Why are my 100/200 times nearly the same as eons ago, when my distance times have dropped off so much more?

Maybe the 5% is for speed-loss.

Maybe the 15% loss is from 5% speed-loss + 10% endurance-loss.

At your age can't rule out partially blocked arteries that inhibit blood flow. Get a physical. Remember Salazar.

Could it be be you're 10lbs heavier?

Weight would become a greater factor in longer distances. Might even be helpful in the shorter ones.

A somewhat more accurate comparison here would be to look at durations, not distances.

example:

2' for 800m in your 20's to 2' for 700m in your 40's

The guy who runs 700m in 2' flat might make 2:18 for 800m.

So 12.5% less distance by duration but a 15% slower time for the same distance. Now on the speed side, the drop off w/ extra distance isn't nearly as notable (100/200m), so these times might look a bit better than they actually are.

But getting back to the point here about speed and stamina.

It is good to look at things this way, but truth is the two are linked, more or less depending on the specific event. Part of the reason you have "stamina" is you have speed and part of the reason you have "speed" is that you have stamina. Nobody maintains a pace they can't hit, no matter how much they've trained.

Stamina itself includes multiple aspects. Heat build up for example is greater in heavier runners, and heat build up slows you down. You can also impact endurance performance by changing the brain chemistry. Some mild insulin resistance in your 40's might make it tougher to get fuel into your muscles during exercise. So stamina really isn't just about cardiovascular factors at all. Multiple systems are involved.

My guess is also that racing flats or spikes in the longer races are not helping you nearly as much now as when you were younger. For a heavier or slower runner, racing flats or spikes might even slow you down.

This issue is directly addressed in "Salazar's Guide to Road Racing", at pp. 241-243:

"These tables {age-related performance tables) reveal that age affects you diferently at different race distances. Your ability falls off most quickly at middle distances between 800 meters and 1000 meters, but more slowly at both sprint distances and in long-distance races..."

Salazar also states that, "Endurance apears to fall off more quickly than sprinting speed-explaining why middle distance runners do not fare as well as sprinters."

Salazar concludes that one of the major reasons for this is because after the age of 30, VO2 max declines. He points out that conventional medical wisdom pegs this decline at about 10 mL/kg/min. per decade. He notes that runners who keep training fare better, seeing only about half the average decline.

You have to train differently as you age: more miles and more work aimed at your aerobic threshold, especially if this is NOT how you have trained in the past.

Maybe you've just always sucked at sprinting, so you didn't have as much to lose? I mean, I doubt you ever trained hard to become a better 100/200 runner, but you were always pushing yourself in the longer races.

The age-graded tables mean nothing. As much sociology there as physiology.

Salazar's conclusions are entirely inaccurate. Did Human Kinetics publish that?

dsrunner wrote:

The age-graded tables mean nothing. ?

The age-graded tables are a reasonable guide for comparing performances across the age spectrum. I think they serve a very useful purpose in keeping masters motivated as we slowly mature and slow down, although some of us like Mr Whitlock can hold back the sands of time better than most. As someone who entered the sport at an advanced age it is useful to compare my times against those youngsters who finish in front of me. Although I missed out on my best years one can but dream about what might have been achieved.

Why did my post get deleted? It was completely legit.

The tables are not reasonable at all -- a house of cards at best. Certainly nothing sacrosanct there. They keep talking about fixing the tables but never do. Meanwhile we get women's sprint marks converting to open level 10.2! I don't believe Ottey was a big slacker her entire athletics career. Does anyone? And how many Kenyans and Ethiopians have world age group marks in the distances? These tables as they are do more harm than good for athletics.

Chase better marks and strive to do your best. Try to have fun along the way. That's what the sport is about.

YOU got cut off cos your post was near mine. I always get cut off. Letsrun doesn't like me to post here, that's why

JoggerGerry wrote:

YOU got cut off cos your post was near mine. I always get cut off. Letsrun doesn't like me to post here, that's why

Gerry - I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one that gets cut off for posting serious stuff about training.