In honour of Remembrance Day, I’d like to take a moment to salute our Veterans – those fallen and those still with us today – for their service to our country. May we remember the men and women who unselfishly fought for our freedom in the First and Second World Wars, the Korean War, and all conflicts and peacekeeping missions since.
A bully shoves your child on the playground. Should they stand down, or fight back? Most parents would teach their kid to ignore the bully, walk away, or get help. I say, fight back — and hear me out.
I love teaching and training Jiu-Jitsu, but I don’t always like coaching it in tournaments. Now, contrary to what you might think, this is not a pride thing. Some coaches really can’t stand to see their students lose in tournaments, and that is the problem. While we all want our students to win, it’s more important for them not to lose. Let me explain.
Children in our society are being exposed to ever increasing levels of violence through music, television, movies, and internet content, often in not so positive ways. This can develop into unhealthy attitudes of defiance and self-centered conduct in their interpersonal relationships both at home and at school. However, parents are sometimes reluctant to reinforce the negative behavior they see in their children by enrolling them in the martial arts, believing them to be a further extension of the violence and defiance they feel is creating the problem in the first place.
Do you want to maximize your child’s success as a Martial Arts student? Here’s a great article: 7 Crippling Parenting Behaviors That Keep Children From Growing Into Leaders
Here is a great article on different questions to ask your kids how their day at school was. These avoid the “fine” or “good” answers: 25 Ways to Ask Your Kids ‘So How Was School Today?’ Without Asking Them ‘So How Was School Today?’
Back to school means not only getting school supplies ready, but also getting our children ready in case they get bullied. Here is a great article on the warning signs that your child may be getting bullied or is a bully themselves. Check out this article on signs that your child is dealing with bullying at school: Signs Your Child is a Bully or Being Bullied
Why do you fight? I believe Mixed Martial Arts is the most challenging sport in world due to the physical and mental demands that are required to achieve success at the highest level. Mentally, the athlete must deal with the fight-or-flight response, remain calm and collected throughout, and not react with raw emotion otherwise he risks losing focus and technique suffers.
Bolton’s Jason Figliano has no problem getting into the ring. The dual black belt (Gracie Jiu Jitsu and Combat karate) actually pursues it for fun. “It’s for the experience, the thrill of it,” he said. “I just love to compete.” He has no illusions of a big-time MMA career, but he constantly wants to challenge himself, and the instructor and amateur champion needs more than he gets from small, grassroots gigs. This summer, he is pursuing his first professional MMA fight, with an offer to fight in Thailand already in his hip pocket.
