This is a question which is asked by parents who are considering their kids involved in the martial art. In some cases, children can get into BJJ as young as 3 years old, which is a young age to begin. Overall there are many benefits in getting kids to learn BJJ, provided they enjoy it – below we shall go over the positives of getting your kids into BJJ.
Table of Contents
Exercise For Kids
This may be an obvious point but is also very important. As children’s obesity rates grow throughout the world, exercise is a key part of fighting the disease. Whilst kid’s classes may not be as cardio intense as the adult versions, they still provide a healthy way of exercising and raising your children’s heart beat. Of course, there are many other sports that can do this, but BJJ has to be one of the best for increasing your cardiovascular health.
Not only this, but BJJ will also strengthen your child’s muscles. Other activities such as soccer or baseball will benefit specific parts of the body such as legs or arms. However, BJJ is superior in using practically every muscle in your body. Because of this BJJ can form core strength in childhood which can last into adulthood.
Athleticism and co-ordination
Athleticism is something that can take years to master. However, children are naturally quick learners compared to adults so getting your child athletic may follow them into adulthood. For instance, it may take an adult beginner years to become athletic whereas a child can learn key movements in half the time. An example of this could be a move such as inverting.
This is an alien move to most adults whereas children can naturally pick it up far quicker. Once more, this can lead into adulthood even if the kid quits BJJ. For instance, basic movements such as balance and jumping can be vastly improved by BJJ and can ingrain into your child’s muscle memory for life.
Confidence and socialisation
As mentioned, BJJ is undoubtedly good for the physical side of your body. However, mentally it is also important for kids. One example of this is that BJJ increases self-belief. For instance, if a child wins a competition or does well during training it can be good for their self-esteem. This is why many Jiu Jitsu kids classes have anti-bullying themes because it teaches kids to be confident. Not only this but it also teaches kids to be humble. An example is if your child gets beaten during sparring.
Here they can learn a valuable life lesson that you cannot always win and sometimes situations can be tough. Arguably this type of mental endurance is more important than the physical benefits of BJJ
Not to mention the socialization aspect of training. BJJ is a community sport that brings people together. It encourages teamwork and friendly behavior in a competitive but fair environment. Because of this your child can learn some key life lessons whilst training BJJ.
Self-defense for kids
BJJ is one of the best martial arts for self-defense. As seen in MMA it can be successfully applied against attackers and can get you out of physical trouble. Because of this, children can learn to defend themselves without striking. As stated earlier, the fundamental moves of BJJ can often remain in the child’s muscle memory long after training. This means even if they quit, they may still remember throws and submissions years later. In doing this it can help in street confrontations and other bad situations. This is not exclusive to gender either, as it’s not uncommon to see girls in BJJ beating their male opponents in sparring.
Physical safety whilst training
One common question of whether kids should learn BJJ is about the safety of the child whilst training. Often the more dangerous moves such as leglocks, shoulder locks and other attacks aren’t taught to children. This is to avoid possibly dangerous injuries whilst sparing. Even with some of the chokes, they are taught to apply the pressure slowly to avoid problems. Because of this, it is incredibly unlikely to see children getting hurt during sparring. Typically kid’s training is more fun and game-based, compared to the chaotic sparring often seen with adults.
Not only this but kids are naturally resilient. For instance, a 50 year old man may injure themselves whilst doing a forwards roll. This is because their bones and muscles may have weakened with age and may have lost some of their flexibility. However, it’s common to see kids bouncing around during training without feeling pain or distress. This means it’s actually an ideal time for people to start learning BJJ as they will avoid the injuries associated with adults.
Summary
Getting kids involved in BJJ is a great idea. As seen it improves both the physical and mental aspects of their lives which isn’t as easily done in more conventional sports. Perhaps one issue is over-parenting however. Sometimes pushy parents can force their kids to train even against the child’s will which is clearly unfair.
Some of the saddest things I have seen in BJJ is a child’s parent shouting at them during a competition or giving advice when the parent has never trained. Instead, it’s suggested to gently ease your child into training and see how they respond. If the response is positive then it means your child can massively benefit from the many advantages that learning BJJ has to offer.
