THE BELT PATH.

ADULT BELTS.

The IBJJF ranks, in order. Each belt carries up to four stripes before the next one, and the ranking bar sits on one end.

• Rank 1 of 5

  White Belt

  The foundation. Stay safe, hold posture, escape bad positions. Shown with all 4 stripes.

• Rank 2 of 5

  Blue Belt

  Game-building. Positions, submissions and takedowns start to connect. Shown with all 4 stripes.

• Rank 3 of 5

  Purple Belt

  Leadership. Technique sharpens and you start setting the tone for newer teammates. Shown with all 4 stripes.

• Rank 4 of 5

  Brown Belt

  Refinement. Details, timing and consistency across the whole room. Shown with all 4 stripes.

• Rank 5 of 5

  Black Belt

  Degrees, not stripes. The black belt follows its own ladder from here. Shown with no stripes.

YOUTH BELTS.

Flow’s youth system runs fourteen ranks, roughly ages 4 to 15. A combination belt is the base colour with a full-length centre stripe of the second colour. Every student’s ranking bar is black.

• Rank 1 of 14

  White

  Solid-colour belt: up to 11 stripes — 4 white, then 4 red, then 3 in the colour that comes next.

• Rank 2 of 14

  White / Black

  Combination belt: base colour with a full-length centre stripe, and up to 4 stripes on the bar.

• Rank 3 of 14

  Gray / White

  Combination belt: base colour with a full-length centre stripe, and up to 4 stripes on the bar.

• Rank 4 of 14

  Gray

  Solid-colour belt: up to 11 stripes — 4 white, then 4 red, then 3 in the colour that comes next.

• Rank 5 of 14

  Gray / Black

  Combination belt: base colour with a full-length centre stripe, and up to 4 stripes on the bar.

• Rank 6 of 14

  Yellow / White

  Combination belt: base colour with a full-length centre stripe, and up to 4 stripes on the bar.

• Rank 7 of 14

  Yellow

  Solid-colour belt: up to 11 stripes — 4 white, then 4 red, then 3 in the colour that comes next.

• Rank 8 of 14

  Yellow / Black

  Combination belt: base colour with a full-length centre stripe, and up to 4 stripes on the bar.

• Rank 9 of 14

  Orange / White

  Combination belt: base colour with a full-length centre stripe, and up to 4 stripes on the bar.

• Rank 10 of 14

  Orange

  Solid-colour belt: up to 11 stripes — 4 white, then 4 red, then 3 in the colour that comes next.

• Rank 11 of 14

  Orange / Black

  Combination belt: base colour with a full-length centre stripe, and up to 4 stripes on the bar.

• Rank 12 of 14

  Green / White

  Combination belt: base colour with a full-length centre stripe, and up to 4 stripes on the bar.

• Rank 13 of 14

  Green

  Solid-colour belt: up to 11 stripes — 4 white, then 4 red, then 3 in the colour that comes next.

• Rank 14 of 14

  Green / Black

  Combination belt: base colour with a full-length centre stripe, and up to 4 stripes on the bar.

HOW THE STRIPES WORK.

Three rules cover every belt on this page.

• The bar sits on one end

  Stripe tape goes on the ranking bar, and the bar is sewn onto one end of the belt. For students it is black on every colour, adult and youth alike.

• Combination belts take four

  Any belt named for two colours — Gray/White, Yellow/Black, Orange/White and the rest — carries up to four stripes before the next rank.

• Solid youth belts take eleven

  White, Gray, Yellow, Orange and Green run a longer ladder: four white stripes, then four red, then three in the colour that comes next.

• Adult belts take four

  White through brown carry up to four stripes each. The black belt leaves the stripe system behind and follows the degree ladder instead.

HOW YOU GET PROMOTED.

Belts and stripes are earned, not handed out for time served. Four things guide every promotion at Flow.

• Technique

  You are expected to show what you know clearly, on a live partner, not just to have sat through the classes where it was taught.

• Mat time

  Progress comes from regular attendance and real reps. Consistency is what makes the curriculum work.

• Attitude

  How you train, how you treat teammates and how you take coaching all count. That is part of the standard, not a bonus.

• Coach approval

  A coach signs off on every promotion. Nothing moves automatically, and nothing moves because enough months went by.

There is no clock on a belt at Flow. We will not tell you how many months it takes to reach blue, or what age your child will be at green — because that is not how the standard works. Train, show what you know, and the promotion comes.