Plenty of seniors enjoy physical and mental health benefits from running, and at a certain point, if they want to continue, sustainability is on their minds.
For Keith Willey, 66, reading and conscientious training have helped with this goal.
“There are lots of wonderful and inspiring writers, and I enjoy reading about running and get a lot of insights about how to sustain it and even why we run,” he told the AJC.
“Run Less, Run Faster,” a volume he said serves as a training guide for navigating injuries, and building distance or speed has been instrumental in his regimen.
Credit: Contributed
Credit: Contributed
‘Don’t just push through’
Willey picked up running as a teenager. Today, he maintains a three-day-a-week training program, which typically begins with interval work. An intermediate-pace run of five to seven miles follows on another day, and he wraps the week with six to 10 miles on the final day at long pace — a running term for a comparatively slower speed.
He raced competitively in his younger years, and he still participates in road races here and there. He sometimes draws from his wealth of knowledge as a physical therapist, when he advises his fellow senior runners to keep tabs on what’s going on with their bodies, especially if they begin experiencing pain.
“Don’t just push through,” he said. “Know what your resting heart rate (is and) what your maximum heart rate should be, which is a very simple equation. And know what your exercise zone is. And even knowing if you’re doing a hard workout one day versus a moderate workout another day — high intensity versus moderate intensity. One way that I’ve been able to sustain it is to apply my knowledge as a physical therapist to my own injuries and to my training programs.”
For runners with underlying health conditions, talking to a physician or physical therapist about suitable programs is also a good idea, he said. For Willey, simply paying attention pays off.
“I think it becomes even more important that we listen to our bodies — that we stretch, that we warm up. I am a very strong advocate of keeping a journal — a training journal — but also, a pain journal,” he said. “There are certain things like Achilles tendonitis that simply need rest.”
Healthy weight loss has also factored into his prolonged running career.
“From the time I was 40 until I got into my 60s, I’ve never been a heavy person, and my BMI has always been in the healthy range, but knowing that I wanted to continue running, I got lighter, so I lost 20 pounds,” he said. “Really, it’s about impact on my joints, and yes, I can feel the difference.”
Competition and sustainability
Patrice Combs, 65, also began running at a relatively young age. She and a college roommate would jog around as a way to destress. She continued the practice after having children, running in her neighborhood at the beginning of each day. She entered and won a local race around age 30.
Credit: Contributed
Credit: Contributed
The racing continued, and when she moved to Atlanta in 1994, she qualified for her age group for the Atlanta Track Club’s competitive team. She now competes on the ATC Masters Team, with which she travels nationally, frequently finishing first in her age group. The social opportunities and the mental health benefits are her motivation to run regularly.
“I feel better, I sleep better — I sleep so much better when I exercise, and it just kind of is my stress release,” she said.
Suitable equipment helps her keep going: Combs keeps a mileage tally on her shoes.
“After 500 miles, I discard them because they’ve broken down,” she said. “You can’t tell from the outside of the tread because I do a lot of treadmill, but the inside — the cushioning and whatever foam and stuff they put in there gets compressed, so it doesn’t give you as much support, but getting fitted with proper shoes is paramount because it can affect your ankles, which can affect your knees and your hips and your back and your spine. It’s like a chain reaction.”
Like Willey, Combs reads about running — Runner’s World is a favorite periodical. And she maintains a strict training program; direction from ATC coaches, she said, has helped her stay healthy as she competes.
“I really religiously follow my training,” she said. “When I have to take a rest day, I take a rest day. When I have to do speed work, I do speed work, whether I like it or not.”
Crosstraining has been beneficial, too, she said.
“I take yoga classes, and I do strength training a couple of days a week,” she said. “I just think it’s good to use all those muscles, and I want to have longevity — I just want to keep on going.”
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