How are joints affected in the long term by martial arts practice?

Question

When doing certain exercises, I get the feeling that they would cause stress on the joints after doing them for years and years (such as elbow joints in the instance of wing chun chain punches).

However, from anecdotal experience, it doesn't seem like long-time martial arts practitioners suffer joint problems. Is this because joints regenerate like muscles do, or because the development of martial arts focuses on ways to reduce joint stress? Or is it that practitioners do suffer joint problems more often than non-practitioners, and I just don't hear about it?

Answer 1

Any trained athlete, such as martial artists, will develop injuries due to accidents that will get worst over time. Joints are amongst the first thing to go because of the large amount of repeated motion that we use in all martial arts. However, if done safely martial arts pose no more dangers than any other sport.

Remember to warm up, not over exert any joins (stop when it hurts), see the physiotherapist when it does hurt for longer than a week, and keep good care of your body. We only get one of those, once it's broken, the game is over.

Answer 2

I refer you to this question that I asked. There is a natural, proper way to use the body, and ... Other ways. A martial arts should follow the natural way and only enhance body movements and effectiveness, not put undue stress on the body. This goes for forms, striking techniques, and calisthenics.

Training joints, tendons, ligaments - this is done through, for instance, careful Chin Na (joint locking) training with a partner. It is a good way to put some stress on these weak parts and let them get used to it over time.

Answer 3

My sifu told me this: advanced martial arts practitioners were willing to "break" their body a little in order to gain the upper edge in a fight (life or death situations). This means that not all advanced techniques are safe for all body parts such as joints.

Moreover, certain martial arts have been designed by and for smaller people (e.g., southern Chinese martial arts vs. northern Chinese martial arts) so taller people have to adjust if they don't want to put too much pressure on their knees.

That being said, this was a long time ago. Nowadays, still according to my sifu, competent instructors won't teach techniques that are fundamentally dangerous for the body. In general, if you feel a burning sensation, that's good. If it hurts, that's not good.