Can I Roll With Injured Ribs Jiu Jitsu

Ascensionbjj White Belt
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Hey guys just wondering if anyone here has suffered broken or cracked ribs while grappling, if so how long before u guys got back on the mat??
Zankou Bringing peace and love Staff Member Senior Moderator
Sorry to hear about that ... good luck with recovery. Ribs seem to take a long time to heal, I am sorry to say.
RadBoy He conquers who endures
I have and it sucks. Anywhere from 4-8 weeks.
yeah i once had one broken and one dislocated rib
the dislocation sucks more

nothing to do but rest. let it heal completely so you don't get recurring problems. good luck
Faixa Rua White Belt
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welcom fren,is a tuff game for sure.
Cardio Blue Belt
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It does take some time, it varies, but figure-
1-2 months - maybe slightly better, little to no training, sparring, NO drills that effect that side, no ab work or stretching of the rib cage.

2-4 months - should be slightly better, avoid pressure to that side (no knee on belly, side mount on that side etc.) light rolling (let all partners know its injured and to go easy)

5-7 months - should be getting better but be careful and avoid that side AMAP for up to a year until its fully healed.

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To speed recovery, I would:

Rest the rib area - that includes NO pressure on that side while sleeping, exercising or drilling.

Boost your immune system - with right diet, sleep and staying healthy. Eating fresh + organic is good. Avoiding sugar, cakes and soda is good. Fish oil or other good oils is important. U may want to suppliment with glucosamine (msm), calcium magnesium, zinc and vitamin C.

If you can do light cardio or target specific muscles without it effecting the rib that can get blood flowing + aid recovery.
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During the time my rib was injured I increased my reading and watching BJJ videos. Focued on technique.... It may have even helped my game in that it really forced me to SLOW down, gave me some time to study technique and built up a new desire to train healthily.
I have had broken/bruised ribs twice. Both were caused by takedowns. First one took many months to heal because I didnt stop training. I eventually did stop training and it healed slowly. The second one put me out for 8 weeks. And it still bothered me for a couple of months after that.
pittelp Smokin Joe belt winner
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I've had pulled ribs (the muscles between the ribs). Took 6 weeks. I can imagine how bad broken must be.
easy tiger Blue Belt
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Yes, broke one of my ribs in 2 places. About 2 months til I could train at all.
The first month sucked: Getting out of bed, laughing, coughing, sneezing, moving.
i fucked up my ribs on the last tourney, not sure how, i think i just pulled it because there wasn't really a heavy impact. It was so annoying the first weeks haha just hope you dont get sick otherwise u fucked lol
took like 6 or 7 weeks to get back to training
fightme Green Belt
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Yep....I had a hairline fracture(right at the end of the 8th rib)with a torn intercostal muscle.
The torn intercostal hurt like a M*therf*cka.

Off the mat completely for 5 1/2 weeks. It still bothers me some six months later.
Ribs are fucked to heal very painful.
cbtrn Green Belt
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Broke my ribs twice while rolling. Really annoying and constant pain. Every time it took me a month and a half to return. Good luck to you!
philong Orange Belt
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What he said.
I've not broken one when rolling but I broke some last year in a motorcycle wreck. The Doc said take off 6 months. I'm a fast healer (always have been) so I went back after 4 months. I reinjured it in the first 2 minutes of rolling and wound up having to take another 3 months off.
I also broke 2 ribs in a kickboxing match and they also took roughly 6 months to heal up. They were tender and I couldn't take full force kicks to them for about a year, I had to switch to fighting as a righty to protect them. It was about this time that I decided that fighting was a young mans game (I was mid 30's) and quit crawling in the ring with kids who wanted to seperate my head from my body.
StoicDude Blue Belt
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I tore my intercostal a couple of months ago. It took about 6 weeks to heal and about 3 more weeks for the soreness to go away. Its been about 4 months now and there is still a lump there.
I don't think it will go away. It looks as if a rib is out place. Sometimes after hard rolling it gets sore, but goes away pretty soon thereafter.
Make sure to take the required time off, because reinjuring it will just set you back more.
my injury turned out to be seperated ribs, ie muscle/ligaments came away from rib itself. apparently more painful than a broken rib. feels like you have been stabbed, cant breathe in more than very very short tiny breaths. cant hardly move the next day, when trying to get out of bed it is VERY uncomfortable.
anyway, that was 2 yrs ago.
it was 4 weeks of rest before i was able to do anythin; light training, running etc. 6-8 weeks before i could spar and 10 weeks before i would describe it as 100% fixed. although it is only in the last year or so that i have had absolutely zero pain and discomfort in the rib area when taking in my very longest breathes ie filling my lungs.

on the plus side once ribs are healed they normally heal 100%, literally as good as new. unlike joints like elbows, shoulders, knees which are far more complicated and never seem to heal up perfectly.
that sucks I just had a bruise rib it took a month to heal right so I know a broken rib got to be a bitch.
TKO419 Orange Belt
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A guy at the gym I train at broke one of his and was out for 2 months
irc Brown Belt
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I tore the cartilage at the low end of my ribs in a tourney. There is a noticable bump there where you can feel the rib tip. It will never be normal. But that only took about 3-4 weeks before I was rolling again. Two nights ago I damaged the cartilage where the rib meets the sternum. It was displaced for a few minutes, but I got it to pop back into place! Suprisingly, there is not much pain at all. I can feel that it hurts, but otherwise can move, breathe, and lift things pretty normally. Weird. I hope it does not keep me out too long.