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While the risk of injury for children taking MMA classes might seem fairly high, there are ways that you can protect against injury and there also are many positive benefits from taking mixed martial arts classes. If your son or daughter is interested in MMA, here are a few helpful thoughts for your consideration.
If you are truly worried about safety, consider that many other sports pose risks as well. Baseball, football and hockey are all popular youth sports, and you absolutely can suffer a serious injury, even a life-threatening injury from any of those three sports. Protective gear limits the risk of injury for these sports, and keep in mind that kids in MMA training also wear protective head gear, mouth gear, pads and other items to keep them safe.
While all sports certainly teach some level of discipline and sportsmanship, the main goal of baseball or another sport is to win a game. With youth MMA, kids aren't going after each other in the cage, beating each other up. At the young levels, prior to age 16, especially, children are simply learning a variety of MMA skills. They do spar with one another, but at a good school this is done in such as way to minimize injury. The goal of youth MMA is to help improve the ability to defend oneself, as well as building confidence and improving a person's overall fitness and discipline.
When you search for an MMA school, go inside and talk with the instructors. Get a feel for the philosophy that is prevalent in the gym. A good gym will be one that has instructors that want students to be disciplined and work hard but aren't aggressive or intimidating. The focus should be on self defense and physical and mental health, not on aggression. You should see a good amount of camaraderie and sportsmanship among the children, as well. If all of these elements are in place, then this is the type of atmosphere you want.
There are also other options to think about, allowing your child to learn some great skills that would progress into mixed martial arts. For example, instead of learning a mix of martial arts, consider working on just one skill until they are older. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is hugely popular these days and provides many skills that move seamlessly into MMA. Most Jiu-Jitsu schools focus on building confidence and skills and never on fostering aggression.
A few other options include Judo, Taekwondo, wrestling and Karate, and while you can get injured, the risk is fairly low as opposed to boxing, kickboxing and Muay Thai. However, there is no reason why you can't learn some boxing skills without facing an opponent. Boxing training is great physical exercise and teaches excellent footwork and improves coordination, all of which you can learn without fighting anyone.
If you are truly worried about safety, consider that many other sports pose risks as well. Baseball, football and hockey are all popular youth sports, and you absolutely can suffer a serious injury, even a life-threatening injury from any of those three sports. Protective gear limits the risk of injury for these sports, and keep in mind that kids in MMA training also wear protective head gear, mouth gear, pads and other items to keep them safe.
While all sports certainly teach some level of discipline and sportsmanship, the main goal of baseball or another sport is to win a game. With youth MMA, kids aren't going after each other in the cage, beating each other up. At the young levels, prior to age 16, especially, children are simply learning a variety of MMA skills. They do spar with one another, but at a good school this is done in such as way to minimize injury. The goal of youth MMA is to help improve the ability to defend oneself, as well as building confidence and improving a person's overall fitness and discipline.
When you search for an MMA school, go inside and talk with the instructors. Get a feel for the philosophy that is prevalent in the gym. A good gym will be one that has instructors that want students to be disciplined and work hard but aren't aggressive or intimidating. The focus should be on self defense and physical and mental health, not on aggression. You should see a good amount of camaraderie and sportsmanship among the children, as well. If all of these elements are in place, then this is the type of atmosphere you want.
There are also other options to think about, allowing your child to learn some great skills that would progress into mixed martial arts. For example, instead of learning a mix of martial arts, consider working on just one skill until they are older. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is hugely popular these days and provides many skills that move seamlessly into MMA. Most Jiu-Jitsu schools focus on building confidence and skills and never on fostering aggression.
A few other options include Judo, Taekwondo, wrestling and Karate, and while you can get injured, the risk is fairly low as opposed to boxing, kickboxing and Muay Thai. However, there is no reason why you can't learn some boxing skills without facing an opponent. Boxing training is great physical exercise and teaches excellent footwork and improves coordination, all of which you can learn without fighting anyone.
About the Author:
Rod Bourgoine enjoys writing about mixed martial arts advantages. For more info about an MMA gym in San Diego or to find jiu jitsu lessons in San Diego, please check out The Arena MMA website today.
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