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You should encourage her to join an after school activity or sport. It's good for kids and keeps them out of trouble! Track is one of them and it's good exercise. 1-3 hours at their age is not excessive. Just make sure she's eating healthy and getting a lot of water intake.
You should encourage her to join an after school activity or sport. It's good for kids and keeps them out of trouble! Track is one of them and it's good exercise. 1-3 hours at their age is not excessive. Just make sure she's eating healthy and getting a lot of water intake.
I think that Track (at most schools) is nice because there is a little less "Intense Parenting" like you might see in Soccer, Basketball, etc...
My daughter would like to join track next year. I was not allowed to be in any sports in high school, so I have no experience here. She has been running or using a stairclimber for exercise. The other day she was on it for an hour, which I thought was excessive. I want to support her, of course, but also want her to have healthy, moderate behaviors. Is an hour of running or other exercise per day bordering on obsessive? This is high school track here, not any kind of professional training.
She's an athlete? Then why would you want to curtail her training, which is by no means excessive? Do you not trust her judgment? If not, why not?
My daughter would like to join track next year. I was not allowed to be in any sports in high school, so I have no experience here. She has been running or using a stairclimber for exercise. The other day she was on it for an hour, which I thought was excessive. I want to support her, of course, but also want her to have healthy, moderate behaviors. Is an hour of running or other exercise per day bordering on obsessive? This is high school track here, not any kind of professional training.
No. An hour is fair for her sport. Track events are generally short to mid-level distance. The events could be 100 m, 200 m, 400 m, 800 m, and 10,000 m (6.2 miles). HS runners would likely finish a 10k well under an hour. So an hour on the stair climber with low impact is good for the knees and building stamina. It's safer than running outdoors by the street where there could be road rage drivers or cat callers who harass teen girls.
Teens can recover much more quickly than adults. The main thing to watch for would be (1) injuries or (2) teen bullying/hazing. In the former, teen girls can be at risk for knee injuries. But prevention is key. In the latter, some teams have secretive hazing rituals that may or may not occur in some areas. The latter would be more likely in male contact sports like football or wrestling (very common for both). Hazing can also be psychological - mental tormenting and exclusion unless performance expectations are met. Beware of that as well. Unfortunately, there are cases of teen girls hazing on sports teams. Just talk to the coach and athletic director to make sure everything is ok. Speak with other parents about their experience. ACL: The dreaded five-second knee injury - CNN.com Girls’ soccer team blindfolded with panties in ‘kidnapping’ hazing ritual | New York Post
In Phoenix, AZ where I live, there is a heat wave. And there are horror stories of teens dying in a rigorous hike in the surrounding mountains. Your daughter working out on a stair master indoors would be far safer than a teen trying to hike Camelback Mountain at 100+ F in June. She is preventing knee injuries or other problems that can happen outdoors in extreme heat. http://www.azfamily.com/story/325303...r-warns-hikers
But sports can be a great outlet for teens if the coach is great and the team has a healthy chemistry. Just encourage fun and not unrealistic perfectionism. I am glad you are close to your teen daughter and are cognizant of her well-being. There are many female athletes who excel in HS and go onto college. When I was in Florida I watched many women's FSU soccer games and Florida softball games. The evolution of their athletic talent was amazing. Best wishes.
Last edited by grad_student200; 06-20-2017 at 02:06 AM..
My daughter would like to join track next year. I was not allowed to be in any sports in high school, so I have no experience here. She has been running or using a stairclimber for exercise. The other day she was on it for an hour, which I thought was excessive. I want to support her, of course, but also want her to have healthy, moderate behaviors. Is an hour of running or other exercise per day bordering on obsessive? This is high school track here, not any kind of professional training.
It is not even halfway close to being anything nearing the ballpark of being excessive. Just let her do her thing, until track season starts. She'll get some good info from her coaches and should be okay. Support her in her running goals and let her know she's doing just fine.
FYI - I have friends who have their kids (ages 8 and 5) run for an hour three times per week as conditioning training for their gymnastics and ice skating. Kids are dong great. So your high schooler could actually do a lot more than what she's doing now and still be okay. I'd suggest that maybe what you could do is make sure to have healthy food in the house for her to eat. No junk.
My son is a college athlete (rowing). During the summer he typically works out 8 hours a day. that usually includes a ten mile run, weights, erg time, water time, a long bicycle ride, then more of any of the other things after a nap. I am not sure where you would hit the "too much" level for exercise. Maybe if you worked out more than 16 hours a day and it started invading sleep time.
I expected you to say she exercises several times a day an hour each time.
I would be happy she exercises instaed of laying on the couch or playing video games.
How about you exercise a little with her? Seems like you need it
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