Hello and welcome to the Pinoy Patriarch Project Podcast. I am your host Michael Pana. I am a husband, father of 3 boys, and full-time protector who is on the journey of learning what it means to be the leader of my home, my business, and my community. In this podcast I speak to Filipino and Filipino-American leaders who exhibit strength, honor, and courage who are leaders in their respective fields.

In this episode we sit down with Leo Manalo, a Tuhon (master level instructor) in Atienza Kali. He is also a married man with two daughters. He currently is a full-time martial art instructor through Atienza Kali teaches groups in the New York/New Jersey Tri-state area, and recently returned from teaching a seminar in Ireland.

I’ve known Tuhon Leo for over two decades, and in this interview we dig into his childhood as a Filipino immigrant, how his desire to be more masculine and tough brought him into the gang-life, and how training in martial arts led him to the Atienza family, ultimately resulting in his departure from gang-life and toward a more positive path. We also discuss topics such as as marriage and fatherhood, and how our Atienza training helped us in those areas of our lives.

I am a huge proponent of martial arts training as a means of finding brotherhood in our ever-divided world. This episode truly shows how the martial arts can be a positive avenue for any young Pinoy who is walking down a negative path. We aim to show how Atienza Kali helped Tuhon Leo become not only a skilled martial artist, but also a better husband, father, son, and friend.