Posted: Sun Apr 27, 2008 2:37 am Post subject: martial arts for children
I have been thinking for a while about getting my children into martial arts.
What kind of martial arts are good for kids? or are any and all good?
Basically my son who is ten is slight framed, wears glasses, plays musical instruments and is a peaceful warrior so anything that will boost his confidence whilst giving him strength of mind is great in my eyes. My girls want to do it too- thought they could do any combat sport (typical women)
Any suggestions? I guess I want to know are they all combat related or do some focus more on the mind body connection - which I feel will suite him more _________________ as a babe drinks from its mothers breast so too does man milk mother earth
Finding one with a mind body connection would depend much on the instructor...and even then this would take years of physical training before the mental kicks in.
It is my experience that to focus too much on mental training for younger students turns them off martial arts in a big way.
For your childrens ages I would recommend finding a club that has a family atmosphere where the kids will find the training fun yet informative. Good clubs will have days suited to this.
The club I trained with for 8 years has classes in your area.
Alanvale
Brighton
Burnie
Claremont
Devonport
East Devonport
Geilston Bay
Howrah
Kingston
Latrobe
Lenah Valley
Lindisfarne
Longford
New Norfolk
Newstead
Nubeena
Perth
Prospect
Riverside
Sorell
St Helens
Summer Hill
Tolosa Street
Warrane
thank you Bravo I had to speak to someone in England to get an answer closer to home. none of them are in my immediate area but travel isnt' a bad thing _________________ as a babe drinks from its mothers breast so too does man milk mother earth
Yeah I'd agree with Bravo; the mental will not generally be forthcoming with the instruction. It will be down to the development of the child, hard arduous training will eventually bring him to look at the mental aspect of the martial arts and even then it is not a given if he is not that way inclined and it will be a good few years down the line.
Regarding which art I usually suggest something like Judo or wrestling for the kids as it is very physical and gets them used to safely taking a few knocks, they will also develop a lot of strength but eventually learn that technique and going with the energy and flow of the opponent is the way to win the fight (very taoist, going with the flow). Wearing glasses will not be a problem as when he spars he can remove them as the art relies heavily on feeling energies (most arts do at an advanced level) so lack of vision could prove to be an advantage.
With karate and such like, i.e non contact arts, it is very easy for a child to progress without actually developing fighting skill. This is dangerous as the child will be under the illusion that because he has a whatever colour belt he is a lean, mean, fighting machine, yet he may never even have hit anything. Although much of this depends upon the school. Nothing saddens me more than the deluded child black belt that is ready to take on the world....
Alternatively sit him down to a good ole Bruce Lee film. Let him see the slight framed Bruce kicking the bad guys ass's and then chuck him a Bruce Lee book or two. Bruce was very philosophical in his approach to martial arts and if your son picks up on it then he may, just may, approach an art with a view to express himself philosophically....but he'd probably just wanna learn to kick butt :) _________________ Sceptic Tel Seeking Confirmation of the Paranormal
Argh! With all due respect Bravo I just checked that link and would strongly advise against that organisation they have a terrible reputation and pyramid instructor systems, I could go on & on &.... _________________ Sceptic Tel Seeking Confirmation of the Paranormal
Argh! With all due respect Bravo I just checked that link and would strongly advise against that organisation they have a terrible reputation and pyramid instructor systems, I could go on & on &....
I trained witht hem for 8 years...I would guess you know exactly nothing about them, so don't libel them, it would upset me. _________________
You guess incorrectly sir, I know more than I care to discuss or share. But don't let the libel words of a fool on the internet upset you. _________________ Sceptic Tel Seeking Confirmation of the Paranormal
By your words in the previous post I know you know nothing about the club, its staffing, or its members.
And yes, people spouting crap like that do get my goat up...martial arts and politics do not mix, and this all started when some disgusting excuse for a human being tried to rip the club from under the feet of the clubs founder starting all this kind of garbage, and like the internet does, it has grown into a chinese whisper by people who have nothing better to do.
The facts are:
1. It is the only club in the world to offer full instructor training and courses, the British government (and others) are working with the club to make these training courses a standard that will be recognised by the sporting council.
2. All instructors are first aid trained and fully police checked (whether the law states they should be or not in whatever country, this is a club minimum requirement).
3. The pricing system is competetive and much cheaper than 90% of the other martial arts clubs I have seen over the years. The ones I have personally seen that were cheaper were teaching incorrect techniques, such as teaching to show your main vein system to a knife!
4. It is the biggest single martial arts organisation in the world bar none, so of course from time to time there will be folk who are unhappy, but from what I have seen, the massive massive majority of its students are 100% happy.
5. Tournaments are not the be all an end allof martial arts though they are a good indicator of club standards, whenever GKR has entered all styles tournaments (independently refereed) the massive majority (some 66%) of the prizes go to GKR students.
6. The club adopt a pro-active marketing strategy to get 'bums on seats' which involves direct selling door to door. The staff are not pushy sales people, every single one of them trains in the club and they would not be there if they did not enjoy the karate.
7. The 'drop off' rate for most martial arts clubs is 90%. For GKR it is only 70%, a testament to good, well structured training by fully trained instructors.
8. All instructors, as well as having to pass a training course (which includes physical and written testing), have to attend special training classes every week as part of being an instructor. Failure to attend these classes can result in instructorship being removed.
9. 99.9% of all public classes have an assistant instructor witihin the class.
10. The most senior instructors within the club are very accessable and do many public classes every year all over the world, their email addresses and phone numbers are freely available to all students. _________________
Hi guys nice to see you back here Tel... and so openly sharing too. I find it interesting the ideas you have you have strong beliefs which is great and when you knock heads it of course will have to be strongly too
okay Well Griffin is one of those philosophical kids already he looks into people is quiet and reserved... I'm asking for suggestions because he needs some male energy happening there :) house of three females is a hard house for a ten year old boy...
there is a judo club in my town, so is judo similar? I am asking because seriously I know nothing about it so have been reluctant to put him in there if it is all biffo he'll get eaten alive does it go on weight because he would be extra light feather weight??? ( I think he weights about 24kg and he is ten.... )
I think I understand what Tel means about pyramid instructors though- I have a friend who is double black belt like you guys and he says the instructor at newstead is ok as far as kids are concerned, but he too warned me against instructors that just work their way through the system without the passionate mind body connection and respect that martial arts deserve... and I must say this did add to my concerns _________________ as a babe drinks from its mothers breast so too does man milk mother earth
The judo is worth a try if it is more local and accessable.
Might be worth asking to take a look at the class (better to phone first and ask, there may be students that don't like being watched - or if it is a class of beginners they may not like it also....better off all round phoning first to be safe ;) )
If the class seems well organised, structured, disciplined find out about joining.
However, it would be wrong to judge an entire system based on one session but you will get a feel of how it is, as will your son.
As to the actual training within judo, I have little experience of it (all I know is a judo club used a hall in Manchester before we went in, so we saw the back end of their class and had a bit of a laugh and a joke with themwhile we were all getting changed/warming up/down etc), maybe Tel has more judo experience.
All I know is it is worth making the effort and training, he will enjoy it :) _________________
I think I understand what Tel means about pyramid instructors though....without the passionate mind body connection and respect that martial arts deserve... and I must say this did add to my concerns
No that is not what I meant, I didn't choose my words very carefully but do not wish to elaborate any further. But for all the bad press and ill feeling from other MA groups what Bravo has said is true the group is ever so successful and enjoyed by thousands of people around the world, there is no reason why your son wouldn't enjoy it too so don't dismiss it just because a guy on the internet said so.
I had Judo in mind when I wrote my reply above. I can't really comment what it will be like as every martial arts club around the world will vary. Suffice to say though he should be eased into the training gently not pushing him too hard before he's ready. He may hate it, if he does then just try something else there's a martial art for everyone so look hard enough for long enough and you'll find one that suits him. Just bare in mind the advice above, if his chosen art is not a "contact" sport then his martial ability may be effective in reality but is largely based on illusion. Telling a "good" child martial artist that despite him being an X belt he still isn't a good fighter is like telling a fireman that no one will fancy him in that uniform.
Personally if my kid didn't like MA I would get him into gymnastics they are strong, agile, flexible and adapt to other sports at the drop of a hat, the spiritual element can still be found in any sport if it is sought. Exhaust the body and the mind will become strong. _________________ Sceptic Tel Seeking Confirmation of the Paranormal
I think I understand what Tel means about pyramid instructors though....without the passionate mind body connection and respect that martial arts deserve... and I must say this did add to my concerns
No that is not what I meant, I didn't choose my words very carefully but do not wish to elaborate any further. But for all the bad press and ill feeling from other MA groups what Bravo has said is true the group is ever so successful and enjoyed by thousands of people around the world, there is no reason why your son wouldn't enjoy it too so don't dismiss it just because a guy on the internet said so.
That is fine Tel.. I'll leave that to the ones who know about it to think about :)
Sceptic Tel wrote:
I had Judo in mind when I wrote my reply above. Suffice to say though he should be eased into the training gently not pushing him too hard before he's ready. He may hate it, if he does then just try something else there's a martial art for everyone so look hard enough for long enough and you'll find one that suits him. Just bare in mind the advice above, if his chosen art is not a "contact" sport then his martial ability may be effective in reality but is largely based on illusion. Telling a "good" child martial artist that despite him being an X belt he still isn't a good fighter is like telling a fireman that no one will fancy him in that uniform.
Tel what do you mean by the bolded comment? Do you mean if he just internalises it then it is pretty pointless? Perhaps the idea he may not be a good fighter would damage his self esteem/confidence - My way of thinking is that he can't get any worse in the the combat area
I'm not looking for a overnight success story I'm attempting to provide some good male role models for a gentle peaceful young man you has none. Personally I think he is eons ahead of other kids his age who may be great at physical things- though he is a very good long distance runner and does well with soccer so he isn't' a misfit by any stretch of the imagination I just think MA may be something to help with the body mind connection he is already showing signs of having developed. _________________ as a babe drinks from its mothers breast so too does man milk mother earth
Tel what do you mean by the bolded comment? Do you mean if he just internalises it then it is pretty pointless? Perhaps the idea he may not be a good fighter would damage his self esteem/confidence - My way of thinking is that he can't get any worse in the the combat area
The martial arts is swamped by illusion and delusion. An instructor can create the illusion that if you become like him then you will be a good fighter and the student becomes deluded when he does become like the instructor. A good martial artist and a good fighter are not necessarily one and the same.
With an art like Karate for example it is easy to look good, perform well and win sparring matches yet it doesn't make you a good fighter it is all an illusion. With Judo what you do on the mat is what you can do in reality, there is no pretending.
Of course this is a generalization there are plenty of karate people that can handle themselves but plenty more that can't but believe they can.
The internal comment I presume you mean that he will be training more for personal development rather than to be a bad ass fighter. That is fine and although he may delude himself and others he'll be ok unless he ever gets beaten in a fight, then this could have a very lasting effect and turn his martial journey on it's head.
If he doesn't like the rough and tumble of Judo then see if there are any Chinese martial arts around you, they tend to focus a little more on the internal martial aspects, although not at your sons age. Alternatively if you can find an Aikido (The Way of harmonious spirit) then he may well be suited to the art as it is quite philosophical, although still suffers slightly from trom delusion. _________________ Sceptic Tel Seeking Confirmation of the Paranormal
Great explanation thanks Tel.... so much too learn so little knowledge within me - so far...
I think we will go have a look at the two and he can decide .. I think he will go to the philospohical side of things as he leans that way already but a balance would be great in my mind.. however it seems appropriate to leave that to him _________________ as a babe drinks from its mothers breast so too does man milk mother earth
Thanks Tel.. I haven't taken him yet I keep getting this image of him running in stead of fighting or standing his ground... Next week it is a date for us to go have a look and see what he really thinks... he is talking about Bruse Lee so maybe he will think he is a god at arms
_________________ as a babe drinks from its mothers breast so too does man milk mother earth
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does it go on weight because he would be extra light feather weight??? ( I think he weights about 24kg and he is ten.... 
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