As the sports season kicks into high gear, many parents and students face a familiar dilemma—how to balance martial arts training with soccer, baseball, and other seasonal sports. Often, students take a break from their Hapkido training, thinking they can return after the season ends. However, this mindset can lead to setbacks in skill, discipline, and progress. While sports like soccer and baseball are excellent for teamwork and athleticism, Hapkido is not just a sport, it’s a life skill.
Soccer and baseball follow a structured season, complete with a beginning and an end. Martial arts training, however, is continuous. Stopping for months at a time disrupts progress, making it harder to retain skills and regain momentum. Unlike seasonal sports, which you might outgrow or stop playing as life moves on, the self-defense, discipline, and confidence gained in Hapkido remain with you for life.
While sports teach valuable lessons like teamwork, strategy, and coordination, Hapkido focuses on self-discipline, perseverance, self-defense, and a mindset of continuous improvement. Like swimming, which is essential for safety and survival, Hapkido provides skills that can be life-saving in critical situations.
Progress in martial arts is built through consistency. A months-long break means students lose flexibility, muscle memory, and mental focus, making it harder to return to the same level. Imagine trying to stop swimming for a few months and then jumping back into the water—you wouldn’t be as strong or as comfortable as before. Hapkido requires regular practice to maintain and refine techniques.
Instead of pausing Hapkido training for sports season, students should find ways to balance both. Here’s how:
Even if it means attending one or two classes a week instead of three, some training is better than none.
While sports may be seasonal, Hapkido is an ongoing journey. Treat it as a commitment, not an optional activity.
Instructors understand the need for balance and can help adjust training expectations.
Martial arts isn’t about short-term achievements; it’s about long-term development, discipline, and life skills.
At JMAFC, membership has its perks—but only if it remains active.
One major benefit of continuous membership is that your tuition rate never increases. From the time you start, your rate remains the same, no matter how long you train. However, if you pause your membership and rates increase during your time away, you will be required to pay the new rate upon returning.
JMAFC has limited class sizes to ensure quality instruction. When you pause your membership, your spot on the mat is no longer reserved. This means that if classes reach full capacity during your time away, you may not be able to return to your preferred schedule.
Life gets busy, and sometimes a short break turns into a longer one. When students take time off, they often find it harder to return—not just because of lost skill, but also because their old class times might no longer be available. Staying active ensures you maintain both your skills and your spot on the mat.
It’s understandable that students want to enjoy seasonal sports, but martial arts should not be viewed as something to pause. Hapkido is more than just an activity—it’s a way of life, a skillset that enhances confidence, self-protection, and resilience. By maintaining a steady training schedule, even if modified, students ensure that they continue growing both as martial artists and as athletes.
Rather than choosing one over the other, encourage balance. Because when the sports season ends, Hapkido will still be there—stronger than ever, if you stay committed.
