Weight Lifting, for Eight Year Olds?

by: Glenn Karisch, Certified Youth Fitness Trainer 

 

3/11/09  What images come to mind when you hear the term "Weight Training"?  If you are like most people, you picture football players, body builders, or professional athletes, lifting massive weight and working out because their job depends on big and powerful muscles.  A very few of you will picture females and most likely, none of you would picture an eight year old boy or girl.  Why?

 

The term "Weight Training" does easily associate itself with large muscles and heavy lifting.  To clarify, I am not talking about weight training to the extent of a body builder, football player, or power lifter.  The type of training I purpose is low weight, high repetition lifts, targeting the major muscle groups under proper supervision. A recent article in PEDRIATRICS, the official journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, in a Policy Statement "Strength Training by Children and Adolescents" from the Council on Sports Medicine and Fitness notes***

        " Strength training should involve 2 to 3 sets of higher repetitions (8 to 15) 2 to 3 times per week..."

        " ...Proper technique and strict supervision by a qualified instructor are critical safety components in any strength-training program involving preadolescents and adolescents."

 

The common thought regarding weight training is that it is not for the young.  Concerns such as "weight training will stunt growth", "kids are incapable of building big muscles", "weight training causes injuries" and "there are no benefits to children who weight train", are all reasonable sounding statements that unfortunately keep young children away from one of the most effective exercise activities available.  Let's take a closer look at these four concerns.

 

"Weight Training will stunt growth" is a widely believed reason for keeping kids from lifting weights.  This thought appears to be based on how young bones grow and strengthen from birth until late teens or early twenties.  Bone is highly active living tissue and training and/or sports can either strengthen or injure bones.  The epiphyseal plate or growth plate is the part of the bone where growth occurs and is located at the ends of the bone near the joints.  The growth plate can be injured with repetitious movements, severe twisting of joints, overuse, and fracturing.  While the concern over bone damage is valid, over protection based on fear is not necessary.

 

Take some time and watch children free play.  You will see them jump from high places, run continuously, climb trees, and tackle one another.  Then consider youth sports, another area where many children are exposed to levels of high activity and bone stress.  As children participate in youth sports their bones are subjected to all of the activities which can cause growth plate injuries; repetitious movements, severe twisting of joints, and overuse.  An example of a sport working to keep young athletes safe is youth baseball which developed pitch count and illegal pitch rules to prevent joint injury.  While both free play and youth sports place significant stress on bones and growth plates, these activities do not appear to negatively affect growth and in most circumstances enhance a child's growth.

 

"Kids are incapable of building big muscles." Correct!  Building large muscle mass is tied to the availability of testosterone which is the main hormone needed to add muscle mass.  Because preadolescence is the time of a child's life before the onset of puberty, testosterone is virtually non-existent in the body and thus major muscle gains are not possible.  Strength gains do occur however because weight training improves coordination, enhances the efficiency of the nervous system to recruit muscle fibers, and adds muscle density.  These three areas of improvement result in increased strength without significant increase in muscle size.

 

This brings us to the end of this installment of LIVE Fitness.  Check back in about two weeks for a continuation of "Weight Lifting for Eight Year Olds" when I will discuss the concerns "weight training causes injuries" and "there are no benefits to children who weight train", along with additional information from PEDIATRICS.

 

Until next time, Glenn Karisch    Comments and/or Questions FitnessTrainingCoach@msn.com

 

 

*** PEDIATRICS Vol. 121 No. 4 April 2008, pp. 835-840

 

The views and information presented in this article do not reflect the opinions of Lee County Live or its advertisers.  They are the creation of the author and are presented for entertainment and informational purposes only.  You should consult your doctor before you begin any exercise or training activity, change your diet, begin a sport, or consume any dietary supplements.