PRs still motivate me, along with enjoyment of training. Although I think the enjoyment of training comes from expecting a PR, possibly lol.
Ran 5ks just during summer months for a few years in my late twenties and early thirties. Had zero clue how to train. Just ran hard 5k 3x a week. Fast forward over a decade and it made my PR not so hard to reach, in fact I’ve taken 30sec off of it. Hopefully shave another 10 sec off very soon.
Only hobby I ever enjoyed. 47 years/100,000 miles and totally broken down now.
This is the first year I’ve included walking in my distance life. I have to. No choice. I was lucky in that racing was never the most important thing for me.
I liked keeping a log. Watching the miles add up like a bank passbook, watching that mileage savings account add up each year. The sights, sounds and smells of being out there. I even become familiar with sealed cracks in the roads, the shapes and sizes of that tarry design, manhole covers… all that esoteric crap ha
You need a 'WHY'. Start off with a why. Then ask yourself, 'Why that why?'. Then drill down on that second 'why' and ask yourself, 'Why that why?'. And keep drilling down till you can't go any further. There will be your 'Root WHY'. If your 'why' is something superficial like bragging rights or medals - good luck. If your 'WHY' is more philosophical (and the deeper the better) you'll wake up at 3:00 am every morning chomping-at-the-bit to go running. I discovered my 'WHY' at 65 and its been assholes and elbows every since.
Only hobby I ever enjoyed. 47 years/100,000 miles and totally broken down now.
This is the first year I’ve included walking in my distance life. I have to. No choice. I was lucky in that racing was never the most important thing for me.
I liked keeping a log. Watching the miles add up like a bank passbook, watching that mileage savings account add up each year. The sights, sounds and smells of being out there. I even become familiar with sealed cracks in the roads, the shapes and sizes of that tarry design, manhole covers… all that esoteric crap ha
I’m coming to the end of a great running life.
I had the same thought in my late 40s. Just felt broken. But some motivation clicked when I hit 50. Went back to working hard again this time with strength training. And I set a marathon PR last year at 53.
I'm a washed up collegiate runner. I'm also a cross country and track coach. I'm 37 years old and I adore the sport of running. I used to train like an animal back in high school and college because I had clear goals and wanted to achieve them.
Over the last 5 years running has been basically miserable. I rarely want to run, but manage to talk myself into getting out the door. Every step I take I'm doing math on how slow my run is going to be while comparing that to my former self. I mostly run because that's what I've always been doing. My miles are pretty low and in otherwise healthy so it's not burnout in a physical sense. Am I just low on testosterone? Do I just need to find a good thing to train for? I can't figure out what made me so excited to go out for a run back in the day. Am I depressed or something? My life is pretty awesome generally I just wish I was still motivated to train.
What are some of your strategies and tips to keep on training after 35 that worked for you?
I'm intrinsically motivated to run. The racing and PBs are fun, but they are just icing on the cake for me. I recommend trying different types of physical activity that you've never explored before, both aerobic and anaerobic, because you may find you are more intrinsically motivated to engage in those compared to running. I also agree with the poster who recommended sprints and jumps.. and will throw weight training in there too. Putting on muscle and strength can do wonders for your confidence and motivation as you age.
I'm a washed up collegiate runner. I'm also a cross country and track coach. I'm 37 years old and I adore the sport of running. I used to train like an animal back in high school and college because I had clear goals and wanted to achieve them.
Over the last 5 years running has been basically miserable. I rarely want to run, but manage to talk myself into getting out the door. Every step I take I'm doing math on how slow my run is going to be while comparing that to my former self. I mostly run because that's what I've always been doing. My miles are pretty low and in otherwise healthy so it's not burnout in a physical sense. Am I just low on testosterone? Do I just need to find a good thing to train for? I can't figure out what made me so excited to go out for a run back in the day. Am I depressed or something? My life is pretty awesome generally I just wish I was still motivated to train.
What are some of your strategies and tips to keep on training after 35 that worked for you?
I think 35-40 is a tough age for a runner. Hard - but not impossible - to maintain form from 10 years ago, but not truly in the Master division yet (I know they do 'sub-master' now, but it's a bit of a Mickey Mouse division).
My personal experience was that I was still running track in England in my mid-30s and ran very close to my every best steeplechase at 35. Late 30s, I came to US and found I could still be quite competitive in local 5ks, and focused on them, and just running the best 5k times I could.
That got me to 40+ when I could concentrate on the Masters Division. At the time I lived in New York, so did indoor track as well as road racing. I've continued to compete as a master for the last 25 years, running the USATF Championships several times, as well as the World Senior Games.
At 37, you would be well-placed to build up steadily for the 40+ Masters Division, whether it is road, country or indoor and outdoor track. That could offer a bunch of new targets, and trying to improve in age graded terms. You have to make adjustments for age - more days between hard sessions, maybe cross-training, but that's all part of the new challenge.
I have to say that without competition, I wouldn't have the motivation to keep in shape, so it's given me 30+ years of purposeful training and racing after that 35 year point.
Dutch steeple record holder (8:04) ran it when he was 36. One of the most impressive 35+ performance I've seen
My weight was consistent before I turned 30, irrespective of what I ate or did. Once I crossed that barrier, I started pulling on kilos. Running helps me keep that in control. It also feels good to be in the kind of shape that enables one to place well in community/group competitions and stuff.
Seeing older worn-down people who didn't take care of themselves and now have poor outcomes for hospital stays. If you ever have a surgery you'd want to go into that surgery in the best possible shape. That will determine your long term outcome and recovery.
Also, with age you pretty much automatically move up into the higher percentile of top people within your age group since the number of people keeping in shape dwindles considerably after 40.
And you pretty much become a role model to other people in their 40's, 50's, 60's, attaining a sort of fitness status that you didn't have when you were younger. So it could be ego-driven as well.
I think most serious runners just do it for the psychological benefits. Dopamine feedback loop, etc.
I'm late 30's and it's striking to see how many of my classmates who were more athletic than me in high school now had dad bods and generally look like they couldn't run a lap around the block.
Testosterone levels go on a gradual decline after 30 every year and with that a loss of muscle mass unless you work hard to keep it.
Also, the socialization aspect. Depending on where you're run, you're likely to mingle with people all across the age spectrum. I run the same routes that the college XC team passes through. And of course races give a socialization aspect as well.
My advice to OP is to stop running and don’t exercise at all for 2-3 years, during which eat a lot of junk and gain 30-40 pounds. If you choose to resume running, you’ll be at a completely new, god-awful baseline; you’ll be motivated by significant improvements if you elect to stick with it and might be thrilled to make it back to anything resembling where you are today.
You need a 'WHY'. Start off with a why. Then ask yourself, 'Why that why?'. Then drill down on that second 'why' and ask yourself, 'Why that why?'. And keep drilling down till you can't go any further. There will be your 'Root WHY'. If your 'why' is something superficial like bragging rights or medals - good luck. If your 'WHY' is more philosophical (and the deeper the better) you'll wake up at 3:00 am every morning chomping-at-the-bit to go running. I discovered my 'WHY' at 65 and its been assholes and elbows every since.
Did this last night and ended up at a strip club.... Oops.
I think 35-40 is a tough age for a runner. Hard - but not impossible - to maintain form from 10 years ago, but not truly in the Master division yet (I know they do 'sub-master' now, but it's a bit of a Mickey Mouse division).
My personal experience was that I was still running track in England in my mid-30s and ran very close to my every best steeplechase at 35. Late 30s, I came to US and found I could still be quite competitive in local 5ks, and focused on them, and just running the best 5k times I could.
That got me to 40+ when I could concentrate on the Masters Division. At the time I lived in New York, so did indoor track as well as road racing. I've continued to compete as a master for the last 25 years, running the USATF Championships several times, as well as the World Senior Games.
At 37, you would be well-placed to build up steadily for the 40+ Masters Division, whether it is road, country or indoor and outdoor track. That could offer a bunch of new targets, and trying to improve in age graded terms. You have to make adjustments for age - more days between hard sessions, maybe cross-training, but that's all part of the new challenge.
I have to say that without competition, I wouldn't have the motivation to keep in shape, so it's given me 30+ years of purposeful training and racing after that 35 year point.
Dutch steeple record holder (8:04) ran it when he was 36. One of the most impressive 35+ performance I've seen
Man, I ran 9:58 when I was 19 so I've already driven that road.