Forge Academy is proud to offer a variety of different martial arts classes each week. Learn more about the styles taught at Forge below!
Chinese Kempo Karate - Originating in Japan and Hawaii as an unarmed means of defending against bandits in environments with poor law enforcement, Kempo has evolved over the 20th and 21st centuries to incorporate elements of Escrima (Fillipino stick-fighting), boxing, jujitsu, and karate. Chinese Kempo Karate, the style of kempo taught at Forge Martial Arts, is strongly rooted in real-world self defense, incorporates elements of Chinese Kung Fu for upper ranks, and continues to adapt to the realities of today's danger. Kempo is characterized by quick, debilitating strikes at a close range, making it an ideal style for disabling multiple attackers.
Brazilian Jujitsu (BJJ) - Descending from the art of Judo, a Japanese sport based off of ancient samurai grappling techniques, Brazilian Jujitsu has quickly risen in popularity over the past few decades. While BJJ, like Judo, has gained popularity as a sport, the art also includes an extensive series of techniques designed for real-world self defense, known as "combatives." For this reason, in both MMA and self defense schools, BJJ is recognized as one of the most effective grappling styles in the world.
KAPAP Krav Maga - An elite form of Israeli hand-to-hand combat, KAPAP is a style of Krav Maga that is taught to the upper levels of Israel's defense forces. Our school teaches KAPAP under the Avi Nardi Academy discipline, which is taught to only a select few across the world. Given its military heritage, KAPAP focuses heavily on defending against armed attackers, which is often neglected in more traditional martial arts.
Monday-night Self Defense - This class focuses on how to survive non-consensual or “street” violence. It helps students develop the mindset and martial skills to recognize and avoid developing dangerous situations, and to defend themselves against physical violence when necessary. Our mindset centers on principles (rather than on techniques), and on neutralizing violence (rather than on “fighting” as would occur in combat sports). Our martial practice assumes that we will be confronted with unfair situations in which we must face multiple armed attackers. We consequently run scenarios in which we negotiate surprise and ambush, confined and obstructed spaces, blunt force trauma weapons (like hammers and sticks), and edged weapons (like knives and razors). We pay particular attention to extricating ourselves from multiple assailants, defending against knives, and to the offensive use of edged weapons, tactical pens, and improvised weapons. The class uses a lot of light sparring and sparring drills, but is cooperative and non-competitive. Our first rule is to ensure each other’s safety so that we can continue practicing!