Adults & Teens

Pyon Moo Do is the life work of Sabumnim James Espy, Head Instructor and founder of Traditional Martial Arts Academy.  He began with a simple question:  How do you train people to become highly-skilled, well-rounded martial artists who are capable of adapting to a rapidly changing world?

He understands that ancient martial traditions hold great power and wisdom, but that they lose effectiveness if they can’t be applied to a modern context.  So, Mr. Espy has striven to take the best attributes of the classical arts that he loves so much and adapt them to the needs of today’s world.

• Form: This is the study of movement and involves the practice of solo exercises.  These exercises introduce the fundamentals of striking.  This is also the primary source of developing the athletic martial arts attributes of power, flexibility, endurance, posture and balance.  Over the course of the curriculum, your body will transform!
• Tactile Skills: As your body transforms, you will need to transform your sense of what an opponent’s body is doing.  Whether they are striking, grabbing or trying to take you to the ground, you need to have a “sixth sense” of what their intention is.  This is done through tactile sensitivity drills that are practiced with a partner.  These flowing drills include striking, close-quarter weapons such as knives and sticks, stand-up grappling (clinch), and groundwork.  These drills are a lot of fun!
• Self Defense: These sets teach the fundamental techniques of response to attacks.  Once you learn a technique, then you will challenge the technique with increasing resistance with a partner until you are able to confidently apply it under stress.  These techniques are further refined with the athletic development from Form training and with the tactile flow and intelligence that comes from Tactile Skills training.
• Sparring: This is the laboratory for martial arts training.  Form, Tactile Skills and Self Defense all come together in the dynamic, unpredictable arena of sparring.  Sparring in Pyon Moo Do is not competitive.  You are not trying to beat your partner, nor vice versa.  Instead, you are working with your partner to challenge your skillset and deepen your understanding of technique.

Our MMA striking program draws from a variety of sources, including traditional arts (from Korea, Japan, Philippines and Thailand) and more modern concepts and tactics (MMA, boxing, military and street combatives).

Instruction is very technical, but expect to sweat. Improving your athleticism and fitness is an essential part of our mission in this program.

Expect a fun atmosphere with great people. Sparring is control, safe and part of each class, though it is voluntary. If you are uncomfortable with sparring, you will have the opportunity to polish your technique and physical conditioning with drills.

Self Defense ATX is a Traditional Martial Arts Academy program dedicated to teaching the skills of personal safety, empowerment and wellness. Our passion for our students and community can be expressed in the following principles:

• To cultivate a safe and welcoming community that encourages personal growth and resilience through physical self defense training.
• To emphasize non-violent strategies for solving conflict.
• To give back to our neighbors in the greater Austin area through volunteerism and fundraising.