I want to start Pole Vault...

[Squid]

I'm brazilian and I'm wanting to start pole vault. Here in Brazil, we don't have a Track & Field team to train in high school, but my gym teacher is fortunatly a Track&Field coach, and his specializes in the High Jump, Long Jump and fortunatly, Pole Vault.

Thing is, I'm 16 but a bit late when it comes to growth. I'm just 5'3, with my max height reaching about 5'5. I'm thinking of gaining more muscle mass before trying it out, so I don't know if I should ask my teacher to help me now, or only next year, after I gain a bit more pounds and muscle mass.

What should I do?

[rainbowgirl28]

I'm brazilian and I'm wanting to start pole vault. Here in Brazil, we don't have a Track & Field team to train in high school, but my gym teacher is fortunatly a Track&Field coach, and his specializes in the High Jump, Long Jump and fortunatly, Pole Vault.

Thing is, I'm 16 but a bit late when it comes to growth. I'm just 5'3, with my max height reaching about 5'5. I'm thinking of gaining more muscle mass before trying it out, so I don't know if I should ask my teacher to help me now, or only next year, after I gain a bit more pounds and muscle mass.

What should I do?

Ask your teacher to start training you in pole vaulting technique as soon as possible. It takes many years to learn, so the sooner you can start the better.

[powerplant42]

Don't think of being short or scrawny as a disadvantage... think of it as incentive to be better than all the tall buff people! Definitely start as soon as you can, strength is not a big issue for beginners. I'm sure you can do a few pull ups and squat over a hundred pounds.

Notice the search feature on this site. It will hopefully be a friend to you in the next few months... do some specific searches, and just browse a little bit.

[Andy_C]

I won't lie to you, being short is a disadvantage. But it by no means eliminates your future as a pole vaulter. I'm 5'6 and I train with a girl who's 5'11 and a guy who's 6'3 (Aussies are tall lol). The sheer difference in grip height from standing is huge but it's only made me want to train harder and do better. At this stage, I don't think you need to worry too much about strength, you'll build that up later on. People often underestimate how technically oriented pole vault is. My advice is to get right into it and learn how to do it correctly and safely. 16 is a great age to start and my only regret is that I've picked up pole vaulting a bit late (19).