Monroe Jiu Jitsu - Monroe, Michigan

10/14/2026

🥋 **25 YEARS OF JIU-JITSU HAS TAUGHT ME SOMETHING...**

**Not everyone trains jiu-jitsu for the same reason, AND THAT'S OKAY!**

Over the years, I've noticed five types of people who walk through the doors.

**1. The Competitor:** Wants to win, trains hard, pushes their limits, and sometimes treats jiu-jitsu like a full-time job.

**2. The Self-Defense Student:** Has little or no fighting experience but wants to get stronger, healthier, more confident, and learn how to protect themselves.

**3. The Community Student:** Wants friendships, a positive environment, and something meaningful to be part of.

**4. The Hobbyist:** Loves getting on the mats, mixing it up, getting tougher, learning, and having fun.

**5. A Combination of All Four!**

**Here's the thing. NONE OF THEM ARE WRONG!**

After 25 years, I've noticed something else.

The people who figure out how to train for LIFE are usually the ones who stick around the longest. They learn when to push, when to slow down, and how to enjoy the process.

The ones who come out of the gate going 100 mph, treating every roll like a world championship, often end up injured, burned out, or gone.

I once heard a story about an older hobbyist asking a very high-level jiu-jitsu practitioner how many days a week he should train if he wanted to compete and do well.

His answer?

**"TWO DAYS A WEEK."**

The hobbyist was shocked!

But here's my take.

What if training four or five days a week makes that person happy? What if being on the mats is the best part of their day?

Then who says twice a week is the right answer for them?

Obviously, you need to train smart, recover, and listen to your body. But you also need to understand **WHY YOU TRAIN!**

Everybody has advice. Everybody has an opinion. And there's nothing wrong with listening to people who have experience.

But at the end of the day, **IT'S YOUR JOURNEY!**

Whether you're chasing gold medals, learning self-defense, building friendships, or just enjoying a good scrap a few nights a week, find what works for YOU.

**The goal is to stay HEALTHY, stay HUNGRY, and stay HAPPY on the mats for as many years as possible!**

Because the best jiu-jitsu journey isn't necessarily the hardest one.

**It's the one you can keep showing up for.** 🥋

10/04/2026

A safer community starts with well-trained officers.

It’s that time of year again where Monroe Jiu Jitsu has the privilege of spending the month instructing every officer from the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department.

I’m grateful for the opportunity to share my knowledge and experience to help prepare our officers for the real-world situations they may face while protecting our community.

Better training. Better preparation. Safer officers. A safer community. 👊🥋

A big thank you to Joe Hammond, Linz Mjj and Easton Cox for assisting during this training.🙏🏻🚓👮👮🏽‍♂️👮🏾‍♀️👮‍♀️👮‍♂️

10/01/2026

Red flags at Jiu Jitsu gyms....🚩🥋

🥋 RED FLAGS GO BOTH WAYS🚩

There are plenty of conversations about red flags when choosing a Jiu-Jitsu academy. Bad coaching, big egos, unsafe training, poor culture, hidden fees, or an atmosphere that just doesn’t feel right.

Absolutely. Pay attention to those things.

But something that doesn’t get talked about enough:

Students can be red flags too.

Someone is constantly late. They don’t listen. They do their own thing during instruction. They train recklessly or continually hurt training partners. They don’t respect the coaches, teammates, or culture of the academy.

And yes, how someone handles membership and pricing can sometimes be a red flag too.

There’s nothing wrong with asking legitimate questions about pricing. But constantly looking for discounts, negotiating clearly posted rates, or asking one academy for special pricing while being willing to pay full price elsewhere can raise questions about how someone values and respects the school they’re asking to accommodate them.

It’s not about where someone chooses to train or how they choose to spend their money. It’s about honesty, consistency, and mutual respect.

As an academy owner, the responsibility isn’t simply to get as many people through the door as possible. It’s to protect the culture of the room and the people who already trust the academy enough to train there.

A good academy should provide great instruction, a safe environment, professionalism, respect, and a positive culture.

In return, students should show up, listen, be coachable, train safely, respect their teammates, respect the instructors, and respect the academy.

It goes both ways.

Students should pay attention to red flags when choosing a school.

And coaches should pay attention to red flags when deciding who becomes part of their team.

A great Jiu-Jitsu academy isn’t built by accepting everybody.

It’s built by having the right people on the mats and I'm blessed at Monroe Jiu Jitsu to have ALOT of the RIGHT PEOPLE 🙏🏻

09/28/2026

Please register NOW..... over 100 already registered with a few spots still available.

Adam Wardzinski Seminar December 5th hosted by Monroe Jiu Jitsu at Monroe High School in Monroe, Michigan...

Hit link below for all other information and to register... Thank you!

https://www.monroejiujitsu.com/events

09/23/2026

After all these years of Jiu-Jitsu, something hit me while talking with one of my favorite training partners and another veteran black belt today after a great training session.

In Jiu-Jitsu, you go through battles. Year after year. Week after week. Day after day.

There is no off-season.

Wrestlers walk through the door. Judo guys walk in. Young, athletic guys show up. New hungry students come in. And sooner or later, everybody wants to test themselves against the old veteran—the guy who has been rolling forever.

They want to get you.

And when you’ve spent years accepting those challenges, it becomes part of who you are. Someone comes at you 1000%, trying to tap you, and your instinct is to answer the challenge.

But eventually you have to ask yourself:

When does the day come when you realize you don't have to step on the mat and prove anything to anybody anymore?

That can be incredibly difficult.

You've fought the battles. You've taken on the wrestlers, the judo guys, the young athletic guys, the killers and everyone else who walked through the door wanting a piece of you.

But longevity requires something different.

Sometimes being a veteran means understanding when to battle—and when not to.

And really, that lesson isn't just for black belts. Whether you've trained for one month or 25 years, you eventually have to learn to make decisions that keep you healthy, keep you training and allow you to continue getting better.

Because Jiu-Jitsu is demanding. Your body only has so many battles in it.

You don't have to fight every one of them.

The goal isn't to prove you can survive one more hard roll. The goal is to still be on the mat years from now.

09/17/2026

There's still time to order Monroe Jiu Jitsu - Monroe, Michigan gear!

*If you're interested place your order before the September 21st deadline*

Online ordering for Monroe Jiu Jitsu Fundraiser 26 ends on Mon, Sep 21, 2026 (11:59 PM EDT)

09/17/2026

It always amazes me how quickly kids can pick up new techniques. One thing we really enjoy is having them demonstrate the Move of the Day in front of their teammates.

They’re not just learning Jiu-Jitsu—they’re learning how to communicate, teach, and confidently present in front of their peers. That’s a priceless skill that will carry over far beyond the mats. 🥋💪🏼

MJJ KIDS LEARNING TAKEDOWNS!

Wait…I thought Jiu-Jitsu was just a bunch of butt scooters?! 😂😂🥋💪🏼

09/14/2026

🥋 THIS IS WHY I LOVE JIU-JITSU.

I just received one of the best messages I could ever get as an instructor.

A student at Monroe Jiu-Jitsu is a law enforcement officer who also serves as a school resource officer. While breaking up a fight at school, one of the students turned on him and attempted to fight him.

And this is where years of jiu-jitsu/grappling training took over.

He stayed calm.

He established wrist control, executed a hip toss, and immediately the student was on his back. From there, he went straight to knee-on-belly while controlling the student's wrists and brought the entire situation under control.

No unnecessary force.
No one injured.
Situation handled.

THAT is jiu-jitsu.

It's not always about tournaments, belts, medals, or submissions. It's about staying calm when someone else isn't. It's about control, confidence, awareness, and having the skills to handle a dangerous situation without unnecessarily hurting someone.

But the part of his message that meant the most to me was:

"You would've been proud!"

Damn right I am.

As an instructor, there aren't many things better than hearing that something you taught on the mats was there for someone when they truly needed it.

Stay calm. Control the situation. Protect yourself. Protect others.

Nobody got hurt, and everybody went home safe.

🥋 THAT'S WHY WE TRAIN.

09/13/2026

The longer you’re involved in jiu-jitsu, the more you realize what really matters. It’s not about how tough you are, how many people you’ve tapped out, or what you accomplished back in the day.

It’s about how many people you positively affect.

Yesterday, I had the honor of promoting Gabe Sanchez of Second Nature Jiu-Jitsu to his third degree.

Jiu-jitsu is about sharing knowledge. Helping people become safer and more confident. Helping someone change their life. Helping the next generation become better martial artists and better people.

At the end of the day, it’s about helping others.

Gabe represents that. He continues to share his knowledge, give back to the jiu-jitsu community, and make a positive difference in the lives of the people around him.

That’s what this journey is really about.

Congratulations, Gabe, on your third degree. Well deserved, and an honor to be a small part of the journey.

Keep teaching. Keep sharing. Keep helping people.

09/10/2026

Butter Roll 2026 was another great success, honoring one of my best friends, college teammate, college roommate, and just an overall great guy — Michigan State Trooper Paul Butterfield, who was killed in the line of duty on 9-9-13.

Paul was a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu blue belt, a Michigan state champion runner, a successful collegiate runner at the University of Tennessee, an Army veteran, and a Michigan State Trooper. His life was cut far too short.

When I opened Monroe Jiu-Jitsu in 2017, I wanted to honor Paul in a way that would continue making a difference. Since then, all active law enforcement officers, from any agency and from anywhere, have been able to train FREE at Monroe Jiu-Jitsu in Paul’s honor. The goal is simple: give officers the opportunity to learn Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu so they can better protect themselves and the communities they serve.

Through the Paul Butterfield Law Enforcement Program, I’ve had the privilege of meeting hundreds of officers and developing some incredible friendships.

One of the things that means the most to me is that we have never asked anyone for a dollar to support this program. Yet, over the years, people have stepped forward completely on their own because they believe in what we’re doing and believe in honoring Paul. Donations large and small have helped supplement the cost of providing free training to law enforcement officers, and every single donation matters and is deeply appreciated.

A special thank you to Mark Jarrait and Sue Jarrait of Farm Bureau Insurance in Monroe, who have donated thousands of dollars over the years to support the Paul Butterfield Law Enforcement Program. Their generosity, along with the generosity of so many others who have simply stepped up without ever being asked, has helped keep this program going strong.

To everyone who has donated, supported, trained with us, or helped spread the word — thank you. You're helping us honor Paul's life while helping officers become better prepared to protect themselves and their communities.

NEVER FORGET BUTTER. 💙🥋
Michigan State Trooper Paul Butterfield — EOW 9-9-13