East Side Muay Thai is the best Muay Thai gym in the Hampton Roads area! Conveniently located in…read morethe Strawbridge Marketplace Shopping Center. This gym provides a great environment for all levels of traditional Muay Thai with Intro Classes, Kids classes, Advanced Classes, and Fight Team Level! Anyone from no experience to advanced is welcome to class and the community at East Side is wonderful! No big egos and the head coach/owner, Jose is mindful of partner pairing with someone that will take care of you. Everyone is nice and supportive for class making you feel comfortable to train! Kru Jose is an amazing head coach who has a passion for Muay Thai and an impressive portfolio of experience within the Muay Thai community! Jose coaches all classes and provides detailed instructions for class by a combination of learning styles for everyone. What I like the most is that there is accountability and structure for the class to elevate your level of training, and motivate you to push yourself to be better each time. The other coaches Summer and Zedd are also amazing at teaching and supporting the gym! Summer leads women's classes on Saturday mornings and supports intro/advanced classes too making a great impact on women who also train at the gym. The gym has a history of successful active junior and adult fighters with championship titles! The gym is clean and spacious with a full-size boxing ring as well! If anyone is looking for a gym that will teach you the fundamental techniques of traditional Muay Thai and provide a great atmosphere/community this is the gym for you!

Welcoming , clean, and professional. Learning a lot and looking forward to more. Classes for all…read moreages

As a 47 almost 48-year-old with no martial arts experience I was a bit apprehensive about starting…read moremy journey. After a bit of research, it was suggested to train in Muay Thai at my age, after further research, and visiting and speaking with head instructor Wahsei I made the decision to train at Eastern Academy of Mixed Martial Arts. I have been only training, for a little over a month and I am really glad I started Muay Thai and chose to train here. Head instructor Wahsei is extremely patient no matter what your skill level is. He is extremely knowledgeable in a multitude of martial arts and spends a lot of his own resources to attend further trainings and seminars in order to improve upon his own training and teachings. A great example of this, is when I had some issues getting my foot work correct during a drill. Instead of trying to keep the drill up and causing frustration for myself, he switched to two different drills that covered the same exact principle but was easier for more to conceptualize. The students in the classes are very patient as well and are very welcoming. You can easily tell they are well trained, disciplined, and follow the golden rule. If they see you struggle with a concept or drill, they will stop and help you within the moment to get you back up to speed. They understand they were beginners once as well and are always willing to help you. Not a lot of people have that mentality. The facility is well equipped, extremely clean, and always being updated. I have really enjoyed my time here so far. I am starting to feel better about myself and have been getting into a routine for a healthier lifestyle. If you are thinking about a martial art, whatever skill level you are, do not wait (I wish had not) and stop by or contact Head Instructor Wahsei.

My husband and 9yr old son both attend this school...my husband received his black belt from here…read moreand has been at this school for over 10 years and son for almost 5 years I think. Both have learned so much. The head instructor Wahsei is absolutely amazing...he is knowledgeable, patient and thorough. Discipline and confidence are some of the key things he tries to build into his teaching which I appreciate. I would recommend this school to anyone who wants to learn mixed martial arts!

Can't say enough wonderful things about this place! The instructors are amazing, they bring so much…read moreenthusiasm and knowledge to every class. My son has loved every single class and I really credit them with helping build up his confidence along with physical skills. Studio is bright and clean and the location is very convenient right on Great Neck behind the Starbucks. The pricing is very reasonable also.

This is by far the best place to enroll your children or self in martial arts in all of the…read moreVirginia Beach area. Both of my sons, throughout years of dedication and focus, received their black belts in Taekwondo. Mr. Burns does a phenomenal job making each individual student of his a better version of their self. Both of my boys are more confident, disciplined, and respectful thanks to the hard work they put in at Great Neck Martial Arts Academy.

We have followed Coach David since he was just a coach somewhere else. He is the best martial arts…read moreand self-defense coach on the entire East Coast. Our entire family practices Krav Maga here at Katalyst and we couldn't imagine ever going anywhere else. The practical applications for every move we learn is crucial. We work on self-defense techniques that would actually be needed in life versus competition submissions or cage fights. While all of the martial arts and self-defense classes are similar to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Judo, and MMA, we have our own style and flavor here.

Every woman and every teen needs to be taking classes here! I started over a year ago and my…read moreconfidence in protecting myself, and loved ones, as well as my situational awareness has significantly increased. I've learned techniques that can take a man 2x my size down. Weapons week and grappling are my favorite, but grips and holds are by far the most important to learn for everyday situations. The instructors are AMAZING - although it's a group class, they constantly give one-on-one critique because their #1 goal is safety first. I wish I was introduced to this studio sooner.

Kim's Hapkido is an unequivocally unique physical and educational experience for students of all…read moreages and abilities. For the past couple of years, our nephew and his other cousin have been students of Master Kim and Mrs. Candice. We've watched his levels of confidence and respect increase through the program(s). It was this building of character that encouraged us to put our own daughter into the studio. While martial arts is the root idea of the studio, the bigger picture is the development of the student- building them up, while utilizing physical and mental ideologies meant to nurture preexisting positive traits and improve that which is lacking. Herein, students are assessed and tested fairly and given every opportunity to succeed. They are treated like real people- as individuals working towards individual goals, in a team style environment. We've seen our daughter grow a ton in this studio. Her continued interest in the program has been the biggest surprise- she's young and usually easily distracted, but she WANTS to be involved in Hapkido! She's excited to go and wants to better herself. Her focus is improving and the physical outlet speaks for itself in these times! It should be noted that recently, Master Kim announced that he, himself has needed to step down due to health and family concerns. Longtime 2nd in command "Mrs. Candice" has taken over the studio and is already proving that she has the will and ability to continue Master Kim's teachings and the ideology of Hapkido to the the next generation of students. After seeing how important it was to the "new" managment (Candice had basically been running the place the entire time we've known her, so not really NEW) to provide continuity for longtime members, we had no reservations about allowing our daughter to pursue the next level of instruction under Mrs. Candice's tutelage. We are excited for what the future holds for our family at Kim's Hapkido- come out and see what the fuss is about!!!

Would have given a higher rating, if Master Kim was still around…read more Our family enrolled at Kim's Hapkido because of Master Kim's reputation, experience, and leadership as a seventh-degree black belt. We were therefore surprised and concerned to learn that the school would be taken over by an instructor whom we had personally seen only recently advance from red belt to first-degree black belt. The difference in rank and experience between the former and new leadership is significant, and it has reduced our confidence in the level of martial-arts and self-defense instruction being offered. Several more senior instructors with substantially greater experience no longer appear to be teaching at the school. We do not know why they stopped attending, but we wish they would return. We also had concerns about the testing and promotion process. Especially after the most recent graduation this past Saturday. Based on what we personally observed, some students advanced despite not consistently demonstrating proper kicks, techniques, or practical proficiency. It often seemed that receiving the next colored belt was emphasized more than earning rank through demonstrated ability. The school does promote manners, discipline, and responsibility, which we appreciated. However, we would not recommend it to families seeking serious martial-arts or practical self-defense training. Considering the cost, promotion standards, loss of senior instructors, and major reduction in leadership experience, we have decided to look elsewhere.

Before selecting to study Tai Chi at Jow Ga, I tried classes at two other studios. Jow Ga was…read moreeasily my first choice. The instructor Sifu Hoy Lee is a distinguished master whose experience and knowledge are extraordinary. Tai Chi helped me with my balance, stability and fluid movements. I wish early in my career as a trial lawyer I studied Tai Chi. There is a calm gracefulness, power and internal confidence that comes as my knowledge grows of this beautiful art form.

Was in town and wanted to train. The front desk receptionist was very polite and helpful and even…read moregot a Gi for me to use. Class was well structured and techniques thoroughly explained. Thank you Gustavo Machado BJJ. Would highly recommend.

Took some great photos for today's seminar and really like the atmosphere!…read more Great space for kids and adults and front desk attendee was cool!

Kids class is amazing. You can tell Coach Tyler absolutely loves what he does. Respect, routines,…read morecharacter building, and fun.

My 5-year-old daughter has been training jiu jitsu at Tidewater BJJ Virginia Beach for almost a…read moreyear and absolutely loves her classes. Coach Tyler is an expert in jiu jitsu and an experienced instructor, planning weekly lessons and breaking down techniques in ways that hold the kids' attention spans and reinforce what they have learned. He knows exactly when to encourage a kid to push harder and when to redirect to a different approach. The price is extremely reasonable ($125/month), especially with the discount on a six-month contract (down to $100/month). For that price, the kids have daily hour-long classes (Monday through Friday, 5-6pm) available to them, plus open mat time on Saturday (12-2pm) and Sunday (10am-1pm) and a 2-hour advanced kids' class on Saturday (2-4pm). I have also joined the adult class and received a family contract discount, bringing the total for the two of us to $175/month. For adults, they have morning classes (7-8am, Monday through Friday), evening classes (6-7pm Monday through Friday), and the aforementioned Open Mat time. I forgot how much I missed training until I restarted at Tidewater BJJ Virginia Beach after a 20+ year break.