What is Brazilian Jiu Jitsu?
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) is a grappling based martial art which combines element of Judo, Japanese Jiu Jitsu and wrestling. At its core are the principles of leverage and positional dominance that allow smaller or weaker individuals to prevail over bigger, unskilled opponents.
Are you accepting new members?
Yes, we are currently taking new members at the moment though we do not offer children classes. We are a small gym with limited mat space so we limit class sizes to ensure both safety and to maintain the quality of teaching.
To enquire about joining please message us on Facebook or Instagram.
If you are traveling and looking to visit the gym as a one off or to come along to open mat please message on social media.
Please note: booking in for *all* sessions is essential, as we do not accept walk-ins.
Do I have to be fit to start BJJ?
No, the sooner you start the better. Fitness will come with practice.
What do I bring for my first class?
We have a strict no shoes on the mats/no bare feet off the mats policy so bring easy to remove shoes or some flip flops or sliders to walk between the changing room and mat area. We recommend brining water with you though we do have small bottles available in a fridge for 50p if necessary.
Do you have showers?
Yes, we have two separate showers and now have an infrared sauna which we switch on to use after some of the classes. Check out our facilities page for more info.
Do I need a Gi (kimono)?
Not initially. We have a large stash of loaner gis at the gym which get washed after every use so you won’t need a Gi for your first few classes. We can also make sure to adapt any technique we are teaching to suit you if you don’t have one and we are out of spare gis!
Are classes for members only?
Our open doors policy applies to both classes and open mats regardless of where you train, however space is limited and classes are often fully booked, as such *booking is mandatory*.
Anyone travelling from outside the West of Scotland trains for free while if you train somewhere else in Glasgow PAYG prices apply.
How much do you charge?
We offer a few different membership options to ensure BJJ remains an accessible sport. 8/month members can attend any of the classes for up to 8 sessions per billing period. Off-peak members can attend all 7am, lunchtime and weekend classes but no evening classes or evening open mats.
Privates with Giles are for a minimum of two people and come to £50 per hour, £225 for a block booking of 5 privates and £450 for a block booking of 10 privates. Having two people there makes it easier to observe all aspects of the technique being performed and allows for quicker troubleshooting. Any students who book private lessons with Giles will receive a student development plan, and also have the option of having their sessions recorded & uploaded to a secure & private location for future reference. Small group privates are available upon request. For privates with the other instructors contact them directly!
We offer a 10% discount on monthly plans for emergency services, NHS staff and college/university students. If you are temporarily in financial hardship or unemployed, a full time carer for a family member or on maternity leave please get in touch and we can try sort out reduced rates on an individual basis (will require evidence).
We accept card & contactless payments on the day and your first class is free.
I am thinking about competing, will I be able to do that while training at Ronin Grappling?
Yes. As we come out of covid we are starting to build up our competition team again and all our coaches have competition experience. Giles is also an experienced referee and has level 2 UKBJJA referee qualifications.
Have you made any changes due to covid?
Yes. Please check out our Covid measures page, we update this regularly to reflect changing levels and government guidance. As a key takeaway and as covid is still doing the rounds in Scotland we still ask that everyone is careful and please does regular lateral flow tests to ensure that the club isn’t wiped out. Whilst most of us have been fully vaccinated, there is still a risk to folk who’ve not been dosed yet, many of us can’t work from home- and having to self-isolate is absolutely baws.
I am in Glasgow on holiday / visiting family / for work and I need my BJJ fix, can I come along?
Of course! We love having visitors! We are affiliated with BJJ Globetrotters and offer free training to visitors. Send us a message so we can go over the values with you and book you in, we’ll be glad to host you!
I am a black belt from xxxxx on a seminar tour/travelling, would you like to host me?
We love having people over to teach but it might not always be feasible so please message us. We plan our seminars and events schedule quite far in advance so it really depends on what else we’ve got planned!
How do you handle my data when I fill in contact, membership and ParQ forms?
Please have a look at our Privacy Notice!
Any other questions please get in touch through our social media or check out Reddit’s r/bjj exhaustive list of questions!
We also recommend checking out Stephan Kesting’s https://www.grapplearts.com/ website and downloading his Roadmap to BJJ book when starting out.