My 11 year-old son wants to run a half-marathon: Good idea or not?

If he wants to do it, let him because he sure as hell can do it. Properly train him for it so he doesn't get hurt. All the naysayers on the forum are absolutists, unlike you, who was smart enough to beg the question. The real answer is - Sure he could get injured, but he could also do it without getting injured. Always strive for your best and teach others to strive for their best too.

I agree with silly old fossil.

WHY would this kid run a half? It is a long, taxing distance for a kid. He will have zero competition anyway...or do you just want to boost his (and your) ego? Hey, son, you're awesome, you won first in your age group (out of 2 kids). Do you want him to become Dean K (or are YOU Dean K.?)?

What about he continues running on his own, runs track, plays soccer, has fun, and competes with kids his age.

Here's my two-sense, for what its worth. I started running in 1977 at the age of 12 after playing youth soccer for years. I had more endurance than most kids my age but not a ton of speed. I did not know how to really train; I just went out and ran. I did a few races, including a 6-miler and a 20K about a year later. Then at 14 I ran my first half marathon on a warm day in 1:33. A month later on no real training to speak of, I ran my first marathon in 3:57. I think I hit the wall at 15...stupid but that experience for me lasted a lifetime in that it taught me to perserve and not quit. Now at 42 I am still very competitive albeit the little aches and pains but the bottom line was that my early efforts never hurt me in the long run. Back then it was all about the fun and challenge. I developed gradually and went onto be a successful runner on the local scene.

Bottom line, as long as he has fun, let him run the half marathon. The sense of pride from his accomplishment will stay with him for the rest of his life and harbor the self-confidence he will use down the road in all his endeavors.

Mzungu fantasies wrote:

MTH wrote:

But Tergat, Geb, Rono and other use to run miles and miles each day as boys in Kenya.

That's an old wives tale.

Especially the part about Geb spending his childhood in Kenya.

I recall reading that the worst thing for youngsters is harsh intervals (like repeat 400's/800's etc.), yet some of these JO coaches do this to their kids.

We are talking about someone jogging a half marathon. He'll be fine.

You don't want to dampen his enthusiasm (and it's great these days that a kid has that). On the other hand, building up a bit first seems the prudent thing to do for anyone at any age.

Therefore, I'm not sure about doing it in June already. Sure he could complete it, if he can do 6 now. But, you probably want to make sure it's a good experience. Perhaps tell him if he can build up to 10 miles then we'll talk.

I have coached my young son amongst a group of athletes for nearly five years. When he was 11 he ran the odd 5k because older athletes in the group at that time were also running that distance on the road. My lad was not a fast type and found it hard to compete in his age group over shorter distances like 400 and 800. He loved the longer cross country races and excelled. He loved 5k. As an athlete myself since the age of 12 I wanted long term interest to develop in my son. The first priority is fun but for Kids who have a competitive edge they need signposts to stay motivated. Some kids can't compete at the shorter distances and I think if my lad wasn't able to compete at those events to which he was more suited then he would have left the sport. As it is he has won medals at State and national level in the steeple chase. So I am not a great believer in the current restrictions that exist in say the UK - there he would not be able to have run 2k steeple chase or 5k events (restrictions on s/c in UK are to under 17 only and even then for 1500, not 2k).

That said I do not believe it is good for young kids to run 10k and further in races. I have seen kids here in Oz race 10k and because kids are generally competitive they race them. Towards the end of these races you can see the distress that some are in. My advice is let him race 5k provided some suitable training is done.

AS long as HE is doing it because HE wants to. Not because some semi-successful parent hopes their son is the next Ryan Hall. When pushy parents tell me they want there child to compete in longer events I instill rules about age restrictions. When kids are self motivated I monitor them carefully and use my judgment.

you should let him do it. its not like you're training him to be a half marathon runner. just letting him run one for fun.. all it will do is encourage him to be tough and not quit.

that being said.

i dont believe that kids who are under the age of 17 really need to be concentrating or racing regularly events which are over 5-7km. especially if the runner is injury prone. if you really want your son to be a great distance runner one day let him do this, but as soon as its over get him into little athletics or something like it and have him race and compete against kids his own age while having fun with his mates.

running when you're a kid should be about fun, not treating it too seriously otherwise they'll quit at the first oppertunity.

Well, i ran a 15k when i was 12 (7th grade) in 1987. My parents entered me when i proved i could run 7 miles which i did. Hell, i ran the 15k well, no walking, @ 7:30 pace. I felt fine other than drinking too much water. So, IMO he should be fine. I was sore in my calves for a few days but that's the extent of it as i remember.

Your stupidity amazes me. Here are some quotes by Arthur Lydiard, a man whom many consider to be the greatest coach ever.

"If you can get a boy in his teens and encourage him to train and not race until he is matured, then you have laid the foundation of an Olympic Champion."

“No one will burn out doing aerobic running. It is too much anaerobic running, which the American scholastic athletic system tends to put young athletes through, that burns them out.”

“Your aerobic development is a gradual thing. It takes years and years of marathon-type training to develop your aerobic capacity to the fullest.”

"If we look at the Africans - Kenyans, Tanzanians, and Ethiopians - who are now beating most people in the world, we'll see that it's not because they have scientific laboratories to train and test athletes but simply because they do a lot of running - they run to school and they run home again. We have to encourage our young people to do a lot of aerobic running and not to race too much. At that age they have highly sensitive nervous systems and can't stand a lot of anaerobic training or pressure."

My wife (who ran a marathon when she was 11 and is still enjoying running 25 years later) says you should let your son run the half.

The key things (which your original post captures):

1) He should "run" the thing, not "race" it.

2) He should work up in distance so that completing the distance is easy come race day.

3) He should only do it if HE wants to.

Sounds like you've got all of that figured out.

It would be a good idea to have someone else (i.e., you) run it with him, mainly to reign in the start-line excitement and keep him on a reasonable pace in the early going, remind him that he is there just to go the distance, not to "race".

Good luck!

Paula Radcliffe = AMAZING

return to index wrote:

I agree with silly old fossil.

WHY would this kid run a half? It is a long, taxing distance for a kid. He will have zero competition anyway...or do you just want to boost his (and your) ego? Hey, son, you're awesome, you won first in your age group (out of 2 kids). Do you want him to become Dean K (or are YOU Dean K.?)?

What about he continues running on his own, runs track, plays soccer, has fun, and competes with kids his age.

Thank you, Index. You seem to be the only other person who GETS IT.

wilson kip ran 1:49 as a 12 year old. i think your son will be fine

I don't think there is a reason for him NOT to run it.

1) For those people thinking that he is doing the distance "too early," I would bet that IF he runs in high school he will be much more interested in running whatever his classmates are running (5k cross country, etc). That's how kids work.

2) He's not going to get hurt. It just isn't going to happen. Name a scenario where he gets hurt. If he was hammering 400's at the track 3 days a week, he could get hurt, or burned out, but he isn't, and he won't.

3) Kids that age don't race anything they would think of as "long distance." He's not going to see one dude on the starting line, start talking some smack, and then trade elbows and surges with him for 13.1 miles. He's going to plod along, give high fives to spectators, and stop at the water stations. It's as if people on this board forget what running was like back in middle school...

4) It's good for kids to learn to challenge THEMSELVES. Nobody's pushing him to do it, he's motivated, he has demonstrated the ability and the desire to do it... let him do it! If he was picking up your guitar a couple times a week and trying to figure out out to play, and asked if he could get lessons, I would hope your reaction would be the same- of course!

5) In summary, your son sounds like a motivated kid and the last thing he needs is his dad laying down rules that have no logistical leg to stand on. All the people that are naysayers here are probably running the same half marathon and are worried that he will beat them.

Dean, this started out as a soccer coach asking his 11 year old SOCCER players to run THREE miles for SOCCER fitness. That sounds like a perfectly balanced, rational fitness plan for 11 year old SOCCER players to me.

Ah. The voice of reason.

The one other thing that hasn't been mentioned is technique. If the kid is wearing "proper" running shoes and is learning to overstride and run heel to toe then there's a lot of impact going through those young joints. But if he's landing on the ball of the foot under his hips, there'll be very little impact and he'll come to no harm.

Lots of barefoot running is great for kids.

My son does lots of running. He is 11 too. When he runs you'd be hard pressed to argue that running is a high impact sport. He ran his first 10M race the other day and had a great time. I hope the OP's son has as much fun doing the HM.

No!!!!!!!!!!!!! Not yet. He's too young for that. Just let him have fun.

Idiotfinder wrote:

Those who base their opinions on pure speculation that have no basis in fact and rely soley on personal whimsy are taletell signs of an idiot. At least have a reasonable arguement for you position and why you belive it. If you can't do that its time to change your opinion.

What if I said, "in my opinion, children should not play violent video games such as Grand Theft Auto". Am I an idiot for holding this opinion since I have not read scientific studies proving that this is harmful to their development?