Anderson's Martial Arts Academy NYC (Dan Anderson)

[Fight Whisperer]

Hey can anyone comment or provide some input on this place. I am looking for a new place to train in NYC. I am strongly considering this place. Although, I am still looking around and visiting gyms.

I've always thought about and considered training here, but was reluctant to join based on different stories I've heard about this place. Specifically, I remember reading a news article about new students suing the place because they got injured while sparring senior students.

The head instructor is a black belt under Vitor Shaolin Ribeiro which is pretty impressive. The curriculum also seems to have everything I am looking for (MMA, BJJ, Filipino Martial Arts, etc.)

I visited the place and really liked the facilities. Very spacious, clean environment, full ring, heavy bags, some fitness equipment, matted area, etc. Something about the place seemed really nice, I think it may have been the lighting (they were using yellow incandescent light bulbs as opposed to white fluorescent lights that so many schools seem to use). I know silly comment. But I think it added to the positive feel of the place.

I was also told by one of the instructors that they are planning on expanding in the next month. They will be taking over the floor right above, and they plan on adding a cage, some cardio equipment, and a dedicated lounge area.

So far this seems like a place I want to join, but I am still checking out other places. I was also really impressed with Five Points Academy. But I decided to not join, and take it off my list of places I am considering, since one of the owners pretty much seemed totally against having any sort of MMA program and doesn't plan on adding anything like it ever. Which is pretty odd, considering they have Muay Thai, Judo, and some Jiu Jitsu. I don't know why they would also want to gear their training or have classes teaching their students how to combine the arts.

I also really liked NY Jiu Jitsu, the facilities are nice. Not quite as polished at Five Points, but they have a cage and quite a bit of matted area. Additionally, they have a class dedicated to using the cage, which is pretty cool.

Something that turned me off about Anderson's was their use of TMA terms for the instructors i.e. Sifu, Sihing, etc. Its not a big deal, but it brought back bad memories about when I use to train in traditional martial arts when I was a kid. I'm kind of trying to avoid a place with strict traditional formalities. Just want a place where that sort of thing is kept more casual and they just expect you to show up and work hard.

Anyone on this board ever train at Anderson's or can provide any input or comments about the place.

Here's a link to their website:

Anderson's Martial Arts: Home

 

[Mat Nemesis**]

dude, you have been looking at all these places for months now

enough

no one trains at this place or the other silly places

best school to train mma in nyc = renzo

this is really the only answer for nyc

on the cheap you can do evolution MT or maybe ronin

anything else, and you really really need to train at maybe 2 schools

 

[zinndawg]

dude, you have been looking at all these places for months now

enough

no one trains at this place or the other silly places

best school to train mma in nyc = renzo

this is really the only answer for nyc

on the cheap you can do evolution MT or maybe ronin

anything else, and you really really need to train at maybe 2 schools

Marcelo Garcia's? Plus, doesn't Vitor Shaolin have a gym in the city? Why go to one of his blackbelts if he has his own place?

 

[Noob 1.0]

best school to train mma in nyc = renzo

this is really the only answer for nyc

anything else, and you really really need to train at maybe 2 schools

Again, Marcelo Garcia's camp?

Less than helpful post, especially considering the cost of training at two schools versus the benefit (for most people).

At the end of the day, unless you're a professional competitor, pick the school you feel the most comfortable in. Sometimes that involves trying a place out and deciding it's not for you.

Best of luck.

 

[Mat Nemesis**]

for mma, renzo's is the best
they have bjj, mt, i believe wrestling class not on the schedule, john danaher

if you are serious about wanting to be in mma someday this is the best period
it is the best training and they also have fighter's in mma shows from ROC to UFC
it is expensive, but then again more valuable than money is time

places like marcelo's and shaolin's only have bjj, so you would need a second school which would put you in the 300 plus range

 

[Wrathbeans]

There are alot of places to train in nyc and alot of them are good schools renzo is good but it's not the best and they have no mma program for newbs.

 

[wiseguy$$]

dude, you have been looking at all these places for months now

enough

no one trains at this place or the other silly places

best school to train mma in nyc = renzo

this is really the only answer for nyc

on the cheap you can do evolution MT or maybe ronin

anything else, and you really really need to train at maybe 2 schools

hahahahahahah

 

[Shulom1***]

I train here. The teachers all refer you to by name, and the students are as friendly as can be. I really enjoy the BJJ and MMA classes, but at the end of ther day it's a JKD place. Sifu Anderson is a Full Instructor in JKD/FMA under Dan Inosanto and Paul Vunak as well as an Arjarn under Chai Sirisute and a Shooto instructor under Yori Nakamura. I train there because at the end of the day, BJJ is one aspect of my JKD and not the emphasis. We have a strong competition team and one MMA champion.

I believe the instruction is top notch and I would train anywhere else because no where else is going to teach me under the lens of JKD and that is what I want.

 

[Fight Whisperer]

Hmm? I dunno maybe I missed something or mistyped something in a previous post but, where does it say that I seriously wanted to be in MMA someday? (It's possible you mistook me for someone else?)

Seriously though, thanks for all the replies guys. You too Mat Nemesis.

I apologize as it seems that you have become frustrated over some random person, whom you've never met before, posting a question on an internet forum on a Saturday night. I guess I was in the wrong, sorry man. Next time I have a question related to Martial Arts, I'll be sure to not post it on a Martial Arts Forum. Didn't mean to offend you with my behavior. I truly am sorry.

I guess I also forgot where in my post I forced you to reply to my thread. But I apologize for that as well. I seriously could have swore I was asking for replies for input about Anderson's Martial Arts Academy. So I'm really thankful for your informative commentary regarding that matter.

I don't know if you live in NYC or not, so I'm going to go the safe route. God forbid you do live in NYC, or live near me, as in all seriousness you most definitely would kick my ass quite easily. I'm not a very big kid at all, don't have a lot of money, and I'm definitely not very skilled or well schooled when it comes to fighting or art forms of the martial nature (I don't know, it almost seems crazy, but maybe that might explain why I am asking all these dumb questions about these martial art schools, visiting them, trying out classes, and asking for input on an internet forum... it was the wrong thing to do though, so again I do apologize for the frustration).

Renzo's would be an awesome place to train. Likewise, I have considered that place in the past. But I cannot afford it. I have also heard that the beginners' classes tend to be quite crowded and unfortunately there also tends to be a few meatheads and badasses wanting to be the next Ultimate Fighter (who knew "the best place to train mma in nyc" would have such a diverse beginners' class). The general consensus seems to be, in order to get the best bang for your buck, avoid Renzo's until you are at least a high ranking Blue Belt or Purple. I don't know how their MMA program for customers and new students works, but it appears to be a 1 day a week thing on the schedule. I've heard that they don't allow white belts in it and in the past I know that they make you pay an extra fee per class for it (which would further put Renzo's out of my price range).

However, it remains clear.. since that is the only answer for NYC, I guess I should just stop my search and discontinue my research into... uhh... all these other several martial art schools I have been finding out about in NYC.

I have also thought about Shaolin's school. But someone I use to train with, now goes there, and he says the striking class there barely exists. It's mostly straight up BJJ (obviously very very top notch quality BJJ). Marcelo's is similar I've heard. It's mostly straight up BJJ. Although, I will be checking it out anyway just to get a chance to meet and receive instruction from Marcelo Garcia. They give potential students two free classes if you have previous experience (1 gi class and 1 no-gi class). I found out about that on the web, so naturally that is something I should have never known about, since I really should not even bother taking my time to do any research about Martial Art Schools on the internet if I can't go to Renzo's.

Ronin Athletics, is a great place. I use to train there but had to stop training completely two years ago for work related reasons. I decided to start training again recently, but I also made the decision that I want to try some place new. In my post I noted Filipino Martial Arts as one of the things I am looking for (which also kinda cancels out Marcelo's and Shaolin's unfortunately). I've spoken to Christian (head instructor at Ronin) when I was one of his students about the possibility of adding it to the curriculum, but he wasn't for it, since he hasn't practiced any FMA in quite a number of years. I spoke to him again recently about it, and his answer was the same.

Evolution Muay Thai is another place that I will be checking out soon. A bunch of my former training partners from Ronin have migrated over to Evolution, they seem happy there. I've trained with the grappling coach there in the past for one summer when he use to teach at the Machado school (I guess there's more schools in NYC than just Renzo's, weird), and I remember him being a very good instructor. There's quite a bit of praise and good reviews about the Muay Thai coach, Brandon Levi, strangely enough I found out about that input from internet reviews and posting questions on internet forums (shame on me!) Although, I will stop by and try out a class, I know that they do not have any Filipino Martial Arts Classes unfortunately, so the school doesn't have everything that I am looking for.

I know it seems that I am asking for a bit too much (MMA, BJJ, Stand-Up striking, etc.) and perhaps this makes it somewhat unrealistic to find the perfect place for me. But it almost seems as though in taking my time to do research, and ask questions, even over the internet, the more info and input I seem to gather about these schools and even some new ones I never knew existed (I guess it's just a really bizarre coincidence). Some of these places, albeit very few, of these places seem to offer (on paper at least) just about everything that I am looking for (i.e. Anderson's Martial Arts, New York Jiu Jitsu, Chok Sabai and Five Points minus actual MMA classes for the last two). In all honesty, I would have never found out about these places if I just decided to not check out and post on questions forums or do internet research; and instead just join Renzo's Academy for less than month since I would have had to stop attending once I found out that I cannot afford the prices there and they discovered that they don't have any FMA program.

Thanks for all the input guys. But for real, if anyone can provide input about Anderson's Martial Arts Academy then please post it up. If not, then you are also more than welcome to provide posts belittling my dumb frustrating questions too. I guess I just figured, most people on the forum would be too busy or better off not wasting their time replying to a thread started by some undersized short scrawny pipsqueak person who doesn't know how to fight like myself.

 

[kying418]

I don't anything about Anderson's Martial Arts. But I would definitely encourage you to take the free class at Marcelo's. It's a great gym, with amazing teachers and students.

 

[Shulom1***]

Hmm? I dunno maybe I missed something or mistyped something in a previous post but, where does it say that I seriously wanted to be in MMA someday? (It's possible you mistook me for someone else?)

Seriously though, thanks for all the replies guys. You too Mat Nemesis.

I apologize as it seems that you have become frustrated over some random person, whom you've never met before, posting a question on an internet forum on a Saturday night. I guess I was in the wrong, sorry man. Next time I have a question related to Martial Arts, I'll be sure to not post it on a Martial Arts Forum. Didn't mean to offend you with my behavior. I truly am sorry.

I guess I also forgot where in my post I forced you to reply to my thread. But I apologize for that as well. I seriously could have swore I was asking for replies for input about Anderson's Martial Arts Academy. So I'm really thankful for your informative commentary regarding that matter.

I don't know if you live in NYC or not, so I'm going to go the safe route. God forbid you do live in NYC, or live near me, as in all seriousness you most definitely would kick my ass quite easily. I'm not a very big kid at all, don't have a lot of money, and I'm definitely not very skilled or well schooled when it comes to fighting or art forms of the martial nature (I don't know, it almost seems crazy, but maybe that might explain why I am asking all these dumb questions about these martial art schools, visiting them, trying out classes, and asking for input on an internet forum... it was the wrong thing to do though, so again I do apologize for the frustration).

Renzo's would be an awesome place to train. Likewise, I have considered that place in the past. But I cannot afford it. I have also heard that the beginners' classes tend to be quite crowded and unfortunately there also tends to be a few meatheads and badasses wanting to be the next Ultimate Fighter (who knew "the best place to train mma in nyc" would have such a diverse beginners' class). The general consensus seems to be, in order to get the best bang for your buck, avoid Renzo's until you are at least a high ranking Blue Belt or Purple. I don't know how their MMA program for customers and new students works, but it appears to be a 1 day a week thing on the schedule. I've heard that they don't allow white belts in it and in the past I know that they make you pay an extra fee per class for it (which would further put Renzo's out of my price range).

However, it remains clear.. since that is the only answer for NYC, I guess I should just stop my search and discontinue my research into... uhh... all these other several martial art schools I have been finding out about in NYC.

I have also thought about Shaolin's school. But someone I use to train with, now goes there, and he says the striking class there barely exists. It's mostly straight up BJJ (obviously very very top notch quality BJJ). Marcelo's is similar I've heard. It's mostly straight up BJJ. Although, I will be checking it out anyway just to get a chance to meet and receive instruction from Marcelo Garcia. They give potential students two free classes if you have previous experience (1 gi class and 1 no-gi class). I found out about that on the web, so naturally that is something I should have never known about, since I really should not even bother taking my time to do any research about Martial Art Schools on the internet if I can't go to Renzo's.

Ronin Athletics, is a great place. I use to train there but had to stop training completely two years ago for work related reasons. I decided to start training again recently, but I also made the decision that I want to try some place new. In my post I noted Filipino Martial Arts as one of the things I am looking for (which also kinda cancels out Marcelo's and Shaolin's unfortunately). I've spoken to Christian (head instructor at Ronin) when I was one of his students about the possibility of adding it to the curriculum, but he wasn't for it, since he hasn't practiced any FMA in quite a number of years. I spoke to him again recently about it, and his answer was the same.

Evolution Muay Thai is another place that I will be checking out soon. A bunch of my former training partners from Ronin have migrated over to Evolution, they seem happy there. I've trained with the grappling coach there in the past for one summer when he use to teach at the Machado school (I guess there's more schools in NYC than just Renzo's, weird), and I remember him being a very good instructor. There's quite a bit of praise and good reviews about the Muay Thai coach, Brandon Levi, strangely enough I found out about that input from internet reviews and posting questions on internet forums (shame on me!) Although, I will stop by and try out a class, I know that they do not have any Filipino Martial Arts Classes unfortunately, so the school doesn't have everything that I am looking for.

I know it seems that I am asking for a bit too much (MMA, BJJ, Stand-Up striking, etc.) and perhaps this makes it somewhat unrealistic to find the perfect place for me. But it almost seems as though in taking my time to do research, and ask questions, even over the internet, the more info and input I seem to gather about these schools and even some new ones I never knew existed (I guess it's just a really bizarre coincidence). Some of these places, albeit very few, of these places seem to offer (on paper at least) just about everything that I am looking for (i.e. Anderson's Martial Arts, New York Jiu Jitsu, Chok Sabai and Five Points minus actual MMA classes for the last two). In all honesty, I would have never found out about these places if I just decided to not check out and post on questions forums or do internet research; and instead just join Renzo's Academy for less than month since I would have had to stop attending once I found out that I cannot afford the prices there and they discovered that they don't have any FMA program.

Thanks for all the input guys. But for real, if anyone can provide input about Anderson's Martial Arts Academy then please post it up. If not, then you are also more than welcome to provide posts belittling my dumb frustrating questions too. I guess I just figured, most people on the forum would be too busy or better off not wasting their time replying to a thread started by some undersized short scrawny pipsqueak person who doesn't know how to fight like myself.

I gave you an answer and you ignored it.

 

[Mat Nemesis**]

sorry dude, everyone i know that trains mma wants to fight

but like everyone says, go take some free trials and be happy

 

[Fight Whisperer]

I gave you an answer and you ignored it.

I PM'ed you. Thanks for the reply, very helpful man. That's really all I was looking for, someone to comment on the school. I'll be stopping by again in a few days to check out more classes and take the free private.

Yes Kying, I will be sure to stop by Marcelo's. I am just very surprised that he gives students with experience two free classes as opposed to beginners who just have that free intro to BJJ class.

 

[grdstorm11]

The interwebs has very little patience for those who are picky.

I think what peeves people the most is that you seem very particular about exactly what you want without actually training when in reality those who do this probably will never reach any sort of decent level in your training. This is not a direct jab at you by any means, its just an observation that those who spend a ton of time B.S.ing over training and what school to join and to train at tend to never get any good. I have been a victim of sitting on my ass and being a cyber warrior on numerous occasions. 95% of those who are champions and generally badd asses in their respective arts/sports just train train train and leave the bullshit to the 97%ers.

Also unless your a freak athlete or have more than above average talent, dividing your training time is not the best route to getting good.

But whatever man. Its your money, do what you want.

 

[Fight Whisperer]

Thanks for the reply. I completely understand. It makes sense.

However, the shaky and shady landscape of schools in NYC is kinda the reason why I always research the hell out of any and all schools. There's so many possibilities and places that people have never heard of. Sometimes its kind of a best kept secret thing that people would only be able to find out if they really searched around.

But it seems like there is also alotta bullshit that occurs in this business. Training in NYC is expensive as hell. I don't like the idea of spending my hard earned cash on a place that is involved with alotta bullshit, or signing my name on a 1 year contract, only to find out later on that its not what I was looking for or they aren't legit in some respect.

I use to be into Kung Fu and some Tradition MA's when I was younger, and I have been the victim of shelling out money on schools that I thought were legit only to find out after a month or so in, that I actually wasn't learning and receiving the instruction that I wanted or I later discovered that they weren't legit schools or didn't have qualified instructors (basically i wasn't happy with what I was paying for). That means I just wasted 1 or more month(s) tuition money, uniform cost, and whatever dumb registration fees they make you pay initially when you join. All this I could have avoided, had I taken the time to really do my homework.

It wouldn't be so hard, if I could just join for a month see if I like it and then quit. But just about every school here makes you sign a mandatory 1 year contract often times through a private EFT electronic payment company that could in itself screw you over if you decide you want out of it.

Maybe it's a NYC thing. The MMA boom is causing all these schools to open up or random schools to add "MMA" to their class schedule and I'm sure some of them are just trying to capitalize on that without providing quality education. It's big money, especially with the standard price range for training in NYC. So i would rather try my best to be picky (I'm not shelling out $200 a month spend my time at the first gym I find not learning what I want to know) and take my time to find something legit and reasonable.

I understand that it just makes it seem like I am just being lazy. But during this lazy time I am also getting opportunities to take all free classes, observe and try out all these facilities, try out schools as much as I can without signing contracts, and see what is actually out there. I don't see how my being lazy and never getting good at anything hurts anyone on an internet forum (I'm sorry if it does), people are totally free to not respond to my questions and rants. I seriously am a pipsqueak that will never amount to anything in martial arts or the combat sports world, I'm not looking for a fight. So I'm not trying to stress myself to get good as soon as possible or kill myself when I fail.

And for the record, I'm not trying to get into the UFC or become a professional fighter. I just want some good education and quality training with open ended possibilities for potentially competing on different levels in different types of competition. I'm really not even interested in rank or receiving any belts or anything. It's more of a personal thing for me. I'm not trying to impress people on the internet and make them think that that I am good. You're more than encouraged to think that I am lazy, bs'ing around too much, a bad student, will never get any good because its most likely the truth.

 

[fiftysvn]

First of all your posts could definitely use less self-deprecation. Referring to yourself as a scrubby pipsqueak who will never amount to anything in martial arts is a little sad. Everyone can amount to something with hard work.

I'm the opposite of you. I did zero research and signed up for the first gym I took a trial class at. It's worked out so far and I'm sure there were other options, but at the time I was just really eager to train and didn't want to shop around.

Out of the places you named, I've been to Five Points and I loved the place. I took a trial class there for MT. The facility is top notch and the schedule seems very good. Kali, MT, judo/bjj (was not a fan of the judo/bjj program though), and kettlebell conditioning classes. And a full weight room. The price is definitely worth it.

Going by your posts, you're doing way more typing than you are training! You practically wrote an entire treatise on finding the gym of your dreams.

If you have zero training in anything just sign up for something and do the whole mma thing later. That's the best advice I can give you.

 

[Fight Whisperer]

Thanks for replying, my high school was an intensive writing school. I'm used to typing high capacity within a short amount of time.

I'm just being real, I know I don't have the discipline or work ethics to be an active competitor. I am a very small, slow, and weak human being. I don't see myself being a professional athlete nor do I think I am going to be very good at least not by internet forum standards (after all I spend all my time researching and asking questions instead of training hard to get good already).

I've done the same as you before when I was younger. I tried out a class at a place and joined. Spent my summer learning nothing useful and found out later on through research and asking people, that the school I was attending was not qualified to teach what they were advertising, and they were involved in some shady politics. That's why i try to avoid doing that now, lesson learned.

I liked Five Points as well. Disappointed that they seemed against having any MMA training going on there. Nevertheless, I liked the facilities and the Muay Thai. I wasn't allowed to try out the grappling class or Kali (only observed what I could while I was there). What did you not like about their Judo/BJJ Program? I was wanting to bite the bullet and sign up there (mandatory 1 year contract), but I waited and checked out NY Jiu Jitsu (1 year contract) another nice gym. Then I checked out Anderson's last week (another 1 year contract, but they seem cooler about letting you get out of it if you're not happy or have to leave for whatever reason), I am intrigued by that place and will be visiting again to observe classes and try out whatever they are offering for free instruction to see if I like it.

I have previous Martial Arts experience (although haven't been training on a regular basis in over 2 years). This is partly why I have a somewhat picky and clear cut idea about what I want now, this includes a MMA program or classes geared towards teaching how to combine the arts and transition between ranges.

I'm thankful for the all the input. My intention was to check out as many schools as I could during my free time, and then find the one that I like the most. But everyone here is making me think that I should forget about that and just pick something or start cutting out meals so I can afford to go to Renzo's since it's the only answer in NYC.

 

[fiftysvn]

I'm just being real, I know I don't have the discipline or work ethics to be an active competitor. I am a very small, slow, and weak human being. I don't see myself being a professional athlete nor do I think I am going to be very good at least not by internet forum standards (after all I spend all my time researching and asking questions instead of training hard to get good already).

There you go again. Cut that shit out because you're not doing yourself any favors.

No, I train at Renzo's but it is not the only option. This is coming from somebody that trains at Renzo's.

First off, as suggested previously you will be better off learning each discipline on its own. That's why I think it's a good idea to either find a MT gym or a good grappling gym and start off from there.

Second, how much do you want to spend?

It seems like you are trying to find something wrong with every gym.

Anderson's: too formal!

Five Points: no mma! (even though they offer grappling and striking under one roof)

Renzo's: heard there's too many meatheads and ufc-types. nope not for me! (which was not my experience btw)

There are so many good options to train in NYC but it's ridiculous for you to have this high standard level of "mma training" when you have zero knowledge. It also sounds like you want to be as cheap as possible. Nothing wrong with that cuz I mean, who doesn't want to spend as little as possible. If you know some master somewhere out there who is looking to train his next protege in exchange for cleaning the mats and maybe painting a fence or two, hit me up!

 

[Fight Whisperer]

Sigh, I really had no intention for this thread to turn out like this. All I was asked for when I started this thread was some input about Anderson's Martial Arts Academy.:icon_cry2 Shulom did a great job of providing that, thanks so much and please don't think that I am a jerk based on what has come out of this thread.

fiftysvn (nice photography btw), I understand where you are coming from. I think I stated that I have Martial Arts experience. I learned some striking (through Hung Ga and Sanshou kickboxing) when I was a kid in high school, then started to learn some BJJ (mostly no-gi) and dabbled in a tiny bit of freestyle wrestling (just the very very minimal basics) early in college, and then I found a MMA place towards the end of college in Ronin Athletics. So you are saying I need to hit the restart button (I guess due to my long layoff that I mentioned or since I'm not really an expert in any one thing yet) and just concentrate on one aspect right now before finding another place that has an MMA program and Filipino Martial Arts? Again, I'm not stressing trying to be the best at anything in particular I just want to learn things and have fun. Do you mean to imply that usually only people who are experts in at least one aspect train in schools like Ronin, NY Jiu Jitsu, or Anderson's?

I know that there are things that I want to continue training in and some new things that I want to try out. I would like to try my best to pick up where I left off with stand up striking and grappling and continuing to learn how to combine these things and try new things just for the heck of it (I've never done any sort of Filipino Martial Arts or weapons training before, figured it would be interesting), not worried about receiving high ranks, belts, medals, trophies, or praise from people. I just want to learn and try new stuff for myself and be happy.

I don't understand why it seems people don't seem to think someone can train striking, grappling, combining both, and weapons under one roof (it seems like there are schools that offer this).

Isn't it fair for me to research and choose based on what I observed? I kinda figured the point of allowing potential students to visit schools, observe classes, and try out classes was to give them a chance to see if they like or dislike what they have to offer.

My intention isn't to try to find something "wrong" with the places I visit. There's nothing wrong with schools having their own quirks. I don't own these places or teach at any of these schools, so I have no say in judging whether they are wrong or not. There are minor things I noticed that disappointed me and things that I disliked. Some places also just happen to not offer the things that I am looking for (I never said there was anything wrong with that). I'm not trying to find things that are wrong. I'm trying to avoid being locked down to a year long contract with the first school I try a class at only to find out a month or so in that the school I signed with isn't the right fit for me. As mentioned before I've already made that mistake before, and ended up regretting it.

I would like to spend under $200 per month for unlimited classes. But it seems, from doing research, and visiting schools, that the standard for a place offering the things I am looking for is about $200 per month. So that is probably the most that I am willing to spend.

Anderson's Martial Arts and NY Jiu Jitsu both seem like the schools that I am looking for. Anyone I know who was ever involved with Anderson's or use to teach for them, have not had anything to do with them in several years. So I was told that whatever input they gave me, likely has no validity today since it was years ago that they were involved with that school. This is why, I decided to post a thread asking if anyone knew anything about the school. All I wanted was for someone to give me info about their experiences or what they know about that particular school.

All I mentioned about the formality about Anderson's was that their usage of terms like Sifu, Sihing, Si-Jeh triggered bad memories of the past when I use to train in traditional martial arts and I would like to avoid a school with strict formalities, it makes me feel a bit uncomfortable. But it's not a big concern for me. Shulom provided a comforting response to my concern.

Regarding Five Points, I liked that place. But I never asked for input about that place or any other place. I like what they have to offer but I am also interested in learning how to transition and combine grappling, stand up, and striking. I had a good discussion with one of the gym co-owners and head instructor of their grappling and Judo program, he seemed very adamant about not having an MMA program and he gave his rationale for it. Fair enough, I'm disappointed that Five Points doesn't have everything that I am looking for, but I respect their decision to not have combined striking and grappling instruction, there's nothing at all wrong with that. No need to bring up Five Points again.

Regarding Renzo's: I apologize for making that remark (that was wrong on my part). As I stated that was just stuff that I had heard from former students who I have either met randomly or people who were thinking about leaving Renzo's and visiting Ronin Athletics when I use to train there.

fiftysvn, your last comments almost sound like you're getting a little frustrated over this thread and my posts. I sincerely hope not. I'm not trying to offend anyone or come off as arrogant (maybe I have inadvertently). I dunno, maybe I do have too high a standard for what I am looking for. I just know what I am interested in and curious about. I'm not an expert in anything. I guess since I have zero knowledge (I'm not completely sure what kind of knowledge you are referring to with that comment, can you explain? I'm not offended, I come in peace, I'm just a bit confused feel free to PM me), it explains why I want to pick up where I left off and continue my training in stand-up striking, grappling, and mixed martial arts training (my understanding of this is actually combining the different aspects and learning how to transition among different the ranges with the additional element of ground and pound, that's what I've always been taught is what was actually meant by MMA training, didn't know that was considered such a "high standard") and add something I've never tried before in Filipino Martial Arts and weapons training.

Is there a way to request the Moderators to close this thread or delete it or something? I started it just asking for some simple input on a school and it's kind of gone off on a bizarre tangent. I don't think this thread has managed to be as productive as I had hoped it would be and it's taken up more forum real estate than I think, and I'm sure other members feel, it deserves. I probably just should have not have posted anything, sorry guys.

 

[fiftysvn]

Nevermind dude. Good luck with everything.