Brazilian Jiu Jitsu FAQs
If you are trying our class for the first time you should wear comfortable athletic clothing (t-shirt or compression shirt, shorts or board shorts). Females – you will feel more comfortable with a top that is not low cut, plus a sports bra, and long board shorts or sweat pants. Most people wear sandals as we do not allow shoes on the mat. Also bring water.
However, when you sign up for Altus BJJ you will need a traditional Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Gi. You can purchase a Gi at the front desk.
Gis should be black, white or blue for Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. A complete uniform includes a belt; all new members start at white. Make sure to check if your gi includes a belt, you may have to order it separately. Also, check each brand’s size chart because every brand has a different cut. We do require all team members to wear our team patch on their Gi which can be purchased at the front desk or with an instructor.
The fundamentals in Jiu-Jitsu are about the basics and having a strong base, while mastering them can take a lifetime to achieve we feel better knowing you learned from our instructors, the right way, from the beginning.
BJJ is a full contact sport, a mouth guard is recommended.
The first part of the class consists of a warm-up which includes stretching, core, cardio and drills. After the warm-up, the instructor will show the technique of the day. The last part of class is the “rolling”, which is the is the equivalent to sparring. The instructor will typically pair you up with someone who is more experienced so they can work with you and guide you through the class.
BJJ is an excellent choice for women. In terms of self-defense, BJJ is perfect from a female perspective, as it deals with the unfortunately common self-defense situations: BJJ features a lot of attacks and defenses when you are on the ground. It is also a martial art which was designed for a smaller person to overcome a larger one, which again has clear applications for women’s self-defense.