Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in Bessemer: A Beginner's Honest Guide
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in Bessemer draws an unusual mix of people onto the same mats. Lifelong athletes, parents who have not exercised in a decade, teenagers, and people who watched one match and could not stop thinking about it. They all start in the same place, which is knowing nothing, and they all get better.
We teach Brazilian Jiu Jitsu for ages 13 and up at The Dojang McCalla, Monday and Wednesday evenings from 7:15 to 8:15 PM. Jiu Jitsu is built on position and technique rather than size or speed, which is why it works so well for beginners and for smaller people. Our head instructor Terry Adams leads the program. No experience is needed and your first class is free.
Is Brazilian Jiu Jitsu good for beginners?
It is one of the best martial arts a beginner can start with, and the reason is structural rather than motivational.
Jiu Jitsu solves problems with position, angle, and timing instead of speed and power. A technique performed correctly by a smaller and slower person beats the same technique performed badly by a better athlete. Very few physical pursuits work that way. On your first night nobody asks you to be explosive or coordinated. They ask you to learn where to put your hips.
The second reason is safety. Unlike striking, you can train Jiu Jitsu against a genuinely resisting partner without absorbing damage, because when a position is locked in you tap and you both reset. That feedback loop is why people improve quickly, and why our Jiu Jitsu program tends to keep the people it attracts.
What does a Jiu Jitsu class look like?
The rhythm repeats every session, which is exactly what a new person needs.
We open with a warm up and movement work that teaches the shrimping, bridging, and posture you will use all night. Then comes the technique of the evening, broken into steps and shown from several angles. Then drilling with a partner, slow and cooperative at first, then with resistance as it starts to make sense. We finish with positional rounds or live rolling, at whatever intensity you and your partner agree to.
Rolling is the part that makes new people nervous, so here is the truth of it. You will get submitted repeatedly for a while. Every single person on those mats went through the same stretch, without exception. The tap is not a loss, it is the mechanism that lets people train hard and go to work the next morning. Nobody is keeping score, and the experienced students are the ones most invested in you not quitting.
Who teaches Jiu Jitsu at The Dojang McCalla?
Terry Adams is our head instructor and Jiu Jitsu is his primary focus. He came up through Yoshukai as a young competitor and boxed as a teenager, but it was Jiu Jitsu where he found the deeper technical understanding of the arts he had been chasing all along. He has taught for 20 years, and that experience shows in how he teaches a technique, in pieces, with the reason behind each one, rather than as a sequence to memorize.
He is joined on the team by Japheth Hampton, a state champion wrestler whose takedown and wrestling background rounds out the grappling in a way most schools cannot offer, along with instructor Kimberly Ramkishun. You can read more on our instructors page.
When are the classes?
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu runs Monday and Wednesday evenings from 7:15 to 8:15 PM, for ages 13 and up.
Two nights a week is enough to build real skill if you actually make both of them, and the 7:15 start is late enough to get there after work. If you are also interested in the standing side of things, our adult martial arts class meets Thursday evenings and pairs naturally with the ground work. The whole week is laid out on the schedule page.
Do I need to be in shape first?
No, and waiting until you are in shape is the single most common reason adults never start anything.
Jiu Jitsu builds the conditioning as you go. You control your own intensity while drilling and rolling, you can stop whenever you need to, and nobody comments on it. Most people notice their conditioning turn a corner somewhere in the first month or two, and the difference between this and a treadmill is that you are too busy trying to solve a problem to notice you are exhausted.
Coming in for the first time
Your first class is free, with no card and no obligation afterward.
You do not need a gi. Wear a t-shirt and athletic shorts or pants with no zippers or pockets, since zippers scratch people and pockets catch fingers and toes. Bring water, trim your nails, and leave jewelry at home. We train barefoot on the mats.
We are at 4823 Promenade Pkwy in Bessemer, a few minutes from McCalla, Hueytown, Hoover, and Pleasant Grove, and we are open Monday through Thursday from 3:00 to 8:00 PM. If you would rather ask a few questions before standing on a mat with strangers, call us at (205) 747-2277. It is a reasonable thing to want.
Your first class is free.
No card, no commitment. Come stand on the mat once, and then decide.
Book your free classFrequently asked questions
Is Brazilian Jiu Jitsu good for beginners?
Yes. Jiu Jitsu is built on position and technique rather than speed or power, so beginners and smaller people can succeed at it. New students drill with partners who know they are new and learn at a pace that keeps them safe.
When are Brazilian Jiu Jitsu classes at The Dojang McCalla?
Monday and Wednesday evenings from 7:15 to 8:15 PM, for ages 13 and up.
Do I need a gi for my first Jiu Jitsu class?
No. Come in a t-shirt and athletic shorts or pants with no zippers or pockets. We will sort out gear once you decide to keep training.
Do I need to be in shape to start Jiu Jitsu?
No. The training builds the conditioning. You control your own intensity while drilling and rolling and you can stop any time you need to.
What age can someone start Jiu Jitsu here?
Our Brazilian Jiu Jitsu class is for ages 13 and up. Younger children are welcome in our kids martial arts program for ages 4 to 12.
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