If you have a few hours free each week and would like to spend this time doing some type of sport, but you're not yet sure which specific one you should do, here are some signs that wrestling could be the right choice of activity.

You're very shy in social situations

If you're very shy in social environments and are searching for a way to become more self-assured and relaxed, then wrestling could be a good hobby for you to take up. There are a couple of reasons why this form of recreation could be helpful.

Firstly, wrestling is a highly tactile activity; if you start doing it, you will have to get on the mat and grapple not only with your coach but also with other amateur wrestlers who you barely know. Being in a situation where you will be expected to have sustained physical contact with others is a very effective way to quickly eradicate that sense of awkwardness or apprehension you might normally experience when socialising. If you engage in this type of tactile experience for several hours each week, you should start to feel those psychological barriers, that have stopped you from relaxing around others and developing friendships, begin to break down.

Secondly, because you will be focused on perfecting your wrestling technique whilst you're working with your wrestling partners, you won't have to worry about making conversation or need to feel bad about awkward silences. However, if you occasionally do feel brave enough to talk to your fellow wrestlers, you will always have a topic (i.e., wrestling) that you know will be of interest to them.

You'd like the sport you choose to equip you with the skills to protect yourself

There are many sports, including several martial arts, that you can take up if you're interested solely in self-defence. However, although wrestling is not aimed specifically at those who want to learn self-defence techniques, it can provide you with practical knowledge that enables you to extricate yourself from dangerous situations (without getting seriously hurt or inflicting major injuries on your attackers). It also helps you to become physically fit, more socially adept and, of course, a competent wrestler.

The reason for this is as follows; wrestling involves the use of a lot of grappling techniques, that could prove useful if you're ever attacked by someone. For example, wrestling coaches will often teach their students how to escape if their opponents try to pin them down or if they grab them and put in a headlock. Knowing how to get out of these positions, without having to use a weapon or seriously hurt your attacker, might allow you to avoid being badly beaten up.