Little advice for a special student.

[Obsidian Fury]

Hey I'm a Judo practitioner and have been one for 20 or so years, I help my sensei with the Saturday class for kids as an assistant. Recently a new kid enrolled in the Dojo really nice chap he is 8 year old now but has this issue called Hypotonia which affects his muscle tone making his muscles flaccid when they should be tense, he also has very poor balance while static or in motion these are conditions he was born with but he is one hell of a kid he never gives up even when kids younger than him advance much faster. Also he is incredibly strong for someone his size with brute force alone he can carry more than his own weight so he is not weak at all.

Can anyone offer some advice maybe some exercices that I can do with him to improve his muscle tone and balance? I really want to help him out.

Thank you

 

[Tony Dismukes]

I would google “physical therapy hypotonia” to get a sense for the special requirements his condition may require.

I expect he needs a focus on core strength, balance, and gait, but there may be particulars that need adjustment compared to the typical exercises for those areas.

 

[Obsidian Fury]

I would google “physical therapy hypotonia” to get a sense for the special requirements his condition may require.

I expect he needs a focus on core strength, balance, and gait, but there may be particulars that need adjustment compared to the typical exercises for those areas.

I see physical therapy does make sense, thank you.

 

[skribs]

I will echo the suggestion to look into physical therapy for this condition, as I don't know much about it.

As to balance, here are some things to suggest:

• Teach him how to move in a way that has better balance. For example, a stance in a straight line will have less balance than a wide stance, so teach him how to position his feet so he has better control.
• Find where he gets off balance and correct those. If it's on a throw, teach him how to manage his leverage. If it's during movement, check to see the issue - is he crossing his legs where he doesn't need to, leaning too far one way, not using his eyes and losing track of where he is?
• Have him do exercises to strengthen his balance, such as standing still on one leg or doing footwork involving spins.

 

[Obsidian Fury]

I will echo the suggestion to look into physical therapy for this condition, as I don't know much about it.

As to balance, here are some things to suggest:

• Teach him how to move in a way that has better balance. For example, a stance in a straight line will have less balance than a wide stance, so teach him how to position his feet so he has better control.
• Find where he gets off balance and correct those. If it's on a throw, teach him how to manage his leverage. If it's during movement, check to see the issue - is he crossing his legs where he doesn't need to, leaning too far one way, not using his eyes and losing track of where he is?
• Have him do exercises to strengthen his balance, such as standing still on one leg or doing footwork involving spins.

That sounds good thank you it is a big help.