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September 13, 2009
some good things about the race I ran today
1. it wasn't raining.
2. I got there in plenty of time to register, warm up, etc
3. I got to see my friend Aaron and his parents and some other people I haven't seen in a while.
4. I got to practice starting uphill, a little ways back from the line, on a 10ft-wide course, in a field of several hundred people.
5. I got to practice weaving around slower runners from the 5k race that started 5 minutes in front of us.
6. I got to run on some hills! Both up and down! One sign said "10% grade." In Florida? Who would have imagined?
7. I didn't slip too much on the parts of the course that were covered in slime from the recent heavy rain. I didn't fall.
8. I learned that I can't do a 180 around a cone placed in the middle of a 10ft-wide bike path. Not a moving 180, anyway; I have to come to a full stop.
9. I got to run the first couple of miles on pace, and it felt good.
10. By the time I realized that several of us had taken a wrong turn just before the 5-mile mark, I was hot and tired anyway, so I didn't mind just dogging it that extra kilometer.
11. As I was trying to get back to the real race course, a Smart car came driving down the road toward me. I waved, and he waved back.
12. There's a woman in my neighborhood who runs. I see her every day and have watched her graduate from the Pat-strap, run more smoothly, and get fitter and fitter. When we see each other we always wave, but we've never spoken beyond "good morning." Today's race was in a city about 20 miles from where I live so I didn't expect to see many from Tampa there. As I started my cooldown, I saw this woman finishing her 10k race. And we waved.
13. I get to do something I rarely do, which is speedball espresso and bourbon, in this case Jefferson's, a new discovery my husband recently brought home.
Seriously, I wonder if I'm deluding myself that I will actually improve anymore, especially at my age. My training is going well, but realistically: I'm 45, and I ain't no Colleen de Reuck, and I am relatively talentless. I just put in a lot of hours. But something inside me seriously wonders if I'll ever see a PR again.
Posted by joe positive at September 13, 2009 2:47 PM
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Comments
Hi - my thoughts: You're not deluding yourself. You can run PRs into your 50s if you're a late starter.
Maybe you need to change something about your training? If the same training is repeated year after year the stimulation for improvement becomes less. Maybe add some sprinting, drills, plyometrics (if you haven't been doing those). Something different. Shorter repeats (or longer), less recovery with intervals. More easy days between hard days. Shorter races.
Posted by: Ewen at September 15, 2009 5:25 AM
I could have written *most* of this post a few weeks ago. It is hard to train like crazy and no longer hit PRs. Nice were the days when the improvement curve was so large that almost every race was a PR. BUT, I continue to believe there is room for break throughs. Your training has been intense after a long break. You are positioned well.
Posted by: mindi at September 15, 2009 7:38 AM
Weird. Last post was from me, but it listed under "Ewen." ?!
Posted by: Mindi at September 15, 2009 10:52 PM
mindi: the attributions are below the comments, so both your comments look like they come from you.
Posted by: joe positive at September 16, 2009 8:41 PM
Hi!
How would I be ale to get in contact with you about sending you some stuff for your blog?? (email/phone)
Posted by: L at September 17, 2009 1:05 PM