Ju-Jitsu Dojo Of Columbia

I’ve gotta admit up front that I don’t have much martial arts experience to temper this review, but I went to this dojo for four years until I got my Shodan (1^st level black belt) under Pat, the previous owner. My two kids also attended for awhile, both in the children’s class and, when old enough, moving to the adult class.
Current owner Cathleen is a protégé of Pat’s, is a very professional instructor and loves what she does. Adults (age 14 and up) progress through a series of belts with no time limit attached — when Cathleen feels you’re ready, you test for the next belt. «Upper» belts get paired up with juniors during training and, once past a certain level, also get to teach, thereby learning by teaching. There’s no rushing the process and respect is assumed in both directions, towards teacher and student alike.
The morals of hand-​to-​hand combat are also part of the training, with emphasis given to using least harm in order to overcome a situation. This is especially driven home in the kids’ class and often touched on with the adults. The kids are taught a less injurious version than the adults, with lots of movement and group activities. In the dojo, practice punches are always done either with pads or so as not to make contact, and injuries, while not unknown, are not frequent.
I should mention that this is not Brazilian Ju Jitsu, the very popular newer version of the art. It’s Japanese JJ, much older and founded on centuries old Japanese schools of thought. Also taught are Bo Jitsu (using a staff) and many Defendo techiques.
Payment is by the month, by automatic deduction and you can come as often or as seldom as your schedule permits. I tried to keep up a 4-​day a week schedule when training and this worked out well for me, others may feel differently. Come for the first week or so free, and then if you decide to stick it, sign up for the monthly payments.

I trained here for four years, up to Shodan (1^st degree black belt). The program is traditional Japanese Ju Jitsu, not Brazilian, and also includes Bo Jitsu stick fighting and street fighting self-​defense techniques against single or multiple attackers, armed or unarmed. The. school traces its techniques back to old Japanese schools like the Great Eastern School. Cathleen, the owner and primary teacher, is extremely knowledgeable and a great teacher who cares about her students.
Payment is by subscription, so you pay a quarterly fee and come as much or as little as you want, and Cathleen also teaches a children-​only class in tumbling, kata and elementary techniques on Saturday mornings. She takes kids as young as five, and at age 14 they move up to the adult class.