How a Class Works

What it is

A BJJ class runs in a fixed order almost everywhere: a warm-up of solo movements, a technique shown by the coach, drilling it with a cooperative partner, positional sparring from a set position, and then rolling, which is live sparring in timed rounds. Knowing which part you are in tells you how hard to go and what the coach wants from you.

Where it shows up

• Warm-up: shrimping, bridging, rolls and breakfalls, done alone. It is the one place to practise the movements every day.
• Technique and drilling: the coach shows a move, then you and a partner take turns doing it slowly with no resistance, many times.
• Positional sparring: both of you start in one position (say, side control) with a clear job each, and reset when someone wins it.
• Rolling: free sparring from the knees or standing, usually in rounds of 5 or 6 minutes, at the pace the coach calls.

Key details

• Drill means cooperate. Your partner is there to help you learn the move, not to stop it.
• Go light means exactly that: move at half speed, no squeezing, no cranking, and let techniques happen.
• Reset means stop and go back to the starting position, now.
• Positional sparring is live but narrow: fight for the one thing you were given and nothing else.
• The word oss is a greeting or a yes in some gyms and not used at all in others. Copy what the room does.

Common mistakes

• Mistake: resisting hard while your partner drills. They learn nothing, you learn nothing, and someone gets hurt.
• Mistake: rolling at full strength in your first weeks. You tire in a minute, you injure people and nobody learns.
• Mistake: ignoring the reset or the timer to finish a move. That is the moment injuries happen.
• Mistake: sitting out of the warm-up. The solo movements are the escapes, done without a partner.