Keep your jiu jitsu routine during summer

Keep your jiu jitsu routine during summer

It is very important to keep your jiu jitsu routine in the summertime. This goes for both adults and kids. All too often, the weather gets nicer and people don’t come to class or parents consider taking their kids out of jiu-jitsu for the summer.

For the adults, maybe we hit the beach of the weekends or have a pool. Remember, once you get out of your routine, it is hard to get back in. Egos take a blow when we no longer can keep up with the guys or ladies that stayed disciplined all summer. You don’t want to be that guy.

Keep going!

Have you ever been on a diet or were on a workout routine that was really working for you?  Maybe you were trying to get in shape for a vacation, the summer, or another event. You had fantastic results when you stuck on that schedule. Everything was going great, clothes fit better, had more energy, you were at your target weight. You thought, “I’m going to stick with this after my vacation. I feel great!”. Then, you go on vacation, feeling great about yourself. Reality sets in when you get home.

Hard to start again

You have been unhealthy and you miss the first workout on Monday because you need to “get back into the swing of things.” Futhermore, you miss Tuesday and Wednesday. Hence, you swear you’ll start again next Monday. As a result, a few days then becomes several weeks. You lost your motivation and now become frustrated because you feel like you have to start all over again.  You’ve lost momentum. It is akin to pushing a stalled vehicle. It is very hard at the beginning but it gets easier as you get it going and the wheels are turning. Jiu Jitsu requires the same type of momentum. It becomes easier to see results the more consistently you do it. Once you stop, you feel like you have to move that vehicle all over again.

Keeping your child’s routine

Keeping a child’s routine during the summer is much more difficult because we need the help of parents. Every summer, many parents consider taking their children out of jiu-jitsu. It can be for so many different reasons. More play dates, maybe you just want to give them a break, maybe they are in day camp, you have vacations or day trips planned or maybe, quite honestly, you just want a break. After all, it’s the summer, it’s time for fun! One small problem with that, there is a reason you brought your child to jiu-jitsu. Maybe they were overweight, had self-esteem issues, needed discipline or focus at school. Whatever they were, you came here with goals and we were working with you to improve them.

Don’t lose Momentum

Taking a break from martial arts is not the same as taking a break from a sport they play. Lessons of the martial arts are used to build your child from within to reach their goals and face their fears. Taking the summer off isn’t just taking a break from the techniques and takedowns, you are taking a break from focus, from confidence. And like I said with the adults above, they will feel like they have lost momentum. In addition, they will feel like they are staring all over again. Furthermore, they will start to compare themselves to all of the other kids who did not take the summer off. Most of all, the kids who didn’t will be closer to promotions and seeing their teammates get promoted and them falling behind will give them a sense of failure, harming their confidence and progress. Promotions won’t come if they haven’t put in the work. Please keep them on a routine in the summer, it makes the winter much easier.