A love of running can last a lifetime, so what better time to introduce running than as a child?
This fall kids ages 8 to 12 can participate in and belong to a unique youth running group organized through the Greater LaGrange YMCA.
The Indomitable Kids Running Club provides an introduction to the sport of running, with the ultimate goal of each member successfully participating in and completing the 5K Pilgrim Pacer to be held Sunday, Nov. 21 in La Grange. The group meets from 4 to 5:15 every Wednesday afternoon at the YMCA, 1100 E. 31st Street in La Grange Park.
Every detail about the sport of running and preparing to compete in a race is discussed and taught, from proper running form to speed, hill, and fartlek training. The group, which was founded a year ago, trains in the forest preserves located near the Y. Field trips also are taken so participants learn to run on trails in Oak Brook and to engage in speed training on a local track.
The instructors are Sports Director Matt Zakowski and volunteer Eileen Skisak.
“Our main focus is to ensure that the kids have fun and feel good about their participation,” Zakowski explained. “We want the kids to do their very best in a relaxed, supportive environment. Everyone progresses at their own level so the kids collect ‘feet’ for a necklace for every mile they complete in and out of class.
“We call our group ‘indomitable’ because the kids that we have had in the group have refused to back down from any challenge that we have presented to them,” he added.
“This class is a building block in what hopefully will lead the kids to live a healthy and active lifestyle for the rest of their lives, regardless of whether they continue to run or not,” Skisak said. “We stress to our group to remain active. The kids have been a lot of fun to run with.”
For more information regarding the running club, please contact Zakowski at (708)497-1007 or mzakowski@ymcachicago.org
