In the age of high competition to make teams people seem to lose track of their morals. For example, kids start training too soon in their lives and the potential for injury, burn out and even death is becoming more and more of a reality. People need to step back and smarten up and follow proper guidelines for strength training and conditioning.
First, by the standards of NASM, Nation Academy of Sports Medicine, says that a child should not participate in plyometric training until the age of 14. For those wondering, that is Freshman year of high school. Yet, if you were to go out and watch 6th and 7th grade youth soccer practice you will probably find some sort of inappropriate plyometric training happening.
Next, NASM, NSCA and AAP says rule of thumb: If 7- or 8-year-olds are ready for participation in organized sports or activities such as little league or gymnastics, then they are ready for some type of strength training program. For children starting out in weight training, lifetime fitness and proper exercise techniques should be emphasized.
Also, before beginning, children should have a healthy, balanced diet, to make sure they are getting enough carbohydrates, protein and dietary fat to maintain energy for exercise. This is also part of the healthy lifestyle image that will help athletes through their adult years.
Finally, when teaching children proper techniques for strength training, keep in mind that children learn best by doing. Show the child the correct technique, then closely supervise them to make sure they understand how to do it. Push ups and sit ups are great for beginners, but as they advance, young athletes may want to try weight machines or free weights to enhance their work outs and to keep themselves from getting bored with the same routines. This is fine as long as an adult is available for teaching the correct lifting techniques and to supervise the athlete's progress.
for more information see: http://www.infosports.com/clvclinic/strengthtrainingforyoung.htm
Good blog and a very interesting topic.
ReplyDeleteI do not like children to weight train and body build, or whatever these children are competing to do. I feel that the bones and composition of the younger bodies are yet to fully develop and by over using certain muscles before they are ready, is a bad idea.
I agree that kids should not start training at such early ages. I recently saw this crazy video on barstool sports with some young child probably about 5 or 6 years old doing plyometric exercises as well as holding himself up by his own strength. To me this seemed cruel and that no child should ever be put through this. Also, you could tell the kid in this video definitely wasn't getting the proper nutrition, he was ripped but obviously children at that age should not be looking like that. This is a really important topic and should start to be stressed to schools and youth sports teams.
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