UKC

I have always run and run comfortably, on roads, on trails, on mountains, on anything.

But recently, I seem to be uncomfortable, I feel like I have lost something.

I am wondering, at nearly 51, am I having a mid life running crisis?

I am sore, I ache, I feel tired, my toes are losing nails at a ridiculous rate.....does any of this sound familiar?

Any advice?

In reply to wildirishman: Get a bike. I did - and the days of worrying about when my calf's going to "go" next are long gone. I run three or four times a month for the crack, rather than as part of my training. I'm lighter, fitter and stronger than I've been for years (including years when I was running some relatively respectable race times) - back in 32" kecks for the first time in about 20 years too!

In reply to wildirishman:


How long have you been running? I heard that a lot of people who have been running since their teens burn out by late 30s. I'm nudging 40 and only took up running in the last 4-5 years so am hoping if I take it easy I'll have another decade or two in me.

Maybe take a break and do something different for a few weeks. I often plateau with training and during the summer when miles are long and the calendar is full I tend to struggle more with motivation.

I'm XC skiing at the moment - its a nice workout, cross training and I'm just enjoying the scenery rather than trying to push any numbers. When the snow clears I'll get back into running more seriously, but will be refreshed and up for the challenge.

In reply to wildirishman:

Hi I have just come out if a period you mention running hard for the last 40 years it became a little boring and didn't like being off the front pack.
Lasted a couple if years coinciding with a busy period at work, I have now lossed a bit if weight which helped in me pushing the training up a level so feeling like it's training again not just going out for a run.

In reply to wildirishman:

What he said above: get a bike. I started picking up injuries in my 40's: just niggles and suchlike, but it meant that running became a chore rather than a pleasure. Because I wasn't really enjoying it, the niggles became disproportionally important. Now I train more than I used to, with fewer niggles, and I enjoy my running because it's a privilege rather than an entry on a training schedule. (I started weight training too, to try and counteract old age strength loss: that helped as well.)

In reply to wildirishman:

Thank you for the replies. With regard to the bike issue, it isn't one. Any local trips I do are always either on foot or on a bike. I have several bikes and cycle a lot.

I always thought the 'burning out' was a myth. I have been running to keep up my aerobic fitness levels for nearly 40 years.

Maybe is its true......

In reply to wildirishman:

I am only 36, but have been running for a long time, the last 4-5 years fairly seriously, training 6 days a week, often twice. Since last September I am picking up one little niggle after another and fun has been greatly reduced because of this
I have started cycling, swimming and Yoga, in order to diversify, but so far I have failed to replicate the fun to be had running through the hills, and my condition has not improved either.
That's not much advice for you, just adding to the rant

In reply to dmhigg:

For the last few years I've binned the parts of running I don't like (roads/cross country/speed training) just to run (very)long on the hills. I'm actually just beginning to get back the mindset for a bit of racing.

In reply to Steff - i trained pretty hard for 10 years, and that meantime 7 days a week and twice a day for 4,5 of those. Normally i would take 3 weeks off in the autumn, and that was pretty normal for other people doing a lot. Nothing the first week or so, then 2 * a week for the next two! and just short.

I was also pretty tired of raring post that, but still liked running so i just did/ do the bits i enjoyed. I think you need to be flexible about what you enjoy and can practically do. The issue with cycling is the time required, and travelling. A mix is best i think

In reply to wbo: I used to think that I needed more time for cycling (ie if it wasn't 2hrs+ it was pointless) but now I happily do 18-20 miles after work in an hour or so, and treat it like I used to do running sessions - sometimes I'll go hard and other times it's a recovery session. I try to get 100 miles in Mon-Fri (usually over 4 rides) then another 100+ at the weekend.

Speaking of which, I've got 6,000' of climbing to work out of my legs, so off for a recovery!

In reply to wildirishman:

Could your gait have changed. Might be worth investigating different shoes as the wrong shoes could explain a number of those issues (although to be fair not all ...)

In reply to AlisonSmiles:

Copy that! I used to wear neutral shoes but in my early 50's I had to change to support shoes (Pegasus to Triax to be exact) Strangely my "wet foot" print doesn't look like my arch has sagged but I just seemed to need them.
Now in my early 60's mmy left ankle seems to be commpletely knackered so I'm upping my bike time....

In reply to AlisonSmiles:

My gait....never thought of that. I had a motorcycle accident a few years ago, it messed me up a bit.

Who would check out my gait?

The shoes are not an issue, they get replaced regularly, but maybe I need to get that checked, maybe a different brand/type....

Thanks again everyone for the input...giving me things to think about.