Taekwondo & Academic Success
For many years it has been known that just sitting at your desk and studying won’t guarantee longterm results. Maybe in the short-run you can increase academic performance with more time spent in the chair… but this will cause burnout and people to become physically unwell. (I’m sure we’ve all experienced this burnout at one time or another, myself included!)
Enter, Martial arts training.
Ok, ok… so it doesn’t HAVE to be martial arts.
It can be:
Running
Swimming
Cycling
Basketball
Honestly any physical activity!
Extra curriculars are good for a well-rounded education as we grow. Not only do universities and corporations look more closely at extracurriculars, but they make us a more balanced person. What sets Taekwondo and martial arts apart, is the discipline and focus, the confidence and self-esteem, and the stress relief that inevitably comes with training.
Discipline & Focus
The structured training of Taekwondo on the mats includes rigorous physical movements and stretching. These are tied to patterns of kicking and punching which in turn are linked to belt promotions and ranks. These allow for students to experience micro-wins on the way to a larger goal, which will keep us motivated to continue training for the longterm.
The longer we train Taekwondo the more benefits we derive!
The emphasis on focus during training will increase the ability to focus overtime. This helps students and practitioners of all ages with their schoolwork and professional endeavours.
In this day and age of screen time, and shrinking attention spans… Taekwondo will definitely give our children (and us!) an edge when it comes to academic, professional, and personal life satisfaction.
Confidence & Self-Esteem
Each new belt promotion brings with it a small boost in confidence and self-esteem. This builds a sense of inner self-reliance which will feed a more positive self-image for children and practitioners. This will show itself with better academic performance as they have more patience with themselves when learning new subjects.
Higher self-esteem will also help students to be more sure of themselves and help them to become more engaged in classroom debates and discussions. Students won’t be terrified to try new things or venture new ideas or answers in front of others!
Whenever students get a new belt, they must begin to master a new pattern, and also practice a new way to break a board to promote. This sort of training helps students develop a growth mindset because they are constantly learning new things and new patterns. We can easily say this kind of growth mindset is crucial for academic success.
Stress-relief & Mental-Health
I’m not sure if we all remember how stressful grade 12 exams could be… or university for that matter! But even to an elementary school aged student, or freshman in high school a quiz or project could cause anxiety. This is where martial arts can help mitigate this feeling by serving as an outlet for stress. Imagine being able to punch, kick, flip, throw, break or yell when you are frustrated!
Sounds pretty amazing doesn’t it.😉
Not to get too scientific on you… But when we train regularly our brain releases endorphins, which helps us to reduce stress and improve our moods! This coupled with the meditation we do at the beginning and the end of every class will ultimately help contribute to more clarity and therefore better retention in study sessions and exam performance.
As we can see the benefits to academic success that Taekwondo brings is numerous. The discipline & focus, the confidence & self-esteem, the stress-relief & mental health to name a few.
Our little Taekwondo dojang (school) is located in the heart of Langley by Costco and Walmart. We serve the community by empowering bodies, hearts and minds through Taekwondo training.
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