Family Judo in full swing.

Sunday is family day at KL Judo. We're delighted families are doing judo together.

I once interviewed a restaurateur who told me that a good restaurant has to update its menu every now and then. What if the current food offering is already very good, I asked? He replied that you can keep your core offering but you also have to introduce some new dishes just to stay fresh.

And so it is with judo clubs as well. Not only do the coaches have to introduce new and interesting approaches to training, they also have to offer new type of classes as well.

People who are familiar with KL Judo would know that for the longest time, we only had one type of class, which is an adults' judo class. For the first four, we resisted calls for us to start a kids' class.

This was partly because we were so preoccupied with building up an adults class (which is not an easy thing to do) and therefore did not have spare time to start a kids' class; and partly also because we knew that all the other judo clubs in Klang Valley were primarily kids' classes. Why offer more of the same? (An adults class, in contrast, was very unique, not just in KL but in Malaysia).

This year, shortly after we celebrated our fourth anniversary, we decided to start a kids' class. We started with slightly older kids (age seven and above) but soon there were queries for kids as young as three to four years old.

At first we said no because we didn't have the capacity to offer a toddler's class as well. However, we felt if a kid's parent was on the mat as well, we might be able to do this because small children will generally feel more comfortable and confident when their parents are on the mat with them.

We decided to try it out and four families have signed up so far. In two cases, both parents have decided to take up judo as well. In two other cases, the father decided to take up judo.

So far it's been good. Sunday is supposed to be family day. What better way to spend a Sunday afternoon doing some sports with your family?

If you know anyone who wants to give Family Judo a try, give us a call at 016-6262004.