Advice for training 14 y/o son

[fisther69]

If it’s not a barbell don’t let him even think about it for 9-12 months..build the foundation

 

[alfresco]

I know I am going to get a ton of shit for saying this but here goes.

Do nothing but body weight exercises for a little bit longer.

He is young but mature looking beyond his years in the foto but give it a bit longer.

Let him wow you first then add weight. He has a lot of years ahead if he sticks with the weights. Make them good years.

I wish nothing but the best for your son.

 

[alfresco]

His PL coach only works through bench, squat, and deadlift with them to get their PR up. He’s a great guy, but my son goes to a small school and this guy is just a dad that volunteers with the kids a couple mornings a week. They don’t actually have any type of dedicated athletic program there. The only sport that he’s in is swim, (on the city team, not the school) it’s 4 days/week, 2 hour practices, and it’s year round. So there’s no off season. They spend 30 minutes of practice doing dry lands where they run bleachers, stretch, and run laps, just getting the blood moving. I like the approach of going back to the basics and just building off of the core lifts! Thank you!

I my humble opinion your son, at 14 years of age, has zero business doing 1 rep, maximum lifts. I don’t know who his coach is, but he is guilty of criminal malpractice or unbelievable stupidity.

 

[Dens228]

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I have put all four of my sons through this while they were in high school and playing football. For my first two sons when they started it other kids thought they were crazy using it. When my sons had tremendous gains on it most switched. Soon after that their HS coach approached me and I told him about it and he switched the entire team to it.

 

[Muay Thai]

I know I am going to get a ton of shit for saying this but here goes.

Do nothing but body weight exercises for a little bit longer.

He is young but mature looking beyond his years in the foto but give it a bit longer.

Let him wow you first then add weight. He has a lot of years ahead if he sticks with the weights. Make them good years.

I wish nothing but the best for your son.

i did jail workouts and plyos with my son until he was since age 4 probably. 11. he lifts light high rep weights at the gym with me and is tall as me at 12. his grandpa is 6"4 250. he is in the 98th percentile of growth. he has been drinking aztec whey isolate protein shakes and eating tuna out the can since he was 5. he drinks kefir in the morning , apple cider vinegar diluted in water upon waking ALL ON his own accord. He still eats hot cheetos and burritos too he gets to be a kid but I have instilled the right habits on him since day 1. Hese growing like a weed, has a mustache already in 7th grade. his uncle is 6"1. I see where you are coming and i used to adhere to that dogma but trust me, my sons growing like a WEED with perfect labs, does yoga stretching daily, inversion table, HOT to COLD Shower every day, and does sauna with me 1x per week since he was 11. swims , skates, does muay Thai no sports but he excels at all. ill post some videos sometime. much respect bro you are longtime friend ! god bless. ps he has abs and popeye forearms and is strong as an ox. lil biceps, his best friend is black and works out too he's jacked 7th grader. dont think his folks know what they're doing though, pure genetics lol and he eats crap food all the time but they are buds. love ya man

 

[rAJJIN]

I’m curious is this Miss STk
As in former friend and member “Southern trend killer” STK?

 

[MissSTK]

I’m curious is this Miss STk
As in former friend and member “Southern trend killer” STK?

Yes sir, It sure is. Our child passed the month before he did, and my son now is from my current husband, but I swear he is Neal reincarnated as far as health and fitness are concerned. I have been wishing I could ask his advice about this, because he would have loved helping a kid with this stuff! Then I somehow found my way back here, remembered my login, and now getting the advice I’ve gotten here has been amazing and an answered prayer!

 

[rAJJIN]

I thought it was you.
The community is forever in debt to STK. He is one the most respected member to ever be a part of these type of forums.
Same as John Meadows, just one of the truly good hearted guys. You never see anything bad mentioned when you hear his name then or now.

I am glad the guys are helping and offering good advice.

If you ever need anything I would be glad to try and help. Your always welcome here and it’s great to see you post.

 

[LATS]

I have known quite a few lifters who started powerlifting at that early age.. each one of the regrets it.. their joints are shot.. a 14 year old has little to know business training in those load ranges let alone max singles.. he is still very young.. if he wants to concentrate on lifting great.. but he needs guidance.. and to train in the lower load ranges with abbreviated programs

 

[MissSTK]

I thought it was you.
The community is forever in debt to STK. He is one the most respected member to ever be a part of these type of forums.
Same as John Meadows, just one of the truly good hearted guys. You never see anything bad mentioned when you hear his name then or now.

I am glad the guys are helping and offering good advice.

If you ever need anything I would be glad to try and help. Your always welcome here and it’s great to see you post.

Now that I’m an emotional wreck...Thank you so much! Y’all were an extension of our family and such an important part of his life. If I never said it before, y’all made my grief so much more survivable because of all of your support, thoughts, and prayers.... and I can’t thank y’all enough for that! I’m getting great advice, and I feel like I’m getting a better direction for how to work with him on this! Thank you again, for everything!

 

[Flex500]

I mostly work with kids; high school and college and I'll share a few general premise ideas that may help. Full disclosure I almost exclusively work with athletes and my trade/background is in physical therapy (although even more full disclosure I work in medical sales as my real job)

1. Make it fun. I'm serious. Yes they should have direction, discipline, etc. but keep it fun. This will help build the callus of making it a habit and sticking for life. This is especially true for the under 16 age group. It changes a bit (although should still be fun!) in the 16-18 bracket and then 18+

2. Master your bodyweight. It sounds like you have done this already but I like to start the 10-14 year olds with fun things and have them master their bodyweight. Pushups, pullups, bodyweight squats, lunges, other fun general physical preparedness work. It's a time to make strength training and working out a part of their culture and by mastering their bodyweight I truly do see less injuries.

3. Find a good coach that can teach them the basics. 5 x 5 / starting strength programs work well but I also am careful not to get young kids into overuse injuries so I focus on "zero momentum" work. Not super slow reps but with squats and bench for instance I often do 3-4 second negatives with a full and absolute pause and a semi explosive concentric. This will help build tendon strength and will accelerate their overall strength gains even if it seems like the weight on the bar is light.

4. While I like the basics ie squat, bench, deads, I do some out of the box stuff to simply put on muscle in a way that will almost guarantee they stay injury free. Mix up the exercises, again focus on zero momentum etc. You start to see some young kids squat bench and dead 3x a week start to accrue nagging aches and pains so you just have to be careful with that. Again, I mostly work with athletes so my first rule is progress but do no harm.

All that is probably best summarized by saying hire a good coach

 

[MissSTK]

I mostly work with kids; high school and college and I'll share a few general premise ideas that may help. Full disclosure I almost exclusively work with athletes and my trade/background is in physical therapy (although even more full disclosure I work in medical sales as my real job)

1. Make it fun. I'm serious. Yes they should have direction, discipline, etc. but keep it fun. This will help build the callus of making it a habit and sticking for life. This is especially true for the under 16 age group. It changes a bit (although should still be fun!) in the 16-18 bracket and then 18+

2. Master your bodyweight. It sounds like you have done this already but I like to start the 10-14 year olds with fun things and have them master their bodyweight. Pushups, pullups, bodyweight squats, lunges, other fun general physical preparedness work. It's a time to make strength training and working out a part of their culture and by mastering their bodyweight I truly do see less injuries.

3. Find a good coach that can teach them the basics. 5 x 5 / starting strength programs work well but I also am careful not to get young kids into overuse injuries so I focus on "zero momentum" work. Not super slow reps but with squats and bench for instance I often do 3-4 second negatives with a full and absolute pause and a semi explosive concentric. This will help build tendon strength and will accelerate their overall strength gains even if it seems like the weight on the bar is light.

4. While I like the basics ie squat, bench, deads, I do some out of the box stuff to simply put on muscle in a way that will almost guarantee they stay injury free. Mix up the exercises, again focus on zero momentum etc. You start to see some young kids squat bench and dead 3x a week start to accrue nagging aches and pains so you just have to be careful with that. Again, I mostly work with athletes so my first rule is progress but do no harm.

All that is probably best summarized by saying hire a good coach

Thank you! We have a meeting with his plifting coach tomorrow and I’ll be asking a lot of questions then using that information to figure out our next steps. This thread has produced some VERY useful information and advice!!!

 

[alfresco]

Thank you! We have a meeting with his plifting coach tomorrow and I’ll be asking a lot of questions then using that information to figure out our next steps. This thread has produced some VERY useful information and advice!!!

Great. And have him avoid flat bench presses like the plague. Even if
his coach says they are okay. Incline press are essentially a worthless
movement but not as dangerous as a flat bench. Dips, decline presses ok.

My opinion.

Lots of good info here. But beware of peer pressure from his friends.
At his age that it is very powerful and can make you do less than desirable
things. You know, trying to out do you friends or at least keep up
them. Supervision by an adult would not be a bad thing as long
as they know what they are doing and assuming he will be training
with weights.

 

[BLang]

Great. And have him avoid flat bench presses like the plague. Even if
his coach says they are okay. Incline press are essentially a worthless
movement but not as dangerous as a flat bench. Dips, decline presses ok.

My opinion.

Lots of good info here. But beware of peer pressure from his friends.
At his age that it is very powerful and can make you do less than desirable
things. You know, trying to out do you friends or at least keep up
them. Supervision by an adult would not be a bad thing as long
as they know what they are doing and assuming he will be training
with weights.

I agree with this.

However, if he actually wants to "powerlift" e.g. compete he will need to specialize in the big three lifts at some point. But, I'd explain to him that if he thinks he has to "powerlift" to get big and strong, he doesn't. It's a shame how many torn up joints there are because people are still married to the big three because of the sport of powerlifting.

 

[alfresco]

I agree with this.

However, if he actually wants to "powerlift" e.g. compete he will need to specialize in the big three lifts at some point. But, I'd explain to him that if he thinks he has to "powerlift" to get big and strong, he doesn't. It's a shame how many torn up joints there are because people are still married to the big three because of the sport of powerlifting.

Agree.

At this point it is up to MissSTK and her son. All you guy have given her tons
of advise but powerlifting, max reps at his age is a losing proportion. I think
we might all agree to agree on this.

I wish him nothing but the best and be injury free.

 

[danieltx]

The anti-flat bench sentiment is ludicrous. Yes, it's a risky exercise, but so is any exercise where you use a lot of weight. Leg pressing in just as unnatural a position as flat benching.

Guys get hurt in the gym because:

• They make stupid jumps in weight
• They lift with their ego
• They don't warm up properly
• They push through on a rough day when they should pull back
• They don't take care of their body over the long-term

I don't make those mistakes and because I don't I flat benched 500 x 4, my all-time best, 2 weeks ago. I've been flat benching 405 x 10+ weekly for the last 3 years. I've never had a injury in all my years of lifting.

I'll agree that there's more risk with him flat benching for powerlifting than for bodybuilding given the loads and low reps, but it's also an excellent way for him to build foundational strength in muscles and tendons that will serve him as long as he lifts, no matter what style it is. In my personal experience flat benching also gives a thickness and roundness to my upper body that other exercises don't - I know this because I took 9 months off it in 2021 / early 2022.

 

[BLang]

The anti-flat bench sentiment is ludicrous. Yes, it's a risky exercise, but so is any exercise where you use a lot of weight. Leg pressing in just as unnatural a position as flat benching.

Guys get hurt in the gym because:

• They make stupid jumps in weight
• They lift with their ego
• They don't warm up properly
• They push through on a rough day when they should pull back
• They don't take care of their body over the long-term

I don't make those mistakes and because I don't I flat benched 500 x 4, my all-time best, 2 weeks ago. I've been flat benching 405 x 10+ weekly for the last 3 years. I've never had a injury in all my years of lifting.

I'll agree that there's more risk with him flat benching for powerlifting than for bodybuilding given the loads and low reps, but it's also an excellent way for him to build foundational strength in muscles and tendons that will serve him as long as he lifts, no matter what style it is. In my personal experience flat benching also gives a thickness and roundness to my upper body that other exercises don't - I know this because I took 9 months off it in 2021 / early 2022.

No offense, but this is the exact survivorship bias that perpetuates this kind of stuff.

Everyone who wrecked their body because they were told they had to barbell bench/squat/deadlift to "build a foundation" isn't on this forum. Those who succeeded repeat this mantra to the newbies, not realizing that just because it worked for them, that doesn't mean it's necessarily "the way".

Also, nobody mentioned Leg Pressing, FWIW.

Anyway, there's a lot of good info in this thread (including in the post I'm replying to here) and hopefully MissSTK and her son are able to figure out. The only point that I was making was that there's no reason to be married to the "Big 3" unless actually competing in powerlifting for the sake of the competitive aspect is something he really wants to do.

Good luck!

 

[alfresco]

The anti-flat bench sentiment is ludicrous. Yes, it's a risky exercise, but so is any exercise where you use a lot of weight. Leg pressing in just as unnatural a position as flat benching.

Guys get hurt in the gym because:

• They make stupid jumps in weight
• They lift with their ego
• They don't warm up properly
• They push through on a rough day when they should pull back
• They don't take care of their body over the long-term

I don't make those mistakes and because I don't I flat benched 500 x 4, my all-time best, 2 weeks ago. I've been flat benching 405 x 10+ weekly for the last 3 years. I've never had a injury in all my years of lifting.

I'll agree that there's more risk with him flat benching for powerlifting than for bodybuilding given the loads and low reps, but it's also an excellent way for him to build foundational strength in muscles and tendons that will serve him as long as he lifts, no matter what style it is. In my personal experience flat benching also gives a thickness and roundness to my upper body that other exercises don't - I know this because I took 9 months off it in 2021 / early 2022.

I am happy you well and have no injury's. True story.

 

[D2]

I my humble opinion your son, at 14 years of age, has zero business doing 1 rep, maximum lifts. I don’t know who his coach is, but he is guilty of criminal malpractice or unbelievable stupidity.

thats what my initial thought . I believe bones of 14yo are still developing, can u imagine the 1rep max on those joints of this underdevelope teens? esp 1 rep max squat! i would rather they be doing >10reps workouts.

 

[alfresco]

thats what my initial thought . I believe bones of 14yo are still developing, can u imagine the 1rep max on those joints of this underdevelope teens? esp 1 rep max squat! i would rather they be doing >10reps workouts.

Agree. And if weights, 20 reps would be my guidelines. Safer and builds mental fortitude and the ability to focus / concentrate. Again, if and only weight training, which, well, you know my opinion on that