Is Judo as good as BJJ/Jiu Jitsu?

Hi! I'm a 17 year old girl and as combat arts go I already train in boxing (and have done for 4 years), but I was looking to take up a martial art. I had my heart set on BJJ/Jui Jitsu, but I can't find any classes near me that suit me - I found one but it has a very macho tough-man look, and given I'm a young female I don't really want to be around that! Anyway, I found a Judo class that looks perfect. But how much does Judo differ from BJJ/Jiu Jitsu? Is it a good one to settle for or is it better to just give the idea of martial arts up?

By the way, I wouldn't be training for self defense, just for fun, and ground work looks incredibly fun.

Thanks!

 

Boxing is as much a martial art as anything else you could mention and most people here will agree with that.

As a general rule Judo will give you great throws and passable groundwork and BJJ will give you passable throws and great ground work.
They are very closely related (BJJ is often jockingly referred to as "Basically Just Judo").
That's a very broad generalisation though.

Judo is very well regarded here. It's a very honest martial art with no pretensions or chi mumbo jumbo. It's two people seeing who can throw the other one. Simple.

IMHO a boxer with some awareness of judo throws and basic groundwork is a great recipe for a fighter to be reckoned with.

 

Oh and if you say which club or area you are thinking of training in there may even be someone here that can give you some info or pointers or even know the club well.

 

I second PASmiths opinion. If you manage to pursue judo you will become a force to be reckoned with.
Or atleast a good, well rounded fighter.

Just don't go around beating us chubby chumps. =P

 

And if you need someone to serve as a role model look up Ronda Rousey.
Although only if you aren't squemish about seeing arms end up in shapes they aren't meant to be in.

 

All the judo players i have met have great groundwork and spectacular throwing skills

 

Judo is ace. Personally, I'd do it over BJJ...'cause I like throws.

 

I'd say check out a free class at the meathead gym - a lot of times bjj folks are pretty chill even though they look like bruisers. They're complimentary skill sets, and training a few years in judo will definitely make you a rockin' jits fighter too. Boxing + judo = budget MMA - solid striking, solid takedowns and decent groundwork.

 

..or Kayla Harrison:Angel:

 

Yay for Rhonda Rousey! The badass girl of Judo!

You should do Judo, combined with Boxing you will be the destroyer of worlds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I've always looked as judo almost the same as Jiu Jitsu, but standing up. The throwing and weight manipulation is awesome!!! The fact that you can attack from any angle that someone is in contact makes it even better. But be warned...you still will need to have some Jiu Jitsu as well. Consider wrestling and Judo as the segway between your boxing and Jiu Jitsu.

Best of luck finding a a suitable club!!! I'm happy to hear that you are ok with checking out a few places and knowing what you DON'T want. Kudos!

 

you should try a class or two in both and stick with which one you enjoy the most. Also you shouldn't judge gyms superficially what gave you the idea that its full of meatheads some photos on there website ? did you go to a class then leave once you had seen the people in it ? also BJJ being Basically Just Judo is not a common joke its an outdated insult used by (Usually) inexperienced Judoka who have never herd of cross training and want to make it seem like there is some kind of rivalry between the two sports (there isn't) to dismiss BJJ as a well marketed copy of Judo, in practise they are both pretty different takes on a similar premise.

 

hi , i have recently started judo and had a handful of lessons. its very fun and you learn great grappling , throwing and groundwork skills with lethal chokes and armlocks. also their is some smallish girls in my class and they can be just as good as the bigger guys.

you should defintley try it.

 

definitely, do judo. you won't regret it. and you'll get a great all-around grappling game.

either way, bjj or judo, you can't go wrong.

 

Thank-you so much for all your input so far, I've read everyone's answers and really appreciate them!

Tout Prêt 1888 - It's called something very macho-like and I looked at a photo of all the members, not one girl and all very muscly young to middle aged men, with the website promising to make you like a "tiger". I don't doubt that's a perfect atmosphere for some and that's absolutely fine (I'm really not trying to insult those of you who train in that sort of environment!). I just want to have some light-hearted active fun and blow off some steam after college, not routinely poke my anxiety issues!

So - judo is based more on throws, but I'll still get groundwork? That sounds perfect to me. :3 What about locks and holds (I think that's what they're called - a friend taught me some stuff where you bend someones arm right around their back which keeps them in place and hurts, that kind of thing)? I also discovered an Aikido places near me that looks pretty good, apparently that does the same sort of thing?

 

again superficial judgement, really the only thing to do is to try both gyms before you can form a fair opinion.

depends on the gym in some places you'll get allot of time on it in others almost none.

you will learn a much narrower submission game in Judo because of the modern compition rules, it could be argued that Judo's pinning game makes up for this but in my opinion an experienced BJJ player will be able to hold someone down just as well, also BJJ pins tend to be easier to transition to other positions allot of Judo hold downs are quiet finial.

nah its not the same thing at all, frankly Aikido blows big baby chunks.

 

Oh well, to be honest I'd rather stick with something that seems just as fun (Judo does seem pretty cool from all the responses here) rather than risk flaring up my anxiety, "superficial judgement" or no, the judo place has certain things (an old friend went there and enjoyed it, there is a women's only class, it is at the same activity centre as my yoga class) that make me feel safe.
edit: I started this thread to see if BJJ was just so superior to Judo, that I shouldn't consider the Judo class.

 

Do you really suffer from anxiety or is that just a light hearted comment?

 

I have diagnosed social anxiety disorder and anxiety related to a traumatic experience when I was 13.
edit: Not that I want to make this a pity parade, it's just unfortunately something to consider when trying to choose a training place! :3

 

Ok - Cool.

I don't think I can PM you so I will have to expose myself on the forum. I started suffering from anxiety attacks a few years ago. Dunno how it started, always been a very confident person and had a "I don't care" attitude about everything...but I was pretty stressed over a whole bunch of stuff. I couldn't have done anything that I thought would have triggered an 'attack'.

Go to the club where you will feel 'safe' going too. If the BJJ doesn't seem to be the place, then don't go. When you feel a little more confident (and you will) then you can try the other place if it still interests you.

That's my advice anyway...

As for my own anxiety attacks, they stopped sometime ago...I'm ok now. *Twitch*

As for dealing with anxiety, Jon Kabat-Zinn's stuff is worth checking out. Keep posting and I'll send you details when I can PM you.

Edit: Nope, not a pity parade...it is something that needs to be taken into consideration as you said!