Auviour Paris: So long and thanks for the cobbles

I found the Tim Noakes interview interesting because of the mindset thing. I tried to apply the pricipals to shorter runs and in the last 12 months have managed to improve my pace.

I think for the most part he is right. If you tell yourself you cant do it then you wont. So i started saying I can get to the end of this road at this point or I can get to 5k in less than 20 mins. Now my next goal is 10k in 40 mins and I'm pretty sure that I can do it. I'm gonna zip it up and give the central govenor a hammering.

There must come a point when you get to a certain age and you cant improve, if that is complete rubbish tell me!! At what age is that? Now thats a tricky one.  I started late in life seriously running though enjoying sport all my life and I am not a natural runner just try hard. Genes and general health must play a part in how far and how fast musnt they???

Great running there Choisty. I am going to tell myself I can run a great marathon and get on it come the 27th.

You do have to have a positive mindset before any run - i find that even in training if i don't tell myself beforehand that i can do the whole session then it becomes tough and conversely when i get to the end of hard session i think "i couldn't do anymore" and i reckon its cos i told myself beforehand the limit of the session i was about to do - there are limits of course and Tim makes the point that the central governor does protect you from pushing too far to the point of collapse which is also a good thing

What age do you start getting slower asks mcs?  From my own perpsective i started to go back in my early fifties after a number of years in my forties of doing halfs and 10k's - my HM PB of 1:28 was when i was about 45 yrs old and now at age 59 my HM is about 1:44.

On age, did you see the V80 world marathon record went last year now it is 3:15!!!!!!!!!  A mate started runnign in his mid 60's still breaking PB's well into his 70's.  Steve's point of view is that you continue to improve for the first 7 years after that it is a hard slog for incremental gains, this seems reasnoable to me.

Positive mindset is key, but it's quite easy to get, just smile

 3.54 would do for me, I shall tell the Central Governor we are doing it!! Amazing to start in your 60s and keep on going. Decades of running ahead of us.

The truest wealth is that of understanding.

Oh and he has set age cat records recently!  But still prefers the hills (drifts away on thoughts of fells)

Its one of the reasons i like the marathon challenge cos i only started doing them 5 years ago and i know i can beat my PB.  it would be physically impossible for me to break my PB for a half cos that was set so long ago.

at last, a dry sunny morning

Morning all

Oscarr - enjoy the sun

Interesting talking about getting PB's as you get older. I have been running for about 8 years, did 10K PB about 5 years ago, mara PB was 3 years ago and HM 3 years ago. I really want to try and break these within the next two years...before I reach 50!

Wet here in Derbyshire. My legs didnt like running this morning, not sure why!!! Managed to crawl through 6.3 miles and will have to plod home another three was going to do 7 but the heavens opened and the office was too near I succumbed.......to the warm shower and coffee!!
At age 47 2009 was my first half marathon Royal Parks Half after breaking the old ankle the year before, a week prior to the inaugural same event. 1.59.  

2010 was my first and only full marathon VLM 4.35. through the first half in 2.09 but blew up towards the 20 mile marker. Then ran GNR Half and went under two hours after an emergency loo stop due to bad preparation and talking to a friend at the start. He then helped me a month later at Birmingham to do 1.49 and then GNR last year in 2011 1.50 after a year blighted with a back issue........this year I have beaten the Half PB in training and in the Coniston 14 by a minute. I know I lose concentration in a racing situation and tend to drift abit not focusing on racing as the hurt tells my legs to stop.  This year at 50yrs I am going to get a marathon pb if nothing else and then hopefully a pb in the GNR which I have a place in again. Having not really run much when younger I am going at it off a slow start. Anyone listen to Ultra Talk the Comrades Special? Have a listen to the 77 year old who has run it loads of times awesome athlete its really worth a listen. Zola Budd is doing it next month her first, as apparently you are not an athlete in South Africa until you have done Comrades!!!

Happy FRIDAY.

Afternoon all - still cross training here.  Lovely bike ride this morning (weather good!) and a great masters swim session yesterday.  Trying to have positive mindset while I'm recovering from this heel thing!  Tho when I see someone running I feel a bit grrrrr...

Loving the talk about running into 60's/70's/80's - definately my plan!  I think this injury tells me my body isn't up to the 50/60 mile weeks I did training for my marathon this year tho.  Think perhaps everyone has a max mileage their body will tolerate....

Hope you all have good running over the weekend. 40 mile charity bike ride for me sunday, think it will be furthest I've done !

Hi guys just picked up on the "age" thing on this thread.

I got back into running in 2010 and am now in my 63rd year and hitting PB's from 5k to HM and just completed VLM (first ever mara) in 3:32:13 official time altho' my garmin read 3:29:08 as we all stopped on the road twice in the first mile due to congestion.

I don't know where my limits are yet but for the moment the shorter distances are the most troublesome! For instance I have been "stuck" in the 20's for 5k for over a year now and just got it down to 20:15 at Newbury parkrun in Feb 2011 while in full mara training.

Tomorrow is Newbury 10k, my first serious effort since VLM so that will give me a benchmark for the summer. My plan is to work on 5k & 10k through to mid July and then it's eyes down for a crack at Abingdon mara in late October.

Wow Mike those are very impressive times, especially the VLM time!

Interesting stuff on age/improving performance. 

Really good times Mike.

I Think you need to train consistently to improve your times at whatever age you start, if you stay injury free then 7-10 years of PB's is possible.

I started training for half’s and full marathons in 2009, but I had run 6 half's before that, I just never trained! My PB was 1.56 in 2003 but I was getting slower and slower, in 2008 I did the Reading Half in 2.24!  When I trained consistently my times started to improve, my 1st marathon in 2009 took 5 hours, this year I did London in 3:42 and my half PB is now 1:34 and I know I can get quicker.

I try and get in the right mindset before I race and set a target of where I want to finish, both a time and finish position.  The Run Britain ranking are a good motivator for me.

FH

I'm 39, just started running "seriously" need to lose about 15 kilos to get my times down to what will deliver me lifetime bests. For the moment, the times are coming down almost every time I run - which is nice. Looking forward to smashing my Half marathon time from 2.08 to below 2hrs in July and then putting a respectable first marathon attempt - but its all new for me and exciting