Our Team

Faraaz Khan was first exposed to Muay Thai at the age of 14. He spent 10 years in the sport, and with a deep appreciation for grace and beauty, has developed a very technical approach to developing students.

At the age of 24, Faraaz met Artur Nowacki and became his student. The two developed a strong relationship and Artur eventually taught Faraaz how to properly hold padwork. “Freestyle” padwork is much more demanding on the padholder and requires a deeper understanding of Muay Thai, as the fighter will throw any combination of punches, kicks, elbows, or knees, and the padholder is required to respond accordingly or risk injury. Faraaz has done padwork for top athletes such as Jessica Gladstone (2008 IKF Champion and 2016 IFMA Contender) and Kelsey Andries (2014 IFMA Champion and 2016 Bronze Medalist). In 2018, Faraaz traveled to Thailand as a padholder for a student (Abdou Haddad) who had recently fought the legendary Saenchai (the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world).

Outside of Muay Thai, Faraaz has made large impacts in the gaming world. He is the first person in the world to no-hit a game notorious for its difficulty – Dark souls 3. He has helped raise tens of thousands of dollars for charity as an expert commentator, world-record speedrunner, and Esports athlete. Some other notable accomplishments have been covered in “The Book of Esports” (Author: William Collis), which has been taught in Cornell and Harvard Business School. Today, Faraaz spends his time as a successful content creator and writer. He is also an integral and effective consultant for EASE Performance Coaching.

Always active and adventurous, Johan’s trajectory towards physical, mental, and spiritual development was inevitable – and his journey started with Muay Thai. Within nine years of practice, Johan had trained in Thailand, competed internationally, fought 36 times (earning a few titles along the way), and began teaching – before succumbing to a number of injuries.

“This is where I learned the importance of a proper training program. My injuries not only left me unable to compete, I was truly afraid for my ability to lead an active, happy life,” says Johan. This is where he turned to yoga and found his next passion.

Johan’s local yoga practice inspired his travel to India for more intensive study. With his injuries behind him, a new fire was lit, and he pursued further study in India in Ashtanga and Prana Vashya yoga, along with an intensive back-bending program.

During his full-on dive into all things yoga, Johan also learned the art of boxing. “Not only did yoga help me be physically, mentally and spiritually able to compete again, I surpassed my previous fitness level,” he says.

Although he is no longer competing, Johan still enjoys practicing yoga and Muay Thai and, most of all, sharing all of the things he has learned to stay sharp.

Pablo was an accomplished soccer player when he began training in Muay Thai and boxing over 12 years ago. “I was invested in soccer but I wanted to compete in something more that could show my fight skills,” he says.

Building upon his natural athleticism and competitive spirit, Pablo went on to compete in over 30 fights in Muay Thai and boxing — and he’s still competing today. In the ring, Pablo is known for his timing and good reflexes.

In addition to his own training, Pablo built a successful coaching practice in Montreal, helping many students to develop a passion for Muay Thai. He then joined Exceed in 2020 when he moved to Calgary, and is now building a coaching practice here.

“Muay Thai is a great way to find yourself. It can change your life for the better,” he says.