By: Gail Whipple
The Dojo Can Be Viewed From All Machines
A new family sports concept is gaining strength in Fayetteville North Carolina. It’s called a Dojym, a hybrid martial arts dojo and a state-of-the-art gym. It’s designed for parents to get in a workout while they literally oversee their children learning self-defense. The dojo is a glassed-in room surrounded by treadmills and exercise bikes. Parents are encouraged to be physically active instead of sitting in a waiting area for their kids to finish training. Owner Hakim Isler says, “We’re concerned about the whole family’s complete well-being.”
Isler is a former Army guy who also holds a fourth-degree black belt in the martial art of To-Shin-Do. A prolonged tour of duty in Iraq made him keenly aware that proper training leads not only to self-protection, but the ability to protect others. “Although people see martial arts as a physical activity, it’s as much about the spirit and mind as it is about the body. It follows that I am dedicated to strengthening not only the children who come through my doors, but their family and community as well.”
The gym is open around the clock and holds a full complement of free weights, strength machines, treadmills, elliptical machines and spin bikes. It’s paradise for the serious gym rat, but welcoming to the beginner as well. The atmosphere is intentionally designed to feel more like a spa than a traditional gym, and strikes a balance between being a personal oasis and a community-gathering place.
“It’s important to me to meet everybody where they are starting, and then to challenge them to take the next step in their wellbeing,” says Isler. The Dojym is my way of making that happen.”
