Exercises for teenagers

When it comes to exercises and teenagers, there could be many issues and concerns by parents. The generally asked questions are: Would it affect my child’s growth/height and what happens when they stop exercising? The answer is, any form of exercise would help stimulate the growth process and make the child more confident. And when they stop exercising they would stop getting the gains and eventually return back to their pre exercising condition. Here are some easy exercises for teenagers and young students:

Plyo Lunges (split lunges)

How to do it

Stand with your feet together and your knees unlocked. Jump into a lunge with your left leg forward. Jump again by pushing off with both feet, then landing into a lunge with your right leg forward. Jump your feet back together to complete one rep or keep alternating legs until you are exhausted. Make sure to do equal number of reps on both legs.

Do 2-3 sets of 10-12 reps,

Benefits

Not only is this an excellent cardiovascular exercise, it also helps develop and improve lower body strength and power, as well as challenge stability and coordination. 

Target muscles

Glutes, quadriceps, hamstrings, hip flexors, and calves. You will also engage muscles that stabilise the core and hips, those that are used for rotational movements, and even improve ankle stability.

Mistakes to avoid

Knee too far forward: Do not allow your forward knee to extend beyond your foot as that places too much stress on the knee. Practise landing with correct knee position.

Locking knees: If you lock your knees you are placing too much stress on them and reducing the ability of your knees and hips to absorb the force of the landing.

Staying on your toes: Be sure to keep your forward heel in contact with the ground as you begin and during each lunge movement. Stop if you lose balance or proper foot position, and start again more slowly.

Jump Squats

How to do it

Stand tall with your feet hip-width apart. Bend at the hips to get into a squat position until your thighs are parallel to the floor. Then press your feet down to explode off the floor and jump up as high as you can. Allow your knees to bend at 45 degrees when you land and then immediately drop back down into a squat and jump again.

Benefits

Jump squat is a dynamic exercise and helps build strength and power on your lower body and helps improve athletic performance.

Target Muscles

Lower body and core

Mistakes to avoid

Landing on toe/heels: Landing on either toe or heels put unwanted stress on the ankles and knees. Land evenly to make the exercise more productive.

Locking knee: Locked knee puts more stress on the knee and lower back and reduces the shock absorbing capacity of the joints.

Pull ups

How to do it

Stand under a pull up bar set up. Leap up and grip the bar with your hands shoulder-width apart and your palms facing forward. Hang with your arms fully extended, you can bend your legs at the knee if the bar height is short.

Keeping shoulders back and core engaged, pull yourself up. Try to pull upward until the chin is above the bar, if you can, and then slowly return downward until your arms are straight again.

Aim for as many pull-ups you can. Being a tough exercise, not everyone can do as many in the beginning.

Benefits

Pull up is the ultimate test of your upper body pull strength.

Help build every pull muscles of upper body and help stretch the torso (upper body)

Major muscle used lats (entire back muscles) biceps and forearms.

Mistakes to avoid

Not pulling up enough: By not pulling up enough, you are not utilising the range of motion, thus reducing the efficacy of the exercise

Swinging during exercise: By swinging, you would use the momentum to drive you up and lose control of the movement.

Rounding of the back: By rounding the back/spine, the back muscle would not be able to completely engage, thus reducing the effectiveness of the exercise.

Mountain climber

How to do it

Get into a high plank position, making sure to distribute your weight evenly between your hands and your toes. Keep the spine and hip neutral. Pull your right knee into your chest or right elbow as far as you can and return back to starting position. Repeat with left leg. Start slowly as you begin, and once the exercise is mastered, you may increase the speed.

Benefits

Excellent exercise for core to improve power and functionality.

Great cardiovascular endurance and agility building exercise

Being a dynamic move, help increase sports and athletic performance.

Major muscles used

Mountain climber is a whole body movement with more emphasis on the core

Mistakes to avoid

Bouncing on the toes and not allowing toes to touch the floor:These actions reduce the involvement of the core

Rounding of spine and sagging hips: These actions reduce the involvement of the core and put you at increased risk of low back injury.