A Scientific Approach to Martial Arts

The words jiu-jitsu come from Japanese, the direct translation is ‘the gentle art’ and the basic concept is to use technique to overcome the inherent advantages of size and strength.

When we are using jiu-jitsu we are looking to create an advantage where there is an imbalance between our situation and our opponent's situation. This might be by concentrating the force from multiple parts of our body on a single part of our opponent’s body. It might be by using the principle of leverage to multiply the force that we are able to bring to bear on our opponent’s body or it might be by using their biomechanics against them, for instance turning a joint in a direction it is not designed to move.

The aim of this website is to explore the scientific concepts behind jiu-jitsu to help you understand why certain techniques work and therefore allow you to focus on applying them in the most efficient way possible to deliver the end result of using your technique to overcome a larger stronger opponent.