YMA FAQ | Central PA MMA - State College, PA / Penn State - Mixed Martial Arts / Muay Thai Kickboxing / Boxing

I would like to come watch a class to make sure Youth Martial Arts is suitable for my child. Is there a time and day of which I can come in and watch a class? Can we have a tour of your facility?

YES! We encourage parents and children to come observe our programs and to have a tour of our facility! Please email us and let us know what program you would like to observe and we can inform you of appropriate days and times to come in. Please also see below:

I saw that you give free lessons, how do I register my child for one?

We give free lessons at the beginning of each semester. This allows the child and the parents to get a feeling of what they will be doing in Youth Martial Arts. If you would like to schedule a free introductory lesson please email us for information on available days and times to come in.

My child can not attend Youth Martial Arts / Mighty Mites for a few days this month, do we have to pay for the missed classes?

By enrolling your child in one of our programs you are reserving a spot for your child in that particular month. Unfortunately we have a limit on the number of students we can have in one class which ensures a safe student to teacher ratio. We monitor our program ratios by the month and because of this we also charge for the program by the month. While there will be days off during the year, if a student was to attend year round they will be paying on average $6.25 a lesson.

How long does the program last? What months?

Youth Martial Arts and Mighty Mites are ongoing programs. We currently follow the college semesters with small adjustments to accommodate for the first day of school, holidays, etc. Additionally we have small breaks for summer, winter breaks, along with spring and fall breaks.

Material Presented:

I don’t want my child to learn how to hurt other people. Isn’t that what Martial Arts is about?

No. Simply put, Youth Martial Arts is about “Fun, Friends & Fitness.” We stress that all techniques are used as tools. Just as a baseball player only uses his bat to hit balls and only swings his bat in appropriate places, we use our techniques to “hit pads.” and save our Martial Arts for in-class use only. To help students remember this we stress the three rules of YMA:

We keep our hands to yourself. √
We hit “pads.” √
We save our Martial Arts for in-class use only. √

Do you teach the children self defense and how to defeat against an attacker?

Yes and No. Unfortunately there have been a number of fallacies surrounding martial arts and self defense. One is that a martial artist is able to defend themselves when being attacked. In detailed case studies including real live attack scenarios it has been proven that even the most competent martial artists have trouble defending themselves. In addition, it has been taught that a series a moves is all one needs to stop an attacker. Research has shown that this is not the case. Because of this, children who study self defense usually learn that punching and kicking a “bad guy” is enough to win. This is something we like to refer to as “false security.” It has been proven that teaching children the following is a more effective vehicle to avoiding problems:

Self Knowledge – Phone number, parents names, parents place of work, address, safe places.

Self Awareness – Trusting instincts, feeling comfortable in your surrounding, knowing the people you are with, etc.

Because of this we steer away from the physical side of self defense. In addition, the most effective techniques have been deemed inappropriate for children. All of the things parents tell children not to do are within the physical side of REAL self defense. These include biting, pinching, pulling hair, screaming along with others and they are the less violent tactics. Additionally, we have found that it is very easy to instill fear into young children. It is not fair for them to think they are going to be attacked 24/7. The majority of children will go through out their life without having to worry about being attacked. Take a poll yourself and see how many children were attacked by a person they did not know as a child. Research shows that this is very low. In most cases children are abused by people they know very well such as family members and friends. This is where Self Awareness comes into play giving the children the ability to discern what “does not feel right.” Only giving a child the physical tools to defend themselves and not the mental tools is not fair. After all, if a child can avoid scenarios they are less likely to be found in an altercation. We could teach children that if they do a, b, and c they will be able to take down an attacker but this has been proven a fallacy. Schools who do teach “how to defend against an attacker” usually have this aspect of their program as a money making tool which draws in parents that are unaware of the lack of validity within the material.

Is there sparring in Youth Martial Arts?

No. We strongly believe in allowing the children to be equal through out the entire class. Sparring is a way of showing domination amongst a group.

Do Youth Martial Arts students compete?

Yes and No. We never engage them in one on one competitions. We do however play team games and work to provide drills that help them compete against themselves. Examples of this is kicking harder than you did last week, doing more push ups then you did last time, etc.

Do you teach religious beliefs in Youth Martial Arts?

In Youth Martial Arts we do not enter into the religious beliefs as other arts do. Rather, we focus just like any other sport would, on physical and mental stimulation.

Ranking & Belt System:

My child has done martial arts before and is a (insert belt color here) in Tae Kwan Do, Karate, etc; can they maintain their rank if they join Youth Martial Arts?

Yes. If you child has earned their blue belt (or any other rank for that matter) in a previous style they can come into our class maintaining their current belt color. However, they will still need to learn the material presented in the class which may differ significantly from what they have learned. Because of this we ask that children do not test for the next rank until they have fulfilled the requirements set forth by our curriculum. The only exception is that if they already have achieved the rank of black belt in another system they will need to drop down to black belt candidacy and wear the appropriate color belt until they are ready to test for black. This does not mean they do not have a black belt in (insert style here), they simply do not have a black belt in Youth Martial Arts.

How long will it take my child to obtain their black belt, is there an age requirement?

Our ranking is as follows:

Mighty Mites: White Belt W/ One stripe per semester they attend. (Up to 9 stripes)

Youth Martial Arts:

White

Yellow

Orange

Green

Green W/ 1 Stripe

Blue

Blue W/ 1 Stripe

Red

Red W/ 1 & 2 Stripes

Purple

Purple W/ 1 & 2 Stripes

Brown

Brown W/ 1 & 2 Stripes

(Black Belt Candidacy)

Youth Black Belt

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Total, there are seventeen semesters which can be completed within six years. Black Belt Candidacy means that the student has obtained the highest level before black. They then are observed by Sifu Ryan Gruhn, and when they are ready, test for their Youth Black Belt.

In regards to an age limit on students achieving their youth black belt we do require the student to be mature and competent enough to present the material they have been taught. With our youngest starting age being 6, thirteen years of age is the earliest a child could be ready to test for their black belt. We believe in achievement for children but hold testing for black belt status until they are ready. Students are not simply given their black belt after after a X years Youth Martial Arts. Doing so would be the equivalent of earning a high school education within less years than the required amount. We want to make sure each and every student who earns their black belt is deserving of the rank.