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Early Strength Training for Children
from: Maxx Sports GuidesThere are skeptics when it comes to how healthy childhood weight training can be, but parents shouldn't worry since even children as young as six years old can benefit from weight training. Contrary to the popular myth, children who visit the gym with their parents don't have stunted growth. In fact, weight training has few disadvantages for children.
If your child wants to be active and you'd like some extra family time, why not use the weight room as a fun experience to instill healthy habits into your child's mindset at a young age.
Children shouldn't start weight training or other workouts until they're physically and emotionally mature enough to handle it. This is usually about the age of 6 for most kids. If you're unsure, you doctor can help you determine if your child's body is ready for the gym. As a parent, you'll know if your child is mentally ready -- injuries can happen if you arn't careful, so your child should be able to listen and follow directions to prevent this from happening.
Of course, your child's routine shouldn't be as intense as an adult's routine. At this stage in their lives, it's more important for children to learn healthy habits at the gym rather than trying to build muscle mass. Until your child goes through puberty, they're unlikely to build muscles because the level of testosterone is very low. Instead, your child is going to feel better and notice an increase in strength and endurance. This is important for children who participate in sports and for children who are overweight.
A trainer or coach can help determine the correct routine for your child, but generally, just make sure your son or daughter works out the entire body and has adequate warm up and cool down time. Start with about 20 minutes of cardiovascular exercises. One activity children enjoy is jumping rope, but if you have a group of children, you can also play an outdoor game to get the heart pumping as well, such as tag.
Once your child has warmed up, do one weighted exercise for each group of muscles. Unlike you, your child shouldn't push his or her limits to the edge, but focus on gradually increasing weight over a longer period of time. End the workout with 10-20 minutes of stretching to help you and your child cool down.
Not every day at the gym is going to be a good day, so you might want to excuse your child's misbehavior occasionally. Consider working out at a gym specifically for children or families to avoid getting in the way of serious bodybuilders. Weight training together can be a fun activity and may motivate you to stick to your own healthy schedule.
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