Kids Martial Arts and Competition

Competition for kids in martial arts

Competition can be a touchy subject sometimes when talking about kids. Whether it’s something like little league or kids martial arts many parents have a different view on the role of competition and when their kids should engage in it. It’s unfortunate that there have been situations in many youth sports that have given “competition” a bad connotation to it.

Live drills while coach Amanda looks on in kids martial arts class.

I find it’s very important for kids to learn about competition in kids martial arts classes. They have to learn how to be a good winner. They also have to learn how to deal with losing. There are many reasons but I think the main one is for a child to learn how much work goes into preparing and going to a tournament. It’s goal oriented in the short term-there’s a tournament, you need to prepare and the tournament will happen at a specified date and time. Some kids will love the whole experience and yet others may not like the experience, whether or not they win.

There are many ways to compete and make competition a part of the curriculum in a kids martial arts class. Tournaments and encouraging them is one facet of competition. Another facet is having a curriculum in a kids martial arts class that encourages having an actively resisting partner in kids martial arts class. At SBG this concept is called Aliveness and it’s about having a resisting partner often during the process of learning. It’s another form of competition and it’s a self correcting mechanism for the child to learn what works and doesn’t work in a kids martial arts class. It enables the child to learn from when s/he wins, understanding what worked; but also from when they lose, understanding what didn’t work. The child can then refine their timing, energy, and motion to get better and keep learning in a positive kids martial arts environment.

Resiliency in kids martial arts

Here’s a great video about SBG to help give context to the concept of Aliveness:

In both situations-whether it’s a tournament or training in a kids martial arts class with Aliveness-the common thread I see is building resiliency. To compete in tournaments can be very scary and facing an unknown competitor, someone you are not familiar with, can be daunting. There is a lot of work that goes into kids martial arts classes, travelling and preparing It gets exhausting. When you are consistently training with partners in a kids martial arts class who are resisting and you are consistently learning and re-learning it’s a longer journey. It can be a journey that gets frustrating and hits plateaus or setbacks. All these are true when training over a long period of time and preparing for a tournament. Resiliency is the ability to keep moving, to keep learning. It’s the idea that obstacles are opportunities to learn and grow.

Kids martial arts and beyond

In speaking with founder of SBG Matt Thornton about the topic of kids martial arts and competition, he added: “All children will eventually have to learn how to compete in one form or another as adults. They will compete in school, compete for jobs, compete for promotions, life is in a sense one long competition. By teaching them how to compete, and think about competition in a healthy way when they are young, I think we give them a huge advantage.”

I had a talk with my daughter and she was having a rough day in her kids martial arts class. She wanted to have matches with kids that are less experienced than she is so that it would be easier for her. I said to her that she must be getting better because her coach wouldn’t be matching her with kids who are a challenge if there wasn’t something to learn. She’s still new to her kids martial arts class, only a handful of months, but she’s doing well and learning. In time I will see how she takes my advice. She may not yet be ready for tournament play but she’s on the right path for it…

Live matches in kids martial arts class.