Weightlifting is a sport that is plagued with a number of misconceptions in the eyes of the public and not least the participation of young people in our sport. The mere mention of a child entering sports evokes a vision of this poor boy struggling and the effort of moving heavy weights, turning his face purple and breaking every bone in his body. Despite the objections of so many unknowing people, tens of thousands of boys, and girls now, enter the sport of weightlifting around the world each year, many of them in their early teens. The injury record in weightlifting compares very favorably with most sports and arguably is much safer than many sports that are taught as part of the physical education curriculum and that we allow our kids to play without a second thought.
Recently dispelled myths
Before puberty, boys are not able to make significant strength gains due to a lack of hormones. Several recent studies by nationally recognized researchers have reported significant strength gains as a result of weight training percent among boys and girls in the pre-puberty stage (for example, Sewall and Micheli, 1986; Weltman et al, 1986 ; Servedio et al, 1985). These studies also found that weightlifting would not necessarily lead to a loss of flexibility when combined with stretching exercises. Weltman et al., 1986, also provided evidence that children’s motor performance (jumping) can be improved through strength training. Duda, 1986, reported that there was no direct evidence that supervised weight training is unsafe for children. It is a fact that close supervision is clearly necessary.
What is a good age to start weightlifting?
A recent phenomenon in the world of weightlifting is that young people are winning senior world titles and also breaking high-level world records. It takes 7-8 years to reach this level and the practice of specialized training principles at the age of 11-12 is widespread. This is in keeping with many other sports where precociousness is thought to be a necessity due to benefits such as motor learning, flexibility, and growth experienced as such ages. It is common in Australia for lifters in the first and second years of high school (between 12 and 14). With a one or two year training experience they can compete well in the National Junior and Junior Championships and this is a very important incentive. At that age they have fewer distractions and are more malleable. We now see less than 10% of Australian lifters still at the age of 25, which is a dramatic change from a decade ago.
What are the risks for young people?
It would be a mistake to suggest that there are no dangers to the young lifter, but I allow myself to suggest that such dangers are no more than most sports, much less others. The main concern in the early days is dealing with the final stretch that occurs between the ages of 14 and 15 in boys and the earlier ones in girls. The phenomenon of “Growing Pains” is a fact and for those affected it usually means the cessation of all physical training activities, including physical education, for a period of ten to six months and sometimes more. one year. The most common “Growing Pain” is Osgood-Schlatter disease and involves the insertion of the patellar tendon into the tibia (shin bone). The growing end plates of the bones are soft and where tendons are attached there is the possibility of some tearing of the tendon fibers of the bone. While this can be very painful, it goes away with growth cessation with no lasting effects. Notably, this condition is not specific to weightlifting, it was found across the entire spectrum of sports. All coaches in all sports should keep an eye on this condition and the conditions involved with the insertion of the Achilles tendon in the heel, the end plates of the spine, and sometimes the upper ends of the thigh bone. .
Likewise, on the page of the Spanish Weightlifting Federation, we find an extract about training in young people and its long-term benefits.
Excerpt from the Spanish Weightlifting Federation to attract new talents:
On the other hand, and understanding that what it is about is to guide young people to the practice of sport, and specifically weightlifting, although it is a sport considered modern, and being very current because it is the basis of the preparation of all types of strength in most sports activities, it is a discipline that has a lot of tradition, present since the beginning of the first Modern Olympiad. It should be noted that from the sport of weights, every day there is more information and knowledge of the positive effects on the body, among other things, greater bone density is acquired with weight work in addition to muscle development, it is essential to gain bone in these first stages of human life.
The possibility of orienting training with loads to physical conditioning is another option of this sport, acquiring or reducing body weight, for example by individualizing and orienting the preparation, adapting it to each personal objective, being able to dose the loads conveniently, having a space for this sports practice all existing biotypes. In many cases it is indicated in specific health problems, where training is aimed at strengthening muscle groups, such as the development of the trunk muscles, to alleviate any deficit problem in this regard, or as rehabilitation of muscle groups due to accidents, interventions surgical etc. Many studies in the past and very recent confirm that it is a healthy activity for youth, that the practice is recommended for children as a complement to a multilateral activity and with an adequate methodology and dosage. As it could not be otherwise, specialization or High Performance is not recommended for children in any sports discipline.
In Spain, Weightlifting is a sport with numerous successes in the international arena, such as medals in world and European championships, with an excellent technical level of the coaches, but with a reduced sports base, therefore the need for a sports plan that provides us a broader base that sustains our sport in the future.
Written by: Leo Isaac for QWA.org
Translated by: Arturo Cantarero
