My friend's 12-yr-old daughter wants to start running. Is that too young? Any good clubs for kids in N. Virginia / McLean?

12 years old is certainly not too young to start running. Not even close.

Do they want their 12 year old daughter to run a marathon?

"McLean Youth Track and Field (MYTF) provides opportunities for kids ages 7 through 8th Grade to develop skills in track, field and cross-country events. Our goal is to help kids develop an appreciation for the sport, gain respect for sportsmanship and have opportunities to push themselves at their own pace. We focus on "in-house/intra-team" events and encourage all of our athletes to strive for personal improvement."

mcleantrack.org

I work with a number of athletes around that age and some that started around then. The key is to find a good group with a good coach that stresses long term athletic development.

Focus should be on fun, improving endurance and motor skill coordination. Yes running is a skill that can be improved significantly with time.

If she is an absolute beginner have her run 2-3x per week but hopefully she plays other sports. My 12-13 year olds I only see 2 x per week but as they get a little older up to 3-4 x per week.

I am originally from VA and ran one year at GM before moving to Australia. Good luck!

Too old :) Missed the boat for greatness. Haille was doing 20km a day getting to school and back from much younger...

pacers in clarendon; road runners in pentagon city or w falls church

Definitely not too young.

This is the URL for searching USATF clubs. Also most middle schools will probably have track and cross country teams.

I began running in 6th grade. 12 isn't too young

My daughters starting running in middle school, so, around 12. The key is to keep it fun and social for them. Don't focus on time or mileage. Just let them play their own game, have fun with it and grow to like it. Let them go as fast or slow as they want, as far or short as they want. If you run with them, let them set the pace and distance. Don't discourage walking breaks. Let them run like kids run. Because it's fun and feels good.

If they start wanting to push time and mileage on their own in a few years, let them. But it should be self motivated.

Anecdata: I started running (like, running per se, as opposed to running around on a playground like all kids do) in 5th grade. After-school running club, a couple days a week, super low-key, organized by the school librarian, a few other parents would show up and run with us, too. There were some very low-key fall xc races that we did, also, if we wanted to. This was all in the early 1990s.

I'm currently 40 years old, and running, and endurance sports more broadly (I live in Anchorage, so I'm a nordic skier first for about half the year), have been a huge part of my life for nearly three decades now. I actually found the librarian on FB a few years ago, just to thank her for planting this seed.

Tell her she's already too late. State of the art is marathons when you turn six.

Yeah, I mean just like all other sports, just let the kids eff off all practice and that will somehow work {eye roll}..

Most new kids need to be coaxed, bribed,ordered, or whatever to do any helpful amount of running. Once they are over the initial hump (or they quit), its usually smooth sailing. But, even then, we absolutely do not let them decide what workout to do, I mean....wut??

Swing by South Lakes HS in Reston, VA and speak to a bloke named Scott Raczko. He might offer some helpful guidance.

They are where I started running (age 7). It’s a wonderful group. “Meets” every weekend. Low pressure, great habits. Highly recommended.

Most kids start running at 3 or 4 so if she has never run by the time she has 12 then she should definitely get some medical help to start running

A good club I recommend in your area is the knights of Columbus they are an excellent organization

Maybe check out one of the local 5K parkrun events that happen every Saturday in locations around the DC area. They're free, fun, and allow a kid to push it or just go at a pace that suits them, whatever is more enjoyable.

If you're in McLean, the closest one to you may be Fletcher's Cove, which generally has a few kids. Their start is just over a mile from Chain Bridge. There tend to be more kids at the College Park location, but that's more of a trek from you. (Disclosure: I co-direct the College Park event.)