I am a Blue Belt and I train Gracie JiuJitsu at KiCK Martial Arts in Kansas City. I had been away…read morefrom home for a week and ended up in Champaign, IL desperate for a JiuJitsu roll. CU Jiu Jitsu was NOT the only gym that I called, but they WERE the one who called me back! Coach Mike was super nice and welcomed me to come in and take a FREE trial class even though it was obvious I was not going to sign-up, and he even refused to allow me to pay for the class à la carte. Thank you, CU Jiu Jitsu! My experience was great! I was the odd man out as this gym focuses on sport jiujitsu whereas Gracie Jiujitsu is much more focused on the Self Defense aspect of Jiujitsu. At the time I only had the Gracie Combatives belt, which is an intermediate belt before Blue, earned before being introduced to rolling. Many of the students at CU Jiu Jitsu were curious about my odd-looking belt, and I was honored to tell them all about Gracie Jiu Jitsu, but this review is not about that. My visit to CU Jiu Jitsu happened towards the end of the pandemic and vaccinations were plentiful. The school continued to follow best practices limiting access to the facility and scanning temperatures upon entry. The head instructor, Professor James, greeted me. He was nice and welcoming. With paperwork behind us and a quick tour of the facility, away I went to the locker rooms. The locker room has showers and plenty of lockers. Don't forget to bring shower shoes so you don't contaminate the mats! The warm-up started on time. I think there were 12-15 people in the JiuJitsu class, with many of them staying for the wrestling class afterward. The warm-up was typical grappling school type of warm-up, but the instructor did have it written on a board and announced a goal of completing it in X minutes which added a nice challenge to it. After that, a couple of techniques were demonstrated and drilled. The class had many colored belts in it from Black to white. After the technique portion, we squeezed in a couple rounds of rolling. Thank you to my partners Kenny (Blue belt) and Coach Fabio (Brown Belt). This was my first time cross-training at another gym/school. I highly recommend it, and I recommend you checking out CU Jiu Jitsu if you are in the area. Thank you to all the Instructors and students who made my experience enjoyable and welcoming! Feedback: We cannot all be perfect all the time. This is constructive feedback and by no means do I have any grievance. With that said, I'm not sure how kid friendly the adult classes are. One student's children were doing what kids do. They were addressed as "{student}'s kids get off the rolled-up mats!" But I don't think the kids were used to being addressed that way, nor did they pickup on the fact that THEY were the ones playing on the rolled-up mats. So the command was shouted out a few more times before they got the hint. It was just a brief distraction that may have been unnecessary or handled differently.

Awesome instructors who are knowledgeable, great with kids, and offer several class options.read more

" Excellent academy, clean, friendly and organized prof Don Fox and his team will teach you real…read moreBrazilian Jiu Jitsu, self defense and empowerment. Gracie Barra Bloomington is the best academy of Bloomington/ Downs IL area. Sign up for a free lesson. It will be one of the best decisions of your life ! "

Gracie Barra Bloomington is an amazing school that providing a welcoming, family-like environment…read moreto train Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. I have trained with Professor Don Fox for nearly three years. He is an excellent instructor and I am grateful for his teaching and encouragement both on and off of the mat. I am happy to call the school's coaches and students my friends. The school is made up of a diverse group of individuals and is very inclusive. Everyone has a common goal: to continually grow through jiu-jitsu, both as martial artists and as individuals. The Gracie Barra family is friendly, helpful, and very encouraging. Anyone interested in jiu-jitsu, fitness, or simply getting to know a wonderful group of people should stop in and see what the school is all about.

Hands down the best martial arts school in town! Greg is very professional and fun, and the…read moreatmosphere in the gym is light and friendly! I've been doing Muay Thai Kickboxing for 7,5 months now, and I learned so much from this class. Recently I added Ju Jitsu with this school, and it is amazing experience. I feel fitter, healthier, and more confident! I am thoroughly enjoying the classes and will continue practicing these arts with this school! I highly recommend it to anyone!

We were looking for a karate/martial arts place to help our 6 year old who was having some…read morestruggles specifically in school with attention, discipline, and patience. We reached out to multiple places in town and they were the ones that provided a more comprehensive overview. We have been going to Fusion for a few months now and could not be more impressed with the facility, all they offer, and Megan's teaching. We have seen a huge improvement in our son's attitude and behavior. Megan shows she cares, but also demands (and deserves) respect from the kids. We are so happy that we joined Fusion and plan to stay for a long time! Thank you!!

Great people, kind and knowledgeable instructors who go the extra mile to teach you proper form and…read moretechnique about various kinds of martial arts from JuJitsu, Muay Thai, MMA, Wrestling, boxing, and more. The instructors are highly qualified, are professional fighters with solid competitions and victories under their belt, so they give an authentic perspective. The dojo offers many class options and times throughout the week to fit your schedule, and the classes have the intensity required to help you gain and see real results and improvement. Good dojo and good people!

Such an awesome environment! The coaches are awesome and very patient. It's awesome to be somewhere…read morethat everyone wants you to get better!

Did a drop in and had a great time! solid partners and got a great workout in. they were very…read morewelcoming and had plenty of high level guys to get in with!

Dedicated and friendly coaches and training staff. Very knowledgeable and they strive to make you…read morebetter on the mats and off. Adults and kids welcome. Class atmosphere is welcoming and teammate oriented.

Great BJJ classes with incredibly knowledgeable and qualified coaches. As a total foreigner to…read moremartial arts, I felt very welcomed here from the beginning. After my first month, I feel like I've made large improvements in my grappling ability, cardio, and -frankly- confidence outside of the gym. It takes about a week to get the swing of how practice works and you might not understand how much you're improving at first until you start rolling - which can be within the first couple weeks of consistent attendance and effort. If you're as new to the sport as I am, all you'll need to do is bring a respectful but positive attitude to practice and trust what they're teaching you in class, the tempo and dope submissions will slowly accumulate as you work through the more cornerstone principles they focus on in class. Be ready to sweat, too- it's a great total body workout!

Impact zone is an extraordinary gym where anyone on any level could feel at home with a family like…read morebond unlike no other the coaches here run through the fundamentals and teach you techniques and forms that can help you mold your own style and varibales unlike any other gym I've been to. The gym is equipped with state of the art equipment and a big luxurious matted room for all kickboxing and Bjj classes I would highly recommend this gym to anyone wishing to begin in martial arts or to work on themselves both physically and mentally !

I first met Master Chen when he ran an after-school club for children at Dr. Howard Elementary…read moreSchool. I saw right away the kind of deep connection he could develop with his students. As a teacher, I appreciated the way he could motivate children to better themselves in kung-fu and in life. When my daughter became interested in martial arts I knew there was only one school for us. We signed up with Dragon Claw Academy and were very happy. I saw my daughter's confidence grow and she learned so much more than just kung-fu. Master Chen and his teachers are fantastic role-models for their students. I highly recommend DCA.

So... I found out about Dragon Claw through a CiSaves deal for kickboxing. I've attended 6 sessions…read moreso far under the guidance of Shifu Aaron Chen... and I couldn't be happier! Although the classes are early in the morning and tough, I've never had so much fun working out and sweating. He's very motivational, he makes us laugh, and he sends us on our way with inspirational messages for the day. Facility is clean, parking is good, and the price is affordable. I can also now roundhouse kick someone!

This school is good for kids classes because there aren't many Jiu Jitsu schools in town and they…read morehave good hours for their classes. When it comes to adults looking for classes, I would steer clear. The monthly fee is steep, and the instructor is a blue belt. To put that into perspective, Jack McVicker, who teaches Jiu Jitsu classes on Windsor in Champaign, has about 5-10 students coming to his classes that are better Jiu Jitsu practitioners than this instructor. To summarize: if you have a kid who wants to do martial arts, bring them here. If you are an adult looking to learn how to grapple/fight, go to McVicker's.

I'm a 38 year old women that started a couple weeks ago. This is my very first time ever in…read morelearning self defense. I'm enjoying the time that's spent on helping me understand the moves and why I'm doing the moves. This has been one of my biggest fears, "not being able to protect myself from an attacker." I believe this is a must class for anyone, young or small that needs to learn how to defend themselves. I'm not in this for sport but for reality. Thank you so much for offering this class!!!