The Qwer Old Fella's Marathon Method

May 03, 2024

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Location:

Tralee,Ireland

Member Since:

Oct 01, 2011

Gender:

Male

Goal Type:

Other

Running Accomplishments:

I've never worn compression socks.

Short-Term Running Goals:

To do a race.

Long-Term Running Goals:

1. Break the world record for the marathon in the 50+ age group, when I'm 50 in 2015.

2. Never wear compression socks.

Personal:

Married with two girls (6 and 10).

The Qwer Old Fella's Marathon Method is a four year experiment.

The first year (2012) was about getting back into running, staying off the smokes and booze, while sticking to a healthy eating plan and shedding mountains of lard. All boxes ticked.

Year two (2013 - age: 48) Injured Jan through March. Build back up and work on my 5k speed. Goal 15:45.

Year three (2014) will be about doing my first marathon in the spring. (Just for the experience and on a tough course - maybe Tralee; goal time, 2:30ish.) Then begins the prep work for Berlin 2015

Year four (2015) is all about breaking the world record for the marathon in the 50+ age group - it's only 2:19 :).

The above might sound nuts; it is, but then I'm nuts. Please do not copy any of the training I do: if you do, you are likely to end up running like me - not a good idea.

The idea is to have a laugh along the way. If I fail, I don't know what I'll do - my whole belief system will crumble and I suspect that this little rock might just stop spinning for a couple of seconds. Jakers, I better not fail for all our sakes. That's some burden, even for SuperBam.

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Miles:	This week:	0.00	Month:	0.00	Year:	0.00

Sat, Dec 15, 2012

Easy Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Threshold Miles	VO2 Max Miles	Total Distance
0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00

80 miles for the week. No workouts. One 13 miler with the second half as a hard progression to test my piriformis and hamstring - everything ok:) But, had to take a day off as the MTJ in the gastroc./soleus region of my left leg was giving me gyp. Everything tickety boo now.

I think I'll keep the mileage around the 80-100 mark until the end of the year and I'll refrain from doing any workouts too. But cometh the New Year - cometh the new man...

*I've just read the Debbie Heald article on Letsrun.com. It's a must read - I'm sure Jake will post the link later. Powerful stuff.

Night Sleep Time: 0.00	Nap Time: 0.00	Total Sleep Time: 0.00	Weight: 0.00

Comments

From Jake K on Sun, Dec 16, 2012 at 12:01:39 from 67.177.11.154

It was a really good article. I read it a couple weeks ago in the print version. I honestly didn't know much about her... quite a story.

Glad you're staying (mostly) healthy and getting some miles in.

From Bam on Sun, Dec 16, 2012 at 13:12:36 from 89.126.28.24

Yeah, I'm ticking over. Since I started 15 months back, I've come on pretty swiftly - but it's all base stuff. On January the 1st 2012, I ran/walked 8 miles in 88mins. I remember the run and thinking I'd never be able to 10 miles:)I went through my training diary recently and since June this year I've averaged 91 miles a week!

I'm getting itchy to start training properly so that I can get out there and race (put my money where my mouth is etc), but I know I've got to hold back a little longer. I've worked out what my body can handle - I just need to make sure that I don't overdo it etc.

I'd never heard of Heald. It was a very good and moving article. I watched the '72 marathon doc too and then ended up watching supermilers and then the whole Coe/Ovett/Cram stuff - I'd have been there all night if the wife hadn't given out to me.

Yesterday I watched the whole of the 2012 US marathon OT - what a great race that was. Hall has a beautiful style, but you've gotta say Meb's a tad special, especially for his age.

Tonight, it's the BBC Sports Personality of the Year - I think it'll be between Farah and Ennis, maybe Wiggins will be in the mix. I hope Mo gets the nod...

Life's great:)

From Rob Murphy on Sun, Dec 16, 2012 at 13:30:38 from 24.10.249.165

I can waste a LOT of time watching those old races on youtube. Loved that 76 Olympic marathon. The golden age of hair.

Cierpinski's sideburns were even radical for an East German. Man I used to hate the East Germans! Especially their women swimmers with the hairy armpits who could bench 400 pounds.

The Olympics have gone downhill since the end of the Cold War. If only Al Qaeda or the Taliban had Olympic teams!

From Bam on Sun, Dec 16, 2012 at 14:12:33 from 89.126.28.24

Oops, the '76 marathon, not the '72. '72 was the whole Munich disaster with terrorists.

I think the Cold War raised the temps when it came to sport. I remember the US and Cubans when it came to the boxing - some right humdingers.

When I watched the race I was thinking how much better razors are these days - most of the runners had some sort of facial hair. The running shoes looked painful - no cushioned/structured/anti pronation palaver going on in '76.

Cierpinski's siders were pretty cool. Wiggins probably copied Cierpinski in more ways than one...

I noticed your daughter on the blog, Rob. My daughters have started running. The eldest has joined a local club and is flying. She wants to join the blog - she calls Jake and Andrea, Ken and Barbie - in a nice way. She's getting an ipad thingymajig for Christmas, so I might let her join in the New Year, if she can blog with an ipad...

From Jake K on Sun, Dec 16, 2012 at 14:31:46 from 67.177.11.154

Ken and Barbie? haha - those are definitely our EXACT body types :-) Especially my plastic, perfectly groomed hairstyle.

That's great that your girls have started running.

From Rob Murphy on Sun, Dec 16, 2012 at 15:18:59 from 24.10.249.165

Boxing and amateur boxing were huge when I was a kid. Sport didn't get any bigger. We had this show here on ABC called "Wide World of Sports" which would televise the U.S. vs. Cuba boxing tournaments. I don't think we could ever hang with the Cubans. The had a heavyweight named Teofilo Stevenson - may have spelled that wrong - who would destroy all our eventual pro champions.

I had an historian from Purdue University in Indiana come spend a couple days with my students last year. He specializes in the history of sport and popular culture, especially boxing. He had some great insights on what it says about us these days that we don't love boxing the way we used to. Not all of it good. You should go to Amazon and look up his books Bam.

From Bam on Mon, Dec 17, 2012 at 04:40:33 from 89.126.28.24

Jake - the girls love the running. I was thinking, if I were to let the eldest join the blog it might stoke the fire, so to speak.

It was when you posted the photo's of you and Andrea skiing, some time back, that she called the pair of you, Ken and Barbie.

Rob - I'll check out the books. I remember we used to have the Ali fights on over here and then you had the "Four Kings": Hagler, Hearns, Duran and Leonard; now they were, imo, four of the top ten fighters of all time. Boxing has lost its way because of greed, stupidity, cardboard gangstas and many other deeper reasons. I'll look up your man.

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