Over the years we have heard many people say the same or similar.
Whilst the idea sounds sensible enough, is there any real truth to weight lifting/bodybuilding and gymnastics bad for the growing body?
What does the studies/science say?
Lets add some science to the debate.
Lets look at Gymnasts first. In a recent 2013 study we are told:
“(1) Adult height or near adult height of female and male artistic gymnasts is not compromised by intensive gymnastics training. (2) Gymnastics training does not appear to attenuate growth of upper (sitting height) or lower (legs) body segment lengths. (3) Gymnastics training does not appear to attenuate pubertal growth and maturation, neither rate of growth nor the timing and tempo of the growth spurt.”
In another Brazilian study:
“Contrary to the popular belief, on average, the gymnasts were taller than their mothers and sisters, though with a relatively late age of menarche. In relation to patterns of Brazilian and international population growth, the relative values of the adult height of gymnasts were always above the standards, with the exception of the 50th percentile, when the value was slightly lower. As a retrospective study, the effects of maturation on the growth process are eliminated when the comparison of adult height reached by former gymnasts is allowed. The final height of these former gymnasts was confirmed to have not been affected by the AG intensive high performance training.”
Lets take a look at bodybuilders
So we are told no effect happens with gymnasts. Lets look at bodybuilders.
As stated by the American Association Of Pediatrics…
“Appropriate strength training programs have no apparent adverse effect on linear growth, growth plates or the cardiovascular system”.
Another study entitled “Strength Training in Children and Adolescents” reviewed relevant studies dating all the way back to 1980 up to 2008 and concluded:
“Strength training, when performed in a controlled, supervised environment, can help children and adolescents of all athletic abilities safely improve their strength and overall health and well-being. The health benefits of strength training far outweigh the potential risks, especially in today’s society where childhood obesity continues to rise.”
Yet another review in the Clinical Journal Of Sports Medicine (“Weight Training In Youth: Growth, Maturation, And Safety“) looked at 22 reports dealing with resistance training programs in young lifters and stated:
“Experimental training protocols with weights and resistance machines and with supervision and low instructor/participant ratios are relatively safe and do not negatively impact growth and maturation of pre and early-pubertal youth.”
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17119361
Conclusion
According to the extensive research that has been conducted on the subject, the simple answer is no.
When performed properly and responsibly, weight training is just as safe for young lifters as it is for those who are fully grown, and it doesn’t appear to have any adverse effect on the functioning of the body’s growth plates.
So when it all comes down to it, there’s simply no good evidence to back up the common claim that weight lifting stunts growth, and there’s no good reason for younger trainees who are eager to begin a weight training program to shy away for that particular reason.
