Warning - Exercise has been Known to Cause Health and Happiness
This week has been outstanding for our students of First Choice Martial Arts even during a provincewide lockdown. At the time of writing this we are at a 93% attendance rate from all our existing students with Saturday and Sunday left for classes. This is rather inspiring considering people have had to adjust their schedules, lives and families but still find a way to dedicate time to martial arts training
It is no secret that during a lockdown stress and anxiety are elevated as people are inundated with all the negative news and statistics of the situation. Somehow parents and students have found a way to see though all the noise and see the physical and mental benefits of attending karate class. Prioritizing one’s physical and mental well-being takes discipline and it is worth noting some of the benefits that attending your weekly martial arts classes will provide.
1. Boosting your immune system. While exercise is known to boost one’s immune system, it is a lot of fun doing an exercise that not only gets you in shape but allows you to acquire a skill and set a goal. With a global pandemic, prioritizing one’s health has never been more important and it is great to see students with perfect attendance.
2. Screen burnout. This is a real thing and having additional energy during those times when you are staring at the screen for hours on end is certainly going to help students during their daily and weekly online school training. If you are physically fit, you’re going to have additional energy to cope with the day-to-day stress and do your best with your school, karate and other hobbies.
3. If your confidence is strong students will be able to handle setbacks a lot better. Confidence is the ability to believe in oneself and during a lockdown your stress and anxiety are going to be running very high. If you can exercise via a virtual karate class, you are going to fend off some of those negative emotions. Have you ever noticed how upbeat and positive class is all the time? There is no room for negativity at the dojo and all we want to see as instructors, is our students make progress and feel better about themselves. Exercise is a great tool to fight the added stress and anxiety that many are facing with the current situation.
So, although we are not 100%, we are getting very close. This is a great sign and a real testament to how driven our student at First Choice Martial Arts are. Each time you come out you are going to get stronger and stronger and we are not talking about just your push-ups. In years to come this will become a great metaphor for life when you get to look back upon a time in your life where you were faced with enormous uncertainty yet found a way to move forward in the most stressful at times
How this will affect the mindset of a young student can only be positive and the future for them can only get brighter!
Sensei Chris