Believe it or not, this is one of the most common questions we get! Many people haven’t heard of Ninja or don’t have a clear picture of what Ninja classes really are. I’ve only been coaching here for a couple of months, and I’ve already gotten a few confused looks when I answer the classic, “So what do you do for a living?” question.
Maybe you’ve participated in Ninja, gymnastics, or some form of martial arts, and the differences are obvious to you—but for those who haven’t, let me outline some of the key points.
First of all, let me try to summarize Ninja in a concise way:
Ninja is a sport that combines climbing, swinging, balancing, and jumping on various obstacles to improve full-body strength, speed, and coordination. The obstacles aren’t always the same (we make changes to our course every week), which brings new challenges and the need for resilience and problem-solving.
Ninja focuses on progress rather than perfection. It also combines individual development with a team atmosphere. Each student is at a different skill level, but everyone cheers each other on and celebrates achievements.
Another similar term you may have heard is parkour. Parkour is more about creative and efficient movement in different environments (like buildings or natural settings—you may have seen some pretty cool videos of this), whereas Ninja focuses on specific obstacles or a set obstacle course. Both are similar in terms of the actions and skills required.
While Ninja involves some “wiggle room” in how you complete the obstacles, gymnastics is much more technical. The goal is precision and completing movements with the correct form—gymnasts are usually judged based on how exact their routine is. Balance, full-body strength, and coordination are very important, but everything is done with much more structure. The goal here is perfection.
Martial arts is a little more difficult to define concisely, mainly because there are many different disciplines such as karate, taekwondo, and judo. Overall, the focus is on discipline and elements of self-defense. Most styles involve repetitive movements that you’re trying to master, as well as sparring with a partner.
Ninja, gymnastics, and martial arts are all fantastic activities for kids (and adults!). Each one provides the physical benefits of fun, active movement while also fostering emotional and mental growth. They teach focus and resilience. We’re obviously a little biased, but we think Ninja is super fun because of the creative problem-solving element, the variety of obstacles and challenges, and the full-body fitness it requires. We see kids making tangible progress not just week to week—but sometimes within a single class.
No matter which path your child takes, each of these activities helps them grow stronger inside and out — but if they love climbing, swinging, and tackling new challenges, Ninja might just be the perfect fit.
