From Hawaii to Tokyo: How Nate is Preserving Jeet Kune Do with Pensight

From Hawaii to Tokyo: How Nate is Preserving Jeet Kune Do with Pensight

Bruce Lee famously said, "Simplicity is the key to brilliance." For Nate, a Jeet Kune Do (JKD) and Wing Chun coach, this philosophy applies not just to martial arts, but to how he runs his business.

From managing UFC gyms in Hawaii to launching a new chapter in Tokyo, Nate has navigated the shift from traditional dojos to the digital creator economy. Here is how he built a global martial arts brand and used Pensight to streamline his operations.

The Origin Story: A Lineage Linked to Bruce Lee

Nate’s journey into martial arts is steeped in history. He began his career in Hawaii, coaching with the UFC Gym franchise for over a decade, starting with their very first location in 2011. However, his martial arts lineage goes much deeper.

Nate’s training is directly connected to the first generation of Jeet Kune Do. He trained under Richard Bustillo, a Hawaii-born student of Bruce Lee who later moved to LA to train with the legend. Nate also sought out other first-generation icons, including Taky Kimura in Seattle and Tim Tackett in California, to get the most direct training possible.

Later, Nate fell in love with Wing Chun—the base art Bruce Lee learned before creating JKD. He was drawn to its structure and the iconic "wooden dummy" training method.

"It’s been my main tool and what I think has become most popular on my videos... people can learn these drills and movements and actually train it by themselves." — Sifu Nate

The Shift: Taking Tradition Online

While Nate had a strong local presence in Hawaii, the COVID-19 pandemic forced a pivot. With everyone staying home, he leaned into online coaching and social media.

He discovered a unique niche: teaching solo drills using the wooden dummy or striking mannequins (like the Century BOB) for people who couldn't attend a gym. This digital success gave him the freedom to make a massive life change—moving to Tokyo to restart his life and business from scratch, supported by his online fanbase.

Today, Nate runs a hybrid business:

• In-Person Training: He operates gyms in Tokyo, attracting tourists from the US, UK, and Europe who want to train in Japan.
• Digital Products: He offers online coaching, courses, and an app.

The Challenge: The "Lego" Problem

As his business grew, so did the administrative headache. Nate found himself trying to piece together different software solutions like Legos.

• He used one app for bookings (Square).
• He used another for email marketing.
• He had separate landing pages and messaging apps.

"I got a piece from here, I got a piece from here, I got to connect the two... that's always been the thing, separately doing everything," Nate explains. This manual work was time-consuming, requiring him to manage multiple passwords and answer every message personally, which took time away from coaching.

The Solution: Streamlining with Pensight

Introduced to the platform by his student and business partner, Nate found that Pensight solved his "fragmented tool" problem.

1. The All-in-One Command Center

Pensight replaced Nate's need for multiple subscriptions. It consolidated his landing pages, service bookings, and email marketing into one spot.

"It simplifies everything. It makes it just one-stop shop... I can create the landing page, I can create the service, I can create the email marketing." — Sifu Nate

2. Automation and Time Freedom

The biggest value Nate found was time. By automating his marketing flows—such as automatically sending Instagram followers to his Pensight page—he no longer has to manually manage every lead. This "set it and forget it" capability allows him to focus on what matters: in-person training and creating new products.

3. Structured Learning (Dripped Content)

Nate is currently using Pensight to solve a specific teaching problem: students skipping ahead. Unlike his current app, which offers full access immediately, he plans to use Pensight’s course features to "trickle" content week-by-week. This ensures students master the basics before moving to advanced techniques, mimicking the discipline of a real-life dojo.

What’s Next for Sifu Nate?

With the time saved on admin, Nate is dreaming big. His future plans include:

• Instructor Camps: Certification retreats to train the next generation of teachers.
• Hardware Innovation: Developing a proprietary, affordable, and portable wooden dummy to make training more accessible.
• Premium Branding: utilizing white-labeling features to integrate Pensight seamlessly with his professional website.

Nate’s Advice for Creators

Nate recommends Pensight specifically for coaches, movement specialists, and influencers.

"If I can make one simple direct path, that's a very JKD way of thinking," Nate says. For creators who want to launch products quickly without building complex websites, or for established coaches looking to automate their workflow, Nate believes consolidating tools is the key to growth.
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Want to train like a pro?
You can check out Nate’s work here or, if you're lucky enough to be in Tokyo, catch him for a session at the dojo.

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