EXERCISE: TWO MORE REPS, MA!

Doctors once worried that weight lifting could damage a kid's growth plates. But more preteens have been pumping iron since current studies showed that, when it's done in moderation, possible benefits include increased bone density and reduced risk of diabetes. Recently the National School Fitness Foundation began placing child-size weight machinery in nearly 80 elementary schools. Gyms are also catching on to the trend: Town Sports International, which runs East Coast facilities, has dropped its membership age from 18 to 14. Dr. Jordan Metzl, medical director of the Manhattan-based Sports Medicine Institute for Young Athletes, says, "Training makes sports safer by getting kids' bodies prepared."

But non athletes could benefit most. With obesity on the rise, experts say weight training is a way to motivate heavier kids who are less at ease on the playing field (and targets in dodgeball). Wayne Wescott, research director at the South Shore YMCA in Quincy, Mass., says that strength training favors larger kids "and gives them a much-needed sense of physical accomplishment."

Experts say weight training shouldn't take the place of cardio-vascular activities; the American College of Sports Medicine suggests lifting no more than three nonconsecutive days a week. Overdoing it can injure growth plates and cause muscle sprains. Ellen Vita, a school fitness-center coordinator, says: "When they're younger, they really have to be watched. They get macho."

© 2004