An interaction this morning prompted me to write this article. Yesterday at Rise Indoor Sports, we had a staff meeting to discuss several of the programs we have that are moving in a very positive direction. The topic of youth and resistance training/athletic performance training came up. I referenced one major researcher that I follow, Dr. Avery Faigenbaum, but I left out someone that all of you should know about, retired Navy Seal Jocko Willink.
This summer has been one of redirection for our entire family. We decided that we would spend the summer having fun like always, but we decided it would be a summer of change. We set strength goals, athletic goals, nutrition goals, and family time goals. My 9-yr-old Behr Bradley just came running into my office screaming about completing his first full pull-up, and then he made me even prouder by following up with “now 2, then 3, and so on”.
Our family has been reading through his book, “Way of the Warrior Kid”, which is the first book in a series of books for kids. I will warn you. If you are soft on children, it’s not the book to read. I’m not talking about spanking. I don’t spank, which is a whole other topic. I’m talking about a book filled with advice for raising children prepared to take on a hard world. Here are some sample points in the book:
- Overcoming fear- there’s a section in the book with detailed information on teaching a child to swim that’s afraid of the water. These lessons can be applied to just about anything.
- Personal Accountability- in the book, the young fictional child named Marc is getting bullied and is the weakest kid in his class unable to perform one pull-up.
- Importance of sleep and nutrition
- Celebrating small wins but staying the course
The book has helped me start conversations with my children about preparation for things they want to take part in like basketball or the sport of Olympic weightlifting. The entire message hit home this summer when my oldest, Rock Mash, competed in his first USA Weightlifting Youth Nationals. He finished 4th overall and was the only one in his class to go a perfect 6 for 6 in his attempts. He was elated, and his brother and sister were a part of the celebration.
There’s a back story that’s important for you to understand. About 6-weeks prior to the youth nationals, all three of my children were going through the motions and complaining about training. Finally, I abruptly stopped the session, and said, “no problem, we can stop for the day, but you’re not going to Youth Nationals.”
I told the other two that they weren’t going to compete at the upcoming state championships either. Of course there were tears everywhere, which crushed my heart. However, it was time for one of those tough lessons. I explained that I wouldn’t let Rock fly all the way to Colorado Springs unprepared to be successful. By “successful”, I wasn’t talking about winning. I was talking about being prepared to do his best.
They agreed to train hard with a good attitude, and they agreed to never complain about training again. After the youth nationals when all the dust settled and we were all back at the room, I asked Rocked, in front of his brother and sister, if he was glad that he had trained so hard to be this prepared. He smiled, knowing exactly what I was referring to, and said that without a doubt he was glad.
They had all learned the importance of preparation. You put the work in to experience the feeling of being as prepared as possible. Now he’s talking about winning next year, and both his snatch and clean and jerk have skyrocketed since the end of June. Not only that, all three of my young children are practicing basketball everyday, practicing Olympic weightlifting at least three times per week, and speed, agility, & athletic performance at Rise Sports Performance at least 3 times per week.
So yes, I am so dang proud of 9-yr-old Behr Bradley Mash for performing his first pull-up, but I am even prouder that he knows there is more work to be done. This was a transformational summer for my children, and I simply want the same for all of you.
Once you install this work ethic in your children, the screen time dwindles on its own. I’ve learned that it’s more about empowering children to do the things that are good for them than it is about taking things away.
So is resistance training good for kids under 12-years-old? As long as they are with a good practitioner that will teach them proper movement patterns and limit the overall load, the answer is 100% without a doubt, YES.
Here are some benefits:
- Youth can increase strength significantly more with weight training versus normal growth and maturation.
- Plyometrics and explosive movements found in Olympic weightlifting induce improvements in Power.
- These improvements in strength and power are easily maintained with little continued effort but can continue to be enhanced with continued training.
- Improved Motor Performance Skills (Athleticism)
- Improved Resistance to Sports Related Injuries
- Improved Cardiovascular Risk Profile
- Help with Weight Management
- Enhanced Psychosocial Well-Being (relationships, mental health, etc)
- Improved Cognitive Performance (Read Dr. Jon Ratey’s book “Spark”)
- Improved chances of maintaining a lifetime of health and fitness
If you want to know all about Youth and Resistance Training:
If you want to train with our coaches at Rise Sports Performance or online, email me at Travis@RiseIndoorSports.com .
