Grady Behrens

‍ ‍ I started training at 15 years old in 2015. At the time I was nearing 270lbs, and was very much a “digitalized teenager”. I was shy and underdeveloped socially, my body had never been taught how to move, and overall I lacked direction in life.

One Game I enjoyed was an old school UFC title. I decided I needed a change, and inspired by the characterizations of the athletes in the game, started training in martial arts.

Over ten years later, here we are at Sylvan Lake Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu!

Martial Arts changed my life. It turned me from a fearful child, into a champion.

I’m grateful to have the opportunity to give that feeling to others. Especially in my hometown. Thank you all for the support over the years!

My goal is to create an environment where beginners feel welcome, experienced students continue to develop, and everyone is treated as a valued teammate.

I focus on teaching practical, high percentage Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in a safe and supportive atmosphere.

Every student should be treated equally.

You should go the extra mile for every one of them.

‍ ‍ Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and martial arts as a whole has been my sole focus since 2015.

Since then I’ve competed in dozens of BJJ tournaments and sanctioned MMA (Mixed Martial Arts), and utilizing my technical proficiency in grappling to win the majority of them.

As a competitor I’ve travelled all across Canada in the roles of both a fighter, and a coach in and for many professional bouts under some of Canada’s biggest promotions.

In this time I’ve also had the opportunity to train alongside some of Canada’s best fighters, and underneath some of the best coaches.

All of this experience was retained solely for the purpose of giving it back to others. With hundreds of hours of volunteer and professional coaching, it’s needless to say that opening an academy was always the goal.

My vision as a competitor (specifically in Mixed Martial Arts) was always simple. To grow as a combat sports athlete I had to study the game, and while training, I had to audit the techniques I learned, and separate them into three categories..

• What will be functional in a fight against someone trying to hurt me

• What is useful in a sport jiu-jitsu environment or grappling exchange

• What is nonsense

For every hundered “moves” I’ve been taught, I’d say about 75 of them are functional, about 20 of them are realistic, and about 10 are reliable.

And that 10% (and the concepts they reinforce) became the core of our curriculum.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu that has been pressure tested and proven to be effective.