Frequently Asked Questions

In short, COMBAT FIGHTING ARTS™ teaches a Mixed Martial Arts fighting style for close combat self-defense. We have taken the best techniques from several different martial arts styles, including Karate, Judo, Taekwondo (traditional, not Olympic), Tang Soo Do, Hapkido, Muay Thai, Krav Maga, Kali, Taijiquan, Tai Chi Chin Na, Bagua, Hsing-I, and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, and combined them together with military close quarter combat training techniques from The US Marine Corps, the Israel Defense Forces, and the Russian Special Forces, and merged them together into one effective fighting style that is unique to us.

Well, yes, our fighting style is violent, it is meant to be. When you are being attacked, that is an act of violence being perpetrated on you, you respond to violence with violence. The fighting style that we are teaching is for self-defense. To protect the lives of you and your loved ones. When you are physically attacked, the safest move is to quickly counter attack with a higher degree of violence to bring an end to the attack before your attacker has a chance to harm you or a family member. We do not teach to match the same level of violence that your attacker is demonstrating. Instead we teach to overwhelm them with a degree of violence which causes them to either change their mind about attacking you, or if that doesn't work, to physically incapacitate them so they can not go forward with the attack. Remember, we are not teaching a sport, we are teaching you to survive a violent attack.

Below we have added a handy reference chart which shows the belts that we use in COMBAT FIGHTING ARTS™ their respective levels as well as their equivalent ranks in other styles.

No. To keep things easy for everyone, we use English for everything. When we give commands in class, they are in English so everyone can understand them. While it may seem nice to learn to count in a foreign language, and learn about the history and traditions of that particular country where a style is from, none of that does anything to protect you when you are attacked. We teach one thing, and we teach it very well, we teach you to defend yourself against an attacker. So, to keep everything simple, we will only use the English language.

No, because we do not teach forms. Forms are great for teaching you to memorize a particular pattern of movements, but in a real situation where you are being attacked, memorizing a form is not going to help you at all. Real fighting does not follow a choreographed set of steps. You dont know from one moment to the next what your attacker may do, so you cant use a rehearsed form to defend yourself. Instead, we teach self-defense moves for various situations that you can use, but even more importantly we are teaching you to think on your own to come up with your own defenses against attacks on the spot. That is the difference in our training style. We teach you to think for yourself instead of being a robot that can only react with a pre-programmed set of defenses.

Yes, learning self-defense teaches you to use your body and its capabilities to ward off attacks and stay calm under stressful situations. You'll feel prepared to handle anything that comes your way. We offer multiple types of self-defense classes to fit your needs, check out the Programs page for a list of the various classes we offer.

Absolutely! This program is designed to help people who might be smaller than their attackers to defend themselves, so its an ideal self-defense method for women to learn. We offer multiple types of self-defense classes to fit your needs, check out the Programs page for a list of the various classes we offer.

Yes, you don't need any prior martial arts experience to learn from our program. Our training is tiered and you will start with the basics and work your way up, learning more and more as you advance.

Yes. The style that we teach is a no-nonsense approach to self-defense. We learn and practice applications to real-world scenarios.

Absolutely. This program is a high-intensity workout that pushes students to their physical limits so they can expand those limits. You'll learn how strong and powerful your body can be.

Absolutely. Not only do we require a background check on our instructors, but we also require a background check on all Black Belt Candidates and anyone in a position of authority within COMBAT FIGHTING ARTS™

Shihan is the formal Japanese title given to a Master or GrandMaster and is created using two Japanese characters: shi (師) meaning example or model and han (範) meaning master or exemplary practitioner. A shihan has command of the material and can apply that knowledge to innovate and lead. The title Dai Shihan 大師範 is a higher title and is reserved for the most senior instructor or founder of a martial arts style.

Yes, it is possible for an exceptional student to skip a belt, but it is rare. If you meet the minimum instruction time recommendations of the higher belt testing and believe you can pass the physical and technical aspects of both tests, you can complete both tests on the same day if approved by your instructor. The recommended training times are just that, recommendations. It is completely up to the instructor per his evaluation of the student. Some students progress faster than others and their instructor may recommend a higher belt ranking.

We schedule colored belt testing quarterly. Black Belt testing is conducted once per year. If you believe you meet the minimum training time recommendations for the next belt testing and you are ready to take the test, speak with your instructor. If your instructor believes you are ready to test he will recommend your testing and your test will be scheduled.

A Black Belt Candidate is a student whom their Instructor believes is ready to advance to Black Belt from Senior Red Belt. Black Belt Candidates receive the same respect from other students as Black Belts. Upon recommendation from their Instructor, the student will wear a Black Belt with a white stripe running down the length of it signifying their Black Belt Candidate status. Once they become a Black Belt Candidate they will have one-year from the date of their recommendation to complete the requirements to attain their Black Belt. If they are unable to attain their Black Belt within the one-year period, they drop back down to Senior Red Belt and work on the areas they need to improve before they can be recommended for Black Belt Candidate again.

A person under the age of 18 can not earn a Black Belt with COMBAT FIGHTING ARTS™ because although they may have the technical and academic ability, they do not yet have the life experience, maturity and physical abilities of an adult to wear the Black Belt. If someone under the age of 18 is able to pass the 1st Degree Black Belt test, they will earn a Poom belt (Black over Red) until they turn 18 years old. Once they reach 18 they will be allowed to wear the Black Belt.

Absolutely. Once a student is successfully able to pass the belt rank test they are awarded a beautiful certificate designed to be framed and displayed on their wall that shows their accomplishment. Our belt rank certificates can be seen here. Each certificate has a serialized registration number which can be validated in our database.