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Jim Thrift

@jimthriftbjj

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Founder – Lineage BJJ® & Calvert MMA®
5th° Black Belt – Relson Gracie
Ret. U.S. Secret Service | Navy Vet 🇺🇸
Self-defense • Training • Travel • Food

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TEAM LINEAGE CHARITY MMA CLASS

This Sunday, October 18, at 10:00 AM, we’re coming together at Calvert MMA to support our brother and longtime Gracie Jiu-Jitsu teammate, Todd Tanaka, as he continues his battle with cancer.

Toney Waldecker, 6th-degree black belt, will lead a special one-hour MMA class. All adult members from both academies are welcome, along with members of our youth competition teams.

Todd holds a special place in our Jiu-Jitsu family. He was Relson Gracie’s first youth student in Hawaii back in the late 1980s. He’s been part of our extended family for decades, and now it’s our opportunity to give back.

Todd and his wife have faced tremendous medical and travel expenses between Hawaii and Houston while he undergoes treatment.

The class is FREE for our members, but we’re encouraging a suggested $20 donation for anyone who can contribute. Team Lineage will also match donations dollar for dollar, up to a reasonable limit.

Can’t attend? You can still help! We’ll have donation jars at the front desk at both Calvert MMA and Lineage BJJ.

100% of the donations will go directly to Todd and his family.

Every dollar helps, and every act of kindness matters. Thank you for supporting one of our own.

#TeamLineage #RelsonGracie #BJJFamily #TapOutCancer #SupportToddTanaka by @jimthriftbjj

Yesterday, we had an incredible fundraiser seminar with three Relson Gracie Black Belts: Toney Waldecker, Dan Wallen, and Jim Thrift. It was a great day of learning, training, sharing techniques, and having a lot of fun together! 🔥

And to top it off, we had a Gi raffle among the participants! 🎟️🥋

This seminar was held to support Todd Tanaka, a Relson Gracie Black Belt in Hawaii who is currently battling cancer. ❤️

A huge THANK YOU to everyone who donated, participated, and contributed to this important cause. Your support, generosity, and positive energy mean so much.

Todd, we’re sending you positive vibes, strength, and good energy from our entire Jiu-Jitsu family. Stay strong and keep fighting! 💪❤️🥋

#jiujitsulife #jiujitsufamily #keepstrong #thankyou by @jimthriftbjj

Tonight, we came together at Mastery Jiu-Jitsu in Leesburg, Virginia, to support our brother Todd Tanaka, who has been bravely battling cancer.

A huge thank you to everyone who came out, especially Marco, owner of Mastery Jiu-Jitsu, for organizing this fundraiser. It was an honor to share the mats and teach alongside Toney Waldecker and Dan Wallen. We had an incredible 90 minutes of Jiu-Jitsu, friendship, and support for a great cause.

Earlier today, I reached out to Todd and asked about his favorite Jiu-Jitsu techniques. He mentioned the cross-collar choke, followed by loop chokes. That gave me an idea!

I’m sharing a technique I learned early in my training, which I believe came from Rorion Gracie. I’ve been using it for over 30 years and have successfully caught it in both live rolls and tournaments. Since I’ve never known it by a particular name, I’m officially naming it the Tanaka Standing Cross Choke in honor of my friend Todd!

Give it a try and let me know what you think!

ANOTHER FUNDRAISER — SUNDAY, OCTOBER 18!

Toney Waldecker has graciously agreed to teach a FREE one-hour MMA seminar at Calvert MMA Academy at 10 AM, followed by Q&A and open rolling.

Everyone is welcome! We’ll have a donation jar at the front desk, and every dollar raised will go toward helping Todd. The Calvert MMA and Lineage BJJ team will match donations dollar for dollar! Within reason, of course. If someone drops a billion dollars in the jar, we might need to renegotiate!

I’ll share the official flyer in the next day or two.

Thank you to everyone supporting Todd. The Jiu-Jitsu community truly is a family, and this is what it’s all about.

#ToddTanaka #TapOutCancer #JiuJitsuFamily #BJJCommunity #FuckCancer by @jimthriftbjj

It’s going down tonight! Thank you to my amazing Relson Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Association brothers over in Virginia for throwing this for me🙏🏽🤙🏽.

#Grateful #RelsonGracie #MasteryJiuJitsu #TanakaStrong by @jimthriftbjj

Beautiful evening tonight. Sometimes you just have to stop and appreciate the view. Of course, the iPhone photo doesn’t come close to doing justice to what God shared with us tonight.

#Moon #NightSky #GodsCreation #BeautifulEvening #NaturePhotography by @jimthriftbjj

1993 to 2026.

Last week I was blessed to spend nearly a week with my coach, Grandmaster Relson Gracie. We spent many hours on the mats, traveled together to several seminars, shared meals, told stories, and just enjoyed time together.

I was first introduced to Gracie Jiu Jitsu and the Gracie family in 1993. Then, during a Secret Service trip to Hawaii in May 1995, I learned about Relson from several agents who were training with him in his garage. That introduction would end up having an impact on my life that I never could have imagined at the time.

More than 30 years later, at 60 years old, I realize just how blessed I’ve been.

I never imagined that after more than three decades of serving this country, I would retire and get to spend this part of my life doing something I truly love. Owning two academies, teaching Jiu Jitsu, and passing on what was taught to me.

Relson, his family, and so many great instructors, teammates, and friends paved the way for people like me. None of what I’m doing today would be possible without them, my team, and especially my family who supported me through all of it.

I’ll always be grateful for what Jiu Jitsu has given me, forever loyal to the people who helped me along the way, and always a student.

Thank you, Relson, for more than 30 years of friendship, mentorship, and Jiu Jitsu. Still learning.

#RelsonGracie #GracieJiuJitsu #BrazilianJiuJitsu #CalvertMMA #LineageBJJ by @jimthriftbjj

Beautiful view this morning. Hard to beat starting the day with a view like this. by @jimthriftbjj

Another great visit with Grandmaster Relson Gracie. We were honored to have Relson teach both our youth and adult classes last night at Calvert MMA.

Next stops on his tour are Gracie Ocean City on Thursday, Kogan Dojo in Severna Park on Friday, Rising Tide in Columbia on Saturday, and Mastery Jiu-Jitsu in Leesburg on Monday.

Always grateful for the opportunity to spend time with my coach and continue sharing his family’s Jiu-Jitsu with the next generation.

#RelsonGracie #GracieJiuJitsu #CalvertMMA #LineageBJJ #BrazilianJiuJitsu by @jimthriftbjj

Grandmaster Relson Gracie is coming to Calvert MMA on Tuesday, September 15!

We’ll be hosting two special seminars:

Youth Seminar 6:30 PM–7:15 PM $30 cash per participant Recommended for Competition Team and Junior Grapplers. Photos and autographs with Relson to follow

Adult Seminar 7:30 PM–9:00 PM $100 cash per participant

This is a great opportunity to train directly with one of the most respected names in Gracie Jiu-Jitsu.

Schedule changes for September 15:

At Calvert MMA, the Junior Grapplers class and all adult evening classes are cancelled so members and coaches can attend the seminar.

At Lineage BJJ, all evening classes are cancelled on September 15 to allow our members and coaches the opportunity to attend as well.

We encourage everyone who can make it to take advantage of this opportunity. Looking forward to a great night of Jiu-Jitsu with Grandmaster Relson Gracie.

#RelsonGracie #CalvertMMA #LineageBJJ #GracieJiuJitsu #BrazilianJiuJitsu by @jimthriftbjj

Big thank you to Shawn Melanson for taking time out of his holiday weekend to make the trip down to Lineage BJJ in California, Maryland!

Shawn put on a fun guard-passing seminar, followed it up with a great Q&A, and then jumped on the mats to roll with some of our teammates. Great technique, great training, and an all-around good time on the mats.

Everyone really enjoyed the seminar, and we appreciate Shawn sharing his time and knowledge with us. If you get the opportunity to train with him or bring him out for a seminar, I highly recommend it.

Thanks again, Shawn! Safe travels home, and we look forward to having you back on the Lineage mats again. 🤙🥋

#LineageBJJ #BrazilianJiuJitsu #BJJSeminar #JiuJitsuFamily #MarylandBJJ by @jimthriftbjj

This place has been blowing up all over my social media, so I finally had to see what all the hype was about. El Grandpa Barbacoa in Georgetown absolutely lived up to it. 10 out of 10!

I went straight for what they’re known for and ordered a pound of their lamb barbacoa. Tender, juicy, packed with flavor, and absolutely outstanding.

Just as impressive as the food was the staff. I mentioned it was my first visit, and they immediately made me feel welcome and treated me like family. They also gave me several recommendations for what I need to try next.

Needless to say, I’ll 100% be back. At this rate, it might be tomorrow. 😊

Outstanding food, amazing people, and well worth the visit. El Grandpa Barbacoa definitely lives up to the hype!

#ElGrandpaBarbacoa #GeorgetownTX #TexasEats #Barbacoa #SupportLocal by @jimthriftbjj

Nothing to see here, folks… just @j.d.lafreniere two favorite Jiu-Jitsu black belts finishing up a great BBQ lunch in Texas. 😂

Always good catching up with my Jiu-Jitsu brother @macpdave . Only thing missing was Jeremy.

Miss you, brother. Get yourself down to Texas soon. We might even save you some BBQ.

#CapitalMMA #CalvertMMA #LineageBJJ #JiuJitsuFamily #TexasBBQ by @jimthriftbjj