Mixed Martial Arts in Prince Rupert
With the recent popularity of professional mixed martial arts / U.F.C. many people are looking to train in arts that are proven effective in actual combat. Most people however are just looking for a great workout, to learn techniques and develop warrior spirit. My name is Kelly McMahon and I am the coach at North Coast Mixed Martial Arts located right down town in Prince Rupert and I have been training for 17 years in Jiujitsu, wrestling, boxing, kickboxing, no-gi brazilian jiujitsu and combined mma. I trained regularly for years with the fight team at a club the produced UFC fighters like Rory MacDonald; Toshido MMA, in Kelowna. While I train fighters, I feel the show “The Ultimate Fighter” which has featured members of Team Toshido does not convey how our club operates and what to expect. So.... what should you expect if you train at our club?
I have changed many things from the way I was taught in order to promote rapid growth in your development as aspiring martial artists. Our program has a curriculum and requires dedication but the rewards are a enormous. We push eating right, sleeping right, and drinking plenty of water. Health and well being are a focus, and mental well being is a huge by product as you build confidence and skill. We exercise and stretch every class. Moves taught are immediately useful and all combat ranges and ground positions, escapes and sub missions are covered. The first patch alone has 250 things that must be learned. However well before that you will have acquired many many useful skills. By the time the first patch is complete you could easily be on your way to having an amateur fight if you so desired.
Sparring is essential to development. Ask anyone who has done martial arts in a non-sparring environment how they did when they actually sparred with someone who spars all the time and i bet you will hear unanimously that they felt that they were like a fish out of water. You did not learn how to ride your bike by not riding a bike. In fact you usually started with training wheels. Thats how we start you here too. You spar as light as you are willing or want to go at first. We don't force sparring on you at all until you have mastered your basics on stance/footwork, defence, strikes, ground positions, transitions and escapes. Only fight team guys spar hard and only with absolute supervision and protection and only a max of 1 day a week. I have my lvl 3 first aid, There has never been a concussion in the 5 years our club has been training.
MMA is one of the fastest growing sports in the world and our club has only started competing recently but already we have had 3 amatuers, Dave Lundquist, Shawn Stewart, and Mike Johnson have ammy fights so far, and are 2 and 1 with Dave and Shawn winning by tko's. Even if you never intend to fight yourself. It is amazing to watch as the guys who do push themselves to get ready and you see what is required to fight competitively. These are some of the fittest atheletes that there are and can do amazing things physically. Our fight team conditioning program is very very challenging and fight team guys are expected to train 5 days a week. But that is not how it is for new people. We push exercise yes, but but we let you decide what you can do. We have had males and females ages from 10 to 56 train with us. Even if you go at a snails pace, you still are gonna lap the guy that sits on the couch. We're open 5 days a week, but with our curriculum, you progress as fast or slow as you decide.
Our environment is not as formal as other clubs, as in no bowing or titles for the instructor, but we still have rules.
Rule number 1. Leave your ego outside the club. Ours is a place of mutual respect and we understand that in order to have the best guys to work with, we need to always help each other get better.
Rule number 2. Do not victimize people.
If you break these rules. I may depending on the circumstances, never teach you again.
I hope this gives people in the town a sense of who and what our club is about. We■ve been going about 5 years now. I let anyone try 1 free week of training. We■re open Monday to Friday, 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm at 614 3rd ave west. 250 624 2226 [prmma@hotmail.com](mailto:prmma@hotmail.com) $90 a month.
P.S. I have contemplated a ladies only class or a kids only class but would like to here from the community if that is of interest to you.
See you on the mats!!!
Kelly McMahon North Coast Mixed Martial Arts