50+ Masters Training and Racing Open Forum

I've been running seriously again since age of 15. Now 21

outdoors at 60 degrees--winter weather here goes back and forth from 60s to snow and teens or single digits.

Thanks lucKY - 500 weeks of great content!

Had a great week. Raced for the first time in over 10 months with only about 45 days of real running. Mostly cross training the prior 5 months.

Ran the HM (13.06 miles) in 1:17:29. rolled through foothill with 600 feet of elevation change and started in the dark ( they delayed the start 40 minutes and should have for an hour) Farm country roads with no lights! Could not see my hands for about 15 minutes. Ran into a tree and cut my finger badly on something. It was an adventure and at one point stopped for a fraction of a second and debated quitting.

My strategy saved the race. I drove the farm road the prior day and saw there were no lights. Told my partner that this would be impossible and runners would definitely get hurt. The lead group has a motorcycle escort and was going to have a huge advantage. Decided that at all costs to stay with the lead pack regardless of pace.

The strategy had its flaws , the main one being 1 runner was much faster than everybody else in the lead pack. He started to quickly separate and I was the only runner that followed but when the pace dropped to 5 min miles I threw in the towel. Now I was in literal blackness running on a road or stumbling off the shoulder. The next 3 dark miles were no fun but was able to at least see the leader's escort taillights which helped tremendously. Had no idea where I was putting my feet at the moment but knew where I was heading.

Much more happened during the race but the post is already too long. In summary, ran about 5:38 pace for first 3miles and slowed about 10 seconds every three miles. 5.56 pace for the full half, considering the circumstances, was 15 seconds per mile faster than expected.

Training Week:

M - casual walks

T - 10 miles with 10 minutes 5:34 pace and another 13 at 6:03.

W - 8 miles @ 7:10

T - 5 miles and 10 minites @6:00

F - Travel

S - 24 min slow jog

S - race

Happy Holidays to all!

All the best to everyone here in the next 52 (and the next 500).

Well, I ran for the first time in three weeks and ow ow ow, no better. I was going to see the chiro but he’s in quarantine after one of his kids got COVID. But he’s recommending I do some planks, which I thought I’d graduated out of a couple of years ago. Ha! I tried one on my right side and it really hurt. So I’ll stick to the bike and build a bridge with my body to healing.

Kid Coach told me to do fartleks on the bike until I get the ticker up to 130bpm and then keep it there. That does indeed do the trick. I’m not having bad-leg days anymore. I can keep a consistent tempo once I convince my body this is easier than running, no matter how hard I go.

Seven hours in bike, one painful hour in the park.

Congrats, BigMango. Awesome performance in difficult conditions.

Which age group are you?

53 yo and thanks. Doubt I could come close to repeating it. my legs are destroyed today.

Thanks. Great performance to end the year. Seems to be above 87% AG. I would call it amateur elite level.

Happy & healthy 2021 to all.

BR

KC, you may be getting to the age where you cannot get away without having a core program. A couple of days a week should do it.

Igy

We're spending the Holidays with my 90 y.o. in-laws trying to get their house cleaned out of 50 years worth of once-valuable junk. My MIL could be on the show Hoarders so it's a stressful situation. My hips are killing me from stooping and bending so I'm glad I have two weeks of low mileage runs. I only did 24 mi. running and 22 mi. biking last week but I feel like I ran a marathon every day. I'm going to need a vacation from this "vacation".

I'm worried that this time my hips are so bad I may be at the end of the line for my running. My right leg keeps buckling at inopportune times and I wake up at night from the pain/stiffness. I know my labrum is torn but I keep hoping if I keep doing my regular P.T. I can push my way through it. I really want to avoid any kind of surgery but only time will tell. Meanwhile, I'll get in more biking and hope that will help me to keep fit. Once we get home, I can start swimming but I'm nervous about being inside in a state where the positivity rate is >20%.

Congratulations to BigMango on an impressive HM!

Kudos to Igy on the new mileage highs.

CM - hope the foot heals quickly.

LucKY - thanks for being our fearless leader!

Happy New Year to All! Long May You Run!

SCgal,

Thanks. Best on dealing with the in-laws house clean-up. We went through the same gig a decade past. Probably exacerbating any joint issues. My wife and I both went thru hernia surgeries following our parental care experiences. It take a toll physically and emotionally. But kudos to you and your husband for accepting the challenge.

Igy

BigMango, that's quite the race report! Nothing like sheer terror to keep you going at an unsustainable pace, at least for a while. That would be a terrific time even under excellent conditions. Give yourself a rest and a big pat on the back for handling such adverse conditions so well.

Ghost of Igloi wrote:

KC, you may be getting to the age where you cannot get away without having a core program. A couple of days a week should do it.

I completely see that now, Igy. I was (and will continue) doing upper body and PF prevention work, because that's easy and makes sense. So why wasn't I doing core strengthening? It didn't make sense to me. I run with my core, so doesn't that mean my core is strong? Anyway, now that I've had my aha moment and have a plan, I already feel better.

Last night I did a plank rotation, just two sets, no leg lifts, and today my core is sore, which is a good sign.

SCgal wrote:

We're spending the Holidays with my 90 y.o. in-laws trying to get their house cleaned out of 50 years worth of once-valuable junk.

I used to do this every few years because I was moving frequently. But now that I have lived in the current place for the last ten years, I have accumulated quite a lot of useful junk. I hope to do something about it before I make the next move, about ten years from now.

My week.

M: off.

T-W: 10.7km.

R: 12.5km. (10:20-9:55-9:42-9:31-9:25-9:17-8:51)

F-SA: 10.7km.

SU: 17.8km. (1042-10:23-10:11-10:03-9:55-9:44-9:33-9:25-9:15-8:52)

Windy Thursday and even windier Sunday. So I decided to ignore the split, and go by the effort. I managed to do the longest run since March 15. So I consider that as progress. I will try to run a bit more this week.

KCgeezer wrote:

Ghost of Igloi wrote:

KC, you may be getting to the age where you cannot get away without having a core program. A couple of days a week should do it.

I completely see that now, Igy. I was (and will continue) doing upper body and PF prevention work, because that's easy and makes sense. So why wasn't I doing core strengthening? It didn't make sense to me. I run with my core, so doesn't that mean my core is strong? Anyway, now that I've had my aha moment and have a plan, I already feel better.

Last night I did a plank rotation, just two sets, no leg lifts, and today my core is sore, which is a good sign.

KC,

I believe you mentioned you are a Kevin Beck fan. His book Run Strong has a couple of chapters on what I would call supplemental exercises for distance runners. It is a collection from a variety of authors, and he acts as more of an editor. Generally exercises you would find on the internet, or thru other readings. One suggestion I would make, is finding a few that make a difference. If not, you could be spending countless hours on exercises that will not move YOUR needle.

Igy

I’m on it. Interestingly my books don’t have a good selection of these. I could do the Runner 360 from SoCalPete’s book, but then I’d have to take the rest of the day of ....

I'm another longtime runner (40+ years) who has developed haglund's deformity in both heels. So discouraged at this point, surgeons that I have spoken to aren't confident in the success rate for surgery to repair both heels.

I'm reading more about Tenex and wondering how your recovering is going.

Any advice is appreciated and hope it's working for you.

markpap wrote:

I'm reading more about Tenex and wondering how your recovering is going.

Any advice is appreciated and hope it's working for you.

Hey... Thanks for asking! A real quick history. I first heard of Tenex in May from pro runner Vanessa Fraser, whom I followed on Instagram. Her recovery from double achilles Tenex has been amazing and gives me hope. Look her up. She chronicled her procedure in detail on her Instagram. She was very kind to respond to my questions before and after my surgery and ease my concerns.

I had mine done on my left achilles by Dr Simons of the

Sports Medicine Institute in Mishawaka IN on Oct 15. The procedure was painless and I walked out in a boot after the 30 minute procedure. After a few days off, I was able to bike with a boot, which I wore for 2 weeks. I was cleared to run, very easily, after about 9 weeks. During that time I stayed somewhat fit by walking, biking or ellipticaling, everyday. My first run was 5 minutes @ 10 min pace. Every other day runs have gotten me up 3 miles. Rach run starting with abouth a 1/2 mile walk. I'll plan on staying at very easy every other day runs until March or so while increasing mileage slightly each week. So far, every run has been 100% pain free. I do heel dips most days. At least 45 but up to 100. Most weighted.

Advice? Find a knowledgeable Sports Med Dr! And be patient with the recovery.

Anything else?

Dave

Thanks Dave and glad to hear that your recovery is going well! Not sure the last time I was 100% pain free, it’s been years. I did check out Nessa’s IG, pretty encouraging. Not sure my old inflexible body can work that hard anymore, but It would be interesting to find out if I could get back out there.

Thanks again!

We got written up.

Latest edition of National Masters News had a piece on virtual racing and they covered our club's three-race summer holiday series.