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April M.
April M. Sendmail

Back at it

posted 3 months ago | Report

After almost a year of no consistent running since my last marathon I have decided to get back on a schedule and start training again for a few trail races. I have had some injuries in the past and decided I need some softer surfaces. I went running on a 12 km tonight and felt SLOW! It was slow! I've been running since 2005 and 40 this year but just wondering if I hit my peak and now I'm on the downside or just seriously out of shape?

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  • Sang Y.
    Sang Y. Sendmail

    If you are anything like me, it only takes a little time to lose my fitness. I am 40 also and have been running consistently for 2 years now and continue to getter faster. You'll get back to where you were and then some. 12k after a year off is awesome no matter the pace!

    posted 3 months ago

  • Paul R.
    Paul R. Sendmail

    it will take a bit to get it back, but I will tell from my experience that consistency is the key. I also did the extended post marathon recovery a bunch of times. every time I came back it was a challenge to get back to where I felt like i was approaching where I was pre marathon. I have been training consistently now for the past 4+ years and am running almost as strong at 55 as I did in late 20's and 30's. I did 3 marathons between September and January and am back at it training for Spring race season. One thing that really helped me was joining a running group. it is great to have a bunch of people who are looking for you every morning. Good luck.

    posted 3 months ago

  • Tim H.PRO
    Tim H. Sendmail

    April; I'm considerably older than you and there's several facets to your question. The easiest point is that softer surfaces like trails are almost always slower. The answer is mostly yes but there's good news too. Physically you have reached your peak in terms of what you and your body are capable of, but your main issues aredue to what you've already said: you just haven't been running much over the year. The thing I noticed most over 40 was the drop off if I stopped training or even took just a few days off from any PT and then re-started. I'll also tell you if you're training, running or doing PT sporadically, 2-3 days per week, your recovery time gets longer. All that said, you aren't past the point where you can improve as a runner and racer. I run daily and have been racing at a variety of long distances and race types over the past 5 years but especially the past 24 months and have improved my PRs and races overall eat every distance. So, in terms of pure ability, I think we peak in our 30s; but that doesn't mean you still can't improve at 40. It just takes more focus.

    posted 3 months ago

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