I've been at GB Ashburn for about two months, and so far the experience was awesome, and kind of life-changing! Initially, I was exploring different martial arts gyms for my 3-year-old daughter. While my daughter was pretty wary and didn't want to commit, I got a really good feeling the first time we observed the class and decided to join - And my gut feeling was right!
There are three things that I love most about this gym:
1. People. Everyone, from the professors/coaches to the peers, are wonderful. The professors are all super friendly, approachable, and are always great at answering questions. The peers are respectful and not overly aggressive (in a hurtful-injury kinda way), and the upper belts are always happy to give pointers when asked (or when I look desperately clueless). I'll admit that I find grappling sports extremely intimidating, but everyone at the gym is so kind that I was able to continue going despite feeling super intimidated. Also, there are so many students, but the professors always remember people's names. That's amazing! Big shout out to Professor Dana, Professor Rafael, and Professor Thiago for being awesome.
2. The environment. The physical environment is clean, but more importantly, I find the (non-physical) environment incredibly welcoming. There are areas for kids to hang out when parents are taking classes, plenty of chairs and sofa, and staff are just so, so kind and nice to the kids!! As a mom who's hoping to get her 3-yo interested in bjj, I really appreciate this set up.
3. The classes. There are morning classes, middle-of-the-day classes, evening classes, and Saturday classes. There are classes for kids, teens, adults, and FEMALES. This variety allows me to attend classes with a wonky work schedule and learn from different professors and peers. More importantly, the classes are very organized, such that when I attend classes almost randomly throughout the week, different professors are all teaching similar techniques that build off of a streamlined curriculum, and I don't feel that I must attend classes on a regular schedule (e.g., M/W at 6:30am). I also love that there are position-specific training toward the latter part of every class. It's intimidating, but I learn a lot from these practices!
I guess I could go on, but I'll just say that I highly recommend this gym! read more