Today we’d like to introduce you to Kent Nelson.
Hi Kent, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I started martial arts at 7 years old (1984), studying the Korean art of Taekowndo (Chang Moo Kwan), under an instructor named Chad Ostrander. He was the person that made me want to be a martial arts teacher.
I continued with TKD through the age of 14, until my father enrolled me in a dojo teaching Japanese martial arts, such as Karate, Nihon JuJutsu, Kobudo, and Iaido. I immersed myself in all the arts they had to offer, training 5 days a week, helping with the kids classes and training in the adult classes. I spent 3 years there and soaked up as much as I possibly could.
My time at the dojo was very influential on me. It was there that I first experienced the differences between various martial arts, and started to catalog those differences. I didn’t know it yet, but this was the beginning of writing and forming what would become my own curriculum.
At age 16 I took on my first student in order to see if my own personal curriculum was any good. My best friend Dennis Leckrone volunteered to learn from me so I could continue to research and develop how to teach. We trained in the evenings in my Grandmother’s basement in the beginning (thanks, Gramma Jean).
At age 17 I met a man named Orcel Banks, who would became one of my closest friends. He was my Chinese Kickboxing instructor & training partner. We continued to actively train together for approximately 12 years. Training with him was always one on one, and was a very different experience to the formal group learning I had experienced in the past. 30 years later, Orcel and I are still in contact and close friends.
At age 19 (1997) I began teaching my curriculum publicly through the local Lansing Parks & Recreation Department. I named my school/group the Kai Shin Kan Dojo (House of an Open Mind & Heart). I taught through them for the next 7 years. This is where I fell in love with teaching and helping others on their own martial journey’s. Truth be told, I was too young & too inexperienced to really know what I was doing a the time… but that’s how we learn and get better. My very first student through Parks & Rec. was named Josh Swain (technically my 2nd student in total at the time), and he is to this day still one of my very best friends.
At age 20 (1998) I began training in Okinawan martial arts under a man named Charles Peterson. At the time he was teaching two different lineages, Shorinakn Shorin Ryu Karate-Do/Kobudo under Shugero Nakazato, and Ryu Te Karate-Do/Kobudo under Taika Seiyu Oyata. I trained times a weeks for 3 years, earning my 2nd degree Black Belt in Shorin Ryu under him.
At age 21 (1999) I traveled to California to train in the home of martial arts master & movie star, Tadashi Yamashita. He was teaching Kobayashi Shorin Ryu Karate-Do, Matayoshi Kobudo, and his own personal style of which he called Suikendo. For the next 15 years I studied with him through public seminars he taught in Michigan & Indiana, as well as trips out to California to take private lessons with him in his home.
In the year 2000 I began using the name KSK Martial Arts. KSK was short for the original name of the school, Kai Shin Kan.
Somewhere between 2000-2003 I met Guro/Sifu Dan Inosanto, and he would become probably the most influential figure in my martial arts career. I first trained with him at a seminar he was teaching in the Detroit area, and I was hooked! His knowledge was so vast. My primary focus learning under him has been in Jeet Kune Do, Filipino Kali, Madjapahit Silat. However it wasn’t just his amazing skill and knowledge that drew me to him, it was also his personal philosophies and humble demeanor that set him apart from may other martial artists I had met. For over two decades I trained with him multiple times a year through seminars in Michigan, Indianna, Ohio, and regular trips out to his academy in Marina del Ray, CA. In that time I have achieved Instructor ranking under Guro Inosanto in JKD, FMA, and Silat, and still follow him to this day. He is currently 89 years old (2025).
In 2003 I built a dojo behind my home and began teaching my classes in that location.
In 2005 I began teaching public seminars in the Michigan area.
In 2005 I began filming and releasing instructional DVD’s, launching the KSK affiliate training program, where people could learn from a distance.
In 2007 I began taking private lessons with Shawn Kitzman in Combat Submission Wrestling (founded by Erik Paulson), and simultaneously with David Hatch for Inosanto Kali, Wing Chun, and Balintawak. I trained with both teachers approximately every other week for 8 years (2015).
In 2007 I began developing what was to be the first Online Learning Center for JKD & Kali. This would be a 3-year project of filming, editing, and working with software engineers to figure out how to make it work. Up until this point there were no existing video online video learning platforms yet.
In 2010 we publicly launched the very first Online Learning Center for JKD & Kali. We were the only ones in existence at that time.
In 2010 I began studying Gracie Jiu-Jitsu under Professor Chet Schemahorn. At the time he was located in LaGrange, IN. and has since relocated to Fort Wayne, IN. I still maintain consistent training with him, hosting Professor Chet for a seminar at my school 3 times a year, and traveling to train with him at his school approximately once a month (2025).
In 2013 I moved into my first commercial location, offering classes for Kids, Teens, and Adults. I teach classes in Filipino Kali, JKD, Silat, and Jiu-Jitsu.
In 2013 I began teaching seminars outside of Michigan, such as New Jersey, Massachusetts, Ohio, and Georgia.
In 2014 I trained actor Jessie Eisenberg for his fight scenes in the movie American Ultra (released in 2015).
In 2019 I began private and small group training with Guro Daniel Lonero (founder of XTMA), who is one of Guro Dan Inosanto’s closest students, and now hold Instructor ranking under him in JKD & FMA. I continue to train with him today (2025).
In 2019 KSK went international, traveling to Portugal to teach JKD, Kali, and Silat.
In 2020 we moved to a bigger location (our current location, 2025), and I resumed training with my former Okinawan martial arts teacher, Charles Peterson. For the last 5 years I have been taking weekly private lessons with him in Ryu Te Karate-Do/Kobudo (founded by Taika Seiyu Oyata), and currently hold a third degree black belt under him, as well as studying the Chinese Internal Martial Arts.
In 2025 KSK Martial Arts celebrated its 25th year anniversary, and I personally celebrated my 40th year studying the martial arts.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I’ve had three wrist surgeries, one major shoulder surgery, and only 10 days after we signed the lease on our current location the pandemic hit and we were not allowed to open.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I went to college for art, then went back to school again for emergency services and spent 7 years on the road as a paramedic. I still keep my paramedic license current.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
I see more traveling for seminars and further development of our online courses as well, as we continue to build our KSK Affiliate program.
Contact Info:
- Website: KskMartialArts.com
- Instagram: PERSONAL – https://www.instagram.com/tkentnelson/ PROFESSIONAL – https://www.instagram.com/kskmartialarts/
- Facebook: PERSONAL – https://www.facebook.com/kent.nelson.733 PROFESSIONAL – https://www.facebook.com/kskmartialartsmi/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuuiPC1hBG0z5bkpZt1IDSQ?view_as=subscriber
