Take issue with the right thing, spar. Faigenbaum doesn't mean what you think he means when he says "strength training."
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/1...ning-for-kids/
Thought those who want to train kids or get questions about training kids would find this helpful.
Although I do take issue with this:
Because I know of households where the weights are Mom’s.“The scientific literature is quite clear that strength training is safe for young people, if it’s properly supervised,” Dr. Faigenbaum says. “It will not stunt growth or lead to growth-plate injuries. That doesn’t mean young people should be allowed to go down into the basement and lift Dad’s weights by themselves. That’s when you see accidents.”
Take issue with the right thing, spar. Faigenbaum doesn't mean what you think he means when he says "strength training."
I was hoping that people would pick up that my comment was a joke, but perhaps Stronger is one of those who feels that, any time someone challenges gender norms, even in jest, it equals some kind of secret agenda to deny Truth.
Mark, I’m not sure that Dr. Faigenbaum is trying to steer kids away from proper weight training so much as offer parents alternatives to the kind of structured program that may bore kids or turn them off of exercise. (He may be underestimating many kids, as I am currently working with a 14 year-old who is loving a basic program that consists of the barbell lifts, but he’s an unusually smart and thoughtful 14 year-old, and a bit quirky on top of it. Your books and program have been incredibly helpful here, by the way.) I also suspect that Feigenbaum’s advice may be tailored to appeal to parents and teachers who are themselves intimidated by barbell training, and it probably also takes into account the kind of equipment that parents and schools are likely to be open to investing in. I’d have to read his books to be sure.
Not ideal by a long shot, but, at least the rest of the article makes some of the same points you’ve been trying to get across.
At any rate, I thought this might be helpful to those dealing with parents or spouses who are fearful about letting their kids lift, since people don’t tend to believe health or exercise advice unless their doctors and a major news outlet or two agree with it.
I'm familiar with his conventional wisdom exercise science. Barbells for kids is not what he means.