Northwest Fighting Arts

I've always wanted to start a food blog but kept putting it off.  I wanted a good looking website.  I wanted a DSLR camera so I can take pretty pictures of what I'm eating.  Blah, blah, blah.  But today I realized, I want to keep track of where I've gone in Portland, especially if friends visit and want recommendations.  How am I going to remember them all?  I have a blog already, might as well just write whatever I want, and by no means, does this blog have to stay Ironman or even fitness themed.

So here we are.





Well, technically, this one isn't about food.

Northwest Fighting Arts
Address: 1200 SE Morrison St, Portland, OR 97214
Phone: (503) 235-3435
http://nwfighting.com/

Walking through the Montavilla (which I'm told is pronounced mont-a-vil-la against the vee-ya that I had originally assumed was the pronunciation) Street Fair (I'm loving the street fairs!) I was approached by the owner and told they give a free two week intro to their gym.  Music to my unemployed ears!

Your first session is a tour of the facilities and a short 20 min intro to whatever sport you're interested in.  The main floor of the gym is their reception desk, a boxing ring, and a variety of punching bags in the back.  It's spacious and larger than what you expect if you only saw it from the outside.  Downstairs there is a padded area for sports that involve more ground work and a weight room.  Everything appeared clean and tidy, they even have showers! 

I chose Striking for my first class which rotates between Muay Thai and boxing.  Coach Dan, who also led me through my intro and tour, was patient, attentive, and made sure I had a good understanding of what I was doing - in a group class!  He paired me with Cait who was about my height, and even though she has been regularly doing Muay Thai for a year, was also really patient with me.  (and also queer, funny and friendly.  I gave her my number - new friends!)

The class started with a set of jab and elbow hits, then with each round the coach would incorporate kicks and variations.  Trading off with your partner between hitting and holding the pads.  I've always wanted to learn a martial art and had a lot of fun!

So far I've really enjoyed my experience here and plan to keep coming, at least for the two weeks.  I can't commit to anything till I get a steady stream of income, but when I do I will seriously consider becoming a regular. 

Coach Dan is the Asian guy.

*Their Yelp reviews aren't great.  There's a few complaints about billing, contracts, and how the gym is run.  I'll take it with a grain of salt and see how my experience goes the next couple weeks.