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Adult Jiu-Jitsu in Thamesford

Gi and no-gi, six days a week, for complete beginners through to competitors. Technique, drilling and live rounds in a room where you train with people, not against them. No experience, no fitness base and no gi required to walk in. Your first class is free.

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Why adults train here

No experience needed
Fundamentals classes are built around people who have never grappled. Someone starts from zero most weeks, and the room is used to it.
Fitness comes with it
You do not need to get in shape first. Conditioning, grip strength and mobility arrive on their own once you are training regularly.
Six days a week
Early mornings, late mornings and evenings, plus Saturday. Training fits around shift work, commutes and family.
Gi and no-gi
Both every week, on the same membership. Pick one, or do both — most people end up doing both.
Matched partners
You are paired with people near your size and experience. When you are new, a coach picks your partners for you.
Teammates, not opponents
Nobody is trying to win training. Hard rounds are available when you want them, and easy to avoid when you do not.

What we train

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is a grappling art with no punches or kicks. You learn to control positions, escape bad ones, defend yourself and finish with leverage and timing rather than size and speed. A class runs an hour: warm-up, two or three techniques, drilling with a partner, then live rounds.

Adult Fundamentals

Open to everyone, and the right choice for your first six months. A structured curriculum covering the positions, escapes, controls and submissions that everything else is built on, taught slowly enough to actually learn them. Beginners are expected here, not tolerated.

Gi and no-gi

In the gi you grip the jacket and the pants, which slows the game down and rewards patience and precision. In no-gi there is nothing to hold but the body, so the pace is quicker and the grips are different. Both are on the schedule every week, and both are covered by the same membership.

Open mat

Saturday afternoons, for members and visiting academies. No instruction and no curriculum — just mat time to work on whatever you are stuck on, at whatever intensity you and your partner agree on.

Competing, if you want to

Plenty of our members never compete and progress just fine. If you do want to test yourself, coaches will help you pick events, prepare properly and get cornered on the day. It is an option, never an expectation.

Your first class, step by step

The unknown is the hardest part, so here is exactly how it goes.

01
Turn up fifteen minutes early
Ask for a coach at the desk. There is nothing to book and nothing to pay — just tell us it is your first class.
02
Wear shorts and a t-shirt
Nothing with zips or pockets. If you have come to a gi class we will lend you a gi. Bare feet on the mats, footwear off at the edge.
03
Warm up with everyone else
Movement, not a fitness test. Sit out anything that does not agree with your body and nobody will comment.
04
Learn and drill the technique
A coach demonstrates, then you practise it with a partner they have chosen for you. Expect to feel clumsy. Everyone did.
05
Live rounds, or watch them
On day one you can roll light with a coach, or sit on the side and watch. Both are normal and it is entirely your call.
06
Go home and think about it
No paperwork at the door, no sign-up pressure and no follow-up sales call. Come back when you want to.

Frequently asked

I am completely out of shape. Should I get fit first?
No. Waiting until you are fit is the most common reason people never start. You set the intensity, you can stop a round whenever you want, and the fitness follows the training rather than the other way round.
Am I too old to start?
People start in their thirties, forties and fifties and do well. Tell your coach and your partners what you are working around — a knee, a shoulder, a bad back — and the training gets adjusted around it.
Do I need a gi?
Not to start. We lend one for your first month. No-gi classes only need shorts without zips and a t-shirt or rash guard.
Will I get hurt?
There is no striking, which removes most of the risk people picture. Injuries do happen and are almost always minor — sore fingers, mat burn, a stiff neck. Tapping early is normal and expected, and coaches stop rounds that are getting silly.
How often should I train?
Twice a week is enough to keep improving steadily. Once a week still works, it just takes longer. Most people add a third session when they are ready, not because anyone pushed them.
Which class should my first one be?
Any Fundamentals class, gi or no-gi. If the evening times do not work, the late-morning classes are all-levels and equally beginner-friendly.
I do not know anyone there. Is that awkward?
Almost everyone walked in alone the first time. You will be introduced to your partners, and a coach stays with you through the class.
Do I have to compete?
Not at all. Most members never do. If you want to, there is a competition team and coaches who will corner you.

Book a free trial class

Your first class is on us. Turn up fifteen minutes early and ask for a coach. No cost, no obligation, and no follow-up sales call.