Most adults training kids are chasing views on social media, not optimal adaptations.
“Variation in training is important.
However, exercises are skills.
And to improve skills, we must practice them.
If the goal of training is to improve athletes force expression capabilities, but we’re constantly manipulating variables..
We’re infringing on their progression.”
-Ray Zingler on X
Variation in training is in fact important.
Once the body adapts to a stimulus, let’s say 5 sets of 5 with 135 pounds, eventually you will have to manipulate at least one variable to continue progressing, whether that be sets, reps, load, etc.
But here is the fact of the matter:
Many put variation on youth athletes well, and I mean WELL before it is needed.
“Yeah, well we’re constantly adjusting variables to make sure the athletes’ bodies don’t adapt to the training. We want to keep them constantly progressing!”
Trust me, I love Louie Simmons, Conjugate, & Westside as much as anyone, I really do, and I do believe in the principals the conjugate method stands on:
Raise multiple athletic qualities simultaneously (Strength, Speed, Etc.).
There is one glaring problem with the Westside Bro’s (don’t worry, I still love you) who are training youth athletes, though..
Skinny 15-year-old kids with a training age of 2, need to be trained far more differently than 42 year old world class powerlifters with a training age of 30.
You don’t need to be rotating bars every single week, nor do you need to “wave” band tensions over 3 weeks. And guess what, they can do the same accessory work for 4, 8, even 12 weeks at a time.
In fact, they should be.
And the reason is because exercises, despite being “general” are skills and to improve on skills, they must be practiced.
It’d be like going to a baseball hitting instructor twice a week for 12 weeks and then every 4th week the instructor manipulating a variable (stance, hand height, follow through, weight of the bat, etc).
He would never do that. If he did our kids would never make any progress.
Instead, (great) hitting instructors find the most comfortable, realistic stance/swing for the kid and let him get outstanding at it and then and only then will they make micro adjustments, if necessary, in due time.
While training and sport are “different” (general vs. specific) elements of practice are still required in both.
If you’re training athletes for a living, there is no need to throw the full deck of cards at them in 12 weeks.
Keep a few cards up your sleeve for when (hell, if) you need them.
You probably won’t.
