How Martial Arts Can Help Improve Your Quality of Life

*Originally published on 6/8/10


When people think of martial arts, they tend to think of stylized fight sequences where a person can take on a whole mob through a series of elaborate moves. As such, the general perception is that people only become interested in martial arts so that they can go around beating people up. Such is not the case, there are actually several benefits to learning the ways of various arts and they run the gambit through several aspects of your everyday life.

The obvious benefit is self defense. While the sole purpose of martial arts isn't to beat people up, should you find yourself backed into a corner and forced to fight, you will be able to fend off most threats that come your way. It's always encouraged that you find another way outside of mindless violence, but as a last resort, it can come in handy.

Martial arts are also a great form of exercise. You learn to train your body to reach it's physical peak. It wears you out, but like a good workout, it comes with a sense of satisfaction. With diet and exercise being so key to a healthy lifestyle, taking up martial arts is a great way to get out there and become more active.

Not only will you become stronger and leaner, but you also gain greater flexibility and agility. You won't become a body builder, but you will develop a well toned body.

With a better self image comes a greater sense of confidence. You will feel better about yourself and that will help you out in a myriad of ways. People who are lacking in self worth will find a new found sense of joy and belief in themselves.

You will also get a mentor, your teacher or sensei, who will take on the role of guiding you through the process of learning martial arts and applying them to your everyday life. Not only that, but they will act in an encouraging manner and try to push you to try things you may not have done otherwise. Positive reinforcement and encouragement can go a long way when you're trying to feel better about yourself.

There is also a psychological benefit as martial arts teaches you not only to train your body, but to train your mind. Meditation plays quite a large part in most martial arts and that can help you find yourself mentally. You also learn breathing exercises that can calm you. Martial arts also teaches you to channel all of that pent up energy outward through the actions you learn.

All of this adds up to a great method of stress relief. While martial arts are not primarily about fighting, a sparring match can be a great way to vent frustration if you've had a rough week. As said before, you can also learn ways to clear your mind and let the stress and frustration dissipate naturally. Rather than being frustrated and annoyed, you will feel calm and collected.

Martial arts offer a great number of benefits that you may not think of at first. While all the fancy combat moves and weapons training are rather cool, there is more to the disciplines than that. Martial arts offer benefits physically, mentally, and emotionally. All things considered, that's impressive and martial arts can be a great benefit to you if you decide to try it out.