Teenage weight training

[Animal]

All,

Need some advice for a work colleague: her 14-yr old son says he wants some weights for Christmas and she's asked me for my advice. However, she's worried that if she buys him some weights or a dumbbell set that it's going to end up just taking up space.

I've suggested a kettlebell and a chin-up bar, but also wondered if anyone can suggest a decent training book for teenagers?

[goldblum]

Some local leisure centres run gym courses for kids,supervised obviously.A 14 yr old with a set of weights,pullup bar etc..going to end in pain!

[BenM77]

I would go with a set of dumbbells and a chin up bar.

Argos do a 20kg set for around £35.

Credit to the lad for wanting to do something early

[Changedmyname]

I agree, keep of the fried slice.

[lemonslap]

I started weight training at the age of 13. My friend and I used to visit the gym 5 days a week after school and worked up to 4 hour sessions, I remember a couple of times throwing up due to the amount of training we were doing. The end result? I am now 31 and have massive stretch marks under my arms, sides of my chest and on the inside of my legs. My advise leave it a few years.

[Tiggsy]

14 is a great time to start learning about weight training - doing it in your bedroom with two dumbbells and a bar stuck in your door is not the way!

My local gym takes kids over 11 at certain times in the day, they are free to train just like the adults - my 11 year old trains with me couple of times a week. What he does in those 2 hours is hundred times more useful than the nonsense I used to do in my Mums kitchen with an Argos bench, a copy of flex and sand filled weights!

This kid may be different, he may be up in his room doing lunges, squats, etc - chances are he'll be doing curls till his arm drops off.

[BenM77]

lemonslap said:

I started weight training at the age of 13. My friend and I used to visit the gym 5 days a week after school and worked up to 4 hour sessions, I remember a couple of times throwing up due to the amount of training we were doing. The end result? I am now 31 and have massive stretch marks under my arms, sides of my chest and on the inside of my legs. My advise leave it a few years.

Set of dumbbells in the bedroom is a little different to what you have described !

I am surprised you were allowed to train like that at 13, you must have been eating like a horse aswell.

[Halb]

Since he is so young I would tell him to stick to body weight exercises.
http://www.freebronson.co.uk/shop/solitary_fitness...
Unless he is going to be supervised by someone who knows what they are ding.
http://kidshealth.org/teen/food_fitness/exercise/s...

[RemainAllHoof]

Tiggsy said:

This kid may be different, he may be up in his room doing lunges, squats, etc - chances are he'll be doing curls till his arm drops off.

He's 14 so chances are he's probably doing something in his room until his arm drops off.

[Halb]

RemainAllHoof said:

He's 14 so chances are he's probably doing something in his room until his arm drops off.

Pull-ups?

[RemainAllHoof]

Halb said:

Pull-ups?

I expect it involves pulling and an upward motion.

[didelydoo]

lemonslap said:

I started weight training at the age of 13. My friend and I used to visit the gym 5 days a week after school and worked up to 4 hour sessions, I remember a couple of times throwing up due to the amount of training we were doing. The end result? I am now 31 and have massive stretch marks under my arms, sides of my chest and on the inside of my legs. My advise leave it a few years.

What were you doing in the gym for 20hrs a week?

[Tiggsy]

Training very inefficiently!

[B3njamin]

Can always put them on ebay/freecycle if they turn out to be unwanted.

I think Argos do a barbell and dumbbell combo pack, complete with vinyl/iron weights - They'll probably be plenty at 13.

I'm not sure how you end up with stretch marks from weight lifting - I mean unless you achieve some huge gains of muscle tissue and then somehow lose a lot of it in a short period of time, I'm not really sure how this is possible, sorry.

I wish I'd starting weight lifting at 13 - bodyweight exercises just aren't comparable if dong it for a sport or physique IMHO. I'll add that they have a huge place for conditioning and when travelling but those are specific needs.

[Halb]

I thought weight lifting was one of the most obvious ways to get them. Wrestlers usually have some. But seem puberty is also a maker of them
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stretch_marks

[B3njamin]

Halb said:

I thought weight lifting was one of the most obvious ways to get them. Wrestlers usually have some. But seem puberty is also a maker of them
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stretch_marks

Well a rapid increase or decrease in body mass can cause them - however building muscle isn't exactly a quick process (Much to the dismay of many) so unless you are ballooning in weight due to some sort of monster genetic gift or synthetic assistance, vis AAS, I still don't really buy it, sorry.

[goldblum]

B3njamin said:

- bodyweight exercises just aren't comparable if dong it for a sport or physique IMHO.

Really? What about a lot of martial artists and gymnasts,boxers and climbers? Do you know the stresses levers and planches and whole body tension exercises can

induce?

Edited by goldblum on Wednesday 16th November 01:52

[B3njamin]

I do yes, especially the gymnastic levers and explosive movements - having done gymnastics for a while now I know very well how challenging they can be. I also know that despite having a good strength to weight ratio, I've gained far more vis strength and size by weightlifting. I still do a lot of bodyweight exercise such as flags and air planches as well as ring work but I feel they are secondary since I'm not competing in gymnastics. Training for hours each day i agree you could gain a lot of strength and size but I feel it just isn't as good as weightlifting based upon having done both.

I don't see many martial artists with great builds though and I do know a fair few - the ones who look good do weights as well as train bodyweight and the others don't tend to have a low bodyfat which flatters what muscle mass they do have. Climbing I'll give you, it's tough and I still rate it highly for shoulder and lat work as well as grip.

I'm not saying that bodyweight exercises aren't good, I think they're great and spent a while doing nothing but them. I just think that based upon my experience of both, I found weightlifting gave better results in regards to strength and size.

[Celt]

B3njamin said:

I don't see many martial artists with great builds though and I do know a fair few - the ones who look good do weights as well as train bodyweight and the others don't tend to have a low bodyfat which flatters what muscle mass they do have. Climbing I'll give you, it's tough and I still rate it highly for shoulder and lat work as well as grip.

I'd disagree with the martial arts part, for those who fight anyway. Possibly true of karate and the less physical martial arts. But muay Thai or kickboxing there are some pretty big guys, although not always proportional. They will build where they need it.

[goldblum]

Most of the martial artists I know crosstrain and mainly do gymnastics,climbing,running and bodyweight exercises.From reading your latest post I think

you are making an association between hypertrophy and strength,but this is not the case.Most bodybuilders train for the bodyshape,and what strength they gain is a

byproduct.This makes them stronger than the average person but not as strong as a gymnast or bodyweight enthusiast of a similar weight.There are many 14 stone gymnasts who can easily

outlift their bodybuilding counterparts..if you'd said powerlifting it might be different.But you don't get any 'huge' gymnasts so above 15 stone a dedicated

weightlifter should have a better physique.For years I trained mostly bodyweight and have stretch marks in my armpits and on my glutes.According to my girlfriend.

Low strength and poor physique?

Hannibal