“I accept the fact that my PR days will be behind me soon, but it’s nice to know I can still grab one…”
Recently, I wrote that after getting a PR at the Half Marathon distance. The truth is, I don’t know how many more years I have left in which a PR is a possibility. Two years? Five years? Ten?
Part of me wants the possibility of a PR to always be there. This possibility means a lot. It means I’ve still got it, or I’m still competitive with myself. To run a race distance faster than you ever have is a great feeling, but what happens when we plateau or slow down as we age? It is inevitable.
On plateauing
I once overheard two runners discussing PRs on a shuttle bus before the Bolder Boulder 10k. One turned to the other and said:
“If you’re able to run the same time every year, you’re actually getting faster.”
Initially, this didn’t make sense to me. To me, his words meant stagnation; however, he was right. Age is a factor, so when we reach the point of not getting faster, if we’re not getting slower either, this should be considered a victory for the aging, right? If age wasn’t a factor, there would only be one qualifying time for men, and one qualifying time for women for the Boston Marathon.
Yes, we’re all aging. The next race you run will be the youngest you’re going to be in your remaining races. It smacks you in the face, doesn’t it?
On slowing down
So, what happens when we get slower? What becomes our motivation in a race then? Is it to keep moving? To stay fit? To maintain a social life? These are admirable motivators. For me, it would be to relieve stress, but personally, I might be more relaxed during a race if I knew I wasn’t PRing that day. Who am I kidding? I’ll never be fully relaxed during a race. OK, so maybe it would be to relieve a different kind of stress.
Should we stop trying to PR if there is no possibility of a PR? One of my friends on dailymile, in response to my initial quote, had an encouraging quote of his own:
“Hey I’m 57 and still trying for PRs. Never stop trying.” Thank you, Glenn.
Look, we are lulled into a false sense that running and many other things in life are permanent. I wish they were, but, let’s face it, the Reaper is undefeated.
So, let’s run now, and let’s take Glenn’s advice: Never stop trying.
Yes, it flies
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