Bully Busters

Ronin Jiu-Jitsu Center and the Washington City Community Center Unveils New Program to Stop Bullies in Their Tracks

Classes start immediately and enrollment is ongoing.  Bring your kids in to try out a couple of classes for free. 

Every day in America, an estimated 150,000 kids miss school due to fear or intimidation of bullies.  In fact, many believe that fear of bullying may be the leading cause of low self-confidence in children.  Worse, statistics suggest that less than 15% of kids actually report acts of bullying.  "Most bullies are insecure and seek self-esteem normally by harassing smaller or weaker children," says Ronin Jiu-Jitsu Instructor Jake Johnston.

Jake has created a Gracie Jiu-Jitsu based self defense program titled "Bully Buster" program.  His goal is to teach children ways to safely diffuse everyday bully problems.  "The goal isn't to teach children how to fight; the goal is to teach children how to defend themselves from bullying.  I don't advocate violence.  A lot of the principles I will be teaching will help in safely diffusing and escaping violent situations," says Jake Johnston.

In discussing his program, Jake went on to say, "My program has three objectives: The first is to boost confidence.  Bullies are less likely to target self-confident children.  The second is to increase awareness.  Harassment from bullies can be physical or verbal and delivered at various intensity levels.  My third and final objective is to teach kids to be ready.  Only when your child makes it clear that they will not tolerate the harassment will they free themselves of the bullies torment."

Aside from preparing your child to deal with bullies, another objective of the Bully Buster program is to instill in your child the character traits that will lead to success in all areas of life.  There are six chapters in the Character Development Program: Responsibility, Health, Respect, Citizenship, Manners, and Caring.  Each chapter is studied for two months.  Time is dedicated in each class to address the featured trait and the simple things that your child can do to make the trait an every day part of their lives. 

The Ronin Jiu-Jitsu Center is offerering two programs for children:
The Little Samurais program is for kids 7-11 years old. At this age, some kids aren't interested in learning martial arts, but they sure don't mind "playing" martial arts.  By playing the fun and challenging "games" in class, children develop strong reflexes in the execution of basic techniques, as they unconsciously learn the foundational principles of leverage and control.

The Jr. Samurais program is for kids 12-16 years of age.  Since bullying is the most prevalent in this age group, we teach the Jr. Samurais the 15 essential techniques they must know in order to defend themselves if attacked.

Please contact us if you have any questions.

Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Comes to St. George, Utah

The first time I went out and tried Jiu-Jitsu, I was told by the instructor that he had trained under, and received his black belt from Pedro Sauer.  At the time I was fairly unfamiliar with the history of Jiu-Jitsu and though I slightly recognized the name, I really didn't grasp the significance of this.  I went home, jumped on the internet, and started doing some research.  I soon found out that a School's lineage or family tree, so to speak, is a very important factor to consider when deciding which Jiu-Jitsu School one should train at.  The idea being that the closer one is to the original source, the more authentic and pure it will be.  Helio Gracie is considered by most to be the father and founder of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu.

The Ronin Jiu-Jitsu Center can clearly and easily trace its lines back to Helio Grace.  Jake Johnston started his Jiu-Jitsu training with Pedro Sauer.  He received all of his belt advancements, including his black belt from Pedro Sauer.  As a young man in Brazil, Pedro Sauer was invited by Rickson Gracie to come and try out Jiu-Jitsu.  Though he was training in other disciplines at the time, he immediately switched over and started training with Rickson and Helio Gracie.  Pedro Sauer was the first non member of the Gracie family to receive a black belt in Gracie Jiu-Jitsu.  Professor Pedro Sauer was awarded his black belt by both Helio and Rickson Gracie.

The small communities of Southern Utah are extremely lucky to have an instructor like Jake Johnston living and teaching in the area.  He teaches pure and authentic Gracie Jiu-Jitsu in a way that is easy for all to understand.  He is patient, explains things very well, and always takes extra time make sure that everyone understands whatever it is he may be teaching that day.

Come on out and give Ronin Jiu-Jitsu a try.  Stick with it, work hard, and one day you will be able to add your name to the list of Gracie Black Belts.