Am I too old to be a fighter (PLEASE READ BEFORE YOU POST THIS QUESTION).

[QUOTE=NinjaNoir;1511715491]28. 5'11, 175. White belt BJJ. Anderson Silva/Jon Jones body type. Won an amateur cage match standing up with no formal striking training. I have Samurai spirit and I am very athletic. I think by training hard I can compete in the UFC in 8-10 years. Evene if its a very short career. What do you all think?[/QUOTE]

Was going to roast you for comparing your body type the the GOAT MMA body type of JBJ. But upon checking avatar, your arms qualify. Especially for your height, you must have at lease a 5-6 inch reach on 170lbers? I'm 185, 6'0. 74". Curious to know your reach?

[QUOTE=xtrah;1513656341]Was going to roast you for comparing your body type the the GOAT MMA body type of JBJ. But upon checking avatar, your arms qualify. Especially for your height, you must have at lease a 5-6 inch reach on 170lbers? I'm 185, 6'0. 74". Curious to know your reach?[/QUOTE]

my wingspan is 76". I have a 3" reach advantage on Woodley, 4" on Maia (I measured fingertip to fingertip on a wall). My legs are even longer. Im going to train hard with the mentality of being the best of all times and see where it takes me.

I'm 39. Like Hank Jr says, they hangovers hurt more than they used to. Well the same goes with training. Recovery time is slower as you get older. I remember that if I had a hard workout, I would be sore the next day, and with a really hard workout I might be sore for two days, but now, we are talking about 2 days normal and 4 days for a hard one. I have aged very well for 39, but most guys my age have not. Still, if I don't stretch really good before, I'm going to probably pull something. Sometimes things just hurt for no reason. Injury takes longer to heal. Stamina and strength take longer to build and if you don't stay at it, you lose it quick. Okay, so what, old man problems. The last thing you want to do is build walls saying "I'm too old for that" because you will be too old for that in no time flat. My grandmother is 92, and she still excercises daily, probably why she still is active to this day.

Chase your dreams, life is short

I saw a 40 year old fight a guy who was 20 years younger last year, You're never too old.

Well, it's a very subjective question. A lot of fighters I've read about or came to know ended up with serious issues but those are usually the ones that have been training since at least their teens. So that's a good thing for someone starting late in that you're going to take less blows.

Apart from that. You can train martial arts at any age. By any age I mean any age where you can run, walk, can take cardio workout are physically fit with no traces of health issues that may be lingering. I just got diagnosed with a cyst on my left jaw. I seriously don't know if fighting gave me that or if it was there all along because my wisdom teeth didn't erupt perfectly.

That said, I started martial arts in my early 20 and I was a pretty decent student according to me sensei and others over the dojo. The only thing I had issues with was aerobics but I think that is primarily because I have motion sickness, well, sort of. Anyways, later age does bring its limitations but I guess for an average human being 45 is still doable if you wish to partake it for fitness and endurance and not as a professional sport.

Started Boxing at 23 still learning going on 24. Want to go to the Olympics one day

Also want to compete in wrestling greco at amateur. I keep hearing wrestling for a go my age is impossible if I want to get to a elite level at it(which I want to same for boxing) I'm a manlet 5'7 but very stocky 175lbs

I’m beginning my training soon. I’m doing a 3 month S&C prep and then I will begin.

[QUOTE=SolidLager;1581077411]I’m beginning my training soon. I’m doing a 3 month S&C prep and then I will begin.[/QUOTE]

Nice. Nothing wrong with a little prep work to get you in better shape for classes...however, not really necessary. A lot of schools will get your ramped up either through their own S&C or just a "slow" trial by fire.

Either way, enjoy

Yes, you can be a good fighter if you train hard. The life of a fighter has amazing training programs lifeofafighter.com workout plans to help you become a good fighter. Get training from the professionals to achieve your dream.

start training for my first fight soon, which will be in June.

I'll be one month off 44.

The UFC is full of washed up folks trying to make it. You may be a tune up fight but go for it

Never too old to become a fighter. I remember when I was in my teens training MMA, at the beginners course there were probably 1/3 of guys in their 30's/40's. Some of them did quit after the beginners course, some continued training.

As the years pasts and I was training with them, they developed a lot as a fighters, and one of them (in his 30's) started competing.

The brutal truth though that making it into big to UFC, most of the fighters have started martial arts on childhood/teenage. But everything is possible and you can still start it as a career on older age.

Anyway, if you are interested in Martial Arts and doubt about being too old, **** that, sign asap to your nearest gym and start training. By starting to train martial arts was one of the best chooses I have done in my life (+10 years experience). Not only you get into shape and learn self defense, but there are tens of other benefits.

Also, I had a training mate who was in his 40's when he started, now he has a black belt. So it's never too late! go for it.

I'm 50 and i (Boxing) spar with fellas half my age. I DO wear head-gear though,mostly to prevent cuts.

[img]https://media.tenor.com/images/c7ffd950cdff0a62e1809f2398e4881c/tenor.gif[/img]

[QUOTE=cgc;1389660213]Over the years, there has been a LOT of post asking the very question...."am I too old to be a fighter (or start training)?"

First off, when you ask this question, you're going to have people throw out the name Randy Couture. Who, unless you're completely new to the sport of MMA is KNOWN to be someone who held the UFC HW title into his mid 40s and competed at a high level for several years later (although, not as successfully).
In Randy's first MMA fight, he was 34 years old. Sounds like he started training at a very late age, right?
Well, fact of the matter is that by the time Randy was in his mid 20s, he'd already been an Olympic Alternative in Wrestling. From there he went on to achieve several other major achievements in Wrestling. So....Randy didn't just start training at 30 and then transitioned into MMA. He'd already had at least a decade of training with a SOLID foundation in Wrestling as well as doing some boxing in the Military.
So when you ask, "am I too old" and someone says "Uh, look at Randy Couture"....Please realize the WHOLE picture. Same with other "older" generation fighters – always keep the entire picture in mind - Not just the age of the fighters. Chances are VERY likely that they’ve migrated from being active in another combat sport for many years before transitioning into MMA.



Second thing - "Am I too old to start training or being a fighter" - It's a very subjective question with several variables that come into play.

1. What’s your age currently?
2. Do you have a background in ANY combat sports?
3. Do you have an athletic background at all?
4. What level of "fighter" do you want to be?
5. Is this going to be a hobby or do you want to make money doing this?
6. How much time do you have to dedicate to the training it takes to actually fight? There is nothing wrong if the answer here is “no”. If you’ve not trained before, I promise you the realization of the prep time to fight will catch you off guard.

These are questions you have to answer and figure out for yourself. No one on any web site is going to be able to answer these types of questions for you.


Regardless of what you answer to the self-evaluating questions above, the biggest thing you are going to hear people say is this.
- If you want to train to get the exercise or just to enjoy the sport…..do it. Don’t worry about your age.
- If you want to train to do some Amateur Fights, the younger you start the better…but…do it if you want. Don’t worry about your age.
- If you want to be a professional fighter and do some regional fights, again the younger you start the better, but as you approach your 30s, keep in mind it’s going to be a harder drive to be successful….but…do it if you want.
- If you want to fight for a larger promotion like the UFC or Bellator, I think the most optimal thing would be if you had wrestled in High School and started some type of legitimate striking art as early as possible. Kids are training younger and younger these days….and while MMA is still a new sport compared to others, the chances of making it to a large org is only going to get harder….but….do it if you want.

Do you see the common trend with all of these? “Do it if you want”. If you love the sport, enjoy the physical chess game of it, don’t mind (or can tolerate) being punched in the face and you just WANT to train….DO IT.
You’re not too old to train. You may have old injuries you have to deal with as you get older….but to train? Crap man, if you have the time, money for training, and think you’ll enjoy it…. just go do it.

Yes, there is probably a threshold you will physically hit where you are not in YOUR prime any more….but that doesn’t mean that you can’t train and fight. Who knows…you may be one of those guys who CAN stay competitive into your late 30s/40s…..but you know what? You won’t know unless you get up off your butt and quit asking “am I too old”........

[youtube]/watch?v=ZXsQAXx_ao0[/youtube][/QUOTE]

Thanks for this!

How do you guys cope with injuries at an older age? I'm used to managing my injuries around a bodybuilding split, but kickboxing is much more dynamic, or at least there's more agility, changing or direction or sudden movements.

I'd love to train more to get the conditioning up but my body might not be able to take it. I literally just returned to the gym today from a shoulder injury and strained my knee (to be fair the knee felt a bit bad after a run mid week).

facts