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The Warm up
Marathon week: the long game takes center stage
The New York City Marathon runs Sunday, November 1, and both defending champions are back. Kenya's Hellen Obiri, who set the course record of 2:19:51 last year, leads the women's field, and Benson Kipruto, who won by the closest margin in race history, leads the men's. American record holder Conner Mantz faces Zouhair Talbi, while Jess McClain, Annie Frisbie, and Weini Kelati, in her marathon debut, lead the American women. In the wheelchair races, Marcel Hug goes for another title, and Tatyana McFadden and Catherine Debrunner lead the women.
Congratulations to the Milwaukee Brewers, World Series champions for the first time in franchise history. They beat the Rays 4-1 in Game 5 on Wednesday to close out the series in five games and give Milwaukee its first baseball title since the 1957 Braves. Rookie shortstop Cooper Pratt set a World Series rookie record with hits in six straight plate appearances, and Jacob Misiorowski threw 5⅔ scoreless innings in the clincher. In the WNBA Finals, the Golden State Valkyries lead the Atlanta Dream 3-2, and Game 6 tips off today at 12:30 p.m. ET in Atlanta.
Also on the calendar this week:
Gymnastics: At worlds in Rotterdam, Skye Blakely won the all-around gold after injuries at two straight Olympic trials. China edged the U.S. women for team gold by 0.233. Claire Pease won floor, and Fred Richard won the men's floor title.
Youth soccer: The U.S. beat Kenya 6-1 and China 3-1 to advance at the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup and meets Spain in the Round of 16 today in Morocco.
Futsal: Host Morocco beat Angola 5-2 to win its fourth Africa Cup of Nations title.
Badminton: France's Christo Popov won the French Open on home soil and rose to world No. 1. Korea's An Se Young won the women's title over PV Sindhu.
Table tennis: WTT Champions runs through Sunday in Montpellier, France.
College volleyball: Nebraska is 21-0 and still No. 1 in the AVCA poll.
College field hockey: Northwestern, at 16-1, is back at No. 1 with all 11 first-place votes, ahead of Maryland.
College soccer: The NCAA committee's first top-16 ranking has North Carolina first and unbeaten Vanderbilt second.
Cross country: Conference meets are underway, and the NCAA Division I Championships are November 21.
Horse racing: The Breeders' Cup World Championships run Friday and Saturday at Keeneland in Lexington, Kentucky, with 14 world titles on the line.
NFL: The Panthers visit the Packers tonight on Thursday Night Football.
Every one of those athletes got there the same way: by learning how to spend their energy, one season at a time.
The Lead Off
Why your kid sprints the first lap, and why that is normal
THE SCIENCE: Watch any youth race and you will see it. Half the field takes off like the finish line is 50 yards away, and by the halfway point they are walking with their hands on their hips. That is not a lack of grit. It is brain development.
In a study of 106 schoolchildren running hard for about 4 minutes, the younger children started fast and faded, a sign they could not yet predict how hard the whole run would feel. Older kids with more advanced thinking skills ran a smarter U-shaped race: quicker at the start, steady in the middle, and a kick at the end (Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise). A systematic review of 64 studies found that pacing starts to develop around age 10, keeps improving through adolescence, and gets better with repeated practice and experience (Sports Medicine Open). Even teens still pace differently than adults, who tend to run more evenly.
Here is the part that surprises most parents. Kids are not low on endurance. Researchers in France found that boys ages 8 to 12 resisted fatigue better than untrained adults and recovered faster than trained adult endurance athletes (Frontiers in Physiology). Their advice: since muscle endurance is often already good in children, training time may be better spent on technique, speed, and strength.
So what builds a lifelong endurance athlete? Not early miles. An international consensus statement on youth running recommends at least 1 rest day a week, 1 to 2 weeks off every 3 months, and no more than 9 months a year in the sport. It also says to judge readiness for longer distances by growth and development rather than age, and to keep kids in varied, multidirectional sports at least through puberty (British Journal of Sports Medicine). For context, the New York City Marathon requires runners to be 18 or older (People).
And watch the single big day. A study of 5,205 runners found injuries often came from one session that was much longer than the runner's longest run in the previous 30 days. A run 10 to 30% longer raised injury risk by 64% (Aarhus University). That applies to the surprise double practice or the three-game tournament day too.
What This Means for Your Athlete: Pacing is a skill your athlete grows into, not a test they pass or fail. If this is your first season, do not panic when your 8-year-old sprints the first lap and fades. Celebrate the effort, then help them notice how it felt. Endurance is built over years, with rest days, variety, and steady increases, not by squeezing everything into one season.
🔄 TRANSLATE TO YOUR SPORT: Cross country and track: the first lap. Soccer and field hockey: the first 10 minutes of each half. Hockey and futsal: the length of each shift. Swimming: the first 50. Basketball and volleyball: energy across a tournament day, not just one game. Gymnastics and dance: saving power for the last skill of the routine.
The Fuel Station
Pasta Night, Upgraded: Turkey and Lentil Bolognese
Marathoners love a pasta dinner the night before a race, and young athletes can enjoy one too. This version adds lentils and lean turkey to a classic tomato sauce for steady energy plus iron.
THE PLAYERS (serves 6)
1 pound whole-wheat or regular spaghetti
1 pound lean ground turkey
¾ cup dried red lentils, rinsed
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, grated
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes
1½ cups water or low-sodium broth
1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning and ½ teaspoon salt
Parmesan and fresh basil, for serving
Roasted broccoli and orange slices or strawberries, on the side
THE BUILD
Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook the onion and carrot for 5 minutes, then add the garlic for 1 minute.
Add the turkey and cook, breaking it up, until no pink remains.
Stir in the lentils, tomatoes, water or broth, seasoning, and salt. Simmer, partly covered, for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring now and then, until the lentils melt into the sauce.
Cook the pasta, toss it with the sauce, and top with parmesan and basil. Serve with broccoli and fruit.
THE GOAL: Serve it the night before a long event, or as the main meal about 3 hours before an afternoon game, which is the pediatric guidance for a full meal (Paediatrics & Child Health). For a pre-game meal, go light on the broccoli to keep fiber down.
WHY IT WORKS
Normal carbs, no carb loading. The American Academy of Pediatrics says carbohydrate loading is not recommended for high school athletes or short events. Teen athletes should get at least half their daily energy from carbohydrates (HealthyChildren.org). A regular plate of pasta does the job.
Iron that sticks. Lentils carry plant iron. Eating meat, poultry, or fish alongside plant iron can raise its absorption 2 to 3 times (StatPearls).
Vitamin C on the side. Tomatoes, broccoli, oranges, and strawberries bring vitamin C, which helps the body absorb plant iron (Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health).
Enough fuel overall. In the youth running consensus statement, female high school runners reported eating 2,000 to 2,300 calories a day, below their estimated needs of about 2,500 to 2,800 (British Journal of Sports Medicine). Hearty family dinners help close that gap.
The Lab
Three drills that teach pacing and smart effort
THE PLAY: Pacing improves with repeated practice, so these drills turn it into a game. They take about 15 minutes total and work for any running sport. They are new this week, so keep the effort easy the first time through.
Drill 1: Guess the Lap
Setup. A track, a park loop, or a block marked with 4 cones. A parent with a phone timer.
The drill. Your athlete jogs 4 easy laps and tries to run each one in the same time. Before each lap, they guess their time out loud. You call out the real time after.
Progression. Hide the timer and have them aim for "the same as last lap" by feel. Later, try a slightly faster last lap.
Why it works. The pacing review found that repeated exposure to a task improves pacing (Sports Medicine Open). Guessing and checking builds the inner clock younger kids are still developing.
Drill 2: The Effort Faces
Setup. Draw 5 faces on a card or whiteboard, from a calm smile to a very tired face, and number them 1 to 5.
The drill. After each of 3 short runs at different speeds, your athlete points to the face that matches how they feel. Ask, "Could you hold that for 10 more minutes?"
Progression. Before a run, ask them to pick a target face and try to stay there the whole time.
Why it works. Picture-based effort scales are validated for kids. The Children's OMNI Scale was tested in girls and boys, Black and white, ages 8 to 12 (Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise). Naming effort is the first step to managing it.
Drill 3: Cruise and Kick
Setup. Two cones about 40 yards apart on grass. Any ball sport gear is welcome.
The drill. Jog easily to the far cone, then sprint the last 10 yards. Walk back to recover. Repeat 5 times. Soccer, field hockey, or lacrosse players can dribble the cruise and shoot after the kick.
Progression. Lengthen the cruise, or add a "cruise, surge, cruise, kick" pattern to mimic a shift or a game.
Why it works. Older kids naturally pace with a strong finish (Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise). Pairing easy effort with a short sprint also leans into speed and technique, where researchers suggest kids' training time pays off most (Frontiers in Physiology).
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Parent Playbook
The long-game plan
THE STRATEGY: Discipline is not willpower. It is a habit, and habits take time. In a well-known study from University College London, new healthy habits took a median of 66 days to feel automatic, with a range of 18 to 254 days. The lead researcher says a clear plan of when and where you will do something makes you more likely to do it (University of Surrey). Your job is not to push harder. It is to make the good habit easy to repeat, and to protect rest.
THE PLAY: Make a Long-Game Calendar with your athlete this week.
Hang a blank monthly calendar on the fridge.
Pick one small habit together, like 10 minutes of ball skills or a stretch before bed, plus a specific time and place: "After dinner, in the driveway."
Each day they do it, they add a sticker. Mark at least one rest day each week with a different color. Rest counts as a win.
Every 3 months, plan a lighter week or two off, which matches the youth running consensus statement (British Journal of Sports Medicine).
If you are new to youth sports, start smaller than you think. One habit done for a month beats five habits that last a week.
THE CONVERSATION STARTER: "What is one thing you want to be better at by spring, and what is the tiny step we can do on a Tuesday?"
🏆 Play of the Week
Watch the NYC Marathon like a coach
THE PLAY: On Sunday morning, watch the start of the race on ESPN2 together. The wheelchair races start at 8:00 a.m. ET, the pro women at 8:35, and the pro men at 9:05 (Marathon Handbook). Then check back for the final miles. Ask:
Who goes out fast, and who stays in the pack?
Does the leader at mile 5 still lead at mile 20?
How do the wheelchair racers handle the hills and bridges?
🔄 TRANSLATE TO YOUR SPORT: If you are watching Game 6 of the WNBA Finals today, notice which players still look fresh in the fourth quarter. If you catch the U-17 Women's World Cup, watch how the U.S. team manages the last 15 minutes. Pacing is everywhere.
THE GOAL: Help your athlete see that the winner is usually the one who spent energy wisely, not the one who led early.
THE FINAL WHISTLE
Run the long race
Nobody wins a marathon in the first mile, and nobody builds a lifelong athlete in one season. The pros you will watch on Sunday have spent years stacking easy days, rest days, and the occasional big race.
Your athlete is running a longer race than any of them: years of practices, car rides, and second chances. Help them pace it. Celebrate the steady days, protect the rest days, and let the finish line take care of itself.
Start easy, stay steady, and finish strong.
See you on the sidelines,
The Seasoned Sidekick Team
Pass the Assist
Know a parent whose athlete is all gas, no brakes? Forward this issue before their next race or tournament.
Keep Reading
October 22, 2026: World Series: Visual Focus and Staying "In the Zone"
October 15, 2026: Worlds Week: Sample Before You Specialize
October 8, 2026: Division Series: Bouncing Back
Medical Disclaimer: The content in The Seasoned Sidekick is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended to replace the advice of a licensed physician, registered dietitian, or certified athletic trainer. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to your athlete's nutrition, training, or recovery plan. Individual needs vary. The information presented is based on available research and general guidelines for youth athletes.