The story of Milo of Croton, who carried an ox on his shoulders and got stronger as the ox grew. Is a story used to explain the Principle of Overload in the field of Strength and Conditioning.
The argument is simple enough. If you want to grow stronger, lift more.
What if the story of Milo of Croton, was also an urgent reminder, for parents, teachers, and coaches?
The reminder is this. Do not wait to begin teaching your child to handle their own body weight. As your child develops, so too does the challenge of handing their own body weight. Wait and the task becomes harder. Much harder.
All too often we worry that we know too little, find an excuse about why we don’t and remain passive to the task.
“I personally think children are still developing in school, so they do not require weight training.”
This is a quote from a youth worker with a background in personal training. The article I had written was about teaching kids fundamental movement skills.
The difficult part is not in understanding that children develop, or even when it is safe to introduce weight training. No, the difficult part is that you may not know much about fundamental movement skills, how to move well.
And if that is the case, and I believe it to be so for most of the population. The opportunity is simple enough. Learn alongside your child.
Had Milo of Croton waited until his ox was fully grown, he would have been unknown to us. History reminds us not to wait but to act accordingly.