Marital arts have been practiced for centuries – and not only for the sake of fighting. In fact, martial arts have been practiced for discipline, meditation, and fitness. This is why you may want to sign your child up for martial arts classes. Many parents are weary about this practice because they believe it will make their child more aggressive, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, by signing up your child, he or she will have more confidence and restraint, which is essential when you are a child and still trying to figure out your place in the world. Here are five reasons your child should practice martial arts.
- It teaches discipline. One of the biggest reasons why you should have your child signed up for martial arts is because it can teach discipline. For instance, it takes discipline to follow through the steps of getting various belts. When it comes to karate belts, your child can work all the way up to a black belt. Having this discipline can really benefit your child later in life.
- It boosts self-esteem. Another reason why you want your child to practice martial arts is because it will teach them self-esteem. As a child, having self-esteem is incredibly important, because it will give them confidence. As far as martial arts are concerned, your child will be required to work through all the different steps and moves to master the art. As they go through these steps, they will start to feel very good about themselves. In some cases, it can be hard for children to feel like they have something to work towards.
- It teaches restraint and calmness. Martial arts will also teach your restraint and calmness. Many children feel threatened, especially in some social situations. This is how children develop behavioral issues. When your child doesn’t feel defenseless, there won’t be a need to show off or become temperamental. Also, martial arts teach meditation and restraint – it is a huge part of karate and other Eastern martial arts practices.
- It will help your child get active. Of course, martial arts requires a lot of physical strength and movement, which is the reason why it is such a great source of physical fitness. With childhood obesity at an all time high, making sure your child gets plenty of exercise is important. This is especially important if your child has a propensity for sitting in front of the TV playing video games. By signing your child up for martial arts, he or she will be spending afternoons working in the dojo and not in front of a screen.
- They will learn conflict resolution skills. On top of everything, martial arts teach unique conflict resolution skills. This may seem counterintuitive to Eastern philosophies of fighting arts, but marital arts are more about resolving problems than fighting. The lessons your child will learn in marital arts will last their whole life. In the end, giving your child martial arts training may be the best gift you can give them.
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