Secure your spot and get started today with our EXCLUSIVE offer!
This place is awesome ! I trained with Jackson for years, he's the best trainer around. Extremely knowledgable about the sport, super encouraging! Jackson makes training fun, while pushing me to do my best. I highly recommend !
Coach Jackson is a great instructor who takes on friendly students who are eager to learn. At no point did I feel uncomfortable with the speed or the level of difficulty and the group of people who I am getting to know all seem to enjoy the workouts due to the positive atmosphere that Coach Jackson has created.
Starting with no martial arts experience at all, I've been training at North Star MMA for about 2 months now. It's become something i look forward to every week. Coach Jackson has a great way of describing the intricacies of muay thai in exceptionally easy to understand ways. Lots of personal instruction and the other people in the gym really help with training. I really like the skills I've picked up so far all while getting a good workout in.
North Star MMA is by far the best training I have received as well as the best MMA facility. Fantastic atmosphere to learn, try, fail and ultimately succeed.
Jackson Galka's expertise and technical instruction easily qualifies him as a "fight nerd." However Jackson's passion and wit will have you kicking, striking and probably laughing too.
Jackson does a great job of integrating all levels of training with all levels of fighters.
Doesn't matter what level you are, you will learn each and every training session.
Top notch instruction, astounding technical expertise, challenging sweat soaked training sessions and a wicked sense of humor make for an unbeatable training academy.
I moved to Philadelphia in October and did a lot of shopping around for a new gym. After checking out NorthStar MMA, I quickly knew it was a perfect fit! I didn’t have much Muay Thai or BJJ experience at the time, but I felt both programs were very welcoming for beginners. Coach Jackson and the rest of the coaching staff have been super helpful in helping me to develop my skills and reach my fitness goals. Coach Jackson has created a great sense of community within the gym and does a great job of keeping the classes interesting, fun and effective! I look forward to each class and I couldn’t be happier to call NorthStar MMA my gym home!
Me and my brother came to train at North Star MMA, and we love it. Very good exercise, really good for getting in shape. Classes are very personal and with very good instructions. I would recommend this place to anyone who is interested in learning Muy Thai, BJJ and looking to get in shape in one of the best ways. It is also a very fun environment with great people.
Jackson is a huge asset to the combat sports community with years of experience as a fighter and trainer under his belt.
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: INITIATIVE WEEK OF 12/16/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Blue for Initiative! Parents, we’re gonna keep you in the dark on this one — we’ll announce the challenge in class. If your child wants to participate, but is unable to attend class this week, we can pass you […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: INITIATIVE WEEK OF 12/9/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Green for Technique! Students can earn a green stripe this week by completing a 10 minute at-home Jiu Jitsu training session (either solo or with a parent). Some ideas for this training session include: Rounds of Jiu Jitsu movements […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: INITIATIVE WEEK OF 12/2/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Red for Fitness! Students can earn a red stripe by completing the following workout three times over. This can be accomplished on the same, or multiple days. 25 Pushups 25 Jumping Jacks 25 Popcorn Squats Exercises do not need […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: INITIATIVE WEEK OF 11/25/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Blue for Initiative! Students can earn a blue stripe this week by simply being as helpful as possible during the Thanksgiving holiday. What that means is up to you, parents. If you need their help, just ask! Bonus points if […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: FITNESS WEEK OF 11/11/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Red for Fitness! Students can earn a red stripe by completing a cumulative total of 10 minutes in a plank position over the course of the week. Must be performed in increments no shorter than :60 in length. This […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: TECHNIQUE WEEK OF 11/04/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Blue for Initiative! Students can earn a blue stripe by hand writing a short note to a teacher or coach figure (BJJ coaches are exempt) in which they describe something they learned that they enjoyed. Easy peasy this week!
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: TECHNIQUE WEEK OF 10/28/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Green for Technique! Students must complete 10 rounds of a Muay Thai or BJJ game with a parent (each round roughly 1-2 minutes) over a seven day period. Keep it fun, keep it safe, and make sure you explain […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: FITNESS WEEK OF 10/21/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Red for Fitness! Students must complete the workout of the week on three separate days in order to receive credit. 50 pushups 50 squats 50 jumping jacks 10 breakfalls (safely!) These exercises can be broken down into manageable sets […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: INITIATIVE WEEK OF 10/14/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Blue for Initiative! Students must tidy up their room, top to bottom, and receive their parent’s stamp of approval. If their room is already kept tidy (by the way, great job!), students can choose another room in the house […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: TECHNIQUE WEEK OF 10/7/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Green for Technique! Students are tasked with watching a Jiu Jitsu or Muay Thai match (if they are in the kickboxing program) and reporting back. What did you observe? Were there any techniques you recognized? Did it look fun? […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: FITNESS WEEK OF 9/30/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Red for Fitness! Students can earn a red stripe by sharing a workout with a parent three times this week. Bonus points if you can teach them something fun!
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: FITNESS WEEK OF 9/23/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Blue for Kindness! Students can earn a blue stripe this week by completing three “Parent’s Choice” tasks or chores. These tasks or chores can be of any scale, but we suggest that parents choose challenging, but completable tasks.
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: FITNESS WEEK OF 9/16/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Green for Technique! Students can earn a green stripe by teaching a complete technique to one of their parents, then each drilling that technique a total of ten times. Make sure to explain the why behind the technique and any […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: FITNESS WEEK OF 9/9/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Red for Fitness! Students can earn a red stripe by completing a five minute workout each day for the entire week (Fit-Jitsu students are asked to perform this challenge on three separate days instead). THIS ONE IS INTENDED TO […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: INITIATIVE WEEK OF 9/2/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Blue for Initiative! Students can earn a blue stripe by cleaning up after dinner 3x/this week. You do not need to fully clean up (although that’s preferred), but definitely take the initiative to do as much as possible!
Hi Parents! As we approach the holiday weekend, I wanted to make sure to reach out and connect about the Fall season here at the North Star Academy and give some updates on what to expect as everyone settles back into their routines. All Jiu Jitsu classes will resume training in the gi (uniform) on […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: TECHNIQUE WEEK OF 8/26/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Green for Technique! Students can earn a green stripe by practicing their favorite move 10 times in a day, for three days. Parents — they may need help, so jump in! These do not have to be consecutive days.
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: FITNESS WEEK OF 8/19/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Red for Fitness! Students can earn their red stripe this week by performing a 3 minute (or more) workout in the morning over the course of at least 4 days. Students: start early in the week or you’ll run […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: INITIATIVE WEEK OF 8/12/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Blue for Initiative! Students can earn their blue stripe this week by setting aside a day to be “Initiative Day.” On Initiative Day, students must help with chores, tasks, or acts of kindness as they are able (and when […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: TECHNIQUE WEEK OF 8/5/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Green for Technique! Students can earn their green stripe by playing a minimum of 5 minutes of Jiu Jitsu games at home with a parent or sibling. Make sure to fully explain the rules, and also how to stay […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: FITNESS WEEK OF 7/29/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Red for Fitness! Students can earn their red stripe this week by completing the following workout: 20 Ninja Roll Ups, 20 Pushups, 20 Squats, and 20 Jumping Jacks three times through (for a total of 60 of each exercise). […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: TECHNIQUE WEEK OF 7/22/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Blue for Initiative! Students can earn their blue stripe this week by writing a short note or letter to a friend or family member, then sending it through the mail (envelope, stamp, and all). This is an easy one […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: TECHNIQUE WEEK OF 7/15/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Green for Technique! Students can recruit a parent or sibling (under parental supervision) to play one of our BJJ games for 5 minutes. Students must emphasize proper safety cues and also how to score.
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: TECHNIQUE WEEK OF 7/08/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Red for Fitess! Students can earn a red stripe on their belt by completing the following workout: 25 Pushups 20 Popcorn Squats :60 Plank Students must complete this workout 3 times in one day to receive credit.
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: TECHNIQUE WEEK OF 7/01/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Blue for Initiative! Students can earn a blue stripe on their belt by successfully completing 3 or more “Parent’s Choice” tasks within the week. We recommend simple, actionable tasks/chores like cleaning their room, clearing the table after the meal, […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: TECHNIQUE WEEK OF 6/24/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Green for Technique! Students must describe and teach two techniques to a parent and drill/practice for a minimum of 5 minutes. The longer, the better! Students will be expected to describe and name the techniques they taught and, potentially, […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: FITNESS WEEK OF 6/17/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is Red for Fitness! Students must complete the following exercise to receive their red stripe: 20 Squats 10 Pushups 20 Jumping Jacks Repeat x5 for a total of 100 squats, 50 pushups, and 100 jumping jacks. This workout must be […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: INITIATIVE WEEK OF 6/10/24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is blue for Initiative. Students can earn a blue stripe by successfully making their bed each morning for three days in a row. These must be three consecutive days, and the bed must be made with care and precision!
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: TECHNIQUE WEEK OF 6.3.24 The Junior Samurai Stripe Challenge this week is Green for Technique! Students can earn their stripe by practicing one of the new monthly skills 10 times at home, as well as being prepared to help explain or demonstrate the technique(s) in class.
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: FITNESS WEEK OF 5.20.24 The Junior Samurai Stripe Challenge this week is Red for Fitness! Students must complete a five minute workout each day for a total of five days — this will test their ability to stick to a routine! Students can select their own exercises during this five […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: INITIATIVE Week of 5.13.24 The Junior Samurai Stripe Challenge this week is Blue for Initiative! Students can earn a blue stripe by successfully completing three acts of initiative or kindness. Some ideas include: helping out with chores at home, making a new friend at school, taking time to call or reach […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: TECHNIQUE WEEK OF MAY 6th, 2024 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is green for Technique! Students can earn their green stripe by teaching a parent or sibling (under parent’s supervision) one of our Jiu Jitsu games — Grumpy Monkey, Heavy Blanket, Beetle Wrestling, etc — and playing for a […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: FITNESS WEEK OF 4.29.24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is red for Fitness! Students can earn their red stripe by completing a 1-2 minute plank each day for 4 days!
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: INITIATIVE WEEK OF 4.22.24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is blue for Initiative! Students can earn their blue stripe by comprehensively cleaning up after dinner for two nights in a row.
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: TECHNIQUE WEEK OF 4.15.24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is green for Technique! Students can earn their red stripe by successfully completing the following drills on a parent or sibling (under parental supervision): 10 Sweeps 10 Standups 10 Submissions/Guard Passes
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: FITNESS WEEK OF 4.08.24 This week’s Junior Samurai stripe challenge is red for Fitness! Students can earn their red stripe by successfully completing the following workout: 20 Sprawls + 20 Jumping Jacks (repeat x5 for a total of 100 repetitions for each exercise).
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: KINDNESS WEEK OF 4.1.24 This week’s Stripe Challenge is Blue for Kindness! Students can earn their blue stripe by cleaning their room — and keeping it clean for at least three days.
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE: TECHNIQUE WEEK OF 3.25.24 This week’s Stripe Challenge is Green for Technique! Students can earn their green stripe by drilling their favorite submission on a parent or sibling (under strict parental supervision). Students must also exercise best safety practices as well as educate their partner on how to tap […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE 03.18.24 THIS WEEK’S STRIPE CHALLENGE IS RED FOR PHYSICAL FITNESS Students can earn a red stripe this week by completing 50 pushups each day for a total of five days!
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE 03.11.24 This week’s challenge is blue for initiative Students can earn a blue stripe on their belt by successfully writing and sending a small note through the mail. Surprising a friend or family member with a handwritten note is a great act of kindness and is sure to put […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE 03.04.24 THE STRIPE CHALLENGE THIS WEEK IS green FOR technique Students can earn a green stripe this week by successfully drilling their favorite technique 25 times on a parent or sibling (with parental supervision). Students will be required to describe/name the technique being drilled and may be asked to […]
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE 02.26.24 THE STRIPE CHALLENGE THIS WEEK IS red FOR fitness Students can earn a blue stripe this week by successfully completing the following workout (in one session): 30 Jumping Jacks 30 Situps 1-Minute Plank (no knees touch the floor) Repeat 3 times through (a total of 90/90/3min)
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE 02.19.24 THE STRIPE CHALLENGE THIS WEEK IS blue FOr initiative Students can earn a blue stripe this week by successfully completing a chore (or chores/tasks) of their parents’ choice. Students must fully complete the task in order to be eligible for the stripe.
JUNIOR SAMURAI STRIPE CHALLENGE 02.12.24 THE STRIPE CHALLENGE THIS WEEK IS greeN FOR technique Students: teach your parent the guard position (remember, “small is STRONG and big is WEAK”). Then, drill 20 guard passes on your parent’s guard. A guard pass is when we clear the legs and secure the side mount, knee on […]
In one of my earlier emails, I told you that persistence is one of the five core tenets of martial arts. It’s a must for kids to learn to fulfill their obligations and stick to their commitments – but what makes them want to do that? In martial arts, we attribute it to one small […]
You know how good it feels to set your sights on a goal and then achieve it. It’s empowering and invigorating – and it’s not just a matter of chance. Goal-setting is an important life skill. The good news is that studying the martial arts can help your child learn: The importance of setting goals How to […]
There are a lot of emotional benefits available to kids who study the martial arts. We’ve talked about some of them already, but today I’m going to talk about one that sometimes gets overlooked: Martial arts classes are a great place to make friends! Think about how most of us make friends. Friendships often start with commonalities, […]
As adults, we think a lot about stress. Modern life is difficult. We worry about paying the bills, doing our jobs well – and we worry about our kids. That’s part of our jobs as parents, but we don’t want our kids to be affected by stress. It’s not good for them physically or emotionally. Still, […]
It’s time to talk about the emotional benefits of studying martial arts. Let’s face it – kids have a hard time managing their emotions. You’d be hard-pressed to find a parent who hasn’t had to deal with their share of temper tantrums. It’s exhausting. Also, consider the other side of the coin: it’s exhausting for […]
It’s time to talk about the fifth and final core tenet of martial arts. In many ways, this tenet brings all the other tenets together – and it explains why kids who study martial arts have a light in their eyes that other kids don’t. We call it Indomitable Spirit. What does it mean to have an indomitable […]
In the last couple of blog articles, we’ve been talking about the core tenets of martial arts instruction, and today’s tenet is one that a lot of kids need to learn. I’m talking about self-control. Control is something that’s hard for kids. Their brains and bodies aren’t fully developed, and from the time they’re babies, […]
You know how that saying goes, right? Try, try again! And that brings us to our next core tenet of martial arts: perseverance. Perseverance is what keeps us going when it would be easier to give up. It’s what makes us get up when we fall down – and it often means the difference between […]