Been trying to find the balance for 20 years now. Which are you more focused on? Bjj or weights?
Not the OP, but here’s my $0.02
I love lifting weights and I love BJJ, but my main focus is BJJ and my lifting is meant to improve my BJJ and improve my longevity on the mats. In the past my lifting was for strictly for aesthetic reasons (wanting to look better naked, tired of being a skinny ba$$tard, ect).
Owen Livesey, Carlson Gracie Hull Black Belt and UK Judo Champ, said that the older you get, the more your weight training and diet matter in BJJ. As a guy in his late 40s I felt that.
I do still get the aesthetic benefits of lifting, but I have to temper my output in the weight lifting gym with my BJJ performance. Being a little sore or stiff from lifting isn’t a big deal, but if my program is too strenuous or my diet is off my BJJ suffers. I modulate my weight training with regards to BJJ, not the other way around.
La’
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I’m 47 in July. Feel great. If I had one exercise to utilize for carryover it would 100% be heavy KB swings
I do low volume high intensity weights… never sore or too fatigued to train in MMA
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Marine77,
Yep, Volume/Hypertrophy work seems to be the main limiting factor for me as well.
La’
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One of my commenters posted these BJJ/Westside articles on my log. I thought you’d find them interesting. I especially thought the one on applying periodization to BJJ training was interesting.
La’
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You can get plenty of hypertrophy with low volumes. Been doing MMA for almost 20 years… weird thing but my muscles have changed shape from it
I get told quite often I’m like a gorilla…so weight training has a lot of benefits if programmed properly
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I might need to invest in a heartrate monitor of some sort. My usual sign of overtraining (apart from really low energy and enthusiasm for training) is tendonitis in my elbows. Haven’t experienced any tendonitis yet thank God.
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More focused on weights at the moment. Still getting my bjj sessions in though.
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What weight KB would you swing?
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Thanks a million for the links redsol1. Interesting 
0.02, Owen Livesly is a beast. Nutrition and sleep is the big one for sure. I’m going to focus more on weightlifting the next 10 weeks and then focus more on sparring in BJJ. Could try 5/3/1 after I’m finished WS4SB3.
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Heaviest you can… I had a 150 but sold it. I have a set of 124 now but can swing them for 25 reps. Heavy carries have great carryover too
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I do both but train much smarter now… more flow rolling, drills… less hard sparring
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Week 6 Max Effort Lower Body day
Front Squats
20kg x 10
40kg x 5
50kg x 3
57.5kg x 3
65 kg x 4
OK one more rep than last week. Not exactly happy, definitely a technical issue. If I can reverse lunge with a 50kg load for 12 reps surely 65kg front squat should feel easier than a 4RM. Maybe its because I’ve a much stronger posterior chain in comparison to my quads. Gym was busy so didn’t get to film, will try on Sat.
Back Squat
65kg x 5
Did a few Back squats to prep for exercise changeover next week
Reverse Lunges
20kg x 1 x 10 reps
50kg x 1 x 12, 2 x 10
Felt strong. Grip was fatiguing in last 2 sets.
Romanian Deadlifts
60kg 1 x 12
95kg x 2 x 12
100kg 1 x 12
Upped the weight to 100kg for my last set and completed it relatively easy.
2 x ab circuit
Sprinter sit ups, V ups, Toe touches and Hip ups x 20 reps each.
First cycle Progress
Front Squats
Week 1 50kg x 5 → Week 6 - 65kg x 4
Reverse Lunges
Week 1 20kg x 12 → Week 6 - 50kg x 12
RDL’s
Week 1 80kg x 10 → Week 6 - 100kg x 12
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Uchi mata in first pic? 
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Indeed… my favorite throw besides a big blast double
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Someone got busted. Been a while since I’ve done mma. Gave it up in 2017 to preserve my remainig brain cells. 1 amateur fight, won by Von Flue choke in 2nd round. Never to return 
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Ya… knee on the beak. Reopened during his retirement fight too. My bread and butter is the arm triangle.
Its awesome you’re undefeated !
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There’s a bunch of articles out there on 5/3/1 and BJJ/MMA, including a couple on Jim W’s blog.
I’m currently running the triumvirate variation. It’s relatively low volume compared to some of the other templates, but it’s appropriate for my current work capacity, schedule, and strength level. Once my work capacity increases and my knee heals up I’ll start looking at other templates.
La’
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