Primal Training Center

Great group of Jiu Jitsu players male and female. When I came in Professor D was very friendly and invited me to train that day. I was just coming off a knee surgery so I was nervous about training with guys I didn’t know. Everyone was more protective of my knee than I was. Great school, great students, and very solid Jiu Jitsu from a very legit lineage.

I started in the Primal women’s self defense class almost 5 months ago with zero martial arts experience. Since then I’ve moved on to the fundamentals BJJ class, and it’s been an amazing experience. You can’t find a more accepting, spirited, educating atmosphere. Get in shape, gain a skill, meet incredible people.

«D» and Jason («J») are both great instructors. The students are of varying skill levels (belts) and weights — giving you a higher chance of being able to roll against someone on the same level of yourself. Students and instructors are both welcoming. The instructors promote a good atmosphere, with the students interested enough on technique to not put you in danger of injury from amateurish zealousness during a roll.

I feel blessed to be such a part of an awesome team. I have been guided and supported to accomplish things I never thought I could to include a higher level of fitness, a gold medal from my first ever American Nationals competition and my blue belt in just over a year of training. As challenging as this journey has been, I know I am in the right hands under the instruction of Professor D Davis and the many coaches under him.

I am a world class pussy.
My daily struggle involves fighting the urge to sit on the couch, watch reruns of Grey’s Anatomy and consume a tub of Häagen-​Dazs while crying my eyes out. I am afraid of hard work, change, and most people. I talk about feelings for a living. I have low T. Every day I go to war with my inner pussy. That’s right. I fight my own mangina. My go to self-​defense tactics are that of an octopus. I shriek and shit myself and hope for the best.
So in a last ditch effort to combat my inherent spinelessness, and because the neighbors were tired of hearing my openmouthed weeping every night, I signed up at Primal Training Center. Thank God I did.
Primal Training Center and Professor D Davis saved me from a life of early onset man-​opause, debilitating shame, and pasty white bitch tits. I had no experience with martial arts of any kind and have gone from white to blue belt so far under D’s instruction. I can’t give this place a higher recommendation. Primal brings together everything that allows even the most feeble and uncoordinated individual to overcome the pathetic genetic hand they’ve been dealt or the learned helplessness once associated with their clinical depression, agoraphobia, and abnormally high estrogen. Everything from the unique individualized attention to the skilled and patient training partners come together in the perfect way and have made me a student of this school for life. The undying support of the entire Primal family is something that must be experienced and cannot properly be articulated in here. I do not have the words to describe what it’s done for me. I can also sincerely recommend the children’s classes. I can say that with authority because I actually had the hormone profile of an obese 9 year old girl when I started.
With a renewed sense of self efficacy and a profound change in body composition and lean muscle mass, I now walk through life with my head held high. This is no coincidence, no accident. Do yourself a favor and show up. Don’t think about it, don’t wonder, do it. Give it a month, it’s free.
And believe me, if I can do it — so can you.

My brother trains here, and a couple months ago he got me to attend an all-​day benefit/​charity seminar. From what I saw, I was impressed. D Davis is about the martial art, not about the ego or the business. I was impressed with every single one of his students I met that day. Each has put in a lot of hard work to earn their place at Primal. I’m glad my brother found Primal, and if I wasn’t completely committed to the school where I study kung fu, I would probably head back to see if D would even accept me as a student.

Coming off a back injury that’s been nagging me for years, and getting the bug to start training bjj again. San Diego has so many bjj academies, it’s crazy! I visited quite a few, but didn’t join for one reason or another. I’m not looking to win mundials in my forties, but find a good school, with quality instruction and team mates who don’t have a chip on their shoulders from their egos. I visited primal bjj on a judo night, of all nights. Met D. Davis and was floored there was a red and white belt judo master teaching throws. Something lacking in bjj today, as everyone starts on their knees or butt scoots. I came to train next Monday with Coach D. and was floored again, D. had us defending from punches while holding guard. You just don’t find old Gracie style self defense taught anymore, with all the emphasis on sport bjj. Training here a week now and it s a great mix of self defense and sport bjj instruction. Best of all, no ego, no aggro white belts spazzing on you. Coach D. just won four gold, including two absolutes at this past Bjj American Open.
So if you are like me, looking for quality bjj, give primal Jiu Jitsu a try. Coach D. offers a free intro month, and you’ll get hooked on the training.

As a guest (outsider), I was warmly greeted and welcomed by everyone at the gym. It reminds me of my usual gym back home (BKKBJJ), where it’s mostly adults that train. You can feel the family vibe here, it’s not so clique-​ish like some of the bigger gyms you go to, where you have varying age groups hanging out with each other.
The instructor, D Davis, is very friendly and approachable. He showed good techniques during the instruction and was always troubleshooting the class which I found very helpful. Clear, concise, simple and effective stuff.
The Professor also asked questions after the class sparred, which was pretty cool. Not a whole lot of gyms do this. We always have questions after sparring, and since it’s fresh in our minds, these answers will stick and help people improve quicker.
Overall a great place to learn BJJ, I would make this my regular gym if I was living in SD.

30 days free trial and teaches women self-​defense class.

[A little background, I have been doing jiu-​jitsu on and off for 15 years, and have trained at six different schools in the area] «Primal» is a perfect place to learn great jiu-​jitsu, meet new people, and get a great workout. The Head Instructor, D, knows more about jiu-​jitsu than most other teachers in the area. He’s funny and easy to talk to, runs a safe, well-​organized class, and is generous with his knowledge. Be careful when shopping for jiu-​jitsu! Some other black belts in the area, like to save their best moves for private lessons– you won’t find that here, D wants all his students to achieve, and transcend, black belt level. He also proves and refines his jiu-​jitsu by competing at tournaments and holding his own — a lot of teachers at other schools won’t risk this. Definitely worth checking out, you will learn a lot and have fun doing it.

This is an AWESOME Jiu Jitsu school. You have to try it. D. Davis is an understanding, compassionate, laid back and extremely dedicated to his passion of BJJ. Not to mention his students, are really cool and friendly. My first day training there was like I been training there for a year or something. His prices are extremely reasonable and great for anybodies budget. You won’t regret trying this awesome school, trust me!!!

I’ve been going to Primal for more almost 4 years and since the beginning its been a great journey. D Davis’ training is top notch and more importantly he makes sure that each person gets instruction that tailored to their styles. Classes have gone from about 8 white belts to an academy with 2 purple belts, 10+ blue belts and many more white belts.
All the people (men, women & children) have great attitudes and really try to help each other get better. There are other places with better known names but no one in San Diego has better training.
Come for the free week and check it out for yourself.

D has done an incredible job creating a successful learning environment. D is there for every class to ensure all of his students are getting the most from each and every class. I have also found the other students to be very friendly and approachable as well. This speaks volumes about the school D has created. Every student has a vested interest in seeing every other student succeed and it shows. I haven’t left a class yet that I didn’t learn something new. I count the hours till my next class, it has been so much fun.
Stop by and watch a class, speak with D or the other students. Attend a child’s class and you will not stop laughing as the kids go at it. Who says learning isn’t fun?
Also, D offers private training sessions that are second to none. The session are custom designed to meet your needs. This isn’t cookie cutter sessions either, D has the knowledge and experience to create the right level of variety and intensity to get you where you want to be.

The strong points of this gym are the professors (D Davis and Jeff Tirshfield), the students, and the mentality of the academy. The atmosphere is loose but respectful. Meatheads are dealt with accordingly, and there isn’t any attitude thrown around — fellow students help each other to progress and grow their skill sets.
The class structure is essentially a stretching period, followed by a warmup, then a myriad of increasingly difficult exercises that focus on building the necessary core strength and muscle memory that translate into successful jiu jitsu technique execution. Following this, a specific move or three will be worked on, with the instructor showing how to perform the move (s), then the students pairing up and working through it while the instructors critique and offer advice and tips. After that, a session of «rolling» ensues, with several full-​tilt rounds (usually 6 minute rounds). Finally, a question-​and-​answer period ends out the class.
Both D and Jeff focus on high-​percentage jiu jitsu techniques: if you are looking for hollywood-​type glamour posing, this is not the place. Also, both are big believers in teaching their students how to get out of bad situations, with much work focused on escaping the mount from the bottom and establishing a strong guard. «Position before submission.»
In addition, the students work well together, and will regularly come in and train on specific areas or techniques that they feel they are most deficient at, whether that be takedowns, chokes, sweeps, etc. You can attend as many classes as you want, with the gym closed only on Sundays.
You WILL get a workout if you engage in this system. Dedication is a must, and is pretty much all that is asked of folks that come through the door. Speaking of which, Primal has an open-​door policy, where you can walk in off the street, D will throw you into a gi, and you’ll get started right then and there. A free week of sessions will let you know whether or not you’d like to join up and learn under a true master of the game, and with driven, dedicated, and helpful Primal students.
The choice is up to you.

Great Instruction and family vibe. Excellent BJJ from Fabio Santos lineage.

I checked out this gym today and I was very disappointed. It’s so small that it’s like a garage at your house. There’s a tiny weight room and the main room in covered with mats. D, the owner seemed like a nice person and said he focuses on a lot of one on one tips and advice. It’s not a contracted facility but for $ 99 a month, you’re better off finding a much better place to train. This was last year. I recently noticed that the owner moved in the Scripps area. I passed by and the place is still very small and not much of change from the Mira Mesa location. Yeah I agree with the people who strictly want to train jiu-​jitsu, but if you want to be well rounded and include striking in your game, check out other facilities, such as Victory, BJJ Unlimited, The Arena, and The Art of 8. You won’t be disappointed.

D greeted me at the door with a smile.
I explained that I haven’t trained in years and it was a great experience!
I noticed it was a gym where the instructor just doesn’t hand out stripes.
You really have to learn every aspect and base of Jiu Jitsu to progress at this gym. No pressure and used car salesman contracts, defintely not a silly cardio kick boxing gym.
Take a look and try the free trial it’s worth it!