Is 12 years old too young to train for a 1/2 mary? (Page 2)

I am not a doc, but here's some anecdotal advice, if you want to call it that:

I had a very active childhood, playing as many sports as time would allow.  I started with basketball in the 4th grade and it wasn't very long after that I suffered from Osgood Schlatter's disease in both of my knees.  It was very painful as a kid, but now I don't have any problems with it.  I've dislocated my patella twice (both sports oriented injuries) and had to have corrective surgery at 17.  Since then, I have only had minimal aches and pains in my knees, although since my adolescence, my musculature has changed a lot.

Playing sports that young definitely had an effect on my adult body... if you compare me with my younger sister who never played sports you'd understand.  Playing sports that young can have an effect on the hormones of young girls and that can adversely affect puberty and their menstral cycles.

That being said, would I trade all of the experiences I had playing sports?  Nope.  Not for the world.  I am who I am today because I learned a hell of a lot about myself on a volleyball court.  I learned some of the hardest lessons and experienced some the best times playing high school sports.

In short, that's something you need to discuss with a doctor and your kiddo.

Ahhhh....the battle of the guesses. 

I think there is a little truth to both guesses.  One the one hand, my daughter likes running with me, and she really enjoyed the 5k we did last Thanksgiving.  She has also said that she wants to start doing tris in the next year or so (she's still a little spooked by road tires...heh). 

However, she is also a competitive young lady, and she thinks the idea of a 1/2 mary sounds fun and challenging.  I specifically asked her "Why don't we do another 5k?" and she said "That would be fun too, but I want to do the half marathon." 

The bottom line is, whatever we decide, one thing is for certain.  She WILL NOT be pushed into strict regimented training or asked to extend herself beyond what she can reasonably handle.  Even when we do just a one mile run together, the rule is, and will continue to be, that we run 4 minutes then walk 1, and we slow down/stop whenever she wants to.  The goal is to keep it fun, give her an appreciation for the sport, and allow her to improve at her own pace.

My daughter is 16 and I will not let her race over a 10k yet.  There is lots of time left for the long stuff when she gets older and her body is ready for it.   

As far as training with your daughter goes I think it is a great idea on the shorter days.  If she wants to go long with you then have her ride her bike.

I'll weigh in, as I researched this for a friend with a 14-year-old that wanted to do an IM.

First, let's talk about what's out there. Are there instances of kids doing long-distance events with no (known) ill effects?  Sure. Everyone has an "I did it, and I'm OK" story. And I'm sure there are instances of kids not being OK. I regard 'examples' as anecdotal only, and discount them. They are not representative of what you can expect.

More representative is the research that has been done. And to sum it up....until a kid is done growing, the growth plates (the ends of long bones in the legs, for instance) are fragile and can be damaged easily. Repetitive stress is one of the key ways to damage them, like a marathon pounding, as an example. If you damage them, bad things happen, ranging from pain, to stunted growth, to in extreme cases much worse.

Moreover, kids have a harder time cooling themselves, as (whatever cooling systems kids have) aren't fully developed, again, backed by research. In longer distance events, this manifests itself as an issue....not sure of the consequences, but again, pause for thought.

I'm not a doc, nor am I an expert on this. But I'd encourage you to google and read the research on repetitive stress and the growth plates, as well as the ability to shed heat from the body.

It's super easy to get all bold and say 'just do it, you'll be fine'. But in many cases, it won't turn out that way. An informed decision is a parent's responsibility. Hopefully you'll research and find yours.

You will never find any peer-reviewed studies on this topic because who would subject their child to the stresses needed to come up with any potential negative effects?  Sure, they might be able to compile some sort of record of excercise induced injuries, but even that would be questionable and easily refuted.  And no real conclusions could come from that as it is a broad thing to look at.

Let me ask you this ..... especially since you have been arguing the hell out of it.  do you have any children, and more specifically a daughter?  It is my feeling that that would have a large influence on the approach one would have to the subject.

Than where is that evidence?

Agreed.  But it would influence your approach to the topic and the "effort" with which the direction of finding research went.

You are saying that.  Fair opinion.  But I would still opine that running and playing for fun are a lot different than the strains of long distance training and that it IS harmful.  And as a (hopeful) future USATF coach I would strongly urge the parents to re-consider allowing their child to do that.  After all, there is little evidence showing that it DOESN'T harm them.  And when it comes to kids, it is usually safer to err on the side of caution.

you missed the point. THere will be no winning anything per dad.

this is considered just a fun run. run/walk for that matter.

This is not a specific peer reviewed article, but it references them and does a good job of putting out the potential problem areas for kids.

I'd heard of the overheating issue (just finished reading about it in Daniels' book), but not the stress impact ones so much.

http://www.kidsrunning.com/news/krnewsmarathonstatement.html

And I would argue also that in no x-country program that I was involved with in school did we ever do more than 25 - 30 mpw.  Usually they are 3 - 5 miles per day, 5 days a week.  In the prep. school we did a little more than that as most of our races were on the weekend and were 8k, but we were also all 18 -21 years old.  and those runs were also all shorter duration.  The longest I ever ran in school personally was 11 miles, again in a college prep. program, not high school.  Of course, these were not premier programs, so other mileage may vary for the elite schools.  But on average, my numbers are a lot more realistic than the 35 - 45 stated.

I think maybe you guys have lost sight of the topic, which is "Is 12 years old too young to train for a 1/2 mary?"

Lots of references to marathons and IMs, which no doubt are significantly more stressful than a 1/2 marathon.

You mistook my line ... the reference to not being specifically peer reviewed was talking about the one I posted, not yours.  I've also never said that I don't trust the AAP.

All studies on it referenced are inconclusive at best, and I agree with Daniels that there is a time and place for distance running and training, and it is not in people that young.  My opinion and philosophy, take it or leave it.

Just for grins, I thought I would add that the LONGEST run of the training plan we are looking at, prior to the race itself, is 10 miles.  There are only three running days a week, and most of them are 30-40 minutes.  There are two cross-training days a week, and two rest days. Given the fact that we plan to run/walk, and keep it slow (12+ minute per mile pace estimated when you factor in the walking) it looks like the highest volume week of the whole plan would likely be approximately 18-20 miles.

I have talked to Madison (my kiddo), and for now, we are starting the program and playing it by ear.  We don't hit any runs over a 10k until week 7, so there is plenty of time for us to adjust or decide we just want to stay with the shorter stuff.  

This is about her having fun while reaching towards a goal, with dad along for the ride.  If it gets too cumbersome, or just "not fun" for her for any reason, we will adjust as necessary.

Sounds like a good approach.  But I would just suggest really make sure she is "listening" to her body and not going on with a workout just because she wants to have fun with you even if it doesn't feel right or something hurts (beyond usual training fatigue).  When it all comes down to it, it is really between you and your daughter and nothing strangers on the internet say should have any realistic bearing on your decisions as a parent.