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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.
Happy Monday Team! We had an amazing turnout this Saturday for our Fall PRO/AM Invitational Sparring Meetup. Over 55 athletes, with over 230 combined bouts, were in attendance from the region’s top competitive gyms. Getting together for some friendly but hard rounds is what it’s all about! We’re already halfway through September (and the beginning […]
Happy Monday Team! It’s going to be pretty smooth sailing these next two weeks until we return to action at the end of the month for the WKA National Kickboxing Championships in Harrington, Delaware. The distance and tournament format of this event doesn’t make it very spectator friendly, but we’ll keep you posted […]
Happy Monday Team! Back to work after a long but successful weekend in New York. Big thanks to the crew that spent their entire day driving in and out of NYC to catch Tre and Gianna make the walk into the ring. That’s a huge effort and I know the fighters are so […]
It’s a tale as old as time — the new student wants to work on the advanced skills, but the coach stresses the basics. In two decades of training and teaching, I’ve come to just accept that this is the way things usually are. And that’s ok. But consider this: you can’t […]
Because eventually, every round will be become a hard round. If you walk head first into a challenge, you have already won. Whether you “win” or “lose” the exchange is secondary. There are going to be hundreds, if not thousands, of hard rounds between you and whatever your goals are. You might […]
Happy Monday Team! Rolled the dice on Saturday’s weather not being up to par and lost that one — after a torrential downpour it actually turned out really nice! Oh well, that’s how it goes.. there is probably a good “Monday Mindset” topic in there somewhere 🙂 We’re rescheduling our 6 Year […]
Happy Monday Team! Next weekend is our big Six Year Anniversary Party at Attic Brewing Company! Make sure to join us from 2-5pm (or later, you party animals) in the beer garden. Friends, family, strangers, interstellar aliens — everyone’s invited! All attendees will receive a free raffle ticket as well (winners will […]
Before I got into MMA (and for a very long time throughout my MMA career as both a competitor and coach), I worked in the landscaping and gardening industry. I’ve always been fascinated by the similarities between seemingly extremely disparate things. On the surface, martial arts and gardening are in totally different categories. […]
Happy Monday Team! Thank you to all the students and staff who came out on Saturday night to support Coach Tre as he picked up a dominant and exciting win at Gut Check Championships! As a coach it’s always really fun to see your athletes specifically execute skills that have been rehearsed throughout […]
Happy Monday Team! We are fresh off a great week of training and competition, with six of our athletes participating in a sparring meetup at one of our sister schools. Joe, Nicole, Chris, Makhi, Dom, and Sam all performed excellently and demonstrated solid technique, good composure, and great sportsmanship! We have Trevon […]
Happy Monday Tuesday Team! I hope everyone had a great weekend. I spent the past few days in the nation’s capital celebrating a family wedding. No complaints, but I’m ready to get back to the mats tonight and keep things moving forward. On deck, a number of our students will be participating in the […]
We often think of ourselves as static, unchanging individuals. We can internalize failures and believe that certain achievements, feelings, or lifestyles are completely out of our reach. In short, we see ourselves and much of the world around us set into a state of unchanging permanence. Obviously, there are some limitations on what […]
Happy Monday Team! We’re only one week away from the unofficial start of Summer and it’s crazy how fast this year has been going by! But looking back on it, we’ve accomplished so much and really improved the overall level on the mats. I’m excited about what the next half of the year […]
In our dreams and aspirations, we tend to focus on achieving something close to perfection — an unblemished record, a perfect physique, a rigorous diet free of cheat meals and hiccups. But perfection cannot be achieved in the real world. Our ideals are like cardinal directions in that we can orient ourselves by […]
Muay Thai is known as the “Art of 8 Limbs,” referring to the pairs of hands, elbows, knees, and feet that we can use to systematically break down our opponents. As a competitive fighter, I jokingly referred to Muay Thai as the “Art of 7 Limbs,” as on any given day I’d have […]
Happy Monday Team! Hard to believe it’s already May, right? We are nearly halfway through 2023 (and it feels like we just celebrated New Years). Time flies when you’re having fun I guess 🙂 In April, we debuted a new monthly competition: the Shout Out Show Down. Both the author, and the subject, […]
We had two massive competitive events in a 24 hour span this past weekend. While the team overall did a great job, we ran into some issues dealing with pressure on the whole. Sure, becoming so strong and powerful that you can basically crash through every obstacle is a great way to win […]
Your first round is never your best round, is it? It takes awhile to get your body loose, limber, and attuned to the demands of combat sports. Most athletes find their “flow” a little deeper into a training session, when everything starts to sync up. This is especially true on days where you […]
That’s it. There are no secrets to success. All the information you could ever need in order to be successful in combat sports is available, mostly for free, at a moment’s notice. It’s the implementation of this information that creates success. Small, daily habits turn into large, life changing results over time. […]
Words are a source of power. The right words can empower us and set us up for success. The wrong words can strip us of our agency, or put us on a path that only leads to failure. They shape the world we live in — the very way we see and interact […]
Procrastination is like a rocking chair, it gives you something to do but doesn’t get you anywhere. And, unfortunately, it is anemic to development — especially in the martial arts. There really is no “tomorrow.” In many ways, the future is an illusion. Yes, the future will come, but no, conditions will […]
Happy Monday Team! April is shaping to be a competitive and busy month! Make sure to mark the following dates on your calendar: 4/7 – 4/9: Adjusted Class Schedule due to the Movement Archery Workshop hosted at North Star MMA (details TBA) 4/21: Warrior’s Cup Full Rules Muay Thai in Queens, NY 4/22: Grappling Industries […]
Happy Monday Team! It’s FIGHT WEEK! Gianna’s hard work will come to fruition this Saturday night as she squares off for the USKA Full Rules Muay Thai championship belt. Gianna is currently #2 in ticket sales, but if you’re not first you’re last 🙂 So let’s make her #1! You can grab tickets […]
Quick one for you today! We often think of mastery as being a destination at the end of a long path. And, in some ways, it is. But mastery is more a process of calibration than it is a journey towards a spot marked off on a map. As such, we will […]
Happy Monday Team! Big congrats to our Jr. Samurai alumni and also assistant instructor, Madison, on her clean sweep this weekend at NAGA. Madison has been significantly maturing as a grappler over the last few months especially, and showcased an intelligent and aggressive style en route to winning both her divisions. She is, […]
Ha, I know some of you have seen me juggling like a clown here and there in the gym. So, why juggling? Aside from the surprisingly deep metaphorical similarities that juggling has to life, jiu jitsu, fighting, or whatever, it’s also a pretty simple yet difficult task. As a coach, I often […]
One thing’s for certain, if you attempt something beyond your current level of comfort, there is a good chance you will fail (or, as the kids say, “Take the L”). You absolutely have to get used to the feeling of losing. Losing out on other opportunities. Losing out on junk food. Losing rounds […]
Happy Monday Team! Today starts the debut of our new Striking 101 Curriculum! While the coaches and I are definitely excited to move forward with our new approach, the reality is that on the mats it won’t be too different 🙂 Before we get into the details of what’s changed, I want […]
“I’ll see if I can make some time to ABC..”, “I’ll see if I can find the time to XYZ… Look, time cannot be created or destroyed. And it’s everyone around us — we don’t have to find it, either. Pay close attention to how we structure our excuses! Time cannot […]
Happy Monday Team! And, yes, we are open as normal today. What else would we be doing on a wonderful Monday evening 🙂 ? Tonight is also the start of a small change in our Striking 101 program. From here on out, shin guards are required for all Striking 101 classes. […]
Happy Monday Team! We are in the process of organizing some competitive events this Winter, so stay posted for some cool announcements! In the meantime, we’ve made some small changes to the schedule. Please make sure to familiarize yourself with the class lineup and keep NorthStarMembers.com bookmarked for reference! We are also […]
Regardless of your religious or spiritual beliefs, the Christmas holiday is important in the sense that it also marks the Winter Solstice: the turning point between the shortening and lengthening of daylight hours. As a martial artist, especially one who pursues competitive success or exceptional advancement, you will have cycles of both dark and […]
In any combat sports competition, we can often say that the person who made the second to last mistake is the winner. This is especially true for submission grappling or no-holds-barred fighting, where victory is absolute. The key, then, isn’t to be flawless. That’s impossible, and also unnecessary. Rather, the key is to be […]
Happy Monday Team! One final push left this year with the holidays, and then we’re officially in 2023 with a wiiiiide open schedule to really get back to business on the mats. I have two updates for you in this newsletter — first, a quick note about some upcoming changes in 2023, and […]
Monday Mindset: The Progress Spiral It’s all about perspective. So much of our practice is routine — in a sense, we are running the same route over and over again. Rope, shadowbox, pads, spar. Warmup, drill, roll. Day in, day out. The scenery doesn’t really change too much and it can be easy […]
Three years ago, almost to the day, I underwent a serious shoulder reconstruction to repair a torn labrum on my left arm. So today’s Monday Mindset feels appropriate. When you have a chronic, debilitating injury, you rehabilitate it. To re-habilitate is to come back and build new habits, essentially. To “re-habit.” To create a […]
Happy Monday Team! I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving Holiday this past week. It was a great opportunity to relax, reflect, and rest. We’re moving into a slower season here at the academy. As such, our curriculum for our intermediate classes will be more relaxed. If you have any skills, drills, or […]
Happy Monday Team! We are fresh off a successful weekend at Tap Cancer Out! We placed second overall in single-team fundraising with over $10,000 raised. That’s an incredible amount and I am so impressed with the team’s efforts to not only prepare for competition, but also apply themselves to the fundraising in parallel. […]
When we first start something difficult, it’s like we’re at the base of a giant mountain. With very little experience or understanding in how to navigate the steep inclines, we start plodding our way upwards. The journey in the beginning is full of confusion, doubt, discomfort, and occasionally even embarrassment. But after a […]
With Halloween all around us, it seems appropriate to talk a little bit about “faking it till you make it,” or the act of putting on a facade (the word comes from the same root as “face,” by the way). Typically we apply a negative meaning to “putting on a facade,” as if the act […]
Happy Monday Team! It’s crazy to think we are already at the end of October, 2022 — and yet, here we are! We have a bunch of SPOOKY events coming up in the next week, so make sure to come out and get in the spirit with us. First up, we […]
Unlike more traditional martial arts, which have highly regimented curricula and skills that must be learned and demonstrated for each successive rank advancement, Thaiboxing and Jiu Jitsu are more performance based. You either can, or cannot, execute the skill against your opponent. As such, it can be difficult to know where to invest your […]
Happy Monday Team! It’s officially October! Which means we are only weeks away from our second annual “Kick or Treat” fundraising party at Attic Brewing Company! I’ll have more information available shortly, but make sure to keep Friday, 10/28, open — we’ll have prizes, karaoke, and more 🙂 This event is a […]
We’ve all been here. First, we think about something we want to accomplish. Let’s say, starting a martial art. Then, we furiously research the topic and start to plan it out. Finally, we get so overwhelmed by all the information that we get stuck in a cycle of trying to plan out the best […]
If you really want to have success at what you’re doing, you gotta love it. In the fight game, there are basically two classes of competitors: Amateurs, and Professionals. Amateurs don’t get paid. They are essentially volunteers. Professionals get paid. That’s the main difference, on paper. This dynamic is a great example of the […]
My two favorite words in the English language. Yes, and No. Yes is usually my first favorite, because it means I’m going to get what I want, or that we are in agreement so we can move forward. No is also super useful. Now, I may not get what I want, or maybe we […]
Happy Labor Day team! I apologize for missing last week’s e-mail — my excuse is legitimate, but terrible: I was somewhere along the western coast of Ireland dodging mountains and sheep 🙂 Internet cafes aren’t much of a thing in Ireland, even in Dublin and Galway. So, apologies there! We have an extremely busy […]
Often I give a brief, lighthearted anecdote in this column, and discuss a perspective that can give you an edge to your training. But today I am going to be a little more direct, and address something I see way too often as a coach. In fact, I see it a lot, and as […]
I completed my high school wrestling career as a senior in the 130lb weight class as a nearly 6′ tall bundle of knees and elbows. I spent my entire high school athletic career being as tall and skinny as possible — I competed freshman year at 119lbs. When I stopped wrestling halfway through […]
As a kid, I once heard that “watched pots never boil,” and I actually believed it. I realized had never directly observed water coming to a boil, and in my little monkey mind I figured that the act of watching it somehow stalled or negated the boiling process. Of course, I was a curious […]
Every new thing comes from the destruction of something old. New, better habits must come at the expense of old bad ones. So if you are having trouble visualizing yourself achieving a considerable goal, don’t stress about it. Try a different perspective. You, as you are, will not be the one achieving that goal. […]
Happy Monday Team! Got a scorcher of a week on deck, so make sure you are setting yourselves up for success by hydrating like crazy throughout the day! We have a busy Saturday coming up as well, so we’ve made some small adjustments to our weekend schedule to accommodate it all. Please […]
Quick note: I originally wrote this a few years ago, after being a day late on my weekly newsletter (I often pull from the archives for the Monday Mindset section). Typically I have everything done by Sunday evening and scheduled for Monday morning, but yesterday I was out of state visiting family and didn’t […]
Happy Monday Team! June is going to be a busy month here at the academy — we have something cool happening almost every weekend! 6/18 Gut Check Championships featuring Trevon Scales Hockessin, DE. See Trevon or a coach for tickets. 6/26 FLOWwork movement workshop with Coach Alex Brazinski Info and Registration can […]
Feliz Lunes, equipe! I am writing to you from sunny (very, very sunny) Catalonia, Spain! Aside from some great BJJ training, it’s basically been hiking, history, beach, and wine. Can’t complain! I’ll be back on the mats Friday, June 3rd, ready to go — hopefully I can avoid sunburn over the next […]
Happy Monday Team! We have a beautiful week of training ahead of us, let’s get after it! Please remember we have an adjusted schedule for Memorial Day Weekend (see below). This will affect class times throughout the week starting this Wednesday. Please make sure to check, and double check, the schedule before […]
Short and silly one for you all this week! For any of you younger students who are yet to move out on your own for the first time, here’s a piece of advice: buy the toiler plunger before you need it As martial artists, we too need to invest in ourselves so that […]
Happy Monday Team! Let’s give a big congrats to The Wall himself, Paul Sims, on a stellar performance yesterday at Finishers Sub Only! Paul swept his division en route to Gold and continues to cement his place in the region as one of the top grapplers. Reminder — for those interest in […]
Hey Team! We are only six weeks away until the unofficial start of Summer (Memorial Day Weekend) which is seems crazy. Time is just flying, and yet we are packing each week in with a ton of great training and also a hectic schedule of competitive events. We have a break from […]
Happy Monday Team! Fresh off another competitive weekend in which we saw a number of our grapplers make some noise at Grappling Industries this Saturday. Big congrats to the veteran competitors Paul, Madison, Isis, and Gianna for their predictably strong performances. Jason and Joe both competed for the second time, which […]
Ultimately, what you put in, you’ll get out. That’s the beauty of what we do in these combat sports. The process is simple, but you have to look at it from a wide vantage point. Week to week you may not see results. Even month to month it’s not guaranteed. Year over year? Ok, […]
Happy Monday Team! We are fresh off another banger of a weekend, and back to the mats for another week of tough practice. Let’s give a big shout out to Timmy Green on a dominant and educated performance Saturday night at Art of War MMA! As a coach, one of my greatest joys […]
Happy Monday Team! Before I get into the run-down of our upcoming event schedule, I want to remind everyone that Friday night’s schedule this week (3.25) has changed: We’ll be running an open mat from 6-8pm. NoGi open mat starts at 6:30pm as normal. We are officially out of Winter! Every transition is a […]
Happy Monday Team! Spring is in the air! And with it, the return of combat sports events! We have a ton of upcoming events on our calendar — make sure to plan accordingly, as tickets/available spots can go quickly. Just a quick reminder: next Monday (3/14), Professor Phil Migliarese will be […]
We’ve all heard the old expression, “practice makes perfect.” This really couldn’t be farther from the truth. We should really think of it more along the lines of “perfect practice, with perfect consistency and appropriate intensity, makes perfect.” There’s a lot to unpack there! When we step onto the mats to train, we must […]
Happy Monday Team! We have some really cool events on the horizon — the 5 Year Anniversary and UFC Viewing Party on Saturday the 19th, NAGA (North American Grappling Championships) on the 26th, Gut Check Muay Thai on March 26th, and then Art of War MMA at the beginning of April. We’re gonna […]
We’ve all heard that expression, “so-and-so talks the talk, but does he walk the walk?” I’m sure we can all relate to this on some level: we know a few people who talk a big game, but when it comes to delivering on their word (or threats) they are (un)surprisingly a bit lackluster. In fight […]
Hey Team! After a looooooong hiatus on my weekly newsletter, I’m back! I’m looking forward to sharing some of my own personal training experiences, insights, and tips here in “The Red Corner.” Traditionally speaking, the champion or higher ranked fighter would be assigned to the red corner — so it seems like an apt name for a place […]
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 […]