The Academy of Traditional Asian Fighting Arts

09/07/2025

Great time in Calgary!

11/20/2024

After 25 incredible years at our current location, The Academy of Traditional Asian Fighting Arts is excited to announce that we’re moving to a new home this December!

We are looking forward to expanding our partnership with Jessie Swain of American Muay Thai and Monroe Hall of Monroe BJJ. Together, we’ll create a collaborative space that brings together a variety of martial arts disciplines under one roof, enriching the experience for our students and instructors alike.

We’re pleased to let you know that our current class schedule will remain unchanged during this transition. Currently, we expect classes to pick up right where they left off the first week in December. You’ll find the same dedication to tradition, quality instruction, and community that has been at the heart of our dojo for the past quarter-century, now in a new space designed for growth and collaboration.

We’re looking forward to sharing this exciting new chapter with our current and future students. We will be continuing to provide the same exceptional martial arts education as we have for the last 25 years.

Sincerely,

Scott Sobel

Chief Instructor, The Academy of Traditional Asian Fighting Arts

Join us in December at 8805 Orchard Tree Ln, Towson, MD 21286!

04/14/2024

Great job to everyone!

The Maryland State Sport Silat team had a great showing at the East Coast WEKAF (FMA) National Championships. Several team members qualified for the world ch...

04/04/2024

12/03/2023

Congratulations to our friends at Mt. Washington Aikido!

Keep up the great work!

MWA is pleased to congratulate Mike, 5th kyu, and Nick, 6th kyu, on their recent promotions. Both have been working hard on the mat and the skills and knowledge they’ve gained deserve recognition. Aikido is neither a short nor a straight road, and both are showing great dedication in their practice. We wish Sensei Jack Henry could have been here to promote them to their first rank, but he’s pleased they are continuing their journey.

08/25/2023

Join us in for our annual seminar!

We have three great instructors lined up and the weekend ia going to be awesome!

Please reach out if you have any questions!

08/17/2023

Join us on Saturday, August 26th from 9:30am-11:30am for an awesome seminar all in support of a good cause!

ATAFA and American Muay Thai in cooperation with Aikido of Hawaii International, Pentjak Silat USA, and Unimar Outreach Group are hosting a seminar to raise money for Maui with instruction from Scott Sobel and Monroe Hall.

Check out the flyer for more information! If you are unable to attend but still want to attend, follow the QR code in the flyer or click the following link: https://gofund.me/d9a44aef

All of your support is greatly appreciated!

07/17/2023

Sometimes you have to fail to . Last week on class we discussed the importance of in failure and how that relates to our .

The students were given a set of exercises designed to push them and their understanding of how to . As the attackers were given more freedom of movement, the number of times the defender was thumped on head increased. Afterwards, we sat down and discussed the lessons learned.

The kids that staying closer to an attacker brought them more success than running away and solid forward momentum combined with the correct angle got them out of the way of the strike or at least lessened its impact.

Plus had fun hitting each with foam !

Are you or your child interested in trying class? Contact us today!

07/07/2023

We had a great opportunity to work out with a guest visiting from our sister dojo in Florida!

One of the best things about training in martial arts is that no matter where you go, you will have a there!

Interested in in and joining our family? Come down to the dojo today!

07/04/2023

We have talked about Shomenuchi Ikkyo before and we will do so again! It is a core foundational technique for that demonstrates a ton of important concepts.

When using it for it is important to remember that Ikkyo will save you not because of ikkyo specifically but rather because it provides us with a framework upon which we can build our defense.

For example, moving offline, controlling the hand with with the knife, solid movements and tenkan turns alongside maintaining your calm helps to keep you in control of yourself and the situation.

That mindset is what is important. We practice to make everything natural and reflexive so that in real life we are able to respond effectively.

07/03/2023

We were working on dealing with yokumunchi the other night during class and our chief gave a great explanation of the of the .

You can either diffuse the energy by moving with the strike or enter in at the beginning of the strike. By taking the second choice it should make the attacker feel like they are caught on a door k**b and forced backwards.

This is done not through muscle and strength but rather picking up the strike at the correct angle and using good movement and body mechanics.

"Charging down the guns" aka entering in on a strike can be scary at first but it is also a very effective concept because the strike has not yet reached full power.

Interested in learning how to apply this concept? Come try a class in !