In this article we will discuss the benefits of kickboxing for kids. It is becoming increasingly popular to get kids into kickboxing instead of soccer or ballet. And for good reasons! Kickboxing is very good for kids and we will give you many reasons why you should get your son or daughter into this sport.
Self-confidence
Many parents put their children into kickboxing to give them self-confidence . We all hear stories of children who are bullied at school or are not very confident. Because of this, they do not really enjoy school. This can also be a reason for not having friends.
Kickboxing helps these children by making them realize what they can do. What kickboxing does to children is that they become aware that they are not so powerless at all. That is why they do not have to be afraid of other children. They learn to stand up for themselves . They stand their ground! Of course, they do not learn street fighting. The golden rule of martial arts applies to every kickboxing school: "the techniques you learn in the gym/dojo, you should not use outside the ring/gym".
The best part about this is that as a parent you will quickly notice the difference in your child's behavior. Often after two months after they have started training, you can already see that they make friends more easily because they are surrounded by peers. They do not let others walk all over them because they have learned from kickboxing what they can do. They will also feel fitter and more energetic because of the sports.
Other Benefits of Kickboxing for Kids
- Improving reaction time
- More energy! A lot of sports will make your child feel better, this in combination with healthy food and enough sleep, will certainly help your child.
- They learn discipline! Through the strict training they learn to pay attention, which also helps them later in school.
- Children learn left and right! By constantly having to punch and kick left and right they learn which leg/arm is left and which is right.
- They learn to respect each other! Respect is number 1 in martial arts.
- Kickboxing makes children more flexible.
- They become stronger through kickboxing.
- It is a good outlet, allowing children to release their frustration/aggression in a good way.
Power supply
As I mentioned above, healthy eating combined with training and enough rest will do your child a lot of good. As with any athlete, good nutrition is important to perform well. But if you normally have dinner with the family at 6:00 PM, and now your child has kickboxing training at this time, you may wonder what to do with the food. Should the children eat before or after training?
The answer lies somewhere in between. If you give the children a full meal just before training, your children will be too full. This will prevent them from training properly, because with a full stomach it is difficult to keep up with a tough fitness training such as kickboxing training. But you also don't want to let the children train on an empty stomach. This can cause them to become dizzy during training. So what is the best way?
The best thing you can do is to give them a small snack before they train, think of a sandwich, grilled cheese, a small amount of pasta, etc. This will give them enough energy to kickbox for an hour. After training when they are home, it is a good time to give them their evening meal.
Rest
Sufficient rest is essential for children. They can let their muscles recover well with rest. The next day children must be able to perform well at school, so send children to bed on time after training.
Contribution
Just like all other sports clubs, you also have to pay a membership fee for kickboxing. The price can vary per gym, but the price is often determined by how often per week your child wants to train. Are you curious about where you can find a good gym near you, take a look at Google and Google Maps. Here you can find kickboxing gyms throughout the country. Almost all martial arts schools now offer lessons for children. In addition, there are certain municipal funds, such as the Jeugdfonds Sport to help with materials and membership fees.
What does your child need to start kickboxing?
- Boxing gloves
- Kickboxing shorts
- Shin guards
- Bit
- Bandages/inner gloves for under gloves
- Possibly a cross protector
We recommend that you buy a complete set. This contains everything a child needs for kickboxing training! The sets below are perfect for children aged 5 to 8! Is your child older? Then view all kickboxing sets for children !