Instruction at Nemesis Jiu Jitsu

Instruction at Nemesis Jiu-Jitsu is based on 9 principles (Momentum, Sensibility, Power, Leverage, Mobility, Posture, Control, Strength and Domination) that make up the foundation of everything we do. In teaching terms principles equate to the cover of a puzzle box that shows you what the assembled product looks like.

We are still obsessive compulsive in terms of perfecting individual technique, but the reason why principles are the foundation is because they keep each individual piece of the puzzle grounded in a broader context.

As far as belt rankings, we have individual technical requirements required at each level as well as performance assessments. What we've seen in the past is promotions given strictly on grappling performance with peers, or mastery of individual techniques.

At Nemesis we strive to strike a balance between these two methods. To us a specific, measurable curriculum gives the student a roadmap to follow as well as a way for us measure mastery of individual details. Performance testing on the other hand shows us how well individual techniques have been integrated and assimilated.

Eric Hemphill (Black belt)

Anyone who has been involved in the Pacific NW MMA and BJJ scene pre-2000 knows Eric well, and will tell you his skill set speaks for itself. In the Jiu-Jitsu world, you hear about urban legends all the time but rarely are they accessible, and you don't EVER hear of one opening a school.

Well suffice to say the legend is true. Having been doing BJJ a year before the summer of 1997 I basically taught Eric his first Jiu-Jitsu class. Unfortunately for my ego, by the time fall hit we were dead even skill wise!

Taking privates for 2 years from Eric has literally changed the way I teach and think about BJJ.

To be specific, rather than looking at individual moves I now think in terms of principles. Individual techniques are extensions of principles, but without tactical intelligence and a deeper of level understanding students are often taught moves essentially mimicked from some one else.

Humbled, I gradually understood that without a firm grasp of the philosophy behind a technique beyond individual mechanics, I hadn't been learning and teaching Jiu-Jitsu, only aspects of it (the scene from 'Enter the Dragon' where Bruce Lee slaps his student upside his head for paying attention to his finger quickly comes to mind).

Awarded the coveted Black Belt in 2005 by Chris Haueter, a member of the legendary dirty dozen (first 12 American BJJ Black Belts), Eric Hemphill is a truly original thinker and instructor that will take your game to the next level with a global approach that blends tactical awareness and philosophy with highly efficient mechanics.