In the September 2011 issue of Runner’s World, Jeff Galloway wrote an article about introducing children to running. In 2 years of subscribing to Runner’s World, this little article, less than 1/2 a page, is hands down, the most useful article I have read.
Jeff breaks down children’s training by age.
As I read, I tucked away this little bit of knowledge:
AGES 6 AND UNDER
HOW FAR? Not very. At this age, playing chase or racing Dad to the mailbox is a great way to introduce kids to running.
RUN/WALK RATIO Run segments should be no longer than 10 to 20 seconds. Walk one to two minutes between each.
ANd on Sunday, we got to use it. Brenton wanted to try out his new shoes. We headed to a nearby trail along the lake.
“Run, Mamma! Run!” Samuel would say. ”No STOP!”
I would stop with an “Eerch!” turn around and count, “Ready! Set! GOOOOOO!”
Samuel and Brenton would race to the finish line (my arms). Samuel always won by crashing into me and knocking me over with a bear hug.
“That was a good run. You are such a fast runner.” I would tell him as I climbed back up to my feet.
A few moments later I would hear his sweet sing-song voice say “Run, Mamma! Run!”
The full article on safe training for children is available here: Family Planning
