Picture this. It is late in the night and you are walking back home by yourself. Suddenly, you see someone jumping onto your path from one of the alleys and trying to mug you. Would you feel more prepared to fight off the mugger and save yourself if you were trained in martial arts?
Martial arts was supposed to be a practical sport that helped keep you fit and ready for real life dangers. But today, it has become more of a sport or a form of exercise than a way of protecting yourself in everyday life, even for young kids. This is happening because of the way these arts are taught today. They are frequently modified to seem more like exercise than what they were really meant for. Can you still use martial arts for kids in real life situations?
Adapting martial arts training for real life situations
There are very few martial arts classes and trainers today who will not only train kids in the art but help them to apt it to real life. If you are lucky enough, you will find such a class and rain in a way that is not for exercise or sport, but for tricky everyday situations.
A good martial arts class should:
- Teach you to identify threats.
- Read body language and know aggressive posturing.
- Train you in getting out of locks and holds.
- Help you protect yourself against modern weapons like knives and guns.
- Make you be quick on your feet and get out of a sticky situation alive and without fatal damage.
If the idea of learning martial arts is knowing how to fight in real world situations, you might have to try hard to find a class that fulfills these requirements. You might have to try a few classes before you find one that meets your requirements. But the search and effort will be worth it for a good practical martial arts class.