In my opinion Brazilian Jiu Jitsu wins by a fair margin when it comes to sports for children. Especially for kids who seem to have more violent tendencies than others… The problem with Karate and TaeKwonDo and similar striking arts for kids is that they teach either techniques in the air or against a compliant opponent. They give an inflated sense of the child’s true fighting skill, that taps into a childish sense of fantasy.
Without proper care this can turn into arrogance. With Brazilian Jiu Jitsu the opposite happens. They are exposed to full contact wrestling from the first day. They are tapping out every day they train, there is no way for their young ego’s to latch onto the idea they are badasses. In fact, they lose so often that they stop attaching to the notion of winning and losing.
Also, because they experience what it’s like to dominate and be physically dominated, they are far less likely to want to do it in the playground. Also, not only is BJJ a legit martial art (virtually every single UFC champion trains it) but the discrepancies in sizes between say an 8 year old kid and a 12 year old kid make it virtually impossible for an 8 year old karate student to stand up to a 12 year old bully. With BJJ its possible to take a much bigger bully down and stop them hurting you.
Take a look at these kids, not just their skills, but the looks on their faces when they lose. If there is one thing kids really need to know in life its how to lose with grace and dignity.
Don’t take my word for it. World surfing champ Kelly Slater says “put your kids in Jiu Jitsu before other sports”.
Kelly Slater to parents: ‘Put your kids in Jiu-Jitsu before other sports’
