If you’ve been training just no-gi so far, it can be quite intimidating to transition to the gi… But why is this so? And what can you do about it?

Gordon Ryan has been on a streak lately winning double gold at ADCC and being generally seen as possible the No Gi BJJ GOAT! He’s seemingly intensified his gi training, now mainly due to being new training partners with Nicholas Meregali. Ryan has been a BJJ black belt for over 6 years now although he has not trained as much in the Gi.

Up to brown belt, Ryan had been training quite a lot in the Gi and he even beat a black belt in a competition when he was just a purple belt:

Flashback: Purple Belt Gordon Ryan in Gi Match w/ a BJJ Black Belt

In this video we can see Meregali and Ryan go at it in the Gi:

How does Gordon Ryan’s Gi game look like? Does his No Gi game translate well in the Gi?

Debate rages within the jiu-jitsu community, regarding whether training Gi or No-Gi Jiu Jitsu is best.

There are many arguments both for and against training with a Gi, and without a Gi.

At the end of the day, it does come down to personal preference, like most things, and what you are hoping to get out of your Jui Jitsu training, and what you want to do with your Jiu Jitsu.

What is the difference?

The main difference between Gi and no-GI Jiu Jitsu is in the clothing that you wear while fighting.

As the name suggests, traditional Brazilian Jiu Jitsu requires wearing a thick cotton fighting garment consisting of pants, a top, and a belt, called a Gi. During the fight, you are able to use this garment as you fight and hold onto it and use it to try and gain superiority over your opponent. There are many different types of Gi available.

Whereas in no-Gi Jiu Jitsu, you do not wear the Gi garment and instead wear a rashguard and very tight-fitting no-Gi shorts.

You are not allowed to grab onto people’s clothing to try and achieve submission or win the fight.

Pros of Training Jiu Jitsu With Gi

More Available Moves and Submissions

When you are training Jiu Jitsu with a Gi, there are more moves and submission techniques available to you as a fighter.

Because the clothes are allowed to be used in the fight, and the rules clearly state that you can try and grab onto the clothing and use it to your advantage, this opens up a range of moves and ways you can try and gain superiority over your opponent.

More Gi Training Opportunities Than No-Gi Opportunities

Traditional Jiu Jitsu where a Gi is used, has been around for a longer period of time than no-Gi Jiu Jitsu. As a result, there are more opportunities to train with a Gi than to train without a Gi.

So if access to the maximum amount of training opportunities is of importance to you, this may suggest that Gi training is a better pick for you.

Here you can see Gordon go full rounds in the Gi. As you can see he is too reliant on Gi grips:

Junny Ocasio Teaches How To Use No-Gi Skills In The Gi Including Guard Passing, Guard Pulling, Playing Guard, And MORE!

• Junny Ocasio has a long list of No-Gi accolades but originally started off in the Gi.
• Use battle-tested no-gi skills that can be easily adapted to work in the Gi.
• Junny’s fine tuned details will help transition your favorite no-gi techniques to be even MORE effective in the Gi.