Older runners, what was your decline like?

Sudden decline for me at age 59. I started running late in life but qualified for Boston three years in a row without too much difficulty through age 58. I was looking forward to the extra 15 minutes for the BQ (reduced to 10) as I turned 60 - thinking it was a mere formality - but suddenly I couldn't even achieve that two years in a row!

However, right now I'm running very well and feel like my old self. I'll just enjoy the efforts and see where they take me!

Everyone says it is getting old well sometimes it is not.

I would suspect health maybe hormonal reasons. Look at Ryan Hall for instance. Probably a good idea to take a break just running easy and build a base. Recharge the battery .

Pretty gradual decline.

I last broke 19 in a 5k at age 50, running 18:36.

Now 64, and my three 5k races this year ranged from 21:14 to 21:36.

At 47, I ran a 3:17 marathon, went through the half in 1:29.

My best half this year was 1:38:20.

Still running 40-50 now.

2 speed sessions per week.

But trying to maintain performance as the years pass is like bailing with a thimble.

No matter how hard you work, you just can't keep up.

And that's for people who are still in good health. Lots of folks suffer catastrophic diseases/conditions that end their running overnight.

Be happy if you are healthy enough to still run past 60. Many are done long before that.

"it's garbage." - I told you about how in Northern Europe lots of people in their 80's are still very active. This is not something seen in the US. That's not garbage; that's a revelation to help other areas in the world.

For me, it was a series of injuries that weren't so bad that i would have to stop running completely, but i wouldn't be able to do speed for a while. When i was able to do speed, times were slower. I think if you can maintain the speedwork, the decline isn't quite as steep.

Mostly linear. I'm 62. My career has been longer than most and I am grateful for that. The issue these last few years is that aches, pains and injuries that used to take 3-5 days to resolve now take 2-3 weeks. Two years ago, I was running really well. Developed a knee thing; my first one ever. Took the corticosteroid shot after months of putting it off and it did the trick. Now, good old PF has flared up after 20 years at bay. Haven't run for 36 days but who's counting? Every run is a gift. Always was. But I am *really* aware of that now.

I was rolling until age 50, then I just lost it. The main thing was a big knee issue that has me running with limited ROM and (due the the fact that I have to baby it) limited volume. With the limited training it can handle, performance naturally drops off.............. a cliff.

I still have decent strength, aerobic capacity and speed (50 year old speed, not young guy speed), however I can't really tap into that any more without risking my ability to run at all. If I red line it I could be out, either for a long time, or for good.

It's not linear and everyone is going have their own path. It's going to come down to injuries, motivation to train, weight, general health, genetics (mr. it's all genetics you can chime in here!) and lifestyle and no doubt other things.

I did a quick review of my own decline from my peak some +/-35 years ago and selected 5k as model. If you go by the common rule of thumb of 10% decline a decade after 35 or 40 (ran my PR well before that age) I would have lost some 25% or between 3.5 and 4 minutes. And if you look at age grading, I would have lost about 23% (3:40).

Here some data, N of 1, looking at my best for each following 5 year age group

PR at 28 - call that 0%

30-35: -2.3%

35-39: -7.2% (my biggest drop, fighting injuries most of the time)

40-44: -7.2% (same time as 35-39)

45-49: -12.2% (coming off a 3 year bout of chronic injury)

50-54: -11.8% (ran a couple seconds faster than previous age group)

55-59: -13.8%

60-62: -14.8%

Some will lose less. Others more. I'm actually pretty lucky. I do think I could have run better from 35-45 but only had 2.5 healthy years in that span (at 40-42), and it was also a time when I had a lot going on with career, switching a few jobs and moving across the continent a few times, young family and all that. However, have been extremely lucky from my late 40s on, and in particular in the past 5-6 years when I haven't dropped off much (only lost 10 seconds in 6 years for the 5K).

Decline started at 34, each year my 5k time got slower 8-12 seconds each year until 51. Ran about the same 51-54 then yeah everything starting slowing down about a 45 seconds a year . Some was injuries but a lot was the VO2 cratered

I went from 22:30 age 67 to 30:30 shortly before 68 with a Follicular Lymphoma diagnosis and treatment. I have cut the time gain back to 26:08. Pretty sure I can at least get into the 23s, but time will tell. A lot of what will help lies between the ears and ones willingness to adapt. Aging should be a journey of discovery, youth in reverse. Grow, accept it, move on. Or just die. Your choice.

fgser wrote:

"it's garbage." - I told you about how in Northern Europe lots of people in their 80's are still very active. This is not something seen in the US. That's not garbage; that's a revelation to help other areas in the world.

That has nothing to do with performance.

1955 wrote:

Mine happened in stages. I'm 64,and have been running over 50 years.

About 10 years ago I broke my wrist slipping on ice, and I found that I was much more cautious in my pace after that, even when the weather was not bad. But I maintained my mileage fairly well. Then about 3 years ago I had a heart attack and since then my mileage has gone down by almost half, and I'm even slower. I have some hip issues that have impacted both of these declines as well.

It's not what I once would have considered running, but it's still what I want to do.

Sorry to hear of your misfortune. I had some heart issues in my 40s and early 50s and became motivated to change my diet which resulted in my now being 10 years in remission, now running long, often and pain-free (though slow). Every step after 60 is a gift.

Huh? Ryan Hall is a young buck - 37 yrs old. I'm 60 and the roof caved in for me with many debilitating injuries starting around my late 40s and has steadily decline since.

It's all about the HORMONES! The hormones (GH, T, DHEA, etc.) start declining as early as the mid-30s are really starts ramping up in your 50s. That's why so many of us are falling apart, broken down, getting injured, tired, no energy, losing muscle mass, etc. Anybody thinks that declining hormones don't have a significant impact on aging athlete are completely clueless on the science of age-related degeneration of the human body.

Injuries become more frequent as you head into middle age. Recovery takes longer than it used to. You tire quicker and you notice a fall off in speed. The loss of strength starts to become more noticeable in your sixties and after. Joints can pack up. Aches and pains are a regular - even daily - occurrence. The key is to stay active but don't expect too much of yourself. Aging is definitely not for sissies. As the great philosopher, Charlton Heston, once said," it's a tough planet. No one gets out alive."

Young men: Keep yourself healthy in everyway. That's the secret. Do not smoke or drink. Do not engage in risky behaviors. Drive responsibly. Brush your teeth twice a day and floss every tooth. Be nice to everyone. Be true to everything. Engage in aerobic exercise on a regular basis, the early the better. Then you will have the best chance of living a long happy life. You will go up and up in all ways without the typical declines of healthy. While others your age are bed ridden or no longer alive you will be enjoying all the goodness life has to offer.

Female 55 been running for 15 years. 14 marathons plus many races things definitely are not like they use to be. Peaked at about 48. 5 k 20 minutes marathon 3:20. Then I hit 50. Lost my job, husbands job, house, my mom , found out my husband gambled our savings and went through menopause in the same year. Couldn’t run after that. Injuries ect. Race performance died. Tired most of the time. But there is some hope that just this year I have regained my interest in running. But dang I’m slow! Dont think I will do too many more marathons. I don’t have the time and I’m catching up financially. Life happens.

fgser wrote:

I'm in my mid-50's and I can tell you that I can run faster and longer than anytime in my life. I tested myself recently on a perfectly measured course that I ran on almost exactly a year ago. I have been running regularly for over 30 years. Maybe this is due to my genetics or maybe it's the regular exercise over decades.

Some courses can add time. Maybe this is the case? It could also be your friend is stale. Possibly a layoff for a few months might do him well. On the other hand the difference of 1 minute is not too bad.

I have heard older people say they were fine then hit say the early fifties and they went downhill quick in various ways. So it's hard to say.

Age-graded you might be a better runner. Perhaps you have only recently understood how to train optimally for yourself. But never in life will a runner who has trained properly for 30 years achieve the best times in his mid-50s.

I was running my best at age 43 to 44, then had a sudden, steep drop off in performance of about the equivalent of a minute over 10k (and similar declines across all other distances). After the sudden drop off, my performances continued to decline more gradually. I quit racing after age 46, so I don't really know what the decline has continued like, although I can say that when I try hard efforts in training (at 54.5 yo) it's been getting progressively more difficult, and I tend not to train on known distances (or the track).

Anyway, in short, I had a sharp, sudden steep decline in my mid-40s followed by a continual gradual decline.

banned Pete wrote:

I was running my best at age 43 to 44, then had a sudden, steep drop off in performance of about the equivalent of a minute over 10k (and similar declines across all other distances). After the sudden drop off, my performances continued to decline more gradually. I quit racing after age 46, so I don't really know what the decline has continued like, although I can say that when I try hard efforts in training (at 54.5 yo) it's been getting progressively more difficult, and I tend not to train on known distances (or the track).

Anyway, in short, I had a sharp, sudden steep decline in my mid-40s followed by a continual gradual decline.

I have to ask, why were you possibly banned and does your last name start with Q?