STYLES VARY STANDARTS DON'T

I run a busy SEO agency in Edinburgh. The team at Krav Maga Edinburgh helped me during my stressful days ranking websites in Google and providing search engine optimisation. It's always fun going in and training with the guys and it has helped my confidence massively. The facilities are clean and the team is very helpful. The classes are great and everyone if there to have fun and help each other. Marcus brings a solid foundation of functional skills to the training floor, he will be a great asset to anyone who is seeking technical skills from a balanced and extremely functional self defense instructor.

I strongly recommend women's self-defence training with Marcus Houston. I have been attacked twice and attending a one-on-one training in self-defence manoeuvres could have been quite stressful and unpleasant. Marcus, however, was very patient, calm, and sensitive to unpleasant memories being stirred up. We started with separate moves and built up to strings of moves and strategies for self-protection, imagining various scenarios. We also revisted my previous attack experiences and I learned new ways of responding even in situations that had felt hopeless. I now feel empowered to take care of myself as much as possible in situations of threat. Essentially, Marcus communicates respect toward women and a genuine desire to equip women to take care of themselves. My hope is that more and more women young and old have the opportunity to learn self-defense skills from Marcus for their own personal security, confidence, and safety, as well as to reduce the number of injuries and worse suffered by women from every walk of life.

Marcus really went the extra mile for me, putting together a totally customised proramme that built in not just what I needed for the project I was working on, but fitness training, practical tips and ungodly early morning starts. A great experience all round and one I'd recommend to anyone looking for confidence and conditioning.

Thank you to you and Amy for coming out to Dollar Academy last month. The pupils really enjoyed their sessions with you and are all saying that they feel much more confident now when out and about. Thank you for making the sessions fun for them, the feedback from the pupils in all years has been really positive.

Marcus Houston is the first ( and currently only) person to whom I have awarded instructor status in my Tactical Edge system! Marcus was also my first Tactical Edge student, having started in the military system and transitioned into the expanded civilian system. Marcus has a wide range of experience in the martial arts, and a refreshingly open mind to new methods and tactics. Marcus is an extremely skilled and able practitioner, and an enthusiastic instructor who wants his students to have access to the highest standard of technique and instruction. Many instructors are happy to just offer their students what knowledge they already possess with very little room for continued development, where-as Marcus is always looking for new ways to boost his students abilities and effectiveness- giving them access to new fitness methods such as Russian Kettlebells, and bringing in instructors to performs classes and seminars. There are many instructors in and around Edinburgh who claim to offer self defence training, but as far as I have seen most of them basically teach MMA, Kickboxing, Traditional Martial Arts or Filipino Arts & call it 'Reality Based'. Marcus is one of the few instructors around who concentrates on realistic situational training against the sort of opponents & situations realistically encountered in modern society. If you are seriously wanting to learn personal protection I have no hesitation in recommending Marcus Houston's classes.

I've been around martial arts and self defense, in one form or another, for over 20 years. During that time I've been privileged enough to train with some fantastic instructors. I add Marcus Houston to that list with complete confidence. If you want to know what works - train with Marcus. Marcus is an exceptional instructor, instilling students with the highest level of practical skill and confidence. You cannot help but leave a class feeling better prepared than when you went in. His teaching is clear and precise and his classes provide ample time for participants to really understand the skills they are acquiring. He is also that rare thing, a teacher who performs at the highest level. There are many coaches who choose to rest on past achievements. Marcus on the other hand seems to revel in adding to his knowledge base and in the best sense "absorbs what is useful". This non-dogmatic approach is as rare as it is refreshing. Also, don't underestimate the "fun" element. Marcus encourages people to play with their new skills. No fighting by numbers here! Young, old, male, female, experienced or a "newbie", I can't think of a better environment in which to get out of the "comfort zone"

This is easily the best class I've ever done. Builds not only fitness, but confidence, discipline and determination.