Like the majority of martial arts available in the world today, Brazilian jiu-jitsu carries its own distinctive ranking system to help sort grapplers based on experience level. How many BJJ belts are there? There are generally five belt levels available, but in special cases, a sixth, more prestige belt is also available.
How Many BJJ Belts Are There?
White Belt
As a white belt, a grappler’s overall goal should be to absorb as much information as possible about BJJ. This is the level where you are trying out new techniques, as well as developing an overall idea about how BJJ works. As a white, do your best to learn the names of all major positions and submissions, as they’ll lay the fundamental groundwork for future techniques.
Blue Belt
By now, you “know what’s going on”, but you may still find it difficult to defend yourself adequately against higher belts. That’s okay. As a blue belt, your primary goal should be to continue learning and just survive! Take this time in your jiu-jitsu career to build up a solid defense, but don’t forget to experiment with various offensive techniques as well. Try to compete in at least one competition once you’ve earned your blue belt.
This is the point in your BJJ career where you’re going to start building some momentum. As a purple belt, try to focus on avoiding “wasted movement”. To put more simply, try to achieve dominant positions and submissions by expending the least amount of energy possible. If you feel like you’re using too much energy to tap out an opponent, it’s probably because your technique is lacking. Try to become familiar with at least three different variants of the guard position once you become a purple belt.
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Brown Belt
Although you’re not quite a master, you’re becoming quite close. As a brown belt, you should be very familiar with virtually every position in BJJ, as well as the every submission and sweep combination. At this point in your Brazilian jiu-jitsu career, try to perfect your skillsets by teaching a few classes at your academy.
How Many BJJ Belts Are There?
Black Belt
You’ve now become a true grappling master. Make sure to stay humble, respect others, and share your knowledge with as many younger grapplers as possible. Finally, there’s the infamous “Red Belt”, which is available after you become a black belt, and will provide you with further credibility for becoming an instructor in BJJ. Now you can finally answer the question, “How many BJJ belts are there?” with certainty, as well as know how to handle each level as you progress in ranks.