Review of studies · Exercise · 17 Sept 2026
Resistance training produced small muscle-mass gains in children and teens across 23 trials
Source: Sports Medicine
What the research found
Study (meta-analysis). Komm and colleagues pooled 23 trials (1,443 children and adolescents). Versus passive controls, resistance training raised muscle mass a small amount (d=0.22); versus active controls the effect was larger (d=0.61), especially in postpubertal males. Hypertrophy was not limited to post-puberty. Youth, not adult. Educational exercise notes, not a kids’ bulk program.
Evidence level: Review of studies. This is among the stronger kinds of evidence, but one study rarely settles a question.
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