bushidomartialarts
Senior Master
Maybe this brings up the point of when is it to young to start a child in the martial arts. I have varied from time to time on this subject but over the last couple of years I have come to the conclusion that real training will not begin until the students are in their teens. I have told my own sons I will not start training them until they are at least 13. This is because I do not want to water the cirriculum down for them.
In the spirit of bushido!
Rob
that's a good point.
for me, the answer is theoretically never. in reality, they have to be old enough to actually function when given direction and teaching. an old friend of mine had a 2 year old daughter who would imitate me while i ran kata in the living room. she was learning karate. was she 'too young' to learn karate?
belt inflation is a problem. start a 3 year old and maybe you feel the need to have a 7 year old black belt. but it's only logistics. a quality program can give solid, age-appropriate training at all ages.