CubsThe journey starts here.
Thirty minutes. That’s the whole class — because that is genuinely how long a four-year-old can focus, and pretending otherwise just makes everyone miserable.
What happens in those thirty minutes is not watered-down adult Jiu Jitsu. It’s crawling, tumbling, falling down safely, waiting your turn, and hearing your name called out when you get something right. The grappling comes later. Right now we are building the kid who can follow three instructions in a row and gets back up without being asked.
Parents watch from the side. Most of them tell us the change shows up at home first — at the dinner table, at bedtime, in how their kid handles losing a game.
Our Cubs program is designed to introduce young children to the fundamentals of movement through the “Gentle Art” of Jiu Jitsu. We focus on building a strong physical and mental foundation in an environment that is safe, structured, and — most importantly — fun!
Four things every Cub takes home.
Coordination & Agility
Engaging games and drills that improve balance and motor skills during these crucial early years.
Focus & Discipline
Learning to follow simple directions, listen to coaches, and stay on task with their friends.
Confidence
Building self-esteem through small wins and the pride of mastering new physical challenges.
Respect
Fostering kindness and teamwork with peers through sharing the mats and helping one another.
Age-Specific Curriculum
Focuses on “natural movement” patterns — like crawling, tumbling, and falling safely — that build a physical foundation for the future.
Exactly what happensin a class.
No surprises. This is the shape of every session, so you know what you are walking into before you get here.
- 0–5 min
Line up and bow in
The same opening every session. Little kids run on ritual, and this is where the class learns to settle down together.
- 5–15 min
Movement games
Bear crawls, shrimping races, forward rolls. It looks like play because it is — and it is also every fundamental movement pattern in Jiu Jitsu.
- 15–25 min
One technique, broken small
A single position, taught in pieces, with a partner. Coaches are on the mat the whole time, hands-on.
- 25–30 min
Game and high fives
We finish on a win. Every kid leaves the mat having done something they could not do thirty minutes earlier.
Cubs on the mat.
Come to any session that fits your week. Membership is unlimited — train once a week or every day it runs.
Monday
Cubs
4 PM – 4:30 PMGI
Tuesday
Cubs
4 PM – 4:30 PMGI
Thursday
Cubs
4 PM – 4:30 PMGI
The questionspeople actually ask.
- My child is really shy. Will they be okay?
- Most Cubs are shy on day one — that is the normal starting point, not a problem. Coaches will not force a nervous three-year-old onto the mat. Plenty of kids sit with a parent and watch the first class, then join the second. That is completely fine with us.
- Is it safe? I don’t want my kid getting hurt.
- Cubs do not do live sparring. The class is movement, games, and supervised partner drills on padded mats with coaches within arm’s reach. Learning to fall safely is one of the first things we teach — and it is a skill that pays off on the playground too.
- Do we need to buy a uniform to start?
- No. Come in a T-shirt and shorts. We keep clean loaner Gis at the academy and we will show you how to tie the belt. Buy gear later, once you know your kid loves it.
Bring them in for one class. Thirty minutes will tell you everything.
801 N. 8th St., Carlsbad, NM 88220 · Call or text (575) 988-1470