| The martial arts can calm the storm | |||||||
| by BUDDY AMATO | |||||||
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Many parents go through many different problems with their children. One of the main problems with a lot of the kids that come in the door of many martial arts schools is that their children are labeled with medical terms such as ADD and other titles that just boggle the imagination. In some cases, the children actually hear their parents referring to them as having these disorders and it is driven in their heads to the point that they really think there is something wrong with them. It is my opinion, that these labels that are put on children today are due to a plain lack of discipline. All they need is to be put in some type of structured environment that will instill that discipline. When I was a child, all the hyper activity was drained off my by my parents keeping me busy. I was not allowed to sit behind a computer or for hours behind a TV set. Now, the strongest parts of our children's bodies are only their hands and fingers from squeezing the remote control and from using video game joysticks. The martial arts are a healthy alternative to allowing all this built-up energy that is stored up in your child to be released in a productive manner. I am sure that there are children that have serious hyperactivity problems and I have had a few in my school that did show these symptoms. However, the majority of "hyperactive" students settled down and followed the other children after a few classes. They calmed down and even became part of the class. These kids that were labeled "hyperactive" became productive students simply because they focused on something that is fun but at the same time, a physical workout burns off their "hyper" energy. My youngest daughter, Raven, is loaded with extra energy and when she is upstairs in the house section of the karate school, she goes one hundred miles an hour. I guess some people would label her as a "hyperactive child." But, when she comes down stairs and sees the other children, she, at the age of only five years old, goes out on the floor and sits right down with the other kids as if she was ten years old. She watches the other kids and can't wait to get a turn to kick the bag or do a roll or punch the attack dummy. What I believe happens is that the children are learning from example. They see other kids sitting there behaving and following the instructions, so they mimic the other kids and simply follow along, burning off the energy that normally would be burnt off by running around the house and getting into some type of trouble. The martial arts are definite releases of energy as are a lot of other sports, but the martial arts have discipline every minute. The other calming effect that the martial arts have on students is that the stress that is built up during the day is given a chance to be released. Everyone knows that stress kills and a lot of people that do not allow themselves to burn off this stress and calm down can develop serious illnesses and wind up in the hospital or even die. For adults, the martial arts are just as important as they are for children. Adults needs something to release their pent up aggravation from their daily work routine and the martial arts give them just that. I have people that come to me that work on Wall Street and their entire day is nothing but stress. They came after work and do a workout in the martial arts just so they do not take it out on their family when they get home. It calms them down so they become better spouses/parents. Again, there are many other activities that probably can produce the same effect and I am sure many people do these activities with great results. However, none of them give you back all the things the martial arts do. They do not give you self-defense, self-confidence, self-respect, self-discipline, self-awareness and self-control. All these things are by products of the martial arts and even though there are other sports that are great, many of them are not year round and many of them depend on things such as weather and time of day. The martial arts can be done year round and it does not matter what age you are or what time of day it is. It does not matter if you are inside or outside or just in the privacy of your own room. You can practice your art and at the same time reap the benefits of all of the above. So if you think your child may be hyper or maybe you or your spouse needs some stress relief, try a martial arts school. It is what the "karate doctor" ordered. Victor "Buddy" Amato is a Hazlet business owner, who operates Amato's Karate and Weapons Academy. For more information, call (732) 671-9555.
Copyright Buddy Amato Amato's Goju-ryu Karate, Nunchaku, Bo-staff, Aikido, Sword, Kendo, Sais, Kick-boxing, Tai-Chi and more 589 Palmer Ave, Keansburg and is the author of Buddys Animal Kingdom, NJ 07734 (732) 671-9555 |
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