JIU-JITSU MOTIVATION: HOW I CAME BACK FROM ACL SURGERY TO DOMINATE BJJ COMPETITION!
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Published 2020-08-12
My name is Nathan Mendelsohn, 2nd Degree Black in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and former Number 8 ranked Adult Black Belt Middleweight Gi athlete in the world.
In June 2018 I suffered the worst injury of my career. While training for IBJJF Worlds, 1 week before the competition, I tore my ACL in training. I had no way of getting an MRI before the event and thus had no way of knowing the extent of my injury at the time and thus I chose to compete anyways. Whatever was left of my ACL was shredded the rest of the way during the match and it was evident I was going to need surgery. This was an extremely challenging time for me mentally and emotionally. A lot of my mental health and happiness depends on being able to do the thing I love most: Jiu-Jitsu. On top of that, it is never guaranteed when you suffer an injury like this that the surgery will work the way you want it to and that you will be able to get back to where you were competitively once all is said and done. However, with a solid support team, a strong positive attitude and an extremely well executed surgery from a spectacular surgeon in Dr. Stidham, in less than 10 months I was back to competition. Over the year that followed I won six major events including the Copa Podio and Abu Dhabi Grand Slam in Tokyo as well as medaling in several others! I proved to myself that no matter the obstacle all you need is hard work and perseverance to overcome! Check this video to see some of what my comeback looked like! OSS!
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Music:
SONG 1: "Best of Sad Cinematic Background Music" by AshamaluvMu
SONG 2: "Cold Rising" by Hit Me Beats
SONG 3: "Gettin That Gold" by ME! AKA Elite Technique off the album "Kimura Trap Vol. 1" find it on all Digital Platforms!
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Nathan Mendelsohn
Athlete and Professor
Santa Cruz, CA
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TOKYO 2019 VLOG EPISODE TWO
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Category
Sports
All Comments (13)
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Hey man, I tore my ACL in my right knee while sparring in my BJJ class a couple months ago. I'm currently doing pre physical therapy before my surgery. I hope to continue my BJJ journey afterwards as well. Thanks for making this video.
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You’re the man Nathan. I am 1 month post op patellar tendon. Hoping to get back to training later on next year. Thanks for the motivation!
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Hey Nathan, I’m 1 week post-op and seeing you hit that Omoplata in your first comp back was inspiring! It’s good to see your mobility returned and great to hear that it is possible when putting in the work. Stay rad! Thanks 🤙🏼
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You might not have too many subscribers jet, but your videos are a great inspiration and very valuable for BJJ practitioners as myself. Love the vlogs and tutorials and maybe some of your favourite sequences or ways you like to string (for example) take downs, back take and submission options together would be interesting. Just something barely any instructors show or talk about! Much appriciation from Austria! OSSSS!!!
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Thanks for sharing brother. I am in my second week after ACL+Meniscus reconstruction. Seeing this gives me hope in getting back on the mat again. How long did it take for you to be able to roll again?
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Big Oss brotha! 🔥✊🏽🙏🏽
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Great to see you back winning tournaments! People dont know what a big deal that is. My acl was just snapped at Pans when a guy got lockdown and started thrashing my leg. Im getting an allograft Thursday. What graft did you get?
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What type of graft did you get? I'm almost 5 months out from my surgery using patellar tendon graft and wish I had gone with hamstring. I want to get back on the mat but can't put much weight on my knee while kneeling. Great video though, got me pumped to get back out there.
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How long did you wait until mive rolling post operation? I had acl surgery also, back in may
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Hey man, I’m six months out of pcl/meniscus surgery. I’m worried about being able to do basic drills again as I can’t properly sit back on my heels. When did this range of motion come back to you or is it something that just isn’t going to be 100% anymore?
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Hey brother, I know this is ancient history for you but what was your ROM experience? I'm 7 weeks PO and struggling to make gains.
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s it true that he declined a super fight with you before he became well known and dominant? And how do you still think that you are the better grappler either in Gi or No-gi? Your carrer would sky rocket if you beat Gordon after DOMINATING everyone he faced in the last 4-5 years
