October Schedule Updates
Prioritizing No-gi training and real fight skills. We have made the decision to primarily focus on No-gi and fighting. Training in the gi will no longer be required for promotion.
The art of Jiu Jitsu has proliferated over the past 30 years, and there is a lot for our students to learn. We have always done our best to teach all aspects of the art — gi, no-gi, and fighting / self-defense.
The reality is that it takes time to develop proficiency in it all. As your instructors, one of our greatest responsibilities is to help students prioritize what to focus on, so you can get the greatest return on the investment of your training time.
This is a decision that we have made after much careful thought and consideration, which informs the programming updates outlined below.
The new schedule will take effect starting tomorrow (Saturday, October 3rd).
Attend Ground Zero to develop essential foundational skills. The Ground Zero course is where we will cover essential skills such as pinning and escapes. This is the class where you will continue to refine your mount escapes, side control escapes, back escapes, and fundamentals of guard passing and retention. These skills will not be repeated in other courses.
Ground Zero will take the place our previous “Gi Mastery” course requirement. All students are expected to attend at least one Ground Zero class each week.
New 7pm Ground Zero session on Tuesdays. We recognize that not all of our students can get to class by 6pm during the work week. To accommodate current and future students who need a later start time, we are opening a new Ground Zero session on Tuesdays at 7:00-8:00pm. This session will be followed by an hour of Independent Practice.
Take responsibility for your own learning through Independent Practice. We are re-naming our “randori” sessions as Independent Practice. The term “randori” means live training, against resistance — as we are a fully ecological / CLA school, all of our classes can be described as “randori.” During Independent Practice, you have the freedom to structure and direct your own development, whether that’s by re-playing games from class, designing your own games, positional training, sparring, or drilling.
Fight Club will take place on Thursdays 7:00-8:00pm. We will move forward with one session of Fight Club on Thursdays at 7:00pm. Due to the mat space required for full MMA training, this class has a cap on enrollment. We plan to open additional sessions in the future.
There are only a few spots remaining for the current session — if you would like to enroll, reach out to us as soon as possible.
Become a strong finisher with Seek & Submit. Seek & Submit is our new name for what was previously “No-gi Mastery.” In this course, you will learn all of the submission systems (upper body joint locks, no-gi strangles, leglocks, etc.), submission defense, and all the supporting skills necessary to truly be dangerous (takedowns, sweeps, and advanced guard passing & positional control).
Kimono Kombat (Advanced Gi) course available on Saturdays 1:00-3:00pm. We’ll still be teaching gi skills and submission systems every week, on Saturday afternoon. This is considered an advanced class. To be eligible for this course, students must already be attending at least one Ground Zero and one Seek & Submit class each week. This class is not required for promotion.
If you have any questions or concerns, or would like to make any changes to your membership in light of these updates, we’re here to help. You can text us at 626-491-5850, send us an email at info@renzograciepasadena.com, or speak with us in-person next time you’re here for class.
