This week there’s no gi to grab. No collar to choke with, no sleeve to control, no belt to grip when you’re stuck under someone’s guard. For one week a year the entire school has to solve the same problems using nothing but the body in front of them.
It’s a fitting week to sit with our Word of the Week.
Word of the Week: Charity
Definition: Charity means giving freely of what you have, without expecting anything back.
A no gi week strips away a lot of the tools students lean on without realizing it. And what fills that gap isn’t a new grip or a new trick. It’s a partner willing to give you their honest resistance so you can actually learn, a higher belt willing to slow down and show a white belt where to put their hands, a coach willing to explain the same detail for the tenth time this month.
None of that is owed to anyone. It’s given. That’s charity, and it’s the reason a room full of people gets better together instead of staying stuck at the same level alone.
This Week’s Curriculum
Tiny Champions continue building guard top fundamentals through the Alligator’s Mouth technique, paired with balance work on an unstable surface. No adjustment needed at this age. Grappling basics don’t depend on a gi to work.
Little Champions 1 are drilling the Stacking Guard Pass, with self defense focused on escaping a front bear hug under the arms.
Little Champions 2 are building on that same pass, moving from Stacking Pass into the Over Under Pass, alongside self defense and takedown fundamentals.
Juniors & Teens are working the Bull Fight Guard Pass from Spider Guard, with self defense built around escaping a headlock from the guard.
GB1 (Adult Fundamentals) keep the same self defense and guard passing lesson plan this week, with one real adjustment. Normally this week’s guard passes are built on collar, sleeve, and belt control. Without a gi to grab, those same passes shift to underhook and wrist control instead. The footwork and pressure stay identical. Only the grips change. Self defense stays live, working from a hook punch into a hip throw and straight armbar, and from a slipped punch into a bodylock takedown and mount.
GB2 (All Levels) are spending this no gi week where the position naturally lives without a gi to fight over: half guard. Students will work passing against the Knee Shield, learning to flatten the shield out and clear the underhook, and then work the far harder problem underneath it, escaping and passing out of Deep Half Guard. Both are exactly the kind of position that shows up constantly once the gi comes off, and both reward a training partner who’s willing to give real, honest pressure instead of folding early.
This week’s blog is leaving GB3 off the schedule. Our advanced students already have a standing technical foundation to draw from, and this week is about the fundamentals holding up without a gi to lean on.
Why Charity Matters Most on a No Gi Week
Take the gi away and the room gets more honest. You can’t stall on a grip that doesn’t exist. You have to actually solve the position in front of you, and you need a partner who’s generous enough to let you work through it instead of just overpowering you and moving on.
That’s charity in its simplest form. Somebody giving you the time and the resistance you need to actually learn, with nothing in it for them except watching you get better.
We’ll see everyone on the mats this week. Find a training partner and give them your best effort. That’s the whole lesson.
Gracie Barra Centennial is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu academy located at 4181 E. County Line Road, Centennial, CO, offering programs for kids, teens, and adults of all experience levels.
