I, a 45 year old hobby jogging man, feel increasingly silly for being a runner

Keeping oneself fit and healthy denotes a way different scenario than weirdness or silliness to me. At almost 67 with the benefits of over a half century of running under my belt no sympathy is offered to those whose ignorance prevails. No talent befell me, no exceptional genetics. But a bit of well deserved self righteousness exudes from the soul when the wind brushes the face, the road passes rapidly under the feet. As it should for all who dare to be a runner and share in it's intrinsic glory.

39-year old here.

Man, it feels strange typing that because I don't feel that old.

In about a year, I will run my last competitive race, which will be a return to the first competitive race I have ever done. I've got a marathon I'm training for in October as a semi-last hurrah. I'm simply tired of getting up at 5:00am to run for an hour each day and stress about workouts and trying to hit more than 50mpw.

I knew I was close to hanging it up after I ran two really bad races back-to-back after putting in some decent miles last summer.

To me, it's not worth it put that much time into it and have terrible results.

I'm not done running...in fact...I'm looking forward to still running most days without a watch and running whatever pace feels right instead of laboring over and Daniels chart and trying to hammer out a tempo run at a specific pace and getting pissed when I don't.

When I was 45, I ran about 70-80 mpw, and 3-4 weeks of 100 miles or more. I qualified for Boston by more than 25 minutes (3:04). At that point, I felt that there was better things that I could do with my time. So, I studied to get a professional certificate that I always wanted, and cut back on the running.

A few years after that, I was back to running marathons in 3:45, where qualifying for Boston was a distant dream. Anyhow, now at age 50, I picked up the mileage again to the 60-70 mpw range, and qualified for Boston by 8 minutes (3:21). Anyhow, I learned that I could fit running into my other pursuits and obligations without being a mediocre runner.

Yesterday, I was talking to my 74 year-old Dad, who only has about 60% lung capacity. when he asked what I was doing, I just said "Working and running. Running is just a healthy hobby that gives me something to do besides work. Also, it gives me a way to set goals and acheive them, even if its just a second faster than a previous time that noone cares about." He told me "Just keeep running!"

I'm about to turn 46 so I can relate somewhat. It's only weird if you make it weird. Nobody notices or cares in half marathons and marathons as many people are over 40. If you feel weird in a small local 5K then stop doing it. It's not that hard of a problem. I'm close to the Carlsbad 5000 and they have a masters race which is perfect. You're only competing against other "weirdos". I've run small 5K's and as long as you don't crowd the starting line, try to out kick some high school kids, or chat them up after the race, then you're not weird. Just be chill and enjoy the race.

I'm 37 and already feel silly. I purchased my first mid length running shorts last year, and frequently pick running pants over tights in the winter. My pace does not justify the need of performance gear. I ran in an all-comers track meet last year, and after watching my 5-yr old laugh her way through a 200 I felt silly about grimacing through the mile. I wore my hobby jogger shorts, but it did not hide that I was trying to compete. I like competing, but also feel like the old weirdo.

Really, OP? Because you sound more like a middle schooler with a poor sense of syntax.

apostrophe abuse wrote:

hank jr wrote:

Thread's like this...

No, no, no!

The apostrophe is for possession or contraction, NOT pluralization!

Just because a word ends in s doesn't mean it needs an apostrophe. This drives me crazy.

Drive's me crazy to. It's like they don't even teach english anymore.

Did you get kicked down by a Kenyan woman? You may have to train your a$$ off so you can beat her next year.

less old man wrote:

I'm 37 and already feel silly. I purchased my first mid length running shorts last year, and frequently pick running pants over tights in the winter. My pace does not justify the need of performance gear. I ran in an all-comers track meet last year, and after watching my 5-yr old laugh her way through a 200 I felt silly about grimacing through the mile. I wore my hobby jogger shorts, but it did not hide that I was trying to compete. I like competing, but also feel like the old weirdo.

On top of that, I'm starting to hate competing. Unlike some college students or a professional runner with a boatload of time to train hard and rest all day, we are dealing with young kids, taking care of a house, terrible commutes, marriage, money, possible long hours at work, vacations, and time for friends. After a week of dealing with all of that, squeezing in a race on Saturday morning becomes more of a burden and almost selfish. The nerves, and having the right competitive mindset is the last of your worries but then you get extremely mad (if you are a competitive person) if your race results are terrible.

I once talked to a well-known college coach about my training. I was 34 at the time and he told me: "You have too many life stresses going on to even run to your potential. All my runners (his D-1 XC team) do is sleep in, play with their phones, and lay on bean bag chairs. Some of them don't even shower."

Here are the things I could do with my time:

1) Bother my college age kids with stupid phone calls.

2) Work longer hours so that I can pay more taxes, leave an even bigger estate for my kids or buy stupid crap I don’t like or need.

3) Submit to my girlfriend/wife’s domination and all my time endlesslt redoing house details and shopping for female stuff.

4) Watch TV or waste time with social media

5) Pursue fitness, emotional well being and meditation. And also destroy mediocre high school kids, bodybuilder types, and unathletic nobodies at the local 5k.

Let me get this straight.

Option 5) is supposed to make me feel “ridiculous”?

Sometimes I do feel nerdy with my long shorts and knee brace. But I'm well into my 40's and run sub-16 for 5k. Can I keep doing this or should I stop chasing my youth?

Grab a cyclocross bike and go for it, tough guys.

You miss cross country? You figure cycling is for pussies? What's stopping you? You'll all a punch of pansies.

https://youtu.be/r6oPp-wzHoM?t=1956

Some of you guys sound like self conscious high schoolers.

The older I get, the less I care if I look like a buffoon. Like, what's more acceptable? Hitting up Brooks Brothers for a stylish wardrobe update and hunkering down in a gym rather than cruising through the city or the trails on a run and then testing yourself with a race every now and then? Who cares if the high schoolers and college kids think you're a try-hard dweeb. All runners look like dweebs at any age. In fact, the young-ins might be impressed more than anything that you are still kicking as the years roll on. Why the heck would you be embarrassed at putting effort into something and pushing yourself?

When I was in high school, my coaches were ballers. The head coach could keep up with the team into his mid 40s. The former assistant could challenge our best runners into his mid 30s. The new assistant coach was in his mid-20s and could still drop a sub-15 5k on a cross country course and do a 24 minute 5 miler probably until his early 30s. We admired the heck out of these guys. Same goes for any of the older road runners that keep up with the high school kids on the roads.

I can't even relate to you guys. Competitive running sounds like torture to you guys.

Another thought is you hate it, so you want to think others that do it are weird or are neglecting their families. Go ahead and think that, the older guys running, competing and enjoying it to the fullest don't care.

46 going on 47, decent D3 runner, then got away from the sport for a decade or so (work, grad school etc).

Running with a club really keeps it fun, interesting and worthwhile. I get to pass on advice to beginners and younger runners, compete with the team in the USATF series, and go through Spring/Fall marathon training cycles with team mates. The times and places are still kind of important (that competitive streak never entirely goes away) but its also about the bonding over runs and workouts and then post race beers and burgers. Work and family can be, lets face it, a real f*cking grind sometimes and so its nice to have those windows of relatively simple, positive activity and comraderie.

Nah, don't feel wierd. If golfers, tennis players or softball players don't feel wierd, why should I? It's a lifetime sport and a helluva a good one.

It’s sad that people in their 40s still care what other people think of them. If you want to run races and try and outkick highschoolers, then just do it. Why do you care if people make fun of you for it.

Geeze, I get how we were all realky insecure as teenagers and rrally cared about what other people thought of us, and that we all did well into our 20s too. But I think if you still care a lot about what other people in your 30s, 40s, and older, so much so that it makes you question whether you should give up your hobby .... then you have failed at life.

an old man wrote:

I've run since junior high track. Ran in college, lots of marathons and other road races in the years since. I'm still competitive in a local hobby jogger kind of way, and this leaves me feeling increasingly foolish. I am often the first master at local races, and it feels outright dumb to be trying to out kick some high school kid to the finish. I know they think I'm a weirdo.

I love running and racing as much as ever, and it brings joy to my life. Yet I feel really weird for doing it. I mean, I'm still playing the same kid's game I played 30 years ago.

The overman does not particularly care what other people think. They go their own way, with the full knowledge that people are silly little apes, themselves included.

Race other stuff, then, tough guys wrote:

Grab a cyclocross bike and go for it, tough guys.

You miss cross country? You figure cycling is for pussies? What's stopping you? You'll all a punch of pansies.

https://i.imgur.com/IB9tfAz.jpg

Plus tough woman-beating boys enjoy manly drinks!

It isn't fat. I SAID it is MUSCLE if you could only READ. I like how it looks on me and I like how it looks on other guys too.