by Adolfo Salgueiro | Feb 13, 2024 | Article, Reflection
By Coach Adolfo Salgueiro
A moment creeps into our lives when we realize we cannot perform at the level we are accustomed. A point where we cannot keep up with our kids. A point when we need to ask a teenager to assist with our technology queries. A point when we figure out the pace we ran in our 20s, 30s, or 40s is no longer available to us. Accepting it is not a sign of defeat but of maturity.
Age-group racing may be a great opportunity to keep your competitive juices alive (Photo Pexels)
In his pivotal essay Stages of Life, Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961), stated that “we cannot live the afternoon of life according to the program of life\’s morning, for what was great in the morning will be little at evening and what in the morning was true, at evening will have become a lie.”
Right on the money. Adjust or perish.
It is a matter of perspective. For those who started running and competing in their 50s, 60s, or later, it is not uncommon to continue getting better. Since there is no earlier record to compare, and they are expanding their physical and cardiovascular condition, setting a lifetime marathon PR at 65 is achievable. A different matter is when you set up that marathon PR in your 20s or 30s and no longer can match that physical output at 65.
If competition and progress are important to keep running, accepting the inevitable process of aging is essential. Dividing age groups every 5 years is arbitrary, sure. There is no scientific reason determining a 56-year-old cannot do what a 55-year-old can. But I do believe it is a God-sent system to reframe our expectations, our PRs, and remain improving within a segment of our lives. It is about picking up a battle with someone our own age and having a realistic chance to succeed.
There is a meme stating that age is nothing more than a better chance to qualify for the Boston Marathon. Bill Rodgers, the legendary lifetime runner and 4-time champion in both Boston and New York, puts it this way: “Every five years, everything changes. Hitting a new age group—It’s a fresh new world. We all have a wonderful opportunity, again.”
The fact is that as we age, we transit through life events that will inevitably force adaptations in our lives. Women go through menopause. You may have experienced broken limbs, heart conditions, diabetes, Parkinson\’s, or one of so many other conditions that tend to happen the longer you remain alive. They are physical and mental challenges to reckon with which will impact your physical output. So, accept your reality, don’t compare, and continue moving forward.
The way I’ve adjusted to running in my 50s after starting in my teens is as follows. I recommend you consider it.
Running as we age
– Reset your PRs: Choose if you will do so every 5, 10 years or after a life event. Make sure improvement is feasible, so frustration and depression won’t set in.
– Adjust volume and pace: Since your value as a person, or as a runner, is not based on miles per week or minutes per mile, figure out what is the most you can do without going overboard. It will be less and less as you age. Accept it or consider retiring.
– Set new goals: You may still brag about your all-time marathon PR despite knowing it won’t be broken. Understanding what’s the best you now, and going for it, will assist in keeping that fire alive.
– Set non-timed-based goals: Times are getting slower as we put more effort, so why don’t we better set goals based on different parameters? Running 1000 miles per year is a popular one.
– Embrace Age-Group Competition: Want it or not, you will be paired with runners your own age. Make the best of it. Choose your new rivals for friendly competition and/or bragging rights.
– Let your running tell stories: Running a sub-50 10K at 50? Completing my 10th marathon before age XX. Becoming an ultramarathoner in my 60s. Participating in XX races during the calendar year. Find your story.
Writer and lifetime runner Jonathan Beverly puts it this way: “If you don’t reset, your PRs and you adjust volume and speed as your age, eventually, your body will drop back to zero and force you to restart from scratch. So, you decide.” Sound advice.
And to that reader in his/her 20s or 30s who may think they’re invincible and this post is only for old farts: be aware that if you want to become a lifetime runner, you better get your best performances out of the way now, because in the blink of an eye, you will realize you can’t compare today’s performances with what they will be in 20 or 30 years.
Any thoughts? Let me know in the comment box below.
by Adolfo Salgueiro | Dec 21, 2021 | Article, Personal, Reflection
By Coach Adolfo Salgueiro
For this week’s blogpost I want to do an introspection to reflect on what the year that is coming to a close has been on a personal level. I just reached the 1000-mile mark last weekend. This alone is a miracle for me, even though I have reached the milestone several times before. 2021 came for me with many challenges that go beyond the Covid pandemic completing its second year. I faced serious health challenges that, held by the hand of the Lord and with the support of my wife, family, and friends, I have been able to overcome. It has been quite a journey.
This was me at the hospital, two days after my open-heart surgery
On June 23 I underwent open-heart surgery after two years of trying to manage the issue. My arteries had a wiring problem since birth that suddenly, at age 53 and having been active all my life, started becoming an issue. I also got a coronary artery by-pass.
Recovery was an arduous process. I started walking around the ICU floor, two days after the procedure despite having 13 different things connected to my body. Once I got home, I developed a circuit around my house (living room to kitchen, to living room to 2nd bedroom, to master bedroom to bathroom and back). I made sure to walk right by my medal rack so I could make sure to see where I had been and where I wanted to get back. Then the walk progressed outdoors to pick up the mail and then to half a mile. Finally, on July 10th, 17 days after my procedure, I was able to walk a full mile. One month from my procedure I was walking 4 miles a day, and after 2 months I started cardiac rehab. I had walked close to 200 miles since surgery.
By August 30 I was able to run five, one-minute intervals and two-and-a-half weeks later I ran 20 minutes straight and was released from cardiac rehab. From there I started a run/walk protocol to enhance my endurance and little by little was able to run more, walk less and rack up mileage. On November 3rd I completed my first 10-miler and on December 4th completed half marathon distance in 2:25. On December 18th I run/walked 17 miles and the next day I completed 1000 miles for the year. If it wasn’t because I am the one doing all this, I wouldn’t believe it was possible. I would need Strava proof to make sure nobody is trying to trick me.
Walking by this display kept me focused on the goal.
There is a reason why I write this, and it is not to toot my own horn. I am writing this because I am the living proof that having an active life is the key to develop a body capable of repairing itself promptly and efficiently. I have been active my entire life and have been running or walking non-stop for 14 years since my return to the asphalt. In my estimation, this has been the key to my miraculous recovery. So much that, with my cardiologist’s blessing, I will be participating in the Houston Marathon on January 16th, just 207 days after my procedure.
This could have not been possible without surrendering my health and recovery to God, while doing my part to assist. This could have not been possible without the devotion and dedication from my beautiful wife, Meki, during my recovery. This could have not been possible without the support of my family, who were ready to help in anything I could need. This could have not been possible without the support of my buddies from No-Club Runners, who epitomized why runners are such a special bunch of crazy people. This could have not been possible without being fit and healthy for a prolonged time.
So, as life got back to normal, I returned to work after seven weeks of recovery and the pandemic continued to wreak havoc in our lives; my cardiologist told me it is time to turn the page on this episode of my life. To move on to bigger and better things. And thus, as I reached the psychologic barrier of the 4-digit number of miles for this challenging year, I reflect on the year that was and the life I have left.
by Adolfo Salgueiro | Jan 5, 2021 | Article, List, Reflection
By Coach Adolfo Salgueiro
Based on where you are in your running life, your goals for a new year will vary. While for some people, making it to 1000 miles may seem like an insurmountable goal, others have been accomplishing this distance year in and year out. Some athletes break 1:30 in the half marathon on a bad day, others struggle to go sub-3.
Making achievable New Year resolutions is the key to keep your athletic goals relevant.
The point here is that to set up your running goal, or goals, for this brand-new year, it must be done in an individual and feasible fashion. These goals can’t be compared with what your friends are doing or what you were able to do when you were a young runner; and they can’t be so out-of-touch that you will be off track at the first sign of trouble or the first day when life gets on the way. Also, you don’t want to get injured because of overstress.
If you haven’t etched in stone your running goals for 2021, or if you haven’t thought about them yet, do so, now. This is what will keep you focused, especially while it is uncertain if and when normal racing will return.
The following goals ideas you may consider:
1 – 1000 Miles – Depending on where you are in your running life, one thousand miles could be a challenging yet achievable Goal. You can also set your eyes on 1500, 2000 or 3000. The key is to break it down in small chunks so you can visualize it. I.E. For 1000 miles, this is just 83.33 miles per month, or 4.8 a day if you run 4 times a week (way less if you include a long run one of those days). Last year, over 1000 members of the 1K Club made it to the 1000 mark. If you have never done it, this may be a great goal for the year.
2 – One more day of activity per week – If you don’t want to focus your running year on counting mileage, adding another day to your training is a good way to increase your activity. If you run only 3 times a week, that 4th day becomes feasible. If you run 5 or 6, this may not be a goal for you, but you can always add a yoga class, a cross training session or an easy, long recovery walk to your week. The key is to increase your activity if you feel you can fit it in without sacrificing your recovery.
3 – Strength training – It is the most neglected part of every training cycle. When we are focused in our training and our work or personal life gets on the way, strength training is the first aspect of the program to be sacrificed. As runners, we pound on our musculoskeletal system on a daily basis. Consider that every in mile you dump 3-4 times your weight into each leg, about 800 times. This is about 2500 times per leg, per 5K. If we don’t prepare our bones, muscles, tendons and ligaments to take on the workload, they will break down, and you will be rehabbing instead of running.
Sleeping 7-8 hours a night will improve both your athletic and your personal life (Photo: Pexels.com)
4 – Specific Distance PR – This goal can be handled in two ways. A) You can set up your sights and training on one specific distance where you feel confident performing and go for your best time, ever; or B) you can get out of your comfort zone and pick up a distance where you don’t feel confident and go for it. If you’ve been chasing the elusive Sub-2 half marathon or sub-3:30 marathon, you have a full year to make it happen. Or, if you dislike the 5K because it is too short or too fast; or if you are afraid of what lies beyond the mythical 13.1, then you have a few challenges right there.
5 – Sleep more – It may sound odd that sleeping more is part of a running goals list for a new year, but sleep is one of the most overlooked aspects of recovery, and thus, training. It is also the one that may take you down, if not with an injury, at least by robbing you of your chance of peak performance. In our society, lack of sleep has become a worthless badge of honor, while in reality (and science), our sleeping time is key to our recovery both as athletes and as functional human beings. The benefits of a hard workout are not seen once you finished, the body needs to repair itself and adapt to the stress we just put it through. This doesn’t happen with an easy 5-miler on 5 hours of sleep. The body heals itself and flushes the day’s metabolic waste while we sleep. So, 7-8 hours a night is part of your daily training and a worthwhile running goal for 2021.
Of course, these are not the only athletic goals you may set up for 2021. They are just ideas to help you define what you would like to achieve this year.
What are your running goals for 2021?
