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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]To me, the thing to be careful of are people or programs who tell your kid "you must run like this."  Sure, once kids are in middle or high school, sprint form matters for competition (things like not having lateral movement in your arm swing), but beware people who tell you "your kid needs to run on his toes" or "your kid needs to run on his midfoot."  I hear coaches spout that stuff all the time based on NO evidence whatsoever except what some coach told them 30 years ago.  This stuff has been studied, and the answers is almost always that suddenly forcing a particular stride on a kid does way more harm than good.  As they gain strength and flexiblity, ther stride improves.  DS had a basketball coach who worked really hard to get the whole team to run on their toes and have really long strides, and they (other than my track kids who I told NOT to do that) all looked like rabbits when they ran hopping down the court.  And they got injured.

I would also look at shoes.  For running shoes, you should have them go to a store that will video their form and recommend shoes.  Some kids (especially tall kids) way over-pronate (i.e. one or both ankles roll in) when they run, and this can throw everything off.  Also, you can run behind them and see if there is anything dramatically weird going on, and if so maybe make a PT appointment with a sports PT practice. DS used to swing one foot around rather than bringing it straight forward, and it was very inefficient and set him up for injury. To fix it (based on his PT's recommendation), I'd run behind him and prompt him to bring it straight through.  They also had him run on a treadmill with video monitors and watch/fix his form.

I would have your kid do form drills -- warm up a bit with some jogging, then high knees and butt kicks (i.e. 30M slow jogging raising knees to waist level or above, then jog back the other way kicking their butt with each backswing).  Kids (and adults) hate these and don't like to do them seriously, but they are a huge help.  I would also have your 5th grader warm up with some jogging and then do strides --- start slow, accelerate, then decelerate, maybe 60-100 meters in all.  Note that I'd do this on smooth level grass rather than pavement b/c it is easier on their joints.  Then you could work up to what coach Jack Daniels calls R-pace intervals.  This is short, intense but not sprinting running for 200-300 meters, like 5 reps with 2 min jog or rest between (for adults IIRC the program is more like 10x400 with 1:30 jog, but you should probably tone it way down for kids).  I think people improve their form by running fast while not exhausted, and these are a great, not too taxing way to do that.

A good form cue is to run tall and quiet (i.e. don't slouch, and don't pound your feel down super hard).  Also, you can prompt kids over time to think about their knees coming up when running fast.  But don't overdo any of these cues.  If kids learn to run relaxed and fast, the form will come.

After doing this stuff for a few weeks, short hill sprints or jogging up a longer hill can be great for leg strength, but be careful doing too much of that during a period when your kid also has soccer practice and games.

Hope this helps.[/quote]

Thank you for this excellent info! What I meant about his poor running form is that he sometimes looks awkward when he runs. I took him to a PT a couple of years ago who said that he pronates but, when reminded not to, didn't. And indeed, once he is in an all-out sprint, he looks normal, but when he is accelerating, there is something very awkward and slow about his manner. I think you are right about taking him to a sports-oriented PT. Can you recommend any in VA?[/quote]

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