It can be a challenge to find sound information on weight training for teenagers. Most national guidelines about strength training are specific to adults because teenagers, like any other group with special health conditions, have to take specific safety issues into consideration. Teenagers should adapt an adult strength-training program into a reduced level of intensity and duration to be done under supervision.
Recommendations
Experts who have developed weight-training regimens for teenagers recommend 20 minute sessions three days per week. Schedule workouts to include warm-up and cool-down periods and to focus on a group of muscles on alternating days. Plan to exercise the lower body, focusing on hamstrings, quadriceps and calves one day and the midsection or upper body, focusing on shoulders, biceps, triceps and pectorals, on other days. Allow a day of rest between workouts to avoid injury.
Approach
Teenagers can adapt some of the exercises that adults use for weight training, but should focus on controlled movements with lighter weights. Examples include six repetitions of biceps curls or squats using free weights. Use dumbbells, weight machines, elastic bands or your own body weight for resistance.
Example Weekly Regimen
Schedule your week to include three days of weight training with rest days between. Dedicate Monday to squats, lunges and calf raises done with free weights. On Wednesday, focus on pushups, biceps curls, shoulder and chest presses. Friday can be dedicated to the midsection to include situps and planks. Your schedule will vary depending on other obligations, so use this one as a foundation or pattern to adjust around.
Safety
Teenagers have special safety considerations because of their developing bodies, including joints, tendons and bones. In designing a weight-training regimen, teenagers should work with a professional who can help develop proper form and technique. Experts at the Mayo Clinic recommend that teenagers focus on building strength rather than competitive powerlifting.
References
- TeensHealth: Strength Training
- Mayo Clinic: Strength Training: OK for Kids?
- "Exercise for Chidren and Teens"; IDEA Health & Fitness, IDEA Health & Fitness Association
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