Understandably, enrolling your child in martial arts classes may cause anxiety, but there are numerous benefits such as enhanced concentration, discipline, and increased physical activity (especially relevant in the current era of high childhood obesity). If your child is interested, what’s the best martial art for them to learn and is it safe?
So if your son or daughter has expressed an interest, what’s the most suitable martial art for them to pursue, and is it safe?
Arguably, Jiu Jitsu, karate, and Taekwondo are all ideal martial arts for kids to learn. Since these disciplines don’t involve weapons, the fundamentals can be taught in an age-appropriate way.
While boxing and Muay Thai are great martial arts and exciting combat sports, their sparring-heavy approach can mean that your child might be at risk of sustaining excessive damage to their body or brains at a time when they are developing and most vulnerable. Additionally, striking techniques often require speed and strength, while the grappling (wrestling) techniques are about the use of leverage for greater control.
Poway Jiu Jitsu
This is why you might consider a grappling art such as Brazilian Jiu Jitsu as a great choice of martial art for your child, and available for kids right here in Poway!
When selecting a martial art, consider its effectiveness and applicability in self-defense situations. Jiu Jitsu, being originally created as a self-defense art, can meet the needs of parents seeking to equip their children with real-world safety skills. While other martial arts focus on posture, stance and choreography, Jiu Jitsu has been refined down to strictly ways of defending yourself while under attack, and how to attack back.
Kids Self-Defense
Or think of it this way… while other martial arts tend to be most effective during a tournament, it’s Jiu Jitsu you want your kid to know if attacked on the way home from school.
When people engage in BJJ, they acquire new skills, practice with their peers, and experience a great workout, leaving with a positive vibe. This is only the beginning of the advantages of the training.
Studies suggest that engaging in moderate to intense exercise, especially with an encouraging instructor, has numerous mental benefits, such as reducing and preventing depression. In self-defense, adaptability to any scenario is crucial. Martial arts like Karate, Tae Kwon Do, and boxing impart techniques to be used at specific distances. In case you are too distant to punch or too close to kick, repositioning is necessary before utilizing any technique.
Jiu Jitsu provides a diverse range of techniques that can be employed in any situation for self-protection or to gain a more advantageous position. This flexibility and large selection of techniques are more effective in preparing students for dangerous scenarios than other martial arts.
Additionally, many striking arts don’t include ground techniques which are essential in any self-defense situation that doesn’t end with an instantaneous knock-out. In these cases, Jiu Jitsu provides the skills to handle threats at any range, standing or on the ground.
Word-Class Jiu Jitsu Coaching in Poway
Each lesson in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu usually starts with strenuous warm ups, followed by drills, techniques, and a real-life application that typically involves another participant. To put it simply, the martial artist is regularly taking someone down, preventing themselves from being taken down, freeing themselves from chokes, setting up chokes, struggling for advantageous positions, and surviving or getting away from disadvantageous postures.
The muscles and strength that result from doing these kinds of techniques repeatedly with an adversary who puts up resistance are immensely beneficial. Furthermore, these martial arts also simulate the application of techniques in real-life scenarios against an attacker.
This is a significant aspect of self-defense, as attackers often aim to cause serious harm. For this reason, factors such as speed, strength, size, and others must be taken into account. If your child is not accustomed to dealing with an adversary who is determined to win in a practice setting, then how can they be ready to face an assailant or bully in real life? Actual application and sparring are a regular part of instruction. This means that students are consistently confronting an opponent who is trying to beat them.
Kids Jiu Jitsu Classes
In kids’ BJJ classes, children learn takedowns where they try to take down their opponent while defending against an incoming attack. They also engage in live sparring where they compete for control and attempt submissions to end the fight. After each match, the kids shake hands and start again, emphasizing the importance of executing each drill with full effort and intensity.
This should be the standard for all students. As they continue to train, their fear of attackers will decrease, which is crucial for those studying martial arts for self-defense as their ability to overcome an attacker depends on their preparedness and training.
Unlike other martial arts, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu allows full-contact sparring with a fighting opponent at almost every practice, enabling students to perform techniques with full speed and strength. The importance of executing each drill with maximum effort and intensity should be the benchmark for all students, as this will increase their confidence and ability to defend themselves in real-life situations.
Most martial arts do not permit full contact sparring, since it involves striking, and to protect the students from being hit and kicked in the head. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, however, allows them to perform techniques at full speed and strength with a fighting opponent at almost every practice.
One of the major aspects that differentiates Brazilian Jiu Jitsu from other martial arts is its proven track record in realistic situations. The US military incorporates Brazilian Jiu Jitsu as a fundamental part of their experts’ combat training and MMA fighters today are familiar with its basics.
When considering the advantages a martial art offers children, such as self-assurance, focus, physical well-being, socialization and a feeling of security, there are few martial arts that can offer more than Brazilian Jiu Jitsu
Contact us today to schedule a trial class for yourself or your child!
10th Planet Poway Jiu Jitsu
14009 Midland Rd. Poway, CA 92064
(858) 848-6444
