“How dare you say that to me!! Fat?! Out of shape?! If I wasn’t eleven years old I would—“ That was all in my head. I was outraged. And I was hurt. There was a young and inexperienced instructor teaching the karate class, and he saw me struggling on a technique. He came over to help, and in frustration, I …
You’re on TWO Journeys, Not Just ONE?
You realize you’re on two separate journeys, right? You start taking martial arts, and you decide to train hard, learn to defend yourself, and work towards earning your black belt. Ahhh black belt, the quest, the goal… the destination. You’ve begun your first journey. The journey of achievement. And it’s going to be awesome. You’re going to have to push …
Quitting isn’t an option…
He was in tears, struggling with the new curriculum we were teaching him. Everything about his demeanor was shouting defeat. This wasn’t like him. He would normally rise to the challenge, work hard and figure it out. But this day… it was getting to him. I had a chat with his mom after class, explained what I saw, let her …
So, what’s YOUR story gonna be?
So there I was head in my hands, crying like a baby in the middle of the afternoon, completely devastated by what was happening around me. And this wasn’t just once… this was an everyday occurrence. But I didn’t quit. I didn’t stop. I wiped my tears, cleaned my face, and got back on the martial arts floor, and kept …
Our First Black Belt Little Leader!
I am proud to announce that this past weekend, we graduated a student to black belt that started with us in our LITTLE LEADERS program when he was 3 years old! I remember watching his first few classes… He wouldn’t get on the practice floor. He held onto dad’s leg for dear life. When he finally got comfortable, he refused …
When It’s Tough, We Get Tougher ❤️
“Thank you sir, may I have some more, please?!” “It hurts goooood!” These are some of the fun phrases we shout in class as students are working hard stretching, training, and practicing martial arts. It’s important to me that we teach our students that achieving anything great is going to be tough. You want to be a black belt? You …
Do You or Your Child Fall Into These Categories?
I love what martial arts training does for people. The bottom line is…martial arts, taught well, can be life altering. Martial arts training can transform a shy little girl into a confident, self-assured young lady. Martial arts training can help a wild, ADHD diagnosed little boy channel his energy into becoming a focused, enthusiastic young man. Martial arts training can …
Stop & Bow… at Starbucks??
We are the products of our habits, whether good or bad. It’s been said that we are what we repeatedly do. Which is why we regularly walk into Starbucks and BOW AT THE DOOR! Every time we enter the karate school, we teach our students to bow in as a sign of respect. The karate school is an oasis, a …
Sorry, I Can’t Teach You
Several years ago, my son Judah decided he had an interest in playing the violin. “Hey Dad, can you teach me how to play? I’d love to learn!” I started playing the violin in the 2nd grade, and have played ever since, so it was only natural that he would ask me. I’ve taken breaks during my life of course, …
What, You Don’t Struggle Getting to the Gym?
Every so often, I hear this from a parent: “Master Alley, he loves it when he’s here, but sometimes it’s a struggle actually GETTING him here? What do I do?” You bring him to class. “But I don’t want to force him.” Bring him to class. Sometimes, we need a push, don’t we? No one is motivated 100% of the …