For Ryleigh Sirmans, martial arts was never just a weekend hobby; it was a formative journey of finding her voice. Now a first-degree black belt at American Karate and the school’s only female instructor, Ryleigh’s path from a shy six-year-old to a confident leader is a testament to the endurance required to reach the finish line. Whether balancing high school credits or teaching her “littles,” Ryleigh has proven that the greatest rewards come to those who refuse to give up when the training gets tough.
A Determined Start and the Power of Focus
Ryleigh’s introduction to karate began with a persistent spark. After a safety class, led by a Patriot Karate instructor, at her elementary school, she “begged and begged” her mother to let her join. At the time, she was heavily involved in competition cheer, and her mother insisted she fulfill that commitment before switching sports.
Once she finally stepped onto the Patriot Karate mat around age six, Ryleigh found more than just a physical outlet; she found a sanctuary for her mind. Diagnosed with dyslexia and ADHD between kindergarten and fifth grade, Ryleigh found that the structure of martial arts provided a necessary anchor. “My mom really liked me being in it because it kept me really focused,” Ryleigh explains. Having a concrete goal and a physical drive helped her channel her energy into discipline, a trait that would serve her well throughout her academic and athletic life.
Over the next three years, she channeled her energy into American Karate, finding that the physical demands of sparring provided a necessary outlet for her with a single goal in mind: earning her black belt. Testing for her junior black belt was an experience of relentless endurance. Several hours of physical fitness demands, and upper and lower body techniques, finishing with the sparring requirement. This included five consecutive sparring rounds with the black belt instructors without any breaks until the rotation was complete. Ryleigh remembers the process left her with significant “mat burn” on the bottom of her feet., the greatest sense of accomplishment that she has carried with her ever since. “If I can do that, I can do anything”, she recounts. Despite being nervous during her black belt evaluation, she successfully earned her junior rank at age nine, fulfilling her initial mission.
The Art of the Bo Staff: Learning from Mr. Lowry
One of the most unique chapters of Ryleigh’s journey was her early specialized training with the Bo staff. At the time, Mr. Duncan Lowry, Patriot Karate’s Chief Instructor, was an advanced brown belt and the only practitioner at the school focusing on the weapon. Ryleigh became his first weapons student, embarking on one-on-one lessons that added a new layer of complexity to her training.
The Bo staff represented a fresh challenge that went beyond standard katas and sparring. “He got me to fall in love with it” Ryleigh recalls, noting that her pink bo staff required a different kind of coordination and focus. This mentorship created a deep bond. Even after Ryleigh took a hiatus to pursue travel soccer and track, it was the news of Mr. Lowry’s return to the school that drew her back to the mat as a junior in high school.
Finding the Way Back: The Road to a Solid Black Belt
After several years away focusing on travel soccer and track, Ryleigh felt a lingering pull to return to the mat during her junior year of high school. Returning at age 16 was a vastly different experience than her childhood years, as she balanced her own training with a work-based learning program through Walnut Grove High School that allowed her to teach classes and assist with the Afterschool program for both high school credit and a part-time job. This also opened the door for her to return as a student.
Earning her “solid” (adult) black belt in American Karate required a new level of mental and physical maturity. Unlike the nervous nine-year-old, the teenage Ryleigh approached her test with a mindset. I was really nervous when I was little, and when I came in doing it when I was older, I was just having fun”. She successfully earned her rank in November of 2024 as a sophomore, later advancing to her first-degree black belt after a full year of active teaching.
To Ryleigh, testing for a black belt means proving you can keep a clear head under pressure. Her best advice for those testing this November is to conquer the “head game.” “Don’t be nervous, because when you get nervous, you second-guess a lot,” she warns, noting that nerves can cause a student to mess up even a simple twist or pivot.
Breaking Barriers and Leading the “Littles”
As the school’s only female instructor, Ryleigh is acutely aware of the gender gap in martial arts. She observed many girls dropping out over the years, sometimes due to the intimidation of sparring or “girls feeling out of place”. Ryleigh, however, leaned into the physicality. “I just really enjoyed fighting people,” she jokes, reflecting on her love for sparring which pushed her physically. “Karate has taught me to have a great sense of self – to lean into what I love and not worry about other things.” In an industry where girls are often underrepresented, Ryleigh’s journey proves that the discipline of the mat can be a life-changing equalizer.
Today, she uses that strength to mentor the next generation. Ryleigh balances her own training with teaching. She teaches all levels and ages at Patriot Karate, but she admitted her favorite is always “the littles”. This is the age group she finds particularly rewarding because she can be fun and goofy while teaching them the fundamentals of the sport, like her favorite move: the jab-cross.
The Path Forward
As Ryleigh prepares to graduate from high school and head to Western Carolina University to pursue a degree in nursing or physical therapy, she carries the discipline and self-confidence of the studio with her. Martial arts taught her how to balance schoolwork, soccer, and a job, all while maintaining a drive for excellence. While she plans to focus on her studies, she knows she will always return home to Patriot Karate for important milestones and to see familiar faces. For Ryleigh Sirmans, the mat will always be a place of clarity, reminding her that any goal is achievable if you just keep moving, one mile—or one punch—at a time.
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