What Is The Best Age For Kids To Start Martial Arts?
Posted: September 09, 2020
What Is The Best Age For Kids To Start Martial Arts?
What Is The Best Age For Kids To Start Martial Arts?
The best age for kids to start martial arts is now.Most people spend so much time thinking about it, they let their kids grow up and lost interest.
Do your kids keep asking you if they can begin taking martial arts classes? Are you worried about it?
Or do you really want your child to take up a physical activity that will improve their health and maybe help them make new friends? Do you want to make sure they develop personally and build their self-esteem?
If you ask yourself these questions, you have probably thought about martial arts classes for your kids. It is a very popular activity for young children and one that they really love. However, if you’ve asked these questions, you’ve probably also had your own concerns. What is the best age for kids to start martial arts? Is it too early to let them do it? Is it safe?
The best age for kids to start martial arts is now. Most people spend so much time thinking about it, they let their kids grow up and lose interest. In this article, we take you through the benefits of getting your child into martial arts and also answer some of those worrying questions you may have.
Health Benefits
As a parent, you are probably aware of the importance of physical exercise for your child’s health. Kids need exercise for a number of different reasons. They are bursting with energy at such a young age and they need to get rid of it so they can be productive in school and sleep well.
But parents should also be sure their child is getting enough physical exercise to ensure their future good health. The World Health Organization (WHO) has said that the world is currently facing a child obesity crisis. More than 41 million children under the age of 5 are classed as being overweight or obese.
Obesity can be bad for a child’s self-esteem, but it can also cause negative health effects for them later in life. Kids in poor health can later develop heart disease and diabetes.
Another interesting fact is that higher levels of physical activity amongst children have also been linked to better performance in their schoolwork.
It is important to get your kids moving, and also to teach them good habits for physical exercise that they can take into their adolescent years, as well as adulthood.
It is best to tackle this issue early. Kids can learn martial arts as young as 44. But the best age for kids to learn martial arts is now!
Self Esteem
Mental health is just as important as physical health for young kids. Martial arts is one of the best ways for kids to feel stronger and more comfortable within themselves.
This is not only because it teaches them to be able to defend themselves. Much more importantly, it teaches them the value of practicing a skill they can get better at.
Our martial arts courses are specifically designed to show children how much they are improving. Kids walk away knowing the value of their hard work and they can feel good about their results.
Discipline and Personal Growth
Many of the parents who bring their children to our classes report that they are really happy that their children are learning to be personally disciplined through the courses.
Martial arts requires concentration as much as any other skill. This makes it really valuable in teaching kids to be self-disciplined, a lesson they can use in lots of other areas in their lives. For example, having the discipline to maintain focus can help children study better and take up other challenging pursuits.
It is crucial to get children to learn these skills early so that they don’t develop bad mental habits. It can be much harder to teach your child how to focus and work hard at something when they are older and have more distractions. So the younger the better.
Friendships
Getting your children to learn social skills is also a really important aspect of their development that martial arts classes can help them with. Classes give kids an activity they do in common with other kids, so everyone is naturally included.
Also, our classes are really positive environments where each child feels confident in their place.
Some parents also bring their children to our classes because they are struggling to make friends at school, daycare or kindergarten. Martial arts gives these children a really easy way to make new friends because they already have a common interest with the other kids in the class.
This intervention can happen at any age, but the younger they learn social skills, the more time they will have to develop them.
Is It Safe?
Martial arts classes are actually incredibly safe environments. In fact, they are usually a lot safer than the activities some children do in playgrounds.
Children love to explore and push boundaries, and this can make them prone to accidents. However, a martial arts class allows a child to know his or her limits. It allows them to practice self-control and to know the effect their actions have on their own health and the health of others.
It is a little bit of a myth that martial arts classes are about learning how to hurt people. Although we practice self-defence, the bigger motivators are self-development and physical wellbeing.
It is also safe for your child to take part in martial arts classes, even if they are not physically well. In fact, doctors actually recommend martial arts for kids with disabilities. The environment is incredibly safe for all children, so there is no reason not to get them involved early.
So - the Best Age for Martial Arts?
The question should not be when to start martial arts but how. There are so many different positive effects that martial arts can have on a child. The earlier they access those benefits, the bigger difference they will make.
From physical health to personal growth and improved concentration, martial arts are a great developmental opportunity for young kids.
We recommend allowing your child to start learning martial arts from early on - as young as 4. But, really, the best age to learn martial arts is now!
There are a number of different ways to get your child started. They can try a free lesson to see if they like it. Or, they can take a martial arts summer camp so they have the opportunity to make new friends and get going.
What are you waiting for? Let your kids start improving their development while also having fun!