About
Blue Life Karate & Xtreme Kickboxing offers Little Ninjas Martial Arts, Kids Martial Arts, Adult Martial Arts, Karate Classes, Kickboxing, Xtreme Kickboxing, and Pekiti Tirsia Kali Silat Self Defense. The program also offers After School activities, Summer Camp, Karate Camp, Karate Birthdays and Birthday Party events, as well as a Health and Fitness program and self-defense classes.
• Ages: 3–18 years old
• Schedule: Hours of operation Monday to Thursday from 5:00–7:00 PM, and Saturday from 8:30 AM–1:00 PM
Blue Life Karate & Xtreme Kickboxing includes a Little Ninjas program for boys and girls ages 3–5 years old, with training that progresses at an age-appropriate pace and focuses on character building and leadership in a fun and safe environment. Kids and adult martial arts classes, as well as self-defense classes, emphasize improving fitness, confidence, and practical self-defense, and self-defense lessons are described as fun and enabling kids to learn teamwork and build friendships. The program is described as feeling like a family, with caring karate instructors offering classes for a variety of age groups and skill levels, and each student’s progress is measured against their own previous performance. It is described as more of an institution of self-improvement than just a gym or some activity, with training that concentrates on building the whole person physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and socially.
The program offers options such as 2 Free Trial Classes, Web Specials with no strings attached, and a structure where students can make progress by attending classes an average of twice a week, with options for students who want to attend more classes. Karate birthdays are described as fun and action-packed, and the Health and Fitness program states that participants can quickly lose weight, get in shape, build muscle, and improve cardio. Self-defense classes state that they help everyone get ready to protect themselves from any type of attack and get fit in the process.
Blue Life Karate Centers were founded in 1993 in Maplewood, New Jersey by Shihan Durand Howard, who is the founder and director of Blue Life Karate School and heads the instruction at Blue Life Karate & Xtreme Kickboxing. MASTER SHIHAN / TUHON DURAND HOWARD is a 10th Degree Black Belt in the Blue Life Budo Ninjutsu System, a Tuhon (Senior Master Instructor) in Pekiti Tirsia Kali, and a Certified Combat Pekiti Tirsia Kali Silat Master Instructor. He is a 12-time New Jersey State Karate Champion, holds 3 WKU World Champion titles and 2 National Championships, and has been inducted into the U.S.A. Martial Arts Hall of Fame, the World Karate Union Hall of Fame, the Action Martial Arts Magazine Hall of Fame, and the Legends of the Martial Arts Hall of Fame.
Parents in the school report dramatic positive improvements in their children in only a few weeks, and the program invites families from the Maplewood area and the Short Hills, Millburn, South Orange, Vauxhall, and Irvington areas to see why they find the martial arts lessons inspiring. The school states that many people think martial arts are just about fighting, and explains that the physical kicking and punching are used as tools to teach lessons about oneself.
Last updated April 16, 2026.
• Ages: 3–18 years old
• Schedule: Hours of operation Monday to Thursday from 5:00–7:00 PM, and Saturday from 8:30 AM–1:00 PM
Blue Life Karate & Xtreme Kickboxing includes a Little Ninjas program for boys and girls ages 3–5 years old, with training that progresses at an age-appropriate pace and focuses on character building and leadership in a fun and safe environment. Kids and adult martial arts classes, as well as self-defense classes, emphasize improving fitness, confidence, and practical self-defense, and self-defense lessons are described as fun and enabling kids to learn teamwork and build friendships. The program is described as feeling like a family, with caring karate instructors offering classes for a variety of age groups and skill levels, and each student’s progress is measured against their own previous performance. It is described as more of an institution of self-improvement than just a gym or some activity, with training that concentrates on building the whole person physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and socially.
The program offers options such as 2 Free Trial Classes, Web Specials with no strings attached, and a structure where students can make progress by attending classes an average of twice a week, with options for students who want to attend more classes. Karate birthdays are described as fun and action-packed, and the Health and Fitness program states that participants can quickly lose weight, get in shape, build muscle, and improve cardio. Self-defense classes state that they help everyone get ready to protect themselves from any type of attack and get fit in the process.
Blue Life Karate Centers were founded in 1993 in Maplewood, New Jersey by Shihan Durand Howard, who is the founder and director of Blue Life Karate School and heads the instruction at Blue Life Karate & Xtreme Kickboxing. MASTER SHIHAN / TUHON DURAND HOWARD is a 10th Degree Black Belt in the Blue Life Budo Ninjutsu System, a Tuhon (Senior Master Instructor) in Pekiti Tirsia Kali, and a Certified Combat Pekiti Tirsia Kali Silat Master Instructor. He is a 12-time New Jersey State Karate Champion, holds 3 WKU World Champion titles and 2 National Championships, and has been inducted into the U.S.A. Martial Arts Hall of Fame, the World Karate Union Hall of Fame, the Action Martial Arts Magazine Hall of Fame, and the Legends of the Martial Arts Hall of Fame.
Parents in the school report dramatic positive improvements in their children in only a few weeks, and the program invites families from the Maplewood area and the Short Hills, Millburn, South Orange, Vauxhall, and Irvington areas to see why they find the martial arts lessons inspiring. The school states that many people think martial arts are just about fighting, and explains that the physical kicking and punching are used as tools to teach lessons about oneself.
Last updated April 16, 2026.
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