Escapology BJJ

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Brazilian Jiu Jitsu

BJJ for Self Defense

Hoo boy, I know we’re going to be opening a can of worms with this one! However, this is a really important topic to cover, and I’m going to do my best to do justice to the discussion.

Whether BJJ is designed for self defense (or not) is one of the longest-running debates in the community. It’s not uncommon to see people who have been part of the sport for a long time claiming that “new school” BJJ has actively harmed the self-defense aspect of the sport; it’s also not uncommon for people who are active in the competitive “sport” BJJ scene to brush these concerns off. Addressing all of these issues is exhausting and delves into some of the minutiae of BJJ politics, and continuing to hash out all the details doesn’t really add much to the discussion, particularly for people just starting out. I’ve developed a short guide to the discussion of BJJ for self defense, and I hope it’s helpful for people who are looking for answers.

New School/Old School BJJ

I already alluded to the fact that there are two groups standing off against each other in the BJJ community. There are people who believe, fundamentally, that BJJ should be functional for self defense.  These people believe in the “basics:” triangles, arm bars, side control, and mount.

Old school cool.

The mindset of an individual doing BJJ for self defense requires that he or she use techniques that would be effective on concrete, against someone who is trying to punch him or her in the face.

Someone who trains with a sport BJJ mindset will be willing to do more innovative, creative BJJ. The rules of sport BJJ don’t allow for face-punching, so the sport BJJ practitioner doesn’t care what would happen if his or her opponent could punch him or her in the face. Someone who adheres to this mentality will be willing to do things like invert to win a match or score points.

Don’t worry, beginners. Everyone looks at this and thinks “what.”

BJJ for Self Defense: Yes and No

Now that I’ve established the two “schools of thought,” so to speak, let’s talk about why everyone is wrong.

Don’t let the old school guys convince you that “old school” jiu jitsu is a magic bullet against an attack: it isn’t. If you’re looking for self defense training, take up running. If any altercation gets to the point where you are on the ground, something went wrong long, long ago. Fleeing an attack is always safer than engaging with an unknown opponent in a situation where there are no rules.  Absolutely train BJJ, but it is imperative to realize that BJJ should be a last-ditch effort to protect yourself.

Unknown instructor. Excellent knife defense technique.

This is particularly true if you are small or female, but it holds true for everyone, regardless of size. If a person is close enough to touch you, they are close enough to use a weapon. BJJ won’t save anyone from a knife or a gun.  Compliance in the face of a threat is likely the safest course of action. The one exception is if the attacker is trying to force you to go somewhere with them; in this case, fighting can be an essential, life-saving tactic.

If there’s one thing you’ll learn in your first week of training, it’s that size matters, but training matters just as much. Even setting aside the issue of weapons, the fact of the matter is in a self-defense situation, you will have no way of knowing what training– if any– your attacker has. You might be facing someone with no knowledge of martial arts, or you might be facing a boxer, muay thai fighter, or MMA fighter. With the growing popularity of combat sports, that is not a gamble I, personally, would be willing to take.

Taken from Google Images

BJJ will give you many things, and it is a gift that you continue to give to yourself as long as you train. Those who say that BJJ has no applicability to a real combat situation are wrong; those who say that BJJ should be solely for self defense are also wrong.  There is nothing wrong with doing BJJ for sport and competition, with no intention of ever using BJJ as a self-defense tactic. There is also nothing wrong with doing BJJ as complementary training to self-defense preparedness, as BJJ is a combat sport that can be practiced live, with fully-resisting opponents.

What BJJ will give you:

  • Better bodily control, awareness, and fitness
  • A generalized knowledge of how to control an opponent’s weight, leverage, and strength on the ground
  • Ability to “buy time” during an attack, which can be used to escape, subdue, or get away from the attacker
  • Potential ability to submit or disable an attacker, should a fight go to the ground
  • Awareness of your own weaknesses, and knowledge of your own vulnerability.

What BJJ won’t give you:

  • Karate-kid-like abilities to defend yourself against every attack effortlessly
  • A guaranteed win over an attacker
  • Imperviousness to bullets, blades, and large rocks
  • Common sense.

Basic Self-Defense Tips

This is not, by any means, an exhaustive list of self-defense tips. However, I’ve experienced numerous “self defense” classes over the years– some better than others– and these are the most important things I’ve learned.

  • Be proactive about your safety, whether you’re male or female. Don’t take unnecessary risks.
  • Be willing to give up physical items to an attacker.
  • Familiarize yourself with the theory of verbal de-escalation. Try to determine what the attacker wants and come to a non-violent conclusion.
  • If the altercation does escalate, martial arts should be used to physically get away from the attacker, not to continue the confrontation.
  • BJJ can also be used to control the situation once a threat has been neutralized, as seen in this video
  • If a situation is feeling uncomfortable for any reason, leave. Don’t worry about rudeness: our instincts exist for a reason.
  • Contact authorities as soon as possible if you experience violence.

It should be noted that these tips focus on what to do if you don’t know your attacker. For individuals who are experiencing partner violence, these tips do not necessarily apply. Why Does He Do That? by Lundy Bancroft has some excellent self-defense tips for individuals experiencing partner violence specifically.

Reading/Watch List

For more information on self-defense, these books and videos are excellent and come highly recommended for everyone.

What happens in a typical BJJ class?

One of the most common questions we get from people interested in starting BJJ is the question of what happens in a typical BJJ class.  There are a lot of misconceptions about jiu jitsu and about the process of beginning the sport, so let’s clear up some of those right now.  We’re going to talk about a typical BJJ class, but also about the different types of classes you might experience as a beginner in the sport. These are not specific to any academy; academies might have any or all of these types of classes. If you have specific questions about the classes offered by an academy, it’s always best to ask. However, these are the types of classes that I’ve seen in my time in the jiu jitsu world, and generally what can be expected from each.

Leveled Classes

IBJJF belt ranking system, taken from IBJJF

By “leveled” classes, I am referring to the type of class in which all participants are generally the same level. Some larger schools are able to separate out beginning students from the more advanced students, providing both beginner classes and advanced classes. These “leveled” classes allow instructors to tailor information shared with their students. It protects the students: beginners don’t get overwhelmed with information, and advanced students don’t get bored. Win-win, all around!

Typically, the format of a class will include:

  • Individual warm-up with running, individual movement drills, and perhaps basic partner drills
  • Technique instruction and refinement
  • Technique practice with a partner
  • Question/answer time (usually occurs during technique practice)
  • Sparring

A note about sparring: some schools allow a student to spar on their first day, while others do not. I’ll provide another post on why I believe sparring should occur (within reason) on the first day of class; however, that’s another novel to write, and something I’ll only touch on here. Essentially, sparring is the heart of BJJ; it’s also the fun part of BJJ. A student who is comfortable with the idea of sparring can always safely learn to spar on their first day with appropriate supervision and the right partner.

Typically, beginner’s classes are between 60 and 90 minutes. If you’re a beginner, expect to be immensely fatigued, even if you’re in shape.  Very little will prepare you for your first jiu jitsu class, so don’t worry about getting in better shape before you get on the mat. The fatigue will pass quickly, and you’ll be having too much fun to notice anyway! Just expect to feel extraordinarily strange in your forearms the next day.

The Mixed-Level Class

This is probably the most ubiquitous type of class out there. Many academies aren’t big enough to have a dedicated white-belt or beginner class; as such, many academies choose to put beginners into their nightly class.

Most mixed-level classes will follow the same format as a leveled class: the time for the class will be either an hour or 90 minutes, although some schools choose two-hour blocks.  Generally, the format will be the same as a leveled class: the instructor will run an individual warm-up with jogging, movement drills, and perhaps some partner drills, and then move into technique. Beginners will often be paired with a higher-ranking student who can oversee their progression. After technique, the class will move to sparring. The intensity and type of sparring will often be dictated by the school, instructor, and students.

Competition Classes

Competition classes are not suitable for beginning students. These are fast-paced classes with a focus on technical ability for success in BJJ competition.  The format will be rigorous, usually including:

  • Brief warm-up, often consisting of fast-paced partner drills, sprints, and so on, with the purpose of raising the heart rate and warming the body quickly
  • Varied situational sparring, in which participants will be asked to focus on specific situations.
  • “Superfights,” a type of sparring in which the class observes a single pair sparring
  • Physically and mentally difficult workouts that focus on different aspects of competition.
  • Difficult drills and sparring targeted at specific areas of weakness for individual students or the team as a whole.

Competition classes vary in intensity and in structure. Competition classes are sometimes integrated into “camps” leading up to large competitions, and their purpose is to get students into shape for the physical and mental stress of large competitions.  These classes are also more focused on the sport aspect of BJJ, which means that beginners rarely have enough knowledge of the point system to have success in these classes.

Women’s Classes

Women’s classes also follow the typical format of a BJJ class, but they are often focused on providing women a space to train outside of the male-dominated BJJ environment. Some women’s BJJ classes focus more on the sport aspects of BJJ, while others are more geared towards women’s self defense.

Self-Defense Classes

Taken from Google Images

Some BJJ curriculums offer self-defense classes or “BJJ for self defense” classes.  These classes will focus more on classical self-defense problems– escaping from a headlock, verbal de-escalation, and other methods of protecting oneself in case of attack.  These classes vary significantly in terms of quality and style, so it’s always best to discuss the class with an instructor from the academy to get a better understanding of what to expect from the course itself. I will also be writing a primer on “BJJ for self defense” which will be a more in-depth look at self-defense classes and what to look for in a self-defense class if learning to defend yourself is your primary goal.

No-Gi Classes

Taken by Mikey Stevens.

No-gi classes follow the same typical format as a gi class. Men typically wear a rash guard, shorts, and sometimes spats, while women will typically wear a rash guard and spats or a rash guard and shorts. However, if you’re new to no-gi, you should definitely expect more bumps and bruises: no-gi is fast, slippery, sweaty fun, but people doing no-gi are much more likely to accidentally catch an elbow or knee. No-gi tends to be much faster paced sparring than gi sparring. It’s just a side effect of not having any material to grab!

I always recommend starting in the gi. Switching from gi jiu jitsu to no-gi is always much easier than trying to go from no-gi to gi, due primarily to the number of grips that you can make when doing BJJ in the gi. Integrating no-gi practice into your training schedule after you have a few months of gi under your belt is an excellent way to augment training.

Most people experience a love/hate relationship with no-gi. It’s perfectly normal to feel as though no-gi training is slightly more uncomfortable, particularly for women who are new to the sport. However, that discomfort will likely fade over time. Instructors can make a no-gi class more inclusive and comfortable for everyone by ensuring that everyone is wearing appropriate no-gi attire, and that no one is likely to experience wardrobe malfunctions.

Children’s Classes

Taken from Scramble

Children’s classes follow the same structure as a typical adult class. However, for younger students, the format is often significantly shortened, and games are integrated into the curriculum for the warm-up and throughout the class.  Ideally, the classes are split into different age groups to protect smaller children from larger ones.

Children of all ages can and should spar in every class. Supervised sparring is safe for children, and instructors should always be closely monitoring their students to prevent injury. Children’s sparring rounds should be between 1-4 minutes, depending on the age. Older, more advanced pre-teen and adolescent students can spar for longer, or join the adult classes.

Open Mat

An open mat has no real format. Anyone can join; it is the responsibility of the participants to structure their open mat as they wish. It’s a time when many people choose to get extra sparring or drilling in without the added structure of a class. It’s also often a time for people from other academies to visit with a new academy and experience new people’s styles of jiu jitsu. Some academies, however, don’t allow drop-ins from other academies; it’s entirely case-by-case.

At Escapology, we will likely be offering beginner classes, fundamentals classes, advanced classes, children’s classes, no-gi classes, open mat, and competition classes. More information on our specific schedule and class system will be available at a later date.