Our Programs & Classes

Students and enthusiasts of Kenpo have many reasons for their interest in this and other martial art styles. Some are drawn to the physical fitness and weight-loss aspects of training. Others seek to add discipline and self control to their lives. While still others are concerned about safety and self-defense.

Whether you are interested in our programs for mental or physical well being, PKA Karate Academy offers a number of programs that will fit your developmental needs and your busy schedule as well. Click here to view our Weekly Class Schedule.

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Adult Advanced Kenpo Adults currently have access to an astounding 16 group classes each week broken down into areas: Kenpo & Kickboxing. All classes are specifically designed for each level of martial artists. Traditional drills such as: stances, kicks, punches, movement drills, combinations, self-defense, pad drills, katas, sparring and ground work are developed based on what the student needs for current progression. Adult advanced classes are open to Orange Belts and above. In this class, a mixture of techniques for advanced students are reviewed and / or taught. All classes are fun, fast paced and high energy. All sparring and contact in all adult Kenpo classes are continuous contact with emphasis on safety. Adults initially spar with instructors only, and then as their skill level increases; students are permitted to work with other students under strict supervision. All students wear protective gear including: mouthpieces, hand and foot gear, cup / supporter for men. Head gear, chest protectors and forearm / shin pads are also always made available and suggested for adult classes. Once students are on a designed training program all individuals have access to the Academy for practice and workouts anytime the school is open without additional mat-fees, provided there is no interference with any group or private lessons being taught. All students progress at their own speed and level. Students are not required to test until the instructors, as well as, the students are confident with all information that needs to be demonstrated prior to advancement.

Adult Beginner Kenpo This adult beginner Kenpo class is designed for new students that have little to no experience. These classes are designed to help get the newbie over the "learning curve" in their training while taking the stress and pressure off of being in a large class with advanced students. Normally once a student reaches the rank on Orange belt, they are ready to graduate into the adult advanced class.

Contact Kickboxing / Sparring Kickboxing Classes are normally 45 minutes and are designed for conditioning with emphasis on bag and pad work, as opposed to non-safer air work. Students are initially and gradually worked into safe and more practical sparring drills and scenarios with emphasis on contact with safety. All students need to have safety gear from PKA in order to be enrolled in this class. The student receives a full-body workout that they can control based on their daily energy level. No two classes are the same. Through the use of a timer for specific drills, classes can be structured so that beginner, intermediate and advanced students may workout in the same class. Timed drills enable an individual to pace their workout based on the type of day they are having or intensity level they wish to attain that day. For example, in a 45 seconds drill, a student wishing to have a high impact workout may do 40-50 repetitions of a particular drill on a bag, whereas someone looking for a lower impact class may only do 8-10 reps. Also a beginner student, just “learning the ropes” may be working on a combination of 1 or 2 techniques in a give timed drill, while a more seasoned student may be working a 5-7 technique combination during that same time period.

Little Dragons Children at The PKA Karate Academy can begin group classes as early as the age of four. These classes are specifically designed for our youngest students. A Little Dragon is 4, 5 or 6 years old and these upcoming leaders have weekly classes that are 30-minutes in length. Like our older children’s classes, our Little Dragon class is broken down specifically based on training drills or material needing to be learned for that day. Classes consist of basic fundamentals such as: stances, kicks, punches, movement drills, self-defense, combinations, pad drills, katas and hands-on sparring. Although, at this age, more time is spent with basic strengthening, coordination, balance, eye contact and movement. There is also a very strong discipline element at this age with a major emphasis placed on respect and the family unit. The main result being CONFIDENCE! All students have a bound syllabus for rank testing, which is reviewed weekly and along with a student’s personal notebook, guides both staff and student in aiding advancement and proper progression. All classes are taught with enthusiasm and positive reinforcement, treating all children as individuals and meeting them each at their own levels. Students progress at their own speed and level. Students are not required to test until the instructors, as well as, the student is confident with all information that needs to be demonstrated prior to advancement. The required training syllabus for the Little Dragons is broken down in a very easy to learn and retain manner. There is also a lot of fun to be had in our Little Dragon program. Once the children reach the age of seven, they are then graduated to the regular children’s group class. Regardless of age breakdown or class program, the PKA curriculum is PROVEN and produces RESULTS!

Childrens Kenpo Children at The PKA Karate Academy can begin group classes as early as the age of four. As a full-time martial arts school, all children (7-12 yrs old) have three classes per week available. Even though the staff at PKA recommends one to two classes per week, with the busy family schedules of today offering three weekly options is the best guarantee of achieving this goal. Each class is broken down specifically based on training drills or material needing to be learned for that day. Classes consist of basic fundamentals such as: stances, kicks, punches, movement drills, self-defense, combinations, pad drills, katas and hands-on sparring. All students have a bound syllabus for rank testing, which is reviewed weekly and along with a student’s personal notebook, guides both staff and student in aiding advancement and proper progression. PKA has always been known for its cutting-edge hands-on street training consisting of contact drills and sparring. Sparring is done on a continuous contact basis with emphasis on safety. All children must wear full protective gear including: head gear, mouthpieces, gloves, boots and cup / supporter for boys. Chest protectors and shin / instep pads are also available for the children. PKA Karate staff always promotes the family unit with respect in school and at home. Report cards are brought in and reviewed regularly with children and families soon learn that they can lean on the PKA staff for any help or issues outside the Academy as well. Although discipline is developed and strictly enforced in all classes, children also realize that there are certain times in class for conditioning through fun and games as well. All classes are taught with enthusiasm and positive reinforcement, treating all children as individuals and meeting them each at their own levels. All students progress at their own speed and level. Students are not required to test until the instructors, as well as, the student is confident with all information that needs to be demonstrated prior to advancement.

Jr. Adult Kenpo With close to three decades of professional instruction and experience, we at PKA realize that teenagers are a very special group of individuals that both warrant AND deserve some extra attention. Most schools just “throw” teens into either their adult program, or even worse lump their teens into a children’s program. During these teen years, students are normally finding themselves “stuck” between getting out of the mold of a child, yet still maturing and entering into adulthood in a positive manner. With peer pressure and the enormous additional stressors that teenagers have in their daily lives, offering them their own class is only going to help them grow into the mature, positive role models and leaders that we KNOW they can be. (And that we EXPECT them to be.) Being placed into an adult class can be scary for a 13 or 14 year old in a group setting that is physically harder and faster paced. Besides drilling and training with students double or triple their ages, keeping up can be quite overwhelming. Also, when a teen is placed in a class with seven or eight year olds, they quickly loose interest by being slowed down in order to keep pace with the natural flow of much younger students. Their age and size is also counterproductive to the younger children in the same manner that a teen may feel training with a 35+ year old. Our Teen Program is used to develop leaders while maintaining the standards of our curriculum and keeping discipline a solid constant. We at PKA realize that there are a LOT of diamonds in the rough in this group of students and many future teachers can emerge from seeds planted during these years. Regardless of age breakdown or class program, the PKA curriculum is PROVEN and produces RESULTS!

Instructors Workout Instructors Workout is one of many programs offered at PKA Karate Academy. Call us at (412) 531-4411 to get more information about this and other programs we offer.

Private Sessions Private classes are available in both one-on-one and semi-private options. Most privates are 30 minutes in length. The exciting thing about private lessons is that the student has a lot more control over the lesson and syllabus worked on for that day. Naturally, the student can customize lessons with their instructor’s input and fine-tune or focus on specific areas of need. Private or semi-private lessons are also great for more shy or introverted students who possibly are still a bit timid to immediately jump into group classes at the beginner levels. Student’s in-group classes also have freedom to augment their training with a periodic one-on-one lesson to develop specific areas, challenging techniques or review prior to testing. Private lessons are scheduled weekly based on a student and instructor’s schedule.

Adult Open This adult class is open to all ranks that are available with their work and family schedules in order to offer another afternoon class option.

Please Contact Us if you have any questions about our programs or would like to know about other programs that may not be listed here.