What Age Can Kids Safely Start Lifting Weights?

Coach Mike Ockrim, CSCS and founder of Mighty Oak Athletic in Westmont, IL, answers the question parents ask him most: at what age can kids safely start lifting weights? Mike breaks down the current American Academy of Pediatrics guidance (2020, reaffirmed 2024), the NSCA's 2009 position statement on youth resistance training, and the British Journal of Sports Medicine's landmark "Citius, Altius, Fortius" paper. He kills the three myths that still scare parents in DuPage County and the western Chicago suburbs — the growth-stunting myth, the wait-until-puberty myth, and the safety myth — and explains why MOA starts kids at age 6, right in the middle of the AAP-supported 5-to-7 window. If you have a student-athlete in Westmont, Hinsdale, Clarendon Hills, Downers Grove, Darien, Burr Ridge, Oak Brook, Willowbrook, Lisle, Woodridge, La Grange, or Western Springs, this episode tells you what the research actually says and how to know if your child is ready. Get full access to Mighty Oak Athletic Free Newsletter at mightyoak.substack.com/subscribe