Class Rules & Etiquette - Team Renzo Gracie Taylor

No shoes on the mat! No bare feet off the mat! We’re grinding our whole bodies into that surface. Any abrasion – even a microscopic/invisible one – can pick up bacteria and lead to infection. Besides… it’s gross. Please read Caring for our Mats as well.
Stay home if you’re sick. We’re in very close contact, which pretty much guarantees transmission of any infection. If you’re sick, respect your fellow grapplers and stay home until you’re sure you’re no longer contagious. This includes contagious skin issues such as cold sores, warts, athlete’s foot, etc.
Be clean. You may not smell like a spring meadow by the end of class, but please don’t arrive stinky or dirty. Again, we’re trying to keep infections at bay. And besides… it’s gross.
Wash your gi every time. This goes along with “Be clean,” but is important enough for its own bullet. While you grapple, your gi is acting as a sponge for sweat (not just yours – ewww) and germs.
Be groomed. Keep your fingernails and toenails short and filed. Accidents will happen – you’ll scratch and be scratched – but let’s work to keep bleeding and scarring to a minimum, mmkay?
Be sober. BJJ is dangerous enough when you are lucid. Altered states of consciousness impair your judgment and ability to understand and react to real-time risks on the mat. If we suspect you are intoxicated (on anything), you will be asked to leave the mats.
Be respectful. This encompasses a lot. I’m not talking arbitrary rules about bowing and such – I’m talking common sense. Don’t offend people. Don’t talk while the instructor is teaching. Watch your language.
No jewelry. Earrings and other piercings will get pulled out while you’re rolling. If you’re very lucky, they’ll get pulled out through the hole they’re in. Other jewelry such as rings can have sharp points which can scratch. (Exceptions may be made on a case-by-case basis for smooth, low-profile wedding rings.)
No egos. You will not be the best. You will be beaten by smaller opponents, weaker opponents, less experienced opponents. This is one of the beautiful and humbling aspects of the BJJ experience. Take it in stride; thank your opponent; learn from it and grow. Posturing, poor sportsmanship, uncontrolled aggression, or any hint of abuse will be grounds for ejection from the program.
Yield to the higher belt. If you are rolling or drilling and get too close to another pair, the pair with the overall highest-ranking player has the right of way, regardless of who ran into whom. The lower-ranking pair should move to a clear area of the mat. That said, either pair can move just to be polite.
Try to be on time. We understand you have other things going on in your life, and we won’t bust you for being late occasionally, but please don’t make it a regular occurrence. If there’s some reason you will routinely be late, please clear it with the instructor.
Warm up. Assuming your partner isn’t being a spaz and you’re not trying to do bizarre contortions or aerial acrobatics, the single best way to get injured is to try to drill or, worse, roll without warming up. If you’re on time for class, we’ll make sure you’re warm. If you’re late, it is more important that you take the time to warm up on your own than that you immediately jump in to participate in the material.
The following techniques are forbidden under any circumstances:
- Strikes (punch, kick, slap, elbow, knee, head-butt etc.).
- Slamming.
- Small joint manipulation: never grab toes, fingers, or thumbs. A grip around all four fingers of one hand is permissible.
- Attacking any orifice. This includes fish-hooking, eye-gouging, oil-checking, etc.
- Fingers/hands or toes/feet inside your partner’s cuffs (sleeve or pant leg). Please make sure you understand which grips are safe and legal. Ask an instructor if you have not had this thoroughly explained to you.
The following techniques require prior consent of your partner and the instructor:
- Kneebars.
- Heel hooks.
- Spinal attacks (twisters, neck cranks, can openers, etc.).
- Splicing/crushing submissions.
- Reaping. This means using your leg to force your opponent’s leg into a “knock-kneed” position, compromising the medial knee joint. Please ask an instructor to explain this position to you.
- Beginning live rolls from a standing position.