Gordon Ryan, widely considered one of the greatest grapplers of all time, has sparked endless debate about the role of strength and muscle in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
While some critics attribute his dominance to performance-enhancing drugs, exercise science expert Dr. Mike Israetel offers a different perspective.
In a detailed analysis, the RP Strength founder breaks down exactly how Ryan’s training approach—and yes, his impressive physique—contributes to his success on the mat.
What emerges is a masterclass in balancing sport-specific training with strategic strength work.
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The Perfect Training Split for Elite Grapplers
Ryan’s training schedule reveals sophisticated programming that maximizes both skill development and recovery.
Usually like two hour session in the morning, like 8:00 a.m., and then a 1:00 p.m. session, which is usually like two and a half hours total. And then I lift like four times a week, and then Jiu-Jitsu Monday to Friday two sessions, Saturday and Sunday one session.
This structure isn’t arbitrary. Dr. Israetel explains that two shorter sessions beat one marathon training block because fatigue degrades skill acquisition.
If you want something simple that actually works, this is one of the most effective tools I’ve used to build strength, conditioning, and endurance without needing a full gym setup.
- Full-body training with one weight using swings, squats, and presses
- Solid cast iron build that feels stable and lasts for years
- Comfortable grip that makes high-rep workouts easier to handle
“At the end of that four-hour session, you’re grappling, but you’re not really doing jiu-jitsu anymore,” he notes. “You’re just struggling to survive and make sense of things.”
Strategic Session Timing
The 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. schedule serves a specific purpose beyond convenience.
By clustering both sessions earlier in the day, Ryan creates extended recovery windows before the next training day. He’s not fully recovered between morning and afternoon sessions—but that’s intentional.
“You want to consolidate your stressors to some extent when you’re designing a sport training program,” Dr. Israetel explains. This approach dedicates distinct portions of each day to training stress versus recovery adaptation.
Four Weight Sessions: The Sweet Spot
Ryan lifts weights four times weekly—a number Dr. Israetel calls ideal for combat athletes.
Any more than four weight training sessions per week starts cutting into recovery capacity needed for sport-specific work. Any fewer leaves strength gains on the table.
If you want something simple that actually works, this is one of the most effective tools I’ve used to build strength, conditioning, and endurance without needing a full gym setup.
- Full-body training with one weight using swings, squats, and presses
- Solid cast iron build that feels stable and lasts for years
- Comfortable grip that makes high-rep workouts easier to handle
- Two sessions weekly: adequate for maintenance and modest gains
- Three sessions: excellent balance for most grapplers
- Four sessions: optimal for maximizing strength without compromising technique training
- Five-plus sessions: counterproductive unless purely physique-focused
“If you’re training weights five times a week, it’s totally cool if you want to get extra jacked and extra strong, but it’s sure shit not the ideal,” Dr. Israetel says bluntly.
Bodybuilding-Style Training for Grapplers
Ryan’s strength coach, Nathalia Santoro—a former professional bodybuilder and Arnold Classic champion—doesn’t program Olympic lifts or complex periodization.
Instead, she focuses on hypertrophy-based training: sets of 10-15 reps, partial movements, drop sets, and classic bodybuilding exercises.
The priority is jiu-jitsu always, no matter what. So we cannot compromise jiu-jitsu by lifting heavy and just being the strongest guy in the gym by lifting, you know, 400 lbs.
This approach prioritizes muscle cross-sectional area—simply getting bigger—over specialized strength qualities.
“The cross-sectional area, the size of your muscles is the number one determining factor of how strong you are,” Dr. Israetel explains. “The bodybuilding training builds the size, the Jiu Jitsu training teaches that size how to work properly in Jiu Jitsu.”
Training Around Severe GI Issues
Ryan has battled debilitating gastrointestinal problems for years—issues that would sideline most athletes entirely.
If you want something simple that actually works, this is one of the most effective tools I’ve used to build strength, conditioning, and endurance without needing a full gym setup.
- Full-body training with one weight using swings, squats, and presses
- Solid cast iron build that feels stable and lasts for years
- Comfortable grip that makes high-rep workouts easier to handle
There’s a lot of exercise we cannot do. For example, anything that he’s bending over like this or laying down because he has nausea or like acid reflux. So, you have to There’s a lot of things we cannot do. Then, there’s a lot of things we have to improvise because of that.
Santoro has adapted his program extensively, avoiding bent-over positions that exacerbate reflux and nausea.
When exercising, your lower esophageal sphincter relaxes, allowing stomach contents to move upward. Combined with abdominal compression during exertion, this creates significant discomfort for anyone with GI dysfunction.
The fact that Ryan achieved GOAT status while managing these limitations makes his accomplishments even more remarkable.
Bench Press Over Squats: Upper Body Dominance in Grappling
Ryan’s max bench press at 235 pounds bodyweight? A staggering 395 pounds for three reps—essentially a 400-pound single.
My max bench press ever at 235 lbs was 395 for three.
Even more surprising: Ryan admits his bench likely exceeds his squat. Dr. Israetel calls this the sport’s “politically incorrect” reality.
“The legs are overrated in Jiu-Jitsu,” he states. “If you have strong enough legs to jump up a reasonable height into the air, sprint a few times, and walk up a flight of stairs, you probably have strong enough legs to do everything with your legs that you would need to happen with them in Jiu-Jitsu.”
If you want something simple that actually works, this is one of the most effective tools I’ve used to build strength, conditioning, and endurance without needing a full gym setup.
- Full-body training with one weight using swings, squats, and presses
- Solid cast iron build that feels stable and lasts for years
- Comfortable grip that makes high-rep workouts easier to handle
Why Upper Body Matters More
Gripping, pulling opponents closer, pushing them away, controlling posture—these actions depend primarily on chest, back, shoulder, and arm strength.
While stronger legs certainly don’t hurt performance, the return on investment diminishes quickly compared to upper body development.
- Priority movements: Bench press, rows, pull-ups, curls
- Secondary movements: One posterior chain exercise (deadlifts, good mornings), one quad-dominant movement (squats, leg press, lunges)
“The way you train for Jiu-Jitsu in the gym is going to look much more bro-like than many of us would like to believe,” Dr. Israetel admits.
The Steroids Question: Do They Make Champions?
Ryan has been open about performance-enhancing drug use, particularly because most jiu-jitsu organizations don’t test competitors.
Do you need steroids to be the best athlete in the world? No, I don’t think so. I think that I could have done all this natural, and I could have been the best in the world without steroids.
Dr. Israetel’s analysis supports this claim—at least for jiu-jitsu specifically.
“There is no steroid you can take that makes you that much better at Jiu-Jitsu compared to like adding a session a week of Jiu-Jitsu,” he explains. The sport’s technical demands far outweigh raw physical attributes.
If you want something simple that actually works, this is one of the most effective tools I’ve used to build strength, conditioning, and endurance without needing a full gym setup.
- Full-body training with one weight using swings, squats, and presses
- Solid cast iron build that feels stable and lasts for years
- Comfortable grip that makes high-rep workouts easier to handle
Technique Trumps Chemistry
Someone who takes steroids but doesn’t train technique becomes a “gas out machine”—exhausted within minutes against a skilled opponent.
Ryan’s game exemplifies technical mastery over brute force. He’s known for tactical sequencing—closing off escape routes systematically until submission becomes inevitable.
“Gordon actually, his game is less physical than one of his competitors, Nicky Rod,” Dr. Israetel notes. “Gordon is a smooth technician in jiu-jitsu. He’s not muscling people.”
What I do believe is that you need steroids to be the best version of yourself as an athlete. They just enhance you.
This nuanced perspective acknowledges enhancement without claiming dependency—PEDs optimize an already elite foundation rather than creating excellence from nothing.
The Hierarchy That Matters
Ryan himself summarized his approach perfectly in just nine words.
I lift weights and eat food to get strong and I grapple to get good at grappling.
This simple formula captures what Dr. Israetel spent an entire analysis explaining: sport-specific training always takes priority.
If you want something simple that actually works, this is one of the most effective tools I’ve used to build strength, conditioning, and endurance without needing a full gym setup.
- Full-body training with one weight using swings, squats, and presses
- Solid cast iron build that feels stable and lasts for years
- Comfortable grip that makes high-rep workouts easier to handle
Strength work serves as a complement—valuable, performance-enhancing, but secondary. You won’t powerlift your way to a world championship in any combat sport.
High-volume, high-frequency grappling builds technical mastery. Strategic strength training ensures that mastery gets expressed through a capable, resilient body.
“When you’re good at Jiu-Jitsu but you happen to find yourself in the possession of a big strong body, you’re going to put it on motherfuckers,” Dr. Israetel concludes. “It’s just like a compliment, it’s the best of all worlds.”
For athletes in any grappling discipline—Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, judo, wrestling—Ryan’s template offers a proven framework: train technique relentlessly, lift intelligently without compromising recovery, and build muscle that serves performance rather than vanity.
