2026-02-06T04:52:22.459Z

I'm happy to leave a review for Coach David and The Portland Academy of Self Defense. Both my son, 10 years old, and I enrolled the 12 week introduction program, training two days per week. We both have made appreciable gains in our physical conditioning, coordination and confidence. I'm encouraged to see my son's growth in coordinated functional movement and his a ability to push himself harder. I highly recommend The Academy and encourage anyone to enroll in the program to gain fitness, discipline and practical self defense training.

2025-12-29T17:10:07.177Z

Coach David was very knowledgeable, insightful and kind! He stayed open for my mom and I to take a class during the holiday since I was only in town for a few days and it never felt like we were rushing through skills or techniques. He’s patient and encouraging. Highly recommend!

2025-10-02T01:14:10.409Z

I highly recommend Coach David and Portland Academy of Self Defense as a self-defense class for families! Coach David was wonderful with my children (ages 5 and 6), quickly making them comfortable and engaged and ensuring they felt successful. For the adults, his teaching was exceptional: he explained specific techniques clearly, but, more importantly, he heavily focused on core principles. This principled approach is key, as it teaches you how to adapt and overcome various real-world situations. If you're a parent looking for practical, confidence-boosting skills for the whole family in a supportive environment, this is the perfect class.

2025-08-25T17:13:03.630Z

Enrolling in the Portland Academy of Self Defense has been great for me. The training is helping with my fitness, flexibility and confidence. David, the instructor is awesome at explaining techniques, fundamentals and principles of self defense. He explains the ideas behind the concepts. His knowledge of self defense comes through in the instruction. My initial intent was to learn self defense as well as improve my fitness. I look forward to continuing my journey in self defense here at the Portland Academy of Self Defense. I highly recommend this place!

2025-08-13T23:51:41.815Z

Love the classes, great with the kids and easy to pick up and start to learn and grow in his class. The classes aren't just for the kiddos, the adult classes are easy to start and great information to start. Coach David explains why the moves interact with the training and gives a great explanation as why understanding the fundamentals helps build on each other. As a vet it's great to work with another vet as well.

2025-07-09T03:42:04.771Z

I signed my 10 year old kiddo up for Hopkido as a way to learn self defense, to focus, and get fit. They have ADHD and anxiety. David has been teaching them and keeping them in line. The routine and regiment of teaching them different moves, especially step-by-step, has been really beneficial! I highly recommend signing your kiddo up!

2025-04-16T02:28:27.756Z

My 13-year-old son has taken Hapkido classes with Coach David at the Portland Academy of Self Defense for three months. I can’t speak highly enough of Coach David and his mastery-focused approach to martial arts training. Rather than teaching martial arts as a sport, he focuses on techniques that will save your life if you are attacked in the real world. In order to achieve this level of understanding and mastery, Coach David teaches concepts rather than set moves. He explains how to respond if you are attacked from any direction (such as 3 o’clock, 6 o’clock, or 11 o’clock) fostering adaptability in his students. Coach David’s enthusiasm for teaching is palpable. He is warm, kind, welcoming, inclusive, patient and responsive to his students’ skill levels and needs. Yet he is also firm and consistent and pushes each student to work harder than they think they can. My son did trial classes at multiple martial arts studios before deciding on the Portland Academy Of Self-Defense. There was truly no comparison between Coach David and the other coaches he tried. There are leaders and there are followers in life. Coach David is a true leader and trains his students to be the same—self-reliant, capable, and fully able to defend themselves. We highly recommend his program.

2025-04-13T03:30:39.743Z

Coach David is excellent! Patient, supportive, and very knowledgeable in the practice; he is flexible with his class schedule and really makes our classes feel inviting to new students.That mentality is mirrored by the students themselves, who are equally as supportive and welcoming to all who attend classes; a positive group atmosphere inspired by Coach David and fostered by all of the students at Portland Academy of Self Defense. If you are looking for a place to work on your skills that gives you as much back as you are willing to put in, then this is the place for you!

2025-04-13T02:10:50.422Z

Coach David has provided me with an incredible learning opportunity to develop, understand and gain more confidence with self discipline. Each session, I practice repetition, and learn new practical skills that enhance my focus, mood and mindset. Coach David has a creative way of communicating instruction for all skill levels and ages through conversation, demonstration, acknowledgment and respect.

2025-04-10T17:50:35.263Z

Easily the best self defense class you can take in the Portland area. I took some time exploring multiple martial arts studios and styles prior to going with Portland Self Defense, so I am sure.The other schools teach parts of a technique; the idea being, the more classes you go to, the more you will understand how the parts go together. I felt like this approach is unrealistic in most situations, and I could see the potential for injuring myself trying a technique I am not ready for.Coach David at Portland Self Defense, on the other hand, starts will drilling in the fundamentals. This way, progressing to the more advanced stuff has felt more natural. Coach David is very helpful in making sure your form is correct and works to make sure you don’t injure yourself. If you want to take real self defense seriously, I highly recommend checking out Portland Self Defense.

2025-04-10T04:56:36.350Z

The training at Portland Academy of Self Defense is specifically designed to work on the principles of balance, leverage, and framing to be effective effective for anyone. I've been training for a few months and can already see a huge improvement in my ability and general confidence. Coach David is great at meeting students where they're at in terms of skill level, and small class sizes means he can watch and correct your execution of techniques for continued improvement. I would recommend this class to anyone, beginner or advanced. Being capable of protecting yourself is a life skill that is never a bad idea.

2025-04-01T20:42:41.858Z

We are having a wonderful experience at Portland Academy of Self Defense. Coach David has the right temperament to reach our son, who did not thrive in the class structure of other martial arts studios. He is eager to go to class each week and gives 100% because he feels positively motivated. From what I can see, he has made enormous progress after just a few sessions, and it has overflowed into his behavior at home. Coach David also takes time to give bits of real-world guidance that my son and I are able to discuss on the way home. It also looks really fun! Sometimes I want to jump in! I recommend Portland Academy of Self Defense to people of all ages who are interested in self-defense or just great exercise in a positive, accepting environment.

2025-03-27T03:55:27.579Z

I have trained with Coach David for many years. He is a patient thorough professional instructor who makes classes enjoyable and in focused on improving his students. You should come try a class.

2025-02-24T17:54:18.089Z

Our family was comfortable right away and found David’s instruction very professional with no time wasted during class. Scheduling was flexible and there was a very supportive atmosphere from the other students although we were beginners. Thanks David!

2025-02-04T00:32:37.112Z

This is a great school and in the short time I was there as a student, I learned a lot from Coach David. I would recommend this class to anyone who's looking to learn basic self defense, and who doesn't mind getting some great exercise in the process.

2025-01-10T18:27:48.023Z

Fantastic school.I've been practicing martial arts my whole life and was looking for a school when I moved to the area a month ago. Coach David was professional, quick to respond, dedicated to his art, and the real deal. His experience and talent is evident, along with a welcoming teaching style for all levels. Highly recommend for beginners or experienced fighters alike.Key takeaways- Fitness. A huge part of self defense that is missed by many schools teaching a more academic setting.- A concept-over-detail approach to help you understand 'why' motions work, and the intent of what you're doing.- Realistic approach. Martial arts are an art, and being able to be flexible in application is so important.

2024-10-11T18:32:25.784Z

Absolutely love this place. Coach David models the behaviors he’s trying to instill in my 8 year old son. It’s important to practice what you preach when training kids, which he does with patients and accountability. Would recommend Portland Academy of Martial arts to anyone looking to get their kid started in Martial Arts.

2024-08-11T02:01:21.367Z

I trained with David for well over a year. This is by far the best education in martial arts you can receive. If you want to learn REAL fighting that will REALLY save you in a life-or-death scenario, this is the place. Most other studios teach a sport, David teaches the real deal.He is also a kind, respectful, patient, and personable teacher. I was not naturally gifted when I came to him, but he stuck with me and met me where I was — he made me believe I could do it. And I went farther than I personally had thought possibleAlso, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that everything I learned here was transferable. I moved away from the area and took up another martial art (BJJ). Despite having zero experience in it, I was able to beat blue and purple belts MY FIRST WEEK because of David’s teachings. So even if you are interested in the sport aspect, this is the place.I cannot recommend this place highly enough. If you’re considering it, try it out. You hands down will not regret it.

2024-07-13T23:33:05.506Z

David is a fantastic teacher. There really are no other programs that focus solely on self defense. He initially focuses on the concept, correcting technique as you become more familiar with things. As an uncoordinated tiny female I usually feel very uncomfortable with new activities, especially martial arts. But I have only felt completely welcomed and comfortable in my sessions. Its helped me feel a lot more confident and helped my strength a lot too! I wish I could give it more stars! Everybody should learn Hapkido!

2024-04-29T17:32:01.305Z

I have been working with Coach David for a few months now. My experience so far has been stellar. He is wealth of knowledge and is able to present that knowledge in a way that is easy to understand. I have taken several martial arts classes on and off throughout the years and this class definitely stands out in the combative aspect. I feel that working with Coach David is truly preparing me to defend myself using applications that actually work in a real life conflict. My overall fitness and confidence in my martial arts skills have improved significantly since starting at this dojo. I have nothing but good things to say about David and his program. If you're on the fence about giving it a try then I'd advise you to jump that fence and try it out a few months.