Our Movement Approach & Philosophy

Movement is a hallmark of any living animal. If an animal doesn’t move for a long time, we may think it’s dead. And if an animal doesn’t move properly (a dog that limps, for example), we tend to conclude it is in pain or sick. Humans are animals, and as such we need to move and do so properly.

A good approach to movement is one that encompasses the full range of motion available to humans. We can’t fly like a bird, per se, so there is no sense pursuing that, but we can walk, crawl, jump, hang, swim, and a bunch more.

Depending on our situation, certain movements may cause pain, and sometimes the pain can be helped. Here, chiropractic adjustments, massage, and eating right can make a huge difference and open up a new world of mobility we may have thought lost.

Remember, movement is the means by which we explore the world, meeting other people, finding shelter, and obtaining food to further fuel our movement.

Personal Coaching

Let’s forget words like exercise and workout. Instead, let’s talk about movement and the fitness goals you have. Our trainers are MovNat® Certified and here to help you reach those goals. Lessons are by appointment only, and typically last for an hour. You can train one-on-one or with a small group. Remember, the investment you make in your health will help shape the way you experience the world.

Our MovNat® Certified Trainers:

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MovNat®

Breaking through the machine-centric gym paradigm can allow one to gain competence and balance in their motion, and be able to adapt to the ever-changing environment as they explore the world at large. This is where MovNat shines as a fitness education system: by providing progressions that highlight natural and functional human movement patterns, it allows one to advance their movement skills from the ground up.

Combatives

HAPKIDO is a traditional form of Korean martial arts.  It is known as an “Um/Yang” style (hard/soft) because it encompasses both the striking and kicking techniques familiar to many martial arts as well as the grappling and joint-locking skills found in others.  The Seonsul (“Sun-sool”) method of Hapkido training was developed by Master Jon Morey in 2003 after more than 15 years of training and study. Upon earning a 5th degree black belt in the Sun Moo Kwan style of Hapkido, Master Morey worked hard to make the 3,864 techniques of the system more closely reflect modern practices and applications. His background in the security industry and experiences with real world, non-sport violence taught him that many of the Hapkido skills were essentially useless for practical use. 

Master Morey, and several high ranking black belt practitioners such as Junior Master Erik Taipalus and Instructor Erik Fourie, began to apply a simple rule to the thousands of skills they had learned; if they had not personally used the skill effectively in real life it went to the end of the queue for instruction!  This exhaustive method left about 360 lessons (roughly 10%) of primary importance for training new students.  These skills are universal and applicable to all ages and genders, and form the basis of fundamental skills common to almost ALL martial arts styles and systems!

It will usually takes a new practitioner about two years to earn a black belt (demonstrating a thorough knowledge of the core 360 lessons and passing certain benchmarks of physical competence) and then up to several further decades can be spent learning the more esoteric and less practical martial arts skills found in the Hapkido Sun Moo Kwan. The Seonsul black belt may also wish to take his or her base knowledge and expand a certain aspect of the training such as taking the Closed Range (ground) skills and building upon them with Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Learn more at the GREAT LAKES BRAZILIAN JIU JITSU website, FACEBOOK PAGE and INSTAGRAM FEED.

Seonsul means “the Middle Way” and reflects the method’s aim of avoiding extremes in training. Martial arts training taken from “Strip mall” or “traditional” karate or TangSooDo/Taekwondo schools is next to useless for practical self-protection and not everyone has the ability or desire to train as a full contact MMA fighter (a very specific skill set in any case).  Seonsul training focuses on the striking and grappling aptitudes that all humans have naturally… combined with the Movnat™ system or as a stand alone practice, the Seonsul method is your key to the fitness, self-confidence,  and character discipline found in real martial arts training!

Our Combatives Team: