Two simple questions

I do not understand how you guys have all this information on training and all the muscles, I mean, where do you get all of this from? But I have to say I have learned a lot just by reading others peoples posts and reading everyones responses, but I still got some questions.......

1) People have said that lifting weights while your young it can stunt your growth, but someone said that if you just lift light weights with a lot of reps then it wont affect you, just build your endurance? Is that true or not cause the last thing I need to do is stunt my growth. Im 15, and 5"6, maybe 5"7....

2) Another person also said that if your weight is something like 150 but you look like you weight 120/130 then that is really bad? How does that work, I just dont get it.

thanks.

1) Nobody really knows for sure. There's some evidence/logic to support both sides of the argument but there's no conclusive evidence that I've seen that supports either side. I would recommend that if you want to lift weights, stick with light weights and high reps to be on the safe side. Also, bodyweight exercises are generally considered to be a safe option.

2) Don't worry about what you look like. Physique means nothing. Some people will look like bodybuilders after a year of work in the gym while others will still look soft but will be just as strong/fit.

Weights will NOT stunt your growth .
Why do you need weights for ? lift alot = gain alot of muscle and fight in heavier divisions with taller people and its bad .

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Originally Posted by Michael A

I do not understand how you guys have all this information on training and all the muscles, I mean, where do you get all of this from? But I have to say I have learned a lot just by reading others peoples posts and reading everyones responses, but I still got some questions.......

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I help mod a bodybuilding site and plus i was activley bodybuilding since 13-22 yrs of age.
No doubt you will have questions lol, there are alot of noobs that still spill tripe regarding gym myths... Â ::)

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Originally Posted by Michael A

1) People have said that lifting weights while your young it can stunt your growth, but someone said that if you just lift light weights with a lot of reps then it wont affect you, just build your endurance? Is that true or not cause the last thing I need to do is stunt my growth. Im 15, and 5"6, maybe 5"7....

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my take on this issue is that its total bullsh*t. Bodybuilders (pros) have been training since their teens and some are 6ft+ .
Stunted growth comes from premature capping of the long bones, this is spurred on naturally by an increase of testosterone and its like the stop siren to your growth... Once your body has finished growing to its genetical outlay, something predetermined from your parents/bloodline, the body releases hormones to cap the long bones (femur).

This relates to steroid abuse in teenagers, because they are getting in abnormally high testosterone levels in their system, the body is tricked into thinking that its hearing this "stop siren" and caps the long bones, hence, stunted growth...

I've been bodybuilding since i was 13, i am 5ft 11.... my family are all below 5ft 9" so go figure... and when i mean bodybuilding i mean i was lifting heavy weights, no chrome dumbbells and elastic band training gear  ;)

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Originally Posted by Michael A

2) Another person also said that if your weight is something like 150 but you look like you weight 120/130 then that is really bad? How does that work, I just dont get it.

thanks.

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i used to weigh 235lbs, i didnt give a rodents rectum to what other thought, let alone play the "guess my weight" game.
As long as you are training hard and eating/sleeping well then ignore them.... the amount of comments i used to get were funny as hell.

What people dont understand (and refuse to learn through plain ignorance) they will question and throw up dumb ass statements.

Of course, all boxers are punch drunk and thick arent they  ::) :P *dodges alex w's haymaker*  ;D

get my drift? hope this helps

1) 15 is a perfectly good time to lift...hell I started lifting seriously when I was in 6th grade. The main thing is to lift properly and don't over do it. It's like running, if you decide you want to run you don't go out and do a marathon that day you build up to it. Set weight lifting goals and work towards them.

By the way I'm 6'1 240...if it stunted my growth I can't tell...I'm bigger than average.

2) Hell it doesn't matter what your weight looks like on you if you are boxing...if you are a body builder or a model then it may matter but shit 150 looking like 130 sounds fine to me...I wish I looked 220

for number 2 i would think its a good thing becus even though muscle weighs more a muscley person at 150 lbs will look lighter than a fat person at 150lb so if u look lighter than u are u must have more muscle than fat

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Originally Posted by B

Weights will NOT stunt your growth .

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You do NOT know this for sure.

http://bodybuilding.about.com/od/bod...tuntgrowth.htm

one helpful article to read

You can't just throw out names of Individuals and say that lifting at a young age will not stunt growth. Shaquille O'Neal, David Robinson, Karl Malone, Michael Vick are all not exactly your average human in terms of Physical stature. Every one is different and matures physically differently.

Lifting to much weight to young will lead to Injury, at a young age in terms of your physical development, there is not set age when this changes though and the best thing to do when you is to keep the weights relativly light and moniter your progress. I will admit that in terms of bone development I do not have the knowlodge to even comment on it.

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Originally Posted by GutShot

my take on this issue is that its total bullsh*t. Bodybuilders (pros) have been training since their teens and some are 6ft+ .

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Originally Posted by B

Weights will NOT stunt your growth .

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People speaking in such absolute statements when they ABSOLUTELY DO NOT KNOW is one of the things that really irritates me.

Saying that lifting does or does not stunt your growth because of one (or even a hundred) examples of tall (or short) weight lifters is total crap. The fact is that nobody knows. There are a lot of doctors with far more education and far higher IQ's than you that would disagree with you. I'm not saying that they're right. I'm saying that intelligent people can disagree about the issue and at least leave room for the possibility that they are wrong. In lieu of hard evidence to prove either side of the argument, there's no good reason not to err on the safe side and lift with lighter weights for the time being.

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Originally Posted by Mr.B

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Originally Posted by GutShot

my take on this issue is that its total bullsh*t. Bodybuilders (pros) have been training since their teens and some are 6ft+ .

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Originally Posted by B

Weights will NOT stunt your growth .

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People speaking in such absolute statements when they ABSOLUTELY DO NOT KNOW is one of the things that really irritates me.

Saying that lifting does or does not stunt your growth because of one (or even a hundred) examples of tall (or short) weight lifters is total crap. The fact is that nobody knows. There are a lot of doctors with far more education and far higher IQ's than you that would disagree with you. I'm not saying that they're right. I'm saying that intelligent people can disagree about the issue and at least leave room for the possibility that they are wrong. In lieu of hard evidence to prove either side of the argument, there's no good reason not to err on the safe side and lift with lighter weights for the time being.

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Weightlifters in the olympic are short - it can be because there parents was short or because they took steroids that stunt their growth.

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Originally Posted by B

Weightlifters in the olympic are short - it can be because there parents was short or because they took steroids that stunt their growth.

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or because if you look at the mechanics, it pays to be shorter in the clean/jerk etc... they were not made that way due to lifting.
Tall bodybuilders/powerlifters have to haul the weight further and higher than a guy who is small and squat. Like basketballers where is pays to be tall, in powerlifting, the smaller you are height wise the better IMO

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Originally Posted by Mr.B

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Originally Posted by GutShot

my take on this issue is that its total bullsh*t. Bodybuilders (pros) have been training since their teens and some are 6ft+ .

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Originally Posted by B

Weights will NOT stunt your growth .

---

People speaking in such absolute statements when they ABSOLUTELY DO NOT KNOW is one of the things that really irritates me.

Saying that lifting does or does not stunt your growth because of one (or even a hundred) examples of tall (or short) weight lifters is total crap. The fact is that nobody knows. There are a lot of doctors with far more education and far higher IQ's than you that would disagree with you. I'm not saying that they're right. I'm saying that intelligent people can disagree about the issue and at least leave room for the possibility that they are wrong. In lieu of hard evidence to prove either side of the argument, there's no good reason not to err on the safe side and lift with lighter weights for the time being.

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I choose to not believe in the issue that weight training hinders growth, from my experiances and the people i see. The only way i guess to monitor this gym myth is to conduct tests on a few sets of identical twins and set them on a course of heavy lifting, the other does nothing. Monitor the height difference in a few years... based on removing outside factors as much as possible by keeping the diet the same and sleep patterns. Hmmm... fun lol

Kids want to exercise, they want to go to the gym and workout, great news! The amount of obesity and fat kids with early death sentances looming in this world is unreal. Its people that say "well, we dont know for sure so lets not" that create issues like this.

There is no hard evidence with anything these days except mathmatics and logic, everything else in this world is based on theories... I see a kid who wants to work out in the gym and from my experiances i give my advice. If it irritates you then thats your problem. As i said in the beginning "my take on the issue its total bullsh*t" ;)

...If you lift weights properly and use the proper safety equipment (ie belt for squats) you are less likely to get hurt and I would ASSUME less likely to "stunt your growth"....really the only stunting that can be done would be if you did squats wrong and screwed up your back but hey how about this

Ask your doctor or better yet ask a sports doctor...they can more than likely give you a workout regimine to follow anyways

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Originally Posted by GutShot

my take on this issue is that its total bullsh*t. Bodybuilders (pros) have been training since their teens and some are 6ft+ .

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Originally Posted by GutShot

I choose to not believe in the issue that weight training hinders growth

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Those are two very different statements. One makes you sound like a self-righteous, know-it-all and the other is a reasonable opinion. And by the way, I don't disagree with your opinion. I think that if done properly, lifting probably does not stunt your growth. But because nobody really knows, it's my opinion that it's best to be safe and work with lighter weights and higher repetitions when your body is still developing. There's no good reason to push your luck. Lots of people that are in excellent shape do not lift heavy weights and some don't lift weights at all.

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Originally Posted by GutShot

Kids want to exercise, they want to go to the gym and workout, great news! The amount of obesity and fat kids with early death sentances looming in this world is unreal. Its people that say "well, we dont know for sure so lets not" that create issues like this.

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So because I give advice to use caution, I'm contributing to the number of fat kids in this country? Come on now... fat kids are going to be fat. Encouraging someone to lift weights a couple of years earlier than they otherwise would is not going to change who they are or the course of their lives.