Five Ways Martial Arts is Good for the Mind

It is common knowledge that fitness and exercise have many health benefits. When working out regularly, you can expect improvements in strength, endurance, health, weight, and mood. However, did you know that the type of activity you do can impact the mental health benefits that you receive? Research has shown that jogging can increase your life expectancy and that yoga makes people happier. It should be no surprise then, that martial arts bring some power to your brain as well. 

Improved Attention Span

In the age of social media, our attention spans seem to have taken a nose-dive. If you feel like this has happened to you, then martial arts might be able to help. Researchers say that martial arts help with your attention span through a technique called attention state training, or AST. 

It is said that if you perform martial arts, you will see linked improvement between your alertness in daily life and at the gym. Karate, in particular, is linked with this research as the best option. By teaching your brain to pay attention to both auditory and visual signals, karate teaches the brain to pay better attention to multiple tasks in daily life. 

Reduced Aggression

Many martial arts classes are touted as being great for an anti-bullying program. By sending children to martial arts, you give them the chance to learn how to maintain a level of self-control that they wouldn't have to learn elsewhere. Though research has only shown significant mental changes in boys, there is proof that martial arts are great for calming physical aggression and bringing confidence to the forefront. 

Stress Management 

Low-impact and meditative styles of martial arts are perfect for learning to read and control yourself in a stressful situation. One example of this would be Tai Chi. This practice put an emphasis on controlled breathing, meditation, and relaxation. Though not ideal for younger children, teenagers to adults can reap large rewards from this art form.

Emotional Well-Being

If you have been looking for a connection between emotional health and physical fitness, you can find it within martial arts. Karate has been shown to stabilize emotions and lower rates of depression across the ages. In addition, greater levels of self-esteem did training more fun and beneficial for the students involved. 

Improved Memory

When people are sedentary, they have a chance of forgetting. However, active people at all age ranges, often have better memories than their sedentary counterparts. Martial arts has been shown to improve a person's memory. In addition, research has shown the karate is better than the average workout at improving your mental cognition. 

If you have been looking for an option for your children, Bodies in Motion offers special classes in the martial arts for kids. Our classes combine a mixture of teachings to create something that the children can learn multiple lessons from. We want to ensure that your children have access to tools that will keep them in shape physically and mentally while keeping them protected and free from harm should something happen.