Who We Are

5 Elements Martial Arts and Wellness Center is a family owned business that focuses on building a community of people that care about others. Our Kung Fu school is also known as 5 Elements San Diego. We teach Chinese martial arts not only as a self-defense tool, but also as a way to balance one's physical, mental, and spiritual health. Some of the best athletes in the world are fighters because their training demands that the body is in excellent shape. Cardiovascular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility, speed, balance, and power, are all fitness benefits to this type of training. Of course, you don’t need to be a fighter or ever get into a fight to gain the benefits of the training. At 5 Elements, people train to get into the best shape while also learning practical self-defense techniques that are rooted in Chinese martial arts, philosophy, and medicine. 5 Elements are used to describe the mental, physical, and spiritual approach that we have towards the training in kung fu. We are here to develop the whole body with a very holistic approach to health and well being. Instructors are here to guide a student to an increased state of awareness using Northern Shaolin, Wing Chung, and Tai Chi. Having this knowledge in addition to the martial arts training will enhance the performance and ability of the student to exceed not only in their training but everyday life.

Sifu Mario Mayorga, owner and head instructor of 5 Elements Martial Arts & Wellness Center, has trained in various forms of martial arts since 1993, including Taekwondo, Kung Fu, Aikido, Tai Chi, and Chi Gong. He earned his black belt in Kung Fu in 1999 and has specialized in teaching Northern Shaolin Kung Fu and Zhaobao and Yang Tai Chi Chuan ever since. He has taught kung fu at martial arts studios and public schools throughout San Diego County and has extensive experience at teaching children’s martial arts.

In 2005 he graduated Grossmont College with an AS degree in Liberal Arts and Science and was accepted to SDSU to continue his BA in traditional arts and graphic design. In that same year Sifu Mario had the pleasure of meeting many talented healers in various forms of bodywork, such as massage, acupuncture, chiropractic and physical therapy. After seeing the benefits that massage had on an old injury from gymnastics he decided to expand his knowledge of the body by enrolling at the Internal Professional School of Bodywork (IPSB) in 2007. Sifu Mario has practiced many styles of massage but specializes in Thai Medical Massage and Sensory Re-patterning.

In 2010, Sifu Mario became certified as a Massage Therapist and opened 5 Elements Martial Arts and Wellness Center with Senior Instructor Keith Jacobson. His focus was to combine the Northern Shaolin and Wing Chun Kung Fu styles and to continue his healing bodywork practices like yoga tai chi, chi gong and massage.

In 2012, Sifu Mario finished his Holistic Health Practitioner’s training at IPSB with over 1200 hours. In 2014, he completed a special teacher-training course at IPSB and has been continuing his mentorship with one of his Master teachers, James Stewart. Sifu Mario feels that continued self-development leads to becoming a better practitioner of your craft. He is currently spending much of his time refining his martial arts skills and exploring different martial arts such as Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and training with ICE Urban Combat Martial Arts. In addition to his martial arts training he has spent extra time exploring activities such as yoga, gymnastics, ballroom dancing, hiking and bike riding.

Favorite Quote: "The only wrong time to start training is tomorrow" - Anonymous

Connect with Sifu Mario on Linkedin

Since 1996 Sifu Mario trained under his Primary Instructor, Head Instructor John Nelson. Head Instructor John was the owner of 2 schools before he retired that were located in San Carlos and Allied Gardens. In 1999 Sifu Mario received his black belt and completed Instructor training under Head Instructor John Nelson. During this time Sifu Mario was given the opportunity to learn from Master Troy Walzak and Instructor Mathew Coe. Master Troy and Instructor Mathew Coe were the owners of a brother school called 5 Elements Martial Arts, located in Pacific Beach. Unfortunately 5 Elements in Pacific Beach closed because the Instructors had to relocate out of San Diego due to family obligations. In 2010 Sifu Mario had a opportunity to continue teaching Chinese martial arts thanks to his friend and training partner, Senior Instructor Keith Jacobson. Senior Instructor Keith and Sifu Mario become business partners and opened 5 Elements with many dedicated students that had trained with Sifu Mario. The main focus of our school is teaching a combination of the Northern Shaolin and Wing Chun Kung Fu.