because you are punished for trying to move beyond a very limited set of skills. It would be the grappler's equivalent or never working open guard because every roll was going to be at full bore, 100% death match intensity. If you get smashed and passed and submitted quickly every time, you never get to experiment with your game.

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