“Why My
Kids Will Wrestle…..”
By
Olympic Gold Medalist Cael Sanderson
1. Foundation
sport. Wrestling is the perfect foundation for all other
sports. Wrestling is balance, agility, hand –eye coordination, flexibility,
positioning, strength, speed, explosiveness, footwork, hustle, mental focus,
mental toughness, core strength, concentration, competition, and endurance.
Wrestling will make our youth better at all other sports.
2. Fun.
Wrestling is a game. It is the most basic and instinctual game. Toddlers
wrestle. The sport of wrestling is the ultimate competition where two
individual take their individual strengths and match them up against each
other. Wrestling is a battle of wits, technique, speed, agility, flexibility,
and toughness. No two wrestlers are alike. Fun stuff!!
3. Exercise.
Wrestling is one the world’s most premier physical fitness sports. Wrestling
develops strength and endurance. Poor health is a major issue in our society
today and wrestling will help develop a love of exercise and physical fitness
in our youth.
4. Self-confidence.
Very little is accomplished without self-confidence. Insecure people have the
most difficult time learning from others and make progress even more difficult
than it already is. Wrestling teaches hard work, self-improvement, sense of
accomplishment, camaraderie of team, 1 on 1 aspect, and self-defense to name a
few. These promote self-worth, respect and confidence.
5. Self-defense.
Although wrestling is not commonly considered a “martial art,” it is the #1
base discipline in the world of MMA. Wrestlers know how to defend themselves
and neutralize threats quickly. Wrestling is controlling an opponent. If you
want your kids to know how to defend themselves, put them in wrestling.
6. Humility.
Nothing teaches humility better than a 1-on-1 sport. Winning and losing in a
1-on-1 setting brings humility. There is nowhere to hide and no one to blame
but yourself. All wrestlers will lose at some point and doing so in these
conditions teaches humility. Hard work and discipline are two keys to success
in wrestling and both teach humility.
7. Respect.
The challenges of being a wrestler teach you to respect yourself. After you
learn to respect yourself you will learn to respect others. You learn to
respect your team mates as well as your opponents. You learn to listen to and
respect your coach. After you learn to respect others you are able to learn
from them, a life lesson.
8. Self-discipline.
Wrestling is discipline. Repetition of drills, hard work, weight management,
and continually doing the best thing instead of the easiest thing is
discipline. Wrestling requires postponing instant “wants” to gain something
more valuable long term. It takes discipline and focus to reach goals.
9. Roadmap
to success. Wrestling is the perfect example of what it takes
to be successful in life. Goal setting, hard work, determination, focus, love
of challenges, love of competition, confidence, being coachable, mental
toughness, discipline, creativity, team-work and accountability.
10. Toughness.
Wrestling is a physical, contact sport. You learn that sometimes you just get
poked in the eye. Physical and mental toughness go hand in hand. You learn that
a little pain or struggle is part of the process of doing great things.