In 1988, Phil Migliarese’s journey into the world of martial arts began with a simple mail-order tape. “No one knows what tapes are these days,” Migliarese laughs, reminiscing about his early introduction to Jiu-Jitsu.

Migliarese and his brother, Ricardo – legends in the world of mixed martial arts – were among the first to embrace Gracie Jiu-Jitsu in the early 90s when the sport was just gaining traction in the U.S. “I’ve been involved in combat sports since birth,” Migliarese says, highlighting the deep roots his family has in martial arts. “I haven’t left since,” he continues, noting that he’s spent 36 years (and counting) practicing, teaching, and growing in the sport. 

His passion for Jiu-Jitsu is fueled by the efficiency of the sport, which he believes allows individuals to overcome larger and stronger opponents through skill rather than sheer strength. 

“Jiu-Jitsu just works. If you use it correctly, you can beat somebody or survive against somebody much bigger and much stronger than you,” he explains. This practical application of the sport has not only captivated Migliarese but has also proven to be a viable business model for the founder of Balance Studios. 

With three locations across Philadelphia, Migliarese has dedicated a large part of his life to passing his training and knowledge on to everyone – from Philadelphia Eagles Trey Thomas and UFC fighter Frankie Edgar to the everyday person simply looking for a good workout. 

“The average person who I generally work with, 85 percent of those people are just regular people with a regular job who do [Jiu-Jitsu] recreationally,” he says. “That other portion of people are the one-percenters who are literally UFC fighters, professional grapplers or amateur competitors.” 

Despite its reputation, Migliarese assures you don’t have to be a professional competitor to take up the sport. “It’s doable – [you] can train a couple days a week and actually get good at it and get [your] black belt. It’s cool,” he says. For those new to the sport, he recommends starting by “going slow.” He also suggests getting your feet wet with “the first 10 moves in Gracie Jiu-Jitsu,” which he breaks down with his brother. 

Beyond the Mat 

Migliarese’s commitment to self-improvement extends beyond the mat. The sixth-degree black belt also incorporates yoga into his routine, which he sees as complementary to Jiu-Jitsu. “At its heart, the major goal of yoga is to build awareness, not flexibility, strength, back bends or crazy positions. It’s to become aware of your surroundings, of your life, of gratitude – whatever it may be, it’s to make you more aware,” Migliarese says. “Jiu-Jitsu is a fully conscious, moment-to-moment activity that you have to be there so they’re both super conscious activities,” he explains, talking about how he meshes Jiu-Jitsu with his other pastime, yoga. 

“They are both focused on nonviolence, which is interesting too,” Migliarese explains. “Even in the UFC, I don’t see it as a form of violence because it’s two people signing an agreement to do it only for five minutes, and then they could be friends after that.” He humorously likens Jiu-Jitsu to “yoga in pajamas” noting that both practices encourage mental and physical discipline. 

Migliarese’s dedication to yoga is longstanding. “I started yoga when I was eight years old, and now I’m on 40 years of yoga,” he says. His experience spans various styles, from classical yoga to Ashtanga yoga, which he compares more to the movement-based style of Jiu-Jitsu. 

Not only has Migliarese used yoga to improve his skills on the Jiu-Jitsu mat, but he also credits the practice with helping him to recover from a car accident in 1993 that left him nearly immobile for 6 months. Originally not expected to walk or train again after the accident, Migliarese relied on yoga breathing and concepts, and miraculously just a year later, was given a clean bill of health. 

From the Mat to Matcha

We’ve already established that Migliarese is on a lifelong path of physical and mental well-being and constant improvement, so naturally, that mindset extends to his business life, as well. 

“I’m constantly learning every day. If you walk into my studio, there’s a sign that says, ‘Leave your ego at the door. Enter with the beginner’s mind.’ That’s the whole chain of gyms. That’s the idea and the same thing with general business or life or whatever,” he says, continuing on to explain that constantly learning has now lead him to become the co-founder of Tatsu Tea, a matcha-based performance drink. 

“Matcha has a history with samurais. Samurais would drink matcha for war and focus, so meditation and combat,” Migliarese says, where he got the idea of using matcha as a sports-specific beverage. 

Tatsu Tea was developed to serve as a performance-enhancing drink without the drawbacks of traditional sports drinks, Migliarese explains. “We never really wanted to reinvent anything, but we wanted to stick with matcha as a fuel,” he says. His team overcame several challenges to perfect their product, eventually combining the powerful matcha with a hint of lychee juice for a lightly sweetened flavor with minimal sugar. “It’s only two grams of carbs,” he points out. 

The idea for a matcha-based performance drink came back in 2018 when Migliarese’s friend and business partner experimented with a packet of matcha. Initially, the drink was cumbersome to prepare and unpalatable. “You would have to put it into a bottle, shake it up, and it was a big process,” the co-founder says of the initial concept. “It took too long, and me with my ADD would never do it, but I tried it because it was my friend,” he laughs. 

“What I liked was the effect. What I didn’t like was the taste, the prep time, and I couldn’t just carry it with me. It was a whole thing. So I told him if we can get this to a ready-to-drink, I would not only invest, I will partner and go all-in on this,” Migliarese says of Tatsu’s early beginnings. 

“It took about a year to get it right after five or so iterations and one nasty one. We got the first can and it was terrible. The last one, we all looked at each other and we knew we had something here,” Migliarese says of how he entered into the beverage world. 

Why Matcha?

Migliarese highlights the advantages of matcha over conventional sports drinks, particularly its lack of performance-enhancing chemicals and its positive effects on wellness. “A lot of the problems with a lot of the sports drinks is that they can’t be involved with much bigger sports organizations because of their potential performance-enhancing chemicals,” Migliarese explains, highlighting what sets Tatsu apart from the competition. 

Matcha, on the other hand, has none of those downsides – but plenty of upsides. 

“My initial partner Todd, who’s the nutritionist and dietician, went to Japan. He trained Jiu-Jitsu, and after his class, they took him out and got him wasted – they partied harder than they trained in Japan,” he laughs. “The next morning he [Todd] had to travel, so they recommended matcha because it opens up your sinuses. He combined matcha with the vitamins you take before you get on a plane and Pedialyte, and it started to combat his hangover. He got on the plane and felt good. Got home and started playing around with that powder. Then he came to class with me and was like, ‘Hey, check this out,’ and the rest is history.”

Ultimately, Migliarese hopes Tatsu Tea will inspire people to make healthier choices, both in their diet and lifestyle. “We hope to just be the gateway for people to make better choices, Maybe if you drink Tatsu, it’ll remind you to not eat bad food, go to the gym, and also to be kind to other people and just make better choices in general,” he says. 

From martial arts to matcha, Migliarese’s journey is a testament to his relentless pursuit of excellence and his dedication to improving both himself and others through mindful practices and innovative solutions. 

Try Tatsu for yourself here, or learn more about training with Phil here.