Recent Testimonials
People have been talking! Check out some of our reviews to see what all the buzz is about. No paid testimonials, no self-written reviews, just real people with real thoughts on our work.
For Chelsah’ Lyons
“Chelsah’ invited me to come and try BJJ when I was picking up my kids from the class. As a 40-year old non-athletic mother of two, BJJ is not the first thing that comes to mind when thinking of workout, but I thought I’ll give it a try. I’ve been now training for 1.5 years and my only regret is that I didn’t start earlier. Chelsah’ is an amazing teacher. She sees her students, both kids and adults as individuals and instructs them based on their needs. Chelsah’ is very passionate about BJJ as well as overall well-being, and she is a top choice as an instructor whether you are just starting to learn martial arts or wanting to become better or compete. I recommend her 100%!”
“I was fortunate enough to be able to train with Chelsah’ in both a group setting and one on one. Chelsah’ is very dedicated to her students, their progress, and spreading the love of Jiu Jitsu. Her passion for the sport shows every time she teaches and coaches. This creates a culture of learning and supporting each other. She has experience teaching a variety of age ranges and skill levels, including kids. Chelsah’ as a seasoned competitor herself, is constantly pushing to be better. Her students reap the benefits from her high level of skill and constant personal desire to grow. I can safely say I fell in love with Jiu Jitsu because of her.”
“Strong, tough, technical and talented, Chelsah brings her best every day to every class. She’s 100% dedicated to teaching her students the art of Jiu Jitsu and making sure everyone reaches their potential. She represents the best this sport has to offer.”
“I am so grateful that my family has had the opportunity to meet and train with/under Chelsah Lyons. Chelsah is a world-class BJJ athlete but at the same time is warm, genuine, funny, unassuming and welcoming. With an abundance of patience, she has welcomed my six-year-old boy to her kids class. She not only makes the class fun when teaching BJJ technique but also teaches the little ones about the importance of respecting one another and the overall martial arts learning process. Chelsah has also accomplished what I thought was impossible: getting my wife into BJJ! I swear there is not another human being on the planet that could have accomplished this, but Chelsah somehow convinced my wife to start coming to the Women’s-only BJJ classes and two months later my wife is still attending classes. She has gone out of her way to make my family feel welcome in her classes and for this, I am so grateful. Thank you Chelsah!”
“I have had the privilege to know and learn from Chelsah` for a number of years. Her ability to teach and provide an amazing workout surpasses any other. Personally she has provided me with some of the most ass-kicking workouts I have experienced in my years of training. Regardless of how difficult some were (in a good way) she always had the ability to motivate me to dig deeper and go further then I thought I could. She is truly an inspiration on and off the mat.”
“What can I say about Chelsah’ other than she is one of the best I have had the honor of training within the jiu jitsu journey. Chelsah’ was the reason I began training in jiu jitsu and will always be one of my favorite because of her ability to teach on so many different levels. The technical expertise and ability to explain every technique are second to none. Her persona and teaching style enables students that range from beginner to expert skill level to continually see an improvement that far exceeds expectations. Her unique background in high-level competition and down to earth mentality makes a welcoming environment especially to new students and enables high-level training to be achieved every time in class. When I went to her class for the first time, I felt uneasy and did not know what to expect, but chelsah’ made me feel like I was part of the family the very first day. I spent countless hours on the mats training because of the passion she helped me find and most importantly i received a better sense of who I was as a person in my life’s walk. Chelsah’ created a safe training environment that helped me to achieve optimal performance while keeping everyone safe and injury-free as much as possible, which not all professors can say. If it wasn’t for Chelsah’, I most likely would have never gotten to participate in one of my favorite martial arts today and wouldn’t trade it for anything. I will always owe that to Chelsah’.”
“Chelsah is an amazing Professor! Her vision, patient teaching style, dedication to detail, and a kindness that is unparalleled! Her ability to motivate others to their potential reaches across gym lines and her Jiu Jitsu speaks for itself! #champion”
For Steve Paek
“Over the last decade, I have trained at multiple martial arts schools and with many different instructors. Steve Paek remains one of my absolute favorite instructors. He is both a professional at what he does and how he treats his students. In the self-defense industry, it is difficult to find instructors who put their students first and who have a high understanding of violence. Steve knows how to care for and how to equip his students. Many people can teach you a technique, but Steve taught me how to move, he gave me a foundation on how to use my body. And as I have advanced he has continually been able to refine my skills and to give me detailed instruction on how to improve. He is a very high caliber instructor, coach, and friend. ”
“To preface… I’ve bounced around in the Martial Arts since I was a kid. I first met Steve when he was instructing a group Krav Maga class. I immediately felt that this cat had something different. Due to some physical issues and not wanting to slow down a group class (I’m old haha!) I reached out to Steve for personal training…one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I’ve had some wonderful coaches and Sensei’s over the years but I’ve never worked with anyone so knowledgeable in so many disciplines as Steve; Krav Maga, Muay Thai, BJJ, physical therapy (basically healed my rotator cuff issues with advice on breath control and hip rotation). The dude is funny, badass and absolutely the best coach I’ve ever had! Slainte…”
“Steve is a fantastic instructor. Not only does he come with a wealth of experience, he truly has the desire to help his students reach their ultimate potential. Patient, kind, knowledgeable and funny are a few words that come to mind. He’ll spend as much time as needed to make sure you understand the concepts he’s showing you. It’s not just the “how” that’s important; it’s also the “why”. Your mind is your most powerful weapon, the physical moves are the extension of it. Steve brings those two together.”
“I’ve been pursuing martial arts and applied violence as a hobby for over 15 years. Steve was my first true striking instructor. I trained with him, on average 12 hours a week for nearly 2 years or more. After that time, I continued to train with Steve on a 1 on 1 basis regularly. He’s a friend, a confidant, and a coach. Since the time that I moved away when I could no longer train with Steve regularly, I have trained all over the country. My confidence in my own abilities has only grown as I’ve been able to walk into Muay Thai, Krav, and boxing gyms and earn grunts of approval and respect from gym owners to former Olympic boxers based on my technique alone. I’ve put the techniques to work under pressure with significant success. I owe this to Steve. I’ve trained with many others but he’s always “my striking coach”. Striking is a nuanced art with layers after layers, Steve opened my eyes to this art and has led me deep into the abyss that is the art. I firmly believe that there are not many that can do this. ”
“Steve Paek legitimately changed my life. When I met Steve, I was 38 years old, overweight, and out of shape. Over the first few weeks I fell in love with our striking workouts and with Steve’s style. He has this way about him that while intense contains no ego and no aggression. His training transcends simple physical maintenance. This was something I was not expecting. I was completely surprised at the physical and mental result. Steve taught me to better master myself, my ego, and my emotions. I came for physical fitness and found that my mental and emotional state were improving as much as my body was. Steve has legitimately changed my path and my life permanently. His training, friendship, and direction have made me a better husband, a better father, a better leader, and generally a better human being. No amount of praise is too much. If you need to change yourself and your life, and you want someone who will guide you down a path of knowledge, strength, and peace, start training with Steve Paek immediately!”
“Steve Paek is a fantastic teacher. One of the things I appreciated most about him is his commitment to his students and his willingness to go the extra mile to help us reach our full potential. He has a great understanding of the art he is teaching and his demonstrations and explanations are brilliant. I really valued the way he treated me with the same respect he showed everyone, even though it was the adult class and I was only 14 years old when I started training.”
“I began my training in Krav Maga in 2013, and by stroke of luck, my schedule lined up with Steve’s classes each week. Steve took just the right amount of time to teach you the skill and then quickly place you in the rhythm of perfecting it through applied, hands-on teaching. He’s by far been the best instructor I’ve had the pleasure of being taught by. Not only is he talented and knows the mechanics of fighting and self-defense well. He also cares about the progress and understanding of his students on the mats, in the ring, and off fight grounds. He has become a friend and life mentor in addition to being one of the most badass guys I’ve encountered. If you are planning to start your journey and train under Steve, get ready, because he will challenge you and push you just enough to the point where you are exceeding the limits that you’ve likely placed on yourself. His mentoring is the key to getting to the next level in life. Steve helped me get through my struggles mentally, emotionally, and physically. To any student looking to develop not only as a fighter but also as a human, I highly encourage you to check out Steve Paek. You won’t be disappointed.”