CU Jiu Jitsu

It was a great experience, I can't wait to get back in there! Great vibe, and a solid group of people!

I am a Blue Belt and I train Gracie JiuJitsu at KiCK Martial Arts in Kansas City. I had been away from home for a week and ended up in Champaign, IL desperate for a JiuJitsu roll. CU Jiu Jitsu was NOT the only gym that I called, but they WERE the one who called me back! Coach Mike was super nice and welcomed me to come in and take a FREE trial class even though it was obvious I was not going to sign-up, and he even refused to allow me to pay for the class à la carte. Thank you, CU Jiu Jitsu!My experience was great! I was the odd man out as this gym focuses on sport jiujitsu whereas Gracie Jiujitsu is much more focused on the Self Defense aspect of Jiujitsu. At the time I only had the Gracie Combatives belt, which is an intermediate belt before Blue, earned before being introduced to rolling. Many of the students at CU Jiu Jitsu were curious about my odd-looking belt, and I was honored to tell them all about Gracie Jiu Jitsu, but this review is not about that.My visit to CU Jiu Jitsu happened towards the end of the pandemic and vaccinations were plentiful. The school continued to follow best practices limiting access to the facility and scanning temperatures upon entry. The head instructor, Professor James, greeted me. He was nice and welcoming. With paperwork behind us and a quick tour of the facility, away I went to the locker rooms. The locker room has showers and plenty of lockers. Don’t forget to bring shower shoes so you don’t contaminate the mats!The warm-up started on time. I think there were 12-15 people in the JiuJitsu class, with many of them staying for the wrestling class afterward. The warm-up was typical grappling school type of warm-up, but the instructor did have it written on a board and announced a goal of completing it in X minutes which added a nice challenge to it. After that, a couple of techniques were demonstrated and drilled. The class had many colored belts in it from Black to white. After the technique portion, we squeezed in a couple rounds of rolling. Thank you to my partners Kenny (Blue belt) and Coach Fabio (Brown Belt).This was my first time cross-training at another gym/school. I highly recommend it, and I recommend you checking out CU Jiu Jitsu if you are in the area. Thank you to all the Instructors and students who made my experience enjoyable and welcoming!Feedback:We cannot all be perfect all the time. This is constructive feedback and by no means do I have any grievance. With that said, I’m not sure how kid friendly the adult classes are. One student’s children were doing what kids do. They were addressed as “‘s kids get off the rolled-up mats!” But I don’t think the kids were used to being addressed that way, nor did they pickup on the fact that THEY were the ones playing on the rolled-up mats. So the command was shouted out a few more times before they got the hint. It was just a brief distraction that may have been unnecessary or handled differently.

Nothing but great things to say about this club! I was visiting in town for work and gave C U a chance while I was in the area. Mike Stoller, owner/operator, invited me in for a free drop in class no questions asked. The instruction was quality and the rolls were fun! The students and staff were very welcoming as well. Overall great experience. If your looking for a jiu Jitsu club to call home I would highly recommend C U jiu Jitsu.

Thank you!

Thank you!

perfect place to train

best place to train in the area

I strongly recommend this school for you and your kids.

Great staff good environment and affordable prices best school in Champaign Urbana!!!!!

This is my favorite place to train in town. The coaches are knowledgeable and patient. The environment is very inclusive and I felt welcome right away.