Mental and Cognitive skills that kids develop from BJJ

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By Michael

Brazilain Jiu-Jitsu has offered Nemours benefits to its practitioners regardless of their age, gender, and fitness level. The benefits are not just restricted to the physical state of their body but mental as well. Kids these days have sedentary lifestyles. They spend most of their time in front of computers, video games, and smart devices. They don’t indulge themselves in physical activities that are crucial for their growth.

Unlike in old times, kids today endure so many obstacles such as bullies, distractions, bullies, depression, poor fitness & much more. Being parents you want to provide your children every chance of excelling in their life. Developing a healthy mindset in your kids in today’s world is harder than ever. To overcome these obstacles, the lessons that jiu-jitsu teaches play an effective role.

Parents reach out to learn about kids’ BJJ, they have a variety of concerns. The most common one is whether taking part in BJJ will make the child violent and harsh. Or whether it will distract them from school or academic responsibilities. Well, the answer to this query is a “No”. Unlike most, combat sports Brazilian jiu-jitsu isn’t a violent art that focuses on bringing your opponent down as you step into the fighting ring after wearing your BJJ rash guard. It’s a well-structured and disciplined game that focuses on learning the trick and technique rather than brutal punches and kicks. It lets its practitioner find the proper balance between his mind, spirit, and body.

Martial arts like BJJ were created to develop a variety of mental health benefits such as focus, self-control, discipline, sharp cognition, and self-awareness while improving physical strength, endurance, and flexibility.

From the physical exercises & emotional instruction learned in the BJJ class, your child gets to develop a fine understanding of skills and tips that continue to benefit them for their whole life.

Moreover, the feeling that they can defend themselves makes them feel safe, confident, and happier. Let’s take a deeper look at how learning Brazilian jiu-jitsu helps your kid.

Mental benefits of learning Jiu-Jitsu

The art of Brazilian jiu-jitsu puts a huge emphasis on quieting the mind, improving focus letting your kid enjoy the journey of learning self-defense.

1) Discipline

Mostly we offer the word discipline with the term punishment. Well, in reality, discipline needs to be imposed long before the necessity of punishment. It’s a skill that should be learned for establishing self-control, cultivating good habits, & stronger willpower for doing what’s right. In Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu kids get to learn that discipline is not about punishment but a teaching approach that gets you prepared. This martial art training is designed for opening young students’ and their minds to perfectly handling situations & scenarios. The mental benefits of this training style play major dividends for a child’s ability for learning self-discipline. They learn how to establish control of their thoughts, emotions, negative impulses & manage overall behavior.

2) Boosted Confidence & Self-Esteem

The art of BJJ primarily focuses on self-improvement. In this game, one person gets to compete against the other. Kids struggle with the competitive nature of different team sports & the idea of making others down on the sports ground, elevates their confidence. Variations of different disciplines of martial arts encourage students on working their way at each stage. As they keep on growing & achieving proficiency, they start feeling proud of their accomplishments.

3) Focus

Like a dull knife needs to be sharpened to accomplish its tasks, a kid needs to be sharp as they do routine chores. In this era of technology when everything is just a click away, it’s really hard to give attention or fully devote yourself to a single task. Recent statistics have revealed that over 6.4 million kids in the US between the 4-17 years of age group suffer from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Some seek medical help while others bring kids to martial arts school. By constant practice & sustained repetition, young adults learn how they clear their brains & focus on a single task at one time. The basic, but strong principles and practices of BJJ not only benefits the kids within the gym but daily life.

4) Confidence

Because of continued bullying, many kids tend to have low self-esteem & minimal confidence. The negative feelings that come from low self-worth can be catastrophic and cause damage to young and happy minds, it can lead to anxiety, depression, anger & guilt. Many people might not consider utilizing BJJ for addressing mental health problems such as these, it’s arguably the best approach for boosting a kid’s confidence & improving his self-esteem. They start believing in themselves with each move they learn & feel more confident as the body transforms into a better shape.

Above all of it, your kids will socialize with the rest of the gym members & make new friends in the interactive session. The social aspects will offer your kid better more confidence & the ability to be able to talk & communicate in a better way.

5) Respect

Among all the best things a kid gets to learn in their BJJ class, is respect. From listening to their instructors to observing the respect towards their opponent, your kid gets to learn the importance of honor and humility. A kid must understand the difference and accept it with peace. This one trait in life improves daily interactions and bonding.

6) Stress Management

Brazilain Jiu-Jitsu offers your brain a mental boost by the process of stress management. Those feel-good chemicals that get released from your brain help you to manage stress. And the training itself helps in reducing the muscular tension that is intertwined with the stress. The jiu-jitsu training allows the mind to shift focus away from your lengthy to-do list & brings your state to an ongoing moment where you practice skills & learn new techniques.

7) Better sleep.

Another positive effect of Jiu-Jitsu training is that it improves the quality of your sleep. And when the kid is well-rested, he is more likely to wake refreshed with a better and clearer mind. This not only helps in feeling better but also gives the brain a fine chance of rebuilding & carrying out the critical cognitive processes.

8) Improved Concentration

These activities allow the kids to simply show while going through motions. This isn’t truly the case. One of the greatest benefits of BJJ for kids is better concentration. Active listening & observing is the fundamental and crucial aspect of learning something new. BJJ ensures that it enlists concentration in its practitioners and also allows children to develop quick and reactionary skills for changing directions at the moment’s notice.

9) Knowledge Of Self-Defense

Resolution of a Peaceful conflict is the pillar of combat sports. But there are few instances when being able to defend yourself becomes necessary. As you hope the children will get into situations that require self-defense, it’s a lifesaving skill. Being equipped with basic self-defense tricks enables your kid to protect themselves. Children get to learn regarding stranger awareness which is appropriate for their age range.

10) Memorization

Retention is also an important skill that you must master. With your early age of development mind, children studying BJJ find it easier to memorize important and personal details. It includes the address, contact number, parent’s cell phone number, etc. In the case of an emergency, this information becomes very crucial, but the concept of memorization serves for all the upcoming years. As the child works by the different levels of BJJ, they are required to memorize maneuvers & poses. Exercising this ability can improve their way of approaching memorization.


This is Reno Yudadibroto. I’m a fitness lover. My journey made me so. This path took me 6 years to get through all these lifesaving aspects. I’ve been studying, practicing, and admiring how the body works and how to deal with it, it paid me back though. My journey started from my own self. I write every word of my article on personal-based experience either it is mine or with some other fitness freak’s consultancy, Thank you.

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