How BJJ Helps Kids Develop Beneficial Life Skills

We all are well aware of the tremendous amounts of psychological and physical benefits BJJ has to offer. So, wouldn’t it be selfish to enjoy all these benefits alone and keep your loved ones away?

Well, you will be surprised to know how the immense advantages your kids can achieve from BJJ. In an era where kids are more likely to play video games, jiu-jitsu steps in to break the norms.

Apart from being a great physical exercise to improve aerobic and muscular endurance, BJJ helps kids develop beneficial life skills.

It’s not just martial arts, in fact, BJJ is a way of life. Jiu-jitsu is one of the best options to establish principles like honor, respect, and discipline.

It’s common to think that all kinds of martial arts involve striking and harsh techniques to defeat your opponent. This is the reason most people don’t enroll kids in BJJ.

But you should know that BJJ is not a traditional martial art that involves punches, kicks, and deadly combos.

Kids are often enrolled in sports like football, soccer, or basketball because they seem safer than BJJ. In fact, jiu-jitsu has a lot fewer head-related injuries than these sports.

We know that BJJ is done on the ground that is a natural environment for kids. Babies use this floor for learning the early movements like crawling.

If you think that falling on the floor can cause muscular injuries to kids, we have good news. BJJ is done on mats that are designed to absorb impact so your bones and muscles stay safe.

The most sensitive area of your body is the head. A head injury can be very crucial and can directly impact the normal functioning of your brain.

Jiu-jitsu doesn’t include any striking, practitioners are taught to protect their heads during a fall in their basic classes.

As BJJ doesn’t include striking unlike other martial arts so the kids remain safe from any type of punches or hard kicks that can cause them injury.

All the BJJ have strict guidelines for the safety of kids and they follow them seriously.

Whenever the kids are rolling, the instructors make sure that they are not using any dangerous techniques and are respecting each other during a fight.

The mat area of all BJJ gyms is small so that instructors can easily keep an eye on all the practitioners.

So, if you are worried that your kid might face bullying by other jiu-jitsu practitioners, or get injuries due to wild techniques, then don’t worry.

Just make sure that your kids are going to a well-reputed BJJ academy and the instructors are a black belt or at least a brown belt.

When your kid enrolls in a jiu-jitsu academy, they would be needing a Gi or Rashguard. Make sure to buy one which has fine fabric and high quality.

Jiu-jitsu requires immense amounts of focus and mental concentration. If you don’t anticipate your opponent’s next move and plan defense, you will be tapped out soon.

While practicing BJJ kids concentrate on the guidelines given by the instructor and pay attention to small details. It helps in improving concentration in the long term.

Jiu-jitsu has helped many kids and teens to effectively deal with attention deficit disorder (ADD)

For kids suffering from ADD, it’s recommended that they take up sports in which they have to perform individually rather than a team. It helps them to concentrate and evaluate their performance.

When you are rolling on the mat, you are all alone. This allows you to focus on every move of your opponent and throw a counter move.

By resilience, we don’t mean being tough physically. It means how efficiently you can adapt to different life situations.

There are many forms of resilience that include pain endurance, managing stress, and maintaining focus without losing mental stability.

It’s better that you learn resilience at an early age so you can overcome life’s challenges easily in the future.

Life puts us in challenging situations, to deal with those obstacles your kids have to be resilient. If you can cope with tough physical and mental barriers then you are resilient enough.

Resilience can also be defined as how determined you are towards achieving your goals. BJJ is a time taking sport and to become a professional in it you need to be resilient with your aims.

Children who practice BJJ face challenges constantly. Every time they encounter a new opponent, they are facing a new obstacle. All of these factors eventually combine to build resilience in kids.

Practicing jiu-jitsu helps to maintain overall body fitness. However, kids don’t need to worry about losing fat to improve their body image. But, being in a good shape has always been beneficial for boosting self-confidence.

The best type of self-confidence that kids get through BJJ is through learning self-defense skills. It teaches them to stand for others and themselves when they are right.

It’s quite common that we intend to lose self-confidence when we cannot do something perfectly. Jiu-jitsu teaches that even small progress towards your goal is important.

BJJ teaches kids to be consistent and work to achieve what they want without losing self-confidence.

If your kids are good with self-defense then it would not only be beneficial for them but will also give them peace of mind.

Jiu-jitsu is the most effective martial art for self-defense. It’s because BJJ is taught to be the most realistic and all possible types of attacks.

It teaches various techniques to deal with opponents who are taller and stronger than you.

Bullying is a common problem in schools, BJJ helps your kids to stand up in front of a bully and defend themselves. When they know the right techniques to defend themselves, they would be more confident when alone.

And, once your kid teaches a lesson to the bullies then they would never want to mess with him again.

Don’t worry about your kid being aggressive and taking up fights for no reason. BJJ also teaches that with great strength comes great responsibility.

Self-control includes the ability to stick to a task without being carried away with emotions or desires.

A person who lacks self-control is more likely to show anger, violence, and a variety of other unhealthy coping mechanisms.

Learning to control emotions is a basic skill taught to BJJ students. The instructors teach different methods to establish self-control and channelize their anger into something positive.

BJJ teaches children that all our actions have an effect associated with them. If your actions are negative then it’s evident that the corresponding result will not be beneficial for you.

Discipline is that one key element that can help people to achieve high levels of success in their life.

In this era, kids spend most of their time playing video games, watching movies, or using social media. For them, there is no effective way to have fun without the use of technology.

Jiu-jitsu offers an innovative way to add fun to children’s life without using gadgets.

Kids are more likely to love practicing jiu-jitsu as it acts as a breakaway from their routine. They learn to have real fun that doesn’t include the internet and gadgets.

As a beginner, the kids are encouraged to learn basic skills and are not encouraged in a fight. Once they start practicing with opponents, they are more likely to tap out in the beginning.

But, BJJ teaches children to learn from their failures instead of losing hope. Through encouragement from the instructors and seniors in the gym, kids can learn from mistakes and concentrate on fixing them.

BJJ academies have a friendly environment. When a kid gets enrolled, he is easily adjusted with the help of a supportive community over there.

Although jiu-jitsu is done individually, they are still a part of the team. It helps them to develop skills for positively interacting with each other.

It also encourages them to give and accept feedback from others. If the kids are not used to listening to feedback, then they would consider it as criticism later in life.

Jiu-jitsu is an effective sport for kids not just for physical benefits but also for improving their psychological health.

Your kids should learn some beneficial life skills early in their life so they can benefit from them in their life ahead.

Making your kids practice BJJ will not only benefit them but will also give you peace of mind knowing that they can defend themselves in harsh circumstances.