MT: Our Role in the Future of Martial Arts

[Knowledge Bot]

Our Role in the Future of Martial Arts By kicksindabank - Sun, 12 Aug 2007 01:43:01 GMT

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This questions has been chewing at my brain for while. At the last tournament, I noticed there where many young girls at the tournament, but as the age group advances, it dies out. I know we had talked about women in the martial arts, but my question is this: What can we (adult women) do to keep our young girls, young women inrested in the martial arts?

I understand women want to settle down, have children, career, etc.,yet there should be a backseat to something which shaped a person into who they are.

Holla back.


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[GranFire]

Well, goofy girls, they discover boys and any activity they are in suffers and female participation drops

As non parent we can only set the example, you can do both, be a Martial Artist and a woman. Though a few aspects in woman hood take a toll on our other activities...not many physical activities go well with being pregers

[Jace]

not many physical activities go well with being pregers

I would like to argue that. My instructor's wife continued doing martial arts up until a week or two before the baby was due and another friend of mine who teaches aerobics was teaching her classes up until the day before the baby came.

What the doctors say is that you shouldn't increase the amount of physical activity you are doing (for example, probably not a good time to start in martial arts or take up any extreme sports), but continuing the activities you are in isn't supposed to hurt anything.

We can come up with other theories all day long as to why women don't stay with it, but as far as keeping women enrolled though - I'm at a loss. It is like trying to boost female enrollment. It is a hard thing to accomplish.

[GranFire]

I would like to argue that. My instructor's wife continued doing martial arts up until a week or two before the baby was due and another friend of mine who teaches aerobics was teaching her classes up until the day before the baby came.

What the doctors say is that you shouldn't increase the amount of physical activity you are doing (for example, probably not a good time to start in martial arts or take up any extreme sports), but continuing the activities you are in isn't supposed to hurt anything.

We can come up with other theories all day long as to why women don't stay with it, but as far as keeping women enrolled though - I'm at a loss. It is like trying to boost female enrollment. It is a hard thing to accomplish.

LOL, yes, but certain restrictions apply!

But we need not kid ourselves, that Mom thing takes a lot out of us and a lot of us out...

[Jace]

lol - you are right about that.

Being a mom is tough work (not speaking from the mother perspective, but having put my mother through it all, I think I am still justified in saying that). My instructor's wife still trains, but her time is often cut short and she is often inturrupted by their son during class.

Also - when she first found out she was pregnant, they actually had a meeting at the dojo to discuss it with the students so that everyone would know and take extra care when it came to her training.

I think there is a general disapproval for women to be involved in anything seen as so "violent" as martial arts. My own mother still doesn't really accept it that I train even though I'm going on my fifth year of training. She just thinks it is inappropriate. When my older brother did high school wrestling though, she never said a word about it.

Does it sound as biased to you as it does to me?

[GranFire]

Yes, wicked world, has a weird sense of what is 'feminine' but MA girls are not alone. It seems the woman is always on the spot to give up anything and everything once marriage and kids come along.

But it often does not register that girls involved with a serious hobby, be it MA or - my other passion - horses or what ever are less likely to do dumb things to mess up their future! Activities in that manner build strong individuals. Unfortunately, the girl/boy enrollment in our school is very un even, so when a couple of the few girls drop out, it shows. Boys drop out all the time and you never notice...


Kinda laughable, I am more feminine now than I was before I started...

[Tom Yum]

but as far as keeping women enrolled though - I'm at a loss. It is like trying to boost female enrollment. It is a hard thing to accomplish.

Little girls will enroll with little boys and do all the same activities in kids MA classes; they'll spar (seen 'em), do forms etc but I think young women's interests change, right?

Young men still do martial arts and combat sports.

Keeping female enrollment? hmmm...seems like you have to make a place or environment female friendly or allmost too easy to attract and keep females enrolled.

Suggestions:

1. Create a class for women. Market it for women, starting with the advertisement and including women instructors. The beginners class should be mostly conditioning, but specific for MA and keep them coming back for more. Keep the cirriculum simple. Teach the jab, cross, elbow and kneee. Do pad drills that work up a wild sweat, but also teach how to create openings.

Cirriculum for a 75 minute beginner class:

- warm-up (10 minutes), skip rope (10 minutes), technique instruction (20 minutes).

- non-stop pad work! (25 minutes)

- introduction to partner drills/self-defense. (10 minutes).

- Always finish a class demonstrating the next techniques to be learned, always include a suprise of some sort, keep them coming back to learn more.


2. Limit male attendance in a class for females to advanced rank male students, whom have proven their dedication, conduct and bearing. You don't want some beginner student who hasn't paid his dues trying to mack on every young lady that walks through the doors. Class time is for training. Class make up would be mostly female (maybe 70%?) and therefore seem more female friendly.

3. Keep the class active. The ladies shouldn't have the time to sit and chat, they should be working non-stop, but be able to think while they are working so they can improve.

Critiques? Comments?

I've taught beginning and intermediate level muay thai at women's shelters for free, but these women are different than your average female student -- in most cases, alot tougher and comfortable with contact training.

[GranFire]

I think it's a gap between 16 and 30+, really.

Our adult classes are pretty evenly filled between men and women. We have only 55 min workout time, due to the full schedule of the school, but there is a little room to socialize and form friendships. I think that's a girly thing, guys seem to have less time once grown and with both feet in life and job.

In out area a female dominated class would not go well, because we have such a warped sense of femininity around here. (though there are many times when there are only the women present...our poor instructor! )


It's the boyfriend thing, usually...need more geek and nerd girls....