How a Google Maps Search Led Marty Herrick to Open Adayama Jiu Jitsu
Starring
Professor Marty Herrick is a black belt with over 15 years of BJJ experience who started training in 2009 at BJJ Unlimited on Miramar Road in San Diego. Born and raised in San Diego to an Irish-American Navy father and an Asian mother, Marty studied Communications in college and built a career in fintech before opening Adayama in 2025. He runs the gym while working full-time, teaching kids and adult fundamentals classes. A former kung fu student as a kid, Marty competed four times at white belt and brings hard-won lessons about pacing and injury prevention to his coaching.
Rogerio Leite is a brown belt and accomplished competitor with multiple IBJJF double gold finishes at Pans, Europeans, and Worlds in 2024 and 2025. He teaches early morning gi and no-gi sessions, kids no-gi, and co-teaches advanced classes with Maria Alencar. Known for a dynamic, detail-oriented instructional style, Rogerio emphasizes discipline and creativity on the mats.
Maria Joia da Silva—known as Maria Alencar or Little Mary—is a black belt from Ceará in northeastern Brazil with multiple IBJJF double gold finishes at Pans, Europeans, and Worlds. She co-teaches advanced gi and no-gi classes with Rogerio Leite and leads the Friday night women's BJJ session. In the episode, she describes Adayama as feeling like home—"like Brazil, the same energy"—and shares her perspective on teaching in a second language and the transformative power of jiu jitsu.
About the Gym
Adayama Jiu Jitsu is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu academy located at 2656 Jamacha Road, Suite 104, in El Cajon, California. Founded in 2025 by Martin and Ellen Herrick, the academy offers kids and adult programs in both gi and no-gi, with over 1,000 square feet of Fuji mats.
Adayama's class schedule runs from early morning (5:30 AM gi/no-gi) through evening sessions, with a dedicated women's no-gi class on Friday nights and kids programs in the afternoon. The gym offers a 7-day free trial and month-to-month memberships with no long-term contracts. The instructor team includes Maria Alencar (black belt, specializing in advanced gi, no-gi, and women's classes), Rogerio Leite (advanced programs), Aaron Bagley (a retired Santee firefighter who runs the lunch class), and Chase (Atos-trained with competitive experience).
The gym sits in a strip next to a Dairy Queen, near baseball fields—a location Marty chose deliberately for the foot traffic from kids and parents in the area.
📍 2656 Jamacha Road, Suite 104, El Cajon, CA 92019
📞 (858) 353-4140
Summary
Adayama Jiu Jitsu is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu academy located at 2656 Jamacha Road, Suite 104, in El Cajon, California. Founded in 2025 by Martin and Ellen Herrick, the academy offers kids and adult programs in both gi and no-gi, with over 1,000 square feet of Fuji mats.
Adayama's class schedule runs from early morning (5:30 AM gi/no-gi) through evening sessions, with a dedicated women's no-gi class on Friday nights and kids programs in the afternoon. The gym offers a 7-day free trial and month-to-month memberships with no long-term contracts. The instructor team includes Maria Alencar (black belt, specializing in advanced gi, no-gi, and women's classes), Rogerio Leite (advanced programs), Aaron Bagley (a retired Santee firefighter who runs the lunch class), and Chase (Atos-trained with competitive experience).
The gym sits in a strip next to a Dairy Queen, near baseball fields—a location Marty chose deliberately for the foot traffic from kids and parents in the area.
