HOHENFELS, Germany -- Last year, the Hohenfels Brazilian Jiu Jitsu team competed in 27 tournaments in five countries, with 37 competitors bringing home a total of 115 medals. As 2015 gets into full swing, instructor Jeremy Workman said the schools' focus is shifting.
Since its inception in 2011, more than 300 students have participated with the club. Last year, HBJJ became a private organization, which allowed Workman to offer the class for free.
With many of his long-time students and members of the competition team having recently PCSed, Workman said the club will focus less on competition this year, and more on special events such as family get-togethers and barbeques.
Family and community has always been a large part of the club with Workman's wife and children joining him on the mat.
"This is family time for me," he said. "At least half the kids in the kids' class have parents in the adult class."
Workman keeps the children's class informal, focusing more on fitness and fun.
"For the younger kids, it's almost like a tumblers class," he said. "We have a lot of fun, and you kind of have to trick them into learning something."
Several children enrolled this year specifically due to bullying issues, and much of Workman's curriculum for youth focuses on anti-bullying techniques.
"It's more of a fun thing, like I'm going to pretend to be a bully and put them in those situations where they're building the confidence on how to handle that," Workman said.
Workman stresses that there is no hitting in his approach; it's more about negotiations and learning how to manipulate an opponent's arms so they are unable to strike you.
"It's a safe approach," he said. "Nobody's getting hit, nobody's getting hurt, and you're not getting bullied."
HBJJ meets Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays in the Arena, building 47 across from the fire station, and Workman welcomes newcomers of every skill level. There's no need to register, just walk in, sign a waiver and join the class.
Michael Green, who teaches Tae Kwon Do classes on post, has been with HBJJ since it opened its doors. He said that being able to jump right into jiu jitsu is one of the things many people appreciate about the sport.
"In Tae Kwon Do you have to get to a certain level before you can apply any of it," Green said. "With jiu jitsu, you can hit the ground rolling from day one. You can do it from the very beginning level without having to know anything. You just work your way up into it."
And Workman's students are definitely working their way up, with seven adults being promoted to blue belt this year along with four children to yellow and one to orange.
"BJJ promotions are very hard to come by," Workman said. "Moving from white belt to blue is a major accomplishment and only three percent of our total students have made the transition."
These students can now shoulder some of the instruction, taking a newcomer through some of the basic moves.
Of the multitude of students who have spent time at HBJJ, each comes with their own set of goals. Some just want to get fit, others want to compete, and some want to transition into Mixed Martial Arts. (MMA) Workman welcomes them all and will sometimes offer special class nights where the focus may shift to one or another fighting discipline.
"It's a tight-knit group, a community, and everyone's coming from different backgrounds, with different personalities and fighting styles, and that's nice," Workman said.
"We're not an MMA school," he added, "but a well-rounded fighter might want to add different things to his tool belt. Doing BJJ will make you ready for any kind of fighting, because nine out of ten times a fight will go to the ground."
Students can also meet daily at the Arena during lunch for extra fitness work or coaching on a specific technique.
"Our fitness is tough," Workman said. "Some people come in just wanting to learn some techniques, but the folks who take advantage of our fitness training are passing their PT tests with flying colors."
Capt. Andrew Boyd said that that fitness training is a large part of what has kept him coming to class for the past two years.
"And the friendly atmosphere," he added. "To not only be in a competitive environment but a very sportsman-like competitive environment."
Despite the rigorous training, Workman said BJJ is safer than many other sports.
"You can push 100 percent every time," he said. "It's tough, you'll get tired, your muscles will get sore, but there's not that impact that you get in many sports. It's difficult, but it's not the kind of difficult that breaks your body."
Workman said many members also enjoy the cultural experience of practicing with local German BJJ groups in Regensburg and Velburg, as well as the international travel associated with competition.
"We went to four other countries last year, plus a lot of different cities in Germany," he said. "We'll go, we'll fight, and then we'll walk around some European city for a day or two. It's awesome."
Children's class (ages 4-12) runs from 5 - 6 p.m. followed by the Family Class (Teens 13+ and Adults 18+) from 6 - 8 p.m. Offering the classes for free also allows potential students to get a taste of the sport with no commitment.
"We have plenty of talent on the mat, and we're ready to help everybody learn on a new level," Workman said.
Social Sharing