Anna-Mart Kruger
BSc. Physiotherapy
(UFS)
BSc. Human
Movement Science
(UNW)
Strength training for
children and adolescents
What does medical research say?
Medical reports suggest that a variety
of training modalities, including weight
machines (adult- and child-sized), free
weights, bodyweight exercises, sportcondition drills and different combinations
of set and repetitions, from 1 set of 10
repetitions to 5 sets of 15 repetitions can
provide adequate stimuli for strength
enhancement in young weight trainers.
Children as old as 6 years have benefited
from strength training, and there is
no clear evidence of any difference in
muscle-strength adaptations between
preadolescent boys and girls.
On average strength gains of 30 to 40%
have been observed in untrained children
following short-term (8 to 12 weeks)
training programmes, although gains of
up to 74% have been observed. Most of
54 •
• June/July 2014
Important definitions
The term children refers to boys and
girls who have not yet developed
secondary sex characteristics
(approximately up to the age of 11 in
girls and 13 in boys).
The term adolescence refers to a
period of time between childhood and
adulthood (approximately 12 to 18 in
girls and 14 to 18 in boys).
By definition, the term strength
training (also known as resistance
training) refers to a specialised
method of physical conditioning that
is used to increase one’s ability to
exert force.
The term strength training should be
distinguished from the competitive
sports of weightlifting, power lifting
and body building.
The period of development is often
referred to as preadolescence.