Jiu Jitsu Basics vs All Levels: What We Learn
People often check our schedule and ask us whether they should come to a jiu jitsu basics class or our All Levels class, and while there are some differences, our answer is typically the same: whatever schedule works best for you, just get on the mats and train. There are some differences to the two classes, so we figured we would answer your questions today and tell you a little more about our different classes!
First, here’s why we tell most people not to worry too much about it and just to get on the mats. For one thing, if you’re brand new to jiu jitsu, it just doesn’t matter a whole lot which class you come and try. When you come in for your first class, you simply aren’t going to know what’s going on, and that’s perfectly fine. There’s a good chance the info will be over your head, but at both our basics class and our all levels class, we always make sure our newbies are keeping up and starting to get the hang of things. Everyone at Airlock Jiu Jitsu gets a free week trial, and during that week, you’re mostly there to get a sense of what we do in jiu jitsu, make sure you like your training partners and your coaches, and dip your toe into the world of grappling. That can happen in either an all levels class or a jiu jitsu basics class just fine.
Another thing to consider is that you can easily attend both an all levels and a basics class in the same night. With our current schedule, a lot of our team enjoys training on Tuesdays and Thursdays to get double the training in one trip. We don’t mind!
Now, onto the differences. In a jiu jitsu basics class, we’re typically teaching from a slightly different context. Basics class is all about understanding the positional hierarchy of jiu jitsu: learning how we move through the positions of guard, side control, mount, and back mount. We work on various sweeps, escapes, and focus in on some key details that advance the technical base of a jiu jitsu practitioner. It’s the fundamentals of no gi jiu jitsu.
All levels class, on the other hand, embraces some more advanced concepts of jiu jitsu, but not to an intimidating extent. Professor Rei Villa uses all levels class to teach the core of his jiu jitsu game, showing techniques that he’s developed over time and sharing why they work with a bit more detail. If jiu jitsu basics class is the bread and butter of learning jiu jitsu, all levels class is the jelly of Coach Rei’s own unique take!
At the end of the day, both classes are useful for anyone in any stage of their jiu jitsu journey. We never stop needing to learn and work on the fundamentals, but if you want to learn Airlock jiu jitsu, all levels takes it up a notch. The main thing is to get on the mats. Will we see you there?
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