Hi, I'm Dave Hughes. When I was growing up, my father allowed me to start martial arts in 1971 at the age of six, but with a condition: If I were to get in a fight with the other kids, I could no longer train. The fact that I was not allowed to fight put a major target on my back while growing up. When I was 14, I hit a pothole in the track while running a 40 yard dash and the torque broke my hip and shredded the connective tissue. I was told by my doctor that I would walk with a limp for the rest of my life and that martial arts and all sports were no longer an option for me. Needless to say, the bullies in middle school and my freshman year of high school were even less kind for the 6 months I was on crutches and the year that I basically had to drag my left leg behind me after that.

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Due to the mental and sometimes physical abuse I took, I became obsessed with proving my doctor wrong and not only gaining my full mobility and use of that leg and hip, but becoming the best I possibly could be. I set a goal at age 15 to become a world champion. Using Kickboxing Champion Bill "Superfoot" Wallace  (the best kicker in the history of the sport, who could only use one leg due to an injury) as a role model and inspiration, I won my division at the very first International Junior Olympics for the kicking sport of Tae Kwon Do at the age of 16. I fell in love with pushing myself and constantly redefining my limits. Over time I succeeded in regaining full use of my leg and hip. However, during the rehab and physical conditioning, I found that I had both a talent and a passion for strength training and weight lifting. This led me to be one of the early cross-trainers between the two disciplines, especially at a high level for both.

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Over the years, I have been a national-level, drug free strength athlete and an international competitor in martial arts. I've won a national championship in Black Belt Open Forms competition and an international championship in full-contact competition, but my greatest competitive success has been as a world-class Grappler and World Jiu-Jitsu Champion. This was in spite of a new health challenge. I have had the auto-immune diseases of both fibromyalgia and rheumatoid arthritis for the past two decades.. Not ideal for my choices of sports, but my Rheumatologist tells me that most people at my stage of my diseases would be on disability. My martial arts training and weight lifting is what truly keeps my health and physical capacities at such a high level.  I have now been cross-training in multiple styles of martial arts for over 45 years and am currently an 8th Degree Black Belt and Master Instructor under Black Belt Hall Of Fame Instructor of the Year, Grand Master Ernie Reyes, Sr. 

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When my wife and I opened our martial arts school in 1993, remembering the challenges I had with bullies as a child, I began Speaking in local schools and churches to kids about how to deal with bullies without having to fight. What many people don't realize about the martial arts is that they are as much about teaching life skills and self-improvement as they are about self-defense. While I love working with my students of all ages (currently 3 years-78 years young) at our martial arts school, I have a passion for Speaking with children (as well as parents and teachers about how to help their kids) about  the subjects of bullying, life coaching for children, physical and mental fitness, and the Pursuit of Personal Excellence and Self-Mastery.
 

 

Now that I have finally retired from competition, I am currently putting the time and energy that I put into becoming a world-class combat athlete into my second career as a professional speaker and author. I have just completed creating an e-book and video series Dealing With Bullies Without Resorting To Violence. Another project in the editing phase is an e-book and video series called Life Coach Your Child.  I'm also currently working on an e-book and video series Grappling For Geezers: : Jiu-Jitsu and Submission Grappling For The Older Athlete. My next project is a website and series on physical and mental conditioning for older athletes in all sports.

 

I am available for Speaking engagements on any of these topics. Please use the contact information below to check for available dates and bookings.