Why light?

[Derk]

Why does everyone here seem to recommend light weight with more reps for teens? I don't think that someone will put on alot of mass from training for 8 weeks. But even if they do, it is muscle not fat, so shouldn't it just make you stronger? I have a friend on my basketball team and he is overweight because he has so much muscle and he is the fastest guy on our team!

Alright so what do yall consider high rep? 90%?

[adacas]

I don't think anybody is really worried about how much mass they will gain from weightlifting. People reccomend light weights a high reps for teens because teens have an immortality complex and try to push themselves harder than they should and they do things all wrong and tend to follow bad advice and hurt themselves or really screw themselves up. I know this for a fact because do to heavy weight training when I was a kid I aided in the pain that my knees receive everyday. Nobody ever taught me how to do squats right, nobody told me not to overload my back. I just tried to copy what I saw and ended up hurting for that. Let's not forget the sports I played. Soccer, wrestling, and volleyball. yes volleyball. Those courts can do a number on your knees. I'm only 19 and my knees will only do so much before giving out on me. The less stress your body is put under in your youth the less messed up you will feel when you get older. This is not to say that sitting on your ass is your only resort. By all means lift weights, run, jump whatever floats your boat just make sure you so it right. I would suggest getting books and other material on the subject and become familiar with what you are doing with your body and not just what it feels you are doing to your body. Trust me a little education in that field will open our eyes to a lot of things. I know what you mean about your friend being considered overweight just because of his weight. The world does not go by some weight to height ratio. Hell a few months ago I was 185 lbs and I am 5'11". When I got tested they said I was overweight even though my body fat was less than 6%. They said I had to lose 15 lbs while gaining some fat. It still doesn't make much sense to me. Anyways I always thought that 80% was good or just a little bit higher in heavy weight low rep situations.

[Derk]

Oh so yall DO recommend heavy weights (80%) with low reps for strength?

[TylerDurden]

Low reps (5 or less) builds power. Moderate (8-12) builds strength. And high develops tone and endurance. There is always overlap but thats the general way it goes. The reason people suggest lighter weights for teens is your body is still growing. There are soft 'growth points' in the joints and bones that have not hardened yet. The muscles are still growing. Heavy lifting can impact all these area's and cause problems for you down the road.

[Derk]

Once again..what is heavy lifting?

What is the difference between power and strength?

[begins]

power would be being able to lift 60 pounds with one hand on a simple curl i.e. bodybuilders...(just some star-picked example) and strength would be overall force and body force... i.e. a sportsplayer's basic wieght training goal..

power creates bigger, less dense muscle...

strength creates a leaner more dense muscle...

peace

[Jude3085]

power creates bigger, less dense muscle...

strength creates a leaner more dense muscle...

low reps with heavy weight equal power means muscle becomes stronger and more dense not bigger.

Medium reps (9-12) equals muscle mass

Hight reps equals endurance

[begins]

i was under the idea that bodybuilder's muscle was large but not as dense as a strength practitioner....??

i knw alot of bodybuilders, and while yes, their musle is large, it is also not as dense as some1 like mines, but whatever, guess im wrong..

peace

[adacas]

well lets say that lifting heavy for a teen is; not maxing out, not trying to bench more than your own weight. I guess if you do happen to know your max just don't go over 50-60% as my guess. If you are 16 and under try to take it easy. This is the time you should be learning about what you should or should not do. The absolute worst thing you can do in the beginning is something as demanding as squats if you know what I'm saying. After that you can go on up just make sure you know what you are doing. Like GI Joe used to say...Knowing is half the battle.

[Jun Fan]

Strength is being able to exert great force with your body.
Power is being able to create an explosive and sudden force with your body.