The 800/1500 Is This The Race For Your Youth Athlete

Here is another great article written by  guest contributor Alisa Harvey  especially for TrackMom.com. We as parents often gravitate to the race we like or have  participated in for ourselves for our kids. Alisa is going to share with us  food for thought as we help our youth athlete decide which race is his race .

The 800/1500 Is This The Race For Your Youth Athlete

 Alisa Harvey

For most youngsters racing two and four laps around a 400m track is a challenge.  Young legs can quickly run short distances multiple times as long as they are given adequate rest between runs, but asking a 8 to 12-year-old to race continuously for 800m or 1500m usually takes some amount of preparation.   Children between the ages of 8 - 12 should learn the value of pacing.  Pacing can be explained or practiced depending on the situation.  Many youngsters go into youth middle distance races without training; which is acceptable.  An untrained youth middle distance runner should be instructed to ease their way into their first longer races by backing off the pace and running comfortably.  Only when the untrained runner reaches the final straight-away should they accelerate into the finish.  If a young middle distance runner is training regularly with a coach, they should practice their own predicted race-pace as dictated by their coach.  Workouts should be run at predicted race-pace in order to acquaint the runner with their own pace.  At race time the young runner should automatically know just how fast to run each lap.

 

   A teen runner should follow the advice given for younger runners with regard to pacing, but they should not be afraid to challenge themselves.  The teen-age years are a good time to start structured endurance training.  If a teen 800m/1500m runner has expressed interest in the events then proper coaching should be given. 

 

Endurance or base training should be built slowly as to avoid injury.  The adolescent body has a good deal of growing to do so take it slow.  Start by attempting a short run.  If necessary, the youth should walk/jog the distance run.  Don’t increase the distance until you can run continuously for the determined distance.  Only once the teen runner has conquered the distance should they begin to increase the pace of their distance runs.  Regular endurance training combined with speed training will have a direct benefit to a teen’s 800m and 1500m racing.   Parents should pay close attention to providing proper footwear for youth middle distance runners.  Improper footwear can quickly lead to injuries in young growing bodies.  Avoid department store brand running shoes even for younger children.  Many of the technical running shoe brands sell children’s running shoes.  Teenagers should be professional fit in adult technical running shoes.  

 For other articles written by Alisa Harvey click here

 aharveyva@earthlink.net

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2. Youth Runners and Cross County Running
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4. Getting Your Youth Cross Country Runner Faster… Is It Possible?
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