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The Girls Who Fight
Youth Self Defense Program®
We help girls develop Character, Confidence and Strength while mastering self defense skills that last a lifetime.
Book Your
2-Week Free Trial
Start your free trial in a Beginners-Only Intro Class to kick off 2 Weeks of Free Self Defense Training!
Only 10 Spots Per Week.
The next page will let you schedule your intro class. We will never share your information. By submitting you agree to receive SMS or e-mails about special offers and events. Rates may apply.
We Help Girls Build the Character and Habits That Lead to Confidence, Health, and Success
The Girls Who Fight Program® empowers girls ages 7–16 with real-world self-defense skills—physical, mental, and verbal—that protect and strengthen her for life.
But this is more than just martial arts. Not only will your daughter learn how to defend herself, she'll gain the knowledge to never become a target, the positive habits that foster health and happiness, and the strength of character to live a confident, successful life.
We Don't Just Teach Girls To Fight–
We Give Them The Awareness, Resilience and Confidence So They Never Have To
Pillar 1: Self Defense Skills
At Girls Who Fight, we don’t just teach martial arts—we teach a complete system of self-defense designed for girls and women. Our training blends the most effective techniques from Jiu Jitsu and Muay Thai to give you the skills, mindset, and confidence to handle real-world threats.
Self-Defense Jiu Jitsu
Escape grabs, chokes, headlocks, and ground pins, and learn how to use leverage, joint locks, and submissions to overcome larger attackers. We focus on practical self-defense, not sport.
Muay Thai Kickboxing
Build striking power with punches, kicks, knees, and elbows while mastering defense, footwork, and timing. You’ll gain the speed, strength, and control to protect yourself and stay one step ahead.
Violence Prevention Strategy
"The highest form of strategy is to defeat your enemy's strategy"- Sun Tzu.
At Girls Who Fight, we provide an education in violence prevention that gives students the knowledge and confidence to avoid danger before it starts. For young girls, threats often come from classmates, peers, and social pressures. Our girls learn:
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Bully Prevention – Recognize and stop bullying before it escalates
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Confident Presentation – Walk tall, speak up, and project strength
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Boundary Setting – Say “no” with conviction—and know what to do if it’s ignored
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Peer Pressure Defense – Resist negative peer pressure and stand firm in your values
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Situational Awareness – Stay alert, trust your instincts, and spot danger early
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Threat Detection – Know the danger signals that precede violence and manipulation
Pillar 2: Character Development
The most important strength is strength of character. While only a few martial artists will ever step into a cage or ring, every single one will use the discipline, grit, focus, and confidence they gain here for the rest of their lives.
Through our structured Character Development Training, girls learn to develop self-discipline, courage, focus, resilience, positive attitude, integrity, respect, leadership and teamwork—the qualities that shape strong, capable and confident young women. These attitudes and habits don’t just help them succeed in martial arts; they empower them in school, at home, in their future careers and relationships, and in every part of life.
Self Discipline
Resilience
Teamwork
Focus
Positive Attitude
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Leadership
Respect
Integrity
Grit
"This isn't just a self defense class– it's a program that builds resilience, integrity, and grit in young girls."
Meet Your Instructor
Jiu Jitsu Black Belt • MMA Champion • Girls Who Fight Founder
Coach Gemma Sheehan, a former MMA fighter and champion, earned her Jiu Jitsu Black Belt from 12-Time World Champion Rafael Barbosa, and spent years training under World Kickboxing Champion “Bazooka” Joe Valtellini. She has won Pan American Championships in Jiu Jitsu, and was ranked as the #1 Female MMA Fighter in Ontario, with a record of 5 wins 1 loss. Her competitive background brings together the worlds of Jiu Jitsu and striking, but her true passion and teaching expertise is in applying martial arts for Women’s Self Defense.
"In 2017, I retired from competition. Walking away from my dream wasn’t easy—but I left with something even more powerful: the belief that I could do anything. Martial arts didn’t just give me the ability to win fights in the octagon, it gave me something far more valuable: the unshakable belief that I could do anything.
Confidence, strength, grit, mental and physical toughness, patience, focus, self-discipline– it gave me the MINDSET of a champion. A mindset I could apply to anything I wanted.
This made me wonder: there’s a martial arts gym on every corner, so why aren’t more women and girls experiencing this transformation?
The answer was clear—most martial arts schools are built for men who want to win fights, not for girls who want to protect themselves and gain all the qualities of a strong character.
That’s why I created Girls Who Fight. Since 2017, I’ve been building a program that would revolutionize self defense for women and girls. We stripped the elements that hold girls back, and narrowed in on the most valuable, priceless, life-changing benefits of a martial arts education:
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The physical skills to defend your life.
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The knowledge to avoid violence.
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The confidence and character that propels you to health, happiness and success in every endeavor.
The Girls Who Fight Black Belt represents excellence in all three areas. It is the only program of its kind, and I am honored to share it with your family."
The Girls Who Fight Journey
Start
Book Your 2 Week Free Trial
Begin with an Intro Class alongside other first-timers. Get a basics lesson, meet our friendly instructors, and see our beautiful academy before joining your first group class.
Grow
Start Learning In Our Basic Class
Train in our Basic Class, where beginner girls and teens develop essential movements, strikes, and self-defense skills—while also learning our basic Character Development curriculum.
Evolve
Work Towards Earning Your Black Belt
After earning your first belt, join our Black Belt Classes to take your your self defense skills and character development to the next level and work towards achieving your black belt!
The Girls Who Fight Difference
Beginner Girls at Girls Who Fight:
✅ Girls Only
✅ Learn Effective Self Defense Techniques
✅ Learn Street Smarts & Violence Prevention
✅ Peer Pressure & Bully Prevention Training
✅ Primary Focus on Character Development
✅ Beginner-Friendly, Fun, Empowering Atmosphere
✅ Learn From A Professional, Experienced Female Instructor
✅ The Purpose of Our Training is Self Defense
Beginner Girls at Average Gym:
❌ Only Girl In The Room
❌ Learn Unrealistic Moves Designed For Martial Arts Competitions
❌ Zero Street Smarts Training
❌ Zero Bully-Prevention Training
❌ No Character Development, Only Care About Sports Competitions
❌ Competitive and Intimidating Atmosphere
❌ Unprofessional Male Instructors
❌ The Purpose of Training is To Win Fights
Training Pillars
Mixed Martial Arts Training
"This program has quite literally changed my life"
Give your daughter priceless strength, wits, and courage that she’ll take with her everywhere she goes for the rest of her life
The most valuable benefit of Girls Who Fight Camp is the knowledge and character that our girls gain and take with them everywhere they go. Our program teaches girls how to become an effective protector through the three GWF self defense pillars: Deter, Detect, and Defend!
Not Ready To Sign Up Yet?
Start learning about girls self defense on our blog!
Physical Self Defense Skills
Confidence, Anti-Bullying, Self Defense
If there's anything girls need today it's confidence, awareness, and the ability to defend themselves from bullies and predators. Our fun, empowering program combines self defense and martial arts, bully-proofing and street smarts, and the undeniable confidence building that comes along with gaining these life changing skills.