Krav Maga for Teens

My 11 and 13 year old boys have been enrolled in Dynamic Krav Maga's teens programme for the last month. I have to say I am very impressed by what Aaron is doing. Over the last few years while living in Montreal, my two boys and their sister have participated in other martial arts programmes, namely Karate and Whu Shu. The formality of Karate and the pressure to test for belts were big turnoffs and seemed like cash grabs. Whu Shu was good for a while and it was cool watching my then seven year old daughter doing the moves, but she too became disinterested after a while because of the lack of practical applications.

What is different about Krav Maga?

Krav Maga was founded on the need for practical self-defense against the fascists in Eastern European Jewish ghettos in the 1930s. It was subsequently incorporated into the Israeli Defence Force training programme. The whole back story is available on the Wikipedia page.

Why is Krav Maga good for teens?

• Practical self-defense
• Develop confidence
• Fitness

What is the class like?

Adult Krav Maga training involves quite a bit of aggression and strong language, as "fighting dirty" is a big part of the tactics. Thankfully, the teen programme at Dynamic Krav Maga has been toned down to be more appropriate for the impressionable young minds.

Source: blogbyjoe.thenetexpert.net via Joseph on Pinterest

The class starts with warm up consisting of running around and practising some basic moves from previous classes. Then Aaron will present scenarios where new moves can be applicable. It is all very centered on being practical and often built on previous lessons. The new moves are practiced to be committed to muscle memory. The tactics are focused on deflect-then-flee and developing situational awareness (e.g. are there more attackers/bullies), rather than sticking around to pummel all the baddies. The final 15 minutes of the class consists of games to apply moves learned so far. This is usually my boys' favourite part of the class. The entire class takes less than an hour, but everyone gets a good workout and have fun learning practical self-defense skills.

Take a look at this video on why kids should learn Krav Maga

Krav Maga for teens in West London

If you are a parent of teenagers in West London and Krav Maga sounds interesting to you, please head on over to the Dynamic Krav Maga website to register your interest with Aaron. Maybe we will see you on Thursday night!