Lake St. Louis, MO Martial Arts

Martial Arts. Are you looking for something to supplement your daily life in Lake St. Louis, MO – something positive and beneficial that will help you cope with stress and make you physically and mentally healthier? Join Gracie Barra, the number one martial arts team in the world, for top quality coaching, inextinguishable interpersonal relationships, and numerous improvements to your physical and mental health which take place when practicing martial arts.

Sign up at Gracie Barra right away. Join us to uncover a brand new way of life taught through Lake St. Louis, MO martial arts. Contact us online, give us a call at 636-544-3655, or check out our programs to learn more.

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Types of Martial Arts

Each style of martial art is distinct, but martial arts as a whole is the collective systems of combat and defense training meant to defend against threats and defeat opponents. Each unique style of martial arts is governed by a different focus and style.

Martial arts fall into one of the following categories:

Striking or Stand-up Styles
- Boxing
- Karate
- Kickboxing
- Muay Thai
Grappling
- Brazilian Jiu Jitsu
- Sambo
- Wrestling
Throwing/Takedown Styles
- Aikido
- Judo
Weapons Based Styles
- Kendo
- laido
Low Impact Styles
- Tai Chi
- Chi Gong

What we teach at Gracie Barra to our Lake St. Louis, MO martial arts students is a convergence of principles of several martial arts from different styles. We primarily identify as a Brazilian jiu jitsu gym, but our programs also highlight techniques used and taught in other martial arts including muay thai, judo, and kickboxing. Martial arts at Gracie Barra is a comprehensive program where you will master Brazilian jiu jitsu and other martial arts skills.

Physical Benefits of Martial Arts

Martial arts is both an art and a sport. It targets not only physical fitness, but also mental, emotional, and spiritual wellness. If you are looking for a way to get healthier and grow as an individual, Lake St. Louis, MO martial arts is a gateway to self-improvement. The advantages of practicing martial arts like the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu classes Gracie Barra is known for are many and powerful.

1. Cardiovascular Health

Heart health is extraordinarily important, as we all know. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, yet less than 20% of adults engage in the recommended amount of aerobic exercise. Through the training and warm up routines in martial arts naturally elevate the heart rate and fortifies heart health.

2. Muscle Tone

Martial arts is an excellent way to build strength and muscle tone throughout the body, including hard-to-target muscles that aren’t addressed by more conventional methods of working out like weight lifting and running. Through warm ups and training drills as well as sparring involving punching and kicking motions, with a variety of grappling and groundwork moves practiced in Brazilian jiu jitsu, builds muscle mass.

3. Weight Loss

The human body is able to burn calories and burn fat more efficiently, even at rest, when it has a higher muscle mass. Lake St. Louis, MO martial arts helps you drop weight and stay at a healthy weight by improving general physical health and increasing physical activity.

4. Reflexes

Martial arts challenges its practioners to hone their reflexes. Sparring in practice and fighting in competition improve reflexes over time. When your martial arts opponent acts, quick reflexes will allow you to best them, whether by dodging, blocking, or maneuvering to counter-attack. Repetitive practice of certain combinations over time builds quick reflexes and shaves down reaction times.

5. Flexibility and Mobility

The unique moves and motions that are involved in martial arts like Brazilian jiu jitsu pushes you to be more flexible. Stretches are an important part of any physical activity, and the stretches and warm up routine at the beginning of every Gracie Barra martial arts class helps improve flexibility and makes for a more nimble and mobile body. Flexibility inherently improves posture, reduces the risk of injury, and reduces tension.

6. Strength

In order to defeat your opponent using martial arts, whether you are in practice, a tournament, or a real-life self-defense situation, a certain level of strength is required. While it is nothing without the technique, skill, and experience of practice martial arts practitioner, strength in the ingredient that enhances these technical abilities in martial arts like BJJ. Repetition of movements and full-strength sparring with equal partners build muscle and strength that make you even more successful in your martial arts of choice.

7. Balance and Coordination

Stability is critial in martial arts, and so is coordination. To learn martial arts, you are tasked with mastering coordinated techniques that require moving and holding still isolated parts of the body simulatiously. Students first practice each part of the move slowing over and over, and eventually are able to do them reflexively. As you improve in strength, flexibility, and other physical aspects, you will, too, improve in balance and coordination.

8. Blood Pressure

Through the repetition of physical movements, increased heart health, and improved physical health that occur through the practice of martial arts, you will naturally experience a lower heart rate and reduced blood pressure.

Other Benefits of Martial Arts

1. Stress Relief

As with any other form of exercise, martial arts helps with stress. Physical activity releases endorphins, as well as norepinephrine, dopamine, and serotonin and mitigates the negative effects of stress on the body. Plus, being surrounded by like-minded, determined people supporting and pushing you to be better is calming and encouraging – a unique benefit of martial arts.

2. More Energy

When you engage in regular workouts, such as attending weekly classes at Gracie Barra, you naturally have more energy. This is due to the increased blood flow and cardiovascular health that circulates oxygen-rich blood through your body more easily. After martial arts or other activities, you are also able to sleep better, allowing you to be more refreshed when you wake up.

3. Peace and Balance

There is no dispute about the way martial arts teaches the skills of internal peace and tranquility. Martial arts can be seen as a meditation or mindfulness exercise, pushing your mind to be in the present. You become aware and in control of your body and breathing. This translates to other areas of your life and you become more able to stay calm and centered in your life.

4. Discipline

Discipline and self-control are not just for kids anymore. Many adults who are involved in Lake St. Louis, MO martial arts have found improvements in matters of discipline such as the difficulty of quitting a bad habit. Though it is not a miracle cure (quitting smoking, drinking, or drug use should be done under the supervision of a physician), efforts can be supplemented by a dedication to martial arts.

5. Confidence and Humility

Martial arts helps people of all backgrounds and confidence levels move to a healthier place with their self-confidence. Activities like belt ceremonies and tournaments encourage the shy and self-doubting to step out of their comfort zones. For people who are generally outspoken or ego-driven, martial arts asks them to bare themselves honestly in front of others. Learning and mastering new skills and competing against others builds confidence and humility simultaneously: humility in encountering unfamiliar and challenging tasks, and confidence when we are able to acheive them.

6. Mental Health

With the numerous physical health effects and the stress relief and peace it teaches, mental wellness is a natural result of practicing martial arts. On top of all the individual skills and qualities that precede better mental health, in practicing martial arts you are exposed to intimate interactions with other individuals who identify with your struggles, support you on your journey, and are going through similar journeys themselves.

7. Motivation

The structure that enrolling in martial arts classes provides in someone’s life can have an huge impact. Committing to going to your martial arts gym regularly for weekly class keeps you moving and working towards your goals and helps motivate you to focus on your priorities both inside of and beyond your martial arts life.

8. Relationships

You will form relationships through your Lake St. Louis, MO martial arts classes and competitions that are unique and powerful. There is mutual respect observed between students and coaches. Between the people you learn and struggle with, you will develop a camaraderie and understanding of each other in a way that you don’t generally find in other types of interpersonal relationships. In Lake St. Louis, MO martial arts, you challenge and get to know each other and foster long-lasting, quality friendships.

Through these benefits, martial arts has a powerful effect on your mental and emotional health. Each of the listed benefits has its own indirect positive effects on your life. When you join the martial arts community with Gracie Barra, you may very well see measurable changes in your life such as healthier familial and romantic relationships, advances in your career, and a new bank of positive memories on which to look back. Martial arts is something that can be enjoyed by all ages, so you can potentially enjoy the ongoing benefits of martial arts for the rest of your life.

Martial Arts Near Lake St. Louis, MO | Gracie Barra

Whether you are motivated to make a major positive change in your life, in search of a hobby, or need to incorporate more physical activity in your lifestyle, Lake St. Louis, MO martial arts are perfect for you. Gracie Barra is a unique Lake St. Louis, MO martial arts experience that teaches important skills and values from various martial arts, including Brazilian jiu jitsu, muay thai, kickboxing, judo, and more. For every age, every schedule, and every level of experience, Gracia Barra is the Lake St. Louis, MO martial arts gym for you.

Don’t deny yourself the world of martial arts and its astounding benefits any longer. Try your first class for free to get a taste! Reach us online or call us at 636-544-3655 to learn more or to sign up for your first martial arts class today.

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