The Ageing Runner

There comes a time to all runners when personal bests are no longer possible; for most runners this is almost exclusively an age-related issue when dealing with the physical and mental issues of managing performance deterioration becomes increasingly more important. Having had twenty years experience of this, I feel qualified to pass on some thoughts on the subject which may or may not interest other runners either in or approaching this phase of their running life.

Being a relatively late starter to running at the age of 32, I felt that I was on a generally upward curve of performances until I was 45.   For me this applied especially on the fells where arguably there is a longer apprenticeship to go through than say on the road. What follows is not based on a scientific analysis or indeed has any claim on being prescriptive: it is merely anecdotal. a summary of what I did and what worked for me.

To be able to run into my senior years and remain competitive, I felt I had to reduce my weekly mileage. Having run to and from work for many years, I began to cycle in instead. I resisted the urge to run every day. As I retired from work at the age of 58, I had more time on my hands to become almost effectively a full-time athlete. This involved running, cycling, long-distance walking, swimming, going to the gym (great in winter and when injured) and more recently spinning sessions.

On this training regime, I had to give up the longer races and aim almost exclusively at shorter races. To keep up the interest and motivation, variety was key for me. I have raced on the road, trail, fell, country and more recently in the parks! If a personal best is not possible, then a seasons best is a great alternative. Park runs are great source of motivation for me and have the added bonus of age-related scores also. I sometimes take on an occasional longer race, particularly those in our own club champs and try to increase my mileage in the build up. Anyone who saw me struggling up to Big Stone in this years Kinder Trog would testify to how little I had left in the tank!

I err on the side of caution and try to stay injury free because coming back from injury gets that much more difficult. I try to pay a lot more attention to warming up and stretching on the warm downs.  I also am a convert to and advocate of foam rollering (thanks Neil, Tim and Lynne!) If I am injured, I try to isolate the injury and keep on exercising either in the pool or in the gym. I also try to stay positive because noting gradual progress on the comeback is much more motivating than managing the inevitable deterioration even if you avoid injury!

I am motivated by the competition in such a vibrant club as ours. It's always nice to have blue and orange vests to aim for whether in my age-group or not! I always try to do as many of our club championship races as I can and look keenly at my relative positions in Charlie's immaculately kept tables!

After 28 years as a mid-pack runner with no victories or prizes, I eventually started to pick up one or two in the age-group categories. I never ran for all those years with prizes in mind, so when they did start to come along at the fag end of my running career, they are more keenly welcomed and relished. Keeping going, staying fit and competitive allows you to be in it to win it.

Finally, I have always tried to remember that running is a sport and not necessarily to be taken too seriously. I try not to get upset with a poor result; I just vow to do better next time. Times don't matter as much as performances. I try to savour every race as though it were my last. I try to live life to the full and don't bother counting either calories or units. I would like to say everything in moderation but that would not be true for me all of the time!  I feel it is more important to feel good about yourself because running is to be enjoyed, embraced and savoured.