ANITA RONZONE is a karate instructor six days a week, a working professional five days a week, and a 24/7 wife, mother, and small business owner who believes that having goals which motivate you to pursue your passions — and never giving up — is how you live life to its absolute fullest. A strong advocate for and practitioner of an active lifestyle and all things athletic, Anita grew up dancing classical ballet for ten years, playing high school volleyball and tennis, and later teaching tennis while in college. She still participates in a variety of sports, but her true love is the martial arts, which she discovered later in life after working for years as a finance executive. Now, she not only works a professional career, she also runs a karate studio in Colorado.
Although she encounters misconceptions about martial arts training for women — in part because it’s typically a male-dominated activity — Anita believes it’s one of the most empowering sports a female can participate in, and she’s especially passionate about martial arts training for girls and women to learn about self defense. Having the ability to impact a young female’s confidence through training in the art is incredibly rewarding, but at the same time she credits the men in her life for being the greatest friends and influencers in her life, for being there to cheer her on, supporting her drive to engage girls and women in the martial arts, and appreciating the value of having strong, athletic, and independent women in their lives.
Anita has been married for over 17 years and has a 10 year-old son who also trains avidly in the arts. In her spare time, she loves climbing and finds the sport to be a fantastic physical and mental activity that helps shut off all her competing thoughts about work and schedules. She’s also drawn to its inherent trust-building: rock climbing is about trusting yourself on the wall or on the rock, and about trusting your belay partner to catch you if you fall. After all that strength-building, she turns to yoga. It’s what she does when it’s time to focus and re-center, to turn her attention back on herself, and clear her mind. It’s when she’s doing yoga, or rock climbing, or martial arts, that she embraces how incredibly fortunate she is to have found her calling. If Anita is any indication, it’s never too late to follow your passion.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS & CREDENTIALS:
- 2nd degree black belt in Kempo Karate
- Martial Arts instructor and studio manager
- Lead climb certified (climbed her first 5.11+!)
2012 INTENTIONS:
- Grow martial arts school to 150 students and inspire them to experience their personal best through the art
- Run a second school in mid-2012
- Lead climb a 5.10 rated outdoor climb in Colorado (which means getting over personal anxieties of outdoor climbing and trusting her own skill and ability)
- Reconnect with yoga to balance and re-center from the demands of running a business, holding down a full time professional career, and being a mom and wife
WEBSITE: ZUltimateParker.com »
Having discovered karate two years ago (my 6 year old would only try it if I joined the class with him), I am so thrilled to see Athleta honor Anita’s efforts! It has become the highlight of my week, the best stress relief to counter everyday life as well as my job as a social worker. I work with many teenaged girls and encourage them to try martial arts as well as yoga to nourish themselves and find their many strengths. Good luck with your goals and keep up the great work
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Congrats Anita!
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Thank you Sara for your comment! My journey has been very similar as I started with my son when he was 4. Training had such an amazing connection with me that I continued on to become an instructor and now a studio manager. It’s hard to explain why you love the art to people who have never tried it. It’s empowering and artisitc. It challenges you mentally and physically. And I have been incredibly fortunate to have trained some seriously rocking girls. It’s fantastic! I was really honored to have Athleta select me and at the same time recognize a martial artist. Keep on training!
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Anita, I love hearing about your pursuits and passion and I thank you for being an inspiration! I started karate a month ago (my two sons started last Spring) and had my first sparring experience last week. Of course we have protective gear, but it was the first time I’d been hit. It’s hard to explain what a revelation it was and how wildly empowering it was to be hit (safely and respectfully, in the context of class) and to …well, survive and send some jabs and kicks back. I have a dance and yoga background, so I am not used to the physicality I see in so many sports…It made me understand the physical play I see between my sons and among other boys and it made me see my self in a new way. I wish you and all my karate sisters well and hope that 2012 is a brilliant year for you. Namaste.
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Keylan, yes! You are exactly right. The revelation is what is so hard to explain to people who have never been in the arts. Some of the most exciting moments are sparring with my fellow instructors. Good for you on getting through your first sparring experience and what you say is spot on. A great school will help you through that journey in a safe and respectful way. I come from 12 years of classical ballet training and was a yoga junkie too. Having this aspect of physicality is the most amazing addition. Thanks so much for your post!
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Hi, just wanted to thank you profusely. I’ve also been married 17 years, work full time in corporate America, and have children the same age as your son. I’ve been pursuing my yoga certification despite the many obstacles, and am blessed by the genuine support just like you. I can also relate to the cultural expectations having been the youngest and only female sibling (Latina), expected to support my family and I did just that for many years while trying to finish college. You mentioned the frustration, self doubt, and challenge you faced, and those words of honesty and truth have inspired me to just keep going. Despite this God given family I’ve been blessed with, a mother who thinks I’m out of my mind pursuing Yoga, and the demands of corporate America, I vow to still fight the good fight and keep this dream of opening my own studio some day. I’ve also had great male influences, but you deserve a ton of credit for going for it, and your son can see his rock star mom kicking #%*! Thanks for touching my heart, my soul, and for refueling my determination to move forward.
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I will share your recent article and bio with my daughter’s Kempo Karate Instructors. They will love sharing this with others. Thank you for the inspiration!! Congratulations on your accomplishments.
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Rock on! I’m new to the Chi blogs and it’s awesome to see a strong female martial arts practitioner as a role model. I hope more people see what we see – the beauty in the art, the confidence and discipline it builds in students young and old, and how much fun it is. Keep it up!
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