Cookeville Jiu-jitsu

🔥 READY TO GET STRONGER — INSIDE & OUT? 🔥
At Cookeville Jiu-Jitsu, we don’t just teach techniques…
We build confidence, discipline, and real self-defense skills.
👊 Kids
👊 Teens
👊 Adults
👊 Beginners Welcome
Whether you’re looking to get in shape, help your child build confidence, or challenge yourself in a new way — this is your sign.
💥 TRY A FREE CLASS 💥
No experience needed. Just show up ready to learn.
📞 Call or Text: 731-432-9101
🌐 CookevilleJiuJitsu.com
Tag someone who needs to see this 👇

There will be no classes tonight, Tuesday January 27 due to inclement weather. We will resume normal classes, Wednesday, January 28

Be Advised, starting at the end of this month, our rates will increase to $100 per month for adults. Kids class will remain unchanged. Thank you for your understanding. 

Just as a reminder, today is Thanksgiving day and we will NOT be having class.

Great testing day at Cookeville Jiu-Jitsu. Congratulations to all the new blue belts!

Based on some recent discussions, I feel the need to make a post about sport BJJ schools versus self-defense focused schools. I feel there are some myths that need to be cleared up and dispelled.

Cookeville Jiu-jitsu is a self self-defense/fighting focused school. What does this mean? It means that while we encourage competing, it is not our primary focus. When our classes are being taught, there is no discussion of how many points you get for a given technique. We tend to not focus on techniques that will get you slammed, punched, kicked, etc. at Cookeville Jiu-jitsu we feel that many of today’s sport focus techniques and strategies can and will get you hurt in a self-defense/fighting scenario. Some examples would be holding onto guard even though you are being picked up/elevated. Committing both hands and both legs to a leg lock attack while leaving your opponent standing above you with two free hands. Being limited on the attacks or defenses you use because the person is wearing or is not wearing a gi. Only training to beat someone else trying to use Jiu-Jitsu against you. Only being able to implement your Jiu-Jitsu against someone relatively close to your weight/experience level because your Jiu-Jitsu is attribute based. It is our philosophy that it is far more important for a new student to learn how to get out from under a larger opponent or break grips and get away or defend against a striking opponent than it is to learn how to invert and have 12 different ashi entries.

Now, let me dispel some of the myths about self-defense/fighting Jiu-jitsu schools.

Myth #1 Self-defense schools do not roll/spar

This is an outright lie. At Cookeville Jiu-jitsu we typically run four classes per week, an hour and a half each. On Tuesdays and Thursday the last 30 minutes of each class is 5 x 6 minute rounds of grappling. Wednesday is nothing but grappling for an hour and a half. 10 x 6 min rounds and 3 x 10 min rounds with the air off. Friday is open mat so students can come in and grapple for the entire class if they want to.

Myth #2 We don’t teach leg locks

This is also an outright lie. We start teaching leg locks at blue belt level. We do this for safety reasons. The last thing we need are spazzy white belts, throwing dangerous leg attacks on each other. At blue belt, every student will know knee bar, straight ankle lock, two different heel hook variations, and toe holds. What we don’t do is prioritize leg attacks or defenses to them. I’ve rarely seen a real fight where people were diving for Heel Hooks.

Myth #3 All rolling is done from knees, and we don’t train take downs.

The truth is, everyone blue belt, or above is encouraged to start grappling from standing. In fact about 1/4 to 1/3 of our classes are standing. Focusing on control, takedowns, and defense against striking opponents.

Myth #4 students get promoted based on time only.

Again, this is a lie. We have a list of both objective and subjective criteria in order for a student to get promoted. Time is only one component. If you don’t know the techniques that you should know for your belt level, or you are not grappling to that level, you will not get promoted no matter how long you have been training. We have a green belt in our system. This is the equivalent to a two or three stripe white belt. It will typically take six months or so to reach this point. Once a green belt is attained by learning 52 individual techniques, time starts to matter. A student will typically be able to test for their blue after 150 hours minimum as a green belt of actual Mat time +100 techniques. There are other criteria as well, such as the students attitude, regular attendance, and if the senior students all agree that person is grappling on a blue belt level. After blue belt has been attained there are a number of techniques/drills that a student must learn in order to attain stripes on their blue belt. Also, a minimum of 100 hours per stripe must be put in. If memory serves me correctly, the fastest blue belt ever attained at my school took approximately a year and a half. This particular student was tapping all of the other blue belts and purple belts before he received his blue. There are no time based, participation trophy belt promotions at Cookeville Jiu-jitsu.

This is stuff that 90+ percent of black belts don't even know or teach these days and something every blue belt should know. This is REAL Jiu-Jitsu!

Intro to Vale Tudo guard by Chris Burns

Starting today, Wednesday, July 9, 2025, Cookeville Jiu-jitsu will be offering a Wednesday class that will be grappling only. Class time will be the same 6 PM until 7:30 PM.