Presas Arnis in the Family: Building a Training Structure at Home

So, you’ve got your kid interested in going to Presas Arnis class with you.

Congratulations, you’re helping them gain confidence and how to protect themselves while making it a family activity. Top notch aspiration, if you ask me.

Now how do you get them to practice? Structure and choice.

Some kids will inherently understand the old practice-makes-perfect adage. These are the kids that will spend an afternoon just smacking a tire with a rattan stick for their own entertainment. 

Learning accuracy with a staff playing "target practice"

The other side of that coin is a child like my daughter. My daughter lives from one theme to the next – reading, drawing, chasing the cats. The list carries on and on. Practice is not as high on her list as just going to class.

Motivating those like my daughter to refine their techniques at home can frustrate you. You know Filipino martial arts are so expansive that home practice is integral to mastery of the martial art.

Tell that to a 9-year-old. Independent study sounds more like a chore than a treat to them.

Believe me, I have encouraged independent practice. “Do your anyos for five minutes.” “Why don’t you feed B.O.B. (our home bag) some rattan?” If that’s enough for your child, you win. 

For the rest of us – no matter if it’s Kombatan, Balintawak, or any other kind of martial art – we need to build a structure for our more reluctant home learners. Through trial an error, I have figured out the basics of a successful home regimen:

• Choose the right dosage

• Keep it interesting

• Give them a say.

Balancing the first two is key. As I have a tendency to run long sessions on my own, I know my daughter, so the dosage has to be sharp. Putting on a timer risks them just running out the clock. I just break our training techniques into different categories, which allows for scaling the appropriate dosage dependent upon your child’s energy level after a long day of school. Nobody learns anything through one bloodshot eye.

Keeping it interesting, we rotate different techniques. I created a set of cards for a more random approach. My daughter gets to choose 1 card from each training category: striking (dos manos, anyos, classical strikes, sinawali), defense (block-check-counter, defensive responses, empty hand defensive responses) and disarms/locks (forehand/backhand, double stick, finger/wrist locks). 

The categories aren’t exact, but as long as you find a home for them, it works. Now they have choices in how they train, they now own the session instead of just being told what to do. I also wrote them on a whiteboard for her to mark her accomplishments for the week.

For extra variety, and depending on my daughter’s energy level, I will include a more advanced technique from Kindred Protective Arts’ adult class. I get some reps and reinforce my comprehension, she gets introduced to techniques she’ll eventually see in class. Everyone wins.

Hitting BOB in our home gym

The most important thing you can do is check in with your child after each session. Ask them what they liked, where they felt confident or struggled. Keep it positive and play up those “victories.” This will bring them back to the training room/backyard.

In the end, my daughter has thrived under this plan. Her fundamentals as a yellow belt at KPA have taken shape. Her confidence in execution has skyrocketed. 

Build the structure, and let them own it.

Next week: What comes comes after the fundamental programming at home? If you missed part one click HERE.