摘要：Background and Study Aim: In social opinion, martial arts with their centuries-old traditions are considered carriers of numerous desirable
values, and in Eastern societies, they have been functioning for many years as effective educational systems
for children and youth. The aim of the study is knowledge about perception of health by practitioners of different
martial arts, considering their gender, competitive experience, and degree of competence.
Materials and Methods: The study was carried out in a group of 101 judo practitioners and 122 karate practitioners. A standardized
research tool – an anonymous questionnaire – was used to evaluate the perception of health.
Results: Competitors representing different martial arts perceive health in different ways: in biomedical terms by judo
competitors, and in holistic terms by karate competitors. For the latter health is associated with physical fitness
(21.3%), good results of laboratory tests (15.6%), and inner peace (12.3%). On the other hand, the highest
percentage of judo practitioners (24.8%) indicated good results of laboratory tests, followed by physical
fitness (19.8%) and proper body weight (11.5%) as the dominant associations with health.
Conclusion: Trainers are able to influence combat sports, and martial arts athletes through their educational activities as
well as affect the holistic perception of and care for health, which in turn can translate into better sports results.
Moving away from traditional values of combat sports and martial arts towards athleticization results in
an unfavourable, biomedical, perception of health by competitors.
