Martial Art advice for young daughter

[Gyakuto]

Boxing. A good punch/combination is quick, so has the element of surprise allowing for escape, she will develop extreme fitness and thus the ability to run if required, and the shiny shorts are cool.

Traditional martial arts take such a long time to become adept within and developing the strength to grapple with a man will take a long time.

 

[auntlisa1103]

Hello,

I am after some advice. I have two young daughters that I want to get into martial arts or self defence.

I appreciate anything is better than nothing, and which they prefer the most and quality of the instructor is also important,

But I would like to know your thoughts on which is best for them?

As far as im aware, girls are more likely to be grabbed (by men) than punched, so im thinking grappling style maybe a better option, though I am open to suggestions.

Nearby (UK) I have (all offer child sessions):

Karate, boxing, judo, Muay thai, Wing Chun, MMA, BJJ, Japanese Ju Jitsu, no gi (not sure if wrestling or bjj)

Thank you.

John

As you can see, you are going to get as many different answers as you get people posting answers.

Most schools in my area offer one or two free sessions because the best way to determine if it’s for you truly is to try it out. Hopefully they would let you watch one if you didn’t want to actually work out the first time you are there.

When I started training, at 38 years old, I went to the traditional TKD school two blocks from my house because it was a logistical dream come true. I also ended up meeting the Grand Master accidentally and separately, and having a conversation with him about it before I started. It has been the best thing I could have done. I have met people from other local schools and I don’t think I would have flourished at their schools—just an instinct I have.

Take the girls, try it out and see what happens.

 

[Hanshi]

Which is more likely to give a girl child a head injury, grappling or karate? Interesting question and I have no answer I would bet money on even though I think my answer would be nearer reality. I've been disabled for over 15 years due to auto-immune problems. One of my most serious problems is that I fall a lot. Due to my judo/jujitsu training I know how to take a fall and be safe. I never received any injuries from the dozens of falls.

But several months ago I passed out while driving but was very lucky. But how could I know that was a warning. Sometime after that I was walking around the block in our neighborhood, I always use to do that with our doggie and sometimes fell - no fault of the dog. So I was alone and taking a walk when I realized something wasn't right. Suddenly I found myself face down and sprawled out on the asphalt with no idea of where, what or when happened. This time I had obviously made no attempt to perform protective measures as I had always done before.

"When I came to myself" - got my wits together, I tried to lift my head and had blood pouring from my nose, abraded lips and I couldn't move. Several people witnessed the fall and a lady, about my age, came out and helped me (how, I don't know) to the grass lawn at the curb. A couple of others also saw the incident and one called the EMTs while another called my wife.

I ended up in the emergency room and still to this day have a couple of problems from the fall. I mention this only to emphasize how a fall or blow can have one of two outcomes depending on the consciousness level at the time. A very hard blow, fall or other injury can often effect or overwhelm efforts to protect the head. A bad place for a woman, in general, is lying on the ground while the attacher is still on his/her feet. Watching an mma event is a good way to see what position a fighter's head is in when taking the most blows.