Kickboxing vs. BJJ – The Ultimate Showdown!

Learning a martial art is a great, beneficial thing to do. Both BJJ and Kickboxing are fantastic fighting styles you can choose from. However, there are so many martial arts, which makes it super difficult to choose. Not only that but there are different types of martial arts, including grappling and striking,

So I can definitely understand where people have trouble with this choice. In fact, I found this decision difficult to the point where I wanted to learn everything, so I did. However, you might not be willing to do that, which is more than understandable.

In that case, you want to choose a single fighting style to invest your time into, so you can master it. And if you’re having a difficult time choosing between BJJ and Kickboxing, this article is for you!

We’ll start by defining each one and continue with the article by going over some differences and similarities you want to familiarize yourself with. Eventually, we’ll come up with a straight answer to which one you want to learn considering your goal.

So we’ll have an entire section for people who want to do MMA, another one on losing weight, and even one on street fighting and self-defense. So you should stick through this article to find out which is the better martial art, kickboxing or BJJ.

What is Kickboxing?

Let’s now define what Kickboxing is. We’ll go over some basic details regarding what it teaches and some things you should know before you begin training in it.

As the name suggests, Kickboxing is a martial art that teaches both kicking and punching. It’s effective and beneficial for many purposes and benefits, including fitness, self-defense, and street fights. And it’s as effective because it teaches practical skills in real life and self-defense, including defensive moves.

You can’t go wrong with learning Kickboxing, and I don’t stay that on every martial art. While every fighting style brings something else to the table, Kickboxing is extremely effective, popular, and relevant.

What is BJJ?

Now, let’s go ahead and define what is BJJ and why it’s as effective and popular as it is. It’s perhaps one of the most effective grappling-based martial arts globally, making it highly attractive for people who want to learn to fight properly.

BJJ is a martial art that specializes in ground grappling. It teaches different types of submissions, including chokes, leg locks, and upper body submissions. Likewise, it teaches you to attain dominant positions over your opponent, like the Full Mount and Side Control while maneuvering your opponent.

If you learn it, you’ll be able to maneuver your opponents with ease. It’s also effective in self-defense because most people on the street don’t know to defend against offensive ground grappling. They usually don’t know to counter the Rear Naked Choke, for example.

That’s why you’ll control most street fights if you know to use BJJ. It’s, indeed, a lethal weapon you want to learn to use if you desire to become a solid fighter.

And again, I don’t say that often but you can’t go wrong when you learn BJJ. It’s a win-win situation.

Differences between Kickboxing and BJJ

And now, let’s dive into the fun part of this article. Let’s discuss the various differences between Kickboxing and BJJ. Likewise, we’ll go over what each one means for those of you who want to start learning one but are having a difficult time choosing.

This is the most important part of the article for those of you who are having a difficult time choosing between the two. Eventually, if your goal is to become a great fighter, both will do a fantastic job, as you’ll see in the next part of the article.

Difference #1 – Striking vs. Grappling

The first and most important difference between the two is the fighting techniques each teaches. If you’re struggling to choose one to learn, this is the factor you want to look for.

Are you looking to learn striking or grappling? If you don’t know the answer to that, do you prefer learning to punch and kick or learning to maneuver your opponent to eventually gain more control? The second is grappling, while the first is striking.

BJJ is all about grappling. It’ll teach you how to gain control over your opponent by maneuvering him to (1) attain a more dominant position, like Mount and Side Control, and (2) attack and submit him (using a submission.)

Kickboxing is fairly different, to say the least. What it teaches you is how to punch and kick. As a result, you’ll learn entirely different fighting techniques and strategies. Primarily, you’ll train with pads, a heavy bag, and spar, a lot!

So the first question you want to ask yourself is which fighting technique you rather learn, striking or grappling.

Difference #2 – Stand up vs. Ground fighting

The 2nd difference is the way you’ll fight. This is an important distinction to make between the two martial arts because you might not like either one. So if you’re struggling to make a choice, you want to think about which one you’d rather learn. Once you come up with a straight, definitive answer, you’ll be able to make a wise choice.

Kickboxing is done standing up. Your goal is to punch or kick your opponent so hard that his only chance is to fall to the ground from all the pain one is experiencing.

BJJ is the other way around. You’re more than likely to end up on the ground and grapple. That’s why it’s called ground grappling. You’ll be using submissions, chokes, sweeps, and even takedowns to take your opponent down to the ground and attack him.

Difference #3 – Training methods

The 3rd difference between Kickboxing and BJJ is the training methods.

In BJJ, you’ll be rolling with your opponent (same as sparring) and technique-focused training. That means that you’ll take a move and practice it with your training partner. Let’s say you want to practice the Triangle Choke. That’s great. You’ll grab one of your training partners and only perform the Triangle Choke, without your opponent resisting.

These are the two primary ways you train in BJJ.

In Kickboxing, however, the case is quite different. You’ll have three primary ways of training:

• Heavy bag training
• Sparring
• Pad work

There are other ways you’ll train, of course. However, the primary focus will be on these three ways.

Difference #4 – Competitions

Kickboxing competitions are usually conducted in a ring or a cage, with fighters aiming to defeat their opponents through strikes, knockouts, or technical knockouts. Competitors wear gloves and protective gear, and fights are often divided into rounds. BJJ competitions, commonly known as tournaments, typically take place on mats. Matches are conducted either in gi (a traditional uniform) or no-gi (without the traditional uniform). Competitors aim to gain points by achieving dominant positions, sweeps, takedowns, or by submitting their opponents through joint locks or chokes.

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Similarities between Kickboxing and BJJ

While knowing the differences between Kickboxing and BJJ—will definitely help you make a wiser choice when you decide which one you’ll learn, you also need to know of the similarities.

Knowing how they’re similar might make the decision-making process easier—because you’ll understand a key point. The key point is that it doesn’t really matter which one you’ll choose.

Regardless, you’ll become a solid fighter, which I can assume is your goal. However, if your goal is to become the best ground grappler and not learn to fight, you already know which one to pick.

That said, for myself and most people, the goal of becoming a great fighter—over exceeds the goal of learning a specific art.

That’s why knowing their similarities—will help you make a choice quicker.

So let’s dive in!

Similarity #1 – Purpose

The first similarity is purpose. What does that mean? The purpose of ALL martial arts is to teach you how to fight, so you can defend yourself. That’s it.

This is why all martial arts were constructed in the first place. Let’s take Karate, for example. We’ve all heard of Karate at one point in our life. However, did you know it was first constructed to teach the people of Okinawa (Okinawa is an island) how to fight? That was the entire purpose of Karate, which is why it was so meticulously construed for that purpose.

The same applies to Kickboxing and BJJ. The reason they exist in the first place—is to teach people how to fight. That’s it. This is how far it gets. So if your goal is to become a great fighter, I encourage you to choose a random one out of the two and start training TODAY.

Don’t wait for tomorrow. Train today, so you can start experiencing results as soon as possible. There’s no better feeling than experiencing results, trust me on that.

Similarity #2 – Self-defense

I’ve decided to dedicate another section to a similar point to the last one we’ve discussed. The point goes as follows:

BJJ and Kickboxing teach us self-defense. That’s their purpose and that’s what they’re for. So if learning self-defense is your primary goal, it doesn’t matter which one you’ll choose, you’ll fulfill that purpose.

So before you choose one, ask yourself what you want to achieve. Do you want to become a great fighter, or do you want to learn a specific art? If the first is true, choose a random one; but, if the second is true, think about which art you want to learn and why.

Similarity #3 – Discipline and values

The last similarity we’ll review is discipline and values. Both Kickboxing and BJJ are all about values. By remaining dedicated and consistent in your martial arts training, you’ll begin to develop an iron mind.

An iron mind is my term for having a strong mental mindset. And the only way to improve your mental strength is to constantly push yourself to your limits and out of your comfort zone.

Today, unfortunately, society embraces comfort and mediocrity. Therefore, our natural instinct is to stay in place, and not push ourselves out of our comfort zones. That’s why many men today aren’t competent in almost any important field in life.

Discipline is what builds people up. Whether you’re a man or a woman, it doesn’t matter. All martial arts will push you to your limit, all the time. Therefore, if you want to become mentally tougher, both Kickboxing and BJJ will be fantastic for you.

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Should I learn Kickboxing or BJJ?

We’re now bound to advance into the more fun part of this article. This is where you’ll be able to compare Kickboxing and BJJ in many fields out there, including self-defense, weight loss, which one is more suitable for beginners, etc.

The first question we’ll answer is which martial art is suitable for which types of people. For example, if you prefer learning to punch than learning to choke your opponent effectively, Kickboxing will be more suitable. If the opposite is true, then BJJ is your answer.

So you understand how this will act out. Let’s start comparing the two!

You should learn BJJ if you want to learn ground grappling, including various submissions, such as the Kimura, Americana, and Guillotine Choke, takedowns, and how to attain dominant positions. However, you should learn Kickboxing if you desire to learn the art of punching and kicking aggressively and fiercely.

Which is better for weight loss, BJJ or Kickboxing?

To come up with the most accurate answer for which is better for weight loss, I’ll compare one characteristic, calories burned per hour. The martial art with the most calories burned per hour will win the title.

Of course, I’m aware that it’s not the only factor, but we can’t compare them all and come up with a definitive answer, as there won’t be one that will win them all. Therefore, it’ll become subjective, which I want to avoid.

Kickboxing burns 600 calories an hour, for a person weighing 125 pounds, according to Harvard Health. Conversely, a 125 pounds person will burn 477 calories in an hour of BJJ training.

So to answer our question. Kickboxing is more effective for weight loss compared to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

If that’s your primary goal, go ahead and choose the first over the latter!

Is BJJ safer than Kickboxing?

The 2nd factor we’ll review is safety. This was definitely an important subject for me when I chose the martial art I wanted to learn. Although there isn’t 100% safe in martial arts (if you want to learn real fighting and not Tai Chi or Qigong) having myself safe in the long term—was something I desired.

If you want to learn more about the safest martial arts that are still effective for self-defense, follow the link to learn just that!

BJJ is safer than Kickboxing because it doesn’t include any impact that comes from punching or kicking. You’ll experience more injuries in BJJ because you’ll use vulnerable body parts all the time, such as your wrist and fingers. BJJ doesn’t utilize vulnerable body parts, which makes it rather safe.

It’s not 100% safe, as you can imagine. That said, it’s safer than Kickboxing, that’s for sure.

Which is more effective for MMA, Kickboxing, or BJJ?

The next criterion we’ll review is which martial art is more suitable for MMA. The answer is straightforward and clear to me, so I’ll dive straight into it.

BJJ is more effective than Kickboxing for becoming the best MMA fighter. That’s because having a ground grappling basis—is more valuable in cage fights than knowing to punch and kick. Many MMA and UFC fighters don’t know to defend against ground grappling, making it more effective.

Which is better for beginners, Kickboxing or BJJ?

For the last question of this article, let’s see which is more suitable for beginners. There’s also a clear winner here, so let’s dive straight to the point.

Kickboxing is better for beginners than BJJ because of how quickly you’ll learn its basics. You’ll start noticing results after just a few training sessions. Conversely, it’ll take more time to learn the basics of BJJ because it teaches unintuitive and difficult fighting techniques, such as submissions and sweeps.

The world of BJJ is much larger than that of Kickboxing. In BJJ, you’ll learn:

• Guard passing
• Using guards
• Positions
• Sweeps
• Takedowns
• Submissions
• Chokes
• Joint Locks
• Leg Locks

Each of these subjects will take numerous months to learn. So you can imagine just how much more difficult it’ll be to learn.

That said, I personally prefer BJJ over Kickboxing because of its effectiveness. I believe that BJJ is more effective for self-defense, making it more attractive to learn. Also, it’s much more interesting to learn, as it includes so much more fighting techniques.

Final Words

And that’s it for this article. It was a lot of fun comparing BJJ and Kickboxing, and although coming up with a definitive answer to which one you should learn, I compared the two as best as I could.

If you haven’t started your training yet, I encourage you to begin as soon as possible. It’ll be impossible to gain results without putting actual effort into training, so you want to start today. Don’t wait for tomorrow, start learning and getting results today!

If you could take only one thing from this article, it would be to take action as soon as possible. Good luck!

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