A Haven of Mastery and Mentorship at Bravé MMA…read more.. I'm a 46 year old blue belt with at desk job. BJJ has been the best thing that i have done in my life. Nothing worth doing is easy and this goes for BJJ. The rewards are the people you meet and the knowledge you gain and share. It is very fullfilling. Additonally, for several hours a day, focusing on BJJ takes my mind off of any other problems that I have whether its a stressful job or a bad day in general. They say meditaton is good, well....bjj is great and gets you in shape too). At Bravé MMA, my training experience has been transformed under the expert guidance of Coach Kenny and his older brother, Coach KB, an MMA champion. Coach Kenny's deep knowledge and approachable style in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, combined with Coach KB's exceptional skill in boxing, BJJ and Muay Thai, create an unparalleled learning environment. Their commitment to each student's growth, whether in competitive spirit or skill development, is evident in every class. The gym's focus on safety, personalized training, and fostering a positive, supportive atmosphere sets it apart, in my opinion. Unlike my previous gym experience, Brave MMA emphasizes skill and personal development over a transactional, attendance-based approach. This nurturing environment, where challenges are met with encouragement and individual strengths are honed, makes Bravé MMA a unique and rewarding place for anyone passionate about martial arts. Justin

honestly not enough great things can be said regarding this gym and the staff! The whole gym is so…read moresupportive, even the clients. Kenny is an absolute treasure and truly is a master of his craft. The coaching staff here are so passionate about what they're doing and it shows. Would highly recommend to anyone- my son loves their classes but they also have women's kickboxing as far as I know. After a few months of training I noticed a massive improvement in my son's confidence and his general mood as well. If you're looking for a gym that genuinely loves what they do and takes care of their members like family then look no further, brave is top shelf!

For the Best Aikido in Edmonton, you have to check out Northern Alberta Aikikai!! Sensei Tom…read moreDavidson is a great instructor! This is a very welcoming dojo with amazing people. If you would love to learn Aikido is a safe and friendly environment, this is the place you're looking for! The prices are unbelievable! Obviously this Sensei is doing this because he loves Aikido, not because he needs the money!! Check them out!!

I went to Neil Dunnigan's School of Karate back in 2000, when my girlfriend and I were thinking of…read moreenrolling her little 9 year-old son Josh in karate classes. At the time, the boy was a hyperactive, rambunctious little kid, temperamental and emotionally charged, and for his age and small size, pretty strong. He got into a lot of fights at school with other children. His mom and I thought it was a good idea to put him into something like karate, something that would give the child some discipline and instil within him some "focus" and stability. In addition to being a very naughty boy, Josh lacked a sense of confidence. He was a shy, nervous little kid, but full of energy and pent-up aggression. My girlfriend heard about Neil Dunnigan's School of Karate and asked me to call for more information. I was pleasantly surprised that Neil Dunnigan himself answered the call, and invited me to bring the boy to the school for a "meet and greet" the following evening. I have to say Mr. Dunnigan was very mannerful and friendly on the phone. Because of this, I didn't hesitate to accept his invitation and bring little Josh the next evening. Yelp readers will appreciate what I have to say next about our meet-and-greet, not only because of what happened to me right before the meeting, but how well Mr. Dunnigan was able to handle a very awkward and uncomfortable situation. About 20 minutes before arriving at the school, my girlfriend's little son viciously kicked me in the groin as I was trying to restrain and discipline him. Fortunately, I didn't live far from the school at the time (a short 5-10 minute drive), and I was still able to make it to the meeting with Mr. Dunnigan. I was in a lot of pain and almost decided to cancel the meeting, but I still went (the boy didn't go). Can you imagine? It was really awkward! Me, a fully grown adult man getting kicked in the "you-know-whats" by my girlfriend's naughty little child, and I was still going to meet the guy at his karate studio! I was in no shape to talk or sit still (my um, balls (testicles) were aching like hell), and I felt uncomfortable and very awkward. Despite the situation, Mr. Dunnigan made me feel at ease with his sense of humor and friendliness. I remember sitting in the chair moaning and thinking "Oh my balls! My balls! My aching balls!!" I couldn't sit still, not even for a minute. When I told Mr. Dunnigan that getting kicked in the groin was "horribly paralyzing" which made me drop to my knees "in an instant", he said to me with a chuckle, "Yep, that's what a kick in the groin does." I chuckled in kind, though I have to admit, it was half-hearted because I was still in excruciating pain. No wonder they teach "the kick in the groin" in self-defense/anti-rape classes! The boy applied the tactic on me very well. Agh! On the serious side, Mr. Dunnigan was able to answer all my questions calmly and clearly. He told me all I needed to know about their children's classes and scheduling, and how karate could instill self-confidence and self-dignity in the boy while teaching him self-defense at the same time. I came away very impressed with the meeting, but even more so with Mr. Dunnigan's calm, friendly, and respectful demeanour. No wonder his school has been around for more than 30 years. I sense a great dedication from the guy and his ability to serve Edmontonians in the true karate tradition of commitment and honour. I highly recommend this school to anyone who is seriously thinking of enrolling their child in martial arts. I did, and my girlfriend's young child (um, the little ballbreaker) really benefitted from it.

Amazing Instructor, very knowledgeable. Highly recommended. Love to do training with him again and…read moreagain.

After taking both kidlets here for Open House day last month, we unexpectedly signed up both of…read morethem for a two month trial. I talked with some of the other parents and one who had been going here for two years with his daughter. He mentioned that they had tried 2 other Jiu-Jitsu locations before his young daughter felt at home here. From the moment you meet Sensei Stephane Dore, you know you've come to the right place for little kids. He's warm and inviting and my kids (4 & 7) were immediately at ease with him. I was surprised that he jumped right into teaching flips and falls for the introductory class at the open house - impressive! Parking is limited (Riel Industrial) but not impossible - be sure to park in the allowed areas. I like how the big roll up industrial doors allow for lots of fresh air and light in the dojo - and the mesh netting to keep out bugs is a nice touch. I had initially only thought about signing up our older child but with a 50% discount on additional family members, I quickly hopped on board and gave in to my pleading 4 year old for the Little Kids Ninja Class as well :-) I'll be sure to write an update in a few months time...

The Trophy Wife and I saw that St. Albert Jiu-Jitsu was offering a free class for kids. Since our…read morechildren have mentioned an interest in the martial arts for a while now, we quickly took advantage of the offer and enrolled our seven-year old daughter and four-year old son in the session. Stephane, their instructor was absolutely fantastic with the kids! He showed them breathing techniques and got their blood pumping by showing them how to fall properly ,holds and grappling maneuvers. They even had a little grappling session at the end of the class! Even though there was only eight kids in this particular session, Stephane had another instructor there as well, to help out with not only the demonstrations, but also so all the kids got some nice individual attention. Both Stephane and his colleague (I am so sorry that I didn't catch his name) had a wonderful demeanour to them and they treated all the kids with respect and in turn, they seemed to treat their instructors the same way back. We liked the atmosphere so much that we signed up both of our rugrats for two months and they were both ecstatic! We'll see if they keep up the interest in their lessons come November. Regardless of how our own kids' martial arts interest turns out, if you are interested in Jiu-Jitsu, you can't go wrong with Stephane at St. Albert Jiu-Jitsu.

According to ATA 'If you are looking for martial arts training in West Edmonton or Riverbend, then…read moreyou are in the right place! Taekwondo! Krav Maga! Brazilian Jiujitsu!' I concur ! A great club, family & community environment. Master, Mr & Mrs Ford, Master V & the extended team of leadership are more than instructors. Offering, support in discipline, integrity and life long skills. Jedi events, movie nights, self defence & everything in between. We are continually inspired with this locations event planning and attention to excellence within the art. Specifically their involvement w/ https://bravegirlsclub.com. Inspiring to empower our Daughters, Mothers & all the women in our lives !!! I cannot give ATA MEADOWLARK / RIVERBEND ENOUGH STARS! Verdict: CHECK THEM OUT !

Careful with this place. They have a way of wheeling people in and then they won't let you cancel…read moreand the pricing is very tricky to understand. Even though they did not tell me the price of the program until after we started and paid for the bag, they will not give a refund!. Not to mention the head master kevin ford was charged with sexual assault and has popped up in my garage at 930 at night when we were relaxing with the door open. Creeps me out. Just watch out for this one. Been there OVER 2 years and I told them I wanted to cancel when the cobtract was up, so then they told my son while he was there with his dad without me, all about weapons training and how cool it would be if he stayed. So not cool... i felf for my son so they made me buy all this new stuff he needed $500 and then tell me AFTER that they will not give a refund and that the course actually costs 2000 not 1300. Yes, i should have paid more attention, but they have a responsibility to be clear on what they will be taking off your credit card! I even asked them before we committed to anything what the TOTAL charge would be on december 7, and they did not answer me, they just avoided the question. Then when I sent my husband to grab the bag, they got him to sign a prefilled contract while he was busy helping the boy try stuff on! He didn't know a thing about what was going on. very sneaky. High pressure sales tactics

If you are looking for a work out facility and you don't have family members attending the various…read morejujitsu classes, then this is an unwise choice for cross fit or boot camp classes. First, the martial arts classes are their main focus hence there are a small number of cross fit offerings (4), and no Saturday classes. The space for cross fit has shrunk considerable, especially with the late 2017 renovations and is now crammed into a small area, bordered by tall partitions that restrict air flow-overly hot work out conditions are a constant in the summer months. The increase in juitsu classes has created over capacity issues in the women's changing room, and parking. Second, I ran into problems trying to cancel my membership. In spite of paying the higher fee for access to all workouts, a medically diagnosed bad knee restricted my attendance to cross fit, yet i encountered problems in my attempts to have my monthly fee reduced. When I did email in my cancellation, in 2016 to the registered company address, I requested confirmation and follow up. There was no follow up to my request. I assumed I was on a higher fee monthly contract and I was to learn I was wrong. When i sent in my cancellation, in November 2016, i ensured a hard copy of my letter was left at the front desk. I later learned that when you sign a contract, you have to request a copy, it isnt provided automatically. For current contract holders, be aware there were two sections to the cancellation policy in my contract. There header: Cancellation, stipulates that the request had to be in writing and not verbal. Fair enough. However, buried some distance from the Cancellation header is the stipulation that both parties are required to sign a release form, a registered letter won't due. A lawyer friend pointed out a problem with this policy, what if they refuse to sign it? When I approached Legends about having a look at this release form, I was informed I could review it on their Ipad, but otherwise they were unable to provide me with a copy of the release form ahead of time, I had to sign it first. To wrap up, Legends did offer me a reduced rate for the remaining 4 months, and I took advantage of the medical leave policy, which helped compensate for the two years of overpayments. Last week i attended the final week of classes for April, I'd been out of town for the previous 3 weeks. When I was heading into the class, I was challenged, in a public venue, for being there and accused of not paying any 2018 dues. My bank account shows that the 2018 fees were paid, up front, on the first and third week of January. In spite of my assurances that I had paid, I was ordered not to return. Not the most stellar customer service treatment for someone who has been a member of facility for 7 years. But more disconcerting is their contract management protocols, I would not have expected this from a facility that prides itself on its adherence to martial arts values.

I came here for a new level of bootcamp through @FitsetPass. The bootcamp was small (5 people…read moreincluding myself). The instructor was encouraging and firm, and didn't push you too far. He helped explain the exercises, provided alternatives to accommodate a sore back from work, talked to me about proper nutrition. Overall, great workout! I wore my heart rate monitor and did I ever work!

I'm a bit obsessed with Fitset. It's no contract, which is amazing, and if you're like me and you…read moreneed variety in your workouts (sometimes climbing, sometimes yoga, sometimes weight training, etc), it's almost definitely cheaper than having separate memberships (or scouring Groupon for gyms like I used to do before I found Fitset). You have access to normal things like spin and barre, and then fun weird things like surfing, aerial yoga, pole classes, trampoline fitness... I've been a member for almost a year and I'm constantly impressed with the new additions to the schedule. I highly recommend giving it a try (which is easy, since they have a free trial period)!

Coach Keenan was very passive aggressive, slightly rude and you could tell took every opportunity…read moreto do skills rather than actually teach. He was not encouraging and focused on the things that we could not do. A lot of the equipment was quite run down and taped together with duct tape, etc. Others coaches were fairly nice and encouraging. I definitely think Keenan and the other female coach took it way too seriously.