50+ Masters Training and Racing Open Forum

*Week 416*

Greetings 50+ers! Similar to last week with mostly walking, but included a bit more running: Mon (2.0 continuous), Fri (3.1 with walk breaks) and Sat. (7x(0.2 walk, 0.3 run)). I did brisk (under 15-min/mi) 1hr+ walks for a couple other days and few more leisurely 1hr walks for a couple of days, too. Knees still good, toes are maybe a little better, weight still not coming down much (going to need to work on portion size;) hope to continue slowly adding more running.

Props to Amkelley on reaching that 5k goal.

As always, Charlie has some interesting research and creative methods. Thumbs up!

Not much else to add. Will just keep plugging away. Hope you've had a good week!

All the Best!

Congrats AM Kelly on the 5K goal!

Tue: 4 miles road with 10 X 1 min on and 2 min off

Thr: 3 miles treadmill, easy

Sat: 5K Race (80 degrees, 80% humidity): 23:07 (7:24, 7:29, 7:49) 3rd OA Master

Sun: 4 miles easy @ 4000 feet

Tue: 4 miles with 3 @ 8:25 pace, 96 degrees, 70% humidity

Thr: 4 miles with 3 @ 7:30 pace

Sat: 4 miles with 7 super-steep hill sprints

Sun: 4 miles easy @ 4000 feet

I apparently skipped a week; I think the heat is getting to me. That’s been the main story, record-breaking heat.

Race Report: Main headline: It was just hot and humid for this race but I still thought I could stick to 7:22 pace. I felt really solid the first mile and actually held back, but by the 1.5 mile turn-around I was already having some trouble with the heat + allergy. I don’t know the exact tree but evidently several of them were on the course as it wound down near the river. I started wheezing and coughing but my legs still felt solid. The last mile is uphill and I just lost it. But, apparently so did everyone else as I was passing lots of people during the last half mile.

I ended up 13th out of 142 and very surprisingly was the 3rd master over 40 and got a very nice crystal trophy. I was so disappointed in my time I was almost embarrassed to accept it. But looking back now and comparing times I see I passed some folks that have gone much faster than I. So I’m OK with it now.

Have a good week folks.

I did not report last week as I was quite busy with family, but also because the back soreness I reported two weeks ago ended up limiting what I could do for that week. As I mentioned, two Sunday’s ago I finished my jog with a sore back and it was quite a problem for the rest of that day. By the next day it felt much better and by Tuesday I thought I was ready to return to action, but I shut things down after two miles once I realized the back was still not ready for prime time. I took the rest of the week off to give the back a thorough rest.

Fast forward to this past week. Sunday’s jog went well, though I kept it a little shorter than usual so as not to aggravate the back, but also because it was quite hot and humid and I’m not yet reacclimatized to those conditions. The rest of the week went well with one “long” run to make up for Sunday’s shorty and get me once again beyond 20 miles of actual jogging for the week. Good stuff. Obviously I’m staying away from golf for awhile until I’m convinced the back is 100%. I’ve also backed off on some of my post-jog exercises for the same reason.

Sun: 42’ jog; body wt ex

Mon: off

Tues: 52’ jog; body wt ex

Wed: off

Thu: 61’ jog; body wt ex

Fri: walk w/ the bride

Sat: 52’ jog; body wt ex

Best to most!

Solid race RType...cool stuff Charlie AKA 'the most interesting masters runner in the world' ;}

Survived 26 miles this week...two good sessions...Thursday track included 1 mile at 6:54, 400 @ 97, 200 @ 44, 200 @ 41...all very short recoveries...then Saturday on the track, a progression run 5 miler @ 9:19, 8:37, 8:19, 8:17, 7:59 hard but not all out....all other running super slow recovery jogs...some sort of weights, core, sit up, push up every day

IF my gimpy feet will allow, I intend to race 800 meters next Saturday...it'd be first race of the year but more importantly will mark 50 consecutive years of competition without a single missed year...the kind of dumb benchmarks that keep me amused these days...in a 'the older we get, the faster we were sorta' way

Look forward to hearing YOUR tales of inspiration and perspiration

your pal,

MF

After a week of at times heavy rain we are drying out in Southwestern Idaho. I tapered early in the week for a Thursday YMCA All Comers Meet where I planned to run 1500m, 800m and 3,000m. I was not expecting much, but hoped to get some benchmarks to starts my season. Unfortunately the rain was coming down in sheets and the meet was called off before the first event. So I improvised for the rest of the week with a 2,000m tempo run Friday in 10:25 (5:25, 5:20); my heart rate recovered in less than a minute. Saturday 8 x 400m repetition @ 1:46, 1:43, 1:40, 1:38, 1:41, 1:40, 1:40, 1:39 with 200m walk. I signed up for the same three events spread over two days at the USATF Snake River Meet June 14-15th,

A year ago I was less than a week away from my last chemo treatment. My exercise routine included a walk into work and back, a two hour nap, and another walk. I probably weighed close to 200 lbs and I am now down to 175 lbs. Still to be competitive in my age group I would need to drop another twenty pounds. It is fun to look at my log book where I can see both the exercise and weight progress. Time will tell where this journey ends.

I am mulling over driving the 360 miles to run the Portland Masters Track Classic on June 22nd. On one hand it seems silly to drive that far to run a 27:30 5k. On the other, that would be a big step forward from January. I am putting some new shoes on my ride in the morning. It would be a nice drive and mark an anniversary of sorts. At the start of 2018 I really had focused on racing in Spokane, which by July was impossible. I have a little over two weeks to make a decision.

Good running!

Igy

Rtype, congrats on a decent race in tough conditions and picking up that trophy! I have run under those conditions and it’s really tough even for 5K. So glad to be out of the humidity now, although not the heat.

MikeF, 50 consecutive years of competition is fantastic. I ran my first-ever official race 42 years ago but had years in my late 30s and early 40s when I didn’t race at all, so I’m never going to match your mark.

I’ve been feeling generally tired all month, even though the two races I ran this month were my best two races in the past two years. After “semi-long” runs of 16+ miles the previous two weekends, today I decided to start training in earnest for the marathon coming up in eight weeks, even though the energy level just wasn’t there. I managed to plod through 18.9 miles yesterday morning and it didn’t feel too bad, but the time was alarmingly slow, 9:20/mile. I suppose I shouldn’t worry about it, having just one week ago run a 5K that was decently fast by current standards. This morning my heel was too sore for me to run and I felt generally trashed, so I just got on the bike for 70 minutes and called it a day. 71 miles for the week, and hoping to get my energy back.

The problem with a late July marathon is that even if the marathon itself is in a place almost guaranteed to have cool weather, I have to train where it’s bloody hot. It was still in the 60s when I finished yesterday at 7:48 am but the sun was already hot, and any route I run that starts and ends at home has very little shade over the last 4-5 miles. And summer hasn’t really hit yet. Perhaps I should start doing my long runs by driving to a shadier part of town and doing loops or out-and-backs on shaded bike paths. No point trying to do long training runs in 80 degree sunshine when the race is going to be overcast and in the 50s.

My husband is out of town today through Thursday morning, so I’ll be rather harried acting as a single parent to my three dogs: a nearly crippled 8-year-old German Shepherd, a sweet but overexcitable 70-pound 8-month-old Australian Shepherd, and an almost housebroken 12-week-old Golden Retriever. Talk about a 3-ring circus.

nice race. 80 degrees/80% humidity is a tough day for a race.

I had a fun week leading into my jury duty stint starting tomorrow:

M 1:25 including 4-mile race in 24:47 (22nd OA, 2nd AG)

Tu 1:30 double

W 1:40 double

Th 2:30 with 20:00 at marathon pace

F 1:10

Sa 45:00 + 1:00 x-t

Su 1:00 with 4 X 6:00 at 5k effort (4:00 recovery) [about 1570 meters average] + 1:00 x-t. A little sluggish -- gave blood yesterday and maybe some lingering effect?

Monday's race went pretty well -- I didn't check splits but think I ran fairly evenly. Left in the dust by a mob on downhill start, then gradually moved up. My time was exactly the same as last year, but I finished 3 places further back [22nd instead of 19th]. American distance running is back!

have a great week,

Dave

My good luck of avoiding any serious cold for the last several years finally ran out this week. Last weekend I had a light sore throat but didn't feel too bad. It was a little worse Monday and then I spent most of Tues-Fri with a splitting congestion headache and trying to sleep when I wasn't coughing my lungs out. Yesterday and today were better but this has been my first total non-running week in over a year.

I'll just see how it goes day-to-day from here.

Stay healthy! The alternative is no fun.

KUDOS;o) ....As a former class clown who spent a lot of time in the hall on the bench....THANKS!

I enjoy learning but not the old fashioned way.

So I did back to back Time Trials as I prepare for my MacArthur like return to the 5000 on the track. Inchon yes! It was thirteen years ago on this very track at Mt.Hood CC I ran my heart out at the tender age of 49/16:44 hung em up but I did enjoy staying fit for the most part.

Saturday a reluctant me attempted a 3200 at goal 5000 pace. A reasonable idea that fell flat on my face. After 3 laps I knew it was over kept running for 3 more before tossing in the towel. Sunday arrived with vigor and the idea of trying to at least match yesterdays bomb. I felt GREAT the whole way starting at 1:28 then clicking off 4 1:30s and a nice 1:27 finish for an 8:55 so I gotta shot at a sub 19 or maybe better!

https://youtu.be/OmBxVfQTuvI

Rtype Allergies really can slow me down in fact the above was probably allergies as today a nice coastal breeze was blowing that pollen inland.

Igy them 400 look pretty good . I know them long drives I am in the same boat if I stink up anything between now and then I will be a no show cause racing for me is like test anxiety I want to hit my goal and if something is not right I go do more homework.

AMK Nice 5k 20 seconds per mile faster must feel amazing. Heat training can make you faster.

L2B sounds like you are on the come back trail

MF Nice 5 miler good luck with the 800 btw I have never raced one a bucket list item for sure

DHaaga Nice 4 miler same time this year as last year means you r faster that is how I look at it

OG2 maybe the flu ? sound like you are on the mend.

Onward!

Charlie,

Thanks. You seem ready to roll....

Igy

WOW Charlie...6 laps sub 90 rocks...you are fit!! Keep on doing whatever that stuff is that you’re doing...clearly it works for you...impressive.

Thanks for that suggestion!

Racerdb wrote:

Indianapolis Monumental on November 9. Its not warm but the weather is usually pretty good and there is plenty of others to run with. And its regarded as a flat and fast course. I'm tentatively planning on running this year. My motive? I have the 50-54 AG record of 1:15:42. I think I have a shot at the 55-59 AG record of 1:21:12. Then next year at 60 I'd like to take a shot at the 60-64 AG record of 1:21:52. That's the plan anyhow. And it would be pretty cool...

https://monumentalmarathon.com/races/cno-financial-indianapolis-monumental-half-marathon/

Dave

Ran Bolder Boulder 10K on Monday. 38:10, 1st AG and new single age record. Had a brief chat with socal cush just after finishing. He was brave to face the altitude and ran a good time.

Back up to the 60 mpw range for past few weeks and time to start rolling with some good training.

Hey Charlie...is that all there is to it? hee hee...meant kiddingly...

You had me looking up exomes, promethease, genotypes, nucleotides, polymorphisms etc.. Never felt so dense...ha ha.

Seriously though...thanks for the info.

Re the sand info running...I live on Cape Cod so I have no excuse for not trying it. I was a bit concerned about my achilles tendon...but I imagine I could take it a little at a time. Some beaches are kind of lumpy and uneven. Do you look for any particular kind of sand surface?

I guess I figured the grass surface would be a kind of middle ground...so to speak...where I could get a little improvement in elasticity...yet not make it as drastic a change as running in sand.

I'm assuming you always do the sand running barefoot.

Nice job on the 8:55 for 1.5 mi. Makes a sub 19 5K at least seem possible.

Hey Igy yesterday I was ready to stick my head in the sand. Extremely disappointed with my first attempt but thought about how the difference between a good workout and a bad one is 10 or 15 seconds. Anyhow today I felt like a million bucks . I am guessing allergies. I just might be ready to roll either way I do enjoy the process just need to keep from measuring my enjoyment with a stop watch

MF you are the guy who really got me back into doing this stuff! THANKS

PTF if your achilles is not so good be careful with the sand maybe just do some walk shuffling on it to see how it reacts. The grass is really ok too.

So here is a short edited youtube video of my 2 runs tough day followed by a good day.

https://youtu.be/VoANFivMgJ4

^you look good and can talk while running a good clip...impressive.....

Coyote Montane wrote:Ran Bolder Boulder 10K on Monday. 38:10, 1st AG and new single age record.

Hell. Yes, CM!!! Nice...

Decent week of 45 miles. 6/7 days with a day off and a long drive drive home from SC Tuesday. Solid running with two pretty good days. Did a 1/4-1/2-3/4-mile-1/4 workout Thursday before work. Its an old 'go to' workout I've done many times over the years. Happy with the splits but a far cry from what used to be. 88.0 2:58.9, 4:27.0, 5:54.0, 85.0. With a 400 jog rest. Did 10 Saturday in 1:13:50. Steady and very comfortable then picked up the last 3-4 in a thunderstorm going 708,703,659. But the brutal truth is I just need to run more. 45 miles/week just isn't going to cut it.

I'll be running a 5K Saturday. Its always been one of my better races of the year. Lots of fast runners to be around. I've been thinking 17:37 for some reason. I just need to get out on pace, hit two where I need to be, and don't be a p*ssy and finish the eff'ing race! If I do that I'll walk away 100% happy. We'll see...

Have a good week,

Dave

Charlie wrote:

Hey Igy yesterday I was ready to stick my head in the sand. Extremely disappointed with my first attempt but thought about how the difference between a good workout and a bad one is 10 or 15 seconds. Anyhow today I felt like a million bucks . I am guessing allergies. I just might be ready to roll either way I do enjoy the process just need to keep from measuring my enjoyment with a stop watch

MF you are the guy who really got me back into doing this stuff! THANKS

PTF if your achilles is not so good be careful with the sand maybe just do some walk shuffling on it to see how it reacts. The grass is really ok too.

So here is a short edited youtube video of my 2 runs tough day followed by a good day.

https://youtu.be/VoANFivMgJ4

Running is an attendance test disguised as a sport.

dude...i watched these...stud...inspiring...extraordinary cool...to me at leasy ...thank you.

your pal,

MF