Runners in your 60's & 70's - How are you holding up?

Fisky,

After chemotherapy I had a CAT scan, the lymphoma that I was being treated for was gone, but there was a hot spot on my prostate. PSA test was ordered with a resulting 22.8 reading, after never being over 0.82. The fear was I had lymphomatous involvement of the prostate; not a good thing. I was referred to a urologist for a DRE and consultation. I noted that I had been riding a spin bike over an hour several times a week, and had rode the spin bike the morning of the 22.8 reading. The doctor orders were for a retest in a month. More than a little nervousness followed, but a happy result with a 0.52 reading. I have just revisited the spin bike the last couple of weeks after a six month hiatus.

Igy

fisky wrote:

Prostnosis wrote:

What was the prognosis? You’re still posting! :)

Thanks for asking. The biopsy was negative. The follow-up test of PSA was back to 3.4... lowest it's been in five years. Previously, it jumped from 4 to 14 in two months so that was the start of the scare. I don't know why it was so high in December and then so low in February. It had been in the low 4.x for several years.

On a whim, I asked for a testosterone check as well. I was 635. That's 200 points higher than it was several years ago. The difference, I think, was adding extreme HIIT weightlifting to my routine.

That HIIT weightlifting is for the birds unless you have great genetics or something like that. I'm 59 and I just end up getting hurt doing that. My joints are shot and OA is now a factor.

I played college football and competed in powerlifting & bodybuilding for about 10 yrs after college, so I know a thing or two about weight training. I get injured enough just trying to run 12 mpw, so I don't need to get further injured in the weight room.

That extreme HIIT stuff in the weight room is for the obsessive compulsive guys with good genetics. I prefer to follow Arnold's old man routine. Notice he's not doing HIIT nor does he touch any free weights:

That's because he blew out his heart valves and likely can't even run.

Ol fisk is still mobile and still trying to race fast and short.

PR of 2:39 at age 40, tonight at age 60 struggled with 9:30 pace for 5 miles. Still 155 at 6'. I see some of these times of my age group at big races and I am amazed. These guys are really working hard, it is not easy.

57 approaching 58 in 2014 may 16 I posted had quit running just hiking.

59 I had gained 30 more pounds so I was 50 pounds over racing weight

Rebooted diet exercise first just walking then running again

62 2019 may 16 131 lbs running 50 minutes a day mostly jogging but can still run relatively fast sub 6 mile and sub 20 5k

I did do a bunch of speedwork for awhile but this did not really pan out too well. For various reasons I can run relatively fast off very little hard stuff. The hard stuff just beats the heck out of me so I have learned to enjoy running super slow 10 minute miles at 120 bpm which is 50 percent of mhr. I also take walk breaks:0 My age graded percents are off a bit but this type of easy training is well easy on the body so I am going for longevity . I feel like super easy low heart rate running is actually healthy especially when I include walk breaks. Like today I did 10 minutes of walking , 10 minutes of jogging for about 2 hours as a recovery day.

Video is worth a 1000 words....yeah I am an old fart

Recent video of me breaking 6 minute mile off base:

https://youtu.be/OrCOuKXO43A

I just turned 61, female. I was once relatively fast over long enough distances with a marathon PR of 2:43 at age 33, but I've undergone the usual steady decline since then and a particularly steep decline in the past few years. I was delighted to run a half-marathon in 1:46 two weeks ago, but my PR for that distance was 1:19.

I was always best at the longer distances and always preferred running relatively high mileage with little or no speed work. I now have one chronic injury, an insertional Achilles tendonosis that I've been dealing with for four years. So far I've managed to avoid surgery by avoiding steep hills or uneven terrain that puts particular stress on the Achilles, and taking days or weeks off when necessary (I cycle for cross-training, which doesn't stress the Achilles at all). During good months I still average about 70 mpw but nearly all of it is slow, 9:00-9:30 min/mile pace. Apart from the Achilles problem, as far a I know I have no chronic health problems after about 35 years of moderately high mileage running. I still enjoy running and racing against the other old ladies.

I'm hanging in there for how old I'm getting. Not much by letsrun standards (everyone ran sub 14 5Ks in college) but did got sub 6s for 13.1 the other month. 61 and more churlish by the month.

7-10 hours a week, 50 weeks a year. Mix of easy runs, weekly reps at CV effort, tempos, and pick ups here and there. We'll call it consistent moderate intensity doofus training.

Well...then he's got exceptional genetics to be able to that kind of crazy training at his age and not end up disabled.

Do you have any idea of how many men in their 60s in this country can't do his running & lifting workouts let alone even run or lift a little?

So many of us are have OA and are broken down from decades of wear & tear on our joints and sustaining major injuries (e.g., torn ligaments, tendons, muscles, etc.) all in the name of athletic competition.

Many of us were top athletes in our prime and did all the right things in terms of cross training, strength training, nutrition, supplements, etc., and we still ended up in the trash heap in our middle-age.

Genetics are a hugh factor with today's middle-age monsters.

Let's Tell It Like It Is wrote:

Ol fisk is still mobile and still trying to race fast and short.

Well...then he's got exceptional genetics to be able to that kind of crazy training at his age and not end up disabled.

Do you have any idea of how many men in their 60s in this country can't do his running & lifting workouts let alone even run or lift a little?

So many of us are have OA and are broken down from decades of wear & tear on our joints and sustaining major injuries (e.g., torn ligaments, tendons, muscles, etc.) all in the name of athletic competition.

Many of us were top athletes in our prime and did all the right things in terms of cross training, strength training, nutrition, supplements, etc., and we still ended up in the trash heap in our middle-age.

Genetics are a hugh factor with today's middle-age monsters.[/quote]

Most of them can't because they never have

Many were top athletes in their prime? Nonsense. Most folks are never very athletic or even active.

I'll be 65 next month. My last race was at 59 and that year I ran only one race. In my 50's I was getting my recurrent injuries, the racing and training for racing were no longer in my best health interest. During my 50's I progressively cut down my racing and training.

I currently bike, some running, hike, walk, lift, kayak and some skiing. Longer runs bother me now so I don't usually run more than 5 miles. Mostly I do a very short run right after a 40 minute bike for a great workout. I am very fit and most are surprised when I tell them my age.

The sport was good to me, but I had to know when to cut down and get out of the competitive side. I never did marathons the longest races were 1/2 marathons and for a few years I went the sprint triathlon route when I wasn't recovering well from running.

But, life is such, that no one stays healthy for ever. I enjoy where I am now though. Nothing lasts forever.

I did try HIIT not too long ago but even when I modified the exercises, it was tough on my body and I couldn't recover well.

A subtle difference wrote:

Most of them can't because they never have

Many were top athletes in their prime? Nonsense. Most folks are never very athletic or even active.

What the heck are you talking about? Have you seen some of these former pro & elite athletes now in their middle-age? Look at the football players and how beat up they are. Try the basketball players and see what they look like now. Many of them have so many joint problems it's unbelievable. And how about some of the elite runners from the glory years of the 80s & 90s? Is Salazar able to run at all? How about Bob Kennedy? I hear Dick Beardsley is running but it's on double knee replacements.

Just curious: How many miles do you run per week now? Also, what type of injuries were experiencing in your 50's?

I’m 62 and I recently decided after 50 years of training and racing that I’m done. Knees, hips and back all work perfectly, I run without pain and want to keep it that way. I’ve seen too many friends in my age cohort fall by the wayside with chronic injuries, so I decided it made sense at this stage of the game to try to keep what I’ve got, cut back to running every other day, 30-40 minutes most days, and 75-90 minutes on Sunday, all of it slowly. My last hurrah was a 5:27 mile on the track last summer.

I am a decent (sub-18 5k at age 49, sub-19 at age 50) but not big talent. I have been in the 30-50 mpw range most of my adult life with only a few weeks or a couple of months off for overuse injuries. At 69 and recently retired I have been averaging 50 mpw and one hard and one medium workout since the beginning of this year. So far, no problems with this level of training.

Injured Ivan wrote:

A subtle difference wrote:

Most of them can't because they never have

Many were top athletes in their prime? Nonsense. Most folks are never very athletic or even active.

What the heck are you talking about? Have you seen some of these former pro & elite athletes now in their middle-age? Look at the football players and how beat up they are. Try the basketball players and see what they look like now. Many of them have so many joint problems it's unbelievable. And how about some of the elite runners from the glory years of the 80s & 90s? Is Salazar able to run at all? How about Bob Kennedy? I hear Dick Beardsley is running but it's on double knee replacements.

I'm talking about random old people, not former elites of running or other sports.

I am 69 and fine wrote:

I am a decent (sub-18 5k at age 49, sub-19 at age 50) but not big talent. I have been in the 30-50 mpw range most of my adult life with only a few weeks or a couple of months off for overuse injuries. At 69 and recently retired I have been averaging 50 mpw and one hard and one medium workout since the beginning of this year. So far, no problems with this level of training.

Love it. Runners in their 60s, 70s and beyond are my inspiration, truly. You can only be an "elite" for a very small window relative to the rest of your life. Best wishes for continued health and running.

I'm not in this age class yet but I've been running pretty steadily for about 35 years. I'll be 50 next year.

I mainly focused on shorter races but coming at it from more of an endurance side of things.

I first broke 18 in 1986 and could still do it as of last fall. It feels good to still be a decent athlete for when the situation calls for it. I can still jump in a soccer or hockey game and keep up.

Yessiree Bob wrote:

I’m 62 and I recently decided after 50 years of training and racing that I’m done. Knees, hips and back all work perfectly, I run without pain and want to keep it that way. I’ve seen too many friends in my age cohort fall by the wayside with chronic injuries, so I decided it made sense at this stage of the game to try to keep what I’ve got, cut back to running every other day, 30-40 minutes most days, and 75-90 minutes on Sunday, all of it slowly. My last hurrah was a 5:27 mile on the track last summer.

A little bit of speed goes a long ways so why give it all up?

Why not do 3 or 4 races a year with modest buildups and keep a few striders and maybe a tempo a few times a month.

I feel like we are taught to either put in 100 percent effort training / racing or jog . There is the mediocre alternative that several of us on the 50+ thread have opted for. You can get 90 percent of your best off 50 percent of your training. It is squeezing out the last 10 percent that exacts a huge tole on our aging bodies. Anyhow I might also be totally full of baloney but I am and have been doing this for 6 months and feel good without the aches and pains. For example 2 days ago I did 8x400 nice straight flat section of road measured with google earth. My rest was slow down turn around and go. I ran 6:20 pace it was pretty easy and I recovered well. Now if I was doing 100 percent training I would have done 12 at 6:10 pace and felt like crapola for 3 or 4 days. Big difference but the performance result is not so different . Go over and take a look at what Sean Wade just did this:

8 x 200 with 200 jog

31.4, 30.8, 30.7, 30.6

30.2, 30.6, 30.5. 30.4

Jog 12 min

800 at mile goal

32.9, 33.3, 33.4, 33.4

2:12.89

Jog 400

400@ 64.4

Jog 200

31.9

Jog 12 min

3 x 1600 with 400 jog

5:04, 5:10, 5::10

Cheers

Ya think he is going to last long? The way I see it is do not rust out or burn out just fade out slowly;)

Consider joining the sub 6 after 60 club keep breaking 6 for as long as you can without breaking your body that is and when that gets too tough do the sub 7 after 70 or what ever sub 8 at 80 sub 9 at 90 and sub 10 at 100!