Today gives us a perfect opportunity to speak about the wonderful women that come through out dojo doors whether they are students or Senseis! The Xen-Do women train hard, they spar without fear and they have fun in every lesson. Many women join for different reasons; to build confidence, for self-defence or to make friends, whatever the reason is, it has led to a 70% of our dojos to be women. It is not just the number of female students that have risen but we have also had an increase of female instructors at Xen-Do. With Sensei Karla joining us back in 2017 and Sensei Lauren coming full time last year and having the delight of having Sensei Gayane and Rijana.

Xen-Do training increases mental and physical fitness, confidence and self-esteem, which are carried into the workplace, family and social scene.  Skills such as assessing situations and circumstances so that trouble can be avoided or dealt with effectively while using techniques that do not require an abnormal level of strength or power to perform and are aimed at an average woman of any shape, size, age and proficiency in martial arts are just some of the reasons why Xen-Do cultivates such an empowering environment for women.

More particularly, Xen-Do does not simply cater to women with open schedules. For working women or mums, probably the most important thing that Xen-do offers is flexibility in how you choose to train. Whether it’s once a week, six times a week, one-to-one classes or sparring; there are options to find what suits your lifestyle best. Here at Xen-Do, flexible classes for invigorating fitness skills are a way to help women flourish.

To our member Kat, a Xen-Do Black Belt woman, Xen-Do helped her grow in more ways than physical training.

As soon as I step on this mat I am in the moment. I don’t care what was before or will be. I listen to my Sensei, I do my combinations, I fail, I succeed, I respect my colleagues, I learn, I listen and I sweat. Kickboxing is an active meditation for me that feeds my mind and my body. And speaking of body: I also realized how my body changed. I have an athletic figure by nature but thanks to kickboxing my body is even more toned, I have more muscle and… the best butt I ever had in my life, hahaha. Having this body gives me confidence and, believe me, confidence is what you need as a freelance actress because you get judged every day and that can be so painful. I have the feeling that thanks to kickboxing I can deal better with this pain of rejection and can defend myself better in this very male dominated industry I am working in. “Metoo“is not just a hash tag for me…