Reviews of Yanagi Ryu Jujutsu

My son has been with Yanagi Ryu Jujutsu in Handforth since it opened. He always looks forward to his classes and has progressed well. The instructor, Michelle, is very friendly, enthusiastic and approachable and makes the classes well disciplined but enjoyable for the children.

I would not hesitate in recommending this club for anyone from beginner to more advanced.

I started in TaeKwon-Do and became a 2nd Dan instructor, but I always found something missing. I used to ask my instructors to teach me certain things like sweeping and ground work, but they always made excuses saying it wasn’t needed. This made me uncomfortable as I knew a technique would not be developed for no reason and I lost some trust in them and the art although I carried in training as I thought that maybe I would learn somewhere else and “fill in the gaps.

At the beginning of 2011 I started training in Yanagi Ryu and was soon very impressed with the depth and effectiveness of the style. I have now stopped doing any other martial arts and have been training with Yanagi Ryu over 2 years and learn something new in every lesson as the quality and level of instruction is something I have never known before, the restricted class size is much better than the 20-30 that I was used to and the instructors always address any questions properly and don’t just brush things aside. I have been so impressed that I have introduced others into the club and have now abandoned teaching TaeKwon-Do in aid of Yanagi Jujutsu as I can’t teach something I don’t believe in to others.

I have learnt more in this weekend than in the last ten years of training. I would highly recommend a seminar no matter what your style the concepts are the same missing link in all Japanese arts and probably all martial arts.

While based on traditional proven techniques this school is not by any means restrictive. The open teaching and focus on technique and concepts leads to a more fluid and effective art.

The freeform training allows the practitioner to push their knowledge and understanding of the concepts. It also allows one to develop an eye for what really is happening and how to make that work for you. It’s comprehensive and you never stop learning about the art and yourself.

Training here has even given a better understanding of the arts I’ve previously studied. It’s not about style, it’s about function: what works and why.

see www.yanagiryu.co.uk

Been doing martial arts on and off for twenty years; disciplines include Karate, Aikido. Judo and JuJutsu. I wanted a deeper understanding of the arts and I found myself questioning each and every teacher - the techniques would not work on the street. I was bored of the same routine and felt like the excitement and growth had died off.

I was blown away by the locks, strikes and blocks. The locks were more practical and devastating, offering ease of application and increased control of my opponent. Strikes are more of a living thing, non-committal until the last second and more structure than strength in a lot of cases. Blocks were the biggest eye opener of them all! The realisation that you can do very little and achieve so much has changed my entire outlook and understanding of martial arts.

I am loving the real world simulations in the dojo and the tui-na and acupuncture classes especially. I am gaining a new appreciation for the styles components from the healing side - pressure point, meridians, chi and mental attitude.

It is a privilege to train with Chris and his students, it really is a very supportive environment to be challenged and grow within.

I started my martial arts journey as a junior Judoka when I was 8 yrs old and have tried many other arts along the way including tai chi, capoeira, kung fu, kickboxing, ninjutsu and another style of ju-jutsu.

I've always wanted to know more about martial arts, hence why I've spent most of my life trying so many styles, reading books and watching films (the latter more for enjoyment than education), to be honest I think it's just in my blood now. When Yanagi Ryu initially offered martial arts and healing together I was very interested, it offered me a whole new area of study that I doubt is available at many UK clubs. Yanagi Ryu also has direct links back to Japan and offered a much more traditional range to the art, not just hand to hand but also weapons, tactics and concepts not practiced in many places outside of China and Japan.

I've loved breaking moves down to the truth of the technique. I'm a scientist at heart and I've always liked asking why something is the way it is. Yanagi teachings have given me more opportunity to understand why a technique works rather than just tell me an answer and expect me to believe it. This style of learning has changed me as a person; how I think, how I move, my decision making and communication both in the dojo, in my personal life and in my day job as a consultant.

I'm glad I found the club and am very excited about where it may lead me.

I have studies a lot of martial arts, especially Ju-Jutsu, but I have never had such in depth training giving me what other instructors would call 'secrets of the trade' constantly through out training. These key rules really change the way you look at training and the art is both external and internal with deep ideas from a long Japanese and Chinese heritage. They also teach the healing arts as part of the art which all links in and is not just some add on to the art as I have seen with other clubs.

Would definitely recommend and think anyone who is really into martial arts and looking for the real deal will be very happy here.