I'm not sure who sounds more ridiculous, you or the OP. You and your doctor both sound paranoid. Normal exercise is met with xrays? Wtf? Would he rather they get diabetes and obesity?
I'm not sure who sounds more ridiculous, you or the OP. You and your doctor both sound paranoid. Normal exercise is met with xrays? Wtf? Would he rather they get diabetes and obesity?
Precious Roy wrote:
I would not worry about racing every now and then if it is fun. I would certainly not start any kind of training program until junior high. Soccer will give her all the speed work and mileage she needs until then.
This pretty much. As long as "the fire" is there, it's part of your job to structure that desire by limiting/structuring the workouts so she has time to recover/grow.
Follow whatever she's interested in and DO NOT EVER trade performance for something she desires. She wants shoes with heels and you don't think it's appropriate? Say no and hold the boundary. Set that boundary clearly.
There are some great life lessons if she's challenged by her interests and you provide the structure for her to be challenged in an age-appropriate way. If she gets bored with whatever she's interested in, fine, onto the next interest.
We've got a teenage daughter who is a great kid making good decisions as evidence this works.
Half marathon is too far for a kid that age.
Read the Grant book, it is good.
I would limit the racing at young ages. It's good that she likes to run but all that racing isn't great for her. I'd see about finding a local usatf club for track or xc season and see if she likes real training and racing. That's where most serious kids her age will be running, not road races.
If you think she is going to be running in HS, I would keep tipping the balance to other sports at least through age 12-13.
We went to the doctor after one of my kids thought he pulled something. The doctor and the nurse heard our story and felt that maybe an X-ray of the growth plate was warranted. I did not. But since he is the head of pediatric Orthopedic Surgery at the Cleveland Clinic (Doctor Robert Tracy Ballock) and went to Harvard Medical School, I let him call the shots (lol). As far as the diary, he thought it was a good idea in case they did start to develop some bad feelings about running. We share it with their regular pediatric doctor and also spend time discussing with the kids on our own. I knew I should have kept me mouth shut because I had a feeling someone would start taking shots at me as well. I was trying to help the poster. Are you saying that you think a half marathon for a nine year old girl (who btw doesn't have much training, speed, or endurance based on the things and the numbers the op stated) is just normal? If so, I think you should have your head checked. I care about my kids and I know what they do is a bit above ordinary, so I stay vigilant before I end up doing something training/racing related that could hurt them down the line. When I saw the op's post, I became extremely worried for that little girl and the way they were training/racing her. I think it is irresponsible, but I don't judge, I just want to pass along some info on the subject since I have a bit of experience with this.