Grading Is Goal Setting

🥋 Gradings Are Goal Setting

Understanding Our Belt & Grading System

At Function First Martial Arts Lincoln, our grading system is designed to measure progress, build confidence, and teach goal setting — lessons that carry far beyond the mats.

Just like school, we move through stages: Vipers → Cadets → Adults, and each group is divided into Year 1 and Year 2 levels.
Think of it like primary, secondary, and further education for martial arts — structured, progressive, and built to help every student grow at the right pace.

Belt Clarification

Viper Belts: White belts with a coloured stripe running through the middle.
Cadet Belts: Solid colours until the Cadet Black stage, which is the reverse of a Viper belt — black with a white stripe.
Adult Black Belts: Solid belts

All martial arts schools have their own systems — for example, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu uses completely different colours for children — so we understand there can be confusion when moving between age groups or schools

Sometimes students feel like they’ve been “demoted” when they move up, but this isn’t the case at all; it’s simply a reset into the next stage of learning. Just like moving up from primary to secondary school.

Perspective & Progress

To give some perspective:
A Viper could achieve a Viper Black Belt by age 9. If we allowed that same system to continue through Cadets, a student could technically surpass their own coaches by age 12 — and by their 20s, hold the highest rank possible in martial arts.

That’s not how real growth works.

Our system is designed to match maturity, experience, and life stage, not just physical ability.

More Than Just Technique

In the Vipers, we include life skills as part of every student’s journey — because martial arts is about more than punches and kicks. It’s about discipline, respect, and character.

In the Cadets, we don’t hand out stars anymore, but we still watch closely. We pay attention to manners, attitude, coachability, and listening skills.
As we always say:

“Off the mats as on — that’s our philosophy.”

Adults – The Big Kids

For our adult students, the philosophy is the same.
Work hard. Stay humble. Do the things others avoid.
That’s how you progress — on the mats and in life.

You’ve probably learned by now that growth rarely feels comfortable.

Why Gradings Matter

Gradings aren’t just about belts — they’re about reflection, perseverance, and perspective.

Sometimes you don’t get the result you expect. When that happens, you reassess, work harder, and move forward.
That’s life — and martial arts mirrors it perfectly.

Ask Coach Dom about his broken jaw and ribs after going all five rounds in front of friends and family. The defeat stings. The humility burns. But the next day, he was back on the mats, coaching the kids — smiling.

That’s what a fighter looks like.
That’s what resilience is.

We don’t make excuses.
We don’t give up.
We learn, adapt, and rise stronger every time.

The Function First Way

Gradings are not just about belts — they’re about becoming better human beings.
They teach patience, humility, courage, and discipline — the values that define who we are on and off the mats.

At Function First Martial Arts Lincoln, we don’t just teach fighting.