Guest Blog by Jon Taylor of 365DayTriathlon.com.

Who’d Have Thought?

When I was young, I often tried my mother’s patience with the common phrase, “I’m bored.” If mom had answered, “Why don’t you train for a triathlon?” I probably would have started digging a tunnel in my room. You may have never heard the words “child” and “triathlon” uttered in the same sentence, but it can actually be a fun summer activity.

What’s a Kids Triathlon Anyway?

If you’re not triathlon-savvy, here’s a quick overview of how they work. The race is split into three parts: swimming, biking, and running (in that order). Before you start imagining your child staggering though a desert, forced to drink cactus juice just to finish, triathlons for kids are actually quite doable. The length of each race is custom fitted to the age group your child is in. It will still take quite a bit of discipline and training, but if you’re looking for bonding experiences, how cool would it be to swim, bike, and run regularly with your son or daughter?

Studies have shown that child triathletes are very likely to obtain student body office, love broccoli, and surprisingly, help parents win the lottery. That may not be entirely true, but a triathlon will establish a great foundation for a healthy lifestyle. Not only that, but kids will gain self-respect and self-discipline. Triathlons take just as much mental conditioning as they do physical.

I’m In!  What now?

If you’re interested, find the closest kids tri to you.  You can go to IronKids.com or just google “kids triathlons” in your area.  I live in a pretty rural neighborhood and there are a few within reasonable driving distance from me.

Maybe your child is tired of saying, “I choose you, Pikachu!” Or maybe he just wants to get out of summer reading. Either way, triathlons can be a challenging but rewarding event. You’ll never know unless you tri! (And if you do, you’ll probably find yourself making triathlon puns as I did in the previous sentence. Just a warning.)

Author Byline

Jesse and Jon are two normal guys that have decided to train for a triathlon.  They, along with seasoned marathon runner and triathlete Graham and their coach, a physical trainer named Danah, are blogging about their progress at 365DayTriathlon.com.