“A black belt.. is a white belt that never quit..”

Brazilian Ju Jit-su
Mondays 8 PM, Tuesdays 6:00 PM or 8:30 PM & Thursdays 6 PM

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) is a martial art, combat sport, and a self defence system that focuses on grappling and especially ground fighting. The art was derived from the Japanese martial art of Kodokan judo in the early 20th century. The London Martial Arts & Fitness Academy offer Brazilian Jiu Jit-Su classes at our specialist space in Beckenham, London.

It teaches that a smaller, weaker person can successfully defend against a bigger, stronger assailant by using leverage and proper technique—most notably by applying joint-locks and chokeholds to defeat the other person. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu training can be used for sport grappling tournaments (Gi and No-Gi) and mixed martial arts (MMA) competition or self defence. Sparring (commonly referred to as ‘rolling’) and live drilling play a major role in training, and a premium is placed on performance, especially in competition, in relation to progress and ascension through the grades/belts.

A typical Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu class is usually 75 minutes long and begins with a light warm up followed by stretching. The students are then paired up and given the opportunity to practice the techniques and positions while the instructor supervises.

Toward the end of the class, the students will ‘spar’ or wrestle with each other to utilise the techniques learned. Class format may be modified depending on upcoming events such as tournaments or promotion tests. In such cases, more emphasis will be placed on specific areas of training such as takedowns, escaping positions, submissions, etc.

We offer classes for all skill levels from beginner to enthusiast or professional. If you are interested in learning BJJ from scratch or want to keep your proficiency at a high level, we’ve got something to offer you.

In BJJ, you can train with Gi or with No Gi. The former enables you to grab the Gi of your opponent, for example the collar or the sleeve, and you can use your opponent’s Gi or your own to submit them.

These grips allow you to have greater control of the fight and enable a much smaller opponent to control a larger one. In No Gi, we wear a rash guard and MMA style shorts (so no zips, buttons and/or pockets) and you’re not allowed to grab your opponent’s clothing. In No Gi you have more wrestling based grips such as the neck and all joints of the body and it’s therefore harder to control your opponent.

Brazilian Ju-Jitsu is a martial art that revolves around grappling and ground fighting. Most of the techniques focus on taking your opponent to the ground where you can control and work to submit them – making them tap out. BJJ promotes the idea that a smaller, weaker person can use leverage, grip, knowledge, position plus tactical skills and problem solving to successfully defend against a bigger, stronger assailant by successfully applying a range of techniques like chokeholds and joint locks.

Sparring/rolling is included in these classes as it enables students to put what they’ve learnt to the test and many of our members participate in professional bouts throughout the course of the year – although this is obviously a personal decision.