Yoga for BJJ Review

Does this popular online yoga library deserve a place in your BJJ toolkit?

Yoga for BJJ is one of the most comprehensive and popular yoga resources designed specifically for BJJ practitioners. As of 2021 it’s a large library with content aimed at complete beginners all the way up to advanced practitioners and even those with injuries. 

So is it worth the monthly subscription fee? We evaluated it based on content, cost, teaching style and more to find out.

Table of contents

• First impressions
• Who created Yoga for BJJ
• What videos and topics does Yoga for BJJ cover?
• Outside expert videos
• Video quality
• Library structure
• Teaching style
• Extra features
• Technical specs and app
• Price
• How does Yoga for BJJ compare with other yoga programs?
• Verdict

First impressions

Yoga for BJJ is a popular yoga platform designed specifically for BJJ practitioners. Upon first logging in you’ll be surprised at the depth of this platform. There’s a series of beginners’ programs to guide newbies into yoga, programs for specific body parts, injury rehab videos, and programs for intermediate and advanced yoga practitioners. 

Who created Yoga for BJJ?

Yoga for BJJ was created by Sebastian Brosche in 2013. Sebastian is a Swedish black belt and yoga studio operator with a background competing in BJJ. You can find out more about Sebastian and the thinking behind Yoga for BJJ in his interview with Daniel Strauss on the Raspberry Ape podcast, and in his Reddit Ask Me Anything (AMA). 

What videos and topics does Yoga for BJJ cover?

Yoga for BJJ has videos catering to complete yoga newbies all the way up to intermediate and advanced practitioners.There’s also a full library of rehab videos, warm up and cooldown videos, videos for specific body parts, and a number of speciality videos focusing on specific poses or situations like handstands or yoga for BJJ competition prep.

Are there any outside experts with videos on Yoga for BJJ?

Yoga for BJJ is mostly taught by Sebastian himself, but there’s also some great outside expert content to help with rehabbing injuries taught by Rosi Sexton. Rosi is a former UFC fighter, a BJJ black belt and an accredited osteopath, so she’s a great resource to help you in your injury rehab journey.

Rosi’s videos cover a large number of different injuries including but not limited to:

• Arm hyperextension
• Elbow pain
• Upper back pain
• Shoulders and rotator cuff
• The knee (MCL, anterior knee, LCL, and even post op ACL)
• Hip flexor

Each rehab program includes multiple videos and uses a variety of easy-to-find objects like a pillow, BJJ belt or an exercise ball combined with movements to help heal your injury.

Video quality

The videos on Yoga for BJJ are of a high quality and are easy to follow and learn from. Given the library was launched in 2013, the videos are all in a high enough resolution that you can see all necessary details.

The camera angle is static in most videos, so you won’t get close-ups of details like you might in other videos, but it’s still easy enough to see what you’re supposed to be doing. The sound quality is also great, and you can easily hear Sebastian’s notes and coaching throughout.

Library structure: what programs does Yoga for BJJ offer?

The Yoga for BJJ library is broken up into various sections including:

• Beginner programs. Yoga for BJJ has three programs dedicated to beginners including two 10-day beginner programs with videos approximately 10 minutes long. Then there’s the slightly more advanced foundation program with sessions of 30 – 40 minutes.
• Yoga For Rocks. Yoga For Rocks is a program designed for those new to yoga who are also inflexible, and features a number of 10 minute videos covering various body parts.
• Body part specific programs. Yoga for BJJ features a range of videos specifically covering body parts which practitioners might want to focus on because of injuries. These include programs focusing on back pain, the hips, hamstrings, shoulders, neck, core and back body.
• Specialities. This includes a number of miscellaneous programs like a two part breathing program, a handstand tutorial, a 40+ program, flow classes and more.
• Intermediate and advanced. This includes two intermediate programs and also Sebastian’s União Series, which is an advanced yoga program inspired by BJJ and capoeira.
• Rehab. As mentioned above, this series of videos is taught by former UFC fighter, BJJ black belt and osteopath Rosi Sexton. It covers a number of body parts listed above.
• Warm ups and cooldowns. This section includes both short and long warm ups and cool downs for BJJ.
• Yoga for the exhausted. As the name suggests, these videos focus on yoga for those who have finished a hard day’s work or a hard BJJ class.

See the video below for an example of the programs on offer:

Sebastian’s teaching style

Sebastian’s teaching style throughout the videos is enthusiastic, relaxed and humorous. Some of the programs like the 10 Day Startup Program include short tutorials on the various poses which you need to watch before starting the actual flow for the day. These are quick but informative, and showcase Sebastian’s relaxed approach to teaching. 

The teaching style overall meshes well with BJJ practitioners like myself who are new to yoga, and assumes no prior knowledge of yoga when doing the beginner programs. It also steers clear of the spiritual angle sometimes associated with yoga which will be refreshing for some.

Extra features

As mentioned above, the most useful extra feature offered in Yoga for BJJ is the rehab content. BJJ can cause injuries to a number of body parts, commonly the shoulders, knees, elbows, and more, so it’s great to have a resource you can turn to help rehabilitate these injuries.

These are taught by Rosi Sexton, and each body part usually has 4 – 6 videos which start gently and get more difficult as you progress. 

Yoga for BJJ technical specifications and app

Yoga for BJJ can be watched online through your browser, through the app on your phone, or on some TVs using Airplay or Chromecast.

I found the easiest way for me was to find a spot in my living room with the most space and then use a laptop so I could move it as I changed poses. 

Whether you’re using the app or the browser-based website the platform is easy to navigate and find what you want. Videos also buffered quickly during our review. 

The app also allows you to download videos which is great if you’re travelling or want to preserve your data allowance. 

Price

Yoga for BJJ has an ongoing subscription fee which you can pay monthly, 6-monthly or annually. At the time of writing prices were:

Ongoing subscription fees for a video library are hard to swallow unless the library is large enough or updated frequently enough to justify it. In our opinion Yoga for BJJ satisfies this with regularly released new content and a large enough library to keep you busy for a while.

How does Yoga for BJJ compare with other yoga programs?

On average, group yoga in the USA costs approximately $20 or less per class or $100 – 200 for a monthly membership, so an online yoga library like Yoga for BJJ can be significantly cheaper than in person classes. Going to a yoga studio obviously comes with the benefits of a teacher being able to help and guide you during your first exposures to yoga.

There are a number of other yoga and mobility programs aimed at BJJ practitioners. One of them is Yoga for Grapplers by the Jiu Jitsu Brotherhood, which is a downloadable video of 2.5+ hours and includes warm ups, stretches, mobility and strengthening sequences. Unlike Yoga for BJJ this is not a regularly updated library, and Yoga for BJJ has more content when you take into account the various programs and rehab videos. At the time of writing Yoga for Grapplers costs £45 or approximately $55 USD.

There are also general online yoga platforms like Glo and Omstars not aimed specifically at BJJ practitioners. Glo is a high quality online yoga library with a huge number of videos catering to many different yoga styles and with many different teachers, and costs $18 USD per month.

See the below table for how Yoga for BJJ would compare to other options in terms of price over one year:

Verdict – Is Yoga for BJJ worth it?

If you’re serious about your longevity in BJJ, it’s obvious that a regular mobility, stretching or yoga habit will help. 

There’s a number of free and paid programs and options out there, but Yoga for BJJ has possibly one of the largest libraries of videos made solely for BJJ practitioners. 

The rehab section is also invaluable to help counter the injuries usually caused by BJJ, and it’s good to have videos to self treat rather than visiting a physiotherapist or other professional for every strain.

Ultimately whether or not paying the ongoing subscription fee makes sense to you will depend on how serious you are about picking up a yoga habit, how often you’ll use it and if you’re happy to do yoga at home rather than with a professional yoga teacher. 

If you’re looking for a yoga program you can do at home, Yoga for BJJ is a valuable addition to your BJJ toolkit.

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

*This review is not endorsed by Yoga for BJJ. The reviewer paid for Yoga for BJJ out of his own pocket.