# Question on No gi Judo



## AJH40 (Feb 19, 2014)

Hello everyone,

Do most or all MMA gyms that offer Judo, train no gi techniques? I'm near a mma place called, " Manassas Mixed Martial Arts" in Manassas, VA and they offer Judo there. Has anyone gone there or heard about it, if so how is it and is their Judo no-gi? Also, I'm considering doing MMA for self-defense and possibly competition, would being 25, being in decent health and no fighting experience be a good place to start mma training? 

Thanks,


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## jks9199 (Feb 19, 2014)

Loosely familiar with them.  They bought Olympus Gym several years ago, and shifted the emphasis to the fight club, and eventually went out of business there.  They transitioned to the current place when Olympus/RAGE Fight Club closed.  The staff is skilled and competent, and they've had several fighters with local reputations.  I'm personally a little turned off by the general "we're superior, everyone else is trash" tone of much of their web site.  I wouldn't let that rule them out; it could simply be questionable marketing advice.  If you want to compete... I'd definitely check 'em out.

However...  MMA for self defense...  It's got pros and cons.  Honestly, it's been hashed and rehashed, and I'd encourage you to read some of the threads in the General Self Defense forum here about it.


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## Chris Parker (Feb 20, 2014)

AJH40 said:


> Hello everyone,
> 
> Do most or all MMA gyms that offer Judo, train no gi techniques? I'm near a mma place called, " Manassas Mixed Martial Arts" in Manassas, VA and they offer Judo there. Has anyone gone there or heard about it, if so how is it and is their Judo no-gi? Also, I'm considering doing MMA for self-defense and possibly competition, would being 25, being in decent health and no fighting experience be a good place to start mma training?
> 
> Thanks,



Judo is done with gi. I have seen it occasionally trained without it, but there really isn't such a thing as "no-gi Judo"... Judo is Judo, and it is trained and competed in in gi. Typically a number of MMA gyms that I've come across that claim Judo in their mix are only really referring to a range of throws within their repertoire that are copied or borrowed from Judo (or similar to what's seen there, at least), rather than actually teaching Judo itself, so don't take the simple use of the name as an indication that you're actually learning Judo there. Of course, that's only important if you want to specifically learn Judo... and, at this place, it certainly seems to be teaching Judo itself (separate to the MMA and BJJ curriculums, with separate ranking, as it should be). I highly doubt that the Judo classes will really do much no-gi other than occasionally pointing out how your grip might change without it.

As far as whether or not your list is a good place to start, honestly, it's neither here nor there. The only important thing is that you are motivated, interested, and committed. I'm not getting into "MMA for self defence" here, just saying that, if you're committed to the training, put in effort, are motivated and interested, that trumps anything you've put down. By miles.


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