I used to train BJJ at one of the "big" academies in Manhattan before I moved to Flushing recently. I felt that spending over an hour getting to my BJJ classes in the city was too time consuming so I googled "BJJ near me." I knew there were a few academies around Flushing, but not IN Flushing. I was pleasantly surprised to find Lotus BJJ IN Flushing. Lol. I reached out to Professor Andy over FB and asked what the scheduled looked like for his academy. He was prompt with his response and sent me a copy of the schedule and asked me to stop by for a free trial class. I attended the trial class yesterday and this was my experience:
Lotus Club BJJ is located in a basement like all other great BJJ academies in NYC (for real). Class started at 7pm so I showed up at 6:30 to introduce myself. When I walked into the academy I was warmly greeted by Prof. Andy. He was very personable and polite. We chatted a little bit before I started my stretches. Class stated exactly at 7pm. There were a little less than 20 people attending class. I believe there were about 5 females and the rest males (I only bring this up because I know some women feel like they don't have enough female training partners. That didn't seem to be the issue here). We spent the first 20 minutes warming up. The warm up consisted of the typical body-weight exercises, stretches and BJJ moves like shrimping and bridging. We spent the next 40 minutes working on techniques and drills. Prof. Andy went over the classic arm bar (this was a beginners class) and certain variations of it. He went into detail breaking down ALL the steps, big and small. He explained what could go wrong, how to adjust and how to defend the arm bar. Everything was explained with the utmost attention to detail. Now, here is where the fun starts! During the drilling (practicing what we learned) Prof. Andy walked around and adjusted/corrected what we were doing wrong!!! Yes! That actually happened at a BJJ school in NYC! Maybe I got used to the "big" academies where the professor would explain a technique and just walk around texting on his phone afterwards. Prof. Andy came around and corrected my form. I wasn't squeezing my knees properly when applying the arm bar. He was also VERY willing to answer any questions. After about 40 minutes of drills, we began rolling (sparring). The rolling portion of class lasted about 30 minutes bringing the total class time to about an hour and 40 minutes. Again, Prof. Andy was very involved in the rolling process. He rolled with me and gave me tips while rolling. My training partners were very helpful and friendly. They all kicked my ass. Lol. Prof. Andy walked around class and was actively engaged with his students by pointing out mistakes and praising good moves. This is something I didn't think still existed at BJJ academies. At the end of class I was exhausted and drenched in sweat. Here are my big two takeaways: 1. Professor Andy was actively engaged throughout the entire class and provided world class instruction. Amazing level of professionalism. 2. Most importantly, everyone was having fun! I can't stress this enough. I know most schools say they are a "family"... blah blah blah. That's not always true. But, at Lotus everyone was so nice and welcoming. I felt like I knew everyone there. It was such a good feeling and experience. It was a true testament of the spirit of BJJ.
After class, Prof. Andy went over pricing and all those fun details. Pricing is very reasonable. There is a school uniform that you have to purchase (every school does this). Classes are held every night Mon-Fri. Friday night is the more advanced MMA/No-Gi/Striking class.
Lastly, the location is great. Across the street from Lotus there's a small gym with all the weights you could possibly want. There are plenty of restaurants to meet your protein fix after class too. The only downside I encountered was the temporary closure of the morning classes. I'm one of the few people who enjoy morning classes. So, I'll conclude that Flushing has a hidden BJJ goldmine. It's still "hidden" because the school is still relatively new compared to the older schools in the surrounding Flushing area. read more