Weight training for 14 year old boy?

[Anonymous]

DS drinks whole milk. Daily whey protein shake with banana.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Peloton App, use the strength classes with dumb bells at home. The instructors do a good job with explaining form. Start with the classes labeled beginner and work your way up. There are body weight classes as well as specific classes for specific body parts. Classes range from 10-30 minutes so you can start with shorter periods of time and move up as you need it.

+1 the constant cues on form from the instructors is great!

DP

Can anyone do the Peloton App or do you have to have the bike?

My teen son wants to start something and I can’t afford a trainer. This sounds like an option? He can start as a Beginner and learn proper form.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Fourteen is fine to begin. But -- ask around in your area where to go so he can learn the basics. If it means joining a club for 6 months do that so he can work with a trainer who actually deals with teenagers who are beginning. It is not the same as an adult taking up weight lifting. He has growth still to come so it has to be done appropriately.

Talk to him now -- and regularly -- about nutrition and supplements. It is boring yes -- but it is a key component to healthy and productive training. Particularly at his age. He also needs to incorporate other forms of working out -- running and/or swimming in particular.

Getting back to supplements again -- this is a huge issue now with kids. There are lots of supplements that are available over the counter that are not good for kids and likely even violate school athletic rules. They are very very common and he will absolutely know kids in school who are using them. He needs to avoid them like the plague. A good way to do that is to sit down and work on a plan with him on proper nutrition, and training. Do it together.

I have a kid who lifts competitively and his younger brother is lifting regularly but not competing. From time to time this summer they worked out at their old high school's weightroom which is open to the public in the summer. My older kid -- the competitive lifter -- said it was obvious that a bunch of the high school kids - football players -- were taking the new OTC steroids. The big thing is that they had muscle mass but not technique. That leads to injuries and, of course, side effects from taking the roids. If he wants -- and if he puts in the time -- your kid can get "swoll". But -- at 14 -- that is not going to happen because he has lots of growing left to do and he does not want to screw that up.

Thank you for this reminder about supplements. My 13yo son is totally getting into this and I should have a discussion with him about this, for sure. Good reminder.

This has actually been a super helpful thread. Thanks OP.

[Anonymous]

What otc supplements are we talking about here? Creatine?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our pedi told my 14 year old son that he should only lift weights that he can do at minimum 15 reps for... too heavy will stunt his growth.

I bet she doesn’t even lift, so ignore.

The stunting growth concern is bs. I had a premature child who needed ot and pt from a very young age. We used several different therapists over the years and the pts started kid on kid sized weight machines at an early age.

[Anonymous]

My daughter started at 11yo. My son sort of gets in on the action at 7. It's healthy as long as it's pursued reasonably.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hey, OP. If you are near Reston, you should send your kids to CrossFit Reston — they have a teen program my child has been doing for about 4 years now.

https://crossfitreston.com/

I disagree. Crossfit emphasizes speed and quantity over form. Which means they sacrifice safety. I've seen way too much nonsense at a crossfit box to endorse a new lifter or, especially, a kid to attend.

I hope you have a different experience.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hey, OP. If you are near Reston, you should send your kids to CrossFit Reston — they have a teen program my child has been doing for about 4 years now.

https://crossfitreston.com/

I disagree. Crossfit emphasizes speed and quantity over form. Which means they sacrifice safety. I've seen way too much nonsense at a crossfit box to endorse a new lifter or, especially, a kid to attend.

I hope you have a different experience.

I have belonged to 3 different CF studios, and dropped in to many more. That characterization of CF is old and outdated. All the CF studios in the suburbs emphasize form, and scaling.

In fact, I encourage almost all the young lifters to go CF. You'll see much healthier lifting there than in a HS weight room or a big box gym

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Peloton App, use the strength classes with dumb bells at home. The instructors do a good job with explaining form. Start with the classes labeled beginner and work your way up. There are body weight classes as well as specific classes for specific body parts. Classes range from 10-30 minutes so you can start with shorter periods of time and move up as you need it.

+1 the constant cues on form from the instructors is great!

DP

Can anyone do the Peloton App or do you have to have the bike?

My teen son wants to start something and I can’t afford a trainer. This sounds like an option? He can start as a Beginner and learn proper form.

If you don't want him to join a gym, or can't afford a trainer, find him something cooler than Peloton.

Get him a subscription to Street Parking or Jump Ship.

The perception is that Peloton is for suburban moms and dads. He'll want something cooler than that

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What otc supplements are we talking about here? Creatine?

That's old fashioned and not an issue now. The OTC synthetic riods in common usage are far more advanced now. Like many substances in this area -- unless you are tested for them regularly and properly, it is hard to detect them, and the FDA is way behind in research. Notwithstanding their inane stance on THC, WADA is probably the organization that is most current on harmful substances taken to improve athletic performance, so if something has a substance that is banned by WADA then for sure it is out.

BUT -- even if an organization like WADA bans it -- you can likely still find it at local health stores catering to lifters. This stuff is NOT hard to find. A WADA ban does not mean that the FTC bans it or that it cannot be sold at your local health supplement/vitamin store. And, if it is being used by adults -- you can bet teens are using as well.

As an aside -- on the more professional (but banned) usage of performance enhancing drugs; if you have not seen the Icarus documentary you (and your teen) should watch it.

[Anonymous]

If it weren't covid times, just encourage school weight room use. He can probably take Weight Lifting as a class beginning in high school.

Btw, I sensed DS as intrigued by supplements as a young teen. I think he heard his friends talk about them (whether they used them or not, whether they knew what they were talking about of not) Anyway, I started buying Carnation Instant Breakfast for him. He would mix up a batch in the blender for himself. Somehow I believe that replaced his interest in supplements and powders.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hey, OP. If you are near Reston, you should send your kids to CrossFit Reston — they have a teen program my child has been doing for about 4 years now.

https://crossfitreston.com/

I disagree. Crossfit emphasizes speed and quantity over form. Which means they sacrifice safety. I've seen way too much nonsense at a crossfit box to endorse a new lifter or, especially, a kid to attend.

I hope you have a different experience.

I have belonged to 3 different CF studios, and dropped in to many more. That characterization of CF is old and outdated. All the CF studios in the suburbs emphasize form, and scaling.

In fact, I encourage almost all the young lifters to go CF. You'll see much healthier lifting there than in a HS weight room or a big box gym

+1 on all of this. I've also belonged to two DC-area CF gyms ("boxes"), one NYC CF box, one San Diego CF box, and dropped into a dozen more, and CF has come well beyond the "speed over form" era. Correct form and scaling is now the mantra throughout CF. These days, I would definitely trust a good CF coach to teach safe and effective lifting more than your average middle or high school gym coach.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hey, OP. If you are near Reston, you should send your kids to CrossFit Reston — they have a teen program my child has been doing for about 4 years now.

https://crossfitreston.com/

I disagree. Crossfit emphasizes speed and quantity over form. Which means they sacrifice safety. I've seen way too much nonsense at a crossfit box to endorse a new lifter or, especially, a kid to attend.

I hope you have a different experience.

I have belonged to 3 different CF studios, and dropped in to many more. That characterization of CF is old and outdated. All the CF studios in the suburbs emphasize form, and scaling.

In fact, I encourage almost all the young lifters to go CF. You'll see much healthier lifting there than in a HS weight room or a big box gym

It's not old and outdated. Check out the crossfit WOD list at: https://www.crossfit.com/workout/

How many times do you see AMRAP workouts with either olympic or barbell lifts? Plenty - probably 25% of them. Do you think you maintain good form when you're on your last set before the clock runs out? Or after you've done your 30th clean and jerk?

Are there good and smart lifters in crossfit boxes? Sure. Rick Bucinell has taught classes at Trident for years. I'm sure there are others like him. And his classes are great. Does it make any sense from a fitness perspective to integrate those movements into hurried, high-volume sessions? Hell no. Especially for kids who often don't have the discipline or social confidence to bow out when they're too close to the edge of getting hurt.

I'm the PP with the daughter who started lifting at 11yo. I think crossfit would be great for her (and me, too). But only without barbell exercises integrated.

[Anonymous]

You may want to look in your area for a fitness center that specializes in kids/teens. My kids go to a great place (we're in an outer DC burb) where trainers develop a plan for the kids and oversee their training.

I think with boys you sometimes need to be careful that they don't lift too much too fast, hoping to get muscular quickly. It's nice if you have someone who can guide them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If it weren't covid times, just encourage school weight room use. He can probably take Weight Lifting as a class beginning in high school.

Btw, I sensed DS as intrigued by supplements as a young teen. I think he heard his friends talk about them (whether they used them or not, whether they knew what they were talking about of not) Anyway, I started buying Carnation Instant Breakfast for him. He would mix up a batch in the blender for himself. Somehow I believe that replaced his interest in supplements and powders.

I like that idea! Thank you.