Sprinting At 60
Thursday, February 8, 2024:
Today, after a good forty years, I completed a track workout. Last fall, I had an epiphany: I loved running track in high school and for a year in college. My last track and field meet was in 1983! At the end of that season, I altered my path in life, choosing a direction that led away from track teams and meets. But after a particularly serene meditation last October, I realized that (especially now that I am retired and free to do pretty much what I like) I could still run track. I started poking around on the web, and I discovered information about Masters Track and Field--teams and meets for adults all across the country (and even the world!). I got really inspired when I found William Yelverton's blog (Sprint Forever: The Ageless Athletic Spirit: Masters Track training and lifestyle of a 60+ sprinter). I made a decision that I would apply myself and train. I'm 59 years old (I'll be 60 in May!), and I feel great.
Since I retired two and a half years ago, I have found a lot of joy in Pilates (which I do three times a week [two private lessons at the Drexel University studio (next door to the UPenn campus) with an amazing instructor named Megan Gilmartin, as well as a duet mat class once a week]); I also run for at least 30 minutes 5-6 days each week (usually on treadmill at the gym, but at least two days outside); and finally I like to weight train about 5 times a week. My height is 5 foot 10.5 inches, and I weigh 156.5 pounds.
But today was the day: back on the track! I really don't have a solid idea about how to train at this point in my life. My main event in high school and college was the 400 meter race (once around the track). I also competed in the 100, 200, and 800 meter races from time to time; I was always a member of the 4x400 meter relay team; in high school I was a member of the 4x100 meter relay team as well. When I was younger, like in junior high and grammar school, I loved competing in the long jump, and sometimes the high jump, too. My thinking today was to start with the race I was best at--the 400 meters--and just see how it would go. I ended up running four 400 meter dashes, with a 200 meter walk/rest between each. I was already warmed up when I got to Franklin Field at UPenn today, as I had run to the Pilates studio, completed a Pilates session, and then ran back to the field. I arrived at noon. It was bright and sunny, about 50 degrees, and a slight wind. I was wearing my Hoka Bondi 8 running shoes (which I love for running and the gym . . . but I may need to look for shoes that will be better on the track . . . we'll have to see).
Here's how the times went (roughly timed myself using my Apply watch--using Workouts app with "high intensity training" function and "segments" option--and overall this way of timing myself was cumbersome, and I may need to look for some kind of stopwatch I can operate with my fingers):
1st 400: 1:37
2nd 400: 1:26
3rd 400: 1:21
4th 400: 1:20
I can't speak to whether or not these times are particularly "good" or "bad," mainly because of the fact that I haven't run around a track (being timed) in over 40 years! So I am simply measuring my accomplishment on how each lap made me feel. To be totally honest, it felt pretty dang good! Sometime toward the end of my first 400, at about the 300 meter mark, I did notice myself thinking: this is a lot more challenging than I thought it would be / or than I remember it being when I was 19. But my next thought, as soon as I crossed the finish line, was one of gratitude. I thanked my body for all it's effort, for allowing me to feel that sensation again, for taking me around the track with relative ease and grace. No pain, no issues. If I had to estimate my effort on this first one . . . IDK, maybe all out for where I was mentally today. Each subsequent 400 I ran faster (which in itself is a small miracle). I'd like to think I completed each lap with 80-90% effort, as that gives me room to improve. To win a race at my age (competing against guys who are 55-59 years old), I think I would need to race in the mid 50s. So if I really commit to this venture, I will need to train regularly, devise an effective workout plan, and really improve if I can ever hope to be a strong contender. Exciting! It's rather humbling to compare these times today, though, to how fast I ran 40 years ago. When I competed in the California State high school meet in Sacramento in 1982, my best time in the 400 meters was 48.51 seconds. Clearly I have to watch my expectations, but also I look forward to improving week to week!
Thanks for coming along on this journey with me!
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View of the stadium today
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One more video: finishing my last 400 today:
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