Advanced Study

Master Cycle^®

Continued training for students who've completed Gracie Combatives, with deeper positional understanding, expanded technique, and live practice at a pace matched to your experience.

Ask About Master Cycle View Class Times

A full Master Cycle open mat session with students drilling across the academy floor.

Who it's for

For students who've finished the fundamentals and want to keep going.

Master Cycle picks up where Gracie Combatives leaves off. It assumes the foundational positions and escapes are already familiar, and builds toward more nuanced control, a wider technical vocabulary, and live training against a resisting partner.

What changes

More live practice. More depth. Still no requirement to compete.

Where Combatives builds your base through structured, cooperative repetition, Master Cycle introduces more live, resistant training, practicing technique against a partner who is genuinely trying to counter you. It's a natural next step once fundamentals are solid, not a different sport.

Curriculum depth increases too: positions and details that Combatives introduces at a basic level are revisited with more nuance, along with expanded technique for scenarios the beginner curriculum only touches on.

Most students at this stage have been in the room for a year or more. The training partners around you have put in real time, which changes the quality of practice in ways structured repetition alone can't replicate.

A Master Cycle class watching a technique demonstration in a circle on the mat.

Students lining up at the start of class.

Why students stay for years

The curriculum keeps going. So do the people training it.

Jiu-jitsu rewards time on the mat in a way that's hard to shortcut. Master Cycle students train alongside each other for years, which builds a different kind of training-partner relationship than a beginner class typically has time for.

"It is really cool to see everyone developing their Jiu Jitsu (technique, mindset, etc.) and encouraging one another throughout the process."

Courtney (Google Review)

Questions

Master Cycle® FAQ

Do I need to finish all of Gracie Combatives first?

You should be comfortable with the core Combatives curriculum before moving into Master Cycle. If you're not sure where you stand, ask an instructor. They'll tell you honestly.

Is Master Cycle more intense or dangerous than Combatives?

It introduces more live, resistant training, which does carry more physical intensity than the cooperative practice in Combatives. Pace and partner selection are still managed by instructors.

Will I be expected to compete?

No. Most Master Cycle students don't compete and have no interest in doing so. The curriculum is built around developing skill and understanding. Competition is a separate pursuit that some students choose, not something the program is oriented around.

Can women and men both train in Master Cycle together?

Yes. Master Cycle is co-ed, continuing on from Gracie Combatives.

Get started

Ready to keep going?

If you've completed Gracie Combatives®, talk to us about moving into Master Cycle®.

Ask About Master Cycle®