Lake Tahoe Karate: The Programs

Martial arts for real people, at every age.
Grounded in tradition. Informed by modern research. Focused on character, competence, and autonomy. Lake Tahoe Karate is not a fitness trend or a fight gym.
It is a disciplined learning environment where students develop real self-defense skills, emotional maturity, and a deeper relationship to their own bodies and choices.

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Age-Appropriate by Design

Every class is built around how people actually learn and grow.

• Ages 4–5
  Simple structure, clear boundaries, play with purpose. Learning how to listen, move, and care for themselves and others.

• Ages 6–8
  Skill foundations, cooperation, cause-and-effect. Building confidence through achievable challenges.

• Ages 9–12
  Increased responsibility, problem-solving, and self-control. Students begin to understand consequences and personal effort.

• Ages 13–18
  Identity, resilience, and critical thinking. Training becomes a space to test oneself, refine judgment, and build self-respect.

• Adults
  Serious training without ego. Technical instruction, mutual respect, and steady personal development in a mature environment.

Each group trains differently—without shortcuts, without pretending children are adults, and without talking down to anyone.

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What We Teach

Karate is the foundation.
Everything else supports it.

• Traditional Karate
  Kata (forms), kihon (fundamentals), partner work, and time-tested standards of excellence.

• Jiu-Jitsu & Breakfalls
  Practical grappling awareness, control, and safe falling skills.

• Boxing & Kickboxing
  Timing, footwork, distance, and striking mechanics—taught with control and clarity.

• Modern Self-Defense
  Awareness, avoidance, de-escalation, and realistic responses to genuine threats.

• Verbal & Social Skills
  Clear communication, boundary-setting, and the ability to stand up for oneself without unnecessary conflict.

This is not about collecting techniques.
It is about learning how to think, move, and respond under pressure.

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The Space

Our dojo is intentionally calm, clean, and focused.
It is not a gym. It is not school. It is not chaotic.

Rituals like bowing and cleaning are not symbolic fluff—they teach care, attention, and respect for shared space. Students learn that how they show up matters.

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Why Martial Arts

Self-defense matters—but it is not the whole story.

Martial arts work because they are embodied.
Learning happens through the body, through effort, through challenge, and through feedback that cannot be faked.

Students don’t just hear ideas—they experience them.

Over time, they learn:

• Awareness of themselves and their surroundings

• Emotional regulation under stress

• Responsibility for their actions

• Confidence rooted in competence

• Respect for others without submission or aggression

The deeper aim is authentic autonomy—the ability to stand on one’s own feet, make good decisions, and protect what matters.

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The Instructor

Peter Rulon-Miller
Founder & Head Instructor

I began training at age nine and teaching by thirteen.
Martial arts became the place where learning stopped being abstract and became personal.

Over decades of practice and study—in education, psychology, philosophy, and embodied learning—I’ve seen how powerful authentic martial arts can be when taught with care and seriousness.

This school exists because I believe young people, especially, need environments that demand responsibility without crushing curiosity, and discipline without domination.

Not everyone will train forever.
But everyone should leave stronger, clearer, and more grounded than when they arrived.

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A Note to Parents & Students

This is not a program built on hype, belts, or quick confidence boosts.
Progress here is real, earned, and personal.

If you’re looking for:

• A place that respects children as developing human beings

• Training that values character as much as skill

• A teacher who cares deeply about how martial arts shape lives

You’re welcome here.