Strength Train Your Way to Ripped Abs: A Guide for Teenagers
"When should my son going to the gym? My son has somewhat suggested going to the gym and he is somewhat on the chubby side. He weighs 67 kg at 165 cm which is around 23 BMI. He said that he saw a person of similar age (13y/o) have abs during tryouts."
Hi my friend,
On when should your son be allowed to go to the gym, It comes down to maturity. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that children and adolescents start resistance training, such as lifting weights, no earlier than age 7.
But the emphasis is on maturity.
I have a son too. And even though he wasn't on the chubby side (He weighs ~55kg at 173cm) I'd still like to let him know a thing or two, as if he's in your son's shoe. And they are:
- Be responsible in the gym.
- Building Abs is a long game.
- Abs doesn’t come from spot workouts.
- Muscles burn more calories than fat.
- It’s about our diet and calorie deficit.
The following are the deep dives for each of them.
Be responsible in the gym.
We bring along our son to the gym sessions too. So, we’re setting up an example for him to emulate, because - you know - our actions speak louder than words.
Here are some good tips for helping our teenage sons to get started at the gym:
- We wipe down the dumbbells, barbells and benches after our workouts, for the next user. And so our son did the same.
- We return the dumbbells, yoga mats or other gym equipment to the racks at the end of the gym sessions. And so our son did the same too.
- We start with difficult but manageable weights for our workouts and gradually add more as time goes by, to grow our muscles. Our son follows our example and did the same.
- We carry out the proper form of the workout, to get the maximum benefit out of it, and to prevent injury. We teach our son to do the same as well.
- Our son and us warm up before each workout and cool down afterwards.
Building Abs is a long game.
We can’t build abs overnight, with just a few workouts. It doesn’t work that way. We have to think of it like running a marathon, rather than a sprint.
So
- Be consistent. The key to seeing results is to be consistent with our workouts and diet. We should aim to work out at least 3-4 times per week and eat a healthy diet every day.
The good news is, when we persist and stay consistent, the abs will come in due time.
Abs doesn’t come from spot workouts.
We can’t magically chisel our six-pack abs out of 1000 ab-targeting crunches. It doesn’t work that way either. Spot workout is actually a myth. It’s about our full-body workout. Imagine our body being like a swimming pool. And we try to scoop out 10 buckets of water at the east side of the pool.
Does just the east side of the water become lesser, or the whole pool become lesser? The whole pool became lesser, isn’t it?
Similarly, if we want to become less chubby, we have to target our whole body. In this way, we will have a well-balanced and attractive physique - together with our 6-pack abs.
And we need to
- Focus on compound exercises. Compound exercises work multiple muscle groups at the same time, which is more efficient than isolation exercises. Here’s a list of compound exercises for your son to work on:
Muscles burn more calories than fat.
It’s a well-known phenomenon called the afterburn effect, or more scientifically known as excess post-exercise oxygen consumption or EPOC. It is the amount of oxygen that the body needs to recover from exercise. When we exercise, our bodies produce more energy than they normally do. This energy comes from the breakdown of carbohydrates and fats. After we exercise, our bodies need to use oxygen to repair muscle tissue, replenish glycogen stores, and restore the body to its resting state. This process is called EPOC. And it comes from our built muscles.
Our muscles help us burn more calories even after we have finished working out. That means our sons might be on the couch chilling at their favorite movies, long after their workout, and still their fat keeps burning on.
So, I’d tell my son to concentrate on building muscles, to sculp out that abs, by
- Lifting heavy weights. The heavier the weight, the more muscle fibers we recruit, which leads to greater muscle growth. We should start with a weight that we can lift for 8-12 repetitions, and then gradually increase the weight as we get stronger.
It’s about our diet and calorie deficit.
We can’t magically expect a good-looking abs, while eating junk food. It doesn’t work that way, as well. We need to create a well-balanced and controlled calorie-deficit diet by eating fewer calories than we burn. We need to
- Eat enough protein. Protein is essential for muscle growth and repair. We should aim to eat 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight each day. Good sources of protein include lean meat, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy products, and legumes.
In conclusion, here is an analogy to help your son stay motivated:
Imagine that our abs are like the Promised Land. The Promised Land was a place of milk and honey, where the Israelites could live in peace and prosperity. However, to reach the Promised Land, the Israelites had to cross the Jordan River and defeat the Canaanites.
Similarly, to see our abs, we need to cross the Jordan River of junk food and defeat the Canaanites of inactivity. This means eating a healthy diet and exercising regularly. Once we reach the Promised Land of our fitness goals, we will be rewarded with the sight of our beautiful abs!
I hope this helps, my friend! If it does, please
- upvote,
- comment, and
- share.
May you be blessed with the power of David and the wisdom of Solomon.
Faithfully yours,
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