Ask a teenage judoka quitting judo because of his shoulder anything.

I ended up having a bad shoulder injury 3 years ago, after a couple years of physio I ended up going in for an ac joint reconstruction (separated shoulder) a year ago. Although I'm healed now I won't ever be the same. My surgeon who works with NFL players advised that another fall on the shoulder would likely result in a rupture. I've made my decision to switch to Brazilian jiu-jitsu permanently because of the less likely risk of me being caught up in a throw and have an arm or limb trapped causing me to fall on my shoulder again. If I had the choice to start everything over again with a healthy shoulder I would definitely pick judo over any other martial art. Judo changed my life and taught me a lot. For my future I just feel that the risks outweigh the joy I receive from judo. I know that I can get hurt again in bjj but how often do you hear about a dude separating his shoulder in bjj, never...every high level judoka I know either has one separated shoulder..some have both. Sorry if this sounds like me whining but I just need to let it out...it's my farewell to judo.

I'm sorry to hear about that. Care to speak more about the injuries?

that's a shame. but frankly it makes me a hell of a lot happier to hear you're leaving judo to go to BJJ because of an injury, instead of leaving judo to go sit on your couch and watch tv because of an injury.

not that it matters now, but out of curiosity: what throw was it that caused the injury?

dude, I understand where you're coming from - it's why I'll never swim laps again.  I'd had shoulder symptoms for a couple of years before I saw somebody.  I went to an ortho and had surgery at 18.  He said my shoulders look like the shoulders of an 80 year old, and my ac joint was crap and my rotator cuff was crap.  It took forever for me to actually get to the point where I could raise my hand on my own after surgery and daily pt.  Never, never again.  It's not worth it.  Both shoulders had that much wear and tear and crap almost 30 years ago.  So, I quit.  Best decision of my life - don't swim in college.

Now, I'm play judo.  I have the shoulders of a 110 year old, but they still work.  I don't miss the smell of chlorine, and I don't miss the problems.  Sure, I have to compensate for crappy shoulders in everything I do, but I'll take it.

So, yeah, I understand.  Bad shoulders suck.

Sorry to learn of your injury and subsequent decision to leave judo. I've had shoulder surgery and the shoulder is at least back at 95% and causes me no worries or concerns whatsoever. My knee injury is another story...

I damaged my shoulder without any impact, indeed only ever known one judoka injure their shoulder through impact in over 30 years, and that was whilst he was trying an impossible espcape from a sode tsuri komi gosh, it was impossible and his shoulder paid the price. I do therefore hope your potential risks haven't been blown out of proportion.

Best of luck with your BJJ.

I'm amazed to hear that you have only heard of one judoka suffering an impact injury..interesting. I decided I needed surgery after my shoulder would be sore in the morning and I couldn't life weights...Stacey knows how I feel

Separated shoulders can happen to anyone at any time. Its an angle issue. You will find people who have separated their shoulders in a variety of activities like: hiking, walking down the stairs, biking, skiing, x-country skiing, weightlifting, pole vaulting, volleyball, and BJJ (yep here too). I know a gentleman who stood up fast from a couch (passed out) fell against a wall and separated a shoulder (grade 3). I think the mountain bikers win the prize for the most AC injuries.

The good news is if you do rupture it to a grade 3 you will never worry about it again. Meaning that once you've torn the acromioclavicular Ligament (AC) and the coracoacromial ligament (CC), its done. In many case, surgeons don't even bother trying to repair it any more you just live with a one inch bump on the shoulder. And rebuild strength in the shoulder. The wife might not like it, but after awhile you hardly notice it.

I'm dealing with the same issue myself. I've been in Judo since 2008 and dealing with my 3rd AC separation, but this one is actually dislocating on me. I've also suffered 2 separated ribs in the past 4 months.

I want to continue Judo, but not at the expense of BJJ. I lack decent training partners in my area for judo.