By Kate Snow
Rock Center Correspondent
As I walked out through the sliding doors to the backyard, the first thing I saw was the zip line across the swimming pool. Wow my kids would love that. My mom radar, of course, immediately saw the danger—the zip line extended over a concrete deck around the pool. One fall on that and a child could get hurt. But, on the other hand, if the kids get some joy out of the zip line, why not let them swoop out over the pool and plunge in the water?
In the time I spent with the Welsch family at their home in Alvin, Texas, I found myself having several internal debates such as that one. Caution vs. thrill. Risk vs. reward.
Kaytlynn Welsch is 12 years old. Her sister, Heather, is 10—and they’re both phenomenal endurance runners. They are able to dart across tricky off-road terrain filled with ravines, rocks and roots.
Most weekends, they compete in back-to-back races on Saturday and Sunday. Both Kaytlynn and Heather compete in races against adults -- and usually beat the grown-ups.
I run for exercise. I like to pretend I’m in decent shape. But out on the girls’ middle school track I might as well have been standing still. The girls dash past me within seconds, laughing all the way. They are fast. I mean, really, really fast.
Watch Kate Snow's full report on the Welsch sisters on Friday, Feb. 8 at 10pm/9CDT on NBC's Rock Center with Brian Williams
Heather and Kaytlynn clearly have a lot of talent. The sisters told me again and again that they love running. It’s their passion. They dream of running in the Olympics one day. I’m convinced they would run—and fast—even if their dad didn’t set up races for them every weekend. It’s hard to imagine that you could make a kid run that far, if she didn’t want to.
Experts on both sides of this debate agree that young runners should be assessed on a case by case basis. There are few children who run the distances the Welsch sisters do, so they’re charting an unknown path.
The Welschs’ doctors say they are healthy and haven’t experienced any joint problems or stress fractures. They’re watching their skeletal growth and what might happen when they hit puberty. Their orthopedist worries that they shouldn’t run races back to back on weekends and would like to see them train more during the week; injuries and burn-out are always a possibility. But for right now, these girls seem to love competing in races, especially against each other.
I wouldn’t want to be judged for my own parenting or coaching skills (or a lack thereof), so I don’t think it’s ever appropriate for me to judge another parent. But meeting the Welsch sisters certainly got me thinking about my own kids and what I might do if I were in their parents’ shoes.
What’s a parent to do? Do you encourage your child’s love of a sport? Or do you rein it in and deny them their dream? The Welsch parents will tell you they’re just trying to encourage their kids to do their best, and are trying to find a balance somewhere in the middle. They say that although the girls are serious while they’re racing, the rest of the time, they’re regular suburban kids. They text their friends, climb trees, and chase the local ice cream truck.
I’m glad I had a chance to meet the family. I’m also glad that my own two kids seem to be average athletes—not prodigies. No offense to my Zack and Abby, but I’d rather be able to outrun you for a while.
Editor's Note: Kate Snow's full report airs Friday, Feb. 8 at 10pm/9CDT on NBC's Rock Center with Brian Williams.
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Typical overbearing parents pushing their kids, and Today gives them publicity.
There's a fine line between pushing a child to do things he/she wouldn't otherwise want to do and encouraging a child to pursue his/her passion. From the outside looking in, it's difficult to tell which is occurring in this instance. But it's a remarkable story, and I think that every parent struggles with the similar problem of knowing when to rein in their child's activities. So I'm happy that NBC is telling the story.
The kids say they love doing it. How is that an overbearing parent pushing their kids?
My daughter lives for tennis and wants to play 6 hours a day and train fitness the rest of the day. As a parent, I do not allow that. Thats part of parenting. Developing girls can have many problems with the female triad if they over train. The parents should scale the work load for these girls back at least 50%.
Typical..... someone that doen't probably do anything or motivated to do anything really should avoid commenting on this. since it would probably interupt waiting in line for the next release of some nerdy weird science movie of fantasy land.
Sounds like you should have pushed a little more and perhaps you wouldn't find enough time to comment on a actually "good news" report.
powercise009 - That's one of the beauties of our great country. Parents get to decide for themselves how to raise their children and you get to complain about it on anonymously. Perhaps you should write your Representative and encourage him/her to introduce a bill making your obviously superior parenting techniques law.
If your kid wants to do it, I say great. But as a parent, you need to make sure they eat enough and have constant check ups to ensure they stay healthy.
Doctor says kids are healthy. Everyone else says they seem to be happy. And apparently they do alright in school.
So, what is the problem, again?
The problem is these kids have greater accomplishments by age ten than some bitter adults have.
Growing up, all I wanted to do was be a figure skater. From the moment Dorothy Hammil won the gold and we went to see Ice Castles. That was it. Any song I heard I would skate to in my head. So my mom put me in lessons.
You couldn't get me off the ice. I would practice for hours and hours and I progressed really well for having started late (11). Then my step-f*cker told her she was living vicariously through me. So she pulled me out. Total crap because all she really did was get me lessons and drop me off at the rink.
Fast forward 20yrs and as soon as I could afford it, I was back in training and made a profession out of it. I worked damned hard too. Because I wanted it bad and I loved it.
Then my daughter wanted to try it. Okay, lessons, skates, Saturdays at the rink. But she didn't hear the click. Athletes will tell you that there is a moment, almost a click in your head, when you realize this is it. Your soul belongs to the sport.
So I gave her a choice. Skate recreationally and if it comes, it comes, but lessons are expensive.
If they want it, great. Let them give their all. If injuries are too prevelent then I think you have to pull it in. But to take it away because you think it's too young or they are pushing themselves too hard, I don't think that's fair. A child, even as young as 5 can know what they want in their chosen activity.
Actually before listening to the story I was thinking that but from the limited information it seems like the parents are encouraging kids with a talent to challenge themselves. I do think that they should have the girls pick one race a weekend. Back to back races aren't typically recommended for anyone.
As the writer said with average talented kids it's a lot easier to draw the line but when you have a kid that could truly be an olympian when they have the natural talent and drive to work this hard I think it would be a lot more difficult to figure out what is to much to soon.
I'm not judging these parents harshly b/c this does seem to be the kids desire to run.
I think all kids are natural born at any thing if parents could see that and nuture their talents. The problem I have is when parents push their kids too hard to pursue I am not sure is it the children dream (parents may planted in their mind) or the parents dream. I had to stop watching the video because deep down I feel the physical pain when the girl was crying during her run due to pain. Then I only heard her father said she did not push her self enough! We see this same scenerio all the time in academic, music, and all sort of sports. I do admire some parents do know when to put their foot down for a change.
My daughter was in competitive gymnastics for years and the affect on her growth was always a concern to me. I pulled her out when we were approaching 20 hours of pounding in the gym per week. This family will also need to face that reality and prepare to walk away or cut back, even temporarily, if necessary. A great segment, thank you.
BTW....was that David Archuleta's Running playing at the intro to this segment (before the commercial)? Loved it. Good choice. Again, please.
Exactly the post I just made about my girl's tennis. Parents have to step in or kids will overdo it.
I've run next to these girls (momentarily :)) They are self focused. To run like that, it has to come from inside. No "overbearing" parents can motivate that kind of commitment.
I don't doubt that these girls are the driving force of their running schedule, and they're probably fine academically and socially as well. But if the orthopedist has concerns, the parents should, also. 10 and 12 is too young to understand the possible consequences of life-long pain and disability.
I would like to see the extremely healthy, fit, and energetic orthopedist before bowing to his/her advice...
CEW -
People are people. We're all hypocrites in one thing or more, and if you say you're not, I'll call you a liar. Doctors are people, too. Many doctors smoke, even though it's bad and they'll tell you so. Many doctors also drink and do drugs. It's one of the highest rated professions for drug use (though a lot of them are not the street drugs, but pharmaceuticals).
The point is, even if your doctor doesn't follow their own advice, you'd be wise to listen to somebody that has made a study of the human body and its processes, rather than somebody who just beat the curve or someone who gets their health advice from Rush Limbaugh. Or a homeopathist.
Of course we're all judgmental, to be more accurate, including yourself. But we have to be; we're the masters of our own decisions and the sole bearers of our fates, which more often than most will admit to are dictated by our own circumstances. Advice from others aside, we all do what we feel is best for us, or at least should. Moreover, even the most studious can be wrong, even doctors. Particularly when advice is based on flippant notions derived from few knowns.
It really depends on the child. Some kids enjoy challenge and are bored not working up to their potential. Also, with the obesity epidemic we have, this is far better than allowing kids to sit around watching tv all weekend.
So how fast are they? "Beating most grownups" provides no clue to how good they are at such a young age.
The father's comment nailed it -- do your best in everything you do, be it running or school work.
Experience shows that puberty can slow girls' running performance. They'll have to be up to the mental challenge to keep running competitively while showing little or no improvement until their bodies adjust.
There are tons of kids who are faster than them. The Welsch's 5k times are not nothing AMAZING. In races that you can compare them to other nationally ranked kids (of similar ages) they will not be the fastest or win. They did not win nationals in triathlon this year and would not even have been close in cross-country. They are horrible swimmers. The dad told me "swim coaches refuse to deal with them (I am thinking they refuse to deal with HIM). He brags about how they do not train...talented, nice girls with an egomaniac for a father. For the record this is not unchartered territory. Kids have been racing adults and doing marathons for decades. NOT ONE OF THEM has made an olympic team or as far as I know even won an NCAA title in CC or Track. I think it is disgusting that NBC and NY-TIMES are covering this at all. If they would have done their homework they would have realized this story is nothing new, they are just feeding Rodney's quest for fame.
Well I've completed 40+ marathons and countless shorter races .. 5K, 10K, 1/2 marathons etc. I can say they can most certainly beat most adults (non-runners and seasoned runners alike) - see their accomplishments at http://athlinks.com/racer/results/105440640
Quite remarkable for a 12-yr old to finish a marathon in 3:41.
She ran a half last Nov in 1:23:48, avg pace 06:23.
*Kaytlynn
She has a lot of potential. Hope she stands on the podium one day. She and Deena Kastor and Kara Goucher should all get together for a chat!!
@RunningMike: WOW.
I know these girls are charting new territory for runners in the U.S. How do they compare to children who come from countries where running is significantly more prevalent (e.g., Jamaica, Kenya, etc.)? As long as their physical and mental health is intact, I think it's great that the parents are encouraging and supporting them as they pursue their passion.
How much is too much? Good question.
Sounds like these girls are balanced and have other interests...but I would worry if a child has a single activity requiring hours of practice...encouraged by a hovering parent. The key is if the child wants to stop permanently they should be allowed to.
Parents are living through their kids, pushing them to be what the parents couldn't be
People are trashing others' accomplishments, envying them for being what they couldn't be.
Come on, you two - you are both right. It depends upon the situation.
I was ready to think that but it doesn't seem so in this case.
Wow their fast and a breathing rhythm to match! If abuse exists it has to be a mental thing like you can't play with toys, you have to run around the block for fun, etc.
However, the parents took time and spend money to allow their kids to run in a public marathon is not abuse. I hope they get endorsements for future public marathon without pressure to perform...
Quite a few whiners here. Though it would be interesting to know HOW far and HOW fast. 100m dash? 10 miles? Did I miss either stat in the text and video somewhere?
Some kids just love to run. My son is eight and he drags ME out the door to go for a run every day it's warm enough. I have to make him stop after a mile so he doesn't overdo it.
As long as they are careful then there shouldn't be a problem.
But there is the concern that either their parents are pushing them in some way or are not telling that enough is enough.
My big concern about this is that by the time something shows up in their medical exams, the damage will have already been done. And while I don't believe the parents are pushing these kids to extremes, I do wonder what the point is. They're 10 and 12 and they already have a rather extreme interest. What are their other interests beyond this type of running?
I'm not a parent, so I don't really have any firsthand experience, but I've always wondered about people who cultivate kids in "prodigy" scenarios. It's so hard to become a well-rounded individual when from an early age you're focused on the one thing you're particularly good at. There's plenty of time to excel at something as an adult - childhood is a time for exploring different things.
I am a parent and you are correct. I allowed my children to pursue their own desires and never pushed them into sports which neither showed much interest. Both my children are well adjusted adults and have their side interests. One plays on a company baseball team and the other excels at bocciball.
I think that 99.99% of all kids in this country are pressed into doing things they wouldn't do otherwise. Things like sports at age 9, band, clubs in school. Kids that age are too young to need these things. Kids that age need to be kids. They need to go outside and play in the dirt, play swords with tree branches, get cuts from falling off their bike, come home crying because so and so called me a name or wouldn't share. Parents, coaches, teachers, etc are too busy trying to make kids into little adults that they don't have time to be kids. I guarantee this will make our country worse off than it ever has been. Come on parents. Think back to when you were a kid. Did you want to be carted off in every direction? Or did you just want to come home after school and play outside with your neighborhood friends? Maybe if this happened, there would be less adults able to seduce kids into their sick worlds because kids will look out for each other. The way it is now, kids are virtually alone with competition against other kids as their friends.
Agreed. And these 2 girls running at that age will play havoc with their body chemistry. As in not getting their period and remaining in a child's body longer than nature meant them to or making them infertile. These girls did not just wake up one day and thought about running. Parents are playing out their fantasies with their kids as in tots beauty contests.
couldn't dis-agree more. letting kids in today's world means lettting them sit infront of a tv, computer, tablet, gaming system for hours a aday/week. And i presume from your "playing swords" statement that you have done quite a bit of this and participate in LARP....
Kids not being outside or active and having a parent push them when they need pushed will go along ways in this country. Just telling kids its ok, don't work too hard... it might be too much attitude has got this country in the obesity epidemic this country is in, and costs every "tax paying" person in the US money every year.
It is important to encourage kids try different things. Playing in band, doing sports, clubs at school. When else are you going to get to try things? If I hadn't have been exposed to music and art at school, I wouldn't have found either of my life-long passions. Certainly didn't get it at home!
I could not disagree more. We have a nine, almost 10 year old. She is in the gifted program at school, accelerated math and school chorus. She takes 4 dance classes per week over 2 days and has played the violin since just before she turned 6. She usually reads for more than an hour each day before bed, by choice, and does amazing in school. When she chooses to do an activity they only thing we push is being committed to it and responsible for her choices. "You want to dance, okay, then you need to go to your classes. You don't want to go to class, okay, then we will pull you out of class and no more dance."
She has pleny of time in her week to be a kid. She plays video games really well and watches TV, but would rather be outside when at all possible. We live in a great neighborhood, where 95% there is always someone who can play outside or come over in nasty weather. She spends hours outside playing most days when the weather is nice, even when it is cold.
It is the responsibility of the parents to make sure the child has time to be a child, but at the same time allow them to do activities that they enjoy. We do not force her to do any activities that she does not want to do, we just help her to do what she enjoys. There is a fine line between pushing too hard and encouraging.
I had a similar conflict when my son was a young teen back in the middle 90's. He was a phenomenal snowboarder. Maybe one of the best. He broke his arm playing football. Even though he argued terribly with me, I would not allow to compete with an injured arm. I felt torn about it. It may have ruined his chances for a being a star.
There comes a time when the parent has to use their best judgement no matter how much pushback they receive.
You made the right call.
We had the same sort of issue with my older son, who was a phenomenal skier. My husband is a ski instructor, and both our kids were in ski school from the time they were out of diapers. The coach for the ski race team really, really pushed hard to get him involved in ski racing, said he had the natural talent that some of his other kids showed that were now on the national team...we thought long and hard about it. Our son was interested, but we talked as a family about the utter commitment involved in a sport like that - every weekend going to races, practically every day after school. Our son ultimately decided not to pursue, it, to our relief. I kept thinking about blow knees before the age of thirty. But, if he' been passionate about it, we probably would have supported him since we were right there at the slopes.
This is one of the most ridiculous things to mke your children do. Participating at this level and at this age will only damage the girls. For what - his own ego. As a runner and a coach, there is no need to subject these children to this - it will not make them better. It will not assure that they will be great Middle School, High School or Collegiate runners! The real test will be when they begin to mature as young ladies and adults. These girl's will be burned out by the time they reach HS. One of them cries now. Of course, DAD IS GETTING TH MEDIA ATTENTION THAT HE WANTS.
It's not always the parents. Sometimes kids just have tremendous talent and a competitive nature. That combination does not need any pushing.....believe me when I tell you that, I've experienced it. You have to hold them back and you're always second guessing yourself for doing it.
Show me one growthstuntet/fatigued kid due to doing too much running, and I'll show you ten kids with concussion doing other sports such as soccer, fotball or hockey. Who says you have to be a fat adult to run marathons?
I did a lot of distance running when I was in middle school, in high school and after, and I was pretty good too. Distance running is not something that a parent is going to force a child to do. It takes a lot of mental energy to push yourself to do it. If the mind doesn't want to do it, the body will follow. These kids want to do it and that is a big difference. A parent could encourage them to do their best but not force them. Distance running is something you have to enjoy and want to do. Just wonder how many people posting here are successful distance runners who can even relate to these kids and what they feel when running.
sooooooooooooooooooooooo what exactly do they get to do for fun? I meanthey are kids right? Middle school athletics are for 7th and 8th graders not 10 year old 4th graders.
because they want to runnnnnnnnnnnn, what do you do anything for??
Human nature is to run and play. If these children enjoy it, let them have fun. Cross-training by bicycling and swimming would be prudent for their physical well-being. The assumption that their parents are making them do it is just that an Assumption.
Less than 100 years ago, children were subjected to more demanding lives than these girls. They worked from dawn to dusk on less food, less medical care, etc. and grew up to be healthy adults. I think if the girls want to do this then support them. My son loves swimming - can barely keep him out of the pool. All saying the father wants media attention - I doubt it. I think he would have these girls doing marathons whether there was media attention or not. Media is always looking for a story and to make that story seem scandalous whether it actually is or not.
Although I agree that athletic kids should be supported, there's a significant difference between distance running and swimming. And please don't rhapsodize about the wonderful rural life of the olden days- childhood mortality was much higher then thanks to the daily rigors of working dusk to dawn and non-existent medical care (although the "less food" part was probably a bonus).
I think these parents are doing what most parents do-their best to raise productive, healthy, happy children.
Agreed! We should all be athletic supporters!
Remember Brian Williams and Reporters can not be trusted. They do Lie !!!!
Please take what they say as not Honest!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Reporting !!!!!!!!
I ran cross country all through highschool. As a younger child, I used to go on distance runs with my dad in the evenings. To this day, those are some of my favorite memories with him. Kids their age play in football, soccer, and gymnastics leagues. Many professional athletes today started out on similar leagues. How is that any different that these sibling competing in races on the weekend? In addition, they are building healthy habits that will hopefully carry over into adulthood.
Typically children want to please. Nurturing and guidance to positive behaviors is good. A few will rise to outperform, as long as the child doesn't feel they missed out on their childhood because they spent it pleasing their parents; then spend their adult life looking for their childhood.
No child will please their parents to this extent. The girls have the drive to run in them. Try making a child who hates running run so much and see what happens. They might run but they will be slow, etc. More parents need to support and sometimes push their children if they want them to be successful adults. Times are getting more and more competetive. Its not enought for a child just to grow up watching tv and playing with toys if he wants to succeed as an adult. That was 30 years ago. Now colleges look at the sports you play, volunteer work you do and top grades.
Betty S. I beg to differ on your comment, because I know many people who have done that very thing. One of my dearest friends wanted to please her parents so much that she went to law school because her parents wanted her to. She would have panic attacks just thinking her parents would not approve what she really wanted to which was a chef. After 10 years of practicing law, she finally went to culinary school and is a famous chef in NYC.
This looks to me like a pretty healthy family. The girls look awesome. I just pray that the doctor will do his homework and make sure this is not affecting the natural growth of their bodies. Two exhausting races a weekend seems excessive to me, but the children are the responsibility of their parents, and I hope the parents will exercise proper caution.
I say the same thing to most news reports where people are questioning parent’s
methods. Government and Media GET OUT OF THE WAY and let parents who are doing
their job do it. Back in the day Kids got up way before dawn and helped on the
farm they carried things that where super heavy and put other stresses on their
body and frankly were way healthier than we are today. In a world full of
people striving for mediocrity, heaven forbid we teach a child to shine their
brightest even when it is brighter than ourselves.
If you want to question a parenting style how about the parents who plop their
kids in front of the television day in and day out ignoring them till they get
into trouble (because they are board) yell at them stuff crap in their bodies
breakfast lunch and dinner then put them in front of video games till their
eyes are glazed over and their dreams pass them by because they don't do anything
but sit all day glued to some device.
A parent willing to push their kids a little to help them achieve their goals and
dreams is an incredible parent and those children will learn to push
themselves, to never settle for mediocrity, then to be happy with their best
even if their best is not as good as someone else. There is soooo much to be
learned when it comes to sports especially when you are not relying on a team
but your own personal battle. So, like I said at the beginning; get off their
backs for pushing their kids to be what they dream of being.