Chris started his instruction in Martial arts aged 6, after watching the original 'Karate Kid' on VHS. He immediately took up Shotokan Karate with a local club in his hometown of Nuneaton under 3rd Dan Steve Hewitt and reached the level of 6th Kyu before moving away to Cornwall.
During his time in the West Country Chris started to explore Kung Fu with local Shaolin 5 Animals 4th Degree Keith Newington and later began training in Muay Thai (Thai Boxing) at a local gym.
After moving to Bristol in 2009, Chris took up Lau Gar Kickboxing with Gio Marchese and
Lau Gar Kung Fu under Sharon Gill and Sean Viera. He received his Black Sash in Lau Gar from Grandmaster Jeremy Yau of the British Kung Fu Association in 2018 and began teaching to students in the local area under the Lau Gar banner.
In early 2022 Chris decided to move away from Lau Gar and created a syllabus for his independent martial arts club Dragon Claw Martial Arts (DCMA), of which he is now a 2nd Degree Black Belt.
The DCMA syllabus has been fully accredited by the British Martial Arts and Boxing Association and more details can be found on our 'Martial Arts' page.
DCMA aims to be a family oriented martial arts club and Chris' proudest moment was seeing his son start in the Little Dragons class and achieve his first Kung Fu belt.
Always seeking to improve his grappling and striking skills, Chris continues to train regularly with Mario Saeed and Mark McLelland at Trojan Free Fighters Bristol. He is currently working towards his Blue Belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ).
Chris qualified as a CYT200 hour Yoga Teacher in 2018 and furthered this by completing his CYT500 hour training in 2022. Chris is qualified to teach Vinyasa/Flow, Hatha, Yin Yoga, Adaptive/Chair Yoga and Yoga Nidra. He is also a certified Ayurvedic Nutritionist, using diet and exercise to promote health and wellbeing.
Chris qualified under Michelle Young of My Vinyasa Practice, who can trace her lineage back directly to Pattabhi Jois and Krishnamacharya, and currently studies with Lesley Fightmaster.
