Let's talk about martial arts!

[tntgoodwin]

Who has kids doing some kind of martial arts? How old were they when they started? Which martial arts do they do/have they done in the past? Do they enjoy it? Why did you choose that particular martial art?

[eternalknot]

My son started judo and ju-jitsu at age five; now at age ten, he does judo and muay thai.

 

My daughter started judo and muay thai this year, also at age five, but she's been watching and learning moves for the past two years because I've always dragged her to my son's classes. Plus he has always enjoyed "training" her at home.

 

A friend and her husband own a local mixed martial arts school, so we started there. We've stayed because we really like the guy they hired to run the school. Great program, and emphasizes quality over quantity -- limits class size, and kicks out people who don't spar or behave honorably. He's not in it for the money, and it shows.

 

They both enjoy it immensely. My son prefers judo, my daughter prefers muay thai ... but both enjoy studying both arts. Good thing, too, because I require it for homeschool as our Physical Education, so they'd have no choice LOL.

 

We chose judo over ju-jitsu because of the instructor and time the class was offered. We could have gone either way. The kids wanted to do muay thai because I studied it in my life before kids, and they want to be cool like me ;) nah, it's just fun for them. Constructive outlet. I plan to require participation in a martial art through 8th grade, homeschooled or otherwise.

[annlaura]

My son will start jiu-jitsu classes sometime during the year once he turns 5. He already play trains with DH. He will do bjj because that's what Daddy does. My DH is heavily involved at the gym and is very good friends with the kid class instructor.

[Punchie]

Mine will once she turns 6. That's the youngest that the dojo takes them (the one I want to go to at least). They start w/kendo for the youngers, but once she's older, they teach muay thai and krav maga. Those are the forms I want her to learn based off the recommendation of a brother/friend who owns/runs a dojo.

[Jennifer in MI]

My kids to Tang Soo Do. We chose it because we knew the instructor through the community. My kids have started at all different ages - 5, 7, 4, and 5 (in order of their ages below).

 

My kids love it!! LOVE it! They work hard. They know if they want a black belt, it'll take at least 6 years of work (unless they start older). Their instructor is VERY strict, yet very encouraging. My older three now help teach some classes. It's a wonderful opportunity.

[spaceman]

My son started Tae Kwon Do at 4. There are no profound reasons why we chose it over any other.

[LG Gone Wild]

My son and I used to do TKD, then we move and switched to Muay Thai and BJJ and submission wrestling. Now it's just me that does it. When and if our finances change, my dd will do TKD or Karate, my boys will do MMA.

[Parrothead]

My dd used to do TKD. It was a wonderful program with a great instructor. There was discipline and she learned a lot. Then we moved

 

She tried the available martial art - karate. In a year's time there wasn't much learning. The was little discipline in the classes and I talked her into "taking a break." She hasn't asked to go back in 5 months.

 

Now we do tai chi together as a family. We've been doing this for 8 months now. Since we are still earning the form we aren't getting to much into "Pushing Hands."

[joannqn]

My son started taekwondo two weeks before he turned 6. We decided to try it because he liked to play fight. He ended up loving it and has had his eyes set on black belt and becoming an instructor for about three years. He used to go an average of 8-10 hours a week, but he only goes 4 1/2 hours a week now. He just earned his junior black belt last month.

[Desert Rat]

Taekwondo family here. Ds11 started at 6.5. Little man started at 5. My oldest is 2 steps away from black belt but isn't elligible until 13, to give you an idea of time invested and our school's progression. We've had some recent transfers to our school from a 2-year guaranteed black belt school. They are incredibly far behind the rest of the kids in their levels. So much so that our instructor tests them and puts them with the appropriate group (but allows them to retain their status earned). So, I don't recommend a place that will guarantee a certain rank in a certain amount of time.

We have loved TKD. It has been great for ds11's self esteem and self-assuredness. Ds8 has a great time working out. He tends to be on the heavier side and this really is a great workout for him.

HTH

[NittanyJen]

My son initially took karate at age 5 for a few months, but thankfully, I pulled him out-- it did not take long to discern that the place was purely a "McDojo" rather than a true martial arts facility designed mostly to soak the parents and brainwash the kids to help soak their parents' wallets. As a martial arts instructor myself, I should have done my homework better before enrolling him, but what can I say; they were VERY accomplished at their primary art, which was sales, not TKD.

 

At age 8, thankfully, we landed at an athletic club that included Kempo lessons as part of the membership package. I was suspicious and did not enroll him right away, but spent months observing the classes, and finally introduced myself to the instructor and chatted with him for quite a while, and watched a few testing sessions. Finally satisfied, I turned my son over to him as a student, and am very, very pleased with the results. The instructor, a 3rd degree BB is still a fairly young rank to be teaching solo, but he is very skilled and in an organization that does not promote overly rapidly at the BB ranks, which pleases me. He is also great at teaching kids, and teaching, not sales, is his primary focus. Kids have to actually perform, not just attend a mimimum number of classes, in order to be promoted. He also treats the students, his adult instructors, and the parents with respect, rather than spouting off a lot of platitudes about it at full volume to make parents think their kids are learning it.

 

Until I pulled my kid out of PS, I think karate was the only thing that actually challenged him in the average week.

 

I love his karate instruction and what it does for his self-respect, focus, coordination, physical conditioning, and and the friends he makes there-- and look forward to training him myself some day when he is old enough to train in our school if he so chooses (we do not take kids younger than 16, and frankly, I think my kid learns enough from me already that he doesn't need to need to have me as Sensei in karate).

 

Jen

http://hillandalefarmschool.blogspot.com/

[Cheryl in NM]

Who has kids doing some kind of martial arts? How old were they when they started? Which martial arts do they do/have they done in the past? Do they enjoy it? Why did you choose that particular martial art?

 

Our Ds began Japanese Ju Jitsu when he was 5, we switched to Brazilian Jiu Jitsu when he was 9. The JJJ was difficult for a 5 yo, it was a mixed class with adults and it was 3 hours long. By the time he was 9 he was participating in the entire class. He love BJJ, there is more grappling and it's more like combat. the JJJ was more like "moves". Also, we chose the JJJ because it was this realy nice older gentleman who taught for the love of teaching his art so it was only $20. We found out when ds was 9 that the sensai was a pedaphile and was under investigation. We found this out after he targeted my 13 yo dss. :glare: Thankfully no abuse occurred.

 

Anyway, ds love BJJ, he competes, he works hard. It will be a lifelong sport for him.

 

I chose a martial art because I was boycotting church, but wanted "elders" in ds' life and a sense of community. I picked the JJJ because we could afford $20/month and not the $100/month that the real schools charged. I found that sense of community with the JJJ school until I found out about the investigation. After that, I kept him in martial arts because I firmly believe that intense exercise and martial arts discipline is what a teen boy needs to sweat those hormones right out of them. Teen boys become pretty docile when they are exhausted! :tongue_smilie:

[JudoMom]

We take Judo.

 

We chose Judo because we could afford it (our Sensei started the club as a ministry, so the dues are extremely affordable).

 

My older two started at 6 & 5. I watched for a year, and began right before I turned 31. My younger boys all began around age 5. I'm on the mats coaching in the Junior class now, but if I wasn't I wouldn't have my youngest on the mats--he's a young 5 and has the attention span of a distracted gnat when it comes to Judo.

 

Some days they like it, some days they love it, and some days they hate it; each boys' feelings change on a daily or weekly basis, it seems. The only boy who is consistent in his feelings toward it is my middle son. He doesn't care for it--he's told me "I'm an adventurer, not a fighter", but he's still required to take it. My boys are all small, and I want them to have skills to defend themselves if necessary. I also count it as PE.

[mommymilkies]

We started in Karate and it was taught very offensively. The students were taught to beat the heck out of the teacher and each other and do offensive moves. The class had 30+ students in it and my kids were being bullied. So we pulled them. We started TKD but it was VERY expensive and the teacher flaked on us a lot. So they are starting Aikido this monday. My father has done Aikido for 20+ years and it is a calmer more defensive martial art.

[tammyw]

My kids take a mixed martial arts class. We chose that one because I had heard of it through a homeschool friend, and most of the kids in this particular class are homeschooled also. My dd started almost a year ago, when she was 7.5. My son was sitting on the sidelines and watching and decided he wanted to try. He was A LOT younger than anyone else in the class, but the teacher allowed him to try it a couple times, to see if he was capable. He was! So now they both take the same class - they both love it. Our main reason for doing the classes - self defense training (get it ingrained early), but I also think it's great for confidence building.

[jenL]

My son takes Taekwondo twice a week for an hour each lesson. He began this year just before he turned 8. I enrolled him at a dojang that had an excellent reputation, and they also provide homeschool specific classes. We chose to enroll him to help him with focusing issues, and so far, it is helping. Ds really enjoys it. We'll probably enroll our youngest ds when he turns 5 in the spring.