What Jiu Jitsu Teaches Surgeons

Mar 16

It is always incredible to meet surgeons who also train jiu jitsu. Why are people who know so much about injuries and treat these injuries so drawn to the sport? I often wonder this about myself. Why do I keep going back?

The truth is… I cannot stay away.

From jiu jitsu or surgery.

Both environments demand presence, humility, and constant learning. The mats teach lessons that show up in the operating room, and the operating room reinforces lessons that apply on the mats.

Here are a few ways I have found the two worlds to be deeply interconnected.

Staying Calm in the Chaos

Have you ever had someone on your back trying to choke you while you fight to stay safe?

I have.

When I first started jiu jitsu, my heart rate would spike and I would start moving in a spastic, panicked way. Inevitably, that only made the choke tighter and led me to tapping.

In the operating room as a young resident, a similar feeling would come over me when there was a hiccup in surgery. Sweaty palms. Increased heart rate. Blood pressure rising. Pupils dilated.

Then I would look at the attending.

They would take a deep breath and calmly adjust. Almost as if the hiccup had not even phased them.

It was incredible to watch.

That calm problem solving in the middle of chaos is exactly what jiu jitsu teaches. Control the breathing. Slow the mind. Make the next right decision instead of reacting emotionally.

It is how I aim to operate now as an attending, both in surgery and on the mats.

Learning From Mistakes

Nobody is perfect. Patients sign consent forms because surgery carries risk. Even the most technically perfect surgery can have pitfalls.

That is where learning comes in.

Even when a surgery goes well, there are areas for improvement. I sit down after cases and take notes on what went well and what could be done better next time.

Jiu jitsu is exactly the same.

Today I was training with a teenager more than twenty years younger than me. She launched me into the air with a beautiful takedown. When I got home, I thought about what I could do better next time. Maybe pull guard sooner. Maybe keep my hips further back.

Then, I thought about what went well. After the throw, I did not let her advance her position. I recovered, got back on top, and kept working.

Progress comes from honest reflection, not perfection.

Having Plans A Through F

One of my mentors, Dr. Catalano, used to tell us, “Always have plans A through F.”

That man had some phenomenal one liners. He is also the author, as far as I know, of my favorite: “The enemy of good is great.”

What he meant was that in surgery, every step will not always go exactly as planned. Your A plan might not work in that moment, but your B or C plan can still lead to a great outcome. When you prepare ahead of time, the adjustment happens almost automatically.

Jiu jitsu is no different.

Maybe your A game is to pull guard, but your opponent beats you to it. Immediately you transition to your B game. You pass there guard and take their back, without even thinking.

The best athletes and the best surgeons are not the ones whose first plan works every time.

They are the ones who adapt quickly, when their first plan doesn’t work.

Precision Over Force… Sometimes

Something I often try to teach jiu jitsu athletes is to rely on technique rather than strength. This is especially important when bigger athletes want to roll with me, or when I am training with small feisty purple belts.

If you rely on strength all the time, your technique will never develop.

That does not mean strength never matters. Knowing when to turn up the intensity is important. That is why I say “sometimes.”

In the operating room we joke that we just need to be stronger. But just like in jiu jitsu, I am usually the smallest person in the room.

There have been times where I was able to place an anchor or remove an implant that someone bigger may have struggled with, simply by adjusting my angle or using a different technique.

If something is not working, the answer is not always more force.

Sometimes the answer is better mechanics.

Final Thoughts

The longer I practice both surgery and jiu jitsu, the more I realize they are not separate worlds.

Both reward patience and constant learning. Both demand that you stay calm when things do not go your way.

On the mats and in the operating room, you cannot control everything. But you can control your preparation, your mindset, and your willingness to learn from every experience.

Maybe that is why surgeons keep coming back to jiu jitsu.

And why jiu jitsu practitioners who become surgeons feel right at home in the operating room.

Both environments challenge you in the same way.

They demand that you stay present, stay curious, and keep improving.

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Dr. Megan Lisset Jimenez