>>18707306I teach BJJ and MMA. Some of my best young students came from traditional martial arts, especially Karate and TKD. Kids don't really learn to fight from these disciplines outside of a few oldschool schools where they still do sparring, but they do learn some very useful transferable skills.
They learn discipline
They learn flexibility
They learn balance
And most importantly they learn how to learn
The ability to see a move demonstrated and then repeat it is invaluable.
I showed this 14 year old Karate black belt who had been training since he was 6 an Iminari roll to saddle to heel hook. I showed him it once. He was able to do it on his first try. This is a ridiculous complicated and counter-intuitive movement and he was able to learn it immediately and incorporate it into his game the same day.
Ever since I saw that I stopped badmouthing traditional martial arts.
Get your kids into something like Karate or TKD as soon as 5 years old. Get them into wrestling at 8 or 10. Get them into BJJ at 12 or 13. Get them into boxing, Muay Thai, or MMA at 16 or 17.
