Personal Trainer Q & A Category: Childrens Fitness
Personal Trainer Q & A Contributor: Danilo
Training in Karate in the UAE has many benefits for children’s health and fitness – both physically and mentally.
Professional personal trainer and karate coach in Abu Dhabi Danilo provides some useful advice and tips for parents in the UAE who are thinking about Karate classes or one to personal training for their children.
Many parents in the UAE are looking for ways to add extracurricular sports or other exercise options to their children’s lives. As a personal trainer who provides Karate PT why do you think Karate is a good choice for children’s fitness in Dubai or Abu Dhabi?
Sports in the UAE like karate are a fun way for kids to achieve fitness and focus. Some parents in Abu Dhabi & Dubai may think that some contact sports also promote violence, but that’s a myth – according to experts. Karate can actually help teach self-discipline and socialization skills. In fact, many parents whose children have attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder report great success with this noble sport because self-control and concentration are exactly the skills underdeveloped at a young age.
What would you say are the overall health benefits for children who choose to do a martial art like Karate in the UAE?
Karate offers kids a safe outlet for any aggression they may experience, helps them find a positive role model in their teachers, aids in solving any balance or clumsiness they might experience as their bodies grow, helps them to overcome any introverted shyness or self-confidence issues, helps them learn how to control their bodies with grace and flexibility, helps them learn how to avoid conflict and offers a safe and structured method of self-defense if needed.Weight problems associated with children and today’s sedentary lifestyles are worrying for many parents. Do you think practicing Karate regularly can also help with weight management for kids?
It is true that the way of life of children has changed a lot in the last 10 years, and sometimes not in a very positive direction. Today, you rarely see children playing in a sports field. You’ll see them spend the whole day at home, playing on games consoles, typing messages on their new smartphone or spending too much time in fast food outlets. Kids in the UAE should put aside at least an hour per day for exercise. So YES, Karate can help children in weight regulation and management. You must know that persistence is the key to success. So if you practice karate regularly, you will no have weight problems. Karate is a sport where you need to activate all muscles. Also, it will increase their neural drive; help them to grow up healthy and to develop properly.
Karate is seen as a self-defense martial art but also as a contact sport. For parents concerned about the ‘contact’ aspect what advice would you give?
Karate doesn’t need to be a contact sport so parents have no reason to worry. It is a sport of movement and control, which means that kids will learn to perform movements very fast, but with control. Kids in Abu Dhabi & Dubai who decide to train in karate will have two choices ahead of them: Kata or Kumite. Performance where you fight against an imaginary opponent we called Kata and it is the execution of complex movements, while in Kumite or as others call it a ‘fight’ we have two participants fighting one against the other. All children who decide to train this noble sport must start from basic things (positions, blocks, kicks, etc.). So we have a safer version (Kata) and we have a slightly more challenging version (Kumite) where the kids will experience a real thrill of excitement and that will make them fall in love with karate. My advice to parents – let the children express their full potential, you never know, maybe your child will become an Olympic Champion.
Do you think Karate as a sport is suitable for both girls and boys
Usually, people think that Karate is a ‘fight sport’ and it is only for boys, but they are wrong. Karate is a sport of self-defense which means it is adaptable to boys and girls. In today’s society there shouldn’t be any barriers when it comes to girls enjoying sports such as karate and martial arts in the UAE. Also, the time we live in requires us to be ready at any time and to work to overcome obstacles. Karate will teach you that. It will make you ready for life and learn to defend yourself.
As well as being a good choice for children’s fitness, what other lessons can children learn from practicing a martial art like Karate?
They can learn how to fall and not injure themselves, they will learn how to react quickly, and they will learn self-control. The sport of karate teachers us how to win and more importantly how to stand up stronger after losing, which I think that all of us need some day in life.