The soothing sounds of instrumental nature music greet patrons inside Water Mountain Martial Society.  Portraits of students smiling over their latest achievements cover the wall. Mikel Steenrod, clad in traditional black martial arts garb, his long gray hair pulled into a ponytail, can be seen silently and gracefully going over striking techniques for his next class.

Steenrod has dedicated the past eight years of his life to running Water Mountain Martial Society, located at 2500 4th Street. His expertise spans across several martial arts practices, which lends itself to the diverse and encompassing class schedules at the school.

However, despite his hard work, Steenrod recognized a demographic that was not fully served by his efforts: women. Still in its pilot run, Steenrod developed a women-only kung fu program to serve female Flagstaff residents.

“I’ve looked at the problem of getting women involved in the martial arts for years,” Steenrod said. “It’s very interesting to me to start programs like this and track the progress of the women involved.”

Steenrod said it is a combination of the right arrangement of class breakdowns and the correct community that helps keep women involved in martial arts; at any given time, Water Mountain is host to about 100 students, most of them male. By introducing a class for women only, Steenrod sought to create a safe community for women to explore the world of kung fu.

Kira Semanas has been taking kung fu at Water Mountain for two years and started the women’s class three months ago.

“I prefer the all-women’s class,” Semanas said. “It’s much less intimidating being around women, because a lot of the guys are at a higher level than me.”

Semanas said she fell into kung fu by accident; her husband practiced Arnis, a Filipino stick fighting technique, for years at the school, and Semanas won a year-long membership after attending one of the Taoism workshops the school offers on Sundays. She’s been a student ever since.

“I really love kung fu,” Semanas said. “It’s so empowering to know you can do things you’ve never done before.”

Steenrod said the ancient origins of kung fu are in the aristocratic class. More important than reading and writing, a kung fu master was among the most highly-regarded social class members.

Additionally, kung fu is different from other martial arts in that it focuses on behavior as well as striking techniques; it is a lifestyle. Sandy Winner, 61, was interested in this latter aspect when she first became involved in the studio.

“I started kung fu two years ago,” Winner said. “I was most interested in the healing aspects of the art, and I was immediately hooked.”

Winner trained for over a year in the mixed-gender classes and now attends the women’s classes because it fits into her work schedule as a night nurse.

“I keep coming to class because it makes me feel good,” Winner said. “I’ve encountered things I never knew about myself before I started practicing kung fu. When you’re really focused on yourself, you realize your potential and want to train for it.”

Steenrod acknowledges that people of all genders can benefit from kung fu practices. “Women are actually the most vicious fighters after they overcome their initial shyness,” Steenrod said. “We all have an inherent fear of looking silly.”

Steenrod’s initial group of eight women who participated in his six-week pilot program met every Thursday and spent more than an hour working on basic kung fu techniques.  Women of all ages and fitness levels are encouraged to participate.

Phyllis Talley enrolled her daughter Elizabeth, now 11, in kung fu six years ago.  She credits the positive atmosphere of the school for her daughter’s passion for the art.

“Everyone here is so welcoming, non-judgmental and respectful,” Talley said. “Mike [Steenrod] is wonderful.”

Talley said she also appreciates the modest attitude of everyone involved; the school features a serene pond and sound system that carries calming music and chirping birds instead of being decorated with trophies and medals.  However, this is not to say that the school is not accomplished.  In fact, Water Mountain has recently been featured in the national martial arts-focused magazines SWAT and Black Belt.

The women’s kung fu class is divided into thirds:  one-third is devoted to yoga-like stretching, one-third to striking arts, which includes “escorting,” which is moving a person from one place to another and one-third focuses on applied self defense.

“I teach my students how to fend off high-level threats by learning eye-gauging and flesh-tearing techniques,” Steenrod said. “The down-and-dirty stuff is always most popular with the ladies.”

Steenrod’s careful tracking of his participant’s successes within the program revealed that kung fu is also a great workout: the average participant lost 1 percent body fat after one month of training.

The initial women’s kung fu class had a special significance for Steenrod: raising money for breast cancer research. A portion of the profits from the first round of the program were donated to an online research foundation. Both of Steenrod’s parents suffered from cancer, so he finds himself personally committed to the cause.

A significant portion of the studio’s yearly profits are donated to charity, including the dollars dedicated to breast cancer research.

The newest addition to his fund-raising docket is a program called “Arnis for Animals.”  The latest series of Arnis classes will be taught to benefit local animal shelter Second Chance Center for Animals.

For more information of Water Mountain’s class offerings and pricing, visit www.flagstaffmartialarts.com.