We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jacob Brinnand. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jacob below.

Jacob , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

Creating Texas State Champions!

Winning certainly brings satisfaction, but as a teacher, there’s a deeper fulfillment in witnessing your students succeed. Seeing them claim victory and embrace their potential fills me with indescribable joy. My goal is to inspire greatness in others, and seeing them triumph is the ultimate reward.

Preparing students with just a year of experience for a Texas state championship was a challenging journey. Unlike team sports where success relies on collective effort, martial arts competitions strip away the support, exposing you to doubts and fears under the arena’s bright lights. Instilling qualities like courage, strength, and fighting spirit in my students demanded dedication, but it’s what creates champions who can overcome any obstacle.

In our first year in the TKO WKL League, we prepared 11 students to compete, and they brought home 11 Gold Medals across Sparring, Weapons, and Forms demonstrations. Witnessing our team of white belts evolve into confident champions has been incredibly rewarding.

Now, we’re gearing up to return to the ring on May 4th (Star Wars Day). We’ll be competing in Sparring, Weapons, and Forms, facing off against some of Texas’s best. For our teens and adults, we have upcoming Smokers, amateur MMA matches, and Thai Boxing bouts on the horizon. We’re excited to showcase our skills and demonstrate what we’re made of.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’m Sifu Jacob Brinnand (Jake Brinnand), a Martial Arts Teacher with nearly 200 students. My journey began in 2011 when I founded Iron Wire Martial Arts, where I teach a diverse range of disciplines including Shaolin Hung Gar, Pencak Silat, Kickboxing, and Balintawak Arnis-Eskrima. With roots from renowned masters like Great Grandmaster YC Wong, 5-time World Champion Kathy Long, a Navy Seal Veteran, Great Grandmaster Crispulo Ising Atillo & Dan Inosanto, my expertise spans Chinese, Indonesian, Filipino, and Thai Fighting Styles.

As the head instructor at Barker Cypress Premier Martial Arts in Houston, Texas, I dedicate myself to teaching these systems and Kickboxing full-time. Witnessing novices evolve into success stories is immensely fulfilling, seeing students develop self-belief and resilience is what drives me. Martial arts encapsulates both inner and physical strength. Its essence lies in empowering disciples to confront life’s challenges with resilience and fortitude.

I am most proud of the transformation I witness in students who have overcome bullying or lacked self-confidence, evolving into strong, confident individuals. Seeing them build a positive mindset and embrace their inner strength brings me unparalleled joy. We have taken beginners with no experience in any sport, introduced them to physical movement, and helped them become champions in just one year. Martial Arts undeniably serves as a positively transformative process.

Clients often inquire about my background and motivation for pursuing martial arts. My journey is multifaceted—I’m drawn to the idea of infinite play, where creative learning and development never cease, and martial arts offer endless opportunities for growth, both physically and mentally. Moreover, its emphasis on character development aligns with my belief in building resilience and positivity—a much-needed tool in today’s world. For me, it’s more than just a hobby or profession; it’s a way of life. Every day, I wake up to engage in my work, pursue my passion, fulfill my mission, and achieve my goals. Martial arts is all-encompassing, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Through this medium, one can make friends, improve physical fitness, learn self-defense, and steer clear of negative influences like drugs and harmful behavior. It’s a positive endeavor, and inspiring the next generation to embrace martial arts has become my life’s work.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

Certainly, when delving into the realm of martial arts, imitation serves as the initial step. You emulate your instructor, adopting their methods of practice and execution. This process is essential for gaining insights into the art you’re studying and mastering its particular style. However, I caution any practitioner against becoming overly fixated on a single system, idea, or training approach to the extent that it hinders a broader perspective.

The system you’re immersed in acts as a lens through which you perceive combat. While this lens provides valuable insight, it’s not exhaustive. No single system possesses all the answers to every aspect of combat. Therefore, it’s crucial to maintain an open mind and remain adaptable. Embracing flexibility allows for exploration beyond the confines of any one system and fosters a deeper understanding of martial arts as a whole.

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

Transitioning from a disciple to a teacher was a significant shift for me. My early years were spent in an environment focused solely on adult training, devoid of children’s classes or younger students. I was accustomed to training alongside adults, learning the intricacies of combat and discipline. However, my path led me to the realm of teaching and educating children, which presented a new set of challenges.

Adapting the combative aspects of my journey into a format that was both engaging and accessible for the next generation required considerable effort. Teaching martial arts to 3-year-olds is vastly different from instructing 4-7-year-olds, which differs from guiding 8-12-year-olds, and so on. Each age group requires a tailored approach to ensure effective communication and engagement.

Navigating this diversity in age groups posed a challenge as a teacher. How could I best connect with students of all ages, fostering interaction and enabling them to utilize the material to their advantage? Transitioning from being a student to becoming a teacher demanded a distinct skill set, particularly when catering to such a wide range of age groups. Reflecting on my journey, I realize that mastering the art of teaching across all ages is a skill I wish I had developed earlier in my martial arts journey.

Contact Info:

• Website: IronWireMartialArts.com
• Instagram: Instagram.com/ironwiremartialarts
• Facebook: Facebook.com/IronWireMartialArts
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacob-brinnand-4b1a861b2/
• Twitter: Twitter.com/IWMAofficial
• Youtube: YouTube.com/IronWireMartialArts
• Other: tumblr.com/blog/ironwiremartialarts https://www.tiktok.com/@ironwiremartialarts

Image Credits
Jake Brinnand. Iron Wire Martial Arts. Sifu Jacob A. Brinnand