50+ Masters Training and Racing Open Forum

A quick update

After 13 days off and 5 PT treatments I was back on the track today.

2 miles in 14:02 no pain, calf actually felt better then before I tore it. Now to build back up.

Mike

Mike Lundgren wrote:

Also, I have read that a good training program can include 3 weeks in a row of larger total mileage, followed by 1 week of lesser mileage, and it certainly seems to apply for me.

I also think that is a good training program, although I am not following that right now, since I am alternating between a long run and a track workout. (The week with a track workout is still "hard" even though the mileage is lower.)

My week:

M: off.

T; 7 miles.

W: 11 miles. (4th-6th miles @ 7:58-7:48-7:38, 7th-10th miles @ 7:30)

R: 7 miles.

F: 7 miles.

SA: 7 miles.

SU: 8.8 miles.

My 23 month injury-free streak almost ended on Sunday, as I felt severe pain on the top of my right ankle hours after my Sunday run. I had a trouble even with walking for a few hours. Right now, I can walk normally without pain, and I may be able to run tomorrow if it continues to improve. The strange thing is that the pain came out of nowhere, when I was not doing anything stressful. It "felt like" a sprain although I did not twist my ankle in any unusual way. I will see how it does day-by-day.

DKaae wrote:

1st in the 55-59 age group and 33rd overall out of 610. Among all men’s masters 40+ I was 4th ! This was my longest run or race since 2003 (14 years ago) when at age 43 I ran 1:24 half and 2:59 (in the Miami Marathon).

Congrats, again, and thanks for the great race reports. Always a treat when folks share their experiences! And, coincidentally, my last half marathon, and my last sub-3 marathon, were in 2003 and at age 43. I have great hopes for my upcoming half ... maybe also an age-group win ... that would keep the coincidences going ...

Happy running! -Allen

Wow Allen1959... our running pasts sounds very similar.

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2017 Training

Jan 1-7 Weekly totals: Ran 5 hr 13 min in 9 runs; 3.5 hours cycling in 2 rides (Raced Frank Shorter 1 Mile Road Race in 5:55)

Jan 8-14 Weekly totals: Ran 5 hr 11 min in 8 runs; 4 hours cycling in 3 rides

Jan 15-21 Weekly totals: Ran 5 hr 44 min in 9 runs; 5.5 hours cycling in 3 rides

Jan 22-28 Weekly totals: Ran 5 hr 12 min in 8 runs; 1 hour cycling in 1 ride (Raced Newnan’s Lake 15K in 1:05:04, 6:59/mile pace)

Jan 29-Feb 4 Weekly totals: Ran 5 hr 11 min in 8 runs; 3 hours cycling in 3 rides

Feb 5-11 Weekly totals: Ran 6 hr 8 min in 8 runs; 1 hour cycling in 1 ride

Feb 12-18 - Weekly totals: Ran 4 hr 20 min in 7 runs (Raced Fallen Heroes 5K in 20:09, 6:29/mile pace)

Feb 19-25 - Weekly totals: Ran 4 hr 12 min in 7 runs; 1.25 hours cycling in 1 ride

Feb 26 - Five Point of Life Half Marathon in 1:37:00 (7:24/mile pace) 1st in 55-59 age group

Feb 27 - Rest, some walking

Feb 28 - Rest, some walking

March 1 - Ran 25 minutes; Biked 17 miles in 1:01

March 2 - Ran 31 minutes

March 3 - Ran 25 minutes; Ran 39 minutes

March 4 - Ran 41 minutes; Ran 44 minutes

Weekly totals: Ran 5 hr 5 min in 7 runs; 1 hour cycling in 1 ride

I'm still recovering from the half marathon, but a good week. 5K coming up on 3/18.

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Week 300

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Happy 300th, 50+ers! A milestone, of sorts, as we reach the 300th week of this thread (there may be a miscount in there somewhere, but I'm going with it.) Thanks to everyone for keeping this adventure rolling! My week didn't go as hoped; in part because I completely forgot that we had Science Olympiad yesterday (I'm not the director this year, so it wasn't front and center in my thinking when I posted last week.) As the week evolved, it became clear that I was going to be saturated both Friday and Saturday helping get things going for the new event director (I ended up not sleeping from 4am Friday morning until 10pm Saturday night.) Couple that with some really nasty weather earlier in the week, and I only managed 3 runs this week for a total of just under 15 miles. Log reads as such:

Sun: 5.2 easy (7:52/mi)

Mon: Off

Tue: 4.0 6xBraemer Hill Loops (7:22/mi, 430 ft elev gain)

Wed: Off

Thu: 5.2 easy to moderate (7:29 avg) last 3.2 about 7:16/mi

Fri: off

Sat: off, but on my feet and moving pretty much all day.

I worked the hills pretty hard on Tuesday, and picked up the pace but didn't really push it on Thursday. Not much else to say this week; I keep saying it, but hopefully it'll be true that I get back to steady training. Props to those that raced last week; I missed out on a couple of good race opportunities this weekend. So how's life in your realm?

All the Best!

I decided to get serious about making my hard days harder and my easy days easier. The result was my best training week in the past 20 months, since before I injured my Achilles tendon.

Monday: 10 miles easy (9:20 pace)

Tuesday: 10 miles fairly hard (8:30)

Weds: 10 miles moderate (8:45)

Thursday: 10 miles hard (8:25)

Friday: 7 miles of jogging

Saturday: 16 miles at 8:20 pace. Hard, but well controlled and had something left at the end. Tired for the rest of the day, though.

Sunday: 8 miles fairly easy (9:00 pace) in a cold rain. Legs felt dead but nothing hurts.

71 miles for the week, about half of it at a fairly hard effort. Having managed 8:20 pace for a 16-mile training run, I am hopeful about breaking 8:00 pace for my half-marathon in 14 days. If only I can keep my Achilles or something else from blowing up.

It was a good steady training week for me, but I was still somewhat fatigued from the prior week's hard efforts. 41 miles total

M- 4 easy

T- 8 hills really slowly

W- 8 hills with 2 miles of :30 hard/:30 easy

Th- 8 very easy

F- off

S- 6 with 2mi at 7:56 ave, 2mi at 7:30, 2mi at 8:30 (this was supposed to be a 2 mi warm up and 4 mile tempo but I was cooked at 2mi into the tempo.)

Su- 7 moderate at 8:56 ave

happy March, everyone. ok week for me with 10 hours running + 2 hours cross-training:

M 1:20 run + 1:00 spin class

Tu 1:30 run with 2 X 2000 (4:30 jog recovery) at 10k pace [actually a bit faster than 10k it turns out] 7:28, 7:25

W 1:50 double

Th 2:20 double

F 1:20

Sa 30 run, 60 stationary bike

Su 1:10 incl. 10k race in 37:50 for 46th OA, 1st M 55-59.

race was chilly [high 20's] but no wind to speak of and flat course downtown DC. half way in 18:50 so I slowed a bit but not that much.

on the train ride home I started putting it through the shit machine in my brain (1:30 slower than a similar course last spring; 20 seconds/mile slower than masters PR half-marathon pace, creeping up toward my marathon PR pace.......), but I've decided to turn over a new mental leaf and settle for...

--it's not linear and not same age for everyone, but we all get slower with age

--I tried my hardest

--hamstring tight but not too bad, so I live to fight another day!

have a great week,

Dave

Good week for me with 28.8 miles on 6 runs. Felt good to run faster Monday but need to make sure I run the “right” pace for my fitness level.

M- 4.1 miles in 39 min 8x1min at 5k

Tu- 3.3 miles in 33 min

W – 6 miles in 57 min

Th -off

F – 3.3 miles in 29 min, mid mile 6:54

Sa – 3.1 miles in 30 min

Su -9 miles in 86 min

It’s nice seeing the number of miles and minutes people are putting in. Keep it going.

Congrats on the race Dave. I try to counter the stinkin-thinkin with awareness that I’m currently not injured and I feel pretty good. It’s just too easy to forget what it was like when we were limping.

My week:

Mon = 3 miles, medium @ 8:27 pace: 8:33, 8:27, 8:18, sore calves

Wed = 3 miles, medium hard @ 8:07 pace: 8:06, 8:15, 7:58

Fri = 3 miles, treadmill, medium @ 8:30 pace: 8:30, 8:30, 8:30

Sun = 3 miles, road, hard @ 7:46 pace: 7:47, 7:52, 7:40

A good week. Paces continue to drift downward and my legs feel stronger.

Have a good week everyone.

Solid racing dhaaga...I particulary appreciate your post-race 'thought process'...one of the toughest parts of being an aging athlete...in fact, I believe it is why so many of our racing and training partners from the 70s and 80s don't run any longer...they say it's because of their knee or their back or their hip...but I think its mostly not being able to wrap their head around training real hard to race real slow in comparison to their lifetime bests. Funny, I just the other day saw results for an AAU 50K championships that I won in 1979...3:05:13 or 5:53 pace for 31 miles...and now, in spite of the fact that I train quite hard to do so, I barely have one single 5:53 in me...gravity just sucks ;}

After 3 very hard training weeks, this past one was a scheduled shut down week...only 35 miles and aside from a short track session last Tuesday, have just been out jogging with the wife and dog on an impromptu sunny beach getaway...that all changes tomorrow as I ramp up the intensity these next three weeks in advance of a one mile track race that kicks off a stretch of 7 track meets in 11 weeks...gulp!

Sending everybody positive vibrations for a great week of geezer training and racing along with my mantra/reminder to 'train don't strain'

stay well,

MF

Good Afternoon,

Just finished a couple hours working in the yard, so it must be spring. Achilles about 90%, taking my time increasing volume and pace. I plan to go a week between PT therapy then increasing to a ten day span.

Monday: Stretching; treadmill 3 miles with 2/10th walk, 3/10th easy

Tuesday: Stretching, 50:00 spin bike; 2 sets free weights

Wednesday: 1.5 miles easy; 2 x 1200m tempo / 3:00 rest; mile easy

Thursday: Stretching; 50:00 spin bike; 2 sets free weights

Friday: 10:00 spin; PT therapy and exercises; AlterG treadmill @ 85% 3 miles easy to 6:00 pace

Saturday: Stretching; 5 miles easy and occasional walking in foothills

Sunday: Off

MikeF I think you hit the issue for folks like me. Certainly at times I feel myself slipping into that trap. Was the AAU 50K in Rocklin?

Igy

amkelley wrote:

I decided to get serious about making my hard days harder and my easy days easier. The result was my best training week in the past 20 months, since before I injured my Achilles tendon.

Monday: 10 miles easy (9:20 pace)

Tuesday: 10 miles fairly hard (8:30)

Weds: 10 miles moderate (8:45)

Thursday: 10 miles hard (8:25)

Friday: 7 miles of jogging

Saturday: 16 miles at 8:20 pace. Hard, but well controlled and had something left at the end. Tired for the rest of the day, though.

Sunday: 8 miles fairly easy (9:00 pace) in a cold rain. Legs felt dead but nothing hurts.

71 miles for the week, about half of it at a fairly hard effort. Having managed 8:20 pace for a 16-mile training run, I am hopeful about breaking 8:00 pace for my half-marathon in 14 days. If only I can keep my Achilles or something else from blowing up.

Dang nabbit , great week, what's your age and when is your half? ?

Well, after many months of "managing through" a myriad of nagging aches and pains (i.e. ignoring them), my recent enthusiasm seems to have nudged things toward a "chronic and worrisome" level. A familiar tale.

My current woes include top-of-foot/ankle pain that has dogged me since shortly before my marathon back in October. This week, I started having similar pain in the other foot. My knees are always tender ... until about three miles into a run. I can barely walk in the morning, and need to put both feet on every tread as I struggle down the stairs. My right hip has been bothersome since 1981. This week the pain migrated to deep in the joint. Also strained an abdominal muscle a week ago ... the discomfort seems to neither be worsening nor diminishing (am assuming just a strain, not hernia or anything serious).

I am following a modified Pfitzinger half marathon plan (from his 1999 book), extending his 7-day cycle to 9 days. The idea was to incorporate more rest/recovery. But then I greedily saw the nine days as an opportunity to include additional workouts (a VO2max and a Lactate Threshold workout in each cycle ... plus a long run and secondary long run). Maybe too much, too soon.

Past seven days, Feb 27 - Mar 5:

LR: 15.2 miles @ 7:57/mi (even pace)

Off

Easy: 7.0 miles @ 8:51/mi

VO2max: 2 mile warmup; 5 x 3min hill w/4:20 jog recoveries; 1.5 mile cooldown

Off

LR2: 12.0 miles @ 7:57/mi (even pace)

Easy: 4.0 miles @ 9:45/mi

Goal Pace

5K: 6:13/mi

Half Marathon: 6:50/mi

Marathon: 7:26/mi

Most Recent Pace

5K: 6:26/mi (Feb 2017)

10 Mile: 6:45/mi (Feb 2017)

Marathon: 7:51/mi (Oct 2016)

Besides taking two rest days, I backed off the intensity this week. For the long run and secondary long run, I ran even paces, rather than incorporating my usual progression miles.

I remain committed to a sub-1:30 half marathon goal on April 30, aiming for a top-three age-group finish. Last year, there were 77 finishers in M55-59. My targeted marathon is the first weekend in October.

Also, I continue catching up on all the previous pages on this thread ... I am almost to the point where I first joined the discussion in 2016. Endlessly fascinating! I have a few comments/observations ...may write up some thoughts next week.

Happy Trails!

-Allen

Last week's bug is in the rear view mirror. Really disappointed not to race last Sunday but that wasn't the goal race. Got up to 25 mikes back end loaded, plus a swim and two lifting sessions.

Good news is coast is clear since my annual illness is over. Aggressive ramp from here -- Cherry Blossom in 4 weeks. On vacation so lots of time to train and recover.

dhaaga wrote:

--it's not linear and not same age for everyone, but we all get slower with age

--I tried my hardest

--hamstring tight but not too bad, so I live to fight another day!

reading dave's post reminds me of a time i was disappointed with a 5k time at carlsbad (at age 47) that was a great effort but almost a minute slower than one of my earlier carlsbad times (at age 41), thinking i guess that's just where i am. i was mildly comforted (or at least gained much needed perspective), though, when i looked at the age grading and realized i was slowing down almost exactly as i'm supposed to be.

that said, i know many of us want to defy those odds and averages, which is what makes it difficult, frustrating, and rewarding all at the same time...

training this week for me was excellent--two track workouts and a long-ish tempo (for me) all in one week, a rarity even under the best circumstances the last several years, but especially now coming back from an injury layoff as the "cramming for carlsbad" continues:

5x1k tuesday night, maybe 2:30 rest, most coming by the 800 at 2:30, though i slowed dramatically the last 200 on #3 and #5.

3200 tempo on the track thursday night (10:37), followed by 6x200 with lots of rest, all in 31-32.

the downside: the trackwork was all pacing/barely hanging with young women; the upside: the trackwork was all pacing/barely hanging with young women...

this morning capped off the week with a 6 mile tempo with young dudes, at around 5:45 pace, coming through 5 miles faster than the 8k i raced/tempoed last week. i'd planned on only going 5 thinking even that would be too ambitious, but i actually dropped the youngsters slightly after 4 miles and figured if i was going to lead the 5th mile, i better not drop out when they were going 6. felt better than i've felt since the injury comeback began.

this week, the focus will be work hard on tuesday night's track workout again, then get ready for a track 5k friday night.

28 days til carlsbad...

cush

Thanks, Pretzel Man. I'm 58 and my half is March 19 (Modesto, CA). I also have another half-marathon scheduled two weeks after that (Fresno). I'm usually able to win the F55-59 but I keep getting slower as I reach the upper end of that group and faster runners enter it from below. Gotta hang on for another 14 months until I turn 60...

Week 300: 5 hours 46 minutes in 6 runsMon - 45 min easy (not slow) on grass Tue - 1 hr with 20 min tempo Wed - off, planned Thu - 46 min easy Fri - 1 hr hilly Sat - 1 hr 30 min with 3x strides Sun - 45 min slow on grass Fallback week here, so I was able to squueze in a blood donation on Thursday. My pulse was under 50, so she got me talking and measured it again, the second time I passed. What a charade.

amkelley wrote:

I decided to get serious about making my hard days harder and my easy days easier.

Good idea!

amkelley wrote:

Tuesday: 10 miles fairly hard (8:30)

Weds: 10 miles moderate (8:45)

Thursday: 10 miles hard (8:25)

Not the best execution.

7 days of 2 hour hill hikes with 2 in the Gorge at Multnomah Falls and Wakeena Falls. Started to run the downhill sections which is a good indicator that my eccentric strength is coming around.

impulse/rumination/curiosity

On the way to get groceries after 2 hour hike I without thinking I stopped at the track. The uptight practical part of my mind was screaming ITs WINDY YOU ARE TOO FAT IT IS COLD YOU WILL PULL A MUSCLE DON'T DO IT. The extroverted caution to the wind part said what the heck you little bitch I am sick of this boring sheeit you call training. Ok how about just a really cautious effort so that is what I did .Ran an awkward 90 sec 400 wilting into the wind over the 2nd 200. Not happy or sad just kinda oh. So started to leave but turned around in all of 30 secs of thought and ran another 400 felt smoother 87...ok better but not so great . Another 30 seconds then a 200 in 42 into some wind a 100 meter jog then finished with a 37 200 with the wind. Not tired really just refreshed but I am sure that a sub 3 for 800 would have been very hard to do today. The biomechanics will come back quick but my endurance sucks so I gotta do some longer stuff and maybe run more than 2 miles a week.