[busterleroy]

Hello Everyone

I am looking for a way to constructively channel my 5 year old son's seemingly bottomless well of energy.

I've heard that martial arts are a good outlet and they foster personal discipline as well.

Any thoughts? Experience?

Signed,

Tired of someone yelling "I'm Batman" then tackling his 2 year old sister

[mommytoEli]

just my experience with my son- instead of having an energetic child attacking children, i had a SKILLED energetic child attacking children. lol. so we had to quit. lol. oops. i'd say just be sure that the teacher emphasizes that what he learns is NOT to be used on his sister or friends for fun.

[busterleroy]

Perfect. Batman is loud and unskilled at the moment, might be better to keep him that way.


I wish they had hamster wheels for five year olds. He could run for hours.

[JPDakota]

You might look into Kempo Karate. Some of the martial arts are aggressive and some are not. Kempo is not.

[LMblue]

I recommend Judo. I knew a second grader who started Judo and it really helped him in school. I think he had Judo three times a week and continues Judo years later.

[krafmatic]

My two older kids are in karate. My DS#1 definitely falls into the "energetic" category.

They LOVE their karate (the style is called Isshin-Ryu) deals with "practical" skills.

With that said, their instructors are great at teaching kids. My favorite things about the instructors:
1. Their teaching style is not militaristic. They are expected to follow directions and such, but it is not harsh.
2. They teach VERY good self defense moves for kids. They are skills that the kids could use on adults in real life situations. They manage to do this without scaring the kids, too.
3. They are very strict about not using the skills outside of class. The very first day of class the kids are told about the 3 strikes and your out policy. If the kids are ever reported (by schools or even parents) for using their karate inappropriately they will be banned from the karate club that we are a part of. After that first class, I laid very clear, firm rules about practicing at home and what I constitute as inappropriate use of karate. No big problems in the 7 months they have been taking it.

I really think that your child's experience really depends on the instructors. The instructors should really enjoy working with kids...it will be obvious when you visit/try a class. Our class is through the Community Education department, although the Karate Club also offers family classes through the City's Parks and Rec department.

[giovanni7460]

I myself studied Ishinru many years. I also taught a kids class several times a week. My 22 year old son has been involved since he was 5. He is now doing cage matches. OK that is a long way off. But I have to say if you have a good, really good sensei, your son will learn that its not about beating up your little sister or anyone else. Its about learning, respect, restraint and how to protect yourself. Its like learning the piano. If you only do it one year, its really not learning. If you only take a few lessons at anything its really not learning it. Its like anything else our kids do, they really have to love it to stay with it. I think its wonderful for kids. The dicipline alone is amazing.
I hope your son loves it. I cant wait for Giovanni and Antonio to be able to start.
Patty

[SKL]

Since we are on this topic, what would be a good age to start? I think this would be great for my girls and would love to start them as soon as it is appropriate. I'm hearing a lot of "age 5" here. Is that the rule of thumb? Thanks!

[mommytoEli]

Originally Posted by busterleroy

Perfect. Batman is loud and unskilled at the moment, might be better to keep him that way.


I wish they had hamster wheels for five year olds. He could run for hours.

ROFL!!!! too funny!

[TheFoxx]

Some places start as early as 3.

If you are worried about him using it on his sister - gymnastics is also a great energy burner.