Richard Bruffy, 13-Year-Old-Bodybuilder, Raises Weight-Training Safety Questions

Richard Bruffy, 13, just won his first amateur bodybuilding competition. Bruffy trained two days a week lifting weights with his father, pushing himself toward what he calls "ridiculous goals" to improve his physique. While he had constant parental supervision, TODAY show anchor Matt Lauer questions the safety of Bruffy's intense weight-training regimen in a recent segment.

Psychologist Jeff Gardere agrees: "With bodybuilding at such a young age, we know there are many more injuries," he explains. The muscle fibers of pre-teens are much more susceptible to injury than those of adults.

Dr. Jordan Metzl of the American Academy of Pediatrics says both his organization and the American College of Sports Medicine recommend strength training for teens and adolescents but strongly discourage power building. "I saw that kid trying to max out on a bench press, and that's a disaster waiting to happen," Metzl says.

Check out the teen bodybuilding controversy in the video below.

WATCH:

Comments

[coachdrs]

08:55 AM on 08/04/2011

Strength training is good for teens within ACSM guidelines. However, bodybuilding at the age of 13 is not a good idea, not only from a physical perspective but also from a mental perspective. Physically, a 13 year old's body is not ready for such intense workouts and restrictive dieting. Mentally, bodybuilding at such a young age can lead to body image problems.

[Cassandra L Chapa]

05:57 PM on 08/25/2011

Exactly! Some people don't understand/know that bodybuilding doesn't involve just weight training, but extreme dieting as well...I'm glad he and his father found something to bond over, but 13 is too young to train for this sort of competition.

[lilia52]

02:57 PM on 07/24/2011

I know this kid, I have for a long time...he def has Aspbergers but his parents never wanted to see it or get him treated. No kid gets this obessed with something who is not on the Aspbergers spectrum.... When he was little he was obsessed with the movie Predator and I can tell you emphatically that he has no friends. He is also under 5 ft tall. Way to small.

[John Camp]

01:47 PM on 07/22/2011

2 observations

1. As a former college athlete (Lacrosse) I don't know of one team mate at the collegiate or post collegiate level who was in the weight room in jr high.

2. That kid is way too lean for 13. If he has the natural testosterone levels to support that physique at that age something is seriously out of whack and he should be at a pediatric endocrinologist's office stat. Or he is supplementing in a dangerous way.

[lotus321]

01:42 PM on 07/25/2011

Oh please my son was almost twice his size at 13 with larger muscles.

[John Camp]

02:09 PM on 07/25/2011

But was he that lean? I stand by statement and would add that in over a decade of coaching at the HS level I have never seen a kid that looked like that. In fact even the Srs that lived in the weight room were not that lean. And these were dedicated athletes many of whom went on to play at the collegiate level and some on the pro level. There is often a huge gulf between being fit, healthy and athletic and being ripped. Being big or ripped is a very unhealthy goal for a 13 YO boy.

[MaddieJolly]

01:47 PM on 07/21/2011

Wow, that really is concerning.

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