What Age Is Too Old To Start MMA?

If you’re into martial arts, then at some point in your life you’ll have watched Rocky. This tells the tale of an older boxer who somehow makes it to the top of his profession and becomes an overnight boxing superstar. Of course, this is just a movie and doesn’t reflect real life…but still, can it be done in reality?

Like all things, MMA and martial arts are very different when performed in the real world compared to scenes shown on TV and in movies. With this said, it’s immensely difficult to become a professional MMA fighter if you start at an older age. At the same time, if you simply want to train MMA as a hobby then this is much easier. Still, you may need a reality check on your goals and will have to train with a humble, safety-conscious mindset. Here’s our take on what age is too old to start MMA.

What is the oldest you can start MMA as a professional?

Whilst there have been some people that have gotten into professional MMA later on in life, this is generally very rare and has a few strings attached. Most noticeably was Brock Lesnar who didn’t formally start MMA until he was aged 30 years old. As mentioned though, there are a few big caveats to mention.

The story of Brock Lesnar

Firstly, Brock Lesnar was and still is considered something of a genetic freak. Basically, he’s always been huge (even for his weight category) and has tremendous strength. Even in the world of MMA, these attributes are rare and Lesnar is probably one of a few men in the world that could kill someone with a single punch.

Secondly, Lesnar was already financially stable when he began training MMA. Unlike most people, he could literally devote his entire day to MMA. Apparently, he enrolled in a crash course that was based on striking and submissions. Most regular people cannot afford to commit to MMA in such a fashion.

Lastly, Lesnar already had a very strong college wrestling background. In short, he was a successful D1 wrestler which in itself is a huge advantage. This meant long before his MMA training, he could easily out-wrestle most MMA fighters. We all know that MMA is huge on wrestling and you can’t get anywhere without it.

Lesnar was already an expert in this field before stepping foot in a cage. In short, it’s fair to say that Lesnar was definitely an outlier when it came to starting MMA later in life. Even then, it’s not like he just started training one day and got super good. Arguably, he was training martial arts since childhood, he just didn’t know what he was training for at that point.

Starting MMA from a fresh when older

If you’re trying to start MMA from a fresh then realistically you probably can’t become a professional if you’re over 25 years old. These days, you probably can’t get away with starting MMA brand new if you’re a little over 20 years old. Whilst not impossible, each year that passes makes it tougher.

The reason for this is that MMA is very versatile and has a lot of things to learn. It’s not like learning boxing where you need to master one martial art. Typically, MMA means learning boxing, Muay Thai, wrestling, and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. For most people, learning one of these to an adequate degree takes years to do. So, imagine trying to learn all of these at once. Even if you had a job that let you train twice per day, there’s still only so much you could learn within a day.

You could get fairly good at striking for instance, only to get taken down and submitted in a fight. Therefore, it’s ideal that you learn during some time in your childhood or teens. Back in the 90s, this may not have been the case but MMA is now more competitive than ever. As a result, there are plenty of fighters that have literally trained since their early years.

MMA is hard on the body

The second issue with starting later on in life is that MMA can be pretty hard on the body. Between taking punches to the body and grappling with takedowns, it’s not exactly knitting. Therefore, if you start this earlier on in life you should have enough testosterone and youth to be able to recover and continue training through fatigue and injuries.

Sadly, this simply isn’t the case as an older MMA practitioner. The reason for this is that things naturally take longer to heal and recovery time slows down. For instance, a 20 year old may be able to train twice per day, six times per week if they want. Their body may be able to handle the sparring and tough days.

As a 30 year old though, this will be much harder to do, especially if you’re new to the sport and your body isn’t very athletic or conditioned to begin with. Between having an older body and running out of time, trying to be a pro MMA fighter once you begin over 25 years old is incredibly difficult.

Self-positivity bias in martial arts

In psychology, there is a phenomenon called self-positivity bias. This describes when an individual genuinely believes they’re better than others and view themselves as superior. In terms of biases, it’s actually one of the most common forms. Typically, this could mean an individual believes they have a higher rate of surviving cancer compared to the average person. When looked upon from an outsider’s perspective, these people look delusional. Yet they still exist in large numbers.

The same goes for martial arts. If you’ve trained in any discipline, you’ll often see the odd guy turn up who genuinely believes they can become a professional whilst living an amateur lifestyle. Imagine turning up to an MMA class thinking you could beat someone in sparring that has trained daily for over 5 years. Realistically, it just wouldn’t happen and there’s too much of a skill gap.

Self-positivity bias is one of the reasons why people start martial arts and then quit within weeks or even days. They get a harsh wake-up call and then never turn up again. Just remember, you may think you’re better at fighting than you are but until you’ve properly tested yourself – then these thoughts may be delusions which is not good when thinking about the dangers of fighting.

What is the oldest you can start MMA as a hobbyist?

Having said this, if you intend on doing MMA as a hobbyist then things will be much easier. As a hobbyist, you could train MMA as little as once or twice per week, or even less if you truly wanted to. This means training whilst holding down a regular job and not having to worry about becoming a professional. Naturally, this takes a big financial pressure off your head – as well as not having the pressure of having to improve or perform.

Basically, it means training out of fun rather than out of necessity. Obviously, there is a big difference between these. With this said, there’s really no age limit as long your body is in good enough shape.

Being realistic though, you’ll probably be a bit stupid to start beginning MMA once you’re over 45 years old. The reason for this is that at this point, your body will have really started slowing down and will be in a physical decline compared to your younger years.

Interestingly, every MMA gym seems to have a guy in his 50s who is technically excellent. However, you should remember that this person may have been training since his 20s, so they know exactly how to train and may have been in great shape in their 40s and 50s, to begin with. In other words, there’s a big difference between being an older practitioner with years of experience and an older practitioner who is brand new.

Injuries as an older martial artist

In other words, as an older martial artist your goals shouldn’t be as competitive. This may be a bitter pill to swallow but reality often is. Here, your goals should be to avoid injury as much as possible. This means sparring lighter and picking less aggressive sparring partners, as well as plenty of rest and recovery.

Another thing that most MMA gyms are big on is strength and conditioning. It’s best to begin training MMA with an athletic background to begin with where you can already perform physical movements with relative ease. If you’re out of shape though, then this probably won’t cut it in a proper MMA gym as the training can be quite intense at times. This means you’re more likely to get injured if you begin whilst obese or lack cardio or muscle.

Overall, this may make for pessimistic reading but is ultimately quite honest. At the same time, as said – if you train properly and smartly without an ego then you should be able to train MMA as an older practitioner and still improve. Arguably though, it’s probably more sensible to pick a singular martial art compared to MMA as some are less attacking on the body. Remember, the older you get – the harder it is to recover from injuries and pains.

Conclusion

Training MMA later on in life is certainly possible. However, being realistic is key. If you start training aged 30 with no martial arts background then the reality is it will be near impossible to go professional. Or, even if you do go professional it will still be at the lower levels that are borderline amateur anyway.

Instead, it’s probably best to train for fun and truly enjoy what you’re doing. This way, you’re less likely to get injured and can train for years anyway if you approach it correctly. Ultimately, consistent improvement is what martial arts are all about anyway. Even this way may prove difficult for some due to the physical demands on the body. Still, if you make sure your body is in good, athletic shape before starting then it’s certainly possible to start MMA as an older person and get a lot out of it.

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