Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is a grappling/submission/self-defense martial art that primarily focuses on ground fighting.

BJJ promotes the concept that a smaller, weaker person can successfully defend against a bigger, stronger assailant by using proper technique, leverage, and most notably, taking the fight to the ground, and then applying joint-locks and chokeholds to defeat the other person. – Wikipedia

The short answer – They’re the same.

The long answer – What was originally called “Gracie Jiu Jitsu” was later called “Brazilian Jiu Jitsu” due to the many non-Gracie athletes who have helped to shape the face of our sport and bring it to the rest of the world.

Additionally, many schools with Gracie in the name claim to be more self defense oriented, than sport. This is of course a generalization and many non-Gracie schools can and do emphasize self-defense as well as sport Jiu Jitsu.

Jiu Jitsu translates (from Japanese) as the “Gentle Art”. It was given this name due to the ability for practitioners to go 100% while staying relatively safe, unlike martial arts that involve striking. If those strikes are performed at 100%, the potential for damage/injury is much higher.

It’s for the same reason that Judo got its name, which translates as the “Gentle Way”.

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We offer all of the ingredients for a well-rounded MMA fighter:

• Jiu Jitsu
• Judo
• Boxing
• Muay Thai / Thai Boxing (kickboxing)
• Wrestling

We also have an MMA cage panel for our fighters to train against. For those looking to prepare for fights, we offer special training camp times built around their needs to help them prepare.

The BJJ belt system is different for children and adults. However, both use a 4-stripe promotion system where a stripe is added onto the black bar every so often. Once the belt has 4 stripes, the next advancement will be to the next belt.

For adults, the belts are fewer and take longer to earn. They are:

For kids, the belts are as follows:

Promotions are typically given by the head instructor when he/she has assessed that the student is ready. At Insight BJJ, adult stripes and belts will typically be awarded by Professor Alex Henley.

For adults, it generally takes 1-2 years to move from white to blue belt. From then on it typically takes 2-3 years per belt. Of course there are exceptions to this. An extraordinary few have achieved black belt in as little as 3 years. Some take more than 12 years. In the end, the decision is up to the professor.

Because children have more belts, they are promoted more often. It generally takes around 9 months for a child to be promoted up from white belt. In most cases, it takes about 1 year for each belt after white. For kids, stripes and belts will be awarded by the instructor of each class, or Professor Alex Henley.

We generally do not make children test. We usually have adults test from white to blue, but not for the subsequent belts. This is at the discretion of the instructor(s).

No. There are no testing fees for stripes or belt promotions. However, you will be responsible for the cost of your new belt.

We do not want you to miss training because of a forgotten belt. Active students who forget their belt will be able to use one of our pink belts (no matter your rank), as well as perform 10-20 push-ups. If this becomes a regular issue, we will ask you to make any changes needed to ensure you have your belt for all classes. (i.e. keep it in your car)

Prospective students, trying class out during their free trial and before they have their own gi and belt, will be able to use one of our loaner white belts.