When Age is More Than a Number

A year ago, you would have said, “Age is just a number.”

Today, you can’t deny that your body is aging.

You’re not ready. You want to keep running ultras but it seems like you have to come to terms with the fact that you’re slowing down. It’s inevitable.

You’re just going to have to work harder than ever before to hit your usual finish times - even finish.

Hard work, no excuses. That’s just the way it is now. And you can do it. You’re strong and used to it. Besides, that’s what the real tough ultrarunners do. When the going gets tough, the tough get going.

So you start speedwork to get faster.

You push pace to get the most from every mile.

And you double down on willpower for consistency.

Except it feels like you tire easier, recover slower, and don’t enjoy long trail runs as much. Doing more, harder, is a lot…and there’s no telling if the extra miles and effort will get you the finish you want.

Plus, it doesn’t feel sustainable. If you’re going to have to work this hard just to finish, you might have to run fewer races…

The problem in all this is seems like aging but if you make that the problem, there’s no solving it.

So back up a step and look at where you started - you want to keep running ultras as you age.

Let’s solve that instead.

Running ultras isn’t impossible as you age - it’s simply different than when you were younger. It requires a better, smarter approach.

You think you have to work harder than before because you’re trying to keep the race the same as it was before. That includes using the same ‘strategy’ you always have - go as fast as you can, as far as you can, and hope it’s good enough for a finish.

Or, as my dear friend Kerry put it 20 years ago when I asked him how he was going to run the 50-mile race we’d just started, “Go as fast as I can and death march the rest.”

Now, it’s time for something better. You need to plan how you’re going to finish this course, at this distance, within this cutoff.

I help my clients do exactly that - create a race strategy and mindset plan to run their optimum at that race and set themselves up for a finish.

When you have a plan, you know what to expect and how to finish.

You see how the pieces fit together.

You know if a run/walk is the right way to go.

You know if slowing down a minute or two is worth making the race’s last miles easier.

You know how to stay out of worry traps and in charge of what you think.

You use strategy to make the most of your body’s ability instead of blaming it for getting old.

You feel confident with a solid plan instead of a vague idea you hope will work.

And once you plan one race’s strategy and mindset, you’ll wish you’d done it sooner.