Free Form Jiu Jitsu

We are honored and grateful to welcome Professor for a seminar on August 15 🔥 🔥

Register via Venmo, DM, Call/Text, or Email

Three Reminders

Shh 🤫
Just roll 🤝

SCHEDULE UPDATE!

We will continue to host open training every Saturday from 10:00am - 12:00pm.

Please note the following:
•ALL are welcome on the first Saturday of each month
•FFJJ members are welcome all other Saturdays.

Open mats are for Gi and No-Gi sparring!
See you on the mats 🙇

Important!

2026 CHICAGO OPEN

Congratulations to everyone who competed last weekend! We had a few veteran competitors, and a few rookies— all in all another great showing for the team 💪

: 🥇two submissions, M3 brown 🙇

: 🥇🥇🥇 SIX submissions, M1 brown 🔥

: 🥈🥉one submission, M1 brown

: 🥈one submission, M3 blue

HUGE thank you to all of the coaches and teammates who came down to support the team. We are so grateful to have such a dedicated group of teammates and friends!

Onward.

New stickers are in.

You can’t buy these, they’re only given to the last ones rolling.

FREEFORM Jiu-Jitsu— born and raised in Milwaukee.

All of the effort in the world will not yield results in the wrong environment.

If you’re running into a wall— the same wall— then running into it harder won’t fix anything.

We have lots of visitors come through. Sometimes I just want to grab them by the cheeks, shake them and say “You could be so good!”

*t

A few days ago, shared a succinct and profound thought. He said,

“Jiu Jitsu Competition: Finite
Jiu Jitsu Practice: Infinite”

🔥 🔥 🔥

Professor Liera’s words reminded me of one of my favorite poems by Bertolt Brecht. Although he was probably aiming at something different, Brecht’s poem nonetheless describes (and anchors!) the way that I understand community-creation, team-building, collaboration, and the process of giving oneself over and over and over again to the people and practices that you love.

Anyways, here’s Brecht:

How long
Do works endure? As long
As they are not completed.
Since as long as they demand effort
They do not decay.

Inviting further work
Repaying participation
Their being lasts as long as
They invite and reward.

Useful works
Require people
Artistic works
Have room for art
Wise works
Require wisdom

Those devised for completeness
Show gaps
The long-lasting
Are always about to crumble
Those planned on a really big scale
Are unfinished.
Still imperfect
Like a wall awaiting the ivy (It was once unfinished
Long ago, before the ivy came; bare).

Still short-lived
Like a machine that is used
But is not good enough
But gives promise of a better model
Work for endurance must
Be built like
A machine full of shortcomings.

2026 PANS RECAP: Two Champions, Four Podiums 🔥

🥇- Rachel
🥇- Scotty
🥉- Max
🥉- Kyro .fajfrowska

I am beaming with pride for these athletes! We have been preparing for this tournament since January 1.

Every one of them set a goal and PREPARED well:
•They managed weight cuts and trained through physical and mental setbacks.
•They each put together successful strategies— and all of those strategies VERY different from one another.
•They ALL did at least one other tournament this year, to test their game before Pans— then came back to the training room to make adjustments and continue towards their goal.

This is the work nobody sees or knows about. It doesn’t get clicks or likes. It doesn’t ragebait anyone into views or comments. It doesn’t come with any paydays or sponsorships.

It’s real work, with real challenges, and real rewards.

I hope you all are as proud of your WORK as you are of your results. 🙇‍♂️

—————

Extra thanks to our coaches who worked so hard to help the team prepare: .capone , , — your deep understanding of the art and the sport is a gift to the team.

And thank you to the coaches who stayed home to run the gym while we were gone: , ,

You will not find a more dedicated group of coaches anywhere. These people truly love jiu jitsu. 🙇

Final thanks to Professor for your continued guidance and help behind the scenes. We are grateful to be on the team 🙇 🙏

——-

Keep building
Keep growing deep roots
Little by little

#2026