What are the similarities between Jiu-Jitsu and poker?

While there is no doubt that keeping yourself in peak physical condition is essential for any athlete, you should also maintain and improve your mental strength as well. Adhering to a well-honed drill and technique is part and parcel of any type of martial arts, but especially so with Jujutsu, and no matter what level of skill or experience you are at, there are always ways to improve your strategic approach, strength and technique. Good perception makes a huge difference when it comes to martial arts and self-defense.

Perception and the ability to read people in life, sports and beyond is significant. In Jujutsu, it is even more necessary to express our thoughts, feelings, needs and wants through both verbal and nonverbal cues. The same applies to the likes of poker players; they need to read others intentions to make their move. By improving your perceptive reading skills, this will help you to get into the position of other players, think about their play and more objectively estimate their skills.

No matter how much you train, you will not improve unless you actively think about what your opponents are doing. Poker players are a fitting example of the importance of studying your opponent’s performance. With Jujutsu, you also need to seek other strategies from opponents who may be at a higher level of skills than you. This can be done several ways through books, watching footage of training, one-on-one coaching and discussing strategy with fellow players.

Keeping a level head is vital in any competitive environment, as it is critical to have a logical, analytical reason for what you are doing. The ability to control your emotions to make the right logical play time after time is one of the hardest things to do in poker, and this is true for athletes, too.

Assessing what can be a complex situation and being able to multitask and adjust accordingly are essential skills to develop whether you are a poker player, an entrepreneur or a Jujutsu expert; poker is a game that demands its players be able to make hundreds of different decisions in a set amount of time and Jujutsu is no different. When players need to be able to concentrate and develop unique strategies, adjusting to various situations becomes second-nature. It requires players to be logical about their decisions, as well as learn how to understand the body language and psychology of their opponents.

Creative thinking is also a must for people across all walks of life, but for the likes of poker players, athletes and sports players, both poker and Jujutsu rewards those who are able to get the edge over their opponents, absorb different pieces of information and analyze them to make the best decision.

There are many things that you can do to develop your strategic skills, boost your analytical thinking and memory skills. All of which can have an impact on how well you perform. However, playing strategic skills like poker can help you learn, develop and utilize real-time skills which, in turn, can also help increase cognitive functioning, your focus and most of all, improve your Jujutsu performance.