'Mature' runners.

Evening all, do you mind if I jump in? Is 50 old or young on here?

I lived in Spain for a while a good few years back Matsmum- Barcelona region- where r u?

Bionic- I like the French phrase gras matin- fat morning. It means a lazy morning typically at the weekend.  

Hi 00 50 and welcome to the thread. We are all ages on here, some are younger and many of us are older than you. Are you a competitive runner, or just run for fitness and enjoyment?

I'm old but competitive TE, just turned 50 this Jan 

Lots of us on here are older than 50. Some of us quite a lot older!

Hubby was away this week, so is taking me out for dinner tonight as a late Valentine's day prezzie - also got two lots of pretty flowers. I made him a calendar (Feb to Dec) with pictures of Oz, Nemo and Charly. Charly did well at dog club this afternoon and Nemo gave a splendid performance in attack work.so well pleased with both dogs. Our trainer says he'll start Charly on attack work on Tuesday!

Hi 'OO'50 - nice to meet you. We have a holiday home in Spain, on the top of a mountain, 24 miles SW from Murcia. It is near the medieval town of Aledo - you may have heard of it. My absolute favourite run is here, down our mountain and up the next where there is an enormous statue of the Risen Christ at the top where I send some thoughts into the ether,  then back again. It is beautiful.  What did you do in Barcelona?

BI- The house seems very empty without Chase, and though we said absolutely never again, your posts make me feel nostalgic. Doodles do look very appealing......

TE - Will be thinking of you tomorrow.  What time do you start?  You haven't missed a single training session so I bet you will do really well.

Now the good news - I did 17.25 miles today  . Now the bad news - it took me such a long time . The run was only 2.25 miles longer than last week but took me 45 mins longer. It is possible that I was still a bit tired after the mountain run 2 days ago. Or maybe I am not fully recovered from my cold. Noooo.....enough excuses!  I was bloody slow!  Still, at least my feet know who is boss. Hope to do another couple of mountain runs before heading home on Friday.

Matsmum, thanks. The race starts at 10.30 and is 46 miles away, so an early start is essential. The forecast is below zero overnight, with an early morning frost and fog. I will probably have to get up even earlier than intended, to defrost the car. Luckily, rain is not expected, and there will be sunny intervals, but top temperature only 6 degrees. Well done on your 17.25 miles! Time taken in training is just as important, if not more so, than than the actual mileage.

I will do a race report tomorrow evening, if I am still awake. I'm not looking forward to the long drive there and back, but I will have Helen with me, so it won't be so bad.

Tired today after yesterday's baby sitting a grandaughter all day then going straight to chair a meeting all evening and no dinner.Today did a bit of off road running with the dog the a lot of gardening.

 Matsmum
Don't worry about the pace. Time on feet running is just as important for marathons.

TE
It's a bit late but have a great run.

'00' 50
Welcome. I didn't start running until I was about 55 and did all my best runs in the 64-66 range. It included a 22minute 5k, a 77 minute 10 mile and a 3:53 marathon. I'm 72 now and being indecisive about what I want from running because I can't now train as I wish to.
JJ

Hello and welcome 00 50.

I started running 11 years ago and am now in my late 60s. Can't run at any speed but have done a couple of half-marathons and a few shorter races. 

JJ - grand-daughter all day and then straight to a meeting with no dinner?? - That sounds Bad.

8.87 miles this afternoon at an incredibly slow speed, - I bet Matsmum's mountain run was faster. I blame the lack of caffeine in the bloodstream.

All good wishes to TE - I look forward to hearing all about it.

I see we have some spritely old folks on here . I have been running for 25 years or so and expect my legs to be giving up on me some tome soon.

Matsmum, I know Murcia. My wife did a month of teacher training there and we made a family visit. I didn't get to run unfortunately.

Well I'm also racing tomorrow in the build up for the London Marathon which I'll do in April. It the Buttermere Round, a small race from Keswick for enthusiasts of hills. It's 34K and includes the Honister Pass. Not for the faint hearted   

Thanks everyone for your best wishes, and I'll do my best not to let you down. It's 3 degrees at the moment, with a top temperature of 9 degrees forecast. The car is covered in frost, so I will be "defrosting it" in good time before we set off. We have been meticulous in our training, not missing a club session, or planned training runs. We can do no more now, than to enjoy the race, and finish in good condition.

00 50 good luck with your race, and we look forward to your race report.

Afternoon all,

Thanks for all your support.  The circle of life continues and Josh (Fran's eldest) has just announced that his girlfriend Emma will be having a baby in August so Levine will be a granddad 

OK, I'm fully up to date with all your antics!  Here's a brief summary of what I've been up to - West Dean was fab (Columba, I was learning, not teaching) and I ran each day, all on hilly lanes so I've done some Kenyan hills and some intervals.  Today I did 18 miles on a route with a very hilly first part (9.5 miles) with an undulating second part (8.5 miles).  It took 2 hours to do the first bit and then  1.5 hours to do the second bit which gives some indication of the inclines   Just been out for a 3 mile walk to loosen my legs and am feeling good.  My breathing was laboured on the really steep bits but not as bad as it has been so I'm happy 

Hi OO and welcome to the thread.  I'm a few years older than you but haven't been running as long (just 11 years).  Hope your race went well - sounds like a lovely route (I love hills!!!).  I'll be doing VLM too with Brighton the week before.

Matsmum, well done on your long run.  Try not to worry about your time and, as JJ says, just think of it as 'time on feet'.  If I stopped to think about my times I'd be really downhearted as most of my routes are hilly, but I know that on a flat course I run much faster.

Terry, sorry I didn't make it on here to wish you good luck but I have been sending you supportive vibes so I hope it went well.  I bet it was a doddle for you actually as you'd be keeping the pace down for your partner.

Columba, LOL at your caffeine withdrawal!  I'm doing my vegan stint for Lent as usual but I'm allowed caffeine   Someone told me today that they are allowed to have weekends off their abstenance which seemed a bit odd to me.  I always do it for the whole time.

JJ are you running the TWells 1/2 or marshalling?  I decided against doing it this year.

IW, how's your running comeback going?

'00' 50 - hope the race went well.  I am 63 and female, began running at age 11, worked my way through track, cross country, and orienteering prior to doing any road running, then managed 45 marathons and 7 Ironman triathlons before being sidelined by injury last year. Just getting back into running since Christmas, I had to have a hip replacement (titanium, hence the name) last summer and suffer through a 6-month running ban.

2000m swim this morning, 1 hour on the bike, and a 1 mile run - getting back into normal Sunday training mode! First triathlon this year on 12th May. 

'OO' - I don't think you need anticipate your legs giving up on you (or perhaps it depends on what you mean by "giving up").  Getting slower is inevitable as we get older, but I don't think giving up is inevitable unless we develop some really disabling condition.

Red - the concept of actually loving hills is one that escapes me. Getting used to them, yes; coping with them, yes; even taking them in your stride, yes; but loving them?

Within the RC Church you're allowed the day off Lenton observance if it's a "Holy Day of Obligation". In England and Wales, however, no such "Holy Days" fall in Lent. In Ireland, St. Patrick's Day does, and Irish children who've given up sweets for Lent have a sweetie binge on St. Patrick's Day. But weekends, no. I suppose you might make a case for Sundays, but not the whole weekend.

Did you learn a lot of useful stuff on your course?

Columba, thanks for clarifying the Lent thing.  I learnt loads and am busy uploading photos at the moment.  Full details will be on my blog eventually but it will take me ages to write about it!

Bionic, I always wondered about hip replacement (surely a sign of age), so you can run after the op? Does it shorten the life of the joint?

Well I also love the Lakes and the race today was indeed vey scenic. I love hills too Redhead but where I live it's flat so this race is hard to train for and is a real killer. Anyhow I ran well and came 6th in a small field of around 50-60 hardcore runners. Mainly mountain goat types with beards and stoops and feet that point upwards- and that was just the ladies. I'm feeling pleased with myself although my ability to walk is somewhat restricted this evening.

And all credit to the Vet runners. Of the top 6 finishers, 2 were 40+ and 2 were 50+ 

Red, thanks for your supportive vibes and also Matsmum.

Helen and I were running "on a high," as my Daughter has announced she is arranging her marriage in April, and Helen got engaged on Valentines Day.

The race went really well, and we finished well inside our target of 3.30, in 3.23.15, an average of 10.07, and a staggering 2394 calories. I felt much stronger during the second 10 miles (it was two 10 mile circuits) through going at an easy pace, but kept a steady 10 minute miling pace. Helen said that she wouldn't mind if I sped off for the last 3 or 4 miles, but it was her training race for the VLM, and I was there as her pacemaker. I felt so proud of her as she was able to put in a sprint at the finish, and we crossed the line together. We were very disappointed, however, that there wasn't a wine glass in the goodie bag, as  had been in the past. I'm looking forward now to the results, to see where I came in the 65-70 class, that is if they break it down that far. We have had discussions on this thread before, as how unfair it is to categorise 60-70. What chance does a 67 year old have of getting in the top 3, against young 60 year olds.

00 50 well done in your race, sounds like a toughie. I presume it was all off road? I much prefer trail running in the forest, as long distance running on the road is rather boring, and not kind to the joints and muscles.

Columba, I love hills, and always have done, since I was a paper boy, riding a trade bike with panniers each side loaded with papers, and cycling up a very steep hill. The bike had no gears and very dodgy brakes. It wouldn't be allowed on the roads these days!

Well done!

My surgeon says I can run up to half-marathon distance, but no more marathons, which of course means I can't do any more Ironman distance triathlons, except as swimmer or more likely cyclist in a relay team. I'm too slow as a swimmer to be of much use in a team. Life span of a titanium joint is 15 years. I am back up to running 10km, not very fast yet but working on it.

TE
I've been campaigning for years about putting everyone over 60 into the same age group. It's rediculous at a time when the age degeneration curve is steepening quickly. I've had some success in Kent where there is now an M70 category in the XC league.

Lots of good things to celebrate!

0050
Good result. Well done. I've always had a problem with hilly races. I run well on hills but I like aiming for PBs and the two are a big mismatch.

Red
I shall be marshalling. Haven't done enough training for a 10k let alone a 1/2m.
Your training is looking quite good.
JJ