Running/Exercise for LITTLE kids??

chrischinchilla

I'm volunteering with my local Young Marines chapter. They have physical fitness training at each meeting and I'm wondering how I should structure the training. The young adults 12 to 18 can generally hang with a standard platoon run (about 5.5 mph pace for about 1.5 miles, while calling cadence).

But the kids from 7 to 11--JUST HOW MUCH CAN THEY TAKE? Of course, I have NO intention or desire to overwork any of these kids, but when it comes to this 1.5-mile formation run, are their little bodies and muscles too fragile to handle the distance? How about the pace?

Please offer what advice and experience you have in the area of "exercise for 7- to 11-year-old boys and girls."

(Please, don't respond to this unless you have valid experience--either as someone with trainer experience, or as a parent/guardian who actively engages in physical activity with children. Please back up whatever advice you have with solid info/experience. Thanks!)

withervein

I think at the end of elementary school, we were doing the one mile run for the Physical Fitness test each year. I hated it, but i know that kids in grade school can go that far at least, but they might be bored.

Maybe some relay races instead? Suicides, hopping relays, relays while using a funny gait, etc. with teams were fun because everyone wants to win and there's a lot of cheering on.

I worked as a teacher in japan and they do distance running each spring in all grades as the weather is quite chilly and it's a good way to wake up/warm up during recess. If I recall, they just sent them out to go for about 10 minutes. Again, boring. The kids said they wished they could be playing dodgeball or jumping rope instead.

So as I said, you won't find that young ones CAN'T run a distance, its more that they're gonna be bored and not want to do it.

Oh, and I will also add, there's a kids class that practices jiujitsu and thai boxing before my ladies' kickboxing class. The kids are 8-12, too young for the teen class, but not in with the teeny tiny kids. They seem to love working their little butts off, but again, its the shorter attention spans that cause most problems to crop up. If you can find ways to do endurance that will keep them in the game, go for it. Unless they've got undiagnosed medical problems they probably have more energy and less whining than teenagers.

jacksonpt

FWIW...

I have volunteered/helped out on a couple of children's triathlons. We've generally gotten kids in the 8-12yr range and they can handle a 4 mile bike and a 1 mile run.

I have 2 children myself. My son is 6 is would live outside if he could - mostly biking. He has no problem biking 4 miles, but has a hard time staying focused to run very far. But that's a mental thing, not a physical thing. My daughter is 10 and while she likes to bike and be outdoors, she's much more calm than my son (loves to do more observant things rather than active things). She too has no problem biking 4 miles, but won't run any further than she absolutely has to.

My point? It depends a lot on the kid.

Can you talk to someone who has done it before? Are you getting kids who are ready for this type of thing? Is it a voluntary program (assuming only kids wanting/able to do this kind of stuff will be there), or is it more of an activity based day care program where you could get any size/shape kid?