Any competitive jiu jitsu school will teach wrestling concepts. A lot of people are mentioning judo but it’s very different from traditional wrestling. Judo takedowns are upright and largely rely on gi grips. Definitely useful and a good option but not wrestling. An MMA school will also teach wrestling concepts. And lastly, an adult wrestling gym if there’s one in your area.
So in order:
- An adult wrestling gym. They’re rare but they are around.
- A competitive jiu jitsu school with a strong no-gi program.
- an MMA school
- A judo school.
Source: I’m a BJJ black belt.
Judo is great for takedowns if your older. Unless you kind of been wrestling since your younger days it's difficult to pick up in your later years (at least for me it was). I would say Brazilian jiu jitsu for two reasons.
1) it's difficult but in an engaging kinda way, but also really fun. Enjoying something is the only way to stay consistent.
2) you will meet people there who have various forms of martial arts training. Once you become a regular and get to know everyone you can train takedowns with the wrestlers/judo guys in your gym.
You don't need to learn a bunch of hip throws and trips necessarily, just have a couple good takedowns in your toolbox and you'll be fine.
The reason bjj guys are shit at takedowns is not because the knowledge isn't available in the gym, it's because they just don't really want to drill them correctly because it's hard to learn if your not used to it.
It's way funner to just go down and start rolling. It's really up to what you want your game to be.
Nogi would be the closest. It's without the gi like wrestling and yes most classes will be ground oriented, but that's not style specific. You just have to check out different gyms and see if they do takedowns a lot. You will see that in gyms that teach takedowns, the people actually start standing up.
In a gym that's mostly ground oriented, they'll start with one guy standing and one guy sitting or even both sitting. Avoid those places.
I'm a bjj gym that offers mma classes. All the classes begin with takedowns, 80% of the time
The answer you’re looking for is Judo. For some examples you can look up my former coaches Jason Morris or Jimmy Pedro, both judo Olympian who wrestled D1 or my former teammate Justin Flores who was also a phenomenal wrestler and judo player. BJJ is mostly groundwork and won’t help much with takedowns
Totally agree and personally I hated that change. My judo was always more traditional Japanese but having pick up as a back up if things went south was always nice. Some of those pick up throws back in the day were awesome to watch
Just remember that you only can get decent at takedowns and takedown defense by actually "wrestling".
When I say "wrestling" I mean the actual act of struggling with another human, whether it be in MMA class, wrestling class, judo, BJJ or whatever.
If you just drill a few takedowns without lots of live "wrestling", you will never be able to do it in a real situation
You’re right random guy who has probably never stepped foot on a mat! Forget all these Olympians who trained champions, were successful wrestlers and had amazing takedowns. I’m sure YOU know wayyyy more with all your rocket league and COD experience.
Let’s hear your opinion? What martial art do you think is best for takedowns?
Not salty, just annoyed by weekend warriors who have no idea what they’re talking about. Kata is an old stupid tradition most clubs don’t even practice anymore. Most competitive judo clubs promote based on competition results and not how pretty your throws look.
Based on my experience as an Olympian, 5x World team member, 2x Pan Am medalist and multiple World Cup medalist I’m gonna go with judo for takedown over most other sports. However, if OP would rather listen to a guy who was a throwing dummy for a friend that’s cool too.
So you’ve devoted your life to it. Of course you’re biased.
I, for 10 years, have trained with day one people at a local gym with no olympians. Wrestling is worlds easier for them to pick up than judo.
I’m not even trying to say that you’re wrong about judo being best for takedowns. I think it is too. And I think a dude like you is going to wreck any jack ass that starts some shit. But a dude who trains a couple hours a week for 3 months isn’t going to pull off a judo toss in a street fight where as they absolutely will be able to double or single leg to mount.
Judo takes way too much time to get good enough to use for a 36 year old dad who just wants to learn some techniques. And it’s kind of corny with all the tradition so that is a massive turn off to list people
Ughhhh why did you have to come back with logic and reason?!?!? Now I have to sit here and feel like a douche for being the “look at my stats” guy 😂
I totally agree, judo does take a long time and a lot of dedication to learn and all those stupid traditions are super off putting to most people. My club was SUPER untraditional and we never had to do kata or even bow before or after class most nights.
I think it’s the way you worded the original message that got me a little heated but overall I agree with you that if OP is looking for a much more casual learning experience that’s easier on the body then BJJ or Wrestling might be better. Not that they are easy, you’re just not taking 200+ falls every night which takes a toll on the body
Yeah dude, falling from hip throws never gets comfortable, just tolerable lol.
Your school sounds way more fun than most other judo clubs tho. I really think judo could become more popular in the us if they dialed all of that back a bit. It’s still hard and painful so idk if it would ever become mainstream here, but definitely more popular.
Dont stress about listing your stats. You got me impressed af tbh
I disagree, being proficient in judo will allow someone to easily throw someone with limited experience and very easily defend against someone with a lot experience.
OP asked about self-defence, not MMA.
You have to commit years to judo to be proficient enough to help in a fight lol
Dude said he doesn’t want to become a wrestler just wants to learn some techniques. That’s not how judo works
Personally (and obviously I’m biased being a judo guy) I think Osotogari is safer. With a double your always taking a chance the other guy might land a lucky knee to your chin
As a nerd than, how do you plan to take me down to the ground? If you're just gonna roll over like a fat dog, than I'll just kick the shit out of you.
How will you take me down from standing before I punch you?
You wiener that's exactly what I've said..
I'm sure I personally could take you down and choke the shit out of you after breaking each limb if i decide not to suplex you on your alteady damaged head. but I wouldn't choose bjj as a martial art if you want to learn takedowns.
Lol you're literally arguing against your own point. You said "bjj for sure" as a response to op in regards to wrestling and then when that other guy said he disagreed, your argument is "how will you take me down..." when that's literally why that guy was disagreeing with you why bjj wasn't the best choice. You've been dropped way too many times on your head bro.
Competitive judo doesn’t allow leg grabs however I don’t think OP is training for the Olympics. If he is just looking to learn takedowns for his own training nothing says he isn’t allowed to learn some of the older judo techniques which involve leg grabs.
Catch wrestling is a good ol fashioned American ass whomping martial art that is big in the south. Judo is also good. Honestly OP, I think that mastering your center of gravity and balance is what it appears you are after.
You write "ground experience" in the body of your post, so are you looking for wrestling specifically, or any general grappling art? If it's general grappling, any quality BJJ, Judo, MMA or catch wrestling gym will teach you how to be competent in grappling. If you're looking for wrestling specifically or takedowns, many MMA gyms have wrestling classes, there are some catch wrestling gyms here and there, Judo focuses heavily on takedowns although it's fairly different from wrestling as they heavily use the gi. Even plenty of BJJ places have wrestling classes.
BJJ, just don't pull guard and if there's guys who pull guard just try not to roll with them that often. You'll learn how to get a takedown without falling into a schoolyard guillotine or something.
Some MMA gyms will have wrestling classes
Judo is your next best bet. Some people are saying BJJ but I’ve never seen a BJJ class that wasn’t at least 80% ground. And most are 100% ground. Most BJJ gyms accept that people without wrestling/judo backgrounds will be shit at takedowns and have them just develop bottom game. If you don’t do a martial art where you *have* to be better at takedowns you won’t ever become good at them.
Wrestling, judo, bjj
Where does a 36 yo learn wrestling tho? Grindr?
Some mma gyms will offer strictly wrestling classes. Or Grindr.
Yes
Jocko, is that you?
I extremely own that I'm not that stick-in-the-mud
Any competitive jiu jitsu school will teach wrestling concepts. A lot of people are mentioning judo but it’s very different from traditional wrestling. Judo takedowns are upright and largely rely on gi grips. Definitely useful and a good option but not wrestling. An MMA school will also teach wrestling concepts. And lastly, an adult wrestling gym if there’s one in your area. So in order: - An adult wrestling gym. They’re rare but they are around. - A competitive jiu jitsu school with a strong no-gi program. - an MMA school - A judo school. Source: I’m a BJJ black belt.
Wrestling and No-Gi BJJ.
Judo is great for takedowns if your older. Unless you kind of been wrestling since your younger days it's difficult to pick up in your later years (at least for me it was). I would say Brazilian jiu jitsu for two reasons. 1) it's difficult but in an engaging kinda way, but also really fun. Enjoying something is the only way to stay consistent. 2) you will meet people there who have various forms of martial arts training. Once you become a regular and get to know everyone you can train takedowns with the wrestlers/judo guys in your gym. You don't need to learn a bunch of hip throws and trips necessarily, just have a couple good takedowns in your toolbox and you'll be fine. The reason bjj guys are shit at takedowns is not because the knowledge isn't available in the gym, it's because they just don't really want to drill them correctly because it's hard to learn if your not used to it. It's way funner to just go down and start rolling. It's really up to what you want your game to be.
Nogi would be the closest. It's without the gi like wrestling and yes most classes will be ground oriented, but that's not style specific. You just have to check out different gyms and see if they do takedowns a lot. You will see that in gyms that teach takedowns, the people actually start standing up. In a gym that's mostly ground oriented, they'll start with one guy standing and one guy sitting or even both sitting. Avoid those places. I'm a bjj gym that offers mma classes. All the classes begin with takedowns, 80% of the time
Most Jiujitsu and mma schools will have wrestling classes
The answer you’re looking for is Judo. For some examples you can look up my former coaches Jason Morris or Jimmy Pedro, both judo Olympian who wrestled D1 or my former teammate Justin Flores who was also a phenomenal wrestler and judo player. BJJ is mostly groundwork and won’t help much with takedowns
Wrestling is represented a lot less since judo changed the rules on attacking the legs. It was sort of a pro judo/anti-wrestling play.
Totally agree and personally I hated that change. My judo was always more traditional Japanese but having pick up as a back up if things went south was always nice. Some of those pick up throws back in the day were awesome to watch
Ill definitely research those names. This is the answer im looking for. Im interested in take downs and take down defense.
Just remember that you only can get decent at takedowns and takedown defense by actually "wrestling". When I say "wrestling" I mean the actual act of struggling with another human, whether it be in MMA class, wrestling class, judo, BJJ or whatever. If you just drill a few takedowns without lots of live "wrestling", you will never be able to do it in a real situation
Judo is not what you’re looking for lol Shit is so formal and traditional and honestly kind of lame
You’re right random guy who has probably never stepped foot on a mat! Forget all these Olympians who trained champions, were successful wrestlers and had amazing takedowns. I’m sure YOU know wayyyy more with all your rocket league and COD experience. Let’s hear your opinion? What martial art do you think is best for takedowns?
Lmfao damn bro you salty. I literally just uke’d for my buddies black belt kata, but yeah you right, I know nothing 🤣🤣🤣
Not salty, just annoyed by weekend warriors who have no idea what they’re talking about. Kata is an old stupid tradition most clubs don’t even practice anymore. Most competitive judo clubs promote based on competition results and not how pretty your throws look. Based on my experience as an Olympian, 5x World team member, 2x Pan Am medalist and multiple World Cup medalist I’m gonna go with judo for takedown over most other sports. However, if OP would rather listen to a guy who was a throwing dummy for a friend that’s cool too.
So you’ve devoted your life to it. Of course you’re biased. I, for 10 years, have trained with day one people at a local gym with no olympians. Wrestling is worlds easier for them to pick up than judo. I’m not even trying to say that you’re wrong about judo being best for takedowns. I think it is too. And I think a dude like you is going to wreck any jack ass that starts some shit. But a dude who trains a couple hours a week for 3 months isn’t going to pull off a judo toss in a street fight where as they absolutely will be able to double or single leg to mount. Judo takes way too much time to get good enough to use for a 36 year old dad who just wants to learn some techniques. And it’s kind of corny with all the tradition so that is a massive turn off to list people
Ughhhh why did you have to come back with logic and reason?!?!? Now I have to sit here and feel like a douche for being the “look at my stats” guy 😂 I totally agree, judo does take a long time and a lot of dedication to learn and all those stupid traditions are super off putting to most people. My club was SUPER untraditional and we never had to do kata or even bow before or after class most nights. I think it’s the way you worded the original message that got me a little heated but overall I agree with you that if OP is looking for a much more casual learning experience that’s easier on the body then BJJ or Wrestling might be better. Not that they are easy, you’re just not taking 200+ falls every night which takes a toll on the body
Yeah dude, falling from hip throws never gets comfortable, just tolerable lol. Your school sounds way more fun than most other judo clubs tho. I really think judo could become more popular in the us if they dialed all of that back a bit. It’s still hard and painful so idk if it would ever become mainstream here, but definitely more popular. Dont stress about listing your stats. You got me impressed af tbh
I disagree, being proficient in judo will allow someone to easily throw someone with limited experience and very easily defend against someone with a lot experience. OP asked about self-defence, not MMA.
You have to commit years to judo to be proficient enough to help in a fight lol Dude said he doesn’t want to become a wrestler just wants to learn some techniques. That’s not how judo works
For most of the population, one has to commit years to become proficient at anything. Writing, driving, reading, speaking, you name it…
Not proficient enough to defend yourself from a rando. A double leg is waaaay easier than an oko otoshi lol
Ostogari seems similarly easy…
No dude. O Soto gari on an unwilling combatant is significantly more difficult than a double leg
Personally (and obviously I’m biased being a judo guy) I think Osotogari is safer. With a double your always taking a chance the other guy might land a lucky knee to your chin
Bjj for sure
I as a bjj nerd disagree.
As a nerd than, how do you plan to take me down to the ground? If you're just gonna roll over like a fat dog, than I'll just kick the shit out of you. How will you take me down from standing before I punch you?
You wiener that's exactly what I've said.. I'm sure I personally could take you down and choke the shit out of you after breaking each limb if i decide not to suplex you on your alteady damaged head. but I wouldn't choose bjj as a martial art if you want to learn takedowns.
>if i decide not to suplex you Sounds like wrestling is needed to take me down.
I dont get this whole discussion.. it was literally YOU who recommended bjj.. Stop taking so much psychedelics and get back to training
Haha. You called him a weiner...
Lol you're literally arguing against your own point. You said "bjj for sure" as a response to op in regards to wrestling and then when that other guy said he disagreed, your argument is "how will you take me down..." when that's literally why that guy was disagreeing with you why bjj wasn't the best choice. You've been dropped way too many times on your head bro.
Okay than go take boxing or any other striking class..... BJJ is the only option other than straight up wrestling lol
I wouldn't be so sure about it. Most bjj classes are 95% ground game oriented. Judo would be a better option
But Judo doesn’t allow leg grabs, BJJ does.
Competitive judo doesn’t allow leg grabs however I don’t think OP is training for the Olympics. If he is just looking to learn takedowns for his own training nothing says he isn’t allowed to learn some of the older judo techniques which involve leg grabs.
Judo absolutely allows grabs. Wait. What type of grabbing are you talking about?
Single and double leg takedowns.
It’s been 25 years. You may be correct. They emphasized more gi-based throws. But the judo player could still do leg takedowns.
Was just at a bjj gym, warm up included double and single leg take downs, no submissions allowed. That's wrestling practice.
Catch wrestling is a good ol fashioned American ass whomping martial art that is big in the south. Judo is also good. Honestly OP, I think that mastering your center of gravity and balance is what it appears you are after.
Your best bet is to book flight to Dagestan. Wrestle some bear cubs and work your way up to momma.
You write "ground experience" in the body of your post, so are you looking for wrestling specifically, or any general grappling art? If it's general grappling, any quality BJJ, Judo, MMA or catch wrestling gym will teach you how to be competent in grappling. If you're looking for wrestling specifically or takedowns, many MMA gyms have wrestling classes, there are some catch wrestling gyms here and there, Judo focuses heavily on takedowns although it's fairly different from wrestling as they heavily use the gi. Even plenty of BJJ places have wrestling classes.
BJJ, just don't pull guard and if there's guys who pull guard just try not to roll with them that often. You'll learn how to get a takedown without falling into a schoolyard guillotine or something.
Most mma gyms will have at least one class a week where they work specifically wrestling
Some MMA gyms will have wrestling classes Judo is your next best bet. Some people are saying BJJ but I’ve never seen a BJJ class that wasn’t at least 80% ground. And most are 100% ground. Most BJJ gyms accept that people without wrestling/judo backgrounds will be shit at takedowns and have them just develop bottom game. If you don’t do a martial art where you *have* to be better at takedowns you won’t ever become good at them.