RONIN ATHLETICS

Ronin Athletics gym has been a pioneer in the education and training of Mixed Martial Arts, comprised of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in New York City since 2001. We are the official Gracie Jiu Jitsu® Certified Training Center in all of Manhattan, New York City area.

We are located at 265 Madison Ave - 5th Floor, which is 3 blocks south of Grand Central Station and 2 blocks southwest of the New York Public Library and Bryant Park. Our building entrance is on the North East corner of 39th Street.

You’re fortunate to live in New York City because it offers a wide variety of MMA Gyms and Academies – inherent to the competitive nature of Manhattan, the quality of the instructors tends to be of high caliber. Ronin Athletics is considered the best Martial Arts Academy in New York City for those that want to learn: all aspects Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) including self-defense, sport and its concepts on the use of leverage, as well as footwork.

Contrary to how the sport of MMA (made popular by the UFC), Grappling Competitions may appear, the ‘full-contact’ aspect of these events only exhibit a very small portion of its benefits. Fighting has always been an entertaining spectator sport but those who compete typically train at academies who specialize in developing professional fighters – we do not. We believe we are the best Mixed Martial Arts Academy for the individual who wants to learn BJJ to compliment and balance their lifestyle.

Self Defense at Ronin Athletics

While some people appreciate the spectacle of Mixed Martial Arts in a professional sport setting, many seek out these practical skills to defend themselves, increase their confidence and enhance their quality of life – especially here in New York City.  

Navigating through the endless options of Self Defense classes in NYC can be daunting for any newcomer. The range varies from traditional martial arts like Tae Kwon Do to military style martial arts like Krav Maga, or even modified self-defense training that use ‘padded’ instructors to simulate assaults.  >

Ronin Athletics offers a unique approach to Self Defense training, providing the individual a DIAL rather than an ON/OFF switch solution.  The dynamics of urban living is complicated and require countermeasures that is appropriate from low level threats to high level threats.  Military style countermeasures may not always be the solution.

Gracie Jiu Jitsu is the best Self Defense solution for someone living in an urban setting like New York City because the principles of its techniques have built-in scalability.  Examples include: a child being bullied by another child, can be resolved though non-violent Jiu Jitsu holds that neutralize a situation until a teacher arrives, or unwanted flirting in a network setting can be avoided with basic wrist escapes, or in extreme instances where an assault takes place, one may be able to use leverage to escape the threat or counter it with a choke hold, putting the attacker to sleep.

Self Defense is not only about learning the mechanics of how fight, but also about a mindset that you adapt to daily life and empowered through skill development in leverage and timing.  As Grand Master Helio Gracie said, ‘Jiu Jitsu is the triumph of intelligence over brute strength.’

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu at Ronin Athletics

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is arguably the most important skill to any MMA fighter’s arsenal. It was originally created by Helio Gracie for self-defense. Grandmaster Helio modified the techniques used by Judo practitioners to fit his needs. He was a frail man and was considered too weak to practice Judo, which relied on athleticism with some amount of leverage. He modified his self-defense system by finding the most efficient way to ‘weather the storm’ to be in the best position to respond at the right time, with the right technique, with the greatest amount of leverage (Gracie Jiu Jitsu Philosophy) – he called his art Gracie Jiu Jitsu.

Gracie Jiu Jitsu

Gracie Jiu Jitsu is Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) in its complete form, as it was intended by Grandmaster Helio. While the techniques taught share those with other Brazilian Jiu Jitsu schools, the differentiating factor is its emphasis on Self-Defense as its guiding principle during the students development. Without the Self-Defense principle to guide the practitioner, he/she can easily waste valuable time practicing techniques and concepts effective in competition but useless in practical application.

Present day – BJJ Academies abound in New York City. However they have evolved to primarily focus on the sport aspect, almost similar to high school wrestling training with submissions and reliance on a point system. It’s a new sport for the few strong and athletic type. Ronin Athletics enjoys the sport aspect as well but maintains the teaching methodology used by Master Helio.