6 Things I Don't Like About BJJ Culture
Some things I would like to change
I love BJJ but there’s some things I don’t particularly enjoy about BJJ culture. I’ve been training for almost 20 years now and I’ve been a part of a few different BJJ/MMA gyms. I’ve travelled and seen quite a lot. I’ve taken BJJ classes with many different instructors, including world champions. I’ve seen students really enjoy a class and I’ve seen them leave frustrated and not come back. I try to take the best parts of the best classes I’ve done and use those things to have the best class possible. Here’s a list of things that I do not like in BJJ culture.
The Clap
A common practice among BJJ gyms is after the instructor is finished teaching a technique they will say, “Everybody got it? 1-2-3” CLAP. Everyone in the class, claps. There’s always some debate whether the count is to 2 or 3. People will laugh if you clap out of sync.
I have yet to hear a good reason why the clap should be used. Some people say it helps keep people focused or shows everyone understood the technique. Bullshit. Sometimes I look around and people are distracted. Whispering, watching TV, looking at their fingernails - how does a clap help this situation?
I taught at a gym where I had to use the clap and a little part of me died inside every time we did it. If I teach a class or seminar outside of my gym I always have to ask “…do you guys do the clap here?” It’s always a yes.
I could rant about this all day. Another argument I heard is “increases team spirit and cohesion”. I’m all for team cohesion. I played team sports like hockey and soccer my entire life, I get it. I just don’t think the clap belongs in jiu-jitsu. You bond as a team through experiences, not through sounds you make with your hands. If people drilled with the same amount of effort they put into that clap the world would be a different place.
The Creeps
You know who I’m talking about. The “me too” movement revealed there’s a lot of creeps in our sport. Men being creepy with women. Teams like Fight Sport and Team Lloyd Irvin have had some very big scandals over recent years. Things like instructors having sex with underage students. Other students being abused physically and mentally. It always make me sad and upset to read these articles. Martial arts should be a way to make yourself a better person, not to beat someone else down. Don’t treat your gym as a potential dating pool.
Stripes
Pieces of tape on your belt. You get promoted 4 times to a new belt in BJJ. Blue-purple-brown-black. That’s it. Most coaches use stripes. You can potentially get up to 4 stripes before you are promoted to your next belt. So instead of being promoted 4 times and being a black belt, you get promoted potentially 20 times. 16 stripes and 4 belts. That’s a lot of pictures and tags on social media for your gym. That’s very powerful.
Some gyms use a system where after X amount of classes, you automatically earn a stripe. It’s a smart move to get people to attend more classes. But we all do not learn at the same rate. How can you say student A and student B will have earned the same level of competency after 20 classes? Or 30 classes?
I never received a stripe ever on any belt. It was not a common practice when I started training. We saw it as a “McDojo” practice. Stripes don’t mean anything, belts do. But things change. I do see value in stripes and I do believe they keep people motivated. Most of my classes are no gi and I find students who only train no gi don’t ever ask about belts or stripes which is kind of nice.
The gauntlet
When someone is promoted to the next belt rank, they walk a gauntlet where everyone in the class takes off their belts with the purpose of using it to whip the newly promoted student. I was never subject to this but saw it many times and have participated in a few.
It was always good for a laugh and some people really enjoyed it. But to be honest, it’s barbaric and basically the same thing as hazing. Putting people through unnecessary pain. I’ve seen people with welts, cuts, and leave black and blue. Imagine getting promoted at work but not until after all your coworkers beat the crap out of you.
Imagine parents or kids walking into the BJJ gym and they see the gauntlet going on. They would not want to train jiu-jitsu. I’m glad the gauntlet is dead.
Pretending to have no ego
One of the biggest lies we tell ourselves about our sport is “BJJ kills the ego.” The idea that everyone who trains BJJ is a humble saint - totally bogus. I have seen a lot of people get hurt not wanting to tap out. I have watched respected higher belts throw temper tantrums after being submitted.
My theory is that BJJ checks your ego in the beginning. Tapping out is a great way to stay humble. You tap out a lot when you start. You get dominated. But as you develop your skills and get better, the ego comes back. You don’t want to lose to a lesser experienced student or tap out to that choke. Ego is always there. It’s a battle you fight with yourself every single day. It helps to have a healthy ego because you should want to outdo yourself to improve, but be careful not to get too high on your horse. Everybody gets got.
People calling me professor
I prefer people call me by my actual name or call me “coach”. That feels more appropriate. It makes me feel weird when people call me “professor”. They don’t call head coaches professor in football. They call them “coach”.
Not all black belts are the same and I don’t think just because you have a black belt makes you a professor. I know a lot of people take pride in earning a black belt (I did too). I know a black belt is basically a certificate to claim you are a qualified instructor. Just go easy on the “professor” talk. Another note, if someone makes you call them “professor”, that’s a big red flag and that person is having issues with ego (see my last point).
What are some things you don’t like about BJJ culture? Tell me in the comments.
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