Altough I've been doing bjj for about 8 months, I've known several bjj students and instructors for a long time (roughly 10 years) and cruising trough several schools I've noticed that the teaching methods would greatly change from one to the other. Not a big deal of course, but what makes me wonder is the level of hierarchy and strictness around class. My instructor is a cool guy, we train, we laugh and stuff, but somehow he always slips a certain sense of strictness and hierarchy around class.
In things like being placed by belt colour when opening and closing class, a certain "respect" for the higher belts when sparring or drilling, even the way the higher belts train with us...not braking our arms, etc. It's not like we don't roll for real or anything, it's simply a matter of not badmouthing, trashing or even striking a blue or purple belt for being subbed or choked. It goes the other way around when you are the blue/purple, etc belt.
I'm talking about not lying around the mat when you are not rolling or drilling, no chit-chat when you're supposed to be training, bow before and after entering the mat. I don't considerate it too much of a deal...and I actually like it because it makes class more productive in sense, just because you can focus a whole lot better when you don't have a jackass talking in the back or fooling around. But hey, that's just me and my old school education at home.

For the last week we have been training in another academy because our gym closes for the summer. My teacher is a good friend of the other instructor so we managed to come and train with them. As guests we don't start any ****, don't question their curriculum or training approach and don't hurt anyone. It's really easy 'cause they're a friendly bunch and make us feel welcome. But then the issue of mat respect come around and we see guys badmouthing eachother, talking out loud when the instructor is talking about the drill, people strolling around the mat dodging rolling and a guy wanted to start some **** with me because I subbed him three times in a row. Its my personal opinion that the class could be more productive with some old school disciplin. But that's just me.

So what about your school? Strict or laidback? Either? They say that in Brazil, discipline is way more implemented, but for the instructors outside brazil it's a different ball game because they want to recrut people. What are the things you would like to see implemented in your gym and taken out?

That's exactly what goes on at my gym:

Instructor is very laid back, but you still line up to bow in/out by belt color. When doing drills or techniques, higher belt always goes first.

More experienced people going easy on less experienced people is just normal, no matter where you go or what you do.

We don't have any trash talk or stupidity like that, though. Everybody knows the mat is for people that are rolling/training. If you get tapped a lot, you need to get better.

When two groups of people like that meet, one of them wants to assert dominance. It's pretty stupid, but that's how it is.

Comparison of styles.

At my new training establishment, it is extremely laid back. No counting in japanese, the stretching changes from class to class, students routinely ask for leave to get water, etc. There is joking around, and generally a very light atmosphere. Of course, there are only six people . . .

Contrast this to my former dojo with 20+ students, where there was a line up by belts, regimented stretching, lots of preliminary drills, and lots of japanese words. Strict sensei obeyance and respect with all of the formalities.

In some ways I believe that the larger the class, the more formality is required in order to maintain control over the group. Smaller classes necessarily breed familiarity and more individual attention, thus causing a relaxing of the formalities.

When I was younger, memorizing foreign words and having someone bark orders at me (and resultant screaming back) appealed more. Now that I am more "mature," I'm really not interested in someone younger than me screaming in my face.

Quiet is good - unless I'm sending rounds downrange.

Under a brown belt brazilian-
1. No Talking when you're supposed to be training/rolling (a couple words to explain something is ok)
2. Go to the side of the mat when you're not doing anything.
3. You're allowed to rest when he says so, keep going.
4. Higher belts take care of lower belts, Lower belts therefore should be more courteous/respectful of higher belt's skills
5. Work Hard, and No Egos
6. Line up with belt hierarchy + everyone shakes hands at the end

Under another instructor-
Basically the same, except a little more lax on the resting and the talking, and no lining up, and shaking hands at the end

I will say ,for the most part,that's the exact same ambience that you would find in my school.Relaxed.But when it's time to train everyone has to pay attention.Nothing wrong with your instructor in the slightest.

Sorry. The way you described the other academy it seems chaos will rain supreme, someday.

Readig other posts I am surprised you guys all line up by belt color and stuff. We all just hang out and talk/lightly warm up until the instructor comes in. Then he starts the warm up by just telling us to start running. No lining up, never any bowing.

Everyone knows when to talk and when to train and I can say we have a very non traditional mindset.

We used to just stand in a general line of skill level, and walk thru, shaking hands with everyone.

Friendly atmosphere, serious training

Same here as LIGuy (maybe because we go to the same school, but I dunno) Lineups are gay. We put on our belts standing up because they just keep our pants up. Everything is done at your own pace, we gather round to see the technique then scatter and drill it on our own. Instructor walks through and corrects poeple as needed. When its time to spar, you do. After a sub, you may wait a sec or not, its all up to you. Everyone is respectful though and we have fun as well as train hard.

I am also against most "traditional" stuff.

Laid back.

How do you deal with's guys who have big ego's in you school Yrkoon?

laid back

The only formality is the slap hand before a roll.

How do you deal with's guys who have big ego's in you school Yrkoon?


There's too many people to worry about it. I don't roll with the same people all that often. All the hard core peeps are cool. The egos don't last that long because eventually they get thier **** broken off.

We all have egos. Nobody can deny this. But if you can keep it in check you are fine. The problems occurr when two guys with egos keep escalating it.

I would have to consider my school laidback...with a sprinkle of respect! From what I heard it's more or less like in brazil. It's not bootcamp, but it sure ain't the daycare center, so we talk sometimes, joke around other times, but training as hard as we do normally makes you wanna close your mouth and breath trough your nose, which means, no talking for you or anyone else. The only two times when you're not doing anything is when you're watching someone else fight or when you'te getting a one minute breather between drillings!

There's a sense of respect for everyone or else...

And there's some hierarchy...everyone knows their place in the foodchain.:toothy10:

we are extremely laid back, in which the instructor and the students treat eachother with the same level of respect.

no one ever bows.

i get the impression that while i (coming from a karate background) consider my bjj school quite laid back, we may in fact be somewhat more formal than most.

bow on and off the mats
line up in order and bow at the beginning and end of class (including games about staying bowed until the instructor stands up, mostly as an excuse to make us do pushups once we're already worn out).
nominally not supposed to ask a senior student if they want to roll (primarily to keep the kids in line so the adults don't get swarmed, i think).
not supposed to stand or sit behind the instructor when he's demonstrating a technique (not like you can see what he's doing from there, anyway).
a quick bow before slapping hands and rolling. kiotzuke, rei, combate.
intermittent OSU, mostly from me.

i like it. quite relaxed, but just a bit of structure. and i do like structure. and bullet points.

There's too many people to worry about it. I don't roll with the same people all that often. All the hard core peeps are cool. The egos don't last that long because eventually they get thier **** broken off.

We all have egos. Nobody can deny this. But if you can keep it in check you are fine. The problems occurr when two guys with egos keep escalating it.
Which is exactly what I expected your school to be.I'm just going to assume that anyone who can't deal with being tapped on a regualr basis ends up leaving.