In episode 423 of The Strenuous Life Podcast I break down the telltale toxic traits of BJJ schools that you should avoid like the plague when you’re looking for a place to train.
I’ll qualify my choice of red flags by quoting former NYC mayor Ed Koch who said, “If you agree with me on nine out of 12 issues, vote for me. If you agree with me on 12 out of 12 issues, see a shrink.“
In addition to the video above you can also check out Episode 443, the Red Flag list, of The Strenuous Life Podcast on any podcast platform including those below…
RED FLAGS
01:04 No cross-training
01:21 Separating you from friends and family
02:10 No trial classes
03:15 No talking to current students
03:25 No watching classes
03:54 Instructor’s name + SA = positive
04:59 “Master”
06:07 No sparring till blue belt
07:07 No questions in class
08:47 Poor hygiene and dirty mats
10:28 High-pressure sales tactics
12:33 No talking in class
14:07 Gravy Seal bootcamp
15:04 “Every other school sucks”
15:53 Instructor chronically dates students
16:58 Financial-medical-astronomical-astrological advice
17:07 No competition / in-house tournaments only
20:02 Peaked in high school
22:37 Focusing only on top competitors
23:00 Focusing only on hot women
23:25 Focusing only on their phones
23:55 Can’t pause your membership
25:21 “We don’t tap to THAT here…”
27:06 Mat bullies are tolerated
ORANGE FLAGS
29:26 Mandatory and expensive uniforms
30:32 Ranking and promotion fees
31:59 I see dead people (and bow to them)
33:10 Instructor doesn’t roll
34:41 No colored belts (or women)
35:31 “Professor” (see video below)
If you get a chance, please give this show a rating in Spotify or Apple Podcasts. That really helps!
Cheer,
Stephan Kesting
RELATED RESOURCES
Here’s the infamous “Don’t Call Me Professor” video (click here for the link on Youtube).
Check out my best-selling book, Perseverance, Life and Death in the Subarctic, available anywhere you get physical, digital and audio books and also on Amazon.com.
My jiu-jitsu book, Nonstop Jiu-Jitsu was co-written with BJJ black belt world champion Brandon Mullins and is available here.
Nonstop Jiu-Jitsu, the Book
I’ve also got a NEW instructional out, and it’s really bloody good!
Check out my positional approach to mastering the Kimura and tapping out more training partners and competition opponents.
