Women's Self-Defense in Simi Valley That Holds Up Against Someone Bigger.
Real self-defense is not a handful of moves learned in a parking lot once. It is a skill you build over time with a system that works against a bigger, stronger attacker. That system is Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. At 805 Combat Sports, women train it on the same mat as everyone, because the only honest way to know your technique works on a bigger opponent is to practice on one, in a room with no ego and beginners protected.
Why BJJ Is the Right Self-Defense for Women.
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Size and Strength Stop Mattering
BJJ was built so technique and leverage beat muscle. You learn to neutralize someone bigger, stronger, and more aggressive, without striking.
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Most Real Situations End Up Close
BJJ specializes in exactly the grappling range and ground positions where a lot of real assaults actually happen, and teaches you how to control and escape them.
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You Train Against Real Resistance
Live rolling means you practice against a partner actually trying to stop you. You leave knowing your technique works because you have used it on real people.
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One of the Lowest Injury Rates
No strikes to the face, no knockouts. You can train consistently for years without the wear and tear of striking arts.
A Reflex You Can Actually Trust.
One-day women's self-defense seminars feel productive, but most of what you learn fades within a week. Without consistent practice against resisting partners, techniques never become reflexes, and under real stress, only reflexes show up. Training BJJ at 805 Combat Sports gives you the structure, the partners, and the repetition to build a reflex you can actually trust.
Why Women in Simi Valley Train at 805.
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Start From Zero
No athletic background, no prior martial arts, no fitness baseline. Coaches meet you exactly where you are, and most women are drilling real technique in week one.
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Pure Carlos Machado Lineage
An official Carlos Machado academy. The technique is the real thing, taught by people who earned their rank.
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A No-Ego Room
Zero tolerance for the smash-the-beginner culture women sometimes hear about elsewhere. Beginners are protected on this mat, every class.
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Backed by the Whole Room
You train alongside the entire academy, with coaches and partners who look out for you and want you back tomorrow. Nobody trains alone here.
The Self-Defense That Works Is Drilled Against a Bigger, Stronger Partner.
We do not run a separate women's class, and that is on purpose. The person you would have to defend yourself against is bigger and stronger than you, so the partners you train against should be too. Women here train on the same mat as everyone else, in a room built to keep that safe, controlled, and free of ego.
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You Drill Against the Size You'd Actually Face
A women-only room can only give you partners your own size. The mat here gives you bigger, stronger, heavier partners every class, which is exactly the gap a real situation hands you. You learn to handle it because you already have.
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Resistance You Cannot Fake
Technique becomes self-defense only after you have used it on someone genuinely trying to stop you. Training alongside the full academy means real, live resistance, not a choreographed drill that evaporates under stress.
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A No-Ego Room, By Design
Co-ed does not mean getting smashed. Beginners are protected, partners stay controlled, and the smash-the-new-person culture is not allowed on this mat. You start where you are, with people looking out for you.
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Part of the Whole Academy
Women here are not a side program that meets once a week. You train with the same Carlos Machado coaches, the same lineage, and the same belt path as everyone, backed by the whole room.
What Members Say
The members who recommend 805 loudest are the ones who have been here longest: parents of kids in the youth program and adults who walked in with zero experience and stayed for the community.
4.8 out of 5 from 45 Google reviews
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This is gym is so good! The coaches here are very patient and understanding with the kids. It is so hard to find a place that takes the time to educate and train my son, we're so glad we found this gym! 100% recommend!
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I recently enrolled my son, and he absolutely loves the training and the coaches, Josh and Chris. The coaches have so much patience, and make the class so fun. Abdiel looks forward to this after school activity every day. Thank you for teaching him self defense and confidence training he loves.
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Both my sons have been training here for over a year & I can't say enough great things about them, their kid classes are incredible & the professor's are top notch.. I highly recommend for youth/kid classes or any type of BJJ training or levels!!
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I started here with zero experience in BJJ. Coaches were patient and I never felt out of place. All the members are super nice and take it super easy on beginners. The goal is always to learn and get better. I have found myself loving BJJ and really excited to keep training here.
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I started here with zero bjj experience and have really enjoyed the great balance of patience and challenge the instructors and more experienced students provide. Everyone here is invested in making their fellow students better, which creates a great learning experience. Thank you Josh, Ric, and Jacob!!
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My husband and kids have been coming here for a while, they absolutely love it!!
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This is a great gym! I've been training here for a little over a year and I look forward to every class I'm able to attend. I would highly recommend this place to anyone near Simi Valley who wants to challenge themselves physically and mentally.
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Place is great, coaches strive to work with everybody individually and always teach us lots while still letting us have time to roll. Good schedule for classes and tidy mats as well!
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Was looking for a new gym since moving from Thousand Oaks, walked in to 805 and loved the vibe. It's a welcoming school with great instructors!
Questions Women Ask Before They Start.
I have never trained anything. Can I start?
Yes. You do not need any athletic background, fitness baseline, or prior martial arts. Beginners are protected on the mat, coaches meet you where you are, and most women are drilling real technique in their first class.
Is there a separate women-only class?
No, and that is deliberate. You train Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in our regular co-ed classes, alongside the whole academy. For self-defense it is the stronger choice: the person you would have to handle is bigger and stronger than you, so the partners you train against should be too. The room is controlled and no-ego, so co-ed is safe, not intimidating.
How long until I can actually defend myself?
Self-defense is a skill that builds with reps. Within three to six months of consistent training (two to three classes a week), most women develop the body awareness, leverage, and core technique that hold up against real resistance. The foundation arrives faster than people expect.
Will I be the only woman on the mat?
No. Women train throughout our classes, and the room is built to be welcoming and no-ego. You train co-ed because partners of different sizes are what make self-defense real, not because you are ever out there on your own.
What if I am not in good shape?
You do not need to be. BJJ is built on technique and leverage, not strength, which is exactly why it works for self-defense. Conditioning improves as a result of training, not before it.
Is BJJ safe to train regularly?
It is one of the lowest-injury martial arts. No strikes to the face, no knockouts, and live rolling is introduced progressively when you are ready. Our no-ego culture keeps training controlled.
How is this different from a one-day self-defense seminar?
A seminar teaches a handful of moves you mostly forget within a week. Real self-defense is a reflex, and reflexes only come from training against partners actually trying to stop you. The structure, partners, and repetition here are what build the reflex.
Your First Class Is $59.99. Start Building Your Self-Defense.
Real Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, trained on the same mat as everyone in a no-ego room, beginner friendly. Questions? Call or text (805) 263-1553.
$59.99 for one class · One full hour · No long-term contract · Walk-ins welcome