Most self-defense advice assumes you can out-muscle someone. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu assumes you can't, and teaches you what to do anyway. At True North Jiu-Jitsu in Maillardville, you'll learn how to use leverage, position, and technique to control and escape a larger, stronger person. Your first class is free.
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Why Women Start Training Here
Every woman who walks through our door on Brunette Ave has her own reason. These are the three we hear most often.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu was developed specifically for the smaller person. It relies on leverage, angles, and body position rather than strength, which is why it's the base of our women's self-defense training instead of techniques that only work if you're the bigger one.
Real assaults on women very often end up close-range and on the floor, which is exactly where most striking-based courses stop teaching. Jiu-Jitsu starts there. You'll practice getting out from underneath someone, protecting your head, and creating the space to stand up and leave.
You set the pace. Our instructors walk you through each position slowly, with a partner working at your level, and nobody is expected to spar on day one or any day they don't want to.
The Honest Version
A lot of women's self-defense is taught as a weekend seminar full of moves that need speed, reach, or power to land. If the person attacking you is thirty kilos heavier, that's a problem you can't solve by trying harder.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu was built around that exact problem. It's a grappling art designed so a smaller, weaker person can control and neutralize a larger, stronger one using leverage and position. That's not a marketing line, it's the reason the art exists, and it's why our women's self-defense program at True North Jiu-Jitsu is built on it rather than bolted onto it.
The curriculum works through the situations that matter: someone grabbing you from the front or behind, someone pinning you against a wall, and what to do if you end up on your back with someone on top of you. You'll learn to protect your head, frame with your arms, use your hips to create space, and get back to your feet.
We also spend time on the parts that come before contact: reading a situation, using your voice, keeping distance, and leaving early. The best outcome is the one where nothing physical happens at all.
Our students start in their twenties and in their sixties. Some are athletes, most aren't. Nothing in the first few months requires you to be strong or flexible, and there's no fitness test to get in the door.
You'll be paired with someone appropriate for your size and experience, and the instructor will show you the position, let you drill it slowly, then check it. Go at whatever pace you want. Progress in Jiu-Jitsu comes from showing up regularly, not from pushing until something hurts.
Our head instructor is Professor Khatib Ahmad, a fourth-degree black belt, and he's supported by Professors Mahan Salimian and Ash "Smash" Mashreghi, both black belts, along with Coach Igor Vavi and Coach Kim.
That depth matters for a beginner class. There's usually more than one qualified set of eyes on the mat, so when a position isn't working for your body someone can show you the adjustment instead of telling you to try again harder.
True North Jiu-Jitsu Reviews
See what our members are saying! Browse through the reviews to get a glimpse of the True North Jiu-Jitsu experience straight from our community. From parents of young students to adult martial artists, our members love training at the best martial arts school in Coquitlam.
"I’ve trained at True North Jiu Jitsu Academy and can confidently say it’s one of the best gyms around. The coaches are extremely knowledgeable, patient, and genuinely care about each student’s progress, whether you’re a complete beginner or an experienced practitioner. The..."
- JUN
"A couple of months ago, I decided to try Jiu Jitsu, mostly out of curiosity and with a half-closed mindset. I honestly didn’t think it would become a long-term passion but I couldn’t have been more wrong. After finishing my very first one-hour class, I already wanted to come..."
- Anna Kwok
"This is the place !! If you want to teach your kids to excel at life in a safe and kind envoronment this is the place to go! And if you want to get into a really healthy hobby as an adult without running into guys with egos or attitiudes like some other clubs this is a really..."
- Fraser Dodich
"Professor Ahmad is a dedicated instructor, great mentor and father with a healthy lifestyle, great to see his success and growth. A great example for building strong minds and creating leaders in the community, with his evident positive energy, the minute you meet him. Highly..."
- Cedar Roofs
"I started my jiu-jitsu journey at at True North Jiu Jitsu Academy for 7 years, and overall it was a great experience. The owners and instructors genuinely care about their students and work hard to create a respectful, welcoming environment on the mats. Training is well..."
- Omar Khan
"Excellent Jiu-Jitsu academy! Friendly and welcoming environment, highly skilled instructors, and a great atmosphere focused on learning and growth. Amazing place for both adults and kids. Highly recommend!"
- Igor Avi
"True North Jiu-Jitsu Academy was an incredibly welcoming and friendly place. I took my children there yesterday to try it out, and they had an amazing time. The atmosphere was comfortable and positive, the people were very kind, and everything felt well organized and supportive...."
- amanda k
"Been coming here for a few months now and this team really treats everybody like family. Extremely welcoming to beginners and they always have multiple black belts present. On top of that all the blue-brown belts are very informative as well. 10-10 highly recommend checking them..."
- Gavin Chia
Online exclusive offer
Secure your spot & get started today with our EXCLUSIVE online offer!
By opting into the web form above you are providing consent for True North Jiu-Jitsu to send you periodic text messages. Standard rates may apply. You may opt-out anytime by replying STOP.
True North Jiu-Jitsu is at 814 Brunette Ave, Unit B, in Maillardville, the southwest corner of Coquitlam. We're right by the Brunette Ave and Lougheed Highway interchange, so the drive in from Sapperton, New Westminster, Burquitlam and Burnaby is short. Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Anmore and Belcarra sit at the other end of the Lougheed corridor and get here easily too.
We're rated 5.0 from 116 Google reviews, the highest-rated dedicated Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu gym in Coquitlam. Come try a free class before you decide anything. Call 604-777-0396 or fill in the form on this page.
What Comes With It
The self-defense is the point, but it isn't the only thing you take home from a class at True North Jiu-Jitsu.
A Jiu-Jitsu class is a full-body hour: grip, hips, core, and legs, all working while you're too busy solving the problem in front of you to notice you're training hard.
Learning to breathe and think while someone has you pinned is a skill, and it transfers. Students regularly tell us the panic response fades first, long before the techniques are perfect.
You'll be learning next to other women from Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, New Westminster and Burnaby who started exactly where you're starting. Most of them stay for the training partners as much as the training.
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Frequently Asked Questions
The questions we get asked most before someone's first class. If yours isn't here, call us at 604-777-0396 and ask.
That is the specific problem Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu was designed to solve. It uses leverage, body position, and angles rather than strength, so a smaller person can control, escape from, or neutralize a bigger and stronger one. You will spend most of your training drilling exactly that scenario against partners who are larger than you.
Yes. Most of our women's self-defense students had no martial arts background at all before their first class. There is no fitness requirement to start, and the early classes are taught slowly with an instructor checking your positions. You will get fitter from training rather than needing to be fit before you begin.
Not unless you want to. Live training with a resisting partner is how technique gets tested, but it is always optional and always matched to your size and experience level. Plenty of students drill for months before they try it, and that is completely normal here.
Yes. We offer a free trial class to every new student, with no obligation to sign up afterwards. Wear comfortable athletic clothing with no zips or pockets, bring water, and we will supply anything else you need. Fill in the form on this page or call 604-777-0396 to book a time.
We are at 814 Brunette Ave, Unit B in Maillardville, the southwest corner of Coquitlam, near the Brunette Avenue and Lougheed Highway interchange. That puts us about two kilometres from the New Westminster boundary. Our students come from across Coquitlam as well as Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, New Westminster, Burnaby, Burquitlam, Anmore and Belcarra.
Two to three classes a week is the sweet spot for steady progress, and once a week still builds meaningful ability over time. Consistency matters far more than intensity in Jiu-Jitsu, because the escapes need to become reflex rather than something you think through. Our adult schedule runs midday and evenings through the week so it fits around work.