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One of the more interesting ways to think about learning Jiu-Jitsu is to think of it as learning a language.

Most educational programs are made up of different levels or grades. You begin at a low level, demonstrate your knowledge of certain material, and then move up (or graduate) to the next level. Jiu-jitsu is no different.

Most people who go to their first jiu-jitsu class are nervous. It’s difficult to walk into any situation wearing your inexperience on your sleeve, especially when this inexperience concerns your ability to defend yourself physically.

Bullying is a major problem in the United States. It takes a massive toll on the physical and psychological wellbeing of kids from elementary school to high school and it can oftentimes lead to extremely violent and tragic events.

We typically think of martial arts training that is something incredibly beneficial for children – and rightfully so, but those benefits are not exclusive to children as adults often stand to gain for more from martial arts training than children actually.

There is no doubt that the growing popularity of jiu-jitsu, especially Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Apart from it becoming more common among mixed martial arts fighters, it’s also gaining a following among normal people who merely want to learn how to defend themselves.

On part 1 of this article we examined the two approaches to training Jiu Jitsu in NYC – the Sport focused and Street Self-defense focused approach.  It’s not a question of which approach is better, but more so a question of which suits the individual’s needs.

For people who are just starting to learn jiu-jitsu, it is important to recognize that not all gyms are the same. Though all jiu-jitsu classes will teach the principles of the fighting style, there are significant differences in how some gyms choose to convert these principles into practice. The distinction is especially important if your objective is to learn self-defense.

We’ve taken a very informative 50-minute video where Rener Gracie and Alex Ueda explains the most common injuries when training in Jiu Jitsu and broke it down into two parts.

Sparring, also known as rolling, is what makes Jiu-Jitsu the most dynamic and effective martial art around the globe. Furthermore, it offers the opportunity for limitless growth. In other words, Jiu-Jitsu promotes constant sparring, which enhances one’s skills. Unfortunately, most people quit before they hit the 6-month mark in the academy because of sparring. 

Women who take self-defense classes typically aren’t training to be championship fighters. They take these classes because they want to be prepared to confront dangers in real-world scenarios.

Even though many people believe that Muay Thai and kickboxing are the same, they are quite different in many aspects including fighting styles and the techniques used. Yes, there are universal techniques shared between the two sports, however, the implementation of these techniques varies depending on an individual fighter and the sport.

Most Women consider self-defense an optional skillset that tend to be on the bottom of the list (if at all) of things to learn.  It’s like someone learning to shoot a gun, in case of war or a shoot-out. The probability doesn’t justify the effort – right?

Rener and Ryron Gracie have been head instructors at Gracie University since the age of 18 and 20, respectively.  Having managed all aspects of Jiu-Jitsu training and program development.  They have personally observed the rates at which people are quitting their Jiu-Jitsu journey especially, those above 40 years old tend to have a higher rate of quitting while those just approaching 40 are considering quitting soon.

You’ve watched the UFC. You’ve had friends telling you about how fun training is. Maybe you’ve even lurked in one of the many BJJ / MMA forums. And now you’ve finally decided to take your interest a little further and actually try out one of the best MMA gyms in NYC, namely ours, Ronin Athletics.