Top

Published in:

Open Access 01-09-2020 | Review Article

Free-Weight Resistance Training in Youth Athletes: A Narrative Review

Authors: Stephen J. McQuilliam, David R. Clark, Robert M. Erskine, Thomas E. Brownlee

Published in: Sports Medicine | Issue 9/2020

Abstract

Generating high levels of muscular strength and power are important for success in sport and may have long-term implications for sporting careers in youth athletes. Importantly, maturation may confound the neuromuscular adaptations to resistance training when attempting to differentiate between training- vs. growth-induced strength and power gains; thus, potentially leading to erroneous conclusions regarding the efficacy of resistance training in youth athletes. The aim of this review was to critically appraise the literature concerning the efficacy of externally loaded free-weight resistance training on strength and power measures in youth athletes at different stages of maturity. Strength underpins power production; thus, developing strength through traditional resistance training methods can positively influence powerful sporting movements. In addition, weightlifting has the capacity to improve muscular power via explosive lower-body triple extension, which is essential for many sports. Despite the complexity of the techniques involved, it can be a safe and effective method to improve athletic qualities in young athletes, potentially more so than plyometric training. While low-load, high-velocity training can have a positive effect influence on high speed movements such as sprinting, the reduced intensity appears to be disadvantageous post peak-height velocity. Irrespective of age, well-coached progressive strength training adhering strictly to correct technique can then be periodised within a long-term athletic development program. It is important to primarily develop muscular strength, while concurrently refining the technical skill required for weightlifting. Physically mature athletes should undertake high-intensity resistance training to maximise neuromuscular adaptations, leading to positive changes in strength and power.

Young WB. Transfer of strength and power training to sports performance. Int J Sports Physiol Perform. 2006;1(2):74–83.PubMed

Commission USCPS. National electronic injury surveillance system. Washington, DC: Directorate for Epidemiology, National Injury Information Clearinghouse; 1987.

Barker A, Lloyd RS, Buchheit M, Williams C, Oliver J. The BASES expert statement on trainability during childhood and adolescence. Sport Exerc Sci. 2014;41:22–3.

Lloyd RS, Faigenbaum AD, Stone MH, Oliver JL, Jeffreys I, Moody JA, et al. Position statement on youth resistance training: the 2014 International Consensus. Br J Sports Med. 2014;48(7):498–505.PubMed

Harries SK, Lubans DR, Callister R. Resistance training to improve power and sports performance in adolescent athletes: a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Sci Med Sport. 2012;15(6):532–40. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2012.02.005.CrossRefPubMed

Lesinski M, Prieske O, Granacher U. Effects and dose–response relationships of resistance training on physical performance in youth athletes: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Br J Sports Med. 2016;50(13):781–95. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2015-095497.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Morris RO, Jones B, Myers T, Lake J, Emmonds S, Clarke ND, et al. Isometric midthigh pull characteristics in elite youth male soccer players: comparisons by age and maturity offset. J Strength Cond Res. 2018. https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0000000000002673.CrossRefPubMed

Brownlee TE, Murtagh CF, Naughton RJ, Whitworth-Turner CM, O’Boyle A, Morgans R, et al. Isometric maximal voluntary force evaluated using an isometric mid-thigh pull differentiates English Premier League youth soccer players from a maturity-matched control group. Sci Med Footb. 2018;2(3):209–15.

Bishop D. An applied research model for the sport sciences. Sports Med. 2008;38(3):253–63. https://doi.org/10.2165/00007256-200838030-00005.CrossRefPubMed

10.

Côté J. The influence of the family in the development of talent in sport. Sport Psychol. 1999;4:395–417.

11.

Ford P, De Ste CM, Lloyd R, Meyers R, Moosavi M, Oliver J, et al. The long-term athlete development model: physiological evidence and application. J Sports Sci. 2011;29(4):389–402. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2010.536849.CrossRefPubMed

12.

Malina RM. Skeletal age and age verification in youth sport. Sports Med. 2011;41(11):925–47.PubMed

13.

Cobley S, Baker J, Wattie N, McKenna J. Annual age-grouping and athlete development. Sports Med. 2009;39(3):235–56.PubMed

14.

Baxter-Jones AD, Eisenmann JC, Sherar LB. Controlling for maturation in pediatric exercise science. Pediatr Exerc Sci. 2005;17(1):18–30.

15.

Tanner JM. Foetus into man: physical growth from conception to maturity. Cambridge: Harvard University Press; 1990.

16.

Bayli I, Hamilton A. Long-term athlete development: trainability in childhood and adolescence: windows of opportunity, optional trainability. Victoria: Natl Coach Inst Br Columbia Adv Train Perform; 2004. p. 8.

17.

Lloyd RS, Oliver JL. The youth physical development model: a new approach to long-term athletic development. Strength Cond J. 2012;34(3):61–72.

18.

Moran J, Sandercock GR, Ramírez-Campillo R, Meylan C, Collison J, Parry DA. A meta-analysis of maturation-related variation in adolescent boy athletes’ adaptations to short-term resistance training. J Sports Sci. 2017;35(11):1041–51.PubMed

19.

Philippaerts RM, Vaeyens R, Janssens M, Van Renterghem B, Matthys D, Craen R, et al. The relationship between peak height velocity and physical performance in youth soccer players. J Sports Sci. 2006;24(3):221–30.PubMed

20.

Murtagh CF, Brownlee TE, O'Boyle A, Morgans R, Drust B, Erskine RM. Importance of speed and power in elite youth soccer depends on maturation status. J Strength Cond Res. 2018;32(2):297–303. https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0000000000002367.CrossRefPubMed

21.

Matthys S, Vaeyens R, Coelho-e-Silva M, Lenoir M, Philippaerts R. The contribution of growth and maturation in the functional capacity and skill performance of male adolescent handball players. Int J Sports Med. 2012;33(07):543–9.PubMed

22.

Beunen G, Malina RM. Growth and physical performance relative to the timing of the adolescent spurt. Exerc Sport Sci Rev. 1988;16(1):503–40.PubMed

23.

O’Brien TD, Reeves ND, Baltzopoulos V, Jones DA, Maganaris CN. Moment arms of the knee extensor mechanism in children and adults. J Anat. 2009;215(2):198–205.PubMedPubMedCentral

24.

Vingren JL, Kraemer WJ, Ratamess NA, Anderson JM, Volek JS, Maresh CM. Testosterone physiology in resistance exercise and training. Sports Med. 2010;40(12):1037–53.PubMed

25.

Ramos E, Frontera W, Llopart A, Feliciano D. Muscle strength and hormonal levels in adolescents: gender related differences. Int J Sports Med. 1998;19(08):526–31.PubMed

26.

Bhasin S, Storer TW, Berman N, Callegari C, Clevenger B, Phillips J, et al. The effects of supraphysiologic doses of testosterone on muscle size and strength in normal men. N Engl J Med. 1996;335(1):1–7.PubMed

27.

Ferrando AA, Tipton KD, Doyle D, Phillips SM, Cortiella J, Wolfe RR. Testosterone injection stimulates net protein synthesis but not tissue amino acid transport. Am J Physiol. 1998;275(5):E864–E871871.PubMed

28.

Bamman MM, Newcomer BR, Larson-Meyer DE, Weinsier RL, Hunter GR. Evaluation of the strength–size relationship in vivo using various muscle size indices. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2000;32(7):1307–13.PubMed

29.

Haff GG, Nimphius S. Training principles for power. Strength Cond J. 2012;34(6):2–12. https://doi.org/10.1519/SSC.0b013e31826db467.CrossRef

30.

Vogler C, Bove K. Morphology of skeletal muscle in children. An assessment of normal growth and differentiation. Arch Pathol Lab Med. 1985;109(3):238–42.PubMed

31.

Glenmark B, Hedberg G, Jansson E. Changes in muscle fibre type from adolescence to adulthood in women and men. A Acta Physiol Scand. 1992;146(2):251–9.PubMed

32.

Gilliver SF, Degens H, Rittweger J, Sargeant AJ, Jones DA. Variation in the determinants of power of chemically skinned human muscle fibres. Exp Physiol. 2009;94(10):1070–8. https://doi.org/10.1113/expphysiol.2009.048314.CrossRefPubMed

33.

Malina RM, Bouchard C, Bar-Or O. Growth, maturation, and physical activity. Champaign: Human kinetics; 2004.

34.

Degens H, Erskine RM, Morse CI. Disproportionate changes in skeletal muscle strength and size with resistance training and ageing. J Musculoskelet Neuronal Interact. 2009;9(3):123–9.PubMed

35.

Close RI. Dynamic properties of mammalian skeletal muscles. Physiol Rev. 1972;52(1):129–97. https://doi.org/10.1152/physrev.1972.52.1.129.CrossRefPubMed

36.

Jaric S, Markovic G. Leg muscles design: the maximum dynamic output hypothesis. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2009;41(4):780–7.PubMed

37.

Mersmann F, Bohm S, Schroll A, Boeth H, Duda G, Arampatzis A. Muscle and tendon adaptation in adolescent athletes: a longitudinal study. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2017;27(1):75–82.PubMed

38.

O’Brien TD, Reeves ND, Baltzopoulos V, Jones DA, Maganaris CN. Muscle–tendon structure and dimensions in adults and children. J Anat. 2010;216(5):631–42.PubMedPubMedCentral

39.

Cunha GdS, Vaz MA, Herzog W, Geremia JM, Leites GT, Reischak-Oliveira Á. Maturity status effects on torque and muscle architecture of young soccer players. J Sports Sci. 2019;21:1–10.

40.

Franchi MV, Fitze DP, Raiteri BJ, Hahn D, Spörri J. Ultrasound-derived biceps femoris long-head fascicle length: extrapolation pitfalls. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2019;52(1):233–43.

41.

Faigenbaum AD, Kraemer WJ, Blimkie CJ, Jeffreys I, Micheli LJ, Nitka M, et al. Youth resistance training: updated position statement paper from the national strength and conditioning association. J Strength Cond Res. 2009;23:S60–S79.PubMed

42.

Meylan C, Cronin JB, Oliver J, Hopkins W, Contreras B. The effect of maturation on adaptations to strength training and detraining in 11- to 15-year-olds. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2014;24(3):e156–e164164.PubMed

43.

Rodríguez-Rosell D, Franco-Márquez F, Mora-Custodio R, González-Badillo JJ. Effect of high-speed strength training on physical performance in young soccer players of different ages. J Strength Cond Res. 2017;31(9):2498–508.PubMed

44.

Behm DG, Young JD, Whitten JH, Reid JC, Quigley PJ, Low J, et al. Effectiveness of traditional strength vs. power training on muscle strength, power and speed with youth: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Front Physiol. 2017;8:423.PubMedPubMedCentral

45.

Behringer M, Heede AV, Matthews M, Mester J. Effects of strength training on motor performance skills in children and adolescents: a meta-analysis. Pediatr Exerc Sci. 2011;23(2):186–206.PubMed

46.

Slimani M, Paravlic A, Granacher U. A meta-analysis to determine strength training related dose–response relationships for lower-limb muscle power development in young athletes. Front Physiol. 2018;9:1155. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2018.01155.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

47.

Legerlotz K, Marzilger R, Bohm S, Arampatzis A. Physiological adaptations following resistance training in youth athletes—a narrative review. Pediatr Exerc Sci. 2016;28(4):501–20.PubMed

48.

Schwanbeck S, Chilibeck PD, Binsted G. A comparison of free weight squat to Smith machine squat using electromyography. J Strength Cond Res. 2009;23(9):2588–91.PubMed

49.

Lloyd RS, Radnor JM, De Ste Croix MB, Cronin JB, Oliver JL. Changes in sprint and jump performances after traditional, plyometric, and combined resistance training in male youth pre- and post-peak height velocity. J Strength Cond Res. 2016;30(5):1239–47. https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0000000000001216.CrossRefPubMed

50.

Chaouachi A, Hammami R, Kaabi S, Chamari K, Drinkwater EJ, Behm DG. Olympic weightlifting and plyometric training with children provides similar or greater performance improvements than traditional resistance training. J Strength Cond Res. 2014;28(6):1483–96. https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0000000000000305.CrossRefPubMed

51.

Chelly MS, Fathloun M, Cherif N, Amar MB, Tabka Z, Van Praagh E. Effects of a back squat training program on leg power, jump, and sprint performances in junior soccer players. J Strength Cond Res. 2009;23(8):2241–9.PubMed

52.

Schmidtbleicher D. Training for power events. Oxford: Blackwell Science Ltd; 2004.

53.

Wing CE, Turner AN, Bishop CJ. The importance of strength and power on key performance indicators in elite youth soccer. J Strength Cond Res. 2018. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0000000000002446.CrossRef

54.

Comfort P, Stewart A, Bloom L, Clarkson B. Relationships between strength, sprint, and jump performance in well-trained youth soccer players. J Strength Cond Res. 2014;28(1):173–7. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0b013e318291b8c7.CrossRefPubMed

55.

Lloyd RS, Oliver J. Strength and conditioning for young athletes. Abingdon: Taylor & Francis; 2013.

56.

Couppe C, Kongsgaard M, Aagaard P, Vinther A, Boesen M, Kjaer M, et al. Differences in tendon properties in elite badminton players with or without patellar tendinopathy. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2013;23(2):e89–95. https://doi.org/10.1111/sms.12023.CrossRefPubMed

57.

Murtagh CF, Naughton RJ, McRobert AP, O’Boyle A, Morgans R, Drust B, et al. A coding system to quantify powerful actions in soccer match play: a pilot study. Res Q Exerc Sport. 2019;90(2):234–43.PubMed

58.

Hunter JP, Marshall RN, McNair PJ. Relationships between ground reaction force impulse and kinematics of sprint-running acceleration. J Appl Biomech. 2005;21(1):31–433.PubMed

59.

Cronin JB, Hansen KT. Strength and power predictors of sports speed. J Strength Cond Res. 2005;19(2):349–57. https://doi.org/10.1519/14323.1.CrossRefPubMed

60.

Seitz LB, Reyes A, Tran TT, de Villarreal ES, Haff GG. Increases in lower-body strength transfer positively to sprint performance: a systematic review with meta-analysis. Sports Med. 2014;44(12):1693–702. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-014-0227-1.CrossRefPubMed

61.

Wisloff U, Castagna C, Helgerud J, Jones R, Hoff J. Strong correlation of maximal squat strength with sprint performance and vertical jump height in elite soccer players. Br J Sports Med. 2004;38(3):285–8.PubMedPubMedCentral

62.

Keiner M, Sander A, Wirth K, Caruso O, Immesberger P, Zawieja M. Strength performance in youth: trainability of adolescents and children in the back and front squats. J Strength Cond Res. 2013;27(2):357–62. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0b013e3182576fbf.CrossRefPubMed

63.

Pallarés JG, Cava AM, Courel-Ibáñez J, González-Badillo JJ, Morán-Navarro R. Full squat produces greater neuromuscular and functional adaptations and lower pain than partial squats after prolonged resistance training. Eur J Sport Sci. 2019;20(1):115–24.PubMed

64.

Haff GG. Quantifying workloads in resistance training: a brief review. Strength Cond J. 2010;10:31–40.

65.

Lloyd RS, Oliver JL, Faigenbaum AD, Myer GD, Croix MBDS. Chronological age vs. biological maturation: implications for exercise programming in youth. J Strength Cond Res. 2014;28(5):1454–64.PubMed

66.

Speirs DE, Bennett MA, Finn CV, Turner AP. Unilateral vs. bilateral squat training for strength, sprints, and agility in Academy Rugby Players. J Strength Cond Res. 2016;30(2):386–92. https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0000000000001096.CrossRefPubMed

67.

Hammami M, Negra Y, Billaut F, Hermassi S, Shephard RJ, Chelly MS. Effects of lower-limb strength training on agility, repeated sprinting with changes of direction, leg peak power, and neuromuscular adaptations of soccer players. J Strength Cond Res. 2018;32(1):37–47. https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0000000000001813.CrossRefPubMed

68.

Styles WJ, Matthews MJ, Comfort P. Effects of strength training on squat and sprint performance in soccer players. J Strength Cond Res. 2016;30(6):1534–9. https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0000000000001243.CrossRefPubMed

69.

Peterson MD, Rhea MR, Alvar BA. Maximizing strength development in athletes: a meta-analysis to determine the dose–response relationship. J Strength Cond Res. 2004;18(2):377–82.PubMed

70.

Sander A, Keiner M, Wirth K, Schmidtbleicher D. Influence of a 2-year strength training programme on power performance in elite youth soccer players. Eur J Sport Sci. 2013;13(5):445–51. https://doi.org/10.1080/17461391.2012.742572.CrossRefPubMed

71.

Plisk SS, Stone MH. Periodization strategies. Strength Cond J. 2003;25(6):19–37.

72.

Hori N, Newton R, Stone M. Weightlifting exercises enhance athletic performance that requires high-load speed strength. Strength Cond J. 2005;24(4):50–5.

73.

Garhammer J, Gregor R. Propulsion forces as a function of intensity for weightlifting and vertical jumping. J Appl Sport Sci Res. 1992;6(3):129–34.

74.

Canavan PK, Garrett GE, Armstrong LE. Kinematic and kinetic relationships between an olympic-style lift and the vertical jump. J Strength Cond Res. 1996;10(2):127–30.

75.

Channell BT, Barfield J. Effect of Olympic and traditional resistance training on vertical jump improvement in high school boys. J Strength Cond Res. 2008;22(5):1522–7.PubMed

76.

Arabatzi F, Kellis E. Olympic weightlifting training causes different knee muscle–coactivation adaptations compared with traditional weight training. J Strength Cond Res. 2012;26(8):2192–201. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0b013e31823b087a.CrossRefPubMed

77.

Baker D, Newton RU. Acute effect on power output of alternating an agonist and antagonist muscle exercise during complex training. J Strength Cond Res. 2005;19(1):202–5. https://doi.org/10.1519/1533-4287(2005)19<202:Aeopoo>2.0.Co;2.CrossRefPubMed

78.

Negra Y, Chaabene H, Hammami M, Hachana Y, Granacher U. Effects of high-velocity resistance training on athletic performance in prepuberal male soccer athletes. J Strength Cond Res. 2016;30(12):3290–7. https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0000000000001433.CrossRefPubMed

79.

Cormie P, McCaulley GO, Triplett NT, McBride JM. Optimal loading for maximal power output during lower-body resistance exercises. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2007;39(2):340–9. https://doi.org/10.1249/01.mss.0000246993.71599.bf.CrossRefPubMed

80.

Nuzzo JL, McBride JM, Cormie P, McCaulley GO. Relationship between countermovement jump performance and multijoint isometric and dynamic tests of strength. J Strength Cond Res. 2008;22(3):699–707.PubMed

81.

Gonzalez-Badillo JJ, Pareja-Blanco F, Rodriguez-Rosell D, Abad-Herencia JL, Del Ojo-Lopez JJ, Sanchez-Medina L. Effects of velocity-based resistance training on young soccer players of different ages. J Strength Cond Res. 2015;29(5):1329–38. https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0000000000000764.CrossRefPubMed

82.

Ebben WP. Complex training: a brief review. J Sports Sci Med. 2002;1(2):42.PubMedPubMedCentral

83.

Bauer P, Uebellacker F, Mitter B, Aigner AJ, Hasenoehrl T, Ristl R, et al. Combining higher-load and lower-load resistance training exercises: a systematic review and meta-analysis of findings from complex training studies. J Sci Med Sport. 2019;22(7):838–51.PubMed

84.

Radnor JM, Lloyd RS, Oliver JL. Individual response to different forms of resistance training in school-aged boys. J Strength Cond Res. 2017;31(3):787–97. https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0000000000001527.CrossRefPubMed

85.

Pichardo AW, Oliver JL, Harrison CB, Maulder PS, Lloyd RS, Kandoi R. Effects of combined resistance training and weightlifting on motor skill performance of adolescent male athletes. J Strength Cond Res. 2019;33(12):3226–355.PubMed

Title: Free-Weight Resistance Training in Youth Athletes: A Narrative Review
Authors: Stephen J. McQuilliam
David R. Clark
Robert M. Erskine
Thomas E. Brownlee
Publication date: 01-09-2020
Publisher: Springer International Publishing
Published in: Sports Medicine / Issue 9/2020
Print ISSN: 0112-1642
Electronic ISSN: 1179-2035
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-020-01307-7

At a glance: The STEP trials

Springer Medicine

Free-Weight Resistance Training in Youth Athletes: A Narrative Review

Abstract

At a glance: The STEP trials

Springer Medicine

Abstract

Please log in to get access to this content

Other articles of this Issue 9/2020

Time to Differentiate Postactivation “Potentiation” from “Performance Enhancement” in the Strength and Conditioning Community

Occupational Physical Activity and Lung Cancer Risk: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Authors’ Reply to Dewolf et al.: “Is Motorized Treadmill Running Biomechanically Comparable to Overground Running? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Cross-Over Studies”

Comment on: “Is Motorized Treadmill Running Biomechanically Comparable to Overground Running? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Cross-Over Studies”

Is the Acute: Chronic Workload Ratio (ACWR) Associated with Risk of Time-Loss Injury in Professional Team Sports? A Systematic Review of Methodology, Variables and Injury Risk in Practical Situations

Exercise-Based Strategies to Prevent Muscle Injury in Elite Footballers: A Systematic Review and Best Evidence Synthesis