About Us

Orthopaedic Surgeon | Mataas na Guro, Rapido Realismo Kali | TRICOM Weapon Retention Instructor

---
“Know why it works. Know when it works. Know where it fails.”
---

Dr. AA Quidlat is an Orthopaedic Surgeon, Physical Therapist, educator, athlete, and Filipino Martial Arts instructor whose work sits at the intersection of musculoskeletal medicine, human performance, combatives, and real-world personal protection. He has completed advanced fellowship training in Foot and Ankle Surgery in South Korea and Bio-orthopaedics, Cartilage Preservation, and Regenerative Medicine in Milan, Italy, reflecting a clinical focus on evidence-based orthopaedic care, musculoskeletal health, healthy and active living, and the preservation of joint function across the lifespan.

He has practiced Filipino Martial Arts since childhood and is a Senior Instructor (Mataas na Guro) of Rapido Realismo Kali. Over the years, he has trained and cross-trained across different martial and combative disciplines, developing an approach that respects the cultural foundations of Filipino Martial Arts while remaining open to testing, adaptation, and continued evolution.

His medical, rehabilitative, and athletic background strongly shapes the way he teaches. Rather than presenting techniques as fixed answers, AA approaches combatives through anatomy, biomechanics, physiology, movement science, injury mechanisms, human performance, and decision-making under stress. His clinical experience managing musculoskeletal trauma also provides a practical perspective on the mechanisms, limitations, and consequences of edged, impact, and ballistic injury.

For AA, effective training must extend beyond whether a technique can simply be demonstrated successfully. It must account for context, resistance, uncertainty, physical capability, equipment, environment, human behavior, legal considerations, and the consequences of failure. He therefore emphasizes adaptable principles, realistic training methods, and an understanding of why something works, when it works, and where it begins to fail. Across disciplines, his approach remains evidence-aware, pressure-tested, responsibly taught, and applicable outside the training environment.

His training has progressively expanded beyond traditional martial arts into contemporary personal-protection disciplines. He is also a TRICOM Weapon Retention Instructor, and his broader work integrates Filipino Martial Arts, combatives, applied firearms skills, weapon retention, personal protection, and bystander trauma care into a more comprehensive approach to real-world preparedness.

AA does not view Filipino Martial Arts simply as a method of fighting. He sees it as both a living cultural tradition and a practical framework for developing capable, responsible, and self-aware individuals. His goal is to preserve what is valuable in the Filipino martial tradition while contributing to its continued evolution through medicine, science, experience, cross-disciplinary study, and honest testing.

Ultimately, he teaches not to create fighters, but to develop people who are better prepared to protect themselves and others, make sound decisions under pressure, understand the realities and consequences of violence, and act responsibly within the law, while carrying forward a deeper appreciation for Filipino martial culture and the country from which it came.

Firearms Instructor | HARD TASK Shooting Instructor | PNP-Certified GSI & RSO

---
“Master the fundamentals. Train with purpose. Never stop learning.”
---

Coach Jon Angeles is a seasoned firearms instructor, with nearly a decade of experience in firearms training and education. His approach is built around safety, strong fundamentals, practical application, and continuous professional development, with an emphasis on developing competent and responsible shooters rather than simply teaching isolated shooting techniques.

He believes that reliable performance begins with a sound technical foundation. His instruction emphasizes safe firearm handling, marksmanship fundamentals, efficient weapon manipulation, deliberate practice, and the progressive development of skills that remain repeatable under increasing levels of complexity and pressure. Rather than allowing speed or advanced techniques to mask deficiencies, he places a premium on understanding and mastering the fundamentals upon which higher-level performance is built.

He is a PNP-certified and accredited Gun Safety Instructor (GSI) and Range Safety Officer (RSO) and is also a certified Emergency Medical Responder (EMR). These qualifications reflect a broader philosophy of responsible firearms ownership, one that recognizes that competence with a firearm includes not only the ability to use it effectively, but also an understanding of safety, risk, and the potential consequences of its use.

As part of his continued professional development, Jon graduated from the Shooting Instructor Course conducted by HARD TASK TRAINING, a Czech-based organization and one of the world’s largest professional firearms, tactical, and tactical-medical training providers. The program further developed his approach to firearms instruction, including teaching methodology, shooter assessment, identification and correction of errors, training management, and the safe conduct of live-fire instruction.

A committed lifelong learner, he continues to train with respected local and international firearms instructors, constantly refining both his personal skills and his methods of teaching. He approaches certification not as an endpoint, but as part of an ongoing process of learning, testing, reassessment, and improvement.

For Coach Jon, effective firearms training is about building repeatable skill, sound judgment, and disciplined habits that hold up beyond the controlled environment of the range.

Orthopaedic Surgeon | Mataas na Guro, Rapido Realismo Kali | TRICOM Weapon Retention Instructor

---
“Build the body. Refine the movement. Express the skill.”
---

Dr. AJ Quidlat is a board-certified Orthopaedic Surgeon, licensed Physical Therapist, medical educator, and Senior Instructor of Rapido Realismo Kali whose work bridges musculoskeletal medicine, human movement, physical performance, and Filipino Martial Arts. He completed advanced fellowship training in hip and knee surgery in South Korea, further developing his expertise in the assessment and management of lower-extremity joint conditions and the restoration of function and mobility.

As Mataas na Guro and Senior Instructor of Rapido Realismo Kali, AJ represents a modern yet traditionally grounded approach to Filipino Martial Arts. His teaching preserves the system’s emphasis on speed, directness, timing, distance, footwork, and practical application, while using his medical and rehabilitative background to deepen the understanding of how the human body produces, transfers, absorbs, and responds to force.

His background in Orthopaedic Surgery and Physical Therapy strongly shapes the way he teaches movement. Rather than treating technique as a sequence of positions to imitate, AJ emphasizes biomechanics, efficient force production, joint mechanics, balance, movement economy, and physical capacity. Students are encouraged to understand not only how a movement is performed, but also the mechanical principles that make it efficient, repeatable, and adaptable.

This perspective also influences his approach to physical preparation. AJ views strength, mobility, endurance, coordination, and structural resilience not as separate from martial skill, but as part of the physical foundation that allows those skills to be expressed effectively. His approach favors sustainable development of the body rather than performance built at the expense of long-term function.

His training extends beyond traditional Filipino Martial Arts. AJ has also completed the TRICOM Weapon Retention Instructor Course, expanding his study into contemporary weapon-retention concepts and the problems associated with maintaining control of weapons during close physical encounters.

As both a physician and educator, he brings the same emphasis on clarity and practical understanding into medical instruction, including teaching orthopaedic injury concepts to emergency medical responders. Whether discussing an injury, a movement, or a combative technique, his objective is to translate complex principles into information that students can understand and apply.

Known for a clear, structured, and patient teaching style, AJ seeks to develop practitioners who understand the principles behind what they are doing rather than simply accumulating techniques. His goal is the development of efficient movement, practical skill, physical preparedness, and disciplined martial practice while preserving the cultural foundation and practical character of Filipino Martial Arts.

For AJ, better performance begins with better understanding of the body and better training develops the body and the skill together.