“The goal of sparring is enlightenment through getting punched in the face!” That’s how Masters Academy Essex Head instructor, Matt Chapman, puts it. And despite his colourful language, Matt is completely right. Sparring is one of the most beneficial parts of martial arts training. It will teach you so much more about yourself and your...

Five Tips For Starting Martial Arts January is one of the most popular times to start a new activity, particularly new sports and fitness classes, like martial arts. While improving your health and fitness is always a fantastic goal and something to be supported, it will not happen overnight. Consequently, it’s important to find an...

3 Stretches To Improve Your Hip and Hamstring Flexibility I’m want to share with you 3 stretches that have dramatically increased my hip and hamstring flexibility. But before I get into that I want to share two flexibility concepts that have helped develop my flexibility consistently. The first concept is let your body tell you...

52 Ways Martial Arts Will Make You A Badass… One of the major reasons I stared martial arts was because I wanted to be Bruce Lee. Thankfully, I found an instructor that was willing (and able) to indulge my fantasies. He taught me all kinds of cool things and I was pretty close to achieving my...

Mastering Martial Arts Ep.11: Lifestyle Challenges Three weeks in and I was shredded. And I mean Arnie level shredded. Not Arnie in Terminator Genesis, I’m talking Arnie in his Mr Universe days. I had a full six pack and my back looked like the Himalayas. All I’d done is make one simple change to my...

Mastering Martial Arts Ep.05: Mobility and Flexibility through Exercise In this short video you’ll discover one simple change the way you exercise that will increase your mobility, strength, and Flexibilty without adding any extra exercises. One of my pet hates is not using the full range of movement during exercises. I admit there are certain...

Mastering Martial Arts Ep.04: Why Do We Bow? One of the most important traditions in martial arts is the bow. Regardless of how you do it it’s a sign of respect for your training partners, coaches, and the academy. This short video covers these topics in greater detail and will also show how you can...

16 Point Checklist: How To Choose A Safe, Professional Martial Arts School   The martial arts industry is one of the few industries that is largely unregulated.  And unfortunately, virtually anyone can call themselves a “professional” without any basis for that claim. Martial arts training can have amazing positive benefits.  But it can also be a...

30 Exercises You Can Do Anywhere One of the most common excuses I hear from people why they can’t exercise is they don’t have the right equipment or can’t get to the gym. In reality, the human body is the only piece of equipment you need to do a killer workout. This short video (1 min 34 sec)...

De-Escalation and its Role in Self Defence One of the most common reasons people begin training martial arts at our Academy is for Self Defence. While the physical techniques of self defence are important, approximately 90% of self defence is mental. One of the most crucial self defence tools at your disposal is De-Escalation.   Avoiding...