In the Media
2007-02-10, The Edmonton Journal
Take Care in Shaping Young Bodies
Chris Zdeb Edmonton Journal Writer
EDMONTON -- Your life revolves around friends, school, part-time jobs, family and body image. Boys and girls try to shape themselves into the body types they see in magazine and TV ads and on celebrities.
For boys, that's a slimmer look but with a muscular torso that can be proudly and publicly displayed without a shirt. For girls, it's just slimmer.
How you achieve the look you want as fast as possible can be a concern, says Dr. Shelby Karpman, president of the Alberta Medical Association's section of sports medicine. That's because up to the age of 16, teenagers are still growing.
"Excessive weights and excessive exercise, but mostly excessive weights, can stop growth because of overuse, generating injuries that you would see in bones that aren't fully fused," Karpman explains.
Alexandra Senkow, fitness director at Defining Eve studios in Edmonton, says that's one of the reasons why gymnasts tend to be short.
"If they started training at a very young age, the high amount of impact and repetitive stress to the joints caused the growth plates to seal early," she explains.
Strength training is OK, Karpman says, but power lifting and body building are not, because the focus is on how much you can lift at one time which can lead to injury.
Use free weights, machines or your own body weight, advises Senkow. Start with no weight and concentrate on form and technique to avoid injury.
Lots of attention should be spent on developing the muscles that support the spine, so core work is very important, Senkow says.
"When we're children, we develop those muscles naturally playing in the playground, hanging upside down, walking on uneven surfaces or through sand."
But most teens are shaped like the couches they sit on because they lack strength and stability in the muscles along the spine," Senkow says.
"A lot of kids in high school experience neck and back pain and neck tension because within the short first 16 years of their lives, they've developed really severe muscle imbalances," she adds.
Both Karpman and Senkow say it's best to work out under the supervision of a coach or trainer to make sure you don't hurt yourself while getting the most out of the exercise.
A trainer can teach you things such as making sure you alternate the different parts of the body that you're working to avoid stress injuries.
You don't have to work out at a gym. There are many stretches and exercises that can be done at home, Karpman says. Walking, swimming and running are all excellent aerobic activities. The experts also favour sports.
"Playing a sport or belonging to some kind of organized class where there is structure is often recommended," Senkow says. "Soccer players, for example, work with their body weight, do full range multi-joint exercises and get a good cardiovascular workout during a game."
Starting a fitness program or some type of physical activity in your youth helps to develop a life-long habit, Karpman says.
You also increase your muscle fibre recruitment and develop a better neuromuscular connection between the brain and each muscle fibre, which means better balance and co-ordination and more strength, Senkow says.
Sports and physical activity promote a healthy lifestyle for girls in particular and reinforce the message that teen girls aren't just what they look like; they are also the sum of what they can do and what they're capable of.
"It's a healthier view of yourself and your body and that's crucial at this age," Senkow says.
Senkow has come up with three exercises that focus on core strength and stability.
- Prone Stabilization on the Stability ball with Hip Extension or Leg Lifts
Senkow starts by having Elisa Carbonaro, 14, lie belly-down on a stability ball balanced on a bench and taking a deep breath. Carbonaro then engages her core muscles by pulling belly button to spine and exhaling as she slowly lifts her extended legs towards the ceiling.
The exercise helps develop the posterior muscles (those in the back along the spine) and balance while improving posture and developing body awareness. Good posture instantly makes anybody look twice as attractive and five to 10 pounds lighter. You can't get slimmer, any faster, than that.
- Stability Ball Roll Out to Tuck and Stand
Keltie Hansen, 14, starts by lying belly-down on a stability ball. Under Senkow's supervision, she walks her hands out away from the ball and pulls her knees into her body to form a tuck-position. Hansen then walks her hands up the sides of the ball to a kneeling position, and then a standing position on the stability ball.
This advanced exercise helps condition the core. It raises body awareness and improves, balance and posture. It also gives you a great sense of accomplishment.
- BOSU Tag
Senkow sets up several BOSUs (half-balls) in a circle. She has Elisa Carbonaro start by standing on one side of the circle of BOSUs and Keltie Hansen, also 14, start directly across from her. Hansen, the person that is "it," squat-jumps from BOSU to BOSU, chasing after Carbonaro. Once caught, Carbonaro is "it." The girls return to their starting points on the BOSU circle and start again, this time travelling in the other direction.
This exercise develops leg tone and strength; improves balance, core stability and joint stability. And most importantly it's lots of fun!!!
