“You should wait until the bones are fused and skeletal growth is finished..."Makes good medical and developmental sense to me, and didn't seem to hurt Ryan's athletic success at all. In fact, his dad's low-keyed, child-focused attitude is likely just what Ryan needed while young. My other issue with kids body building is that we want our kids to look like kids while they are kids. I worry that too many tweens and teens are trying to emulate the stars they see on TV, who appear like mini-Arnold Schwarzenegger as boys or overly thin Barbie dolls as girls. Both are unhealthy body images and as parents we need to monitor for those issues if our kids delve into the world of body shaping in any way at all while young. My advice is to let your kids be kids as long as possible. Don't worry so much about talent or try to push them in directions you think they need to go. Follow their leads for interests and help them find sports venues that nurture those interests. The rest, like "talent" and even "success", will come as it comes. We can't guarantee that but we can provide the high 5's for wins and the hugs for losses. If all goes well, our kids will have a healthy mix of both.
Links:
[1] http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/20/fashion/20fitness.html?ex=1363752000&en=91412a553199232a&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink