The mental benefits of martial arts are actually endless, but two important ones you may not know about are confidence and self respect. Most people see martial arts as a purely physical sport…. But it actually requires a lot of mental stamina and self talk. We help hundreds of people in our Gracie Largo Jiu Jitsu community build confidence and self-respect through the power of martial arts and self defense. Here’s how:
Confidence is a Huge Advantage of Martial Arts
Chances are high that you already feel confident in one area of your life- your job, your role as a parent, or your studies, for example. You might already feel confident in your body and even hit the gym every day.
But how confident do you feel in your ability to protect yourself? If it came down to it, would you know how to defend yourself against an attacker? Would you know how to protect the people you love?
These are scary questions, but they’re necessary, and fear can sometimes motivate you to act appropriately- nothing worse than not knowing self defense in an emergency and wishing you did! Learning how to protect yourself and the people you love is so important.
It’s why we have the goal of teaching EVERYONE in the Largo area how to defend themselves against an attacker. It’s not just because it literally saves lives, either: imagine how much more confident you could be if you were sure you could handle any physical situation that came your way. Knowing how to keep yourself safe would just be one more thing for you to feel confident about. It’s a huge mental benefit of martial arts.
Self-Respect: A Little-Known Benefit
So confidence is important, yes – but why is self respect important? Well, once you learn to respect yourself and your body, you begin making better choices. Once you start taking martial arts classes, you may notice you feel more energized. You may start to want to eat healthier and think, “I wouldn’t be respecting my body if I ate this…
I want to feel amazing so I’ll skip the chips.” You may also find yourself wanting to bike instead of drive up the street or finally making time for a hike with a friend. Then you become even more confident because you’re doing what’s right for you, you have more energy to do things that benefit you, and you feel in alignment with your best self. The voice in your head saying “Let’s eat better” or “Go for that run” is finally being heard.
Bonus – when you respect yourself, you start to treat others with more kindness and patience because you see and respect them, too. This makes OTHERS more confident because they feel your kindness, and then they pass that feeling on to others… and there’s a compound effect in the community. It’s kind of great, isn’t it? And it’s all because of this little old sport we call martial arts.
How these Mental Benefits Change Lives
Picture this – a new student will come in to start training, and within months, they’ll get a promotion. Or negotiate a higher salary. They may even find the courage to ask someone on a date. Or speak their mind to a disrespectful colleague.
These aren’t just crazy random happenstances – they happen because martial arts classes build confidence and self respect. Period. When you respect yourself, you also start to respect other aspects of your life as well. You begin realizing that you deserve better treatment from others, professionally and personally, and you find the bravery within to stand up for what you want.
Are you starting to see how the mental benefits of martial arts can seriously change your life? Just these two benefits- the mix of self respect and confidence- can help you realize that other people’s judgments can only get to you if you let them. When YOU know you’re awesome because you’re kicking major butt in your martial arts classes, you’re not afraid to confidently create awesomeness in your own life. You feel empowered to make bold decisions in your life, embrace new opportunities, and do the things you never thought you could do. It’s awesome!
Okay, one more thing. In the classic mental health sense, the benefits of martial arts are countless. Staying active, maintaining a fulfilling social life, achieving new goals each week- these are the basic building blocks of mental health that martial arts classes can provide. Your mood and health can improve tremendously right alongside your mindset.
Confidence & Self Respect- Join Us to Learn More!
So, to conclude- some of the best benefits of martial arts classes are the improvement of your mental health, the boost in your confidence and the surge in your self respect. If taking your workout to the next level, learning a life-saving skill and transforming into a more confident person sounds good to you, come by the studio and see these benefits in action. Check out our Gracie Largo Jiu Jitsu Adult Martial Arts classes that Largo is raving about – you’ll love them.