How to Ask Your BJJ Coach for a Belt Promotion Without Asking Them 

My method is to just ask when I’m getting my blue belt on at least a weekly basis. In fact I may just forward this video to my coach to make sure he’s still thinking about my blue belt.

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Hey Bob, what you need to do is challenge your coach in front of everyone for your blue belt or for whatever stripes you want. That’s what I did and I got my purple eyes promoted to black eyes . Best of luck!

I've only been training for 3 months, but I'm not shy about asking for coach's opinion after class. 2 weeks ago I asked him how I was progressing and told him I'm not worried about stripes or promotion, I just want to learn. Turned into a 15 minute conversation and ended with him asking if I wanted to roll. Through the roll, he was giving me pointers with some areas I expressed struggling with and it helped me so much the next class. My advice to anyone: don't be afraid to pull coach to the side after class to ask questions.

Don’t ask for a promotion, ask what it is that sets you apart from being ready. If you cannot ask what your next goal should be then I’d tell Bob to move on. My first gym I honestly stopped trusting the process because of I asked what the next step towards the next level was it was always met with “why do you want it so bad” or something else dismissive. It wasn’t about belts like the instructors projected on me. It was the principles being lofty and at times the “don’t sweat it too much” was used to justify shady practices and favoritism.

I would try Chewy's approach. But I tried that. It took me almost 4 years to get my blue belt, and I was pulling my hair out trying to figure out what I was doing wrong. I asked all the higher ranks and never got an answer other than your doing great, keep doing what your doing. I almost left because it was driving me nuts. Then I got my blue belt and the same thing was happening. 2 more years as a zero stripe blue belt. No idea why, even after using a similar approach chewy recommended. So I finally said enough is enough and I found a new gym. I got my first stripe as a blue belt at the new gym after 6.5 years of BJJ under me, and I am happy I left. People will say "It shouldn't be about the belts", And I would agree up until it gets to the point where it is ridiculous. We have enough stress and play enough head games with people in our lives without having to pay someone to add to it.

Judo and JJJ are such a big difference in belting. I feel bad for this dude. Judo is like 15 lessons, do these techniques, yellow belt. BJJ is like "just keep showing up." I have no idea what I am talking about, but it seems like BJJ coaches either have students spend a lot of time between white and blue or a lot of time at purple. Those are the big gates. I see. I once heard a very high level coach from Brazil say "8 months for blue belt, 8 months" and know an American coach who taught mostly university students who didn't give out blue belts until a few years at minimum.

I'm a guy who's not worrying about belts. I do it for fun and when my next stripe comes it comes. I know I'm getting better and that is really the biggest part. I know my specific gym doesn't give out stripes lightly. We have some 2 and 3 stripe white belts that will destroy a bunch blue belts at other schools.

For those that say don't worry about rank then I ask why does it even exist? If we're supposed to train like it doesn't matter, then why does it exist. Just get rid of rank problem solved. If you're going to have a standard you measure your students by there should be some clarity. Like Chewy said you can't require people to use a ladder and not expect them to want to climb.

You know what feels better than being a purple belt? Being a blue belt tapping brown and purple belts. Sometimes coaches are petty like getting upset with me for doing stuff I learn on RU-vid. They hold me back. But it shatters the egos of browns when I tap them and if coach wants that dynamic in the gym that’s on him not me. I can learn and progress regardless of belts :)

Alternate method- send them this video. I’ve been enjoying my time in the white rank so much I was thinking about asking when I’ll be promoted, seriously. It’s fun af showing up to a different gym’s open mat with my white belt and surprising blues and purples.

As a Brazillian i can tell that BJJ belt system, as everything else here in Brazil is a 20% Merit 80% Politics/Relationship matter. If your coach dont like you for some reason he will not promote you, thats how things done around here

I'm a white belt without stripes, I travel a lot, so in each gym I'm only 1-3 months, so I never get promoted, I'm taping purple belts already.

What I really want to know is how to ask for a demotion. I need one badly.

If the coach can't tell me what he expects, then what does the belt even mean? I mean, I have a Varsity letter in Cross Country. That means I was able to make the top 7 on our team. I have a Varsity letter in Wrestling. That means I was able to beat everyone in my weight class, and wrestle a varsity match at least three times in a season. I have a college degree. That means I had to take a bunch of specific classes, score a specific grade in those, and meet some other requirements. I don't think it's that much to ask of a coach to give a guideline of what he expects a martial artist of a certain rank to be able to do.

Periodically ask your coach what areas they think you should be trying to improve on. Don’t worry about stripes or ranks.

I’ve been doing BJJ since March Monday - Wednesday and I’m a 2 stripe white belt even though I don’t think about it much it still helps and fortifies me mentally to know and See I’m making the climb that being said 18 months is crazy lol

who cares about belts, just roll and have fun =)

This happened to me. I trained at an MMA gym that is legit as it gets, literally world champs in UFC, One, IBJJF, you name it. They didn't give a fuck about belts. UFC Champs training there as white belts. So I was a no stripe white belt. For 6 years. Went to train at another gym and the coach was like "is this a prank?" :D

They say they’re not there for the belt but the question indicates that they are.

When the black belts ask to roll with me, I look at that as a skill check. If I get submitted 10+ times in a 3 minute round, I’m probably not going to get promoted, but if I get submitted at least less than 6 then things are looking bright. I’m a white belt btw

My goal is to get 10 years in and then re-assess where I am, so I’m just not going to worry about it until then. Just keep showing up

I'm a 3-stripe white belt in my 50's. Shoulder issues that class can sometimes aggravate. After 3 stripes, stripes don't come easily, but I don't mind. I'm a police officer, and training bjj has given me skills and confidence I have applied on the job. That's the only validation I need.

I'm 40 year old manlet. Due to my age and (lack of) size, I've struggled with younger larger opponents even though those opponents may have a lower rank. I've also beaten higher ranked opponents who happened to be older (we've got people in my gym in their 50's and 60's) and therefore had less cardio than I did. Belts don't matter. Focus on submissions.

I train simply to get better and to relieve myself from the outside world. I’m at blue and could care less. Keep me at white, blue or whatever, it doesn’t matter. What matters is showing up and finding ways to improve. We are all white belts at heart because we are forever learning and never saying I can’t improve more or learned it all.

Is there a way of asking them NOT to promote you?...

Gave up caring about my rank, just focusing on trying new things and getting better. If I’m a no stripe blue belt for 6 more years who cares.

I'd rather be a white belt that can submit blues/purples than a purple that can get submitted by whites.

18 months? In my gym there was a guy training for over 6 years as naked white and he was consistent In his training .. I was white for 4.5 years ... now I am over 6 years in and I am naked blue . I am training 4 times a week with no breaks since . Some gyms are just a joke .. some instructors just don't care or just don't like you ... Or they have some mental issues... Just keep training man or change the gym

I'm in my 50s and started training in June. I asked my coach about how promotions work and he shut me down and said just worry about getting better. I'm athletic but have injuries that sometimes limit my game. I love rolling with blue belts, then studying how they beat me(watching your videos), then applying it and starting over. At the end of the day, they can keep the belts, and I'll just keep working on improving. It's hard for a coach to keep you a white belt if eventually you beat his blue belts. I don't want to be a Steven Segal black belt😂

I am grateful for your channel Chewy. Thank you, dude. Much love.

The only reason I put so much into worrying about the belt is because I want to coach at some point. I already have some coaching experience from my time as a basketball coach. I want to be able to coach BJJ as well.

I don't really care about belts. Just go to train!

I have been a blue belt for three years, and I was promoted to to blue belt at the 18 month mark with three stripes and I didn't feel like I was ready then, and I don't feel ready for purple belt now. One of the things that I did at the beginning of blue belt was make the decision that no matter what happened, I was going to do the best I could at whatever belt I was regardless of stripes or belts. As a father of five children and working nights, consistency in training has been fairly difficult, but I do what I can. One of the things that's been helpful for me, is when I roll with an upper belt, and we're done, I ask for feedback. What did you think, where are the deficiencies, what should I be working on to make those better? The bottom line is that some gyms give out stripes every 6 months or so when they do a belt promotion, Like Chewy said, some don't stripe next to at all. I am more of a fan of doing away with stripes and scheduled belt promotions. When you do away with promotions and stripes, in my opinion, it makes it easier to focus on the training and less on the the perceived recognition of progress. There will always be those people that will try to "cram" for the promotion when they weren't showing up often for the months leading up to it, and conversely there are people who are training as hard and as often as they can in order to get those landmarks of promotion or stripes. The reality is that whether or not you get promoted or striped, as long as you keep training, you keep getting better. If you're a blue belt for 3-5 years, and you train somewhat consistently, you'll be great blue belt that can easily hang with the purple belts etc; this goes for white belt and purple as well, in my humble opinion. I am not a black belt and I have only been training for about five years, but I have found that this mentality allows me to train and focus on getting better and less on whether or not I'm keeping up with so and so, or worrying about anything else but training. Cheers.

We don't ask at our gym. Our coach is a legend and doesn't do stripes. He's bred a solid culture of humility and nobody asks for promotions especially beyond white belt. He tests us rigorously on specific grading days twice a year where we have to demonstrate over 50 techniques and then do shark tank rounds with fresh opponents. The belts we get are earned and for some reason it kind of sets a precedent where our coach will invite us or let us know when he thinks we're ready or worthy.

Don't Ask For Promotions 😅 ive heard teachers make you wait even more if you do. 🤔 it's a bit difficult to say. Small talk with your coach could help, sometimes there's so many people he loses sight of some people. That way he'll know who you are. Chewy had better advice though 😂

Coming from wrestling I never cared about belts. Got my Black in 5 and just shrugged and went back to training. This will probably be controversial but if people want to get belted under me AND want to compete then i have a simple formula. Get 2 golds in a row for blue, 3 purple, 4 brown, and 5 for black. Granted time and other factors will apply but the best way to know where you belong is how you stack up against others. If you're just there to train and not compete then its about skill and time.

Probably time to leave. It took me 3 years to get my Japenese jiu jitsu Blue belt. It’s not an easy grappling art. So if you’re a black belt and been doing it 15 years, you shouldn’t be a naked white belt. You definitely should be 1 stripe blue belt.

Damn people want to be promoted? I was a 3 stripe white belt and thought at our last big promo ceremony I was gonna get my fourth stripe and move on to compete at white belt. That night I had to walk a gauntlet I was expecting a 6 month wait for. I then got my butt kicked with a white belt mistake in the tournament. I would say it's important to just have fun and learn. Life got more complex and difficult since my blue belt. Everything is faster and harder now. Even from the white belts. Just enjoy where you are

What if your professor approached you, nearly three months ago, and said "I'm going to give you your first stripe in three days, because you've earned it", but he never has?

Are we not going to talk about Chewy's huge knot above his eye?

64 here and four stripe white . I could not care less about future promotions . Just happy to be able to be on the mats. If promotion does come some day it likely will be the last one. I am too old and dont care. Might be different if I was many years younger.

How to talk about belt promotions in yes-gi: Step 1: Don't Love, Nogi Goon Squad

Tap everyone at your belt level with good technique and make eye contact with your instructor at the same time. 60% of the the time this works every time.

As a rule I don't care about belt, however when I'm at the end of a belt i start to get cranky. I usually talk to a higher collored belt and they usually have some information on what the black belt is thinking

I’m beating all the blue belts in the gym an I’m still a white belt at first I did start thinking why am I not getting promoted but now I’m not bothered when it comes I find it funny because most people think I’m a blue belt then when I say no I’m a white belt they look at me surprised an think Damn I got my ass handed to me by a white belt which makes me feel good when I leave knowing when I get my blue belt it will be well earned and not rushed

The same way you get promoted at jobs, ask what the criteria is and where you're falling short of the requirements to get it, and then work on those things.

If you change gyms, you basically can kiss all that progress towards ur blue belt goodbye

I’m brand new to BJJ and have been training for about 3 months. I absolutely love it but my coach won’t let white belts roll until they’re promoted a strip, slow moving technical training only. Is this normal?

"im not here for the stripes"...proceeds to ask if he should quit because he hasn't got a stripe lol...people are so stupid.

Is it just me, or is it as simple as “ forget about stripes and belts, just try to get better. As long as you’re getting better, that’s all that matters. At some point, you will be tapping out the the white belts and some of the blue belts, and you will naturally get promoted.”

I get some bit of resentment for not getting promoted, but honestly, it should feel good to tap out your coach's upper belts. Lol

I never cared about the belts. I didn't get any stripes on my white belt. It did look nicotine stained when it was traded in for blue.

I was always told early on not to care about the belt, just enjoy the process.

Just buy and wear your own belt of your preferred colour , it's all good 😅

In my gym, we had a guy in the white belt class that could fuck up pretty much all the white belts. Later, I learned he owned a Japanese Jiu-Jitsu school. I'm not sure how long he was training for, as he started before me, but after at least a year, he had zero stripes. He received his first stripe not much later, and I've never seen him again. Maybe this coach knows that this guy will disappear after that stripe : D

You never know what your coach may have in mind, as stripes and belt promotions are very subjective ( to a degree) as there is still an expectation. I have and had a Judo black belt before ever starting bjj. When I started there was no bjj black belt in my city. The closest was an hour away. (Wisconsin in the mid 2000's). I never actually possessed a white belt in bjj, even though I was I always had my Judo bb on an our gym was all blue belts running it by default of no black belts anywhere at all. When I did get the chance to train under a BJJ black belt for abouta month ish, I was awarded a blue belt. Had no stripes for years because again no bjj bb in our city. Then got 4 stripes all at once. Got my purple belt, no stripes for quitr a while then all 4 stripes at once. Not the most common path, but definitely not an isolated incident at all. You never know what the coach could have in mind. We can just do our best to relax along the path and and trust the process. Alot of times it doesn't make sense ( until it does) .

So Bob, I'm another person who got to BJJ after tons of other martial arts experience. I'm talking teaching rank black belts in two previous arts. I'm a blue in BJJ now. The number one thing I'd recommend is to make sure that when you're winning, it's because you're using the BJJ you've learned in your gym and that your coach would want to see. You're probably getting away with stupid shit because of your experience on the blue belts but it's not because you're effectively using your gyms material necessarily - you just have a big bag of tricks you came with, and you won't pull that off on most of the higher ranks. If you're beating even higher ranked people sometimes but it's a lot of tricks and techniques you brought with you to BJJ rather than what is being taught, you're not really demonstrating growth. Also, just start beating everyone until people ask your coach why in the hell you haven't been ranked. My two cents

Ive started BJJ at 9yrs old, went until i was 17, stopped going to dedicate myself to wrestling (to improve my overall game). i came back and have been training consistently for a year and some change. I tap white belts and blue belts, purple we have wars. I want to be a coach and teach others, but when people ask what belt i am i have to embarrassingly say white... although i agree that belt doesnt matter in a sense, but at what point does it? people wont take advice from a white belt, so how am i supposed to pursue my career if im not being promoted?

Nice answer from Chewy, if maybe a little political. If the coach isn't looking after your progression, then he's not meeting your needs as a student. Get another coach.

I cared about getting blue belt because I had a noob mindset then. I also cared about getting a brown belt.. Once I got brown belt, I could finally wear my black gis due to stupid school rule. Now I don't care if I get stripes or even a black belt. If you get better, what difference does the belt or stripes make?

I used to ask what I needed to work on as the promotion would come up. Sometimes my coaches would forget about me and it wasn't a case of them not wanting to promote me they just had so much going on. I think it's ok to ask but it's the way you ask , don't be like : "When am I getting x belt " Or "I think I ready to receive x because..." Show some humility and show that you are wanting to get better at bjj by wanting to fill the gaps and growing in general. But don't be afraid to ask questions, but to be honest there's nothing better than just letting go...... Your coaches wrapping that new belt around your waist when you least expect it,thats special. That's the way it should be and it kinda shows that you've let go of belt chasing and your there for you and the appreciation of the art. When I was white it irritated me that I was a white belt but it's weird I realise now it's just belt colours but all you white belts out there will realise soon enough...who cares about the belt it's the journey and the friendships that matter.

I often asked my coach what I need to work on and he always has insightful advice. I’ve learned over the years to focus on developing the skills at the next level rather than obtaining the belt - assuming you have a good coach, the recognition will come at the right time.

I didn't care about getting my blue belt even though I was tapping most of the blue belts and all of the white belts. However, when I finally got promoted, I was kinda offended that it took them so long to promote me. Edit: I wrestled on high school so it was easy to move with people who had more BJJ experience. Also, I was always in and out due to work, so that's probably why they waited to promote me.

I just ask my coach where does he think i need improvement or where should i focus my training the next few months and if promotions come up just say whenever you think I'm ready, i just want to be competent at the rank i am

How do you let your coach your don't care about getting promoted anymore? I'm a purple belt and I'm fine with my belt.

Belts in BJJ are about about to mean nothing to me because we have no standards.

Embrace the slow grind. I'm a three stripe white belt and I don't think I deserve it.

I received my black belt under Ricardo Liborio and it was traditionally known if you ask him for a belt or stripe you just delayed that process by two years no joke he didn’t play you just train show up to the belt ceremonies and keep your mouth shut!

Don't focus on the belt, focus on your technique and your performance in all types of situations. I don't get people that need the belt to feel like they're progressing. Don't get me wrong, Gi is my favorite and wearing my belt gives me pride, but I'm not focused on it. Originally, BJJ only had white, blue and navy blue. Just be the best you can be at whatever belt you are. People will judge you by your knowledge and/or performance on the mats, not the belt.

Was I the only one that saw the huge knot on his head?

this was a hilariously nice way to say this!

This dude thinks he's got it tough. I've been at my gym for 3 years doing Judo (green belt now) AND BJJ.... BUT I have 7 stripes, yes 7 stripes on my white belt. I haven't said anything, but seeing people who ONLY do BJJ and have only been doing in for half or even only a year and have been promoted to blue belt. This is the first time it's started to get on my nerves. Is there anything anyone here can give me advice on? Find a new gym? Straight up ask? Idk I'm really confuses on what to do.

It is about money.

Been rolling since early 2000s and only this year, with my seasoned blue belt, I can finally say that I can hang with purple belts. Ive managed to technically submit couple of em, and the colored fabric around my waits isnt an issue anymore, cause I rely more on my skill set to make my assesments. We live a heavily rural area where black belts dont venture a lot year round, so skill sets are more about what qualifies most of us in terms of ranking.

Try to not cry about it. Stick around and stop tripping about belt colors.

I’m a white belt that’s been training since May and some guys training just a bit more than me have gotten stripes and I feel like I’m doing better than they are. I decided to stop caring about stripes and belt colors. I just want to train and have fun.

When you say it was called just Jiu Jitsu are you saying there was no marked or noticeable difference in style between Japanese Jiu Jitsu or Brazilian Jiu Jitsu into the 90s?

ask?think about those ask zhuxi for there freedom men ,never appear again bro😢,so , idont ask i fight

Nah make his ass wait now

If you’re asking about belts and stripes then you don’t really like Jiu jitsu

Do not.

Do not even play that just don’t