Home / Teens · Ages 13–17
Ages 13–17 · Beginners welcome
A training floor instead of a feed
Teenagers don't need another thing to scroll. They need a room where effort is visible, the standard is the same for everyone, and nobody is performing for an audience.
What class looks like
Hard conditioning. Real sparring. No hazing.
Teen class runs at a higher intensity than kids class and holds a higher standard for control. Students condition, drill combinations, spar with gear, and work self-defense against realistic grabs and holds — the kind that happen at a party or a bus stop, not in a tournament.
What makes it work for this age group is that it's an individual sport done in a group. Nobody rides the bench. Nobody costs the team the game. You are competing with the version of yourself who showed up last Tuesday.
- Conditioning that builds real strength, flexibility, and wind
- Self-defense designed around a size and strength disadvantage
- Controlled sparring with full gear and enforced rules
- A rank path that keeps going — black belt is a start, not an exit
- Leadership and teaching opportunities for senior teen belts
Why parents push for it
The three things teens get here
Most teens arrive because a parent insisted. Most stay for one of these.
Not a seminar. Repetition against a resisting partner, until the response is automatic instead of theoretical.
Strength and conditioning with a point to it, which holds attention in a way a treadmill never does.
A room of people who train hard and don't care what happened online. That's harder to find at fifteen than it sounds.
College, jobs, and the next four years
Something to point at
A black belt earned through high school is a five-year project with documented milestones, testing under pressure, and often a teaching role. Teens who finish it tend to have an easy answer to the hardest interview and application question there is: tell me about something difficult you stuck with.
We're not going to pretend that's why we teach it. But it's true.
- Assistant instructor track for qualified senior belts
- Volunteer and service hours through school events and demonstrations
- A schedule that works around sports seasons and exam weeks
What families say
Fifteen years of South Tampa parents
“It's a great place and my son loves it. The people there are nice and Mrs. Tracy is awesome.”
“Ms. Tracy and her entire staff do an excellent job with the kids. They provide a number of activities for the kids.”
“This place is awesome! My son has progressed quickly. The staff is very caring towards the students.”
“They do a great job with teaching the students skills and discipline needed to succeed at a very early age.”
“I go to the black belt school and we practice, have fun, and have self-control, integrity, indomitable spirit and perseverance.”
“Great facility and great taekwondo teachers. Awesome after school program.”
Straight answers
Questions about this program
My child is being bullied. Will martial arts make it worse?
The first tool we teach is posture, voice, and eye contact — the things that stop most bullying before it becomes physical. Students learn that the techniques are for defending themselves and others, never for starting something, and that standard is enforced on the mat.
Tell us what's happening when you come in. We've handled it before and we'll handle it quietly.
Do I need to be in shape first?
No prior fitness, flexibility, or coordination is required. You get in shape by training, not before it. Adults regularly start with us in their thirties, forties, and fifties having done nothing athletic in years.
How long does it take to earn a black belt?
It depends entirely on the student — how often they train, how they test, and what they bring to the floor. Some move quickly, some take longer, and we don't judge either one. What we will do is tell you honestly where you stand at every rank.
What does the $49 intro actually include?
Thirty days of classes in the program that fits your age and goals, plus a starter uniform to keep — a $284 value. There is no long-term contract attached to the intro, and no obligation at the end of it.
What are the class times?
Class times are set by age group and rank, and they shift with the school calendar, so we keep the current schedule off the public site. Request it with the form on this page and we'll send you the schedule for your age group along with the web special.
The web special
Thirty days, and they decide.
Most teens walk in reluctant and walk out of the first class asking when the next one is. $49 covers a month and a uniform — enough runway to find out.
- 30 days of classes — $234 of it is on us
- A starter uniform that's yours to keep
- Parents are welcome to watch every class
Got it — check your phone.
We're sending the current schedule for your age group and the web special. If you'd rather talk to a person right now, call 813-350-9400.
That didn't go through.
Sorry — our form couldn't reach us just now. Please call or text 813-350-9400 and we'll get you the schedule straight away. We answer during class hours.
Other programs
Siblings, spouses, and second acts
Families train together here more often than not. If one program isn't the fit, another usually is.
Kids Martial Arts, Ages 5–7
Thirty-minute classes built around how five-year-olds actually learn: short drills, clear rules, and a belt they earn themselves.
Explore the program
Kids Martial Arts, Ages 8–12
Real technique, real sparring, real standards. The age where focus, grades, and the ability to hold your ground all start to compound.
Explore the program
Adult Martial Arts, 18+
Burn fat, build lean muscle, and learn to defend yourself — without another gym membership you stop using in March.
Explore the program
After School Program
We pick up, they train, homework gets done. You get a child who comes home tired, fed, and calmer than when they left.
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Boxing
Footwork before power, defense before offense. Boxing held to the same standard as everything else on this floor — roughly twelve and up.
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Summer Camp
Taekwon-Do, field trips, and swimming — a full day of moving, with the screens left at home.
Explore the programFind the dojang
On Henderson, in the heart of South Tampa
Minutes from Palma Ceia, Hyde Park, Bayshore, and Plant High. Park out front, walk in, and watch a class — no appointment needed.
- Address
- 3605 Henderson Blvd, South Tampa, FL 33609Free parking in front of the school
- Phone & text
- 813-350-9400Fastest way to reach the front desk
- Class times
- Set by age group and rankRequest the current schedule and we'll send it the same day