Ask Mr. Canada

QUESTION: Is it true that lifting weights as a teenager can stunt your growth?

Great question! For the answer, I turn it over to long time friend and someone more familiar with training teenagers; Dana Bushell. Here is what he had to say:

There is a misconception out there that if you begin lifting weights too early in life that you are putting your body in a compromising situation. That is, you are unintentionally making yourself shorter in stature than what you were supposed to be. This is a serious concern for young trainers who have yet to be educated on the topic and furthermore this myth may be preventing them from joining a gym to reap the rewards of weight training. The truth of the matter is that lifting weights will not be the determining factor in whether or not you will be six feet tall, it is your genetics that determine this. That being said, the concern that may have caused this myth surrounds the epiphyseal plates (commonly known as growth plates) that are found at the end of long bones in the body. These plates are last to ossify and do so when a person is fully matured. If an injury or infection were to happen at the site of the growth plate before maturity then that damage could prevent further growth. Another reason people believe lifting weights make you shorter is because many people who carry or look like they carry lots of muscle mass happen to be shorter. This really boils down to an illusion that is created. If a taller person puts on twenty pounds of muscle and a shorter person puts on the same you will see a noticeable difference in the shorter person and not as evident on the taller person. A bigger frame needs more muscle to fill it out, that’s all. Weight training in comparison to other sports, especially contact sports like football and hockey, is relatively low on the risk scale of damaging a growth plate and the benefits of weight training at a young age far out weigh the negatives (which are very few). Increased bone density from weight bearing loads, strengthening of the joints, improved muscle strength and endurance and a better overall self esteem is what young trainers can look forward to. My advice to a teenager starting out would be to start with body weight exercises, move on to isometric exercises and then gradually introduce yourself to machines and then free weights. It is the safest route, the one that will benefit you the most in the long run and remember that some of the greatest bodybuilders of all time were around the six foot mark or taller.

Dana Bushell attended St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, Nova Scotia where he completed a Bachelor of Arts in Human Kinetics. After that he continued his education and received a Bachelor of Education from the same institution. In 2008, he completed his Honors Specialist in Physical Education from Nippising University. He is also a Certified Fitness Consultant and currently works as a High School Physical Education teacher and the strength and conditioning coach for the senior football team. He’s also an Associate Professor of Communications at Georgian College.