Physical fitness is synonymous with healthy living and the sooner parents explain it to children the better. Most children these days tend to be coach potatoes, with hardly any physical exercise. If you are worried about your child not getting enough exercise, you could enroll him/her in a martial arts class. Martial arts for kids aim at keeping children physically fit while developing their mental strength.
Safe way to staying physically fit
Martial arts training does not involve the use of weights, making it safe for children. Moreover, it focuses on almost every part of the body as all of it comes into play during the training. Most martial arts techniques like taekwondo and karate include several fast-paced movements, which resemble high-intensity aerobic workouts. Your child can benefit from the following by taking up martial arts for kids:
- It increases body strength
- It improves stability
- Martial arts training boosts stamina
- It also helps with greater flexibility
- It improves body posture
Martial arts training resembles exercise routines like cardio and aerobics, in the sense it includes warming up the body for the routine, stretching it and then cooling it down at the end. The organized procedure ensures that body ligaments and joints are not strained with sudden movements during the training. The warm up also increases the circulation of blood in the body.
If you thought the loud, grunting noise or ‘yell’ that martial arts trainees make while performing their routine was just for dramatization, you are wrong. Apart from playing a physiological role, it is also made to tighten the muscles of the abdomen thereby preventing injuries, in case there is any counter-attack. It also helps in exhaling existing air out of the lungs and increasing the amount of fresh oxygen reaching them.
Martial arts is not just good for teaching your kid to protect himself/herself, but also to keep him/her fit.