THE BENEFITS OF TRADITIONAL CHINESE MARTIAL ARTS TO YOUTH

Traditional Chinese martial arts provide the timelessly relevant benefit of self-discipline, which in turn promotes self-respect and wholesome self-confidence, both crucial to integrating in a constructive way with others and wider society: all of which are particularly important during the formative years of childhood and adolescence.

Through training the body, these arts help the practitioner to master his/her emotions and mind, this in turn contributes to proficiency in self-defence, understanding the benefit of competing with oneself rather than others, and not least respect for others and seniority.

Traditional Chinese martial arts provide well proven health and fitness benefits. They give a sense of purpose and dynamism which help combat obesity and lethargy; encourage, maintain, and develop general fitness - so crucial to the medical health and wellbeing of the years of childhood and adolescence.
Anti-social behaviour amongst sections of British youth, particularly in deprived areas, are self-destructive forms of conduct, injurious and disruptive to the wider community. Such behaviour limit’s the capacity of youth to understand and positively contribute to and integrate with wider society as a whole.

Traditional Chinese martial arts through inculcating self-discipline, encourage self-responsibility and self-respect as the natural way of life. Importantly, the respect for discipline, etiquette, and seniority which they encourage are all the more effective for being seen for the virtues and beneficial qualities which they are.

For these reasons they are not not seen as restrictive burdens and impositions, but as desirable and natural, encouraging behaviour and attitudes in which the young can take pride, and enable them to be part of and contribute to society: precisely the underlying needs of youth prone to anti-social behaviour.