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YOUTH JIU JITSU BELT RANKING

By Benjamin Strusnik, May 25, 2022

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu doesn't just cater for adult classes, they run kids classes too. Most academies are made up of at least 50% children members, which is great for the future prospects of the Martial Art. Many academies across the globe are reporting exponential growth in their youth divisions. The popularity of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is becoming apparent as memberships soar across the board.

What This Article Covers:

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is made up of a complicated belt ranking system that enables children to track their progress through the Martial Art. Students start as a white belt and after they are awarded 4 stripes they will move on to the series of grey belts, which includes a grey and white belt, a solid grey and a grey and black belt. After a student progresses through these belts they will move on to the yellow belt series, then the orange and finally the green. In total there are thirteen coloured belts that the kids will work their way through.

Luke and Amy Harris have joined forces with BJJFanatics.com to share their expertise in developing martial arts youth!

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WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN KIDS START BJJ

Kids will often become extremely nervous when they begin a Martial Art like Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Walking into an academy for the first time can be really intimidating, as children will often be extremely shy. BJJ academies have a way of bringing kids out of their shell, as it won't take long for them to feel comfortable in the academy. Kids can expect a high energy paced class facilitated by professional and caring instructors.

A BJJ academy operates with a high standard of humility and dedication. Children can expect to be taught some valuable lessons in self defense, sports Jiu Jitsu, strength and conditioning and injury prevention. A child will gain attributes in dexterity, agility, strength, fitness, flexibility and problem solving. When kids train in BJJ they will often be tested under highly stressful scenarios, so this art is great for building confidence and critical thinking which will help a child learn good decision making skills. Kids will also learn how to master the art of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu as they will often ask how long are you a white belt in bjj for. After spending a significant amount of time building their skills in grappling, kids will work their way through the coloured belt ranks.

Kids can also expect to build some amazing friendships, as a BJJ club is all about community engagement and camaraderie. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is just a fun sport and during kids classes there is a lot of enjoyment. Most instructors will run skill building games to help engage children in learning BJJ skills, while they think it's just a fun game. This sought of engagement is great for children as not only do they pick up subtle skills in BJJ they also learn how to work in a team environment. Kids should also expect regular gradings, as instructors will usually award stripes and belts every three months, this is so the children stay inspired and have a goal to work towards. After receiving their first belt promotion kids can begin to wonder who is the fastest black belt in bjj, this can lead towards genuine inspiration for the child.

THE KIDS BJJ BELT RANKING SYSTEM

In Brazilian Jiu Jitsu there are thirteen different coloured belts in the youth ranking system. Children will always begin as a white belt as it signifies the beginning of their Martial Arts journey. Kids will go through a rigorous training program that involves a series of fundamental movements. As they start to learn the basics their instructors will award stripes until they have accumulated four, after that the student will go up in belt rank.

The first belt in the coloured belt group is the grey and white belt, this belt is the first step up towards the higher ranks of the junior belts. Kids who acheive this rank should be working on major control positions like the mount, side control, back control and the guard. They should also be learning basic submissions, guard passes, takedowns and sweeps. After roughly eight months the kids will achieve the solid grey belt rank, where they will continue on refining everything they have learnt so far. The student will then move on to the final belt in the grey belt series, the grey and black striped belt. Students at this level will be highly adapted to the flow of Jiu Jitsu as they continue with their journey.

After navigating through the grey belts, students will move up to the yellow belt series. Most kids between eight and eleven years old will be eligible for this belt rank, but it also depends highly on their skill level. The first belt in this group is the yellow and white striped belt, this a level where students will become more proficient with their technical skills. Moving up in rank also comes with certain responsibilities, as the yellow belt will start to develop leadership qualities. Kids at this belt rank should have a more tangible understanding of the Jiu Jitsu game style, as they will often show signs of a more efficient way of moving through positions. The second belt is the solid yellow and then followed by the yellow and black striped belt. Kids that develop through these stages should have a broader knowledge and a deeper understanding of many concepts like sweeping, escaping and submitting opponents.

When a student turns ten and when their skills permit, they will be awarded the orange and white striped belt. This phase is an extremely important time for young athletes as they will develop through the solid orange belt and then the orange and black striped belt, this usually occurs between the ages of ten and thirteen. During this level, students will have a comprehensive game style as they start to show some outstanding technical abilities. Orange belts will often test their skills inside the competition arena, as they showcase their proficiency in the Brazilian art. During this stage orange belts will also begin developing their teaching skills as they start helping some of the lower belts in their academy. An orange belt is a student that becomes an inspiration to the lower belts at their academy, as they will need to show integrity and humility inside their academy and inside the competitive arena.

The last belt series in the youth ranking system is the three green belts. It starts with the green and white, followed by the solid green and then finalised with the green and black striped belt. As a student navigates their way through these prestigious belts they will have become extraordinarily skilful at BJJ. A green belt should have silky smooth technical ability, as they can easily train amongst the adult classes. They should have an amazing sense of how to coach BJJ, due to their decade in the sport. Students of this calibre will know how dangerous is a bjj blue belt, and in most cases will be able to match their skill level. When a green belt turns sixteen they will automatically move straight into their blue belt, as they bypass the adult white belt phase. This is an exciting period for green belts as they will enjoy their surge up the ladder in search of higher promotion.

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HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO NAVIGATE THROUGH THE COLOURED BELT RANKS IN BJJ

In BJJ kids can start their journey at an extremely young age, meaning even though they may not fully understand the movements, they will certainly pick up skills unassumingly. Trying to make their way through the intricate series of coloured belts can take at least ten years, which is as long as some adults take to become a black belt. It can take anywhere from eight to twelve months to move up through each individual belt rank. There are also age requirements for certain belt levels, this is mainly to protect younger kids from having to compete against older and more athletically developed children. A child must be ten before they can receive an orange belt, and thirteen before they can receive a green belt. These types of rules are put in place to protect the children as they are our future stars.

Kids will often wonder how many bjj black belts are there, as they look to push through the youth belts in order to conquer an extremely high level of BJJ. It takes considerable time to journey through the coloured belt divisions in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, and kids will need to develop a sense of patience and resilience. Kids should be dedicating themselves to the art and trying their best to succeed. Kids will usually find mentors along their journey, coaches they can look up to and that inspire them to achieve success. The measure of a good coach is how well they develop not only the skills of a young athlete, but the integrity of the child becoming a young adult. This is quite common as the child can spend ten or twelve years learning under the same coach.

HOW DOES EVERY YOUNG ATHLETE EARN PROMOTION

Instructors have a keen eye for knowing when to grade their students, as their skills are assessed according to their ideology in BJJ. Coaches will look at a student's ability and their character inside and outside of the academy. BJJ is a slow progression, as a student will develop the important skills they need in order to upgrade their belt rank. Coaches give out stripes based on many different criterias, like how well their technical ability is applied, how vast their technical knowledge is, how consistent they are on the mats, how well they interact with members of the academy and how well they handle high pressure situations like tournaments. Kids will often ask does no gi bjj have belts, and when they find out that the rank in Gi transfers to No Gi, they might decide they like one more than the other.

As the student navigates their way through the belt ranks, they will start to grow self belief as they will become extremely comfortable training alongside many of the academy members. Every student learns differently and moves through their development at their own pace. Coaches will always award stripes and belts according to the skill level of the child. Children need to set reachable goals, so this is a big reason as to why there are so many coloured belts. This is how coaches keep children engaged in BJJ, it is also how they measure the progression between each rank. It is extremely important for children to stay focused and stay on task, so they can keep up their progress through BJJ.

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HOW ARE YOUNG ATHLETES EXPECTED TO BEHAVE IN AN ACADEMY

There are certain expectations that all children should abide by. Kids will need to learn how to become respectful members of their academy. They should be humble and integral towards all other members and visitors of their academy, including their coaches. Bullying or abusive behaviour will never be tolerated by an academy coach and will be dealt with accordingly. Children will learn to be an example to other children in their academy, and show kind and responsible behaviour.

Young students are expected to follow the same sets of rules as all other members of their academy. They will need to follow a strict set of rules in order to keep a happy and healthy vibe in the academy. Kids should also have good hygiene standards by showering before and after training, and washing all of their training gear. Students will also need to cut their finger and toe nails so they don't wind up scratching their training partners. There is an extremely important need for children to keep good personal hygiene, as it will keep them out of harm's way.

WHY SHOULD KIDS TRAIN IN BJJ

There is a constant need for children to train in combat sports, as the number of violent and bullying cases on children has risen exponentially over the years. Children suffer from many types of abusive behaviour, so there is a need for them to defend themselves. Learning self defense strategies and life saving BJJ principles, gives kids an insurmountable lift in their confidence and their ability to look after themselves. Another great factor is how they learn to make decisions when they are in extremely high stressful situations, and this is an important development in their self control.

The youngest students in class are the future. Parents, coach(es)

Other great factors are how BJJ will give the child the best chance in becoming extremely athletic. When a student trains in BJJ they will soon realise how important it is to keep their bodies strong and start developing other aspects like, flexibility, dexterity, agility and technical proficiency. Training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is one of the best ways to make good friendships, as the BJJ community are some of the most honourable and integral people in Martial Arts. Training in BJJ will help children become great athletes and it will also help them in all aspects of their day to day lives.

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