PROGRESSIVE MARTIAL ARTS JANUARY 2018

SIFU’S CORNER Hello 2018! I’m so excited for the New Year and all the possibilities that it brings. Last year was an awesome year and I hope that 2018 follows the momentum that 2017 had at PMA. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season and a memorable time with your friends and family. Guaranteed you ate a little too much and indulged a little so it’s time to work that all off in the school!

December was pretty exciting at the school. Classes were packed and despite the cold weather and busy holiday season, you all seemed to make it in. That’s what I like to see…dedication and discipline! We were all able to take a little break at the end of the month to reset and reflect on the past year and all the blessings it has brought us. I’m thankful for so much and that time really helped me appreciate everything in my life. Our staff dinner also took place in December and it was wonderful to be able to sit with the staff and enjoy each other’s company and celebrate a great year.

So, as the New Year comes, so do exciting changes to the school. I’m excited to announce that we will be adding classes to the schedule so that we can give you more options for your training needs. We are making some new changes to each program as well. Please see inside for a more detailed description of these changes. Please see the enclosed NEW ADULT SCHEDULES. For any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to ask your instructors or front desk staff.

With regards to our Youth Program, we have added a Phase 3 Warriors BBC class (ages 10-15) on Sundays from 10:30am to 11:30am. This will begin on Sunday, February 6th.

Just as a reminder, the school will be CLOSED on Saturday, January 27 and Sunday, January 28th as PMA will be hosting the Sayoc Winter Sama Sama at the school.

We look forward to an exciting year!

THE STRAIGHT BLAST For the Students, Friends, and Families of

Progressive Martial Arts

Inside this Issue:Sifu’s Corner 1

Adult Curriculum / Schedule Updates 2

Student Spotlight: Eddie Pazmino 3

Upcoming Events 4

YOUTH INSERT

Students of the Month:Demetri Gatanas & Nikitas Sgantzos 1

Powerful Words: Goal-Setting 2

175-25 Horace Harding ExpresswayQueens, New York 11365

Ph: 718.461.0700 www.ProgressiveMartialArts.com

PROGRESSIVE MARTIAL ARTS JANUARY 2018

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ADULT CURRICULUM/ SCHEDULE UPDATES - PLEASE READ! Our goal is always to provide the best experience for our students. We do that through scheduling, curriculum, awesome instruction and progress checks. After evaluating our Foundations Program over the last 2 years, we have found that we needed to make some changes.

JKD / Mixed Martial ArtsWe have removed the foundations striking classes from the schedule. In its place, we are implementing a Phase system for our JKD/ Mixed Martial Arts program, where students will be ranked with a belt system. This is important to deliver a strong curriculum with progression that allows students to set goals. Therefore, we have instituted testing as part of this procedure. Our first test will be on Wednesday, January 24th at 9pm in lieu of the scheduled classes. After this date, testing will take place on the last Wednesday of every other month. The next test will be March 28th. The testing fee will be $35, which includes certificate, belt and administrative fees. Testing eligibility will be based on attendance, knowledge of curriculum and proper execution of technique. In the upcoming weeks, we will notify students of their eligibility. This will be an exciting change to the program, with a very comprehensive curriculum with depth. We look forward to the evolution of this program. Also, please note the time change to the Monday & Wednesday Phase 1 classes.

Muay Thai KickboxingAs stated earlier, we have removed the foundations striking classes from the schedule. New students will be able to jump right into Muay Thai upon evaluation in their introductory lesson. Current Foundations students may choose to go directly into Muay Thai without being evaluated for testing, as stated above. For now, during the morning Tuesday and Thursday classes, we will still have a more basic striking class alongside the Muay Thai. We will also be adding a Monday and Wednesday morning class in the near future. This class will emphasize physical fitness, above everything else. Be prepared for more contact and a higher intensity of training. If you choose to go in this direction, you may purchase the equipment package and Thai shorts at the front desk.

Brazilian Jiu-JitsuWe have also removed the foundations BJJ classes from the schedule. All current students may join in on any of the BJJ classes. We now have enough advanced students to help assist to develop the newer students. Regarding the morning BJJ program, we have added Monday and Wednesday No Gi classes at 11:30am. The Tuesday and Thursday Morning classes at 11:30 am will NOW be Gi.

Many of our changes are done with great thought and from student requests. We always hope to provide you with high quality instruction and the best experience possible on your martial arts journey. If you have any questions, please contact Sifu Nick Sacoulas at ns@progressivemartialarts.com. Also, if you want to add any classes to your current program, please contact the front desk.

JKD / MMAPHASE 16:00 - 7:00pm

JKD / MMAPHASE 16:00 - 7:00pm

JKD / MMAPHASE 112:00 - 1:00pm

JKD / MMAPHASE 2 & 38:15 - 9:15pm

JKD / MMAPHASE 2 & 37:00 - 8:00pm

JKD / MMAPHASE 2 & 38:15 - 9:15pm

JKD / MMAPHASE 2 & 37:00 - 8:00pm

JKD / MMAPHASE 18:30 - 9:30pm

JKD / MMAPHASE 18:30 - 9:30pm

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

BJJNO GI11:30am - 12:30pm

BJJGI11:30am - 12:30pm

BJJNO GI11:30am - 12:30pm

BJJGI11:30am - 12:30pm

BJJNO GI11:30am - 12:30pm

BJJGI 7:00 - 8:15pm

BJJNO GI 6:45 - 8:00pm

BJJGI 7:00 - 8:15pm

BJJNO GI 6:45 - 8:00pm

BJJGI7:00 - 8:15pm

MUAY THAI10:30 - 11:30am

MUAY THAI10:30 - 11:30am

MUAY THAI10:30 - 11:30am

MUAY THAI7:00 - 8:15pm

MUAY THAI8:00 - 9:15pm

MUAY THAI7:00 - 8:15pm

MUAY THAI8:00 - 9:15pm

MUAY THAI7:00 - 8:15pm

**NEW SCHEDULE EFFECTIVE JAN 29**

PROGRESSIVE MARTIAL ARTS JANUARY 2018

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STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: EDDIE PAZMINO Our morning students are a special group and if you have the pleasure of training in the morning, you know that it’s a wonderful time to train at the school. The morning students have created a welcoming and friendly atmosphere and it’s awesome to see their camaraderie. Eddie Pazmino is one of those students.

Eddie’s love of the martial arts comes from his dad. “He introduced me to Bruce Lee movies when I was a kid and as soon as I could I tried Tae Kwon Do ‘cause those schools used to be everywhere when I was a kid.” More recently, he was looking for a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu school on google because he had kept hearing about how BJJ changed Joey Diaz’ life. And this was a time where he needed a major change in his physical health and some discipline. So, in early 2016, he found PMA.

He says, “I was just lucky to find PMA. I’ve been training here a little under 2 years, which honestly doesn’t feel like a long time. I still get excited when I come in.” And his smile is contagious and he spreads his love of the arts to his fellow students. Since coming to PMA, Eddie has seen many benefits. “I dropped from 230 pounds to my lowest weight I been in years which was 183. I found a new love for BJJ that gave me confidence that I never new I could have, great friends, and something that makes my week easier to get through.”

Eddie credits his consistency with having a big goal and then creating small goals in his training. “For example,” he says, “I wanna be able to pull a move off, so I drill it a lot, ask questions while I'm drilling to make sure I get as many details. Then slowly try to add it in my rolls. Until I find myself naturally finding the position. Then ultimately finishing with the move, until it's perfect. Needless to say I haven't hit any of my big goals but it's a lot of fun working towards them. Lol!” HIs favorite part about coming to PMA? “Rolling with people that seem like BJJ Jedis and learning something from getting choked out!”

Outside of PMA, Eddie is a server while also simultaneously working as a tattoo apprentice. His goals with his training are to push his body by seeing what he is capable of doing, competing and hopefully teaching one day.

If you’re looking for inspiration to achieve your goals, look no further than Eddie. Congratulations, Eddie on all your achievements and we look forward to witnessing a lot more!

Aaden KretzuIsmat BarakMehran KhanDiego Rosa, IIITabish RiazThanasi KarakatsanisGeorgia Karakatsanis

John Del VecchioLionel Harris-SpenceTorin AlexanderCecilia D’AmbroseRalphael SepulvedaAlex Rojas

Hannah DiazAdam WangAdam LinEd SennaXiaoran (Lily) LiuMorgan TindalRosalina PInkhasovaPeter SpanosAutumn Hill

January Calendar➡ Jan 1: SCHOOL CLOSED➡ Jan 5: Explorer/Lil Dragon/Lil Warrior BBC/Lil Warrior Testing➡ Jan 6: Warrior Testing➡ Jan 24: Adult Foundations Striking & JKD Testing (8:00pm)➡ Jan 27-28: School Closed (Sayoc Kali Winter Sama Sama)➡ Jan 29: NEW ADULT SCHEDULE BEGINS!!!

Welcome New Students

JANUARY Birthdays1/1: Arti Dataram1/2: Star Torbert1/4: Aiden Robert1/5: David Aronbayev1/5: Jayden Jones1/6: Libi Aminov1/6: Fabrice Jeudy1/6: Matthew Williams1/7: Snir David1/8: Julius Baltonado1/9: Dhruv Soni1/10: Tyler Chan1/10: Erin Silva

1/11: Jackson Martin1/11: Nixon Wang1/13: Justin Kim1/13: Todd Sanzeri1/14: Ahmed Nattah1/15: Orion Alexander1/17: Jonathan Arroyave1/17: Branden Muratov1/18: Anthony Caddle1/18: Noah Nie1/18: Claire Trent1/19: Daniel Lee1/22: Kelvin Pena

1/22: Logan Puglisi1/23: Noah Medina1/23: Valerie Persaud1/24: Olivia Fleury1/24: Aisha Zaidi1/25: Mia Hung1/25: Deven Justin Rozario1/25: Judy Steiner1/26: Markella Barlis1/26: Gabriella Cruz1/26: Sasha Davis1/27: David Cantarero1/27: Steven Son

1/28: Kirra James1/29: Sophia Venturino1/29: Valerie Villar1/30: Khoa Nguyen1/30: Israel Weiss1/31: Konstantinos Barlis1/31: Timothy Hollenbeck

Thank You…Giorgi Kveladze for referring Tabish Riaz

Nixon Wang for referring Adam Wang

Welcome Back!Nicholas LaGregaAdriana LaGregaDwayne Tindal

Be sure to check out the PMA 2018

Annual Schedule for School Closures

This January, every 10 check-ins at PMA will help provide a winter coat to someone in need. We’re working with Causely and Soles4Souls to make it happen. You can add #keepwarm when you check in.For

more information about this month’s charity, check out www.soles4souls.org