Ralph Gracie Berkeley Jiu Jitsu Academy

Nia teaches women’s classes twice a week as well as general classes. Highly recommended for fitness and upping those martial arts superpowers. The skills are challenging both physically and mentally, and Nia’s fun, expert approach dispels any nerves and fuels students’ confidence. What a gift to gift ourselves to do this work. I’m so impressed with the culture here, very encouraging for learning, and inspiring with pervasive excellence.Also, 5 stars for the kids’ classes. Over more than a year, I’ve watched the kids develop discipline, find their place in the community, work through anxiety, fears, and find support in their struggles, and pounce, romp and shriek with joy during the many team-building physical fitness games and play. Learning new skills, the little ones respectfully attend to the serious instruction. So wholesome and commendable.

Come train with us! There are classes for everyone at every level. It's a welcoming place, with great, hard working athletes.

Great gym

One of the largest Brazilian Jiu Jitsu schools in the Bay Area, founded by Master Ralph Gracie and Luis Eduardo Fraga, who is a 6th degree Black Belt. Professor Eduardo still competes at the highest level himself and is also a passionate coach for a highly competitive team. There are about 400 students, but many high level instructors, including Nia a 1st degree female black belt. Be sure to stop by on Sunday 10:00 am to 12:00 pm for a free open mat to anyone willing to put on their Gi and roll!

Nice place for training bjj

Definitely one of the best Brazilian Jiu-jitsu Academies in the Bay Area!!!!

Hands down one of the best places to train BJJ.

I’ve trained at Ralph Gracie BJJ for a few weeks this summer and it was awesome. Prof. Fraga and his team were super welcoming, kind, and helpful. I loved the quality of instruction, the focus on proper technique and details, and Prof. Fraga’s incredible ability to spot a mistake I was making even when I thought he wasn’t looking! I also appreciated all of his suggestions after our rolls re things I could incorporate into my game or things I could consider saving for when I’m a higher belt. It was really valuable for me and showed me his passion for the sport and helping anybody who wants to train at his academy get better. The team was awesome too! I loved being able to train and get tips from higher belt women and all the black belts. As a white belt, it was a treat to get to train with so many of the latter, including prof. Fraga. It’s a competition academy and it shows in both the level and philosophy of training and results they get (🥇🥈🥉)The academy, lockers, and common space have always been very clean. The atmosphere is casual and lighthearted despite everybody showing up to give their 100% and working hard. Ah! One of my absolute favorites were judo takedown warmups! So so fun and useful.

Review is for the kids jiujitsu class.My 11 yr old son has been training with instructor Eduardo Fraga at Ralph Gracie for over 2 yrs now. The kids class usually has between 10 and 20 kids each class and the class is rarely overcrowded. Some times more or less depending on the time of year, day or the week, etc. Kids can train up to 5 days a week, which is encouraged, but not necessary. Eduardo encourages competition, but kids are not required to compete.My child trains 2-3 days a week. Currently the kids class is taught by Eduardo and 1-3 assistant instructors. I think a different instructor (Newton) teaches on Wed. Mon, Tues, Thurs and Fri is gi training, Wed is no-gi. Open mat is on the weekends and has given me a chance to come and train with my son.A typical class will start with a warm-up, followed by instruction and drilling of a technique and finished with some 'sparring'. Usually 1 type of technique is focused on in a given week, so as long as you make 1 class a week (regularly) you will be exposed to the breadth of techniques taught. The same techniques (or variations) are revisited over time.The dojo has seating for parents to watch their child in class.It's amazing how much he and other kids have progressed. He has also made a couple of close friends on the mat. There is a good mix of kids with various levels of experience as well as new comers. Most of the kids are aged 9 to 12 yrs old, particularly the ones that keep training for longer periods of time. I'm an experienced martial artist and I watch how the class is taught as well as how many of the kids progress over time. It's great to see them develop both in their technique but also their attitude. I hope my child continues into his teenage years.

Came in as a complete novice a year and a half ago, and I've been every week since then. Love this place. Great beginner classes to get you started, then lots of helpful black belts around who can help when you're ready to go deeper. Genuinely friendly community. Tough competitors. Eduardo is a beast.