The Inside Game
Tom Derderian, coach of the Greater Boston Track Club and fellow 60+ runner with a 2:19 marathon PR, summed it up pretty well when he said after a USATF-New England Grand Prix race last year, “I know what to do, I just can’t do it” Granted, Tom’s standards are high. However reconciling memories of past times with current reality proves a challenge as we age. When Father (or Mother) Time starts visiting varies significantly among runners. Debilitating injuries interfere with our mechanics. Maladies such as knee arthritis or worn cartilage make sustained training problematic. And the longer we have run, the more likely overall wear and tear. There are as many training plans and life circumstances as there are runners. But the questions remain: Why do we slow down? And what can we do to delay the onset? To answer the first question, it’s critical to probe what is really going on in our bodies as we age. First, muscle strength is critical to performance. And assuming no change in training regimen other than aging, a study of active men aged 15 to 83 by Taylor Lexell showed both a change from Type II (fast twitch) to Type I muscle … Continue reading