To gym or not to gym?

[D.C.]

Hi guys,
So, i'm 14yrs old, started playing about 2 yrs ago, always played fly-half, center or fullback for my U16 team, and now the U18 coach told me that he wanted me to play for their team in the 2010/2011 season..
The thing is that i'm not afraid of playing against bigger and older guys, and my technique is good i thing, but its just that i'm a bit small compared with the rest of the U18 team.. i'm 1,72m and i weight 55kg.. so my question is: is it healthy for me to workout in the gym being a 14yr old boy? Cause i've heard people saying that if i go to gym, it will affect my growth and stuff like that...

sorry if the english isn't perfect, i'm portuguese..

Thanks in advance

 

[TRF_Olyy]

Gym affecting growth is an urban legend/myth, having said that it's not advisable to go hard/heavy in the gym until you're 16 and older.
I'd say go to the gym, but don't overdo it/make sure your form is absolutely perfect (focus on form rather than weight) as you don't want to do yourself an injury

 

[ORothlain]

If you do, focus on plyometric work and stabilizations exercises. Don't go in and start the trend of bodybuilding. In a couple of years your body will be more prepared (hormones, another growth spurt, etc...) to start putting on mass. If you have questions about what exercises to do, hit us up.

 

[Feicarsinn]

Gyms are overrated, especially at your age. For fitness you can run on the roads and you can do loads of exercises to increase strength without weights. Put it off until you're at least 16.

 

[ranger]

Gym affecting growth is an urban legend/myth, having said that it's not advisable to go hard/heavy in the gym until you're 16 and older.
I'd say go to the gym, but don't overdo it/make sure your form is absolutely perfect (focus on form rather than weight) as you don't want to do yourself an injury

Are you sure about that? Surely being 13-14 and squating your max cant be healthy for growth. A lock from my school got told by the NZ rugby union that he had to stay out of the gym untill he was 16 because he was working too hard and his muscles were growing faster than his bones and it would affect his height. I think there is some substance to it.

 

[Haysie]

Training before the growth plates in your bones/joints have fully formed is definitely detrimental to them. It will stunt growth. This is NOT an urban myth.

 

[nickdnz]

Are you sure about that? Surely being 13-14 and squating your max cant be healthy for growth. A lock from my school got told by the NZ rugby union that he had to stay out of the gym untill he was 16 because he was working too hard and his muscles were growing faster than his bones and it would affect his height. I think there is some substance to it.

I was 15 years old when I started power lifting. I was around 5'9''. I'm now 6'2''. I honestly can't see it having any real affecting my height.

I'd recommend doing basic exercises like bench, dumbbells and low weight squats. The worse thing about training young, is that your joints can be strained and it can lead to injuries which will affect you in the future. I did Hapkido while playing rugby at 16, and dislocated my sholder and broke my color bone in a few places while being flipped, which affects me today as if I bench too much or even do too many push up's, the stress on the joints makes me give way. So technique when doing weights is the most important thing, and if you are worried about getting injured, make sure you can do what you know you can handle. I'd stay away from deadlifts and squats untill you're a bit older and developed.

 

[Hurricane Nate]

I'd wait till 16 atleast before touching any weights. If I were you ,which I'm not, I'd be more worried about my skill set, technique and 'rugby brain'. I'd put my emphasis in those areas, your only 14 you'll get bigger as you age no use in trying to rush things with time on your side.

 

[Amobokoboko]

Just stick with the basics and see how it helps develop you.

 

[TRF_Olyy]

Training before the growth plates in your bones/joints have fully formed is definitely detrimental to them. It will stunt growth. This is NOT an urban myth.

I read the exact opposite, growth plates aren't affected by lifting weights, and they carry on as normal :S

Edit: http://stronglifts.com/does-weight-lifting-stunt-growth/
Says that weight lifting doesn't affect growth plates if you're careful, and that the emphasis, when you're younger, should be on form rather than weight

 

[Haysie]

Interesting source Ol, I'll do some researching and come back to you on it.

 

[ranger]

I read the exact opposite, growth plates aren't affected by lifting weights, and they carry on as normal :S

Edit: http://stronglifts.com/does-weight-lifting-stunt-growth/
Says that weight lifting doesn't affect growth plates if you're careful, and that the emphasis, when you're younger, should be on form rather than weight

Soo.. The guys at "stronglifts.com" think that its healthy for everyone to get strong by lifting things. I don't know i want a second opinion..

 

[TRF_Olyy]

The prevailing attitude among physical educators and healthcare providers was that strength-training-induced gains before puberty were not possible due to inadequate levels of circulating androgens, and that such training would be potentially injurious to the growth cartilage of children. However, research conducted over the past 10 to 15 years provides convincing evidence that weight/strength training can be a safe and effective method of conditioning for children, as long as appropriate guidelines are followed (Blimkie, 1993; Falk & Tenenbaum, 1996; Hamill, 1994).
(http://www.questia.com/googleSchola...60KNJd!890778314!-1455036664?docId=5002391074)

 

[Haysie]

From that same article I read -

However, training-induced strength gains during childhood are primarily due to neural adaptations rather than hypertrophy; in other words, strength training improves the nervous system's ability to coordinate the recruitment of muscle fibers

Meaning that instead of the muscle being becoming atrophised through lack of use or another causal factor, it is instead still growing and bodyweight training will be just as beneficial as strength training. The neuromuscular system seems to respond very well to this sort of stimuli in youth, as it also states that over a 8-12 week period (of very very low weights excercises and differing types of sets) muscle strength gains of 30% to 50% were produced.

 

[D.C.]

yesterday i gave it a try and went to the gym with a couple of friends just to try it out.. and kinda liked it..
so, i think i'm going to do it more regularly... i've read all that you guys wrote and i'll keep all that in mind, i'm not going to overtrain or lift to many weights... i'm gonna do it calmly, i don't want anything bad to happend with me.. lol

 

[ORothlain]

yesterday i gave it a try and went to the gym with a couple of friends just to try it out.. and kinda liked it..
so, i think i'm going to do it more regularly... i've read all that you guys wrote and i'll keep all that in mind, i'm not going to overtrain or lift to many weights... i'm gonna do it calmly, i don't want anything bad to happend with me.. lol

Again, let me urge you to not follow what your friends do, just to be in the gym lifting. I love weight training. It feels good. However, you are at a physical stage where you really need to develop your core strength and cordination. Take the opportunity to look into exercises like Box Jumps, Pushups, dips, utilise the rowing machine, Jump rope, pull ups, lunges, etc...
It's very easy to go into a gym and to start body building rather than train for sport. I'm not saying being muscular is a bad thing, quite the opposite. It's the nature of the lifts that body builders focus on versus what you need for sport. Bodybuilders typically aren't good athelets (yes, big generalization, sue me) but are very strong, whilst top atheletes are very strong AND have focused on weight training that not only pays off in the mirror but on the pitch. I hope that makes sense. The point being is you should start with this focus now and avoid having to re-learn how to lift weights later on. Focus NOW on technique and form. Make power moves your main work out and glamour exercises your secondary concern (lots of biceps curls, and heavy bench press, etc...).
Honestly, shoot us questions. There are several contributers that have a large knowledge-base for weight training.