TLBJJ KIDS BJJ BELT SYSTEM

How the TLBJJ Kids BJJ Belt System Works

In Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, belts show a child’s skill level, effort, and understanding — not just age.

Children earn stripes as mini-milestones.

• 1 stripe is awarded at each grading (every 10–12 weeks)

• After 4 stripes, a child is eligible for their next belt

• Children who compete regularly and show faster progress may advance more quickly

All children who have attended a full term and have a gi are eligible to be graded.

We do not charge for gradings, however a new belt is purchased by the family if your child is promoted.

Every promotion is based on effort, attitude, attendance, and technical improvement — not just time on the mat.

Don't Let Fear Hold You Back...

Sometimes we retard our progress in life. Fear of failure, fear of what others will say, fear of looking stupid, fear of being shit. I still do it. I hold my self back from losing weight. I find some bullshit excuse to not stick to a plan.

I used to feel fear when I was training BJJ. I would be shitting my self on the long drive down the coast, building up my anxiety in my head. Not scared of getting hurt, but of being shit and getting owned by everyone in the gym.

I use the word fear because it fits. Any one who says they fear nothing, is either really stupid or lying. I think fear is healthy and is just another emotion to be aware of and potentially use in your favour.

Grappling is one of the only sports where you compete at nearly 100% with your team mates every time you train. This is why it is so practical, the techniques are all pressure tested. But it can also stunt peoples development in the art.

Whether we like it or not, we all have some sort of competitive drive, some more than others. As a new White belt I didn't want to get tapped by anyone. I felt useless if I got caught or even pinned by my team mates. My fears were holding me back.

Once i started to let go of the fear of failure I really started to improve. Don't get me wrong, I’m not saying have no fear. I think that feeling of fear is needed to get better. I’m saying acknowledge it, then concentrate on the techniques and concepts. Things will rapidly start to feel different.

Learn to use fear to help your training. It will tell you the positions you need to work on getting comfortable in. Use it to heighten your awareness and then focus in on the task at hand. Rolling at training will became more enjoyable. The feels turn into something more positive and useful.

When totally immersed in a technical roll emotions can start to disappear. It’s weird, you become unaware of the surroundings but completely in tune with the movements and totally connected to the art.

There’s lots of areas in life this mindset can be applied. By being aware of your fears and using them to commit to whatever it is you want to achieve.

If I personally had let my fears get in the way I would have never played a game of footy, started Jiu-Jitsu, competed in tournaments or rang my wife for the first time. I would have missed out on all the best things life has offered up for me.

Don't Let Fear Hold You Back!!
Coach Carney

This is one of my favourite quotes.

"It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat."

Theodore Roosevelt

Roots..

The roots of Grappling, like many historical subjects, are complex and woven into the diverse fabric of human history. Each culture has been seen to possess some form of unarmed combat, a testament to our shared instinct for survival and competition. Wrestling and boxing, in their myriad forms, are common threads that bind us together across time and space.

Reflecting on this endless timeline, we might see the footprints of Ancient Greece shaping the wrestling techniques of what is modern jiu-jitsu. The Greeks, with their Olympic Games and beloved sport of Pankration, a blend of boxing and wrestling, spread their cultural influence far and wide through Alexander the Great's conquests. His influence reached as far as India, where it's believed the seeds of Jiu-Jitsu were sown.

Most historians lean towards the idea that systemised martial arts techniques sprang from India, brought to China along the Silk Road with Buddhism. The Buddhist monks, men of profound wisdom and understanding of the human body, were often attacked during their treks across India. Their spiritual beliefs prohibited the use of weapons, leading them to develop a system of self-defense using nothing but their bodies. They harnessed the laws of physics—leverage, balance, center of gravity, weight transmission, and the manipulation of vital points on the human body—to create an art of self-defense that was as scientific as it was spiritual.

Another theory suggests that Jiu-Jitsu originated in China around the fall of the Ming Dynasty, brought to Japan by a Chinese monk named Chin Gen Pinh. It could also have evolved from Chikura Karube, an ancient form of wrestling.

Grappling's story also intertwines with many indigenous cultures. The most ancient of all is that of the aboriginal peoples of Australia, who have practiced wrestling for more than 70,000 years, according to current scientific estimates. Ancient artwork depicting the sport confirms this deep-rooted history. Wrestling served multiple purposes in indigenous societies: training young warriors, providing public entertainment, and promoting peace during large intertribal gatherings. The various names for the sport reflect its rich cultural diversity. The style used by the Jinibara people of South Eastern QLD is called Ami. The common name used around Australia is Coreeda

Despite these varied origins, one thing is clear: the Japanese refined this grappling art into the sophisticated system of Jiu-Jitsu we know today, a testament to their creativity and dedication during the Feudal period.

Jigoro Kano is the creator of Judo, a blend of these Japanese Jiu-Jitsu styles which were originally developed by the Samurai clans. Mitsuyo Maeda was a student of Kano's. He spread Kano’s jiu-jitsu style globally by doing demonstrations and taking challenge matches. In this time Maeda began developing his own style due to exposure to western wrestling and boxing in the challenge matches.

In 1917, Carlos Gracie started learning 'Kano jiu-jitsu' after watching a demonstration by Maeda in Brazil. His adaptation, Gracie jiu-jitsu, focused on ground fighting and leverages. Another Brazilian lineage via Luiz França, represented by Oswaldo Fadda, also learned from Maeda and promoted Brazilian jiu-jitsu with a focus on footlocks. All BJJ branches in Brazil trace their roots back to Maeda.


The journey of grappling illuminates the shared human experience across time and space. Its evolution serves as a reminder of our common roots and our collective strength, resilience, and creativity. As we continue to practice and refine these arts, we carry forward the legacy of our ancestors, honoring their wisdom, courage, and spirit.

- Coach Carney

TLBJJ HOUSE RULES & CODE OF CONDUCT

We have listed our most important general house rules these refer to behaviour, safety and hygiene. We’ve also added our code of conduct that must be adhere to the moment you walk into the academy.

  1. Always be respectful of our Coaches & staff. (Say hello when they say hello to you) Bow towards the centre of the mats before entering and exiting the mats. Thank all training partners & coaches respectfully at the end of class by looking at them, giving them a handshake and saying thanks for the training.

  2. Students before and after class are to be respectful of the class in session and the facilities in general. They are not to run in and out of the gym, our carpark is dangerously busy at times. Students are not to climb over furniture, run around srcreaming or do any rough housing with other students.

  3. Come to class clean and ready to train. Jiu-Jitsu is a close contact sport, Please maintain good personal hygiene at all times. Your training clothes must be clean. A dirty smelly gi or training shirt is not acceptable. Spitting and picking out boogers during class is not acceptable.

  4. You must wear shoes or flip flops when you are not on the mat. Especially when going to the toilet.

  5. All training gear and bags should be left in the bag area, not on the seats or around the training area.

  6. Please don't give your kids instructions or correct their behavior while they're on the mats. They should rely on the coaches for help. If you find this hard, it's okay to leave and go enjoy a coffee or cold drink and let us take care of your kids during the 30-45 minute class.

  7. If you are late, wait outside the mat until the coach gives you permission to join.

  8. Do not leave class in session without permission from the Coach.

  9. Talking should be kept to a minimum level during instruction. Do not speak over the coaches.

  10. Place trash in appropriate receptacles.

  11. All jewelry and piercings should be removed during training.

  12. Keep fingernails and toenails neatly trimmed.

  13. Do not train if you are sick, have any open wounds, weird rashes or pimples. Staaphylococcus can be rapidly spread between students and potentially very dangerous to your health.

  14. Always be humble and respectful toward your fellow students.

  15. Have fun!

 

TERRA LUTA BJJ

CODE OF CONDUCT

ALL STUDENTS AND PARENTS OF STUDENTS ARE REQUIRED TO MAINTAIN A CODE OF CONDUCT. 

ALL BEHAVIOUR MUST BE RESPECTFUL TO THE INSTRUCTORS, STUDENTS AND ANYONE UNDER THE TLBJJ ROOF. 

THERE WILL BE NO EXCESSIVE FOUL LANGUAGE, RACIST, SEXIST, HOMOPHOBIC REMARKS, UNSANCTIONED FIGHTING, OR INAPPROPRIATE TOUCHING OUTSIDE THE SCOPE OF THE ACTUAL TRAINING. 

ANY VIOLATION OF THIS CODE, AS INTERPRETED BY THE INSTRUCTORS OR STAFF CAN RESULT IN THE IMMEDIATE TERMINATION OF THE STUDENTS MEMBERSHIP WITHOUT REFUND.  

PARTICIPATION IN TRAINING AT TERRA LUTA BRAZILIAN JIU JITSU IS CONSIDERED CONSENT TO THE ABOVE REFERENCED CODE OF CONDUCT.