Jocko Willink is and ex Navy Seal who has a popular podcast called Jocko Podcast. He is a long time practitioner of BJJ and this is some of what he has to say:
How did practicing Jiu Jitsu add to your life?
Jiu Jitsu is a great workout both mentally and physically. You want to be strong for it and flexible for it. You want to have explosive energy and you want to have endurance. So it’s a very good all-around physical conditioning tool. Jiu Jitsu is probably the No. 1 activity that I could recommend to someone to improve their lives overall.
I can imagine that being in combat, your ability to hold your own in all kinds of engagements is a consideration?
It doesn’t hurt that it is a physical skill that I’d imagine that everyone would want to have. It’s another method in which to defend yourself, if absolutely necessary. Who wants to leave the door open to being dominated physically by another human being? Jiu Jitsu gives you the ability to not be dominated by that person, and to me that’s real peace of mind. I don’t have to worry about that when I’m walking around in the world. You know that you are able to handle yourself.