Training for a marathon aged 60

Somehow I'm 59, 60 next birthday (February).  To celebrate I've entered the Paris Marathon in April.

I'm generally pretty fit (I ran Cheltenham Half Marathon last month in 1h 30m).  I race about every two weeks if I can, and do parkrun weekly if I'm not either volunteering or racing on Sunday.  I have run about 15 marathons but none since 2007.

I've found that as I'm getting older I cannot easily run every day (I used to train 6 days in 7; nowadays it's 4 times a week).  My current training, geared at the Stroud Half next Sunday, is

Tues:  about 5 miles hill training.
Weds:  between 5-10 miles
Fri:  about 5-6 miles easy
Sat: about 5 miles, including 5k parkrun at about 21m pace
Sun: 2-3 hours

I feel that I need to up my game a bit, but have to take account of advancing years.  Does anyone have any experience of being in my shoes, or know of any good and reliable training plans/strategies?  I'd like to run sub 3h 20m if possible.

Comments

  • BirchBirch ✭✭✭

    Hi Edward - you seem roughly my standard (or, I should say, the standard I was last year - this year's not been so clever) .

    I'm 62 now, but last February I managed a 1:29 half marathon aged 60, and bagged 3:18 at London marathon; your recent half marathon time therefore indicates a sub 3:20 is possible.  (My parkruns were in the 21:nn area, too)

    However, one or two caveats exist - you haven't run a marathon for 9 years, so possibly the distance could be daunting ( I had a 3 year hiatus from 2011- 2014, and was a bit concerned) 
      also I think 4 days a week training is maybe a bit light, but I accept (and know only too well)  that the legs can't do what they once could !   
      If you are going for 2-3 hours on a weekly basis, though, that is very encouraging, as I find the long runs are what give me the absolute confidence I can go the distance and stay relatively strong with minimum fade on race day.  

    To reiterate, given your half time, and the regular "time on feet" run, I certainly feel the sub 3:20 is doable.  

    If you could possibly manage 5 days (or if not, a 9 day fortnight)?  I think it would help. I would make the midweek 5-10 miler a definite 10 also, with some quality in there.

    I know most of the above would apply to runners of any age, but I hope you find it helpful, as you are very close to where i was last year, so I'm sure you can bag your goal.

    I'm happy to post details of my training from last year, or you can  message me if you wish

    Best of luck

     

     

  • Edward: very sensible advice from Birch. I would suggest that your mid-week longer run should be around 2/3 to 3/4 of your long run; also I can't emphasise enough the importance of staying injury free...and therefore the importance of a stretching and core strength routine. 

    From another 62 year old who sticks to shorter races these days, plus coaching. 

    With my coaching hat on I talk about consistent consistency, and over a period of time, progressive consistent consistency: not rocket science to work out what is meant!

    Progress is rarely a straight line. There are always bumps in the road, but you can make the choice to keep looking ahead.
  • Thanks to you all - I think the trick will be to increase my current mileage very slowly, concentrating on making the long run slightly longer, the midweek slightly longer and with some quality, and maybe doing another day if the legs can stand it.  I'm already doing yoga for core work, and next year I'll start going to circuit training again, maybe instead of one of the runs.  I'll also take a look at the mature runners thread, though it may take a while!

  • Can I just ask - what value do you guys find in cycling?  Does it contribute to marathon training?  I'm a very reluctant cyclist, but as this will be my last marathon (haha!) then I'm prepared to do anything, including getting on the bike!

  • Very impressive times Edward C. think that recovery is very important when you are older. I run 4 times a week , rest days are good physically and mentally.
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